Vandals address needs, bulk up on 'D'

Of the 22 signees announced by Idaho football coach Robb Akey on Wednesday, 12 of them are defensive players - including five defensive linemen and four defensive backs.

Akey said seven of the 22 - five of them on defense - should make an immediate impact in 2011.

They are cornerback A.J. Annelus, defensive tackles Ryan Edwards, Aaron Lazaro and Dontae Scott, linebacker Sua Tuala, and offensive linemen A.J. Jones and Brady Lisoski. All but Edwards are junior college transfers.

"Those seven guys address needs," Akey said in a teleconference from Moscow. "Overall, I feel we addressed a number of needs. The depth and the caliber of player has continued to improve."

Edwards is already enrolled at Idaho, having graduated in 2010 from Long Beach Poly and attended a prep school in the fall.

Scott played high school ball in Hawaii with current Idaho linebacker Robert Siavii, and his position coach at Golden West College played for Akey when he was an assistant at Weber State.

Akey said returning defensive tackle Michael Cosgrove is "obviously a tremendous player" but added, "I felt like we needed to provide him some help."

Tuala played the past two seasons at City College of San Francisco, a JC powerhouse in California.

In addition to Annelus, Akey also signed high school cornerbacks Dion Bass and Solomon Dixon, and safety Bradley Njoku.

"We've got to perform better at corner, and I think we've got the guys that can," Akey said.

Idaho sought to sign a high school quarterback but that didn't work out. However, the Vandals were delighted to land Dominique Blackman, a 6-foot-5, 250-pound lefthander who originally signed with the University of Washington before the coaching change there. He played at Los Angeles Harbor in 2009, where he passed for 3,711 yards and 35 touchdowns. He wanted out of Los Angeles and transferred to Old Dominion, where he ran into a lack of trust with the coaching staff, Akey said, and redshirted last year. He will sit out this fall, Akey said, and have two years of eligibility remaining.

“He’s got a cannon of an arm, and he’s got great escapability,” Akey said. “He’s so happy to be here, hungry to be here.”

Blackman, from Carson, Calif., is expected to battle incumbent senior Brian Reader for the starting job at quarterback.

Bass is the brother of Ryan Bass, who redshirted at Idaho last fall after transferring from Arizona State. Dion Bass visited Nebraska last weekend.

“Dion is fast,” Akey said. “Did I mention he’s fast? He can run, and he can cover.”

A few other recruits have ties to Akey and/or the program.

Offensive lineman Cody Elenz attended the same high school (Copperas Cove High in Texas) as current Vandal running back Troy Vital.

Tight end Jared Klingenberg is from Cedarcrest High in Carnation, Wash., where the principal is the father of Aaron Lavarias, a senior defensive end on the Vandals’ 2010 squad. At 6-4, 230, he played tailback in high school and rushed for 1,367 yards and 19 touchdowns.

Edwards’ cousin is an academic advisor at Idaho. Idaho defensive line coach Eti Ena is a distant cousin of recruit Ryan Ena, a defensive end.

Akey said running back Cameron McKernan, from Kentridge High in Kent, Wash., verbally committed to him in the hallway right after Akey was finished with his press conference following Idaho’s season-ending overtime victory over San Jose State last year.

Akey signed three wide receivers -- Camryn Harris from Dublin, Calif., Marquan Major from Las Vegas and Ian Silbernagel from McKay High in Salem, Ore.

The other running back signed was Todd Handley, from Riverside, Calif., who “makes us a faster football team,” Akey said.

Akey, entering his fifth season at Idaho, said he’s added depth on the defensive line over the years -- a lean area when he took over -- as well as beefed up the size at linebacker and in the secondary.

The Vandals did not sign any players from Idaho -- Akey said only three high school seniors in the state would be signing Division I letters of intent. Idaho signed 12 players from California, four from Washington, three from Texas, and one each from Hawaii, Nevada and Oregon.

Idaho did have a verbal commitment from Dillon Lukehart of Eagle High, but Lukehart changed his commitment to Boise State once the Broncos offered him a scholarship.