Tulsa Head Coach Todd Graham is excited about his second recruiting class.

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Tulsa Football Signs 23 to National Letters-of-Intent

Hurricane inks nine players from Oklahoma

Feb. 6, 2008

Tulsa, Oklahoma - University of Tulsa Head Football Coach Todd Graham announced today the signing of 23 student-athletes to national letters-of-intent, including four junior college transfers and 19 high school seniors.

"Our goals in recruiting the last two years has been to increase our overall speed and athleticism, to be an explosive football team in the skill positions and improve our size and explosive power and strength up front on both sides of the ball," said Graham. "We did that with this recruiting class."

The incoming Hurricane class includes 13 defensive players, nine on offense and one kicker. Tulsa has nine incoming high school seniors from the state of Oklahoma and five from Texas, while two high school seniors come from Arkansas and one each from Florida, Louisiana and New Jersey. Among the junior college transfers, the states of Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho and Kansas are represented.

Among Tulsa's newcomers, three junior college transfers -- quarterback Jacob Bower, safety Ade Manga and linebacker Kaipo Sarkissian -- enrolled at the spring semester and will be eligible for spring drills.

"Last year, we had a really solid first year recruiting. I'm really excited about this class," said Graham. "I think this class is the best since I've been associated with the program in the last five years. Again, we've increased the overall speed of our program, and we wanted to improve our overall strength and explosiveness on the defensive line, and also continue to improve our offensive line."

Tulsa signed seven defensive backs, including five safeties, four linebackers and two linemen.

"After losing three linebackers to graduation, we think we've addressed a need there by signing four exceptional linebackers in this class. We lost two starters at safety, and we signed five safeties in this class that we think are outstanding players," added Graham.

The Hurricane signed one kicker and one quarterback, while inking two running backs, two receivers and four offensive linemen to this year's recruiting class.

"One of the weakest things we did this past year was our kick-offs. We think we've addressed that with Kevin Fitzpatrick. He has a big leg and should compete for the kick-off specialist job. Another need was the quarterback position. We think that signing Jacob Bower, and with Clark Harrell and David Johnson returning, we have three exceptional quarterbacks who are very explosive and have strong arms," said Graham.

After signing two prep players from Oklahoma a year ago, the Hurricane inked nine Oklahomans this year.

"We thought it was a great year to recruit Oklahoma," said Graham. "These are guys whose skills and talents fit what we're doing. If all things are equal, we're going to take kids from Oklahoma. We take a great sense of pride in not only being from Tulsa, but from Oklahoma. We want kids to stay in this state and represent this state and city.

"Like we talk about all the time, most of our kids we recruit come from a gas tank away. We do some national recruiting because we want to be a top-25 team, but if all things are equal we'll take a kid from Oklahoma. This was a great year for Oklahoma kids, and we want to keep those kids from going out of state. We think next year will be another great year for high school seniors in the state of Oklahoma," added Graham.

2008 TULSA FOOTBALL SIGNEES

Name	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.		Cl.	Hometown/Previous School
Chris Adkins	RB	5-8	187	Fr.	Tulsa, Okla./Jenks HS
Clint Anderson	OL	6-2	253	Fr.	Allen, Texas/Allen HS
*Jacob Bower	QB	6-3	233	So-JC	Meridian, Idaho/Bakersfield CC
DeAundre Brown	DB	5-11	180	Fr.	Arlington, Texas/Seguin HS
Bryan Burnham	DB	6-2	185	Fr.	Moorestown, NJ/Moorestown HS
Willie Carter	RB	6-2	200	Fr.	Crockett, Texas/Crockett HS
Alan Dock	LB	5-10	210	Fr.	Giddings, Texas/Giddings HS
Cory Dorris	OL	6-4	241	Fr.	Jenks, Okla./Jenks HS
Kevin Fitzpatrick PK	6-2	175	Fr.	Jensen Beach, Fla./Jensen Beach HS
John Flanders	CB	5-10	163	Fr.	Midwest City, Okla./Midwest City HS
Jared Grigg	OL	6-4	258	Fr.	Hindsville, Ark./Har-Ber HS
Derrick Jackson	DL	6-2	285	Fr.	Del City, Okla./Del City HS
Damaris Johnson	WR	5-8	170	Fr.	Norco, La./Destrehan HS
Cody Lambert	DB	6-0	168	Fr.	Warren, Ark/Warren HS
*Ade' Manga	DB	6-2	220	Jr-JC	Winfield, Kan./Coffeyville JC
Brian Moore	LB	6-0	184	Fr.	Spring, Texas/Klein HS
Gabe Moyer	OL	6-2	325	Fr.	Oklahoma City, Okla/Bishop McGuinness HS
*Kaipo Sarkissian LB	6-1	235	Jr-JC	Kamehameha, Hawaii • El Camino JC
Bobby Smith	CB	5-10	172	Fr.	Putnam City, Okla./Putnam City HS
Zack Wallace	LB	6-1	223	Fr	Muskogee, Okla./Hilldale HS
Maurice White	DL	6-6	240	Fr.	Midwest City, Okla./Midwest City HS
Trent Wilkins	DB	5-11	191	Fr.	Duncan, Okla./Duncan HS
Dee Williams	WR	6-2	208	Jr-JC	Ashdown, Ark./Butler CC
*enrolled in January for spring semester 2008
Accepted Offer Walk-on

Matt Best	OL	6-0	255	Fr.	Montgomery, Texas/Montgomery HS

SIGNEE BIOS

Chris Adkins • RB 5-8 • 187 • Fr-HS Tulsa, Okla. • Jenks HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and starter at Jenks High School . . . named the Tulsa World Co-Player of the Year as a senior . . . was a first-team Tulsa World all-state and all-metro selection . . . rushed for 1,828 yards and 33 touchdowns his senior season . . . helped lead his Jenks High School team to Class 6A state championships both his junior and senior seasons . . . rushed for 229 yards and two TDs in the 2007 state title game against Union High School . . . was the Class 6A state leader in scoring with 198 points as a senior . . . rushed for 193 yards in the 2006 state final victory over Enid High School . . . was rated as the No. 21 prospect in the state of Oklahoma by Rivals.com . . . was ranked as the No. 14 prospect in Oklahoma by Scout.com . . . gained 3,774 yards and 52 touchdowns in his career . . . also lettered three years in basketball . . . high school coach was Allen Trimble.

Clint Anderson • OL 6-2 • 253 • Fr-HS Allen, Texas • Allen HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and two-year starter at Allen High School . . . was on teams' that compiled a 33-6 record and won three District 9-5A Championships in three seasons . . . was rated as the No. 28-ranked offensive center in the nation by Scout.com . . . played over 600 offensive snaps his senior season . . . had 65 knockdowns and 60 pancake blocks as a senior, while not allowing a sack from his left tackle position . . . was a two-time first-team all-district selection . . . also earned Dallas Morning News all-area and Allen American all-county accolades his senior season . . . was selected to play in the Oil Bowl vs. Oklahoma all-stars . . . played over 700 offensive snaps his junior season with 60 knockdowns and 55 pancake blocks . . . high school coach was Tom Westerberg.

Jacob Bower • QB 6-3 • 233 • So-JC Meridian, Idaho • Bakersfield CC

Was the starting quarterback for 12-1 Bakersfield Junior College in 2007 . . . led his team to an 8-0 record in the Western State Conference and advanced to the So Cal Championship, losing 47-42 against Mt. Sac . . . was rated as the No. 42 junior college prospect in the nation by Rivals.com . . . completed 61-percent of his passes for 3,034 yards and 35 touchdowns in 13 games . . . also rushed for 134 yards and three touchdowns in 2007 . . . was rated as a 4-star prospect by JCFootball.com . . . junior college coach was Jeff Chudy . . . originally signed with BYU and sat out the 2006 season following a two-year mission . . was a first-team all-state selection as senior at Mountain View High School . . . was recognized as a SuperPrep and PrepStar All-American as a prep senior . . . entered his senior season with 4,300 yards and 33 touchdowns in 2003 . . . was ranked regionally among the top-six quarterbacks by PrepStar Magazine.

DeAundre Brown • SAF 5-11 • 180 • Fr-HS Arlington, Texas • Seguin HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and starter at Seguin High School . . . started at receiver for three years, and at free safety his senior season . . . received a three-star rating by Rivals.com and the 75th best receiver in the country . . . caught 40 passes for 450 yards and had 30 kick returns for 600 yards and one TD as a senior . . . tallied 35 solo tackles and caused two fumbles in three games as a senior . . . earned first-team all-district and all-region honors his senior season . . . high school coach was Ricky Albus.

Bryan Burnham • SAF 6-2 • 185 • Fr-HS Moorestown, NJ • Moorestown HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and starter at Moorestown High School . . . started at both receiver and defensive back . . . helped lead his team to a 12-0 record and the New Jersey Group 3 state title as a senior . . . was credited with 39 tackles and a team-high 11 interceptions as a senior . . . returned three of those interceptions for touchdowns . . . caught 32 passes for 672 yards and nine touchdowns his senior season . . . also returned a 92-yard punt return and 65-yard kick-off return for touchdowns . . . earned first-team Associated Press and The Star Ledger all-state merits . . . was named the South Jersey Defensive Player of the Year by the Philadelphia Inquirer . . . was named a Burlington County Times first-team all-county selection as a junior and senior . . . had 25 receptions for 435 yards and five touchdowns his junior season, while tallying five interceptions as well . . . also had two kick returns for touchdowns as a junior . . . as a sophomore, had 15 receptions for 250 yards and three TDs . . . high school coach was Russ Horton.

Willie Carter • RB 6-2 • 200 • Fr-HS Crockett, Texas • Crockett HS

Was a two-year starter at Crockett High School . . . gained over 1,000 yards receiving and 400 yards rushing while scoring 11 touchdowns his senior season . . . earned first-team all-district merits as a junior and senior . . . rushed for over 800 yards, 400 receiving yards and totaled 18 touchdowns during his junior season . . . also lettered in basketball and track . . . advanced to the regional track meet in five events as a junior . . . high school coach was Paul Parson.

Alan Dock • LB 5-10 • 210 • Fr-HS Giddings, Texas • Giddings HS

A four-year letterwinner and starter at Giddings High School . . . tallied 539 tackles, 25 caused fumbles, 11 fumble recoveries, four pass break-ups and four interceptions in his career . . . was a three-time Class 3A first-team all-state selection . . . also earned first-team all-district accolades all three seasons . . . was named the District 23-3A Defensive MVP both as a junior and senior . . . collected 128 tackles, 13 stops for lost yardage and six caused fumbles as a senior . . . received all-Centex first-team honors as a sophomore and junior and second-team merits his senior campaign by the Austin American Statesman . . . was the Texas 3A Defensive Player of the Year by both the AP and TSWA his junior season . . . totaled 163 tackles, 14 stops for lost yardage and 13 caused fumbles as a junior . . . also had 188 stops during his sophomore season . . . also lettered in baseball, basketball and track . . . was an all-district baseball and basketball performer . . . high school football coach was Derek Fitzhenry.

Cory Dorris • OL 6-4 • 241 • FR-HS Jenks, Okla. • Jenks HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and two-year starter at Jenks High School . . . played on the offensive and defensive lines in his final two seasons . . . helped lead his team to identical 13-1 records and the state championship in his final two years . . . was a first-team Tulsa World all-state and all-metro performer his senior campaign . . . selected as the District 6A-4 Offensive Lineman of the Year as a senior . . . was rated as the No. 16 prospect in the state of Oklahoma by Rivals.com . . . was ranked as the No. 18 prospect in Oklahoma by Scout.com . . . has been selected to the East team for the Oklahoma Coaches Association all-state game . . . was credited with 23 tackles as a senior, including five stops in the state title game . . . high school coach was Allen Trimble.

Kevin Fitzpatrick • PK 6-2 • 175 • Fr-HS Jensen Beach, Fla. • Jensen Beach HS

Was a two-year letterwinner and starter at Jensen Beach High School . . . handled the kicking chores . . . connected on 8-of-11 field goals his senior season . . . had a season-long 49-yard field goal . . . was named to the Outback Bowl All-Star Game . . . converted 6-of-8 field goals his junior campaign . . . head coach was Ralph Radtke.

John Flanders • CB 5-10 • 163 • Fr-HS Midwest City, Okla. • Midwest City HS

Was a three-year starter at Midwest City High School . . . earned second-team Tulsa World all-state honors as a senior . . . helped lead his team to a 10-1 record, losing in the Class 6A state semifinals to eventual state champion Jenks High School . . . tallied 39 tackles, 11 pass break-ups and four interceptions his senior season . . . was rated as the No. 13 prospect in the state of Oklahoma by Rivals.com . . . was ranked as the No. 16 prospect in Oklahoma by Scout.com . . . was named to the West team for the Oklahoma Coaches Association all-state game . . . had career totals of 141 tackles and 13 interceptions . . . high school coach was Steve Huff.

Jared Grigg • OL 6-4 • 258 • Fr-HS Hindsville, Ark. • Har-Ber HS

Was a two-year letterwinner and starter at Har-ber High School . . . started at left tackle as a senior and right tackle his junior campaign . . . helped lead his team to a 10-3 record as a senior while being credited with 49 knockdowns . . . was a first-team all-Arkansas selection as named by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette . . . earned a 95-percent grade for the Arkansas Class 7 West co-championship and state runner-up team . . . earned all-state and all-conference accolades . . . named to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette AP Super Team and to the KURM Dream Team his senior season . . . high school coach was Chris Wood.

Derrick Jackson • DL 6-2 • 285 • Fr-HS Del City, Okla. • Del City HS

Was a four-year letterwinner and starter at Del City High School . . . started four years on the offensive line and his final two seasons on the defensive front . . . totaled 34 tackles and four stops for lost yardage his senior season . . . graded out at 90-percent from his offensive line position, while tallying 94 knockdowns . . . earned first-team all-district and first-team all-Mid State Conference honors his senior campaign . . . was named a Daily Oklahoman all-city selection as a senior . . . totaled 18 tackles his junior season, while earning honorable mention all-city honors by the Daily Oklahoman . . . high school coach was Nick Warehime.

Damaris Johnson • WR 5-8 • 170 • Fr-HS Norco, La. • Destrehan HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and starter . . . caught 81 passes for 1,228 yards and 12 touchdowns his senior season at Destrehan High School . . . led his team to a 14-0 record and state title . . . was named the Louisiana Championship Game MVP . . . was a two-time all-state and all-New Orleans metro selection . . . was the New Orleans Metro MVP as a senior . . . was rated as the No. 11 prospect in the state of Louisiana and the 28th-ranked athlete in the nation by Rivals.com . . . ranked as the No. 21 prospect in Louisiana by Scout.com . . . rated a four-star prospect by Rivals.com . . . rushed for 133 yards and two TDs on eight carries his senior season . . . caught 59 passes for 1,116 yards and 15 touchdowns his junior campaign . . . completed his career as the all-time leading receiver at Destrehan High School with 154 receptions for 2,620 yards and 30 touchdowns . . . high school coach was Stephen Robicheax.

Cody Lambert • SAF 6-0 • 168 • Fr-HS Warren, Ark • Warren HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and starter at Warren High School . . . was an all-conference selection as a senior . . . also earned first-team all-Southeast Arkansas merits his senior season . . . high school coach was Bo Hembree.

Ade Manga • SAF 6-2 • 220 • Jr-JC Winfield, Kansas • Coffeyville JC

Transfers to Tulsa from Coffeyville Junior College . . . spent two years at Coffeyville JC . . . was the school's second-leading tackler with 92 stops and had four sacks for -33 yards, while causing two fumbles his sophomore season . . . had five double-figure tackle games as a sophomore . . . had a season-best 15 stops against Garden City Community College . . . added 14 tackles against Highland . . . tallied 12 tackles, one forced fumble and one quarterback sack in the season opener against #3-ranked Blinn College . . . earned honorable mention all-Jayhawk Conference accolades following his sophomore campaign . . . junior college coach was Jeff Leiker.

Brian Moore • LB 6-0 • 184 • Fr-HS Spring, Texas • Klein HS

Was a two-year letterwinner and starter at Klein High School . . . started his final two years at linebacker, and also saw playing time at safety and cornerback . . . also saw playing time at running back and returned kicks . . . was credited with 132 tackles, 12 quarterback sacks, 35 tackles for lost yardage and eight caused fumbles in two years . . . also rushed for 150 yards on 13 carries . . . earned first-team all-district and all-Houston area accolades as a senior . . . was named to the Associated Press Class 5A all-state team . . . earned second team all-district honors as a junior defensive end . . . also lettered four years in track . . . high school coach was Stan Labay.

Gabe Moyer • OL 6-2 • 325 • Fr-HS Oklahoma City, Okla. • Bishop McGuinness HS

Was a three-year letterwinner and starter at Bishop McGuinness High School . . . helped lead his team to identical 14-0 records and the Oklahoma Class 4A state title as a junior and senior . . . earned second-team all-state honors by the Tulsa World his senior season . . . has been selected to the West team for the Oklahoma Coaches Association all-state game as a quarterback . . . was rated as the No. 19 prospect in the state of Oklahoma by Rivals.com . . . was ranked as the No. 14 prospect in Oklahoma by Scout.com . . . earned Daily Oklahoman first-team all-state and Little all-city honors both his junior and senior seasons . . . also earned first-team all-district honors as a junior and senior . . . also lettered three years in track . . . high school coach was Kenny Young.

Kaipo Sarkissian • LB 6-1 • 235 • Jr-JC Kamehameha, Hawaii • El Camino JC

Transfers to Tulsa from El Camino (Calif.) Junior College . . . helped his team post an 8-2 record . . . played in nine games as a sophomore and totaled 56 tackles . . . earned first-team honors in the Mission Football Conference American Division . . . had high games of 11 tackles against Saddleback JC and 10 stops and three tackles for -9 yards against Riverside JC . . . junior college coach was John Featherstone.

Bobby Smith • CB 5-10 • 172 • Fr-HS Putnam City, Okla. • Putnam City HS

Was a two-year letterwinner and starter at Putnam City High School . . . missed his senior season with an injury . . . played running back and receiver on offense, and linebacker and defensive back on defense . . . totaled 48 tackles and two interceptions in his junior season . . . rushed for 196 yards and two TDs on 35 carries as a junior . . . also lettered three years in track and two years in basketball . . . high school football coach was Mark Little.

Zack Wallace • LB 6-1 • 223 • Fr-HS Muskogee, Okla. • Hilldale HS

Was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter at Hilldale High School . . . started both on offense and defense all three seasons . . . named a Tulsa World second-team all-state selection as a senior at defensive end . . . rushed for 774 yards on 115 carries for a 6.7 average per carry . . . also completed 29-of-64 passes for 408 yards and two TDs . . . totaled 135 tackles, 31 stops for lost yardage, 10 sacks and three caused fumbles . . . was a Daily Oklahoman all-state selection . . . was a two-time Muskogee Phoenix all-area team selection . . . was selected to the East team for the Oklahoma Coaches Association all-state game . . . was rated as the No. 24 prospect in the state of Oklahoma by Rivals.com . . . collected 97 tackles, seven sacks and caused four fumbles his junior season . . . had career totals of 1090 rushing yards, 346 receiving yards and passed for 443 yards . . . totaled 367 career totals, including 104 solos and 263 assists . . . also had 57 quarterback hurries and 24 sacks in his career . . . also lettered three years in basketball and one year in track . . . high school coach was Don Hendrix.

Maurice White • DL 6-6 • 240 • Fr-HS Midwest City, Okla./Midwest City HS

Lettered at Midwest City High School in 2007 . . . helped lead his team to a 10-1 record, losing in the Class 6A state semifinals to eventual state champion Jenks High School . . . had 42 tackles and five quarterback sacks as a senior . . . high school coach was Steve Huff.

Trent Wilkins • DB 5-11 • 191 • Fr-HS Duncan, Okla./Duncan HS

Was a four-year letterwinner at Duncan High School . . . started three years at quarterback and his final two years at safety as well . . . was a Tulsa World honorable mention all-state selection at quarterback . . . was a Daily Oklahoman all-state performer as a safety . . . has been selected to the West team for the Oklahoma Coaches Association all-state game as a quarterback . . . was rated as the No. 20 prospect in the state of Oklahoma by Rivals.com . . . rushed for 3,456 yards and 34 touchdowns in his career, while passing for 2,754 yards and 32 TDs . . . on defense, totaled 95 tackles and four interceptions in his career . . . led his team to a 9-3 record and the Class 5A state quarterfinals as a senior . . . tallied 31 tackles and one interception in four games on defense as a senior . . . threw for 1,399 yards and 16 touchdowns, while rushing for a Class-5A best of 1,840 yards and 25 touchdowns his senior campaign . . . was named the District 5A-1 Co-Player of the Year his senior season . . . as a senior, broke the Duncan High School single-season total offense record which was held by former University of Arkansas quarterback Quinn Grovey . . . had 39 tackles and three interceptions from his safety position as a junior . . . was also a four-year letterwinner and starter in baseball . . . was a member of the Academic State Champion football and baseball team for two years . . . high school coach was Jim Holloway.

Dee Williams • WR 6-2 • 208 • Jr-JC Ashdown, Ark./Butler CC

Transfers to Tulsa from Northeastern Oklahoma A&M where he spent the 2007 campaign . . . spent the 2006 season at Butler Community College . . . caught 20 passes for 100 yards and one TD, while helping Butler CC post an 11-1 record, conference championship and regional title . . . his junior college coach was Troy Morreu . . . was a three-year letterwinner and starter at Ashdown High School . . . was on teams that posted a three-year 37-6 record . . . had 67 receptions for 1,430 yards and 15 touchdowns as a prep senior . . . was a two-time first-team all-state, all-conference and all-area selection . . . was named to the Associated Press Super Team as a senior . . . caught 45 passes for 830 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior . . . also lettered three years in track and basketball . . . high school coach was Tod Ledford.

ACCEPTED OFFER WALK-ON

Matt Best • OL 6-0 • 255 • Fr-HS Montgomery, Texas • Montgomery HS Has accepted a offer of admission from Tulsa . . . a Presidential Scholar . . . was a three-year letterman and two-year starter as an offensive guard at Montgomery High School . . . was a second-team al-district performer as a senior . . . earned Academic all-district and all-state his senior season . . . also lettered four years in power-lifting and three years in track . . . high school football coach was John Bolfing.