Bios for the Air Force 2012 football recruiting class

Although Air Force does not officially release its list of football recruits, here is the unofficial list, along with bios on each player, gathered by The Gazette through various sources. Height and weights are from Rivals.com, Scout.com or MaxPreps.com. Video highlights for most of the recruits can be found at the Gazette's Air Force athletics blog at gazetteafasports.freedomblogging.com:

C Andy Agen, Burlington, Wash (Burlington-Edison high school)

6-foot-3, 260 pounds

Agen played fullback, tight end, offensive and defensive tackle, defensive end and center in high school. He also played power forward on the basketball team. He will attend the prep school.

OLB Reed Allen, Calhoun, Ga. (Calhoun)

6-2, 215

A defensive end who filled in at offensive tackle when the team had injuries. He helped his team go 15-0 and win its first state championship since 1952.

LB Kola Alli, Kennedale, Texas (Kennedale)

6-1, 210

Alli, a talented linebacker, missed his entire senior season after suffering a knee injury last summer. He plans to be fully healthy and attend the prep school in the fall.

DB Kalon Baker, Fairburn, Ga. (Arlington Christian)

6-0, 175

A Georgia Independent School Association Class AA all-state pick, and played in the GISA all-star game. He also played receiver, but will probably settle in at cornerback in college.

LB Reggie Barnes, Tampa, Fla. (Berkeley Prep)

6-2, 215

A late commit, Barnes picked Air Force over many big-name schools. According to Rivals.com, his other offers included Arizona State, Cincinnati, Colorado State, Florida International, Pittsburgh and Rice. He also played receiver and tight end.

OT Preston Bass, Mesquite, Texas (Poteet)

6-3, 285

Bass was a team captain, as elected by his teammates, and is mobile for a large player. He projects as an interior offensive lineman with the Falcons.

QB A.J. Bilyeu, Bartlett, Ill. (Bartlett) 

6-3, 180

A good dual-threat quarterback with 47 career touchdown passes, a school record, he also set school records for completions and yardage. He added 13 rushing touchdowns in his career.

OL Jackson Buonamia, Snellville, Ga. (Brookwood)

6-3, 280

The big lineman had offers from Georgia State, Arkansas State and Ball State and interest from other schools, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported, but he committed to Air Force in September. His junior year, he helped his team to a state championship.

TE Sam Byers, Kingston, Wash. (Kingston)

6-5, 250

Byers played some quarterback and safety in high school, and was his league’s MVP, but he projects as a tight end for Air Force, although he could end up on the offensive or defensive line. He will go to the prep school.

DE Glynn Cheeks, Manvel, Texas (Manvel)

6-2, 215

The athletic defensive linemen was Houston Chronicle’s all-Greater Houston defensive player of the year last season. He had 19 sacks last season, and projects as an outside linebacker in Air Force’s defense. He also reportedly had officials visits with Rice, SMU and Wyoming.

DE Steven Cornellier, Jacksonville, Fla. (Bishop Kenny)

6-3, 230

Cornellier broke out as a junior. He had 14 sacks, according to the Florida Times-Union, and was an early commit to Air Force.

RB Markez Davis, Holly Springs, N.C. (Holly Springs)

6-0, 195

Davis had a breakthrough senior season, rushing for 1,296 yards and 17 touchdowns, according to the News & Observer. He was a first-team all-conference selection.

DT Lochlin Deeks, Salem, Ore. (West Salem)

6-2, 230

Deeks was part of The Oregonian’s Class 6A all-state team, as a second-team selection as a defensive lineman. His coach said he weighs about 260 pounds and can add more. He will attend the prep school.

QB Je’rod Evans, Mansfield, Texas (Mansfield)

6-4, 190

Evans chose the Falcons over North Texas. As a senior he had 1,871 yards and 25 touchdowns passing and rushed for 717 yards and 6 scores, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He will be attending the prep school.

DT Tanner Fleming, Newton, N.C. (Foard)

6-2, 275

Fleming was named the Charlotte Observer’s all-region defensive Player of the Year (for schools outside of the immediate Charlotte area) after a great senior season in which he had 80 tackles, including 12 sacks and 25 tackles for loss. He also is an exceptional wrestler and a thrower on the track team.

DE Randy Frost, St. Johns, Fla. (Creekside)

6-4, 230

Frost also played tight end in high school. On the defensive side, he had 104 tackles in his career, including 56 solo stops and 18 tackles for loss. He was second-team all-county in 2011.

C Brandon Greene, Redlands, Calif. (East Valley)

6-3, 260

An all-CIF Inland Division selection for his work on the offensive line, Greene chose Air Force even though he was also courted by fellow service academies Army and Navy.

LB Spencer Hammitt, Glendale, Ariz. (Mountain Ridge)

6-1, 220

Hammitt said he was recruited to play inside linebacker for the Falcons. He played mostly outside linebacker in high school.

DE David Harris, Cedar Hill, Texas (Cedar Hill)

6-0, 240

Harris was named District 5-5A defensive player of the year by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, among many accolades. In addition to Air Force, he also offers from Stephen F. Austin, Arkansas State, Rice, Army and Navy. He projects as an outside linebacker for the Falcons.

DE Will Hopkins, Austin, Texas (Bowie)

6-7, 230

Hopkins could end up playing on either side of the ball, because he was a standout at defensive end and offensive tackle. He was a two-time all-district 15-5A selection. He will attend the prep school in the fall.

FB Alex Lakes, Newnan, Ga. (Northgate)

5-10, 197

Lakes was a second-team all-state pick in Class AAAA by the Georgia Sportswriters Association. According to the Newnan Times-Herald, he rushed for 1,270 yards and 19 touchdowns as a senior.

CB Desmond Lewis, Elk Grove, Calif. (Pleasant Grove)

6-0, 165

Lewis is a tall cornerback who moved over to safety during the season when injuries struck on his team. He is projected to be a cornerback at Air Force. He was an all-city pick in the Sacramento area, and picked Air Force over Fresno State.

RB Andrew Long, Moore, Okla. (Southmoore)

5-9, 180

A four-year starter at a 6A school (which is the largest class in Oklahoma), Long averaged 7.2 yards per carry and had more than 4,300 yards rushing in his career. He had 43 touchdowns in his career. He will attend the prep school.

DB Gavin McHenry, Parker, Colo. (Chaparral)

6-0, 170

Although McHenry is probably best suited to play cornerback for Air Force, he also played some free safety in high school, and returned kicks. He is very fast – in the 5A Colorado state track and field championships last year, he finished second in the 100-meter dash (10.57 seconds) and fourth in the 200-meter dash (21.59 seconds).

DE Jacob Nesmith, Cumming, Ga. (Forsyth Central)

6-4, 255

Nesmith will begin his career at defensive end, where he played very well for Forsyth Central, although he also played on the offensive line. He will be attending the prep school.

DB Jalen Noble, Blacklick, Ohio (St. Francis DeSales)

5-11, 180

Noble played receiver, cornerback and returned punts and kickoffs in high school, but will likely be a cornerback in college. He was honored with a Columbus Dispatch’s all-metro team special mention. He will attend the prep school.

K Drew Oehrle, Indianapolis (Roncalli)

6-0, 148

Oehrle set Indiana state records for field goals in a game and a season, and was named all-state first team by the Associated Press. Oehrle can also punt.

RB Nnaji Omenye, Birmingham, Ala. (Jackson-Olin)

5-7, 193

Was named to the Birmingham News’ all-west football team after his senior season. He rushed for 1,043 yards and 12 touchdowns last season.

TE Sam Pearce, Noblesville, Ind. (Noblesville)

6-5, 230

An honorable mention pick on the ESPNHS Indiana and Associated Press all-state team, Pearce also was honored last month as an Eagle Scout. He also had offers from multiple schools in the Mid-American Conference.

DB Cody Ray, North Miami Beach, Fla. (North Miami Beach)

5-11, 175

Ray played both sides of the ball for his high school team, but will likely settle in at cornerback at Air Force. According to Rivals.com, Stanford, Duke and Vanderbilt were among the other schools that showed an interest in Ray.

OL A.J. Ruechel, Hoschton, Ga. (Mill Creek)

6-2, 250

The guard was a Class AAAAA all-state pick as a senior, the first time in the eight-year history of his high school program has been recognized as an all-state pick. He had a school-record 146 pancake blocks, according to his coach.

RB Devin Rushing, DeSoto, Texas (DeSoto)

5-9, 168

Rushing played as a sophomore for one of the better high school programs in Texas, which isn’t an easy feat. Rushing helped his team go 10-2 last year, and scored two touchdowns in a playoff defeat.

WR Andrej Suttles, Dallas, Ga. (East Paulding)

5-10, 179

A Class AAAA all-state pick, Suttles broke all of his school’s receiving records, and had more than 1,000 yards as a senior. He participated in the prestigious North-South All-Star Football Classic in Georgia, and scored a touchdown in the game.

LB Toronto Thomas, Lithonia, Ga. (Martin Luther King)

6-2, 220

Thomas moved from defensive end to linebacker as a senior and had a great season, with 112 tackles. He chose Air Force over Wake Forest, which he said was his second choice. He will attend the prep school.

DE Ryan Watson, Conyers, Ga. (Heritage)

6-3, 220

Watson was named 8-AAAA all-region defensive Player of the Year after a great senior season. He picked Air Force over a number of schools including Navy.

LB Brandtley Wilson, Beaumont, Texas (Kelly Catholic)

6-0, 225

Wilson was a first-team all-state selection by the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools. According to the Beaumont Enterprise, he had 190 tackles including 126 solo stops.

Frank Schwab, The Gazette