LAS VEGAS — UNLV signed 24 high school players Wednesday, including six offensive linemen, the largest position group in Dan Mullen’s first early signing class.
Fourteen signees play on offense. At the time of UNLV’s announcement, 247Sports ranked the class 56th nationally, ahead of the program’s previous high of 66th in 2003.
“The focus of our program is, and always will be, player development,” Mullen said in the university announcement. UNLV said nearly 20 players could enroll in January, giving the staff spring practices to begin that work.
Six offensive linemen and a quarterback
Jesus Garcia II, Malik White, Mateo Bilaver, Zach Scott, Josh Haney and Eli Sanchez make up the offensive-line group. Bilaver was named the Mission League’s most valuable lineman as a senior; Sanchez also wrestled, and Haney played in California’s Trinity League.
Derek Garcia threw 72 touchdown passes in high school and added 649 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns as a senior at Ventura.
| Signee, school and signing-day size | Recruiting ratings and reported offers |
|---|---|
| OL JESUS GARCIA II (Lincoln, CA) – 6’5, 290 | 247 Rating: 85 | Composite: 0.8644 | Offers: Cal, Colorado State, Northern Arizona, Sacramento State |
| OL MALIK WHITE (Rancho Cucamonga, CA) – 6’5, 315 | 247 Rating: 87 | Composite: 0.8678 | Offers: Oregon State, Arizona State, Illinois, Louisville |
| OL MATEO BILAVER (Chaminade, CA) – 6’6, 315 | 247 Rating: 83 | Composite: 0.8522 | Offers: Colorado State, Sacramento State |
| OL ZACH SCOTT (Coronado, NV) – 6’5, 295 | Offers: New Mexico, San Diego State |
| IOL JOSH HANEY (JSerra Catholic, CA) – 6’4, 280 | 247 Rating: 86 | Composite: 0.8567 | Offers: Fresno State (prior commit), Air Force, Army, Colorado State, Cornell |
| IOL ELI SANCHEZ (Perkins, OH) – 6’3, 290 | 247 Rating: 86 | Composite: 0.8644 | Offers: Coastal Carolina, Akron, Central Michigan, Bowling Green, Florida Atlantic |
Five receivers, four states
Five receivers joined quarterback Derek Garcia. Jesse Harden caught 19 touchdown passes as a junior and averaged 30.8 yards per reception. Vincent Carner had 402 yards and five touchdowns in six games. Peyton Zachary finished with 37 career receiving scores; Tatum Bell Jr. caught 11 as a junior. DeMari Nunley completes the group.
Running back Skylar Lendsey-Vann rushed for 955 yards as a senior and caught 35 passes for 484 yards. Tight end Andreas Diaz-Nicolaidis played at Bishop Gorman after attending school in Oregon; UNLV lists his hometown as Portland.
| Signee, school and signing-day size | Recruiting ratings and reported offers |
|---|---|
| QB DEREK GARCIA (Ventura, CA) – 6’4, 195 | 247 Rating: 86 | Composite: 0.8700 | Offers: Arkansas, Cal, Kansas, Minnesota, San Diego State |
| WR JESSE HARDEN (Spoto, FL) – 6’3, 185 | 247 Rating: 88 | Composite: 0.8822 | Offers: Kansas State, Liberty, East Carolina, Florida International, 20+ total |
| WR VINCENT CARNER (Newbury Park, CA) – 6’4, 205 | 247 Rating: 84 | Composite: 0.8500 | Offers: Northern Arizona, Portland State, Sacramento State |
| WR DEMARI NUNLEY (St. Pius X–St. Matthias, CA) – 6’3, 195 | 247 Rating: 83 | Composite: 0.8500 Offers: Washington, Washington State, North Carolina, San Diego State, UNLV Position in UNLV Class: Wide Receiver |
| WR TATUM BELL JR. (Heritage, TX) – 6’0, 200 | 247 Rating: 88 | Composite: 0.8711 Offers: Baylor, Bowling Green, San Diego State, Arkansas State, 20+ total Athletic Background: Basketball + Track (11.56–11.72 100m) |
| WR PEYTON ZACHARY (Carrollton, GA) – 5’8, 170 | 247 Rating: 85 | Composite: 0.8433 | Offers: 30 total, including Appalachian State, Akron, Austin Peay and multiple G5 programs | Interest: Louisville |
| RB SKYLAR LENDSEY-VANN (Western, CA) – 5’11, 190 | 247 Rating: 85 | Composite: 0.8533 | | Interest: several MW programs |
| TE ANDREAS DIAZ-NICOLAIDIS (Bishop Gorman, NV) – 6’3, 235 | 247 Rating: 85 | Composite: 0.8500 | Offers: UCLA, Reno, Air Force, Army, Hawai‘i |
A defensive class built across the front and secondary
UNLV signed four defensive linemen, two linebackers and four defensive backs. Poe Purcell Jr., who attended Eldorado before Bishop Gorman, recorded 65 tackles, 28 for loss and five sacks as a senior. Jordan Njoku totaled 279 career tackles at Culver City, while Cole Albrecht recorded 99, including 13 for loss, at Alta.
UNLV’s position breakdown places Albrecht among the defensive front, although the individual roster lists him at outside linebacker.
| Signee, school and signing-day size | Recruiting ratings and reported offers |
|---|---|
| DL PRIN FOX (Cashmere, WA) – 6’3, 270 | 247 Rating: 87 | Composite: 0.8700 | Offers: Boston College, Boise State, Arizona, Colorado State, Idaho |
| DL BRYCE WATERS (Carrollwood Day, FL) – 6’4, 315 | 247 Rating: 82 | Composite: 0.8344 | Offers: Ole Miss, Eastern Kentucky, Georgetown, Stetson |
| DL POE PURCELL JR. (Bishop Gorman, NV) – 6’3, 310 | 247 Rating: 84 | Composite: 0.8500 | Offers: Kansas State, Hawai‘i, Utah State |
| LB JORDAN NJOKU (Culver City, CA) – 6’3, 230 | 247 Rating: 87 | Composite: 0.8800 Offers: Cal Poly, Delaware State, New Mexico, Portland State |
| OLB COLE ALBRECHT (Alta, UT) – 6’4, 235 | 247 Rating: 82 | Composite: 0.8456 | Offers: Iowa State, Utah State, Idaho, Northern Arizona |
| LB RONNELL HEWITT JR. (Chaminade, CA) – 6’1, 225 | 247 Rating: 85 | Composite: 0.8578 | Offers: Arizona, San Diego State, Colorado State, San Jose State, Northern Arizona |
Palo Duro teammates Darien Lewis and Vern Blair signed from Amarillo, Texas. Lewis, a safety, went 39-0 while winning a state wrestling title at 190 pounds. UNLV also added safety Cameron Parodi and Tylen Mathews, whose high school work included eight interceptions and 2,401 rushing yards as a senior.
| Signee, school and signing-day size | Recruiting ratings and reported offers |
|---|---|
| S CAMERON PARODI (Cambridge, GA) – 6’2, 200 | 247 Rating: NR | Composite: NR Offers: Appalachian State, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan, Gardner-Webb, 11 total |
| S DARIEN LEWIS (Palo Duro, TX) – 6’0, 205 | 247 Rating: 85 | Composite: 0.8578 Offers: UNC (former commit), North Texas, New Mexico, New Mexico State and UNLV, 10 total |
| CB VERN BLAIR (Palo Duro, TX) – 6’0, 170 | 247 Rating: NR |
| S TYLEN MATHEWS (Lake Cormorant, MS) – 6’0, 185 | 247 Rating: 86 | Composite: 0.8644 | Offers: Auburn, Arkansas, Purdue, Arkansas State |
Three high schools supplied teammate pairs: Bilaver and Ronnell Hewitt Jr. at Chaminade, Purcell and Diaz-Nicolaidis at Bishop Gorman, and Lewis and Blair at Palo Duro.
The signees come from 10 states, including 10 players from California and two from Nevada.
