Wolf Pack brings in 22 new football players

RENO - Chris Ault can't wait until the start of spring and summer football practices.

"The competition should be steep and fierce," the Nevada Wolf Pack head coach said after announcing his 22-player football recruiting class on Wednesday at Legacy Hall. "We already had a nice nucleus coming in but these players we've brought in today are going to make the competition for spots as good as we've seen around here in the last few years."

The Wolf Pack added 13 offensive players and nine defensive players to its depth chart. The recruits come from four different states: California (18), Texas (two), Nevada (one) and Florida (one).

"This is a nice class, better than last year," Ault said. "We have added a lot of skill and some people who will come right in and give us immediate help."

Ault said he expects the five junior college players the Pack signed - defensive backs Nigel Haikins and Markus Smith, defensive linemen Shane Pennix and Cortez Woods and wide receiver Nigel Westbrooks - to compete for extensive playing time immediately in the fall. He also wants his 17 new freshman to have the same mindset.

"We don't want them to come in with the thought of red-shirting that first year," Ault said. "We want them to come in with the thought of competing."

Ault added that the Pack might not be finished recruiting this spring. "We may not be done yet," he said. "I'd like to add another wide receiver and running back. We'll see."

Ault was pleased on Wednesday - the first day recruits could sign a National Letter of Intent - but that wasn't the case right after the holidays.

"About two and a half weeks ago I called a recruiting meeting because I wasn't real happy where this thing was going," he said. "But starting about 10 days ago, it started to turn around and I think we came up with a quality class. Our coaches have done an outstanding job bringing in people to compete right away and give us excellent depth for the future."

The move to the Mountain West Conference this fall, Ault said, had a negligible affect on this year's recruiting class.

"Very little," he said. "We used that in recruiting but the kids we signed came here because of us. We sell us. For these kids, the big plus was the University of Nevada and the tradition we have here in football. I wanted guys who wanted to be here, who wanted to put on the silver and blue."

A close look at the Wolf Pack's 2012 football recruiting class:

ABE ABDELKARIM, Allen (Texas) High School: A huge (6-foot-6, 315-pound) offensive lineman who comes out of a huge (6,000 students) high school in football-crazy Texas.

"He wasn't noticed that much his junior year despite his size but he just blossomed his senior year," Ault said.

Abdelkarim also had an offer from UTEP.

"He will do nothing but get better," Ault said.

ALEX BERTRANDO, Del Oro High School (Loomis, Calif.): Bertrando will have to put on some weight (6-2, 210 pounds) before he can become a major contributor.

"He fits in very well into our scheme," Ault said. "He's an excellent prospect and could play either inside (linebacker) or outside."

Bertrando was the Sacramento Bee's Defensive Player of the Year this fall.

REGGIE COATES, Crespi Carmelite High School (Encino, Calif.): A gray shirt, Coates originally signed with the Wolf Pack in February 2011 over offers from Colorado State, Iowa State and Tulsa. He has already enrolled at Nevada for the spring semester.

An outstanding all-around athlete - he was also a basketball star at Crespi - Coates is 6-1, 240 pounds and has the makings of becoming another Brandon Marshall.

Coates had 61 tackles and four sacks as a high school senior in 2010.

CHARLES FARAIMO, Grant High School (Sacramento, Calif.): The 6-2, 270 - pound Faraimo, Ault said, "has a chance to get on our depth (chart) next year."

Faraimo had 78 tackles and two sacks this past season.

"Charles really liked the Nevada campus and he is 100 percent committed to Nevada," Faraimo's father, Charles, told 247sports.com this fall.

Faraimo, a defensive tackle, is considered a run stuffer.

"He will be a very exciting defensive lineman," Ault said. "No question, he will make things happen."

TRAVIS GARDNER, Eastlake High School (Chula Vista, Calif.): Gardner, a 6-foot, 195-pound wide receiver, originally gave a verbal commitment to Washington State last summer.

Gardner caught 16 passes for 231 yards and no touchdowns this season and missed five games with a broken wrist.

"He came back to play in the playoffs," Ault said. "He's a tough kid."

An excellent football, basketball and track athlete, Ault called Gardner "one of the sleepers in the class."

In addition to Washington State and Nevada, Gardner also had an offers from New Mexico.

JARRED GIPSON, Cypress Creek High School (Houston, Texas): The 6-foot, 220-pound Gipson, Ault said, will likely end up at wide receiver but could also develop into a linebacker.

"He can play on either side of the ball," Ault said.

Gipson had offers from Northwestern State, Southeastern Louisiana and Texas State.

"He's very intelligent" said his high school coach Greg McCaig, "and because of that he's able to do a lot of things."

Gipson was current Utah State quarterback Chuckie Keeton's top wide receiver target in 2010 at Cypress Lake High. He moved from safety to tight end for his junior year.

BRIAN GUENDLING, Poway (Calif.) High School: Guendling, a 6-4, 220-pound defensive end, also had offers from Idaho and New Mexico State.

"His height and athleticism will work to his advantage n the defensive line but we might also move him out to outside linebacker," Ault said.

Guendling was the Defensive Player of the Year in the Palomar Conference this fall.

NIGEL HAIKINS, Diablo Valley College (Berkeley, Calif.): Haikins expects the 5-10, 205-pound Haikins to challenge for a starting cornerback spot this year.

"We brought him in to compete and we're anxious to see him do it," Ault said.

Haikins, a junior this fall, graduated from Ygnacio Valley High School in Concord, Calif.

He also had an offer from Illinois.

AISEA HANSEN, Kaiser High School (Fontana, Calif.): An offensive lineman, Hansen is 6-3, 310-pounds.

"He's as wide as he is tall," Ault said. "He's a big, strong athlete who will fit in well with the Union. He's a load."

Hansen was named to the First Team All-CIF team this fall and also had offers from San Diego State and Fresno State.

HASAAN HENDERSON, Las Vegas High School: One of the Pack's top prizes in this recruiting class, the 6-5, 210-pound Henderson is already drawing comparisons to a former Wolf Pack quarterback.

"He's physically gifted and multitalented," Las Vegas High coach James Thurman told the Las Vegas Review-Journal this fall. "Hopefully he could be the next (Colin) Kaepernick if it all works out."

Henderson passed for 5,426 yards and 64 touchdowns and rushed for 1,351 yards and 15 touchdowns in three seasons at Las Vegas High.

"We had him in our quarterback camp last summer," Ault said. "The first year we did that was when Kap was (going into his senior year). That's how we found Kap. So we really got to know (Henderson). This kid has great upside."

Henderson ran a one-back offense at Las Vegas "with a little pistol thrown in," Ault said.

ANDREW MAIN, Los Alamitos (Calif.) High School: Main, like Coates, is currently enrolled in classes in the spring semester. He also signed with the Pack originally in 2011.

Main spent the past year adding 20 pounds and is now 6-3, 270 and can play wither guard or center on the offensive line.

"He'll come in right away and compete," Ault said.

MARQUIS NEWELL, Sarasota (Fla.) Riverview High School: The 6-foot, 175-pound Newell is a cornerback with "tremendous speed," Ault said.

"He is a track star who jumped 6-10 in the high jump," Ault said. "He's very fast. "His track speed will make him a viable defensive back as we move forward."

SHANE PENNIX, Grossmont College (Spring Valley, Calif.): Pennix, who will be a junior in 2012, turned down offers from Boise State, Indiana, BYU and Texas Tech to sign with the Wolf Pack.

Ault expects Pennix to come right in and compete for a starting role.

"He can really run," said Ault of the 6-3, 240-pound defensive end. "We're expecting him to enhance our pass rush with his excellent speed off the edge."

JERICO RICHARDSON, Bishop Alemany High School (North Hills, Calif.): A versatile athlete, Richardson is currently the starting point guard at Bishop Alemany. His backcourt partner is Marqueze Coleman, who recently signed a Letter of Intent to play basketball at Nevada.

"He was very quick to tell me, 'I'm the point guard,'" Ault said, smiling. "I tell him (Coleman) what to do out there."

Richardson is a 5-11, 175-pounder. He originally gave a verbal commitment to UCLA in September.

"He is a great athlete with tremendous upside who can do it all," Ault said.

MARKUS SMITH, Riverside Junior College (Riverside, Calif.): Ault expects the 6-1, 185-pound Smith to "make an instant impact" in the Pack secondary.

Smith, a junior this fall, also had an offer from San Jose State.

"He will definitely compete this year," Ault said.

CHRIS SOLOMON, West Covina (Calif.) High School: Solomon rushed for 1,790 yards and 20 touchdowns as a junior and just under 1,400 yards and a dozen touchdowns this past season.

"He is also an outstanding defensive back," Ault said. "That's the kind of athlete he is."

The 6-foot, 185-pound Solomon also had offers from Arizona, Arizona State and Colorado before deciding on Nevada.

"We think he is the future for us," Ault said.

XAVIER STEPHENS, Tulare (Calif.) Union High School: Stephens will also likely be a big part of the Pack's future. The 5-11, 235-pounder was on Ault's radar all recruiting season.

"I told (assistant coach Barry Sacks), 'I want that big back,'" Ault said. "We really wanted this kid."

Stephens comes from the same high school that produced brothers Virgil and Jeremiah Green for the Wolf Pack.

"He's a big, strong back who runs north and south," Ault said.

Stephens rushed for 4,130 yards in his career with 83 touchdowns. He had 1,405 yards and 36 touchdowns this past year.

UNLV also offered Stephens a scholarship.