Blue Hens Sign 13 During Early Signing Period

NEWARK, Del. – The University of Delaware football program returned to the national scene this fall with a berth in the FCS Playoffs for the first time since 2010.

The rise of the Blue Hens continued on Wednesday when one of the most talented recruiting classes in years signed NLIs to officially join the program. Head Coach Danny Rocco and his staff welcomed 13 signees from six different states.

Joining the program were OL Bradly Anyanwu (Dover, Del./Dover), TE Will Bowen (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin), WR Ayinde Budd (Richmond, Va./Collegiate), K Ryan Coe (McDonald, Pa./South Fayette), DL Nick Coomer (Lititz, Pa./Warwick), DB Mekai Davis (Hyattsville, Md./DeMatha), TE Levaughn Lewis (Stamford, Conn./King School), LB Chase McGowan (Stafford, Va./North Stafford), DL Akie Nance (Newark, N.J./Newark Collegiate Academy), QB Cade Pribula (York, Pa./Central York),TE/FB Mateo Vandamia (Oakdale, Pa./West Allegheny), RB Quincy Watson (Norristown, Pa./Malvern Prep) and OL Owen Zechman (Middleburg, Pa./East Juniata).

"This is always an exciting day and we're thrilled with this group of student-athletes that have signed with us today. It's a high character group of young men who will be great additions to not only our football program, but our university community," Rocco said. "We have a lot of history with most of these student-athletes and their families. For most of them, it started in the spring and continued through the summer with all of them visiting campus with seven of them taking part of our one-day evaluation camp. We have really good versatility in this group with a lot of these student-athletes playing multiple positions in high school. All of these guys were really within our footprint with six different states, seven from Pennsylvania, two from Virginia and one from Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and Connecticut. This is a quality group from top to bottom and all of them have a strong history of academics and we can't wait to have them join our program."

OL Bradly Anyanwu (Dover, Del./Dover) – 6'3", 300 lbs

Versatile big man that was a four-year starter on the offensive line at Dover High. He twice earned First Team All-State accolades as well as being an All-Conference selection. He also was a star on Dover's track & field team as well, throwing the shot put and earning State Championship honors in the event. Anywanwu was an honor student throughout his school career, carrying a near 3.5 GPA. He received interest from Delaware State, Georgetown and Morgan State.

TE Will Bowen (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin) – 6'6", 230 lbs

Three-year varsity starter at Lower Dauphin, who twice earned All-Conference accolades at both tight end and defensive end. During his junior year, he also earned All-State honors at defensive end. In addition to football, Bowen was a four-year starter on the basketball team as well, scoring over 1,000 points during his career and earning three All-Conference honors. An honor roll student all four years, Bowen also received interest from Maine, Monmouth, Albany, Buffalo, Bucknell, Army, Kent State, Fordham and Colgate.

WR Ayinde Budd (Richmond, Va./Collegiate) – 6'5", 205 lbs

A two-time team captain, two-time All-State performer and three-time All-Conference honoree, Budd brings an offensive weapon to the Blue Hens arsenal. Budd's athleticism was also on display on the basketball court as he was a four year starter for Collegiate. He also received interest from Boston College, Buffalo, Delaware State, Elon, JMU, Richmond, Virginia and Wake Forest.

K Ryan Coe (McDonald, Pa./South Fayette) – 6'3", 220 lbs

A strong legged addition to the special teams unit, Coe has a career-long field of 51 already to his name, which helped him earn two All-Conference accolades as well as All-Western PA first team honors as a senior. He was ranked as the top punter in PA and the second ranked kicker in the state. Coe was also a two-year starter on the school's baseball team during his high school career. An honor roll student at South Fayette, he received interest from Akron, Duquesne, Temple, Ole Miss and UCF.

DL Nick Coomer (Lititz, Pa./Warwick) – 6'4", 285 lbs

A three-year starter and team captain, Coomer had quite a career at Warwick, helping his team to the second round of the state playoffs, while piling up 225 tackles during his career, including 15.5 sacks. He was a three-time All-League honoree and named the league's Defensive Lineman of the Year as a senior. In addition to his football accolades, Coomer was a district and league qualifier in the shot put. He also received interest from Boston College, Elon, Monmouth and New Hampshire.

DB Mekai Davis (Hyattsville, Md./DeMatha) – 6'0", 180 lbs

An athletic, hard-hitting defensive back, Davis has been on the gridiron since he was five years old. A two-time all-conference honoree, Davis was a integral part of the DeMatha defense for the past three seasons as a starter. He also received interest from Rhode Island and Sacred Heart, among others.

TE Levaughn Lewis (Stamford, Conn./King School) – 6'3", 215 lbs

A versatile athlete, Lewis was a three-time all-league performer at King School, shining at both the tight end and linebacker spots. He twice earned All-New England accolades and was the team's leading receiver during his senior season. Lewis also excelled in the classroom, earning high honor roll marks throughout his high school career. He received interest from Cornell, Stony Brook and Syracuse among others.

LB Chase McGowan (Stafford, Va./North Stafford), 6'1", 230 lbs

Serving as team captain during his junior and senior seasons, McGowan backed it up with his play on the field, earning First Team All-Region and First Team All-District honors during both his junior and senior seasons. As a senior, he piled up over 75 tackles, 23 sacks, 15 TFLs and seven forced fumbles en route to First Team All-State accolades. McGowan received interest from Saint Francis, Lehigh, Richmond, Army, New Hampshire and Morgan State, among others.

DL Akie Nance (Newark, N.J./Newark Collegiate Academy) – 6'3", 275 lbs

A fast-rising defensive line prospect, Nance burst onto the scene as a starter during his sophomore year, both on the offensive and defensive line. He twice earned First Team All-Conference and All-County on the defensive side of the ball, while racking up over 50 tackles and seven sacks during his senior year. Nance is a cum laude student at Newark Collegiate Academy and received interest from Temple, Rutgers, Monmouth, Syracuse, Stony Brook, Cornell and Richmond, among others.

QB Cade Pribula (York, Pa./Central York) – 6'1", 200 lbs

Pribula brings quite a pedigree from his high school career, where he set league records for most passing TDs (65) and yards (6,782) in a career. He was a three-time all-league honoree and finished his time at Central York by throwing for 2,866 yards and 31 TDs as a senior. He also rushed for over 1,000 yards and 17 TDs during his career. Pribula was also a star on the basketball court, starting three years at Central York. He earned Distinguised Honor Roll every semester of his high school career and received interest from Albany, Buffalo and Sacred Heart.

TE/FB Mateo Vandamia (Oakdale, Pa./West Allegheny) – 6'2", 225 lbs

A star on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, Vandamia helped his West Allegheny team to the WPIAL Class 5A state finals during his senior season. Offensively, he had 28 catches for 355 yards and five TDs to earn a spot on the Trib 25 All Star list. He led the team in both receptions and tackles (95). In his three years as a starter, he caught nearly 100 balls for 1,358 ayrds and 14 TDs.

RB Quincy Watson (Norristown, Pa./Malvern Prep) – 5'9", 180 lbs

The Watson family legacy continues with Blue Hen football with Quincy, following his dad, Rowan's footsteps to Newark. Rowan was a member of the program from 1988-91 on the defensive side of the ball. Quincy brings with him a three-time all-league high school career. He helped his team to three straight Inter-Ac league titles, while piling up nearly 1,000 all-purpose yards in both his junior and senior seasons. He received interest from Brown, Bucknell, Colgate, Darmouth, Lafayette, Lehigh, Holy Cross, Rhode Island, Robert Morris and Sacred Heart.

OL Owen Zechman (Middleburg, Pa./East Juniata) – 6'4", 275 lbs

Zechman was a versatile athlete at East Juniata, starring on the football, wrestling and track teams during his high school career. On the gridiron, he earned all-conference and All Tri-Valley accolades for his play on the defensive side of the ball and as a tight end. Zechman will add athleticism and strength to the Blue Hens offensive line unit.

University of Delaware Athletics

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