The University of Akron Athletics
Head Coach Rob Ianello Quotes from Signing Day
February 03 | Football
2010 Football Signing Day Quotes
Head coach Rob
Ianello's Opening Statement:
This is a special day to be able to announce our first recruiting class here at the University of Akron. It will always be a special place for the guys that started the foundation for what we are trying to do with our program. We are really pleased with how it ended up, we don't think of it as an ending but more as a beginning of what we are doing. I would like to thank the previous coaching staff for establishing the relationships with the committed recruits who stayed with us.
I'd also like to thank my staff, which took over and were able to secure recruits committed to the University of Akron and I certainly appreciate their professional efforts. I would like to thank the players for helping host the recruits, especially the weekends. For o step forward was a very positive message about what they believe in the direction of the University of Akron football program.
We signed 23 players in this class and brought in 32 for official visits so our percentage is pretty high. I think we have a tremendous University to represent here outside of our football program, as we learn more about the University and the Akron community we will be able to represent a higher level in the future.
Coach Ianello On Each Member of the 2010 Signing Class:
Austin Bailey: We are thrilled to have a young athlete like Austin, he's a fullback and we felt like we needed to have a fullback in this class to do some of the things we want to do in a two back offense. He's very physical, tough, and athletic."
Mike Bizzarro: Mike has excellent speed and plays in an option offense. He's very athletic, and he has thirty-nine plus yards per catch. He came to the Akron football camp last summer and was extremely fast."
Micklos Blake: We like his height as a cornerback he's athletic, has really good feet, and is very mature. He comes from a great high school program and one of the most successful junior college programs on the east coast. We think he can play early for us upon his arrival."
Giorgio Bowers: Giorgio is put together physically and has good speed. We felt we hit our mark with Giorgio, because he's a powerful runner with a lot of speed."
Nico Caponi: Nico is a really impressive athlete who played linebacker as a junior then was moved to defensive end as a senior."
Seth Cunningham: He's a defensive back and he has great speed as the 200-meter State Champion in Ohio. He's very athletic, fast and shows great toughness."
Zach D'Orazio: He's a quarterback that comes from a football family. He's a player that is very athletic, throws the ball well, has good feet, shows a lot of toughness, and leadership that you look for in a quarterback."
Richard Hall: He played multiple sports in high school, he has a great work ethic and shows toughness. We believe he will be a really good defensive end for us."
Anthony Holmes: He has excellent size and is going to be a safety. He's a very physical player that will give us many opportunities to help us right away.
Erick Howard: He's a two time offensive player of the year, with over 2,000 rushing yards as a senior and is very proud to be a part of the offensive system at the University of Akron.
El'Rico Jones: He's a wide receiver that has a lot of special abilities. He played multiple sports in high school, and we feel he can come in and make a difference for us.
Micah Lio: Micah had been interested in Akron for sometime, and we liked what we saw from him as an offensive lineman he finishes plays really well and is very athletic."
Patrick McCloskey: He was voted captain by his team at his junior college after his first year. He's got a lot of leadership skills and earns respect. He finishes blocks really well and is very physical.
ShelDon Miller: He's the type of player that flies under the radar. He's a very good safety and is athletic with a lot of room to grow.
Dylan Potts: Dylan does a lot of good things for his team. He's the type of player that can play multiple positions and will make an impact for us.
Anthony Ritossa: He's an excellent player hand and has very good hands and ball skills. He is going to fit in nicely in our offense where we like to throw the ball to the tight end.
Anthony Schrock He's a very good athlete, very competitive, and has very good ball skills.
Keith Sconiers: He comes from a terrific football program, he's going to play a big role for us on our team. He's the type of athlete that can play multiple positions.
L.T. Smith: He can play multiple positions and wants to start out on offense. He is a very physical player that can help our team and does a lot of things very well.
Marvin Staten: He's a very physical runner who ran for over 1,500 yards as a senior in High school and scored fifteen touchdowns."
Tamir Turpin: He's got really good size for a running back and is very physical, tough, and has really good hands.
Carl Washington: He's a defensive back that can do a lot of good things and is a playmaker that has a lot of flexibility.
Jamar Williams: He's a linebacker that's physical that can hit hard and run. He's very exciting to watch on tape and we feel he can help us defensively at that position.
