HAMMOND, La. – Southeastern Louisiana University head football coach Frank Scelfo announced the addition of 21 student-athletes who will continue their athletic and academic endeavors as members of the SLU football program on the opening day of the early signing period Wednesday.
 
The newest signees will join the Lions for the 2026 season. The class was comprised of six offensive lineman, four wide receivers, three linebackers, two defensive lineman, two defensive backs, two tight ends and a running back.
 
With a 9-4 2025 season ending for the Lions in the first round of the NCAA FCS playoffs this past Saturday, Scelfo and his staff had to quickly turn the page towards 2026, as the December signing period started two weeks earlier than in previous years.
 
"It was a hectic time with us playing all the way up until this past weekend," Scelfo commented. "We've added a lot of skill position guys and that was an area of focus for us. We also got better up front on both sides of the ball and created some depth in those areas, especially on the offensive line."
 
In Scelfo's eight seasons at the helm of the Southeastern program, the majority of the roster has been made up of Louisiana products. Wednesday's class continued that trend, as 13 of the signees were in-state products.
 
"We've established a brand of success and a strong culture within our program," Scelfo stated. "High school players in this state know they can come here, be coached and developed. The word of mouth from our current players about what we have going on here being passed down to the new recruits helps as much as anything else.
 
"The great atmosphere at our home games in Strawberry Stadium was also a great selling point for a lot of the players we signed today," Scelfo added. "Our coaching staff does a great job communicating during the recruiting process and recruits know we're going to provide them the opportunity to compete at a high level."
 
2026 Southeastern Louisiana University Football Signing Class
Keidrick Bailey Jr. | OL | 6-2 | 290 | Zachary, La. | Zachary HS
Jiwaun Brock | WR | 5-11 | 165 | Covington, La. | Covington HS
Gage Brown | DT | 6-3 | 265 | Covington, La. | St. Paul's HS
Maddox Caldwell | OL | 6-3 | 295 | Fairhope, Ala. | St. Michael Catholic HS
Cody Corales | RB | 6-0 | 190 | Mandeville, La. | St. Paul's HS
Zack Corrigan | OL | 6-5 | 300 | Chilliwack, B.C. | St. Petersburg Catholic HS
Connor Crisp | DB | 5-11 | 175 | Castroville, Texas | Medina Valley HS
Lawson Dixon | WR | 5-10 | 180 | Central, La. | University HS
Frederic Downing Jr. | OL | 6-4 | 300 | Hahnville, La. | Hahnville HS
Charlie Grewe | TE | 6-5 | 200 | South Bend, Ind. | St. Joseph HS
Desmen Jefferson | WR | 5-10 | 175 | Ferriday, La. | Ferriday HS
Brandt Liuzza | LB | 6-2 | 215 | Amite, La. | Oak Forest Academy
Bennett Naquin | WR | 6-2 | 190 | Luling, La. | Hahnville HS
Dylan Post | LB | 6-1 | 225 | Covington, La. | St. Paul's HS
Cayden Randall | DB | 6-0 | 190 | Baton Rouge, La. | Woodlawn HS
Hayden Ray | TE | 6-3 | 260 | Denham Springs, La. | Denham Springs HS
Wesley Sandefur | OL | 6-3 | 270 | Fairhope, Ala. | Fairhope HS
Tyler Sharp | LB | 6-1 | 195 | Dothan, Ala. | Dothan HS
Colton Shaw | DE | 6-4 | 265 | La Ronge, Saskatchewan | St. Petersburg Catholic HS
Dylan Shelmire | LB | 6-1 | 220 | Zachary, La. | Zachary HS
Grayson Zepp | OL | 6-3 | 290 | St. Petersburg, Fla. | St. Petersburg HS
 
2026 Southeastern Football Signing Class Capsules
Keidrick Bailey Jr. | OL | 6-2 | 290 | Zachary, La. | Zachary HS
Standout performer on the offensive line at Zachary High … Also competes on the ZHS track and field team, establishing a new indoor school record in the shot put.
Frank Scelfo on Keidrick Bailey Jr.: "Keidrick is a very powerful player and is versatile enough to play inside or outside. We think he has the ability to play for us very early in this process."
 
Jiwaun Brock | WR | 5-11 | 165 | Covington, La. | Covington HS
Finished with 40 catches for 975 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior at Covington High School on the way to earning All-District 6-5A honors … Hauled in 47 catches for 906 yards and 13 touchdowns as a junior.
Scelfo on Brock: "Jiwaun is a talented guy that we didn't think we had a chance at, but really likes what we do here. We have some Covington players in our program currently that talked to him about what our program is all about and I think that helped us sign a great player."
 
Gage Brown | DT | 6-3 | 265 | Covington, La. | St. Paul's HS
All-District 6-5A defensive lineman as a senior at St. Paul's High School … Posted 52 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and five sacks this fall for the Wolves.
Scelfo on Brown: "Gage is a local guy who we fell is going to be a huge asset up front. With the loss of guys like Kaleb (Proctor) and Ahmad (Bradley), Gage is a guy who can come in and play early."
 
Maddox Caldwell | OL | 6-3 | 295 | Fairhope, Ala. | St. Michael Catholic HS
Selected to play in the Mississippi-Alabama All-Star Game later this month … Starting center for one of the highest scoring prep offenses in the nation at St. Michael Catholic High School … High school head coach is eight-time Pro Bowl quarterback Phillip Rivers.
Scelfo on Caldwell: "Maddox is going to be a contributor on the interior of our offensive line and has the ability to play both center and guard. He's a really smart player and has a lot of flexibility for us."
 
Cody Corales | RB | 6-0 | 190 | Mandeville, La. | St. Paul's HS
District 6-5A Offensive MVP as a senior at St. Paul's High School … Has rushed for 1,587 yards and recorded 26 total touchdowns this fall … Also earned all-state honors for the Wolves' baseball team.
Scelfo on Corales: "Cody is an outstanding player with great speed who can be a home run threat for us in the backfield. He also catches the ball extremely well. He's a local guy who has been to our games and knows what we're all about"
 
Zack Corrigan | OL | 6-5 | 300 | Chilliwack, B.C. | St. Petersburg Catholic HS
Split time between center and guard as a senior at St. Petersburg Catholic High School in Florida … Played first three prep seasons at G.W. Graham High School in his native Canada … Played in the British Columbia All-Star game following his junior season.
Scelfo on Corrigan: "We're really excited about adding Zack to our program. He can play either tackle position, has good flexibility and moves extremely well. We're expecting him to play early."
 
Connor Crisp | DB | 5-11 | 175 | Castroville, Texas | Medina Valley HS
District 30-6A Most Valuable Player as a senior at Medina Valley High School … Helped team to district title, splitting time between safety and wide receiver … Expected to play in the secondary for the Lions … Also a midfielder on the MVHS soccer team.
Scelfo on Crisp: "Connor contacted us and told us what he wanted for his college experience and we recruited him heavily. We believe Connor is a great fit for our program and being able to get him is a real feather in our cap."
 
Lawson Dixon | WR | 5-10 | 180 | Central, La. | University Lab HS
Standout wide receiver at University Lab High School … Also returned punts and kickoffs during his prep career.
Scelfo on Dixon: "Lawson has great speed and great hands. We had him in our camp this summer and were overwhelmed by his athleticism."
 
Frederic Downing Jr. | OL | 6-4 | 300 | Hahnville, La. | Hahnville HS
Key member on the interior offensive and defensive lines at Hahnville High School … Projects to be an offensive lineman for SLU … Also is on the HHS track and field team, throwing the discus.
Scelfo on Downing Jr. "Frederic is a big, physical young man that fits the mold of what we're looking on the offensive line. I think his natural position is inside, but he has the athleticism to pop out to tackle. We're going to start him on the offensive line, but he has the ability to play defensive tackle if that's where he fits best."

Charlie Grewe | TE | 6-5 | 200 | South Bend, Ind. | St. Joseph HS
All-conference performer at Saint Joseph High School in South Bend, Ind. … Played tight end and defensive end for the Huskies … Will play tight end at Southeastern.
Scelfo on Grewe: "Charlie is a long guy that will help us replace some of the tight ends. His father is a college baseball coach that knew (SLU offensive coordinator) Anthony (Scelfo) and once we made that initial connection, we really liked what we saw from Charlie during the recruiting process and are glad to have him join the program."
 
Desmen Jefferson | WR | 5-10 | 175 | Ferriday, La. | Ferriday HS
Three-time all-district performer at Ferriday High School … Played both wide receiver and cornerback for the Trojans … Accumulated over 2,500 receiving yards and 24 touchdowns during prep career … Also a sprinter on the FHS track and field team.
Scelfo on Jefferson: "Desmen is an explosive return guy in the mold of Dkhai Joseph. He also reminds me of (former Lion wide receiver/punt returner) Darius Lewis with his ability to shake defenders, speed and good hands."
 
Brandt Liuzza | LB | 6-2 | 215 | Amite, La. | Oak Forest Academy
All-state linebacker at Oak Forest Academy … High school coach is former Lion Drew Misita … Also plays baseball at OFA.
Scelfo on Liuzza: "Brandt is an athletic, tough kid. We've had a lot of success with Oak Forest products coming in and contributing to our success and we think Brandt is the latest in that line."
 
Bennett Naquin | WR | 6-2 | 190 | Luling, La. | Hahnville HS
All-district performer at Hahnville High School … Multi-sport athlete plays football and baseball at HHS … Outstanding student was named to the Composite All-State team as a 4.0 student as a senior.
Scelfo on Naquin: "Bennett is a guy who can play on both sides of the ball. We're going to start him off at wide receiver. He's a multi-sport athlete and a great leader for his team at Hahnville. We're looking forward to him joining our program."
 
Dylan Post | LB | 6-1 | 225 | Covington, La. | St. Paul's HS
Multi-time District 6-5A Defensive MVP at St. Paul's High School … Recorded 103 tackles, 20 tackles for loss, seven sacks, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery during the 2025 regular season for the Wolves.
Scelfo on Post: "Dylan is another guy that really stood out to us when he came to our camp. He's a big-bodied Mike linebacker that can come in and play immediately. We expect him to be a great special teams contributor early on."

Cayden Randall | DB | 6-0 | 190 | Baton Rouge, La. | Woodlawn HS
All-district performer at Woodlawn High School … Played both ways at WHS … Rushed for 10 touchdowns and passed for five more scores, while recording 50 tackles, one interception and three forced fumbles as a senior for the Panthers … Father is former LSU quarterback Marcus Randall.
Scelfo on Randall: "Cayden is going to be a really good safety for us. He's got good speed, good range and very good ball skills. We're expecting him to contribute early on for us."
 
Hayden Ray | TE | 6-3 | 260 | Denham Springs, La. | Denham Springs HS
Multi-sport athlete at Denham Springs High School … Plays tight end on the football team and center on the DHS basketball team … High school coach is former Lion Brett Beard.
Scelfo on Ray: "Hayden is a physical tight end who moves the pile. We got to know him at our camp and we're really excited about his addition."
 
Wesley Sandefur | OL | 6-3 | 270 | Fairhope, Ala. | Fairhope HS
All-state performer at Fairhope High School … Also ranked as the No. 1 heavyweight wrestler in Alabama's Class 7A.
Scelfo on Sandefur: "Wesley is a guy who can play anywhere on the offensive line for us. He's got good flexibility and is also a great student in the classroom."
 
Tyler Sharp | LB | 6-1 | 195 | Dothan, Ala. | Providence Christian HS
Do-it-all player at Providence Christian High School in Dothan, Ala. … Plays linebacker, running back and serves as the long snapper at PCHS … Younger brother of former SLU All-American tight end Bauer Sharp.
Scelfo on Sharp: "Tyler is Bauer Sharp's little brother and he's the same type of athlete. He's physical and we're going to start him on the defensive ball, but we're just excited to have a player of his caliber join our program."

Colton Shaw | DE | 6-4 | 265 | La Ronge, Saskatchewan | St. Petersburg Catholic HS
All-district performer and team's defensive MVP at St. Petersburg Catholic High School … Recorded 88 tackles, 12 sacks and four forced fumbles for the Barons … Also serves as the team's long snapper.
Scelfo on Shaw: "Colton can play both sides on the defensive line for us. He's a really good pass rusher coming off the edge."
 
Dylan Shelmire | LB | 6-1 | 220 | Zachary, La. | Zachary HS
Has helped Zachary High School reach the state semifinals as a senior … Recorded 72 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery as a junior.
Scelfo on Shelmire: "Dylan has some length and was another guy that we had in camp and really caught our eye. He comes highly recommended by his coaches and was very disruptive to opposing offenses in that district. Dylan is another guy that we think can play for us early."
 
Grayson Zepp | OL | 6-3 | 290 | St. Petersburg, Fla. | St. Petersburg HS
Spent his senior season at St. Petersburg Catholic High School … Earned all-county honors as a senior.
Scelfo on Zepp: "Grayson's a long kid who plays on the interior on the offensive line, but has the ability to step out and play tackle. He fits the profile of what we're looking for with his physicality and being flexible enough to play multiple positions."
 
TICKETS
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