Signing Day
Gill adds 15 new faces to Flames
RECRUITS — Turner Gill heads into his sixth year at the helm of Liberty Flames football.
Photo Credit: Michela Diddle
The Liberty football coaching staff can check off another successful recruiting season as they signed 15 of the 20 players who made official visits to campus this year.
The team added 13 high school recruits and two transfer students to the 2017 roster during National Signing Day Feb. 1.
Head Coach Turner Gill expressed his excitement in bringing in players who are not only exceptional athletes, but players who are intelligent both on and off the field.
“One thing I’m really impressed by (is that) they have the best football IQ in the past five years that I’ve been here,” Gill said.
“They all are very good students. … They are quality guys, not only on the football field, but in the classroom setting.”
The 2017 signee class consists of two offensive linemen, two tight ends, two receivers, a running back, a quarterback, two defensive linemen, two linebackers, two cornerbacks and a safety.
The highlights of the group include two defensive standouts — Keith Best and
Jayod Sanders.
Best is a 6-foot-2-inch, 180-pound cornerback from Tucker, Georgia who had multiple FCS offers, according to Gill, but sustained an ACL injury his junior year that sidelined him for his final season.
But the Flames coaching staff believes he still has the capabilities of being a top player in the nation.
“I think (Best) could be the steal of the class,” Gill said.
“I think this guy has a tremendous upside. … He’s a Chris Turner type of guy that can play corner. He’s long. He’s got great ball skills. He can run. He’s physical — he’s definitely a press man type of corner.”
Sanders is a 6-foot-3-inch, 210-pound defensive lineman whose athleticism and size resemble former defensive star Chima Uzowihe and current Flames star
Juwan Wells.
“Boy, I’m excited about this young man,” Gill said.
“I think he’s going to be a tremendous player. We always have had pretty good defensive ends, and I feel that he’s going to be one of those guys. Our coaches did a fantastic job to get him.”
On the offensive end, there are high expectations for Fidel Ogbeifun, a 6-foot-3-inch, 225-pound tight end who Gill believes is dominant on the line and as a receiver.
With the Flames losing three of their top tight ends last season, Ogbeifun is a serious contender for the starting tight end position in the 2017 season.
“He’s smart, explosive,” Gill said.
“(Douglas County high school) played him a lot as a receiver-type guy. … He was breaking tackles, making people miss, and then he showed great speed. This guy is a fantastic athlete, and we anticipate him competing for an opportunity to play this year.”
Among the signings, Gill also revealed news of a few position changes to be made on next year’s roster.
Senior quarterback Stephon Masha has officially moved to wide receiver.
The transition was made as a result of the coaches declaring that sophomore quarterback Stephen Buckshot Calvert will be the starting quarterback going forward.
“There will not be any competitions,” Gill said.
“Stephen ‘Buckshot’ Calvert is our starting quarterback.”
Senior Solomon McGinty will also make a transition from safety to linebacker.
Gill said that the move was made because the Flames needed more depth at the
linebacker position.
The Flames will also have five preferred walk-ons — players who will be given a spot if they try out, but won’t receive a scholarship their freshman year.
“We’re thrilled about this class,” Gill said.
“I think coach has done a tremendous job of finding the guys that will be a right fit here, and continuing to build champions for Christ the way Christ wants us to do it both on the field and off the field.”