NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State head football coach Brock Spack announced the addition of three Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) transfers Monday, with the addition of defensive end Nickcaro Golding (Evanston, Ill./Purdue), wide receiver Marvon Sanders (Ypsilanti, Mich./Eastern Michigan) and running back Erik Smith (Bolingbrook,Ill./ Wisconsin).
"One of the things we were really focusing on this offseason is improving our team speed," Spack said. "All three of these early additions have the potential to be playmakers on their respective sides of the ball. We had some holes to fill after losing 13 seniors in the fall and Nickcaro, Marvon and Erik all fill those holes nicely."
Golding will look to add depth to a defensive line that lost three seniors to graduation. The Evanston, Ill., native spent the last two seasons at Purdue, where he played for Spack while he was the Boilermakers' defensive coordinator in 2008. A 6-foot-5, 225-pound defensive end, Golding played in 12 games over two seasons for Purdue and recorded 15 tackles. He saw action in just two games in 2009, but played in 10 games as a redshirt freshman season in 2008 and recorded 13 tackles while making his first career start vs. Penn State on Oct. 4. Golding will have two years of eligibility remaining for the Redbirds.
"I coached Nickcaro in my last year at Purdue and he is a very high-motor athlete," Spack said. "We played him a bit at linebacker, but I feel he can be a standout defensive end in this league. He's a tall lineman, but with that comes a long reach and with his speed he can really disrupt some things on defense and make plays."
Sanders comes to ISU after playing two seasons at Eastern Michigan. The 5-foot-9, 160-pound wide speedster also saw action as a punt and kick returner for the Eagles. In 2009, the Ypsilanti, Mich., native played in five games and recorded 14 catches for 124 yards on the season as a sophomore but played in all 12 games as a true freshman in 2008. Sanders started six of those contests and rushed 10 times for 80 yards and caught 28 passes for 253 yards and one touchdown while working under current ISU assistant coach Taylor Stubblefield. He will also have two years of eligibility remaining for the Redbirds
"Marvon is extremely quick in the slot and has an innate ability to make people miss," Spack said. "We wanted to add a bit more speed to our receiving corp and he should help out in that area. He will also be a candidate to return kicks and punts for us this year with his experience in that area, which makes him even more versatile."
Smith, a native of Bolingbrook, Ill., will have three years of eligibility remaining for ISU after playing just one season at Wisconsin after redshirting in 2008. Last season, the 6-foot, 200-pound running back saw action in six games for the Badgers and finished the season with 16 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown. He set career-highs for rushing attempts (10), rushing yards (54), longest rush (19) and scored his first-career touchdown against Wofford (Sept. 19) and also saw action against Big Ten foes Purdue, Iowa and Michigan State.
"All I have heard from everyone we talked to about Erik is how fast he is," Spack said. "In this offense, you have to have a running back that can make big plays and I think we've found that with him. He also has strong ball skills, so we will be able to spread him out and throw him the ball out of the backfield as well. We also like the fact that he is a local kid, like Nickcaro, and will be playing close to home for the rest of his career."
Spack and his staff will expand their roster again on Feb. 3, on national signing day.
NEWCOMER BIOGRAPHIES:
Nickcaro Golding | DE | 6-5 | 225 | Jr.-RS | Evanston, Ill. (Evanston Township/Purdue)
2009: Played in two games for the Boilermakers ... recorded two tackles and a fumble recovery ... tallied both tackles and the fumble recovery against in the season-opener against Toledo. 2008: Appeared in 10 games, including one start ... played defensive end and linebacker ... recorded 13 tackles (5 solo, 8 assists) ... had four tackles at Notre Dame on Sept. 27 ... made first career start and registered season-high five tackles (2 solo, 3 assists) vs. Penn State on Oct. 4. 2007: Redshirted. Evanston Township HS: Three-star prospect by Rivals.com ... ranked as No. 18 player in Illinois and No. 37 weak side defensive end nationally by Rivals.com ... all-state special mention by ChicagoSports.com ... first team all-area ... played just two seasons of high school football ... coached by Tony Johnson ... also played basketball. Personal: Born 5-23-89 in Jamaica ... son of Dorrette Golding ... has a sister, Samantha.
Marvon Sanders | WR | 5-9 | 160 | Jr. | Ypsilanti, Mich. (Ypsilanti/Eastern Michigan)
2009: Played in five games, with one starting assignment ... recorded 14 catches for 124 yards on the season ... averaged 8.9 yards per catch ... started at Michigan (Sept. 19) and recorded a season-high four catches for 32 yards ... hauled in a season-long pass of 24 yards at Arkansas (Oct. 31) ... also returned six punts for 35 yards on the season. 2008: Earned a letter as a true freshman while playing in all 12 games, with six starts ... rushed 10 times for 80 yards and caught 28 passes for 253 yards and one touchdown ... served as the starting punt returner and had four returns for 37 yards ... also returned three kickoffs for 55 yards including a long of 24 against Akron (Oct. 18) ... hauled in a 19-yard touchdown pass against Akron ... caught seven passes for 87 yards at Temple (Nov. 22) and also had four catches twice, for 24 yards at Bowling Green (Oct. 4) and for 21 yards in the season finale against Central Michigan (Nov. 28). Ypsilanti HS: Was a four-year letterwinner in football, basketball, and track ... named to all-area football, basketball and track teams by the Ann Arbor News as a senior... selected second-team football all-state by the Associated Press ... honorable mention all-state football player by the Detroit Free Press ... recorded 45 catches for 653 yards on offense and had four interceptions and 35 tackles on the defensive side of the ball as a senior ... named as a first-team all-area selection by The Ann Arbor News and a first-team all-state selection in football by the Detroit Free Press as a junior ... coached by Dave Poole ... member of the Academic Honor Roll for 11 of 12 semesters in high school ... earned the school's Scholar-Athlete Award. Personal: Born 2-6-90 in Ypsilanti, Mich. ... son of Marvin and Terri Sanders ... has one sister, Toni.
Erik Smith | RB | 6-2 | 200 | So.-RS | Chicago, Ill. (Bolingbrook/Wisconsin)
2009: Saw action in six games for the Badgers ... finished the season with 16 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown ... averaged 4.3 yards per carry ...carried the ball five times for 19 yards against Purdue (Oct. 31) ... saw action against Iowa (Oct. 17) and against Michigan State (Sept. 26) ... set career-highs for rushing attempts (10), rushing yards (54) and longest rush (19) and scored his first career touchdown against Wofford (Sept. 19) ... rushed one time, the first of his career, for minus-four yards against Fresno State (Sept. 12) ... made collegiate debut against Northern Illinois (Sept. 5). 2008: Redshirted ... named Wisconsin's offensive scout team player of the week against Michigan State and Akron. Bolingbrook HS: 17th-best player in Illinois and the No. 72 running back in the nation by Scout.com ... first-team all-state (Rivals.com and Edgytim.com) ... first-team all-area, first-team all-conference, conference MVP and two-time Chicago Tribune Player of the Week as a senior ... honorable mention all-area as a junior ... career totals of 3,100 yards rushing, 470 yards receiving and 32 touchdowns ... team captain as a senior ... totaled 1,400 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns as a senior ... coached by John Ivlow. Personal: Born 9-16-89 in Chicago, Ill. ... son of Andre Boozer and Erika Simpson ... relative, Brice Hunter, played football at Georgia and then went on to play in the NFL with the Miami Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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