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BYU COUGARS

BYU Cougars National Signing Day Commitments

Dec 19, 2018, 1:00 PM | Updated: 1:14 pm

(Photo by Getty Images)...

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BY TREVOR ALLEN, KSL SPORTS


KSL Sports

PROVO, Utah – BYU has announced their 2019 commitments on National Signing Day for the early signing period.

Out of the 11 commitments, BYU signed four defensive players with a potential for two more that includes one defensive lineman with the potential for two more, one linebacker and two defensive backs.

BYU signed five offensive players with the potential of two more that includes one quarterback, two wide receivers, two tight ends and a possibility of two offensive lineman.

Kalani Sitake was able to bring in six players from the state of Utah.

Here are the 2019 commitments for BYU on National Signing Day during the early signing period:

Michael Daly, Linebacker

One of the top defensive players in the state comes to BYU after a successful career at Lone Peak High School. He is a three-star recruit by 247Sports and is 6’3, 220 lbs. His father Neal played at BYU from 1993-95 and his uncle is former BYU linebacker David Nixon.

Nixon helped Lone Peak to a state championship in November and was named 6A MVP by the Deseret News.

He collected 76 tackles, including 40 and a half for a loss, 24 and a half sacks and 4 blocked punts. Daly was recruited by UCLA, TCU, Utah State, UNLV, Air Force, Rice, Yale and Princeton.


Brooks Maile, Defensive Lineman

Another local player going to Provo, he is from Pine View High School in St. George, Utah. ESPN and 247Sports have him as a three-star recruit and is 6’4, 285 lbs.

He racked up 57 tackles as a junior and 63 as a sophomore, while being named to the All-State second team by the Deseret News and an all-region first team selection.

Maile has already graduated high school with his associates degree. He was also recruited by Utah State.


Jacob Conover, Quarterback

A four-star recruit by 247Sports, Rivals and ESPN and is also an ESPN Top 300 prospect. The Chandler, Arizona product is 6’1, 205 lbs. and led Chandler High School to three consecutive state championships.

During his high school career, Conover threw for over 10,000 yards and 102 touchdowns. He threw for 3,306 yards and 38 touchdowns as a senior. He will serve a mission in Paraguay starting in February.

He was teammates in high school with current BYU wide receiver Gunner Romney. Conover was also recruited by Alabama, Arizona State, Arizona, Northwestern, Ole Miss, Oregon State, South Carolina and Washington State.

Keanu Hill, Wide Receiver

BYU is bringing in more offensive weapons for Zach Wilson as Hill comes in as a three-star recruit by 247Sports. He was named All-District in 2017 and 2018 while receiving the Trinity High School Team Receiver of the Year award in 2017.

The Euless, Texas product has family history in football with his father Lloyd being an All-American at Texas Tech and playing in the NFL for the Chicago Bears.

Hill was recruited by Texas Tech and Wyoming.

Eric Ellison, Defensive Back

Ellison comes to Provo from Mt. San Jacinto College and Banning, California. He is a three-star athlete according to 247Sports.

In Junior College, Ellison played running back, wide receiver, kick and punt returner and defensive back at Mt. San Jacinto.

Between all of those positions, he scored 27 total touchdowns during his sophomore and junior seasons.

Before Mt. San Jacinto, he attended Banning High School where he was named Athlete of the Year and two-time Team MVP as well as an all-conference selection.

Ellison was recruited by Washington State, UNLV, New Mexico, Northern Arizona and Idaho State.


Carter Wheat, Tight End

Wheat will be a nice addition to the strong history of tight ends at BYU. He is a 6’4, 225 lbs, three-star recruit by 247Sports. Wheat joins the Cougars from Red Mountain High School in Mesa, Arizona.

During his senior season, Wheat had 27 receptions for 304 yards and one touchdown. While in high school, he played outside linebacker.

His father Warren was an offensive lineman at BYU from 1985-88. He was recruited by Arizona, Arizona State, Northern Arizona and Princeton.

Blake Freeland, Defensive Lineman/Offensive Lineman

The Herriman High School graduate joins the Cougars as a three-star recruit by 247Sports, Rivals and ESPN. He is 6’8, 260 lbs. and played quarterback, tight end and defensive lineman in high school.

His father James played linebacker at BYU while his mother Debbie Dimond was an all-conference basketball player for the Cougars.

Freeland was recruited by  Utah, Cal, UCLA, Vanderbilt, Nebraska and Utah State.

Caleb Christensen, Defensive Back

Another local player has been added to BYU’s roster as Christensen comes to Provo from Smithfield, Utah and Sky View High School as a three-star recruit according to 247Sports.

He collected 18 tackles as a senior and 346 kick return yards on just seven kick returns. Christensen is a two-time all-state selection.

Christensen was recruited by Southern Utah and Dixie State.

Bruce Mitchell, Defensive Lineman/Offensive Lineman

The Kamas, Utah and South Summit High School native joins BYU as a back-to-back state champion in high school.

He had 76 tackles and 13 tackles-for-loss during his senior season and is 6’4, 265 lbs.

Ethan Erickson, Tight End

Erickson is a three-star tight end according to 247Sports from Kahuku High School in Kahuku, Hawaii. The 6’5, 225 lbs. tight end was selected as a 2018 Polynesian Bowl All-Star.

He was an All-OIA selection in both football and basketball.

Erickson was recruited by UCLA, Fresno State, Kansas State, Navy, Eastern Washington, Weber State and Utah State.

Chase Roberts, Wide Receiver

Roberts joins the Cougars after a very successful career at American Fork High School. He is a three-star recruit by 247Sports and ESPN.

He was selected to the 2019 Under Armour All-American Game and was named to the 6A All-State first team in 2017 and 2018 by the Deseret News.

During those two seasons, Roberts racked up 3,709 receiving yards and 40 touchdowns at American Fork, including back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons.

He had 1,717 yards as a senior with 18 touchdowns that led to a state championship. In the state championship game, Roberts had 15 receptions, 258 yards and two touchdowns.

Roberts was recruited by USC, Stanford, Utah, Weber State.

Brock Gunderson, Offensive Lineman

A three-star recruit by 247Sports and ESPN, the 6’4, 265 lbs. Gunderson joins BYU from Cypress Woods High School in Cypress, Texas.

He was a three-time all-district performer on the offensive line.

Gunderson was recruited by Purdue, North Texas, UTEP, Utah State, Army, Air Force, New Mexico and UNLV.

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BYU Cougars National Signing Day Commitments