STANFORD, Calif. — Troy Taylor, Stanford's Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football, announced the addition of 25 student-athletes on Wednesday's National Signing Day. These newcomers will join the Cardinal as the team enters its first season of competition in the ACC in 2024. Six will join the program as early enrollees, setting a program record for student-athletes joining during the winter quarter.
Of Stanford's 23 additions on Wednesday, 12 are offensive players and 13 are defensive players. Seven of these student-athletes are four-star recruits that help give the Cardinal a recruiting class ranked as high as No. 31 in the country, per ESPN.
"We had a whole year to recruit and get to know these kids, and make sure they are what we are looking for," said Taylor during Wednesday's press conference following National Signing Day. "Our staff has done an unbelievable job signing 25 young men that we are thrilled about. This is a really good recruiting class. We feel like we accomplished all of our goals and couldn't be more excited to have these guys."
Elijah Brown (Huntington Beach, Calif./Mater Dei) joins Stanford as the lone quarterback in this class, but the consensus four-star recruit is highly touted. Brown prepped at Mater Dei High School, which has produced some of the best quarterback talent in the country like Bryce Young, Matt Leinert, and Matt Barkley. He amassed 8,670 passing yards in his career with 115 total touchdowns, leading Mater Dei to a 42-2 record and two state championships, the only Mater Dei quarterback to win multiple state titles.
The running back room sees three new faces in Chris Davis Jr. (Picayune, Miss./Picayune Memorial), Micah Ford (Toms River, N.J./Toms River North) and Cole Tabb (Fort Walton Beach, Fla./Choctawhatchee). Davis Jr. is a four-star recruit ranked as the No. 25 running back newcomer in the country and was recently named to the 2023 U.S. Army Bowl roster. Ford compiled over 4,500 rushing yards in his career and is a two-time Zoneman Trophy winner, given to the best high school player in New Jersey. Tabb is a 5-8 running back who amassed over 5,100 rushing yards and was named Northwestern Florida Daily News Male Athlete of the Year twice.
Two new receivers join the Cardinal: Chase Farrell (Thousand Oaks, Calif./Oaks Christian School) and Emmett Mosley V (Chicago, Ill./Santa Margarita Catholic). Farrell is the younger brother of current Stanford wide receiver Bryce Farrell and also holds the Ventura County record in the 100m for track. Mosley V is a four-star recruit who played on both sides of the ball and was named All-State as both a wide receiver and defensive back.
A pair of tight ends were signed by Stanford on Wednesday in the form of Aiden Black (Dingmans Ferry, Pa./Delaware Valley) and Benjamin Blackburn (Miami, Fla./Columbus). The consensus No. 1 tight end in Pennsylvania, Black holds the tight end receiving and sack records at Delaware Valley High School. He was also named a District 2 Class 3A Wrestling Champion. Blackburn is the No. 10 tight end in the nation, according to ESPN, and was named the Christopher Columbus Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Up front, four offensive linemen will make their way to the Bay Area: Ziron Brown (Waveland, Miss./Bay), Hayden Gunter (Denton, Texas/Denton), Charlie Hoitink (Slinger, Wis.), and Kahlil House (Warner Robins, Ga./Houston County). Brown is a consensus top recruit in Mississippi as an inside offensive lineman and was recently selected to the 2024 Under Armour All-America game. Gunter and the rest of Denton's offensive line did not allow a sack while he was a senior, which led him to being named the District Offensive Lineman of the Year. Hoitink was named the North Shore Conference Offensive Lineman of the Year and holds a trio of U16 and one U18 USA Powerlifting American records. House is a three-sport athlete who was twice named First Team All-Region 1-6A.
Also included in this year's group is Zak Yamauchi, who committed to Stanford last season. An offensive lineman from Las Vegas, Nevada, Yamauchi led Bishop Gorman High School to a pair of state championships while landing First Team All-State honors twice. He is actively serving a mission before attending Stanford.
On the other side of the ball, the Cardinal added four defensive linemen who will beef up the pass rush. Joe Asiain (Edison, N.J./Saint Peter's Prep) is a former Second Team All-Conference member ranked as high as the second-best defensive end in New Jersey. Connor Bachhuber (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente) is the top defensive lineman in California per ESPN and a 2023 U.S. Army Bowl All-American. Jacobi Murray (Conyers, Ga./Holy Innocents Episcopal) is a two-time Georgia Region 6AAAA Player of the Year who also racked up 39 rushing touchdowns. Benedict Umeh (Toronto, Ontario, Canada/Avon Old Farms School) is the lone newcomer from outside of the United States. He a consensus four-star recruit who beat Stage 4 Hodgkin's Lymphoma in November, just nine months after diagnosis.
Sam Mattingly (Magnolia, Texas/Magnolia West), Maxwell Richardson (Ada, Mich.), Dylan Stephenson (Miami, Fla./Columbus) and Bo Tate (Salt Lake City, Utah/Corner Canyon) are the newest Stanford linebackers. Mattingly played on both sides of the ball as a linebacker/wide receiver but made First Team All-County as a linebacker. Richardson is a three-sport sport athlete who was named All-Region and All-State in football. Stephenson is a four-star recruit and two-time MaxPreps All-American who will play in the 2024 NBC All-American Bowl. Tate is a hard hitter who forced seven fumbles and recorded four interceptions, helping him land All-Region honors three times.
Five of the newest Stanford football players will roam the secondary. Brandon Nicholson (Memphis, Tenn./Memphis University School), Javion Randall (Richmond, Va./Henrico) and Cam Richardson (Irvington, N.J./Irvington) are the three cornerbacks who will join the team. Nicholson is a consensus top-30 prospect in Tennessee who intercepted 14 passes, the Memphis University School record for career interceptions. Randall was named All-Region as a defensive back and was also a three-time state qualifier in track in the 55m, 100m, and 4x100 relay. Richardson is a consensus top-five cornerback in New Jersey and twice landed All-State honors.
One of two safeties signed on Wednesday was Darrius Davis (Metairie, La./Archbishop Rummel). A consensus top-8 safety in Louisiana, he racked up nearly 300 tackles and five interceptions in his career, which included being an All-District honorable mention selection in basketball. The other safety is Jaylen'Dai Sumlin (Castaic, Calif./Sierra Canyon), a top-ten safety in California. He began his high school career as a wide receiver before making the switch to defensive back, where he was named to the All-Mission League defensive team.
14 different states are represented in this year's recruiting class, with California holding the highest number of newcomers at four. Florida, Georgia, and New Jersey each bring in three new Cardinal, while Mississippi and Texas each have two.
BY POSITION
Offense – 12
QB: 1 (Elijah Brown)
RB: 3 (Chris Davis Jr., Micah Ford, Cole Tabb)
WR: 2 (Chase Farrell, Emmett Mosley V)
TE: 2 (Aiden Black, Benjamin Blackburn)
OL: 4 (Ziron Brown, Hayden Gunter, Charlie Hoitink, Kahlil House)
Defense – 13
DL: 4 (Joe Asiain, Connor Bachhuber, Jacobi Murray, Benedict Umeh)
LB: 4 (Sam Mattingly, Maxwell Richardson, Dylan Stephenson, Bo Tate)
CB: 3 (Brandon Nicholson, Javion Randall, Cam Richardson)
S: 2 (Darrius Davis, Jaylen'Dai Sumlin)
BY STATE (14)
California – 4
Florida – 3
Georgia – 3
Illinois – 1
Louisiana – 1
Mississippi – 2
New Jersey – 3
Pennsylvania – 1
Tennessee – 1
Texas – 2
Michigan – 1
Utah – 1
Virginia – 1
Wisconsin – 1
