Football

Tiger football adds five names to 2012 roster

Ross Cimpl

MITCHELL, S.D. – Dakota Wesleyan University football head coach Ross Cimpl reached his recruiting goal for his first year as head coach Wednesday when he announced the signing of five new recruits for the 2012 season.

Cimpl, who took over as head coach in January, brought his 2012 recruiting total to 42 athletes with his latest five signees, pushing him past his goal of 40 recruits. He announced his first 26 signees in February, and added 11 more names to the 2012 roster earlier this month.

Sam Kiger, Jon Knight, Aaron Ronne and Levi Sheldon will all be freshmen for the Tigers in the fall and Michael Brown comes to DWU with junior eligibility. Of these latest five recruits, two come from South Dakota. Three of his the signees will see time on the offensive side of the ball, one on defense and one could split time, depending on the team’s needs.

Brown is one of just a handful of transfers for Dakota Wesleyan so far this offseason. He comes to the Tigers after two seasons at College of the Canyons. The 5-foot-10 wide receiver from Palmdale, Calif., recorded 16 catches for 201 yards and averaged 12 yards per catch as a sophomore. He earned four varsity letters at Palmdale High School and helped his team to a 21-5 record and back-to-back league titles his final two seasons.

Kiger comes to DWU from Irene-Wakonda High School. The 6-4 tight end/defensive end was named the team’s Defensive MVP as a junior and earned all-conference honors his junior and senior seasons. He helped the Eagles to an 8-2 record as a senior. He also lettered four times in basketball and track and qualified for the Class B state track meet as a sophomore, junior and senior.

Knight, a 5-11 offensive lineman, comes to Dakota Wesleyan from Highland High School in Pocatello, Idaho. He earned three varsity letters and started 21 straight games for the Rams. Knight helped his team to a 10-1 record as a senior and two straight conference championships his final two seasons. He earned second team All-State honors as a senior and was a two-time first team all-conference pick. He is a member of the National Honor Society.

Ronne, a 5-11 wide receiver, joins the Tigers from Castlewood, S.D. He earned four varsity letters at Castlewood High School and was a two-year starter. He was an All-Dakota Valley Conference selection as a senior, and also lettered four times in track and three times in basketball.

Sheldon comes to DWU from Raymond S. Kellis High School in Glendale, Ariz. He earned two varsity letters on the football team, and recorded 60 tackles and four interceptions as a senior. The 5-10 defensive back recorded 51 tackles as a junior, and was an honor roll student all four years of high school.

“We are very pleased with the latest five signees, and are excited to hit our recruiting goal for 2012,” Cimpl said. “We look forward to seeing what this group will bring to the team come fall.”

The Tigers recently wrapped up their spring season with an intra-squad scrimmage. DWU reports back for fall practice in early August, and starts the season with a nonconference game against Dakota State University on Saturday, Sept. 1.