Carrollton, GA - Entering into his first season as head coach of the West Georgia Wolves, David Dean announced Wednesday the signing of 22?newcomers to the pack for the upcoming season, slated to begin in September. That group, combined with 18 junior college transfers signed in December, gives West Georgia 40?incoming players for the 2017 campaign. On February 10, the list was updated to include wide receivers Laperion Perry and Jayden Thomas. Perry is?a three-star wide receiver from LaGrange, Ga. and Thomas is a receiver out of Lovejoy High School in Hampton, Ga.?

"The main thing that I look for in any recruiting class is solid diversity in the state of Georgia and this class does that for us," said Dean. "We want to provide depth, we attacked needs on both sides of the ball and any coach loves to have guys who can make an immediate impact on the field."

The 22?players signed on Wednesday were all from the state of Georgia, featuring multiple All-State, All-Region and All-County performers, as well as state champions. Only one is a transfer, as defensive tackle Blake Jones transfers from Mercer to UWG for the coming fall.?

"Geographically, this is a great class because 100 percent of the players come from the state of Georgia, but more than that, we signed guys from every area of the state," said recruiting coordinator Josh Aldridge. "From a position standpoint, our goal was to sign immediate impact guys up front on both sides of the ball and solidify depth at our skill positions."

Eleven of this year's National Signing Day class are on the defensive side of the ball, with 10 on the offensive side. The staff focused heavily on the line of scrimmage, signing 13 players that will project as either a tight end, defensive lineman or offensive lineman.?

"Starting out my role as head coach here right at the end of the recruiting season could have been difficult, but this staff is top notch and made the transition for me very easy because of their hard work," said Dean. "It was completely evident in the players and families who I spoke with that these guys did a tremendous job in building relationships with both the players and the parents. The attention to detail and the tireless work that they put in is truly what gave us a very strong step forward with this class."

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