Four-star Receiver Caleb Coombs Completes Marshall’s 2021 Signing Class

Marshall got the majority of its National Letter of Intent signatures for its 2021 football recruiting class on December’s signing day, but the Thundering Herd was hardly idle on Wednesday’s National Signing Day.

Caleb Coombs, a four-star receiver (according to Rivals) from Leesburg, Virginia who played at St. Johns College High School in Washington, D.C., sent his signed NLI to MU on Wednesday morning to put a bow on the Class of 2021 and turn the Herd’s recruiting focus squarely on the Class of 2022.

Coombs also received scholarship offers from Alabama, Boston College, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana State, Maryland, Nebraska, Tennessee, Utah, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Buffalo, Massachusetts and Southern Mississippi and was rated the No. 48 receiver in the country by Rivals.

“It’s about the ones we sign and that we sign the right ones,” Marshall head coach Charles Marshall, who was hired last month, said. “I think Caleb is a great example of that. He is a young man that fits a need we have and that’s speed — speed at the wide receiver position, the returner position, the kick coverage game. Speed kills, we all know that. Having him fall in love with this place, this staff, is huge because it shows our expectation for the level of player we’re recruiting.” 

Below are biographical capsules for each Class of 2021 Marshall signing (provided by MU):

Tyriek Bell 

Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-3, 220 

School: Saddleback College 

Hometown: Blythewood, S.C. 

Rated a two-star prospect by Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from Kansas State, Arizona, Liberty, Hawaii and Northern Colorado … Team’s Leading tackler at Saddleback with 79 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, three pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery … Named the conference’s National Division Co-Defensive Player of the Year … Lettered in football and track and field at Westwood High School in Blythewood, S.C. before graduating in 2014 … Enlisted in marine corps upon graduation and served in three different infantry battalions over the next four years, in addition to a deployment in China and Korea. 

Will Bonkavich 

Position, Height, Weight: OL, 6-4, 295 

School: Ventura College 

Hometown: Las Vegas, Nv. 

Will be a mid-year enrollee for the Thundering Herd … Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com … Received offers from UTEP, Hawaii, Missouri State and Western Illinois … Earned first-team all-conference and all-region honors …. Attended Green Valley High School. 

Darion Dearinger 

Position, Height, Weight: DT, 6-3, 270 

School: Anderson County 

Hometown: Lawrenceburg, Ky. 

Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from WKU, Air Force, Army, Ball State, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Miami (Ohio), Navy, Western Michigan and Eastern Kentucky … Played defensive end and tight end at Anderson County … Boasts a 40-yard dash of 4.71 seconds, shuttle of 4.5 with a vertical leap of 36.1 inches … Bench presses 365 pounds … Two-time first-team all-state honoree … At Anderson, recorded 60 tackles, 27 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks in 2019. 

Cam Fancher 

Position, Height, Weight: QB, 6-2, 180 

School: Wayne 

Hometown: Huber Heights, Ohio 

Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from Georgia State, Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Fordham, Georgetown and Murray State … Also played wide receiver at Wayne … Passed for 1,944 yards and seven touchdowns with 602 rushing yards and seven more scores on the ground during his junior season … Won the state championship in the triple jump and played basketball at Wayne. 

Isaiah Finnie 

Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-1, 205 

School: McArthur 

Hometown: Hollywood, Fla. 

Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from Maryland, Miami, NC State, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Colorado State, Florida Atlantic, FIU, UAB, Utah State, South Dakota and Tennessee State … Played outside linebacker and defensive end at McArthur. 

Tyshawn Hurst 

Position, Height, Weight: OL, 6-4, 285 

School: Snow College 

Hometown: Compton, Ca. 

Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from Liberty, Colorado State, Nevada, Southern Miss, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Morgan State … Attended Lynwood High School in Lynwood, California where he also played basketball. 

John McConnell 

Position, Height, Weight: P, 6-4, 190 

School: Morgantown 

Hometown: Morgantown, W.Va. 

Will be a mid-year enrollee for the Thundering Herd … Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com … Ranked fifth nationally as a punter by Chris Sailer Kicking … Averages more than 43 yards per kick with a hang time in excess of 4.5 seconds … Also has experience as a placekicker and kickoff specialist. 

Eric Meeks 

Position, Height, Weight: OL, 6-3, 315 

School: Penn 

Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio 

Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from Army, Central Michigan, Austin Peay and Southern Illinois … Played center, guard, defensive tackle and long snapper in high school … First-team all-conference and second-team all-district honoree … Also competed in track and field. 

Ethan Payne 

Position, Height, Weight: RB, 6-1, 210 

School: Poca 

Hometown: Poca, W.Va. 

Rated a two-star prospect by Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … Winner of the Kennedy (state’s top high school player) and Warner (state’s top running back) Awards … Rushed for 2,845 yards and scored 52 total touchdowns (49 rushing, two receiving and one kick return) during junior campaign … 276 points broke the former state record held by Curt Warner (263, 1978) … Also played cornerback and basketball at Poca … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.6 seconds, with a bench press of 225 pounds and a squat of 415. 

Signee List 

Tyriek Bell, LB, 6-3, 220 

Will Bonkavich, OL, 6-4, 295 

Caleb Coombs, WR, 6-0, 190 

Darion Dearinger, DT, 6-3, 270 

Cam Fancher, QB, 6-2, 180 

Isaiah Finnie, LB, 6-1, 205 

Tyshawn Hurst, OL, 6-4, 285 

John McConnell, P 6-4, 190 

Eric Meeks, OL, 6-3, 315 

Ethan Payne, RB, 6-1, 210