Mariposa's Wichman among 21 recruits added by Fresno State football

FRESNO -- Fresno State received 21 signed letters of intent from football players on Wednesday.

Of the 21 new additions, nine come from San Joaquin Valley high schools. The Valley products include Mariposa tight end Cody Wichmann; athlete Isaiah Burse, who combined for nearly 3,500 total yards at Modesto Christian High; defensive back Edward Dillihunt from Tulare; two players from St-Mary's High-Stockton (receiver Josh Harper and quarterback Marcus McDade); Bakersfield lineman John Ogelsby; Fairfield defensive back Anthony Riggins; and Elk Grove receiver Jalen Saunders.

The Bulldogs also signed the top high school punter in the nation in Frontier-Bakersfield's Matt Darr, who originally orally committed to USC.

Coach Pat Hill, entering his 14th season at Fresno State, called it the fastest recruiting class in his tenure.

"We definitely improved our perimeter speed on both sides of the ball," Hill said. "With more and more teams spreading the ball all over the field, I felt like we needed to improve our team speed. We always want to do that, but with this class we made great strides. We have a lot of players who can run and played a lot of different positions in high schools, which gives them great position flexibility."

This story was originally published February 3, 2010 at 1:42 PM with the headline "Mariposa's Wichman among 21 recruits added by Fresno State football."