CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Just 11 days after being hired as Austin Peay State University's head football coach, Jeff Faris and the Governors' coaching staff added 18 signees during December's early signing period with 15 prep standouts and a trio of impact transfers joining the Governors, Wednesday.
Austin Peay's offense added a new signal caller in quarterback Mason Garcia, who transfers to the Governors from East Carolina. Garcia was a four-star quarterback out of Carolina Forest before attending ECU and his 0.8896 composite score on 247Sports.com would have made him the highest-rated recruit in APSU history.
The Governors also added wide receiver Malik Bowen-Sims from Duke and defensive back Dorian Davis from Towson. Davis, who began his career at Western Carolina, was a HERO Sports Freshman All-America following the Spring 2021 season.
Faris and Company signed seven prep players from the State of Tennessee with three players from the mid-state including Grace'son Beach (Pearl-Cohn HS), Stephen Ellison II (Oakland HS), and Spence Tankersley (Forrest HS). Austin Peay also added four players from the Memphis area in BJ Blake (Germantown HS), CJ Jordan (Lausanne Collegiate School), Jade Kneeland (Bartlett HS), and Jay Morrow (Lausanne Collegiate School).
In addition to its in-state haul, the Governors added three prep players from Georgia: Gabe Bobbitt (South Paulding HS), Jeffson Locke (Dalton HS), and Corey Richardson (Whitewater HS) – the most from any state outside of Tennessee. The Govs also added two players from Alabama – Malachi Harris (Mae Jemison HS) and Tyler Hicks (Thompson HS) – and two players from Texas – Leon Brigham III (DeSoto HS) and Jase Skoglund (Vandegrift HS).
Finally, Faris capped off his first early signing period at Austin Peay with Indiana native Ethan Goodin (Mater Dei HS).
Bobbitt, Bowen-Sims, Davis, Garcia, Harris, Skoglund, and Tankersley will join the Governors for the spring semester and be eligible to participate in spring practice as early enrollees. The December signing period continues through Friday. Faris and the Austin Peay coaching staff then turn their attention toward the February signing period, which opens Feb. 7.
For more offseason news and updates on Austin Peay football, follow along on X and Instagram or be sure to check back at LetsGoPeay.com.
December 2024 Signing Class
| Athlete |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
High School |
Previous School |
| Grace'son Beach |
6-1 |
215 |
LB |
Clarksville, Tenn. |
Pearl-Cohn HS |
|
| BJ Blake |
5-9 |
180 |
RB |
Memphis, Tenn. |
Germantown HS |
|
| Gabe Bobbitt ‡ |
6-4 |
235 |
TE |
Villa Rica, Ga. |
South Paulding HS |
|
| Malik Bowen-Sims ‡ |
6-2 |
198 |
WR |
Mt. Juliet, Tenn. |
Mt. Juliet HS |
Duke |
| Leon Brigham III |
6-0 |
303 |
OL |
DeSoto, Texas |
DeSoto HS |
|
| Dorian Davis ‡ |
6-0 |
194 |
DB |
Shelby, N.C. |
Shelby HS |
Towson / Southern Illinois / Western Carolina |
| Stephen Ellison II |
5-11 |
190 |
DB |
Murfreesboro, Tenn. |
Oakland HS |
|
| Mason Garcia ‡ |
6-5 |
242 |
QB |
Myrtle Beach, S.C. |
Carolina Forest HS |
East Carolina |
| Ethan Goodin |
6-5 |
265 |
OL |
Evansville, Ind. |
Mater Dei HS |
|
| Malachi Harris ‡ |
6-4 |
320 |
OL |
Huntsville, Ala. |
Mae Jemison HS |
|
| Tyler Hicks |
6-1 |
197 |
LB |
Alabaster, Ala. |
Thompson HS |
|
| CJ Jordan |
5-10 |
160 |
ATH |
Memphis, Tenn. |
Lausanne Collegiate School |
|
| Jade Kneeland |
6-2 |
190 |
WR |
Bartlett, Tenn. |
Bartlett HS |
|
| Jeffson Locke |
6-3 |
235 |
ATH |
Dalton, Ga. |
Dalton HS |
|
| Jay Morrow |
6-2 |
260 |
DL |
Memphis, Tenn. |
Lausanne Collegiate School |
|
| Corey Richardson |
5-9 |
170 |
ATH |
Fayetteville, Ga. |
Whitewater HS |
|
| Jase Skoglund ‡ |
6-5 |
240 |
TE |
Austin, Texas |
Vandegrift HS |
|
| Spence Tankersley ‡ |
6-5 |
320 |
OL/DL |
Lewisburg, Tenn. |
Forrest HS |
|
‡ - early enrollee/mid-year transfer (7)
