Recruiting sure has gotten easier for Kenny Evans and his Northeastern State coaching staff.

When Evans was hired four years ago, he practically had to beg recruits to come play for a downtrodden program that was muddled in mediocrity.

Not anymore.

"The thing that we found out in recruiting this year is that there were a lot of people wanting to come to Northeastern State," said Evans, whose team signed 30 player to national letters of intent on Wednesday.

"I believe we officially visited 42 high school players, and we were really not turned down by any of them that we made offers to."

The RiverHawks finished 7-5 and picked up a Mineral Water Bowl berth during the 2011 season. It was NSU's second straight winning season after suffering through a decade of losing campaigns.

"The success we've had these last two years, along with a great school behind us, has definitely helped us secure some great signatures," Evans said.

Many of those signatures came from players in Oklahoma this year. Twenty-two in-state players signed with NSU, while six from Texas and two from Arkansas also signed with the RiverHawks.

"Overall, this class has met some needs," Evans said. "It's a very athletic group of guys, and it's also a very academically-sound group that I feel we can count on to be here four or five years to get their degrees, which is the main goal that we have."

Several of the Oklahoma signees are from right here in Green Country. Lincoln Christian's Hudson Baab, Brennen Evans, Zack Simmons and Max Simmons will join Wagoner's Jeremy Appelgate, Skiatook's Connor Appelberg, Fort Gibson's Lane Dortch and Muskogee's Aaron Fowler in Tahlequah. The RiverHawks were also able to sign a pair of players from Carl Albert (Tank Richmond, Darrain Winston) and Midwest City (Dakota Moran, Devin Crisp) while getting a trio from Ardmore (Trevon Lawson, Ashdon Perry, Josiah Reed).



Northeastern State's 2012 signing class

(With comments from head coach Kenny Evans)



— Husdon Baab (6-foot-2, 265 pounds, Lincoln Christian School)

"Going into this year, was one of the top football players in Oklahoma. But he got hurt at Lincoln Christian this year and only played about half a season. A lot people backed off of him, but he judged him on his merits as a sophomore and a junior."



— Josiah Reed (5-10, 170, WR/DB, Ardmore)

"He's a young man that has a lot of athletic ability and someone that people will be hearing a lot of his name."



— Braden Smith (6-2, 195, QB/LB Commerce)

"His best years are in front of him. He played quarterback at Commerce, but that's not what we foresee him playing. Where he ends up, I don't know. But he is a tough, solid, athletic kid."



— Kyle Matheson (6-2, 205, TE Marcus High School, Lewisville, Texas)

"He's a young man with a 29 ACT. We need to get him on the weights a little bit more, but he brings a body that can gain some weight. We utilize the tight end so much in our offense, so he's a guy we're glad to have."



— Tyler Easter (6-3, 275, OT/DT, Ketchum)

"He can probably carry 300 pounds. He was also recruited by some Division I schools. But he loved it here, and I think his family came down and fell in love with the campus and the people here."



— Connor Appelberg (6-3, 230, RB/DE, Skiatook)

"Another big, strong, tall, raw-boned kid who is a great student. He's a guy we identified last spring and recruited very hard for almost a year now."



— Marco Renteria (6-3, 205, TE, Holmes High School, San Antonio)

"He's already a very strong kid, and we're very excited about the things that he brings to the table."



— Chris Gonzalez (6-3, 330, OT, Holmes High School, San Antonio)

"Just a big kid with a lot of strength. He also moves his feet very well. We just can't get enough of these offensive linemen after graduated our starting five this year."



— Marquintin Grant (5-10, 170, DB, South Grand Prairie, Texas)

"This is a young man that I really fell in love with when he visited. He was one of the premier defensive backs going into his senior season. He moved to running back after suffering an injury and did a great job for (South Grand Prairie High School)."



— Dakota Moran (6-1, 275, C/DL Midwest City)

"He's very intelligent and does a very good job of making decisions."



— TJ Finch (5-10, 165, WR/DB Tulsa Central)

"A lot people in Tahlequah saw him play and do some things when he was here against Tahlequah High School. Hopefully he can fill a little bit of the void left by losing Nate (Robinson, All-American cornerback)."



— Jeremy Applegate (6-1, 205, LB, Wagoner)

"Jeremy has a great future in front of him. Played fullback in front of (Oklahoma State signee Kevin) Peterson. We foresee him as a linebacker since he was one of the top linebackers in the area. He targeted him early as someone we wanted here, and we're really excited about things he brings to the table."



— Jake Roach (6-1, 190, OLB, Vinita)

"We foresee him as an outside linebacker, but he can also play several different positions. He was a valedictorian and a basketball star, so he is just an athletic kid."



— Lane Dortch (6-0, 185, FB/LB, Fort Gibson)

"He brings a lot of toughness. They (the Fort Gibson coaching staff) just found out he played nearly the whole season with a broken hand. He runs well, and he does things well whether he's at linebacker or fullback."



— Zach Eggleston (6-0, 177, WB/DB, Beggs)

"He can play cornerback or safety. He as track times to verify his speed, so we're real excited about him."



— Brennen Evans (5-8, 155, WR, Lincoln Christian)

"He led the state in receiving a year ago. And I know one thing, he can catch the football."



— Josh Fleak (5-10, 195, S, Sapulpa)

"An all-district guy that people were looking at. But he fell in love it here."



— Aaron Fowler (5-9, 168, WR/DB, Muskogee)

"Not real big, but has a bright future in front of him. Has great academics and has a great family."



— Steffon Herd (6-4, 195, WR/DE, Del City)

"Playing right now as Del City's top scorer in basketball. Not a blazer at receiver, but he can jump. All you have to do is watch him play basketball, and you know you can find a spot for him on your football team."



— Tank Richmond (6-2, 166, WR/FS, Carl Albert)

"Nephew of (NSU assistant) Greg Richmond. As his strength gets better, his future will get much brighter."



— Max Simmons (6-2, 222, OL/LB, Lincoln Christian)

"A very physical linebacker."



— Zack Simmons (5-9, 186, RB/LB, Lincoln Christian)

"A little smaller, but runs the ball extremely hard."



— Darrain Winston (6-0, 177, WR/CB, Carl Albert)

"Whether he's at wide receiver or corner, he brings a lot of speed to the table."



— Matthew Yazel (5-10, 175, RB/DB, Hackett, Ark.)

"One of the fastest guys that we signed."



— Ashdon Perry (5-11, 185, LB/RB, Ardmore)

"Switched his commitment and signed with us. I think he's an outside linebacker, but he also did a great job at running back for Ardmore."



— Josh Cousins (6-1, 185, QB, Liberty Christian High School, Argyle, Texas)

"Listed as one of the top 100 quarterbacks in the state of Texas. We've been recruiting him for quite some time now. He took some looks at a lot of different places."