ROLLA, Mo. – Missouri S&T head football coach Andy Ball and the coaching staff has announced Missouri S&T's signing class for the Miner program that will join the team for the 2023 season.

Wednesday was the first day high school football players could sign National Letters of Intent with colleges and universities at the NCAA Division II level.  Missouri S&T is bringing in 27 new players to go along with four transfers that joined the program at the start of the spring semester, a group that includes seven defensive backs, six linebackers, six offensive linemen, five defensive linemen, three wide receivers, two quarterbacks, along with a tight end and kicker.

The Miner coaching staff has signed players from 14 different states in this recruiting class, including 12 from Missouri.

"Our coaching staff has done a wonderful job of turning over every stone and building relationships with our recruits," Ball said. "I'm very grateful for how hard they have worked.  I want to thank our current team for making the sacrifices to come back to campus early, to participate in our player panels and carrying out hosting duties.  They have shown exactly what it means to be a Miner and to be a part of the Missouri S&T family. 

"I also want to thank our athletic department administers and our wonderful professors who have taken time out of their weekends to help host all our recruits.  The S&T family has truly joined us in putting together a tremendous recruiting class," Ball added. "Today is an exciting day for our football program.  We are all excited to get to work."

The following have signed to play at Missouri S&T in 2023:

GARRISON BURNS, a 6-4, 210-pound tight end from Shadow Creek High School in Pearland, Texas: Burns had six catches for 110 yards and three touchdowns during the past season as part of a team that finished as an undefeated district champion.  He was a recipient of the Most Driven Scholar Athlete award in the state of Texas.  He plans to major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

BEN DALKE, a 6-0, 170-pound wide receiver from Blue Valley High School in Overland Park, Kan.: Dalke finished last season with 25 receptions for 300 yards and four touchdowns. He earned honorable mention all-conference honors in the Eastern Kansas League following the 2022 season. He plans to major in biology at Missouri S&T.

DEVIN DUNN, a 5-9, 175-pound cornerback from The Potomac School in McLean, Va.: Dunn, who played on team that won a conference championship and was a state semifinalist in Virginia, recorded 44 tackles, four interceptions and eight pass breakups during the 2022 campaign.  He earned first-team all-conference honors in the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference as well as second-team all-state laurels. He plans to major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

RUSTY FINONA, a 5-9, 185-pound safety from Seaside High School in Marina, Calif.: Finona, who is transferring to S&T from Golden West College, was a unanimous first-team all-conference and all-region selection, while also earning a pair of defensive player of the year awards for a team that won a conference championship.  He recorded 65 tackles, eight tackles for a loss, two interceptions and forced two fumbles during the 2022 season. He has not decided on a major field of study at Missouri S&T.

PATRICK FORTUNE, a 6-2, 190-pound safety from Kirkwood High School in Kirkwood, Mo.: Fortune finished the 2022 season with 132 tackles, 21 of which were for a loss, as well as five forced fumbles and three interceptions. Fortune had 61 tackles, including 46 solo stops, during his junior season that included 11 tackles for a loss and an interception. He plans to major in aerospace engineering at Missouri S&T.

BRENDAN GROTE, a 5-11, 195-pound linebacker from Cherokee Trail High School in Aurora, Colo.: Grote, who played in a high school program that made four straight playoff appearances, had 89 tackles during the 2022 season with eight pass breakups and four tackles for a loss. He plans to major in engineering at Missouri S&T.

XANDER HALL, a 6-3, 180-pound safety from Lee's Summit High School in Lee's Summit, Mo.: Hall recorded 66 tackles, which included 38 solo stops during his senior season at Lee's Summit, which came after a season where he had 66 tackles and two interceptions.  He allowed only seven receptions on balls thrown in his direction, helping him earn first-team all-conference and second-team all-state honors.  Hall was also an academic all-state selection. He plans to major in architectural engineering at Missouri S&T.

AUSTIN HAVENS, a 6-4, 210-pound quarterback from Bixby High School in Bixby, Okla.: Havens led Bixby to the Oklahoma Class 6A-1 state championship, was named all-district at his position.  During his career, where he played on two district championship teams, his teams had a record of 30-4 as he threw for 5,322 yards and 70 touchdowns. He plans to major in mining enginering at Missouri S&T.

MATHEW HYDE, a 6-1, 290-pound defensive lineman from Andover High School in Andover, Kan.: Hyde was a standout as a lineman at the high school level, where he played at the nose guard position. He plans to major in pre-medicine at Missouri S&T.

OLUWABUKUNMI IBRAHIM, a 6-3, 275-pound center from Archer High School in Dacula, Ga.: Ibrahim earned honorable mention all-county honors as a force on the offensive line, where he recorded 80 pancake blocks during the 2022 season. He plans to major in mechanical or biomedical engineering at Missouri S&T.

SAM KANTAREVIC, a 6-2, 230-pound defensive lineman from Oakville High School in St. Louis, Mo.: Kantarevic, a two-year starter at Oakville, finished the 2022 season with 11 tackles and two sacks for a loss from his defensive end position. He plans to major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

IAN KELLY, a 6-0, 185-pound wide receiver from Francis Howell North High School in St. Peters, Mo.: Kelly had 52 receptions during his high school career and accumulated 1,918 yards and 26 touchdowns during his career…also played on defense, where he had 122 tackles and 10 interceptions. He plans to major in chemical engineering at Missouri S&T.

JAXON LOCKETT, a 6-0, 320-pound defensive lineman from Glendale High School in Springfield, Mo.: Lockett recorded 70 tackles during the 2022 season, including 20 for a loss and three sacks.  He earned first-team all-district honors and was named as a member of the Southwest Missouri Football Coaches Association first team after being selected to the second team in 2021. He plans to major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

NOAH MACIAS, a 6-1, 285-pound offensive lineman from Blue Springs South High School in Blue Springs, Mo.: Macias was named to the Suburban Gold Conference all-league team as a first-team selection following the 2022 season.  A two-time state thrower in track & field as well, Macias was named as the offensive line most valuable player at the Six Star Football Camp. He plans to major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

THOMAS MOUSER, a 6-4, 300-pound offensive lineman from Webb City High School in Webb City, Mo.: Mouser, who played offensive tackle in high school, was part of Webb City's state championship team in 2021. He plans to major in biology at Missouri S&T.

JAYLEN NEVINS, a 5-10, 210-pound linebacker from Raymore-Peculiar High School in Raymore, Mo.: Nevins had 129 tackles during his senior year, with six of them for a loss and two sacks.  Nevins also had an interception during the season and two in his career, which saw him finish with 183 total stops, 12 for a loss and four sacks. He earned all-district honors from the Missouri Football Coaches Association, which also named Nevins to its academic all-state team. He played on a team that won the Missouri Class 6 championship in 2020. He plans to major in environmental engineering at Missouri S&T.

CALE PRESTON, a 6-1, 205-pound linebacker from Assumption High School in Bettendorf, Iowa: Preston had 65.5 tackles during the past season, which included 44 solo stops, eight for a loss and two quarterback sacks.  Preston also played on offense, where he made 10 receptions for 233 yards and a touchdown.  His high school team played in the state playoffs in 2021. He plans to major in electrical engineering at Missouri S&T.

LAYNE RYALS, a 5-11, 180-pound kicker-punter from Louisburg High School in Louisburg, Kan.: Ryals made 38-of-39 extra point attempts and five-of-seven field goals during the 2022 season; his longest successful kick was of 43 yards, with one of his misses being blocked and the other missed from 55 yards.  He also recorded 33 touchbacks on kickoffs.  As a member of a state championship team, Ryals earned honorable mention all-state honors as a kicker and defensive back and was a two-time all-conference selection as both a kicker and punter.  He was nominated for a chance to play in the Kansas Shrine Bowl. He plans to major in mechanical and aerospace engineering at Missouri S&T.

DREW SANDEFUR, a 6-2, 280-pound offensive lineman from Western Brown High School in Mount Orab, Ohio: Sandefur played on a league championship team at the high school level and allowed only four sacks out of his team's 405 pass attempts; he also recorded 23 pancake blocks during the 2022 season, earning honorable mention all-conference honors along the way. He plans to major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

CHRIS SEAVER, a 5-11, 195-pound linebacker from Russellville High School in Russellville, Mo.: Seaver had 138 tackles during his senior year, including 16 for a loss and three interceptions to earn first-team all-district honors at his position. He played in a program that has played at the varsity level for just three seasons. He plans to major in electrical engineering at Missouri S&T.

JAMES-WILLIAM SMITH, a 6-2, 180-pound defensive back from Plano West High School in Plano, Texas: Smith finished the 2022 campaign with 55 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble.  He earned second-team all-district honors in Texas Class 6-6A following the year. He plans to major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

NICK STILES, a 6-3, 280-pound offensive lineman from Pace High School in Pace, Fla.: Stiles recorded 80 knockdowns during the 2022 season for a team that finished 7-3 and qualified for the state playoffs in Florida.  He was also selected to the East All-Star football team in the Pensacola area. He plans to major in aerospace engineering at Missouri S&T.

CAMERON STURGELL, a 6-3, 200-pound linebacker from Lamar High School in Lamar, Mo.: Sturgell had 120 tackles, 20 tackles for a loss and four sacks, while also intercepting two passes and scoring a defensive touchdown during the 2022 season.  He played in three straight state championship games at Lamar, including a state title squad in 2020 as it won district championships in all four seasons of his prep career.  He was a first-team all-state selection at linebacker and a two-time all-conference and all-district honoree. He plans to major in aerospace engineering at Missouri S&T.

LOUIS TRAGLIA, a 6-4, 215-pound defensive lineman from Kapaun Mount Carmel High School in Wichita, Kan.: Traglia earned second-team all-conference honors in the Greater Wichita Athletic League as well as honorable mention all-state laurels following the 2022 season.  He was a member of a city league championship team in 2021 and finished his senior year with 67 total tackles, 19 for a loss and four sacks. He plans to major in neurology at Missouri S&T.

LATRELL TREADWELL, a 6-2, 240-pound defensive lineman from Volcano Vista High School in Albuquerque, N.M.: Treadwell recorded 64 tackles, which included six sacks and 18 for a loss, and a fumble recovery for a team that captured a district championship last season.  He plans to major in chemical engineering at Missouri S&T.

HAROLD TSAFACK, a 6-1, 220-pound linebacker from Center High School in Kansas City, Mo.: Tsafack, who played on a team that won a district and conference championship, was the winner of the Bobby Bell Award that is presented to the best linebacker or lineman in the Kansas City metropolitan area.  He earned first-team all-state, all-district and all-conference honors after finishing the 2022 campaign with 118 tackles, 24 tackles for a loss, six sacks and three forced fumbles.  Tsafack also landed academic all-state honors as well after the season. He plans to major in computer science at Missouri S&T.

KAYDEN UHLMEYER, a 6-0, 180-pound safety from Troy Buchanan High School in Troy, Mo.: Uhlmeyer, who played on a district championship team at the high school level, had 137 tackles and three interceptions during the 2022 season that also included three tackles for a loss and a forced fumble.  He also served as a kick returner, where he accumulated 816 yards in kickoff returns and had one that he brought back for a touchdown. He plans to major in civil engineering at Missouri S&T.

In addition, the Miners have four players that joined the team as mid-year transfers, one that was previously on the S&T roster and the other three that will are new to the program.

JUSTIN GNIEDZIEJKO, a 6-1, 200-pound defensive back from Taft High School in Chicago, Ill.: Gniedziejko was a redshirt player on the Miners' 2021 roster and spent last season playing at the College of DuPage, which won a national championship at the junior college level.  Last season, he was in on 15 tackles and also had an interception and fumble recovery.  At the high school level, he set a school record for tackles as he earned second-team all-city honors in Chicago; Gniedziejko was also a two-time academic all-state selection. He plans to major in mining engineering at Missouri S&T.

IRVIN PAIGE, a 5-11, 175-pound wide receiver from Crosby High School in Crosby, Texas: Paige comes to S&T from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, where he was a member of its 2021 team that finished undefeated.  At the high school level, Paige made 20 catches for 400 yards and was named honorable mention all-district and was also selected as his team's most improved player. He plans to major in electrical engineering at Missouri S&T.

TRISTAN VALLE, a 6-2, 295-pound center from Bishop Union High School in Bishop, Calif: Valle, who is also transferring from Golden West College, was named as his conference's lineman of the year for two seasons at the high school level, then earned top lineman honors at the junior college level.  He was part of a conference championship team at Golden West, who also played in the Silicon Valley Bowl in 2022. He plans to major in business at Missouri S&T.

CJ WIGGINS, a 6-4, 205-pound quarterback from Gila Ridge High School in Yuma, Ariz.: Wiggins played at West Los Angeles Community College, where he completed 64.3 percent of his passes during the 2022 season for 1,618 yards and 14 touchdowns.  In the 2021 campaign, he had a completion rate of 58.8 percent and ended the year with 1,821 yards and 13 touchdowns. As a prep player, he was named as his school's athlete of the year. He plans to major in civil engineering at Missouri S&T.