Team psych up 201

Mountain Hawks welcome 12 as early signing period begins

12/18/2019 3:31:00 PM | Football

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Wednesday marked the start of the NCAA's early signing period for football and Lehigh head coach Tom Gilmore has announced the addition of 12 student-athletes who will join the Mountain Hawks' program next summer.

NOTE: Wednesday's initial release included 10 signees. An 11th was added Wednesday evening and a 12th signed on Thursday.
 
"We have targeted goals for each position that we are recruiting and continuing to recruit," Gilmore said. "We are really excited about the quality of the prospects that signed today. There are certain position groups that are full or near-full and there are others that we are still working on. We have a lot of very good prospects that haven't made final decisions yet, but we hope that they still wind up coming our way."
 
The first signees of Lehigh's Class of 2024 represent six states and feature six offensive players and six players on the defensive side of the ball.
 
The largest representation among the newcomers is at the offensive skill positions, where three wide receivers and a tight end have signed, along with a quarterback, Hank Shapiro out of Westfield, N.J. The Mountain Hawks have also signed one offensive lineman, Renach Gena from West Palm Beach, Fla.
 
Defensively, Lehigh as added three linemen, two linebackers and a defensive back.
 
"There were a lot of numbers that we're trying to fill," Gilmore said. "There are still some depth issues we are trying to address. We brought a very large class in last year. This class has to be very large to address the remaining issues from a depth standpoint. We're working on those throughout the process, but there are certain position groups where we feel like we're full or close to full and there's some other position groups where we still have some work to do."
 
Florida and New Jersey and Pennsylvania lead the way in terms of state representation with three signees coming from each state. Lehigh has also added student-athletes from Connecticut, Texas and Virginia.
 
"We've developed relationships with these guys and we really feel that we have high quality individuals," Gilmore said. "They are great football players and high character guys that are going to help us accomplish the goals that we have for the program."
 
The complete list of early signees follows:

Tim Bell – LB; 6-0/215; Windsor, Conn./Suffield Academy
Made 241 tackles… second team all NEPSAC… team captain as a senior… Coaches' Award recipient as a senior… also competed and served as team captain in track and field… team MVP and Coaches' Award winner in track.
  Michael DeNucci – LB; 6-0/220; Denville, N.J./Pope John XXIII
First Team All-Conference and second team All Non-Public as a senior… finished senior season with 103 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 1 interception and a fumble recovery… also scored a defensive touchdown… played some running back as season progressed.  Renach Gena – OL; 6-6/265; West Palm Beach, Fla./North Broward Prep
First team All-SFC tackle… two-year varsity starter… team captain… also lettered in basketball. Christian Jablonski – DL; 6-4/250; Ligonier, Pa./Ligonier Valley
Team captain… first team All-Conference… All-County… 43 tackles, 13 TFL and three sacks as a senior… named to Tribune-Review Westmoreland All-Star team… Indiana Gazette Terrific 25 selection.
  Eric Johnson – WR; 6-4/190; Katy, Texas/Seven Lakes
Had 46 catches for 769 yards and three touchdowns as a senior… second team all-district selection… led district in receptions and total yards… set program single game receiving record with 252 yards.
  Connor Kennedy – WR; 6-0/180; Mount Laurel, N.J./Lenape
Two-time first team All-County and All-Conference… third team All-State selection… All-South Jersey selection as a defensive back… had 35 catches for 536 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior… … also had 39 tackles and three interceptions on defense… Lenape team MVP. Donovan Lassiter – DB; 5-9/170; Plantation, Fla./Westminster Academy
Florida Independent Football Conference Player of the Year… team captain… had 26 tackles, a sack, two interceptions and six pass breakups… recorded just under 1,000 yards from scrimmage on offense with 17 touchdowns… returned a punt, kickoff and interception for touchdowns… first-team All-District honoree… three-year varsity starter and two-year captain… first team All-County. Romy Miner – WR; 6-2/190; Ashburn, Va./Broad Run
All-State honoree… first team all-region wide receiver… second team all-region as a defensive back… first team all-district as a receiver and a defensive back… second team all-district kick returner… Broad Run's all-time leading receiver… had 64 receptions for 1,385 yards and 16 touchdowns as a senior… added 37 tackles and an interception… blocked two kicks and scored three touchdowns on punt returns… had  54 catches for 619 yards and 13 TDs as a junior... added 44 tackles and four interceptions on defense.
 
Ben Murphy – DL; 6-2/240; Haverford, Pa./The Haverford School
Two-year varsity starter and team captain…first team all-league… All-Delco honorable mention… also plays for school's nationally-ranked lacrosse program.
  Hank Shapiro – QB; 6-2/205; Westfield, N.J./Westfield
Mid-State 38 All-Watchung Division first team honoree… Courier News Mid-State All-Area…. First team All-Division… three-year starter… team captain… threw for 2,133 yards and 22 touchdowns as a senior while adding four rushing TDs… three-sport athlete also plays basketball and lacrosse. Sam Sheridan – DL; 6-2/230; Sewickley, Pa./North Allegheny
All-Conference defensive end… team captain… team Defensive Player of the Year… three-year varsity player. Christian Williams – TE; 6-5/220; Jacksonville, Fla./Creekside
Team captain… 15 receptions for 193 yards and four touchdowns… also lettered in basketball where he ranked third on team in scoring and second in rebounding. Like Lehigh Football on Facebook and follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive updates throughout the season. 
 
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