Feb. 1, 2012
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State head football coach Rocky Long, who recently guided the Aztecs to their second consecutive winning season and bowl game appearance, announced the signing Wednesday of 19 student-athletes to National Letters of Intent. Of that group, 17 of the student-athletes are currently high school seniors.
Coupled with five student-athletes who enrolled at SDSU this semester, the total class is comprised of 24 individuals. The class breakdown includes 15 offensive players, seven defensive players and two specialists. The class was assembled from six different states, with 17 of the players from California, three from Arizona, and one each from Alaska, Colorado, Georgia and Texas.
Long and his on-field coaching staff remained intact following the 2011 season in which San Diego State posted an 8-5 record and made an appearance in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. That is in stark difference to last season when Long was named head coach on Jan. 12, less than three weeks before signing day.
"I think last year's class was good," Long said. "Obviously this year we were able to evaluate and rank the players better. Coming into signing day we felt a lot more comfortable because our coaches have had regular contact with the student-athletes."
San Diego State's position shows the emphasis placed on the line of scrimmage. Of the 24 players signed, six are offensive linemen and five play defensive line. Among the six offensive linemen, two are junior college players.
"If you can't hold your own at the line of scrimmage it doesn't matter what kind of skill players you have," Long said. "There were some real holes on the offensive line of scrimmage. It is hard if you do not have the line positions filled with players represented in each class. This class helps rectify that problem."
This marked the first signing class since SDSU announced that the football program would move into the BIG EAST Conference beginning in the 2013 season.
"The news of San Diego State moving into the BIG EAST was very well received," Long said. "We have more interest from players because they want to play at the highest level. There are huge advantages for our program from a financial and competitive standpoint. That certainly trickles down into recruiting."