Head coach Bronco Mendenhall of the Virginia Cavaliers. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (VirginiaSports.com) –The Virginia football program signed 12 student-athletes to National Letters of Intent (NLI) for the 2020-21 academic school year, head coach Bronco Mendenhall announced. The 12 student-athletes were part of the early signing period for football adopted by the NCAA in 2017.
Student-athletes from nine states highlight the class signed by the Cavaliers. UVA’s recruits come from Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.
The following is a list of individuals who have signed National Letters of Intent to attend the University of Virginia on football grant-in-aid.
The next period for signing football student-athletes begins on Feb. 5, 2020.
Attached is the full recruiting class and player bios:
2020 Football Recruiting Class
Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown High School/Previous School
Su Agunloye DL 6-6 240 Lindenhurst, N.Y. Lindenhurst HS
Ira Armstead** QB 6-3 200 South Bend, Ind. Adams HS
Sam Brady LB 6-3 200 Lincolnton, N.C. North Lincoln HS
Jahmeer Carter DL 6-2 300 Severn, Md. Archbishop Spalding
Lavel Davis WR 6-7 205 Dorchester, S.C. Woodland HS
Elijah Gaines DB 6-2 185 Queens, N.Y. Episcopal HS (Va.)
Andrew Gentry OL 6-7 300 Littleton, Colo. Columbine HS
Dave Herard DB 6-0 170 Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Stranahan HS
Donovan Johnson** DB 6-2 180 Harvey, La. Helen Cox HS
Jestus Johnson III OL 6-3 330 Laurel, Md. Gonzaga College HS
Joshua Rawlings** TE 6-5 245 Pittsburgh, Pa. Woodland Hills HS
Brandon Williams LB 6-2 200 New Orleans, La. Isidore Newman HS
** January enrollee
Su Agunloye
6-6 • 240 • DE
Lindenhurst, N.Y. • Lindenhurst HS
Played defensive end and offensive tackle at Lindenhurst High School for head coach Richard Biancaniello … helped lead Lindenhurst to a perfect 12-0 record and a Long Island championship … earned first-team all-division and first-team all-county honors … named second-team All-Long Island and third-team all-state … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Ira Armstead
6-3 • 195 • QB
South Bend, Ind. • Adams HS
Will enroll in January … played quarterback and safety for Adams High School for head coach Antwon Jones … back-to-back first-team All-NIC honoree … senior year he threw for 1,078 yards and seven touchdowns, while rushing for 610 yards and nine scores … as a junior earned first-team All-NIC honors after throwing for 2,202 yards and 12 touchdowns, while also rushing for 1,104 yards and 17 more scores … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com and 247sports.com … a two-star recruit by Rivals.com.
Sam Brady
6-3 • 200 • LB
Lincolnton, N.C. • North Lincoln HS
Played safety and wide receiver at North Lincoln High School for head coach Nick Bazzle … as a senior he rushed for 507 yards and seven touchdowns, while also catching nine passes for 265 yards and three more scores … on defense he made 87 tackles and 6.0 tackles for loss as a senior … he also returned nine kickoffs for 182 yards and one punt for 56 yards … he caused three fumbles and recovered another, as well as blocked two punts and two field goals …earned all-conference honors after helping North Lincoln to a conference record and school-record 12 wins … his RBI double in the top of the seventh helped solidify North Lincoln’s first state title in baseball in 2019, as the Knights finished 26-6 on the season … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Jahmeer Carter
6-2 • 300 • DL
Severn, Md. • Archbishop Spalding
Played defensive tackle at Archbishop Spalding for head coach Kyle Schmitt … three-time first-team all-county honoree for Archbishop Spalding … two-time All-MIAA honoree … made 22 tackles and 4.0 sacks at nose tackle in 2019 … made 30 tackles as junior … won the 2019 Al Laramore Trophy as the No. 1 lineman in Anne Arundel County … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Lavel Davis
6-7 • 215 • WR
Dorchester, S.C. • Woodland HS
Played wide receiver and safety at Woodland High School for head coach Eddie Ford … earned all-state honors after making 40 catches for 622 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior … selected to play in South Carolina’s North-South all-star game … collected 70 receptions for 1,007 yards and 15 touchdowns as a junior … also plays basketball and runs track for Woodland High School … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Elijah Gaines
6-2 • 185 • DB
Queens, N.Y. • Episcopal HS
Played safety and wide receiver at Episcopal High School for head coach Mark Moroz … named first-team All-IAC at the athlete position after notching four interceptions, 20 tackles, 179 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns … earned Episcopal’s 2019 Coaches Award … as a junior was named second-team all-state and first-team All-IAC at the athlete position after recording four interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns … added 300+ receiving yards, two receiving touchdowns and 14 tackles in 2018 … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Andrew Gentry
6-7 • 300 • OL
Littleton, Colo. • Columbine HS
Played offensive tackle at Columbine High School for head coach Andy Lowry … a first-team 5A all-state honoree … helped lead Columbine to the 5A high school state championship game … key blocker for school’s Colorado’s Gatorade player of the year in football who amassed 1,732 rushing yards and a state-best 29 touchdowns … rated the No. 79 recruit on ESPN.com’s Top 300 … a four-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Dave Herard (Her-ARD)
6-0 • 170 • DB
Fort Lauderdale, Fla. • Stranahan HS
Played cornerback and quarterback at Stranahan High School for head coach Travis Harden … was 47-of-81 passing for 845 yards and 11 touchdowns … rushed 32 times for 180 yards and one touchdown … caught 31 passes for 450 yards and three scores … made 64 tackles and 2.0 tackles for loss … notched two sacks and six interceptions in 2019 … also plays basketball and helped Stranahan to the 2019 6A state championship, averaging 18.0+ points per game … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Jestus Johnson III
6-3 • 330 • OL
Laurel, Md. • Gonzaga College High School
Played center at Gonzaga College High School for head coach Randy Trivers … in 2018 helped Gonzaga to a 9-3 record and a WCAC championship, earning second-team All-WCAC honors … was a second-team All-USA Today District of Columbia honoree in 2017 … former high school teammates with current Cavalier linebacker Hunter Stewart and offensive lineman Jack Keenan … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Donovan Johnson
6-2 • 180 • DB
Harvey, La. • Helen Cox HS
Will enroll in January … played safety at Helen Cox High School for head coach Derek LaMothe two-time first-team all-district honoree … as a junior he earned second-team all-state honors and after nabbing five interceptions and helped Helen Cox finish the season 7-7 … rated the No. 10 senior prospect in the state … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Joshua Rawlings
6-5 • 245 • TE
Pittsburgh, Pa. • Woodland Hills HS
Will enroll in January … played tight end and defensive end at Woodland Hills High School for head coach Tim Bostard … earned first-team all-conference honors in 2019 after making 25 catches for 543 yards and five touchdowns … named Rivalry Series Scholar-Athlete … three-year varsity starter … a three-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
Brandon Williams
6-2 • 200 • LB
New Orleans, La. • Isidore Newman HS
Played outside linebacker at Isidore Newman High School for head coach John Stewart … first-team USA Today All-Louisiana while helping Isidore Newman to a 9-2 record and a semifinal appearance in the 2019 Allstate Sugar Bowl/HSAA Non-Select Prep Classic … notched 12.5 sacks as senior … owns the Newman High School career record for sacks, despite missing most of his junior season with an injury … attends the same high school that was home to NFL quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning … also plays basketball … one of ESPN.com’s Top 300 recruits … a four-star recruit by ESPN.com Rivals.com and 247sports.com.
