Southern Illinois added 10 high school recruits Wednesday on the NCAA’s February National Signing Day. (Photo by SIUSalukis.com)
By Barry Bottino
The college football transfer portal – like it or not — grabs headlines galore and more than 10,000 players decided to leave their teams for a new start this offseason.
For Southern Illinois head coach Nick Hill and his program, the value of recruiting high school players remains clear.
“We still believe that even in this era of college athletics and football, that building a great high school class is super important,” Hill said.
Hill and the Salukis added 10 prep signees Wednesday on the first day of the February signing period. That group is in addition to 10 high school prospects that SIU signed in December.
Wednesday’s group features six offensive players, three defensive players and a kicker/punter.
One of the offensive headliners is Illinois all-state wide receiver Dario Milivojevic, who helped Wheaton St. Francis win the Class 5A championship in December.
Milivojevic, whose 53 receptions as a senior included 15 touchdowns, caught a game-high six passes in the state title game, a 39-35 victory against New Lenox’s Providence Catholic.
“Tough last name to pronounce, but I believe I nailed it,” Hill joked during a Wednesday press conference. “Dario had been committed to us for a while. He’s a guy that we’ve been on for a long time. We’re excited about Dario.”
Hill credited Milivojevic for being positionally flexible and highly competitive.
Two other in-state players – Carlyle High School tight end Ethan Brinkmann and Yorkville HS safety Hunter Niklos – are also part of the SIU class.
Niklos’ father, J.R., was an All-American tight end at Western Illinois who played for five different NFL teams.
Hill credited SIU’s recruiting and coaching staffs for their work since the season ended, including mid-year transfer additions from the portal.
“There’s been a lot of trips to the St. Louis airport, the Paducah (Ky.) airport, the Marion airport,” he said. “Coaches (have been) picking guys up in Ohio and all over the place. It’s a lot. But it’s all worth it when you get to days like today.”
News and notes
Quarterback recruit Ridge Holman, from Nashville’s Davidson Academy, played for head coach Jonathan Quinn, a former NFL quarterback who spent time with the Chicago Bears. The 6-5 Holman passed for more than 6,000 yards and 63 TDs in high school. … Brinkmann was one of two tight ends in the class. He was a four-year varsity starter at Carlyle. … SIU’s two offensive line recruits – Jordon Shaw (6-6, 275 pounds) from Tennessee and Romeo Vargas (6-3, 295) from Florida – did not allow a single sack in 2025. … Hill said linebacker Max Rhodes, a late signee from Cincinnati who had 115 tackles and 16.5 tackles for loss as a senior at Oak Hills High School, did not take an official visit to SIU during the recruiting process.
SIU’s February Signing Day List
(Name, Position(s), Height, Weight, School, Hometown)
Ethan Brinkman, TE, 6-3, 225, Carlyle HS, Carlyle, Ill.
Ridge Holman, QB, 6-5, 230, Davidson Academy, Nashville, Tenn.
Dario Milivojevic, WR, 5-11, 180, Wheaton St. Francis HS, Naperville, Ill.
Bently Neier, DE, 6-3, 235, Glendale HS, Springfield, Mo.
Hunter Niklos, S, 6-1, 180, Yorkville HS, Yorkville, Ill.
Max Rhodes, LB, 6-1, 220, Oak Hills HS, Cincinnati, Ohio
West Schofield, K/P, 5-8, 155, Capital City HS, Jefferson City, Mo.
Jordon Shaw, OT, 6-6, 275, Stewarts Creek HS, Smyrna, Tenn.
Levi Shoemaker, TE, 6-4, 230, Western HS, Russiaville, Tenn.
Romeo Vargas, OL, 6-3, 295, Vero Beach HS, Fellsmere, Fla.
Barry Bottino is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin and a 19-year veteran of three Illinois newspapers. He has covered college athletics since 1995.
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