WEST LONG BRANCH?
Monmouth University Head Football Coach
Kevin Callahan announced the addition of 13 student-athletes to the Hawk football program on Wednesday.
"Our coaching staff worked very hard to uncover a large pool of talented prospects," said MU Head Coach Kevin Callahan. "From that pool we were able to land a class that met our positional needs, while at the same time increased the talent level on our team. There are several players in this class who have the ability to make an impact on our program. We look forward to working with these players over the next several years to continue the tradition of championship football at Monmouth. Academically, this class has very impressive credentials as well."
The National Letter of Intent signees include eight total athletes, five from the Garden State, two from Maryland and one from Connecticut. Callahan and his staff also welcome three mid-year transfers and two non-NLI signees.
2008 Monmouth University Football Signees
Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown High School (Last School)
Dorian Evans DB 6'1" 180 Sicklerville, N.J. Timber Creek
Kyle Frazier QB 6'2" 215 Gaithersburg, Md. Damascus
Chris Garcia TE 6'1" 220 Bellemead, N.J. Montgomery
Tucker Karl DB 5'10" 180 Centreville, Va. Westfield
Austin Kugler DL 6'3" 220 Toms River, N.J. Toms River North
Chris Luma TE 6'4" 215 Edison, N.J. Bishop Ahr
Dino Molina OL 6'4" 300 Gaithersburg, Md. Damascus
Mike Murphy DL 6'4" 260 Toms River, N.J. Toms River East
Mike Pranulis DL 6'4" 285 Naugatuck, Conn. Trinity Pawling
Jonny Rogers LB 6'1" 210 Barnegat, N.J. Barnegat
MID-YEAR TRANSFERS
Nick Bonturi LB/TE 6'3" 215 Clarksburg, Md. Damascus (Air Force Prep)
Brian Brikowski LB 6'4" 230 Freehold, N.J. Freehold Twp. (Akron)
Greg Moreira TE 6'5" 250 Orlando, Fla. Lake Brantley (Seminole CC)
Dorian Evans
Defensive Back ? 6-1 ? 180
East Orange, N.J./ Timber Creek High School
High School: Played four seasons at defensive back and wide receiver under coaches John Small and Rob Hinson at Timber Creek High School... Helped the Chargers to the school's first winning season and playoff appearance as a senior... Finished his career as Timber Creek's all-time leading tackler with 240 takedowns... Named two-time team captain... Voted as the team's Defensive Player of the Year as a junior and a senior... Earned All-Olympic Conference and All-Group honors... Was an All-South Jersey selection... Also played basketball and track, where he finished 12th in the state in the long jump.
Kyle Frazier
Quarterback ? 6-2 ? 215
Gaithersburg, Md./Damascus High School
High School: Played four seasons at quarterback under head coach Dan Makosy at Damascus High School... Won two State Championships as a starter... Completed 68% of his passes, with 31 total touchdowns (including 21 passing scores) and just two interceptions as a senior... Was named 2007 All-Gazette, All-Sentinal, All-League as a senior... Racked up First Team All-State honors after leading the Hornets to a 13-1 record and the Maryland 3A State Championship... Damascus was 35-4 with Frazier starting at quarterback... Finished career with 53 passing touchdowns and seven interceptions... Also ran for 16 touchdowns in his career... Amassed over 3,800 yards as a three year starter under center for the Hornets... Also played two seasons of basketball, winning the Maryland 4A East Division Title as a junior... Named 2006 All-Gazette honorable mention.
Chris Garcia
Tight End ? 6-1 ? 220
Bellemead, N.J./Montgomery High School
High School: Played three varsity seasons at tight end under head coach Zoran Milich at Montgomery High School... Finished his career as the Couger's all-time leader in yards, receptions and touchdowns... Earned Star Ledger First Team All-Somerset County... Named First Team All-Area by three difference area news outlets... Named Associated Press Second Team All-State at tight end... Earned All-Group IV First Team at tight end.
Tucker Karl
Defensive Back ? 5-10 ? 180
Centreville, Va./Westfield High School
High School: Played four years at safety under coach Tom Verbanic at Westfield High School... Was a three year starter, earning First Team All-Region and All-District honors as a senior... Also named Second Team All-AAA State and First Team All-Gameday Magazine... Had 70 tackles, three interceptions, six fumble recoveries and eight pass breakups in 2007... The Bulldogs became the first team to go 15-0 in Virginia state high school football history in 2007, winning the AAA Division 6 State Championship... Karl played in 49 games, starting 39 of them at safety... Finished with 202 tackles, 14 fumble recoveries, five forced fumbles and 19 pass breakups... Named Second Team All-District as a junior... Earned Honor Roll four straight times.
Austin Kugler
Defensive Line ? 6-3 ? 220
Toms River, N.J./Toms River North High School
High School: Played four seasons, including two under coach Chip LaBarca at Toms River North High School... The Mariners won a State Championship and a conference championship as a senior (12-0 record)... Earned All-Shore, All-Conference, All-Ocean County and All-Digital Sports Team honors as a senior. Named 2006 Defensive Lineman of the Year... Finished his senior season with 67 tackles, seven sacks, one interception and three touchdowns... Earned Honor Roll.
Chris Luma
Tight End ? 6-4 ? 215
Edison, N.J./Bishop Ahr High School
High School: Played three varsity seasons under coach Ron Hilliard at Bishop Ahr High School... Helped the Trojans to a 6-4 record and the first round of the state playoffs as a senior... Was an All-Blue Division selection as a sophomore and junior... Bishop Ahr was 7-2, winning the Blue Division (Middlesex County) Championship in 2005.
Dino Molina
Offensive Line ? 6-4 ? 300
Gaithersburg, Md./Damascus High School
High School: Played two seasons under coach Dan Makosy at Damascus High School... Helped lead the Hornets win the 2007 Maryland 3A State Championship as a senior... Damascus was 21-4 over two seasons with Molina at left tackle... Named All-Gazette as a senior... Protected All-State quarterback Kyle Frazier, who also signed with Monmouth University.
Mike Murphy
Defensive Line ? 6-4 ? 260
Toms River, N.J./Toms River East High School
High School: Played three seasons under coach Charlie Diskin at Toms River East High School... The Raiders went 22-7 with Murphy as a varsity player, including a 10-1 record and a Division Title as a junior... Earned All-Ocean County First Team, First Team All-Division and First Team All-Shore Conference honors during his career... Finished his junior season with 46 tackles, six and a half sacks and three forced fumbles.
Mike Pranulis
Defensive Line ? 6-4 ? 285
Naugatuck, Conn./Trinity Pawling
High School: Played four seasons at Trinity Pawling High School, most recently under head coach Dave Coratti... Helped the Pride to a NVL Prep Championship and an 8-1 record as a senior... Was named First Team All-NVL in 2007.
Jonny Rogers
Linebacker ? 6-1 ? 210
Barnegat, N.J./Barnegat High School
High School: Two year varsity player under Coach Rob Davis at Barnegat High School... Was named Shore Defensive Player of the Week twice... Racked up 102 tackles, 16 quarterback pressures, four sacks and two fumble recoveries as a Bengal. Named All-Ocean County and All-Shore as a senior.
MID-SEASON TRANSFERS
Nick Bonturi
Defensive End ? 6-2 ? 240
Clarksburg, Md./Damascus (Air Force Prep)
Before Monmouth: Transferred to Monmouth after spending one semester at Air Force Preparatory School.
High School: Played three varsity seasons under coach Damascus High School... Earned Washington Post honorable mention All-MET honors... Named First Team All-Sentinal and All-Gazette as a junior and sophomore, respectively... Helped lead the Hornets to a State Championship as a junior... Damascus was Maryland 4A West Division Champions in 2006 and State runners up in 2004... Bonturi led the Hornets to 24-5 in his three years at Damascus... Was a member of the National Honors Society.
Brian Brikowski
Linebacker ? 6-4 ? 230
Freehold, N.J./Freehold Township
Before Monmouth: Transferred to Monmouth after spending one semester at the University of Akron.
High School: Played football under coach Dom LePore at Freehold Township High School... Earned All-Shore and All-District honors... As a senior, had 30 catches for 400 yards and six touchdowns as a tight end and was selected by the coaches as the American Division's All-Shore tight end... On defense, registered 90 tackles, including 10 tackles for a loss and a team-best five sacks... Was named to the NJ Super 100... Played in the All-State North/South All-Star game... Also a standout on the Freehold Township basketball team, which has won each of its first 18 games in 2006-07 and ranked sixth in the state... Earned Academic All-Shore honors.
Greg Moreira
Tight End ? 6-5 ? 250
Orlando, Fla./Lake Brantley (Seminole Community College)
Before Monmouth: Transferred to Monmouth after spending one semester playing basketball at Seminole Community College... Averaged 11 points per game and 12 rebounds en route to a second team all-conference selection... Spent five seasons as a minor league baseball player in the Milwaukee Brewer's organization... Made over 100 appearances with four different clubs, including the Brewer's AA affiliate Indianapolis Indians... Led the Beloit Snappers in innings pitched and wins during the 2004 season.
High School: Lettered in football, basketball and baseball at Lake Brantley High School... Helped the Patriots to a District Championship... Played tight end and defensive end, where he was honorable mention All-County... Earned a 0.84 ERA in 76 innings pitched as a senior, earning All-State honors... Was also an All-State basketball player for Lake Brantley.
