Monday, Feb. 1, 2010 | 5:04 p.m.
A Closer Look at Kyle Anderson
Kyle Anderson, Silverado Linebacker.
Recruits expected to sign Wednesday
- Kyle Anderson, LB, 6-2, 230, Silverado High
- Taylor Barnhill, QB, 6-4, 212, Northwest High (Justin, Texas)
- Ian Bobak, DE, 6-4, 245, Bishop Gorman High
- Dionza Bradford, RB, 6-0, 190, Serrano High (Phelan, Calif.)
- Perry Cooper, LB, 6-3, 215, The Woodlands High (Woodlands, Texas)
- Tim Cornett, RB, 6-1, 190, North Shore High (Galena Park, Texas)
- Kurt Davis, WR, 6-4, 200, Centennial High (Compton, Calif.)
- Tyler Gaston, DT, 6-3, 260, Rancho High
- Tajh Hasson, DB, 6-1, 180, Cathedral High High (Los Angeles)
- Cameron Jefferson, OL, 6-7, 250, Desert Oasis High
- Nolan Kohorst, K, 6-0, 165, Green Valley High
- Kjelby Oiland, DT, 6-4, 270, Ferris High (Spokane, Wash.)
- Kenneth Penny, ATH, 6-0, 170, Kimball High (Lancaster, Texas)
- Brian Roth, OL, 6-5, 290, El Toro High (Lake Forest, Calif.)
- Jordan Sparkman, TE, 6-6, 240, Point Loma High (San Diego)
- Taylor Spencer, LB, 6-1, 190, Bishop Gorman High
- Desmond Tautofi, DE, 6-4, 275, Calvary Chapel High
- Eric Tuiloma, DB, 5-11, 185, West Ranch (Calif.) High
- Anthony Vidal, TE, 6-5, 250, Orange Coast College (Costa Mesa, Calif.)
One of the recruits who is expected to sign with the UNLV football team Wednesday won't join the program for three years.
Silverado High linebacker Kyle Anderson verbally committed to UNLV after a weekend visit, but won't enroll at his hometown school until January 2013. Instead, he will serve a two-year church mission starting next October.
"I have waited my entire life to go on a mission," Anderson said. "It's the right thing to do. It's unfortunate that I'm going to be out of football for two or three years, but I have waited 19 years to go on my mission."
The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Anderson, who Rivals.com lists as a two-star prospect, will be 21 years old when he returns. Some missions allow for one day of physical training each week, but nothing is guaranteed, he said.
"There are a lot of benefits to a mission," Anderson said. "You come back a lot more mature than a typical freshman. I think it will work out just fine with UNLV."
Anderson, who had 82 tackles and six sacks in 2009, also had offers from Football Championship Subdivision schools Northern Arizona and Weber State. The all-Sunrise Region selection said playing Division I with UNLV was one of the deciding factors.
"UNLV plays a step higher," he said. "I also like the fact that it is at home and a lot of people I know can come watch me play."
Anderson was physically stronger than many of the opponents he lined up against on Friday nights. His bench press maximum is 290 pounds and he squats 400 pounds. He was also clocked at 4.65 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
UNLV has verbal commitments from 19 heading into Wednesday's national signing day.
Rivals lists the most recent commitments as 6-foot-3, 260-pound defensive tackle Tyler Gaston of Rancho High in North Las Vegas, 6-foot-2, 215-pound linebacker Perry Cooper of The Woodlands, Texas, and 6-foot-1, 180-pound defensive back Tajh Hasson of Cathedral High in Los Angeles.
Cooper, who also had an offer from Buffalo, played tight end as a sophomore, but moved to defense after The Woodlands eliminated the tight end from its offense when changing to a spread-option attack.
"Perry is an exceptionally intelligent kid and extremely coachable," The Woodlands coach Mark Schmid said. "He'll do what the coaches at UNLV ask him to do and he will bust his tail doing it."
Ray Brewer can be reached at 990-2662 or [email protected].
