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CHARLESTON, Ill. – Eastern Illinois head coach Adam Cushing had his first full-year recruiting cycle and it paid off for the Panthers on Wednesday as the program signed 15 players during the NCAA early signing period for football.   EIU addressed needs at each position as the Panthers prepare for their second season under Cushing and staff.  
 
"I'm really excited about the class and first full cycle of building relationships with these guys, some of them as far back as January," said Cushing.  "We had a long standing relationship with a lot of these guys and they are a tremendous fit for our program.  That is what stands out the most when you look at the class; we have 15 early signees, all 15 were team captains.  So when you're talking about leadership, you're talking about the right fit for the locker room; guys that really want to be great at everything, all the time.   The class has an average GPA of 3.3 and ACT of 22, so you're talking about some really positive additions to our program as student-athletes."
 
" We addressed needs with this class.  We signed somebody at every position on offense and defense from quarterback to offensive line to linebacker and on down the line.  I think that our coaching staff did a phenomenal job of identify what our needs were at every position and then going out and getting the guys that we wanted.  It's not about just their talent, it's the right fit for our program.  When you look at the number of conference championships, playoff appearances and All-Conference selections that these guys have won it's a tremendous class from top to bottom."
 
NAME                           POSITION                    HT        WT       HOMETOWN                 HIGH SCHOOL
Harrison Bey-Buie          Running Back                5-10      205       Bettendorf, Iowa            Bettendorf
Colin Bohanek               Linebacker                    6-0        210       Chicago, Ill.                   Marist
Arron Foulkes               Wide Receiver               5-8        165       Southfield, Mich.           Southfield A&T
Steven Frank                 Quarterback                  6-4        225       Oswego, Ill.                   Oswego / Butler CC
Brock Griffin                 Defensive Line              6-4        295       Normal, Ill.                    Normal Community
Tyris Harvey                  Wide Receiver               5-11      165       Olympia Fields, Ill.         Rich Central
Otto Kuhns                   Quarterback                  6-3        205       Carroll, Ohio                  Bloom Carroll
Jamari Johnson             Defensive Line              6-4        220       Chicago, Ill.                   De La Salle Institute
Joshua Johnson            Offensive Line               6-4        310       Westerville, Ohio           Westerville Central
Daniel Louma                SuperBack                    6-2        210       Porvoo, Finland            Porvoon
Jordan Miles                 Defensive End              6-2        215       Indianapolis, Ind.           Decatur Central
Phoenix Porter              Linebacker                    6-1        210       Fairfield, Ohio               Fairfield
Lester (Trey) Shaw III      Safety                          6-1        170       Nashville, Tenn.             East Nashville Magnet
Jordan Vincent              Defensive Back             5-10      185       Lincolnshire, Ill.             Stevenson
Michael Young Jr.         Linebacker                    6-0        220       Warren, Mich.                De La Salle Collegiate


2020 EIU FOOTBALL SIGNEES (EARLY PERIOD)

Harrison Bey-Buie (Running Back, 5-10, 205, Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf HS) – Played running back during senior season for coach Aaron Wiley at Bettendorf HS… is a finalist for All-Iowa football player of the year award to be announced in the summer of 2020… rushed for 2,034 yards and 32 touchdowns as a senior with a 9.2 yards per carry average… rushed for at least one touchdown in all 12 games and posted a high of 246 yards against Dubuque Hempstead… first team All-State and District Player of the Year… was the Quad Cities Offensive Player of the Year as a junior and senior, playing junior season at Moline (lll.)… led team to the Iowa State playoff semifinals as a senior… began prep career at Thornton HS in Chicago area… grew up in a military family with dad serving in the US Army, so lived in several different places…
 
Colin Bohanek (Linebacker, 6-0, 210, Chicago, Ill./Marist HS) – Played linebacker and running back for coach Ron Dawczak at Chicago Marist HS… finished senior season with 116 tackles including 49 solo tackles… added 3.5 sacks and 16 tackles for loss as team posted an 8-5 record losing in the IHSA Class 8A state semifinals… named first team All-Area after earning CCL/ESCC Blue Division Player of the Year honors… was also an All-Conference selection as a junior…
 
Arron Foulkes (Wide Receiver, 5-8, 165, Southfield, Mich./Southfield A&T) – Played wide receiver and defensive back for coach Tim Conley at Southfield A&T HS… on defense finished season with seven pass break-ups and 19 tackles… hauled in 18 passes for 307 yards…
 
Steven Frank (Quarterback, 6-4, 225, Oswego, Ill./Butler CC/Oswego HS) – Played quarterback for coach Brian Cooney as Oswego HS… originally signed out of high school at Florida Atlantic using redshirt season in 2016… played quarterback at Butler CC for two years leading the team to a 10-3 record this past season as he was 75-of-131 for 1,094 yards and nine touchdowns… rated the No. 7 JUCO Pro Style Quarterback by JCGridiron.com… passed for 5,159 yards and 68 touchdowns at Oswego HS with another 20 rushing touchdowns… led team to IHSA Class 8A quarterfinals as a senior earning first team All-State honors… team captain… twice named All-Conference and MVP while rated the No. 1 quarterback in Illinois by Scout.com in 2015…
 
Brock Griffin (Defensive Line, 6-4, 295, Normal, Ill./Normal Community HS) – Played defensive line for coach Jason Drengwitz at Normal Community HS… helped lead team to an 8-3 record as a senior advancing to the second round of the IHSA Class 7A playoffs… was a two-time All-Big 12 Conference selection… named a IHSFCA All-State selection as a senior… finished season with 54 tackles including 19 tackles for loss and 9 sacks…
 
Tyris Harvey (Wide Receiver, 5-11, 165, Olympia Fields, Ill./Rich Central HS) – Played wide receiver and defensive back for coach Terrel Alexander at Rich Central HS… as a senior scored seven touchdowns including two kickoff returns for touchdown averaging over 25 yards per kick return… hauled in 23 passes for 460 yards and five touchdowns…
 
Otto Kuhns (Quarterback, 6-3, 205, Carroll, Ohio/Bloom Carroll HS) – Played quarterback for coach Wade Bartholomew at Bloom Carroll HS… led team to a 10-3 record as a senior advancing to the Ohio Region 15 championship game… named to All-Ohio team three straight seasons including Division IV first-team honors as a senior… led team to back-to-back Mid-State League Buckeye Division championships… was 158-of-247 for 1,795 yards and 14 touchdowns while rushing for 809 yards and 14 touchdowns… also hauled in a 61-yard touchdown pass… named Area Offensive Player of the Year three straight seasons… finished prep career passing for 5,410 yards and 2,119 yards rushing with 90 total touchdowns… team captain…
 
Jamari Johnson (Defensive End, 6-4, 220, Chicago, Ill./De La Salle Institute) – Played defensive end for coach Mike Boehm at De La Salle Institute in Chicago… as a junior helped lead team to an 8-5 record, the best mark by the school since the 2009 season… team played in the Prep Bowl semifinals… as a senior made 13 tackles for loss… honorable mention IHSFCA Class 5A All-State as a senior… first team All-Conference…
 
Joshua Johnson (Offensive Line, 6-4, 310, Westerville, Ohio/Westerville Central HS) – Played offensive line for coach Brent Morrison at Westerville Central HS… played both guard and tackle positions in high school… led team to 7-4 record as a senior as team made Ohio Division I playoffs… named honorable mention All-Metro as a senior… anchored an offensive line that helped team score 41 or more points in four games during the season…
 
Daniel Louma (SuperBack, 6-2, 205, Porvoo, Finland/Porvoon) – Played football in native Finland as a wide receiver that will move to SuperBack position at EIU… is currently a member of the Finland Senior National Team after playing three seasons on the Finland U-19 National Team… began American Football career playing for the Porvoon Butchers… during final season with Porvoon team hauled in eight touchdowns earning All-Maple League honors…
 
Jordan Miles (Defensive End, 6-2, 215, Indianapolis, Ind./Decatur Central HS) – Played defensive end for coach Kyle Enright at Decatur Central HS in Indianapolis… as a senior led team to a 9-3 record advancing to the Indiana Class 5A Sectional Championships… made 61 tackles with 25 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks… as a junior recorded 88 tackles with eight sacks and two fumble recoveries… led team to Class 5A state runner-up finish with a 12-2 record… named honorable mention All-State as a junior…
 
Phoenix Porter (Linebacker, 6-1, 210, Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield HS) – Played linebacker for coach Jason Krause at Fairfield HS… helped lead team to a 10-2 record as a senior losing in the Ohio Division I Regional semifinals… named first team All-Greater Miami Conference as a senior… team captain… led team with 64 tackles adding three sacks, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries... as a junior was second on the team with 55 tackles and 2.5 sacks earning second team All-Conference honors…
 
Lester (Trey) Shaw III (Safety, 6-1, 170, Nashville, Tenn./East Nashville Magnet) – Played safety and wide receiver for coach Brian Waite at East Nashville Magnet School… helped lead team to a 9-3 record as a senior advancing to the second round of the Tennessee Division I Class 3A playoffs… finished season with 23 tackles, four interceptions and six pass break-ups on defense… on offense caught 17 passes for 411 yards and four touchdowns… named first-team All-Area at wide receiver… during junior season helped team go 10-2 making 18 tackles with four interceptions… was a state champion in the long jump at the Tennessee Small School State Championship…
 
Jordan Vincent (Defensive Back, 5-10, 185, Lincolnshire, Ill./Stevenson HS) – Played safety and wide receiver for coach Brent Becker at Stevenson HS… finished prep career with 127 tackles including 76 solo stops… had four interceptions and three fumble recoveries… as a receiver caught 35 passes for 501 yards and five touchdowns… added 327 yards and three touchdowns rushing… named to the All-Area team as a junior and senior on defense… as a junior helped team post a 6-4 record to advance to the IHSA Class 8A state playoffs…
 
Michael Young Jr. (Linebacker, 6-0, 220, Chicago, Ill./De La Salle Institute) – Played linebacker and defensive end for coach Mike Giannone at De La Salle Collegiate in Warren, Mich.… as a senior had 15 quarterback hurries to go with six sacks… ended year with 32 tackles and nine tackles for loss anchoring a defense that allowed 10.1 points per game… named Detroit All-East selection and All-County… as a junior helped lead team to Michigan Division 2 State Championship making 60 tackles with 17.5 tackles for loss… member of state championship team as a sophomore… team captain…