Lights announce more football recruits

The Montana State University-Northern football team's 2012 recruiting class continues to grow. Earlier this week, the Lights and head coach Mark Samson announced the signing of eight more players, bringing the Lights' total signees to 28 for this year.

Northern announced the signing of four more players from Montana as well as four out-of-state players. Headlining the list are a pair of Class AA All-State selections from Billings.

Joining the Lights from Billings West is 6-0, 210-pound defensive end/linebacker Jordan Brusio, a Class AA First-Team All-State pick for 2011 and a player who will participate in both the East-West Shrine Game and the Mondak Game this summer. Brusio set the West High record for sacks in a season with 20.5, which led Class AA.

"Jordan is a great talent with a great knack for rushing the passer.," Samson said. " He is a high motor type of guy that has great get-off and quickness He has a very bright future in the frontier conference! We are very excited to see him in a Light uniform next fall."

Northern also picked up another West High star in Patrick Barnett, a 6-3, 230-pound defensive end. He was also Class AA All-State First Team at two positions this past season for the Bears and will play in the Shrine and Mondak games this summer. Barnett is a member of the top-ranked West High basketball team as well.

"Patrick has very good size and will continue to get bigger," Samson said. "He had a great career for Billings West playing both ways for the Golden Bears. He has a great frame for a high school kid and should have a great career for the lights as a Defensive Lineman."

The Lights added a Class A standout from Hardin in 6-0, 180-pound linebacker Gus Murdock, who earned Eastern A All-Conference for the Bulldogs, who made the Class A playoffs last fall. Also joining the Lights is 6-0, 175-pound defensive back Julius Frehse from Denton. Frehse earned First Team All-Six Man honors for the two-time defending state champion Trojans.

MSU-N also continued to restock its offensive line with the likes of Adolfo Robles, a 6-3, 260-pound center from Garces Memorial High School in Bakersfield, Calif. Robles was a team captain and a First Team All League and First Team All Region selection this past season. He was selected to the Rising Star All-Star Bowl and the Bakersfield Arena Bowl.

"Adolfo has great size for a high school lineman, but the best thing about him is his feet and the way he finishes," Samson said. "He is very quick for his size and does a great job with his technique at the center position."

Garrett Jericoff, a 5-9, 180-pound safety from Hilmar, Calif., will also be making his way to Northern. He was a First team All Conference and First team All Region selection at both defensive back and running back for Hilmar High School. His team won the Division 4 Section championship this past fall.

"Garrett is a little undersized height wise, but he makes up for that with his toughness and ability to hit, Samson said. "He is a very strong kid and is always around the ball. He is very smart and should be a great fit for our defense."

Northern also inked 6-3, 230-pound linebacker Austin Ybarra from La Habra High School in La Habra, Calif., as well as wide receiver Greg Anson (6-1, 200) from Willamette High School in Eugene, Ore.

"We are very excited to announce the signings of these eight student athletes," Samson said. "All of them are great competitors and will represent our program very well on and off the field. We have signed some very talented high school kids from the state of Montana as well as California and Oregon. They will all be great additions to our team next fall.

"With these eight recruits, we have signed a total of 28 young men for next fall. We have the makings of a very good recruiting class and are excited about the potential that these young men have. We are close to wrapping up our recruiting for the year," he added. "Our offseason program is going really well and our kids are working very hard to improve on our 5-5 season last year and take the next step to competing for a championship next fall in the Frontier Conference."

Samson said he expects to announce the final additions to the 2012 recruiting class sometime next week. The Lights begin spring drills in a little over a month.