McNeese adds 13 high schoolers to roster

Matt Viator’s first full recruiting class back at McNeese State has the Cowboys returning to their roots.

After a solid showing in the transfer portal, McNeese added 13 high schoolers to its roster Wednesday, the traditional national signing day. All are from Texas or Louisiana.

“We had a really good day,” said Viator. “We stayed within our footprint. You will see some of that theme a lot.”

The high schoolers join 14 transfers who are already on campus working out for a class of 27. That’s the third-largest FBS to FCS mid-year group in the nation.

“That was the balance we were looking for,” said Viator. “Everywhere we needed to sign players, we signed players.

“This is kind of what we set out to do from a position standpoint.  You have to fill some holes left by attrition and the transfer portal, but I also want to sign what I think is a healthy high school class every year.”

The experienced group should provide solid help this year, while the freshmen will be the base for future seasons.

Viator returns to McNeese after nine seasons away from the program. He replaces Gary Goff, hoping to restore the program to past successes. The Cowboys finished 6-6 last season and haven’t had a winning year since 2019.

Six of the freshmen play on offense. The group includes one quarterback, a running back, two wide receivers, a tight end, and an offensive lineman.

On defense, McNeese signed two safeties, two cornerbacks, and two defensive ends to go along with a linebacker. Offensively, McNeese added an offensive lineman, a running back, two wide receivers, a tight end, and a quarterback.

“We wanted to even out the rooms (positions) and the classes this year,” said McNeese general manager and recruiting coordinator Aaron Ingram. “We think we did that. This is a solid group for this coming year and the future.”

Most important to Viator was the return to McNeese’s old way of getting talent. 

“We are going to start by looking at the 50 closest high schools,” Viator said. “I believe your recruiting base has to be inside out.

“I always felt a lot better if we know the players.”

In his 10 previous seasons as the top Cowboy, Viator won eight Southland Conference titles and made the playoffs five times. His teams, however, failed to advance past the first round.

Still, with one more victory, he will become the all-time winning coach in program history, breaking a tie with Bobby Keasler at 78 wins to 33 losses. That should come in the opener next fall against Louisiana Christian on Aug. 30 in Cowboy Stadium.

Two Southwest Louisiana kids were added: Cohen Charles, a safety from Iowa, and Kevin Rideau, a wide receiver out of Westlake. 

The new quarterback on campus is Caden Dibetta from Acadiana High School. He joins Texas Tech transfer Jake Strong and a pair of returning players, Alex Flores and Devin Lippold, in the QB room. Flores has two years of eligibility left, while Strong has three.

Lippold played in three games last season, so he still has four years remaining.

Two key players the Cowboys will have to replace are starting running back Joshon Barbie and All-American linebacker Micah Davey. Viator said he would see what else if anybody else decided to enter the portal after spring workouts.

He added that if that happens, they have room to fill what they need.

McNeese will begin official spring practices on March 11. The Spring Game is set for April 12. The Cowboys will work out every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday during the month.

 

HIGH SCHOOL SIGNINGS

Player Pos. Wgt. Hgt. Hometown Prev. School

Marquez Davis RB 5-11 190 Humble, Tx Kingwood HS

Caden Dibetta QB 6-1 205 Alexandria Acadiana HS

Kevin Rideau WR 6-2 180 Westlake Westlake HS

TJ Hullaby WR 5-9 175 Alexandria Peabody HS

Ikenna Nwobu TE 6-4 230 Katy, Tx Paetow HS

Ian Carter OL 6-6 295 Fort Worth, Tx North Crowley HS

Andre Roy DE 6-2 215 Cypress, Tx Bridgeland HS

Kesean Hines LB 6-2 230 Monroe Wossman HS

Morris Taylor S 6-0 170 Humble, Tx North Shore

Brandon Jones S 5-9 175 Humble, Tx Summer Creek HS

Cohen Charles S 6-0 185 Iowa Iowa HS

Kenyatta Fleet CB 6-2 195 Hammond Hammond HS

Roman Jenkins DE 6-5 240 Baton Rouge Liberty Magnet HS

EARLY TRANSFER SIGNINGS

Jake Strong QB 6-2, 215 Justin, Tx Texas Tech

Trevon Bradford TE 6-7 230 Monroe Northwestern St.

Joseph Cryer OL 6-3 315 Natchitoches LSU/So. Miss

Eric Aschenbeck OL 6-4 290 Brenhaam, Tx Blinn College

Keenan Landry DT 6-1 325 Jennings Florida/Kent State

Emauri Sibley LB 6-0 215 Zachary South Alabama

Ryan Robinson CB 5-11 185 New Orleans LSU/Iowa State

Mason Edwards CB 6-2 175 Denham Springs Utah State

Safir Stills-Bey CB 6-2 180 Oakland, Ca Diablo Valley College

Morris Taylor S 6-0 170 Humble, Tx North Shore

Jared Quenga S 5-10 180 Elk Grove, Ca American River College

Jermaine Hargraves S 6-2 185 El Cerrito, Ca College of San Mateo

Pierson Parent LS 5-8 180 Geismar Houston

Trent Baker LS 6-2 210 Friendswood, Tx Kentucky

George Dixon P 6-2 210 Melbourne Pro-Kick Australia