Idaho stays close to home

Dec. 22—The Idaho football team announced 26 scholarship signees, and a total of 39 players, on Wednesday's first day of the early signing period.

It's in stark contrast from the two that the Vandals inked just a few days after Jason Eck became the school's coach.

Eck's first recruiting class ranked second in the Big Sky and addressed several positions of need along the way.

Here's what we learned from Eck's first early period recruiting class:

You don't have to go far to find talent

One of Eck's biggest points of emphasis was on in-state recruiting. He made good on that promise by signing 12 Idaho high school standouts.

"We want Idaho, Washington and Oregon to be our starting point," Eck said. "You look at the teams that are in the semifinals of the FCS playoffs and they have a lot of kids from their state on their roster, and they have a smaller population size than Idaho. Making sure that we recruited locally was a concerted effort."

One of several impact in-state players the Vandals signed was linebacker Zach Johnson.

The Lake City High School standout was named the Class 5A Inland Empire League defensive player of the year and was a first-team All-Idaho selection.

Johnson averaged 10 tackles per game and set a school record with 23 tackles in a contest.

Johnson was listed as a three-star recruit by 247Sports and had offers from Montana and Boise State.

"In our opinion, he was the best football player in the state last year," Eck said. "Sometimes you scratch your head and wonder why a guy like him doesn't have at least three Mountain West offers. I'm thankful he didn't have those offers, though, because we got him here."

Defensive lineman Matyus McLain also is an interesting prospect from Priest River High School. McLain got on the Eck's radar after earning defensive MVP honors at Idaho's team camp in the summer.

"He's a sign to all the small-town Idaho football players," Eck said, "if you come to our camp and kick butt, you can play for us. He's a good athlete we think we can develop."

McLain is a three-sport athlete, excelling in everything he does. He racked up 232 career tackles and was named to an All-Idaho honoree twice. In wrestling, he finished fifth at the Class 3A state tournament. He also notched top-10 state finishes in discus, shot put and the 100-meter dash in track.

Of course, when talking about in-state recruits, you can't ignore Lewiston's James White.

White had 13 receptions for 183 yards his senior year for the Bengals, adding 28 rushes for 206 yards.

While he was a dynamic option for Lewiston's offense, he also shined coming off the edge, finishing with nine sacks.

Eck intends to keep him as a tight end when spring practice begins.

Opening the international pipeline

One of the most interesting signees this year is Brisbane, Australia, native Malakai Railton-Stewart.

The 6-foot-5, 260-pounder racked up 23 career sacks during his three-year stint for the Brisbane Rhinos Club. He was the 2020 defensive player of the year for his U19 club team and earned league MVP in 2019.

During the summer, Railton-Stewart spent his time flying across the country in search of a scholarship. He attended 12 camps.

"He had offers from us, Kent State, and Ohio and he decided to come here," Eck said. "I was impressed with his maturity by flying out here by himself to try to further his career."

Games won in the trenches

Idaho lost several key contributors on the offensive and defensive lines because of graduation, making it no surprise the Vandals put a major emphasis on those groups. Out of the 39 signees, 15 of them were linemen.

Highlighting the offensive side of the ball is Lake City grad Alex Green. Green earned the Timberwolves' offensive player of the year award as an offensive tackle by allowing just two sacks.

"He was probably the best offensive lineman that we saw on tape," Eck said. "He reminds me of (freshman All-American) Aydin Knapik."

Layton Vining also be a welcomed addition. The Peoria, Ariz., native was a two-time all-state selection and will be playing center.

"He's a little smaller, but he's athletic," Eck said. "With his athleticism, we can put him at center and pull him to do some different things."

On the defensive side, Julian Lee highlights the bunch with his 6-5, 260-pound frame. He finished his senior season at North Thurston High School in Lacey, Wash., with 11.5 sacks. At one point, Lee had offers from UCLA and Arizona.

"We're going to start him at defensive tackle," Eck said. "I was being honest with him when I thought when I met him he could be an NFL offensive lineman based off size. But we'll see how the defensive line works."

Pixley may be contacted at (208) 848-2290, tpixley@lmtribune.com or on Twitter @TreebTalks.

Idaho class of 2022 recruits

HIGH SCHOOL SIGNEES

DALLAS AFALAVA, defensive line, 6-foot-2, 255 pounds, Rainier Beach High School (Calif.) — A two-time Class 3A Metro-Mountain District first-team selection ... Three stars by 247Sports.

ETHAN BEARD, linebacker, 6-3, 180 pounds, Meridian (Idaho) High School — Earned first-team Southern Idaho Conference honors as a defensive back as a senior. ... Three stars by 247Sports.

DESHAUN BUCHANAN, running back, 5-11, 190 pounds, Basha High School, Chandler, Ariz. — Broke the school rushing record with almost 1,700 yards rushing... Three stars by 247Sports.

EMERSON CORTEZ-MEJIVAR, receiver, 6-foot-2, 180 pounds, Salinas (Calif.) High School — A two-time first-team Pacific-Coast-Gabilan All-League selection on offense ... Three stars by 247Sports.

JAXTON ECK, linebacker, 6-0, 215 pounds, Brookings (South Dak.) High School — Named to South Dakota's Elite 45 his senior year ... not ranked by 247Sports.

DREW FAULKNER, defensive back, 5-10, 175 pounds, Western High School, Los Angeles, Calif. — Back-to-back Orange League MVP ... Three stars by 247Sports.

ALEX GREEN, offensive line, 6-5, 260 pounds, Lake City High School, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho — a two-time Class 5A Inland Empire League first-team selection ... two stars by 247Sports.

PAYTON GUNTER, defensive line, 6-2, 215 pounds, Nampa (Idaho) High School — A first-team SIC honoree as a tight end and defensive lineman ... Three stars by 247Sports.

MAX HAMPER, receiver, 6-2, 197 pounds, West Linn (Ore.) High School — Was named his team's offensive MVP after notching 1,434 yards receiving. ... Three stars by 247Sports.

KIEGAN HENSON, offensive line, 6-5, 265 pounds, Mountain View High School, Meridian, Idaho — A three-year football letterman ... Two stars by 247Sports.

HAYDEN JOHN, defensive back, 6-2, 190 pounds, Anacortes (Wash.) High School — Class 2A Northwest District first-team selection as a senior ... Three stars by 247Sports.

ZACH JOHNSON, linebacker, 6-3, 210 pounds, Lake City High School, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho — He set the school mark for tackles in a game with 23 as a senior ... Three stars by 247Sports.

DIONTE LAMAIDE, defensive line, 6-6, 240 pounds, Saguaro High School, Chandler, Ariz.

JULIAN LEE, defensive line, 6-5, 260 pounds, North Thurston High School, Lacey, Wash. — He finished his career with 63 tackles, 18 for loss, and 11.5 sacks ... Three stars by 247Sports.

ANDREW MARSHALL, defensive back, 6-1, 165 pounds, Eleanor Roosevelt High School, Eastvale, Calif. — He earned a first-team all-state nod as a senior at defensive back ... Three stars by 247Sports.

CARLOS MATHENEY, running back, 5-11, 205 pounds, Tumwater High School, Olympia, Wash. — He finished his high school career with 3,458 yards rushing and 52 touchdowns ... Three stars by 247Sports.

MASON MINI, tight end, 6-4, 210 pounds, Tera Nova High School, Pacifica, Calif. — Mini played quarterback and free safety in high school but projects as a tight end ... Two stars by 247Sports.

MATYUS McLAIN, defensive line, 6-4, 220 pounds, Priest River (Idaho) High School — He notched two all-state nods as a Spartan. ... Two stars by 247Sports.

ZACH PENNER, offensive line, 6-4, 275 pounds, Rocky Mountain High School, Meridian, Idaho — He was selected to the Class 5A All-Idaho first team ... Three stars by 247Sports.

MALAKAI RAILTON-STEWART, defensive line, 6-5, 260 pounds, Indooropilly State High School, Brisbane, Australia — He started every game of his three-year career for the Brisbane Rhinos Club team.

LAYTON VINING, offensive line, 6-2, 270 pounds, Liberty High School, Peoria, Ariz — He is a two-time all-state selection in Arizona.

JACK WAGNER, quarterback, 6-4, 180 pounds, Tualatin (Oregon) High School — Threw for 2,800 yards and 29 touchdowns his senior year. ... Three stars by 247Sports.

JAMES WHITE, tight end, 6-4, 225 pounds, Lewiston High School — He was a first-team Class 5A Inland Empire League selection as a receiver and defensive end. ... Three stars by 247Sports.

ART WILLIAMS, running back, 6-0, 205 pounds, Rocky Mountain High School, Meridian, Idaho — He rushed for 1,130 yards as a senior and notched 51 career touchdowns. ... Three stars by 247Sports.

TRANSFERS

CAM STEPHENS, defensive back, 5-11, 160 pounds, Cajon High School, San Bernadino, Calif., Nevada, Victor Valley Community College — He had 32 tackles while breaking up six passes and recovering a fumble in his sophomore year and Victor Valley Community College.

TRE THOMAS, linebacker, 6-1, 220 pounds, Burnsville (Minn) High School, South Dakota — He racked up 78 total tackles, including six for a loss and two sacks as a Coyote.