SAVANNAH, Ga.- Savannah State University head football coach Shawn Quinn has made good on his promise to change recruiting at Savannah State and to focus on the greater Savannah area.
On Feb. 5, National Signing Day, Quinn announced the addition of 32 young men who have decided to continue their education and athletic careers at SSU.
The list includes 29 from Georgia, two from South Carolina and one from Florida. Quinn and his assistants were able to bring in seven wide receivers, six defensive backs, five line backers, five offensive linemen, three running backs, two kickers, two slot backs, one tight end and one quarterback.
A dozen of those signed were from Savannah or the Coastal Empire.
Among those were three from Bradwell Institute. Wide receiver Quintarius Chapman, kicker/punter Kenneth Lockhart and offensive lineman De’leon Madria all signed National Letters of Intent to remain Tigers.
“We’re excited about every player we have coming in locally. They will have a huge advantage over the other signees with being close in proximity to see practice and train,” said Quinn. “Every one of these guys play a position in which we expect them to come in and compete and win a job,” he went on to add.
During his senior year at BI, Chapman (6-3, 210) had 47 receptions for 685 yards and six touchdowns. The all region player also drew interest from Alabama State, Army, The Citadel, Cornell, Jackson State, Mercer and Navy.
Lockhart (6-0, 180) made nine of 12 field goal attempts and with his longest coming from 47 yards. The Class AAAAAA all-state punter averaged 40.4 yards per punt and had 11 land inside the opponents 20 yard line. His longest punt went for 59 yards.
Madria (6-3, 320) was a first team all-region player for Bradwell. He finished the season with 26 pancake blocks and graded out at 88 percent.
Quinn thinks that Lockhart can come to camp and win the punting job. “We need both kickers that we signed to come in and be the guy. Kevin Lockhart needs to win our punting job and will compete to be the kick-off guy.”
The second year coach also feels that Chapman and Madria as well as the other newcomers can earn some early playing time. “Every one of these guys we signed in this class has the ability to come in and play. They are really good players who are elite players from their programs but more importantly even better people.”
The trio of Bradwell players will join former Liberty County High standout Kerrington Warner on the SSU roster. Warner plays linebacker for the Tigers.
The last Bradwell player to suit up for Savannah State was Sheldon Barnes who played running back for SSU from 2010-13. Savannah State will have the most former Bradwell players on their roster since the 1997 season when running back Anthony Majors, punter Geoffrey McIntyre and wide receiver Alfred Taylor wore Blue & Orange. During the 1983 season, four BI grads were on the Savannah State roster: defensive backs Warren Washington and Gary Jones, tight end Ambrose Alvin and linebacker Carl McRae.