Since being named head football coach at Utah State in December, Dave Arslanian has seen very little of his office.
Most of his time lately has been spent on the recruiting trail, and he expects to sign a good crop of new players Wednesday, the first day for national letter-of-intent signings.Arslanian will sign approximately 25 new players, including about six junior college transfers. He said offensive line and defensive backfield were two areas of emphasis and that "we tried to get a little bit of everything."
And how are the new recruits who have committed to Utah State?
"They're all good, aren't they?" said Arslanian, making a little fun of the fact that all coaches say they have great recruits on signing day. The Aggies have signed four junior college transfers, who are already enrolled in school. They include Jeremy Hill, a 6-foot-5, 265-pounder from Ricks College and Orem High; Bucky Orton, a 6-4, 235-pound tight end from Dixie College and Kanab High; David Connelly, a 6-5, 245-pound tight end from Santa Barbara CC; and Josh Manning, a 6-1, 215-pound linebacker from Bakersfield JC.
Among the recruits are two quarterbacks and two running backs as well as a talented JC receiver.
Arslanian also addressed the the recent new reports of Aggie football players having run-ins with the law. Last week, two Aggie football players were charged with intoxication in connection with a brawl at a fraternity house, while star running back Demario Brown had last year's assault conviction upheld in First District Court.
"I've had some meetings with (athletic director) Chuck Bell to make a plan of action to ensure that kind of thing doesn't happen again," said Arslanian.
Arslanian said he doesn't "need to throw people out of the boat right now for behavior that happened before we came here."
But he said he expects his players learn responsibility and "be ambassadors to this university."