By: Lorenzo J. Reyna

Redzonefrenzy.com (photo courtesy of www.fresnostate.scout.com)

    

 

    That was the main highlight of National Signing Day, which always lands on the first Wednesday of February and helps kickoff the 2010 college football season.

    Fresno State was able to snatch up two wide receivers who were originally committed to Cal. Perhaps their most prized possession, however, was the signing of arguably the nation’s best punter, who spurned USC and former Bulldog player/coach Lane Kiffin to come to Fresno State.

    Wide receivers Josh Harper and Davon Dunn and punter Matt Darr (photo) helped provide one of the best storylines of this year’s 2010 Bulldog recruiting class.

    “Probably for the first time in my 14 years here, we were able to go head-to-head with very good competition and (we were) able to win out,” Hill said. “Does that mean they’re going to be great players? No. It means that they have the potential to be great players and we have to develop them. The ability is there to work with, and I’m very excited about that.”

    Hill perhaps is most excited about the five receivers that the Bulldogs were able to get, including Harper and Dunn.

    Harper, who starred at St. Mary’s High School in Stockton, was rated the 66^th best overall recruit according to rivals.com. The three-star recruit was also rated the 65^th best receiving prospect in the nation according to scout.com.

    “He’s got all of the skills to become a big-time college receiver at Fresno State,” Hill said of Harper. “A lot of it has to deal with the young quarterbacks we have here and the type of receivers we developed here.”

    Harper also has bloodlines. His father is Willie Harper, who played outside linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers from 1973-1983. The elder Harper was a key figure in the 49ers first Super Bowl title in 1981, when they defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 26-21.

    The Harper family sounded elated about being a part of the Bulldog atmosphere according to Hill.

    “Josh Harper and his family were very excited about the change of leaving Cal and coming to Fresno,” Hill continued. “That wasn’t taken well from our neighbors in the bay but Josh Harper made a great decision along with Davon Dunn.”

    Dunn was rated as the 34^th best recruit according to rivals.com, but listed as the 70^th best receiving prospect according to scout.com. Much like Harper’s dad, Dunn’s father also has football pedigree, but through Jim Sweeney.

    Davon’s father David starred at wide receiver for Fresno State before being drafted by the San Diego Chargers in 1995.

    “David was a great receiver at Fresno State and his son is an outstanding player that played both sides of the ball,” Hill said. “He played corner, played safety, played running back, played receiver, we’ve seen him at quarterback before, he’s a multi-positional athlete. His father, David, was a great Bulldog and had a fine NFL career. We look forward to continuing that legacy.”

    Out of all the 21 recruits signed though, including the two former Cal commits, the lone four-star player happened to be a guy known for using his leg.

    Matt Darr’s powerful leg earned him an early commitment to Pete Carroll last Summer at USC. However, when Carroll took the Seattle Seahawks job, as well as the hiring of the controversial Lane Kiffin to succeed Carroll, Darr made a weekend visit to the Fresno State campus and really liked what he saw.

    Darr made his decision to come to Fresno State back on Monday of this week. He’ll be counted on to use the leg that got him to average 42.9 yards per punt (which includes a 71-yarder) to replace the highly decorated Robert Malone, who finished his career with WAC and NCAA honors for his punts.

    “The biggest thing in our favor was not only losing Robert Malone, but also because we have John Baxter here who I feel is as good as any special teams coach in our country at any level,” Hill said about the addition of Darr. “We have never signed a special teams player with the raw natural ability that Matt has.”