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Football recruits like the staff and facilities
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
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Youngstown State’s four newest football recruits, from left, Grant Mayes Adaris Bellamy, Julian Harrell and Will Shaw, said on Wednesday that the new coaching staff and the school’s facilities played the biggest factors in their joining the team.
As Youngstown State’s four newest football recruits sat at desks inside the university’s refurbished football classroom, safety Will Shaw looked around at the player murals, then pointed to an empty spot on the wall and said, “Right over there. I’m calling my spot.”
“That’s my plan,” he said. “Someday.”
Shaw, a hard-hitting safety out of Mesa (Ariz.) Community College, joined WR Julian Harrell, a Miami (Ohio) transfer, cornerback Grant Mayes (a Syracuse transfer) and running back Adaris Bellamy (a former South Florida recruit) as the latest infusions of talent for Coach Eric Wolford’s Penguins.
Since none were familiar with YSU’s tradition, all four said the new coaching staff and the school’s facilities played the biggest factors in their arrivals.
“I’m just excited about the way things are looking up here with Coach ‘Wolf,’” said Mayes, a 5-foot-10, 195-pound corner from Roselle, N.J., who played in 19 games for the Orange over his first two years. “ You talk to him on the phone for five minutes and he gets you excited about football.
“The recruits coming here should look at these facilities and it’ll just blow you away. It’s just a great place to be right now and it’s just an exciting time for this town.”
Mayes was recruited by New Jersey native Phil Longo, YSU’s wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator. Harrell was brought over by offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery, the former head coach at Miami.
“I already know what kind of system he runs and I already know what kind of guy he is, so it’s not like I’m going to a place where I don’t know how I’m going to get along with the offensive coordinator,” said Harrell (6-3, 205), a Harrisburg, Pa., native who did not see game action in his two years with the Redhawks. “They’re doing big things here, changing a lot of things around in a good way.
“Especially coming from a program where I felt things were changing in a negative way, I’m just really pumped to see what happens. You sit with the coaching staff and you could just tell they’re going to win. It’s just a matter of when.”
Shaw was recruited by defensive backs coach Frank Buffano, who spent the last five seasons at the University of Arizona.
“I’m excited about the opportunity to come play at a successful program, a program that’s already established itself in history,” said Shaw (6-2, 220), who has three years of eligibility left. “These coaches all have the excitement for football.
“It seems like a winning program and there’s no doubt in my mind it’s going to be.”
Bellamy (5-10, 210) originally signed with South Florida, but was forced to enroll at Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy after graduation due to academic issues.
“The staff is everything,” said Bellamy, a four-star recruit out of Dunedin, Fla. “They’re not just going out recruiting players that they feel can bring them their next ring or their next title.
“They really get into your life, they really take time to get to know you as a person instead of you as a football player. That sold me.”