SAVANNAH, Ga.- Head football coach
Thomas Howard and the Savannah State football program welcomed its newest members to "The Marsh" on Wednesday during National Signing Day for the 2026 season.
"We did a good job of getting young men here on campus to identify what we needed to make ourselves successful," said Howard.
Howard and his staff concentrated their recruiting efforts in the southern region of the United States and were able to land 24 players from four different states- Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina.
The first year coach was pleased with the results of their recruiting efforts and said that they did a good job of addressing some needs and adding to what they already have on the current roster.
"I'm excited. I think we got a good mix at every position. And I think that that's a big thing that we had to do. Kind of work to touch every area. We had to a great job with the O-line and the D-line because that's where it all starts."
The Tigers will welcome three new offensive linemen and six newcomers to the defensive front.
Howard was also able to land two running backs, a quarterback and a wide receiver to the offense while the defense picked up four linebackers and four defensive backs. The Tigers also signed two athletes and one specialist.
During his introductory press conference, Howard said that he would recruit the city of Savannah for players and he was able to sign two. joining the Tiger program from the Hostess City will be offensive lineman Cory Smith (6-1, 265) from New Hampstead High School and kicker/punter Joshua Woodley (5-8, 190) from Jenkins High School.
Adding strength to the SSU offense will be running back Albert Gooding and quarterback Cayden Benson.
Gooding (5-10, 195) ran for 1,412 yards and 15 touchdowns during his senior year at Lithonia High School in Lithonia, Georgia while Benson (5-11, 175) led Creekside High School to a state championship while throwing for 2,843 yards and 38 touchdowns.
The defense will be high on linebacker Zamarian Williams and defensive lineman Michael Bennett.
Williams (5-9, 190) had 100 tackles (66 solo) for Valdosta High School in 2025. The Region 1-AAAAAA Defensive Player of the Year also had 16 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks and nine quarterback hurries. Bennett (6-2, 230) had 98 tackles (53 solo) at Cross High School. He also had 27 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, three fumble recoveries and one forced fumble while drawing interest from Division I programs.
The 24 signess will join the five mid-year transfers who are currently enrolled at SSU.
The group of five players consist of four-year transfers and junior college players. Four of the newcomers are offensive lineman and the other is a wide receiver.
Four-year transfers include offensive linemen Austin Roberts and Dwight Hughes. Coming from the juco ranks are offensive linemen Dakari Sumter and Jonathan Orr and wide receiver Joshua Okeleye.
Roberts (6-2, 307) comes to SSU from Fayetteville State. The Ocoee, Florida native helped the Broncos to a 6-4 record while averaging 28 points and 320 yards a game. Hughes (6-2, 340) played at Elizabeth City State this past season and the Millen, Georgia native helped the Vikings averaged 338.1 yards and 29.6 points a game as they ended the season on a three game winning streak.
Sumter (6-8, 380) is from Hopkins, South Carolina. He comes to Savannah State from Louisburg College where the offense produced 414.2 yards and 31.7 points a game while finishing with a 6-4 record. Orr (6-6, 365) played at Andrew College where they had a 8-1 record while averaging 420.3 yards and 33.2 points a game. Orr is a native of Jasper, South Carolina. Okeleye (6-3, 195) helped Georgia Military College to a 10-1 record. In nine games, the Norcross, Georgia native had eight receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown.
2026 Savannah State University Football Mid-Year Signees
| Name |
Height |
Weight |
Position |
Hometown/Previous School |
| Dakari Sumter |
6'8 |
380 |
OL |
Hopkins, South Carolina/Louisburg College |
| Austin Roberts |
6'2 |
207 |
OL |
Ocoee, Florida/Elizabeth City State Univ. |
| Joshua Okeleye |
6'3 |
195 |
WR |
Norcross, Georgia/Georgia Military College |
| Jonathan Orr |
6'6 |
365 |
OL |
Jasper, South Carolina/Andrew College |
| Dwight Hughes |
6'2 |
340 |
OL |
Millen, Georgia/Fayetteville State University |
2026 Savannah State Football Signing Class
| Name |
Height |
Weight |
Position |
Hometown/Previous School |
Highlight Film Link |
| Albert Gooding |
5'10 |
195 |
RB |
Lithonia, Georgia/Lithonia High School |
|
| Cory Smith |
6'1 |
265 |
OL |
Savannah, Georgia/New Hampstead High School |
|
| Amaree Lawrence-Broome |
6'4 |
310 |
OL |
Charlotte, North Carolina/Hough High School |
|
| Stephen Davis, Jr. |
5'10 |
170 |
DB |
Jacksonville, Florida/William M. Raines High School |
|
| Joshua Woodley |
5'8 |
190 |
K/P |
Savannah, Georgia/Jenkins High School |
|
| Malik Walker |
6'0 |
185 |
DB |
Moultrie, Georgia/Colquitt County High School |
|
| Zamarian Williams |
5'9 |
190 |
LB |
Valdosta, Georgia/Valdosta High School |
|
| Zion Garlington |
6'3 |
295 |
OL |
Thomasville, Georgia/Thomas County Central High School |
|
| Christian Bailey |
6'2 |
175 |
LB |
Covington, Georgia/Newton High School |
|
| Jeffrey Jefferson |
5'9 |
180 |
DB |
North Charleston, South Carolina/Fort Dorchester High School |
|
| Darrian Parks |
6'4 |
290 |
OL |
Newnan, Georgia/Northgate High School |
|
| Bryce Smith |
6'4 |
270 |
DL |
Fitzgerald, Georgia/Fitzgerald High School |
|
| Ryan Henson |
6'1 |
180 |
ATH |
Hampton, Georgia/Lovejoy High School |
https://www.hudl.com/video/3/17580817/68bc65759d3831611656e6fd |
| Cayden Benson |
5'11 |
175 |
QB |
Fairburn, Georgia/Creekside High School |
|
| Isaiah Davis |
5'11 |
195 |
RB |
Jonesboro, Georgia/Jonesboro High School |
|
| Clinton Davis |
5'10 |
170 |
DB |
Fairburn, Georgia/Langston Hughes High School |
|
| Kentavious Debruce |
5'10 |
185 |
ATH |
Douglas, Georgia/ Coffee County High School |
http://www.hudl.com/v/2TDjkT |
| Michael Bennett |
6'2 |
230 |
DL |
Cross, South Carolina/Cross High School |
|
| Kenny Mangum |
6'2 |
240 |
DL |
Columbus, Georgia/Spencer High School |
|
| Andrew Tinker |
5'9 |
205 |
LB |
Franklin, Georgia/Heard County High School |
|
| Cayden Burnett |
5'11 |
210 |
LB |
College Park, Georgia/North Clayton High School |
|
| Jahmarri Clark |
6'1 |
290 |
OL/DL |
Quincy, Florida/Gadsden County High School |
|
| Kenneth Gladden |
6'0 |
190 |
WR |
Decatur, Georgia/Miller Grove High School |
|
| Jaquaveon Yarwaye |
6'3 |
285 |
DL |
Columbus, Georgia/Spencer High School |
|
| Corde Marks |
6'4 |
310 |
OL |
Covington, Georgia/Newton High School |
|
| Jason Wilkerson |
5'9 |
165 |
DB |
Charlotte, North Carolina/Hough High School |
|
| Nishawn Osby |
6'3 |
195 |
DB |
Moultrie, Georgia/Colquitt County High School |
|
| Jamari Davis |
6'2 |
270 |
DL |
Lithonia, Georgia/Lithonia High School |
|
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