SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State football head coach Ryan Beard has announced the addition of 13 newcomers on the opening day of the early signing period for next season.
 
Beard's class includes six transfers and seven high school seniors. The early signing class includes players from nine states, including three players from Missouri.
 
"We are really excited about the December signing class," said Beard, who is starting his second year as Missouri State's head coach. "We were able identify and add some critical pieces for our football team moving forward. There is great size, speed, and play-making ability across the board with this group.
 
"The work is not done yet. We still have needs to address that we will be fully focused on moving forward. As always, it's a great day to be a MoState Bear!"
 
Committing to the Bears on Wednesday (Dec. 20) through the National Letter of Intent and financial aid agreement process are the following players:
 

• Jeron Askren (WR, 6-4, 215, Fr., Wichita, Kan., Maize South High)
• Ezra Ballinger (OL, 6-4, 275, Fr., Tulsa, Okla., NOAH)
• Jashawn Cooper (LB, 6-0, 230, Fr., Montgomery, Ala., Montgomery Academy)
• Elijah Leonard (QB, 6-4, 216, Fr., Lee's Summit, Mo., Lee's Summit North High)
• Alred "Dash" Luke (WR, 5-8, 180, Jr., New Orleans, La., Warren Easton High, ULM)
• Ryan Mitchell (OL, 6-3, 300, Fr., Chesterfield, Mo., Marquette High)
• Chris Scott Jr. (WR, 6-0, 161, Jr., Dacula, Ga., Dacula High, North Carolina State)
• Logan Scrivner (OL, 6-3, 270, Fr., St. Charles, Mo., Francis Howell High)
• Hunter Talley (TE, 6-4, 251, So., Siloam Springs, Ark., Siloam Springs High, Arkansas)
• Elijawah Tolbert (LB, 6-1, 230, Sr., Country Club Hills, Ill., Hillcrest High, Eastern Illinois)
• Eunique Valentine (LB, 6-1, 220, Jr., Knoxville, Tenn., Central High, Butler CC)
• Camron Williams (ATH, 6-0, 171, Fr., Gosnell, Ark., Gosnell High)
• Iverson Young (RB, 5-10, 190, RFr., Waxahachie, Texas, Waxahachie High, Montana)

 
The regular signing period begins on Wednesday, Feb. 7 with mid-year transfers eligible to sign through Jan. 15.
 
Individual capsules for the 2024 early signing class:
 
Jeron Askren (WR, 6-4, 215, Fr., Wichita, Kan., Maize South High)
Askren is ranked as a two-star standout and No. 17 overall prospect in the state of Kansas by 247Sports ... Helped coach Brent Pfeifer's Mavericks to an 8-3 record in 2023 for his senior season … He also plays basketball at Maize South.
 
Ezra Ballinger (OL, 6-4, 275, Fr., Tulsa, Okla., NE Oklahoma Association of Homeschools)
Ballinger is ranked No. 28 on The Daily Oklahoman's Super 30 list of the state's top recruits in the 2024 class ... He also ranks as a three-star prospect by SixStarFootball.com which has him as the No. 6 offensive lineman in Oklahoma ... He has a great mix of size, strength and athleticism ... As a junior, he helped the Tulsa Northeast Oklahoma Association of Homeschools Jaguars win the National Homeschool Football Tournament Championship in Panama City Beach, Fla., under his father and head coach James Ballinger … He held offers from Air Force, Army, Pennsylvania, Navy and UNLV.  
 
Jashawn Cooper (LB, 6-0, 230, Montgomery, Ala., Montgomery Academy)
Cooper was a two-way standout at Montgomery (Ala.) Academy where he ranked as the No. 4 linebacker in Alabama in 2023 ... He was part of a 2021 state runner-up club for coach Robert Johnson at Montgomery Academy where he averaged 4.1 yards per carry in the 3A state title game for the 11-4 Eagles who dropped a narrow 35-33 decision in the state championship game.

Elijah Leonard (QB, 6-4, 216, Fr., Lee's Summit, Mo., Lee's Summit North High)
Leonard passed for 2,204 yards on 150-of-223 attempts for 24 touchdowns with just 7 interceptions and an impressive 122.1 QB rating as a senior in 2023 at Lee's Summit (Mo.) North High School ... He also rushed for 5 TD's for coach Jamar Mozee's Broncos ... He was named as a three-star recruit by SixStarFootball.com which also ranked him as the No. 2 QB in Missouri's 2024 class and the No. 37 player overall ... He had offers from South Dakota, Lindenwood and others.
 
Alred "Dash" Luke (WR, 5-8, 180, Jr., New Orleans, La., Warren Easton High, ULM)
Luke spent the past three seasons at Louisiana-Monroe (ULM) including a breakout sophomore campaign in 2023 where he caught 16 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown ... Head 7 catches for 76 yards in a 2023 loss at Georgia Southern ... In 2022, he snagged 23 receptions for 293 yards and a TD, including a season-high 6 catches vs. Coastal Carolina ... He redshirted in 2021 after playing 4 games … Luke prepped at Warren Easton High in New Orleans for coach Jerry Phillips where he was a three-year starter and 2020 4A all-state honorable mention selection ... As a senior, he accounted for more than 2,000 all-purpose yards and 15 touchdowns ... He also ran track in high school.
 
Ryan Mitchell (OL, 6-3, 300, Fr., Chesterfield, Mo., Marquette High)
Mitchell earned Missouri Class 6 all-state third-team honors by the Missouri Football Coaches Association as a senior at Marquette High in Chesterfield … Helped lead coach Michael Stewart's Mustangs to a 7-3 record his senior season while helping the offense average an impressive 200.6 rushing yards per game.
 
Chris Scott Jr. (WR, 6-0, 161, Jr., Dacula, Ga., Dacula High, North Carolina State)
Scott played the last four seasons at North Carolina State where the speedster saw action in eight combined games in Raleigh … He saw time at receiver and defensive back during his tenure with the Wolfpack … He attended Dacula (Ga.) High where he had a standout senior season for coach Clint Jenkins in 2019 with 31 receptions for 832 yards and 7 touchdowns while averaging 26.8 yards per catch … He led his team to the Georgia 6A semifinals and a 13-1 record as a senior … He also had 33 receptions for 606 yards and 7 scores as a sophomore … Placed sixth in the Georgia 6A state finals in the 100m (10.79) and fifth in the 200m (21.83).
 
Logan Scrivner (OL, 6-3, 270, Fr., St. Charles, Mo., Francis Howell High)
Scrivner was ranked No. 24 in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Super 30 preseason player rankings for 2023 … He helped lead coach Brent Chjonacki's Vikings to a 9-3 season and playoff run his senior season and was instrumental in Howell averaging 152.3 rushing yards per game in 2023.
 
Hunter Talley (TE, 6-4, 251, So., Siloam Springs, Ark., Siloam Springs High, Arkansas)
Talley played in three games in 2023 at Arkansas as a redshirt freshman with appearances vs. Auburn, FIU and Missouri ... He redshirted during his first season in Fayetteville in 2022 learning to play tight end after playing quarterback in high school ... He was a standout QB at Siloam Springs (Ark.) High where he completed 163-of-301 passes for 2,236 yards, 17 touchdowns as a senior in 2021 ... He also rushed 184 times for 1,158 yards and 19 touchdowns during his senior campaign ... Talley was named the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Player of the Week after completing 25 of 40 passes for 335 yards and two touchdowns on (9/10/21) … He also received interest from Arkansas State, Memphis, Air Force and others.
 
Elijawah Tolbert (LB, 6-1, 230, Sr., Country Club Hills, Ill., Hillcrest High, Eastern Illinois)
Tolbert was a two-time first-team all-conference linebacker at Eastern Illinois where he racked up 87 tackles in 2023 with 46 solo stops and 7.0 tackles for loss for an 8-3 Panthers squad ... In 2022, he was EIU's third leading tackler, finishing with 70 tackles including 6.5 tackles for loss and tied for the team lead with three interceptions to earn All-OVC first team honors ... He played spring 2021 high school football at Hillcrest High after Covid canceled the fall portion of his senior season ... He also played for coach Dontrell Jackson at Thornton Township High as a junior and helped the team post an 8-3 record and 7A playoff run ... He earned second team all-area honors and first team All-Southland Athletic Conference honors in 2019 after racking up 122 tackles, 15.0 tackles for loss and 9.0 sacks as a prep junior.
 
Eunique Valentine (LB, 6-1, 220, Jr., Knoxville, Tenn., Central High, Butler CC)
Valentine played the last two seasons for the Grizzlies at Butler (Kan.) Community College ... He notched 20 total tackles in three appearances in 2023 for coach Brice Vignery … In 2022, he played in three games with 4 total stops and 2.0 tackles for loss ... He redshirted as a preferred walk-on at Tennessee in 2020 ... Valentine was a standout at Central High in Knoxville, Tenn., where he helped lead the Bobcats to back-to-back Class 5A state titles in 2018 and 2019 ... He was named Knoxville News Sentinel All-PrepXtra second team all-state as a senior after recording 102 tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks in 2019.
 
Camron Williams (ATH, 6-0, 171, Fr., Gosnell, Ark., Gosnell High)
A speedy and athletic standout at several positions, Williams posted a 4.5 second 40-yard dash at Gosnell (Ark.) High School for coach Lewis Earnest ... He is the brother of current Bears Floyd Williams … As a junior, he had 55 catches for 1,041 yards and 8 touchdowns on the offensive side along with 66 tackles, 10 interceptions and 18 passes defended on the defensive side … He had 16 Division I offers from Miami, Florida State, Michigan State, Colorado State, Colorado, Baylor, UNLV and others.
 
Iverson Young (RB, 5-10, 190, RFr., Waxahachie, Texas, Waxahachie High, Montana)
Young played in two games as a true freshman in 2023 at Montana with 7 carries for 12 yards in games against Utah Tech and Portland State … He was a three-star standout by 247 sports, ESPN and Rivals … Young had interest from Texas State, North Texas, Rice, Colorado State, La Tech, Arkansas State in high school … As a senior at Waxahachie (Texas) High, he carried 78 times for 482 yards and 6 touchdowns, averaging 6.2 yards per carry for the Indians … He also registered 713 rushing yards on 142 carries as a junior in 2021 (5.0 yards per carries) with 5 touchdowns.