STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Like last year, Tarleton State Football was active again on National Signing Day, announcing the addition of 19 new players to their 2024 roster.
 
The Texans announced on Wednesday they have welcomed 19 new student athletes, adding four linebackers, three defensive backs, three defensive linemen, three offensive linemen, two quarterbacks, two running backs, one tight end and one wide receiver. That's 10 on the defensive side, and nine offensive players.
 
"We needed corners, linebackers, defensive linemen – we graduated five guys on defense, our nose guard, two linebackers, our all-conference safety and a strong corner, so our needs fell on the defensive side of the ball," said head coach Todd Whitten. "We did not have a senior starter on the offensive side last year, so as a result, we focused on younger guys on the offensive side of the ball. So, we've got some time to kind of grow some of those fellas up, but we needed to fill some immediate needs on the defensive side, and we were able to do that."
 
Of the 19 additions to the 2024 roster, 10 are joining the team straight from high school, and nine are transfers.
 
The full list of Tarleton State's 2024 National Signing Day class, in alphabetical order, is below:
 
Payton Bjork (5-10, 175, WR, Freshman, Previous: A&M Consolidated High School)
Bjork makes the short trip over to Stephenville after playing the last two varsity years at A&M Consolidated High School in College Station, Texas. He combined for 89 catches for 1,274 yards and 14 touchdowns over those two years, scoring 12 touchdowns his senior year. He was named First Team All-District Wide Receiver and First Team All-Brazos Valley Wide Receiver this past season. He was also Academic All-District in high school.
 
"Payton is a guy who was recruited to play in the slot and also be a return man," Whitten said. "He made a lot of big plays in high school. He comes from a really good high school program there at A&M Consolidated."
 
Originally from Santa Monica, California, Bjork plans to purse a sports management degree upon arrival at Tarleton State University.  
 
John Clifford Jr. (6-0, 175, DB, Sophomore, Previous: Independence CC)
Clifford spent the last two years at defensive back at Independence CC, tallying an interception, three sacks, 8.5 tackles for loss, a pass breakup and 16 tackles (11 solo) in six games last year. He led all defensive backs at the JUCO level in both sacks and TFL's. In four straight games played between Aug. 31-Oct. 7, Clifford posted multiple tackles for loss in each game, having his best game of the year against Garden City CC, where he recorded 2.5 TFL's, a sack, six tackles and a pass breakup. The week before against Iowa Western CC, he recorded two sacks for a loss of 20 yards. He had his interception to go with two tackles for loss and five total tackles against Coffeyville CC on Sept. 9.
 
"He's a guy that made a lot of tackles for Independence Community College," Whitten said. "Losing Pat Jones back there at the safety spot, we felt it was critical to get a junior college safety in here to battle for that spot there. He's a kid who played the run well, also did a good job versus the pass, and he's going to be one of the candidates to fill the role vacated by Pat Jones."
 
Clifford is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, where he played his prep career at Winton Woods High School. There he played a year of varsity football, three varsity years of baseball, and two varsity years of wrestling. He intends to study Sports Management at Tarleton State University.
 
Koby Dickens (6-0, 195, LB, Freshman, Previous: Paradise High School)
Dickens played four varsity years at Paradise High School in Paradise, Texas, serving as a captain for the last three years. Across his career as a linebacker, he posted 486 total tackles, 109 tackles for loss and 37 sacks. Last season alone, he accounted for 191 tackles, 62 tackles for loss, 18 sacks and six blocked field goals. He was twice named All-State at LB, also earning a spot on the THSCA Super Elite Team, plus was named District MVP and County Defensive MVP.
 
"Koby is one of the best high school players in this area," Whitten said. "He's made more tackles than most everybody who's ever played around here. He's just a real dynamic player coming out of a 3A program. He's got good speed, just one of the most active players I've seen in a good while from the inside linebacker position. He plays from sideline to sideline, just a real physical kid, we call him the Waterboy. He might've led the state of Texas in tackles, just something nuts."
 
Dickens, who also received an offer from South Dakota State, spent four years participating with varsity track and field as well. He helped his team win the district championship twice (2023, 2021) and the area championship in 2023. Dickens, a class president at Paradise HS, has two sisters who ran for Tarleton State's Track and Field program, Kyndel Beck and Mikeala Beck. He will pursue a degree in kinesiology at Tarleton State University.
 
Klein Essler (6-4, 220, TE, Freshman, Previous: Henrietta High School)
Essler played his last three varsity years at Henrietta High School in Henrietta, Texas, a team captain his senior year. Set to join the Texans as a tight end, He was First Team-All-District at wide receiver and the district's defensive MVP at defensive back. He played on the Red River Team in 2022, and was also honored with Second Team All-State DB.
 
"He's a really good, young tight end prospect, probably was more of a pass catching tight end coming out of high school," Whitten said. "The next step for him is going to be to get in there and play H-Back, put his hand in the ground and be a good part of our run blocking schemes. But he's got big upside, a big frame, and I think he's going to be a good player for us."
 
Essler was an honorable mention for Academic All-State, and also participated on the varsity track and field team for four years. The Henrietta native will study construction science at Tarleton State University.
 
Ike Hall (6-2, 190, QB, Freshman, Previous: Brownwood High School)
Hall was named the player of the year last year at Brownwood High School  by Abilene Reporter News after throwing for 1,932 yards and 20 touchdowns while adding 1,853 yards and 27 touchdowns on the ground, plus three receptions for 93 yards and a touchdown. He was the Offensive MVP of District 2-4A Division 1 after accounting for 48 touchdowns his senior year.
 
"He's just a really, really good athlete," Whitten said. "We're going to start him out at quarterback, but knowing that he's going to be an offensive player for us, whether it's quarterback, receiver, whatever, he's a dynamic athlete, he can also play both sides of the ball. We're going to check him out first real good at the quarterback position, and then if that works we'll leave him there, if not, we'll find a place for him. He's just a dynamic young guy that made a lot of big plays for his team."
 
Hall competes for the track and field team, placing fifth in the state in the triple jump last year as a junior. He will study business management at Tarleton State University.
 
Antonio Heath (6-6, 320, OL, Freshman, Previous: Charles F. Brush High School)
Heath played four years of high school football, split between Charles F. Brush High School in South Euclid, Ohio, and Garfield Heights High School in Garfield Heights, Ohio. He spent his senior year as team captain at Charles F. Brush HS.
 
"Antonio has a really, really big frame," Whitten said. "I think all of his best football is ahead of him. He had an injury his senior year and had to have surgery on his ankle. But he has lots of ability, lots of upside – very rarely do we play a young offensive lineman, so he's a guy that should come in here and be in our system a couple of years before we need him. But he's got a great frame."
 
Nicknamed Big Tone, Heath also participated two years on varsity track and field, a captain his junior year, specifically the shot put. He will study zoo animals and confined wildlife biology and management at Tarleton State University.
 
Jeremiah Henry (6-3, 275, DL, Junior, Previous: Laney College)
Henry played the last two years at Laney College. Last year in seven games, he led the team with 17.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks, plus had 41 tackles, a forced fumble and a pass breakup. In his freshman campaign, he had 6.5 sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss, totaling 38 tackles, a fumble recovery and two pass breakups.
 
"He's a dynamic guy coming out of Laney College, he's a physical guy who can get in there and play anywhere," Whitten said. "He can play that four-high position for us, he can also rush off the edge. He's a guy that made a lot of sacks, a lot of tackles for loss."
 
Henry, who also had an offer from Sam Houston, is from Oviedo, Florida. He played four varsity years at Oviedo High School, where he was First Team All-District and Second Team All-State. He will pursue a degree in business at Tarleton State University.
 
Caden Holt (6-2, 230, LB, Junior, Previous: Blinn College)
Holt played last season at Blinn College, where he turned in a Southwest Junior College Football Conference honorable mention. He led the Buccaneers in total tackles (62), solo tackles (38), tackles for loss (five), tied-most sacks (two), plus had four quarter hurries in nine games. His best game came against Northeastern Oklahoma on Oc.t 28, where he posted both sacks and a season-high 12 tackles.
 
He began his collegiate career at UTSA in 2021, playing for current Tarleton State defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix. He played in one game as a true freshman, recording a tackle against Lamar on Sept. 11. He was a Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll member.
 
"We have some history with Caden, he signed with San Antonio out of high school, so Coach Nix recruited him coming out of high school and had some time with him in San Antonio, so he's a guy we targeted way early as we lost our two inside linebackers," Whitten said. "We felt strongly he was one of our top targets way back in Week 5 or 6 and so we've been on him and were able to sign him in the early December signing period and he's now here and enrolled and doing great. So, we expect he will be an impactful player for us."
 
Colt, a San Antonio native, was a three-year starter at New Braunfels Canyon High School. He was the District 12-5A D-I Defensive MVP his senior year and selected for the San Antonio Sports All-Star Game. That season he recorded 95 tackles (61 solo), eight tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles, a pair of fumble recoveries and a pass breakup. He was a 3-star prospect by 247Sports and ESPN.
 
Morsello Hooker (6-3, 170, DB, Freshman, Previous: Brownwood High School)
Hooker was a two-time First Team All-District cornerback at Brownwood High School. Last year for the 12-2 regional finalist Lions, he recorded 43 tackles and three interceptions.
 
"He's got really long arms and can move his feet and he's a physical corner," Whitten said. "He just has a tremendous amount of ability. I think once he learns how to play and learns how to play man-to-man coverage the way that we do, I think that he is just going to be absolutely outstanding. So, very rarely do you find corners with that kind of height, he's every bit of 6-3, who can flip his hips and run and cover people like he can."
 
The Brownwood native also played varsity basketball.
 
Kyle Jackson (6-1, 225, LB, Junior, Previous: Modesto JC)
Jackson played the last three years at Modesto JC, leading the team in tackles last season with 60 (40 solo), finishing with 5.5 tackles for loss, five pass breakups and an interception. His freshman campaign in 2021 also put Jackson atop the list in tackles with 66 (50 solo), with 7.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and a fumble recovery. Altogether for Modesto, he's been named an All-American, the team MVP, and All-Conference twice, plus helped the Pirates win two conference championships.
 
"He's a guy that made a lot of plays at Modesto Junior College," Whitten said. "We have holes to fill at that inside linebacker spot. We think he's a really good player who's going to come in and battle for playing time."
 
Jackson is a Manteca, California, native. He played three varsity years at Central Catholic High School in Modesto, California, a two-time All-League player. He plans to study business at Tarleton State University.
 
Tate Maruska (5-10, 185, RB, Freshman, Previous: Stephenville High School)
Maruska, one of the greatest players in Stephenville High School history, will play his collegiate football at home at Tarleton State. The All-State and First Team All-District running back is the single-season record holder for rushing yards (2,098) and rushing yards in a game (311) in Yellow Jackets program history. He played four years of varsity football at SHS, helping the team win the state championship in 2021. Across his four seasons, he totaled 4,097 yards on 614 carries (6.7 YPC) in 39 games (105.1 YPG), scoring 32 touchdowns. His best year was in 2022, his junior campaign, where he had the 2,000-yard season to go with 20 touchdown rushes in 11 games, running for 100-plus yards 10 times. His final two years, he added 548 receiving yards on 39 catches, plus six touchdown grabs.
 
"Everybody around here knows about Tate," Whitten said. "A local running back. He's a fast guy with really good speed, one of the all-time great running backs in Stephenville High School history. Any time we can sign a really good local player, we like to do that, so we're excited to have him. He also does a good job catching the ball coming out of the backfield. We think he's just a really good running back prospect."
 
The Stephenville native was All-State Academic too, and participated the last three years on the varsity track and field team. He will study agribusiness upon arrival at Tarleton State University.
 
Ja'Voni Melidor (6-0, 175, DB, Senior, Previous: Benedict College)
Melidor played the last three seasons at Benedict College, an NCAA Division II program that plays in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Last season he was First Team All-Conference after recording a tied-team high four interceptions, the tied-second most pass breakups (four), a fumble recovery, a forced fumble, and 33 tackles (30 solo) in 12 games. He had a two-pick day against Edward Waters on Sept. 9. Across his three seasons, he played in 29 games, recording five interceptions, and helped the Tigers win two conference championships.
 
"He's a highly decorated corner, a really talented guy, a good cover man," said Whitten. "We've lost Jalen Carr to graduation, so we're going to need to add some corners who can step in and play right away. He's a 1-for-1 guy, heavily recruited, he was offered by us, Stephen F. Austin, Louisiana Tech, Jacksonville State, Ohio – he's one of the most highly recruited guys who we've ever signed here at Tarleton. He was quite a get, I think, for us and will be impactful right away."
 
Melidor is originally from Columbia, South Carolina, where he played his prep career at Irmo High School. He will pursue a degree in sports management at Tarleton State University.
 
Tre Page (5-9, 180, RB, Freshman, Previous: Langston Hughes High School)
Page played the last two years at Langston Hughes High School, totaling 1,290 yards on 144 carries (9.0 YPC) and 16 touchdowns in 20 games. This past season he covered 722 yards on 67 rushes (10.8 YPC) in nine games, logging 100-plus yards four times, adding 10 rushing touchdowns.
 
"He's a great running back coming out of Langston Hughes in Georgia," said Whitten. "We've had some really good luck over there with James Paige and Brandon Tolvert. So he'll be our third kid from Georgia that we've gotten in the last few years. So we're excited to have another guy. And as we looked at high school running backs, we thought two of the best that we could find were Maruska and Tre, so we're excited to get both of those guys. They're both very productive guys with great high school careers."
 
Page, a Fairburn, Georgia, native, also participated for the track and field team, running an 11.11 second time in the 100m and a 21.47 second time in the 200m.
 
Xavier Parker (6-3, 285, OL, Freshman, Previous: Lone Star High School)
Parker joins the Texans after playing three varsity years at Lone Star High School in Frisco, Texas. He was an All-State and All-District offensive lineman, and helped Lone Star HS win the district championship.
 
"Xavier was a guy who had multiple offers, and Coach Carey had him highly ranked," Whitten said. "We took three high school offensive linemen, he was one of our favorites and one of them at the top of our list. We think he's a guy who's going to be a really good player."
 
The Frisco native also wrestled in high school. He will study computer science at Tarleton State University.
 
Jaden Pete (6-1, 215, QB, Junior, Previous: Tyler Junior College)
Pete played the last two years at Tyler JC, starting five games last season. In those five games, he completed 103-of-165 (.624) for 1,329 yards and 12 touchdowns, compared to eight interceptions. He averaged 265.8 yards per game passing, and also rushed for three touchdowns and 322 yards (64.4 YPG) on 40 carries (8.1 YPC). In the first three games of the season, he passed for more than 300 yards in each, his best game coming Sept. 9 at Georgia Military College, where he threw for a career-high five touchdowns and a career-high 365 yards on 25-of-33 (.758) passing. He accounted for six touchdowns in that game, adding a score on the ground.
 
"Jaden was hurt for half of the year last year, but was a productive guy when he played," Whitten said. "Marco Siderman is transferring out, and Daniel Greek had surgery, so we felt like we needed to bring in an older guy at that position to give us some depth and to compete at the quarterback spot."
 
Pete, from Houston, began his collegiate career at Sul Ross State, where he played in three games. He played his prep career at George Bush High School in Richmond, Texas. He will pursue a degree in sports management.
 
Braden Smith (6-4, 290, OL, Freshman, Previous: Franklin High School)
Smith played four varsity years for Franklin High School in Franklin, Texas, earning First Team All-District all four seasons, twice earning First Team All-State recognition and named the 2020 Newcomer of the Year. He helped Franklin win the state championship twice (2022, 2021), going 16-0 both seasons.
 
"He was absolutely at the top of Coach Carey's list as we evaluated high school prospects," Whitten said. "He committed to us back about Week 10 of the season, he was an early Stephen F. Austin commit. We think he's an outstanding line prospect."
 
Smith was a four-sport athlete in high school, also spending four years on the varsity track and field team, two years on the varsity basketball team and two years on the varsity baseball team. He was an honorable mention for Academic All-State, and will pursue a business degree at Tarleton State University.
 
Brodrick Stewart (6-2, 305, DL, Redshirt Freshman, Previous School: Northern Arizona)
Stewart redshirted last season at Northern Arizona before choosing Tarleton State out of the transfer portal. He played three varsity years at Mansfield Summit High School, where he was a captain as a senior. He helped his team advance to the playoffs three straight years, including two fifth round appearances his sophomore and junior campaigns.
 
"We tried to recruit Brodrick coming out of Mansfield, we did not get him, he went to Northern Arizona," Whitten said. "When he got into the portal at Christmas this year, we were able to get him the second time around. He was a really good high school shot putter, went to the state track meet, explosive guy, so we think he will play for us sooner rather than later. We think he has a lot of ability and will help us."
 
Stewart starred on the track team, winning the district championship and area championship in three straight year. As a senior he got fourth in the state in shot put, plus made regionals in disc all three years. Stewart, an Arlington, Texas, native, wants to become a neurosurgeon. He will study biology at Tarleton State University.
 
Branson Tita-Nwa (6-0, 195, LB, Junior, Previous School: Fullerton College)
Tita-Nwa played the last two years at Fullerton College, combining for 117 tackles and 11 tackles for loss in 22 games . Last season he was first on the team in interceptions with four, second on the team in tackles with 70 (40 solo), plus had three sacks, seven tackles for loss, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble, three blocked kicks and two pass breakups in 10 games. He had two interceptions and a sack against East Los Angeles on Sept. 16, and closed the season with 17 tackles, 1.5 TFL, a sack and two blocked kicks against Ventura on Nov. 25.
 
"He's one of the better players I've seen in a while," Whitten said. "He was the defensive player of the year in that junior college conference that Fullerton is in. Maybe the best junior college defensive player that I feel like I've evaluated this year. He makes plays all over the field, really a physical guy that can run, a talented guy."
 
Tita-Nwa has two hometowns, Memphis, Tennessee, and Southaven, Mississippi. He played three varsity years at Desoto Central High School in Southaven before spending a year at the Air Force Academy. At the prep level he was named the team MVP, defensive MVP, special teams MVP, plus was All Region 1-6 Super 24. He had 13 interceptions and five defensive touchdowns in high school. Tita-Nwa will study business at Tarleton State University.
 
Vililami Wolfgramm (6-4, 275, DL, Sophomore, Previous School: Kilgore College)
Wolgramm played the last two seasons at Kilgore College, finishing with 18 tackles in 11 games last season. In his freshman campaign in 2022, he played in two games, tallying seven tackles, 1.5 TFL.
 
"He's a physical guy who's going to help right away," Whitten said. "He'll be in there battling for starting jobs, like all these new guys. He's somewhat of a local guy. He's a really good junior college player we're excited to have."
 
The Fort Worth, Texas, native, played two varsity years at V.R. Eaton High School in Haslet, Texas. He will major in cybersecurity at Tarleton State University.