The Nevada football team is looking to the high school ranks to try to improve and build the program in coming seasons.
Nevada coach Jeff Choate announced the signing of 26 football players on Wednesday, the start of national signing day for college football. Of the signing day class, 25 are high school seniors and one is at Cerritos Junior College. Choate was hired at Nevada on Dec. 4, 20-23, Last year, his signing class had five high school players.
He said players in this year’s class come for winning programs, including four who are still playing for state championships, two who already won state championships, and seven others who were in state finals.
“If you’re going to build a winning program, it starts by having that understand what a winning program looks like,” Choate said.
There are five players with ties to Northern Nevada in the class: Joe Birnbaum, Truckee; Mataio Aiono, Reed; Colin Banning, Spring Creek; Jackson Ramsey, Bishop Manogue; and Cian Stack, Bishop Manogue.
Choate said Aiono is the best lineman in Northern Nevada and Stack is one of the top long snappers in the country.
The members of the class are from nine different states covering four time zones — while five states are represented by one member, states with multiple members of the Nevada class are California (12), Nevada (four), Texas (three) and Arizona (two).
“It’s a group that I’m really excited about — we met a lot of needs. Top to bottom, every phase — offense, defense, and special teams — we were able to get guys that I think can have an immediate impact in our program, and a long-lasting impact on our program,” Choate said. “I mentioned that I think this is the most important class that we’ll sign, and I think we can build a strong foundation for the future. Now what we’ve got to do is stack classes on top of one another so that we can be competing for championships.”
Choate has said in the past that keeping local players with the Wolf Pack is critical.
“One of the hallmarks of the class is obviously that we were able to tap into Northern Nevada. I think between Colin, Mataio, Jackson, Joe and Cian, there are a lot of guys that are familiar names to football fans in Northern Nevada. We’re excited about having those guys join the program, and continuing to make our Northern Nevada athletes the heart and soul of our program,” Choate said.
Choate said the Pack’s class is ranked No. 4 in the Mountain signing day classes, behind Boise State, UNLV and San Diego State.
Choate raved about quarterback Carter Jones (6-foot-4, 190 pounds), currently at Lancaster High School in Texas.
“I look forward to our fans getting a chance to meet this young man. He is a first-class human being. He was raised the right way,” Choate said. “He’s a winner. He’s a tough kid. He fits exactly what we want to do on offense.”
Choate said Jones played in the toughest football district in the country.
Choate said running back Carter Jackson is also an outstanding football player. Jackson (5-9, 180) is at Folsom High School in California.
Jackson, a three-star recruit, had multiple Power Four offers. Choate said he could play immediately.
Birnbaum will walk-on and become the second player from Truckee on the Wolf Pack, following Marcus Bellon. Birnbaum, one of the fastest sprinters in the state, will be at running back.
“He exudes enthusiasm and energy,” Choate said. “A kid from a winning program that is all about what we’re trying to build here at Nevada. Toughness, grit.”
He said more players could be added from high school and that he will be active when the transfer portal opens Dec. 8.
Player, position, height, weight, previous school(s)
Growing communities, and new, large-scale projects popping up left and right.
It’s a time of rapid growth here in the western United States, and experts say over the next decade, electricity demand is expected to jump more than 20% across the region.
In anticipation of the bump, Nevada and 10 other western states formed a group called the Western Transmission Expansion Coalition, aiming to bring more power to those who need it.
They want to establish a regional framework and prioritize high-impact transmission lines, while urging Congress and the Trump administration to move projects along faster.
This agreement comes after several solar plans have been delayed in Nevada, following the order last year that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum must personally review all projects.
Joe Lombardo detailed the Silver State’s continued economic success depends on reliable, affordable energy, saying in a statement… “As our state expands and attracts new businesses, we need the infrastructure to support that growth. This agreement shows that western states can work together to modernize our grid, protect ratepayers, and build the transmission network needed to power the next generation of economic opportunity.”
Olivia Tanager, Executive Director of the Sierra Club Toiyabe Chapter, says the region is growing rapidly, and new transmission is needed. But she noted that when the new power is going to data centers or natural gas plants, she’s not in favor.
“We were promised that the green link transmission projects were going to help decarbonize our grid and be the answer to renewable energy in Nevada. And instead, what we’re seeing is we’re seeing data centers and natural gas plants being hooked up directly to those projects,” said Tanager.
How smartphone apps turn your night sky into a space map
Astronomy apps help you spot constellations, planets and satellites in real time using your smartphone.
Skywatchers across the U.S. are about to be treated to a dazzling weekend filled with not only two active meteor showers, but a celestial alignment starring the moon.
For two nights, Earth’s only natural satellite will host a cosmic party with three planets — Mars, Saturn and Uranus.
The phenomenon, often called a planet parade, presents spectators with a rare opportunity to see not only multiple planets, but also the moon, appear close together in the night sky — at least, from Earth’s vantage.
The best part of the show? Most of the striking spectacle — with the exception of Uranus — will be visible to the naked eye.
Here’s everything to know about the rare sight, as well as when, how and where you can see it across the United States.
The moon will appear in the night sky before sunrise on Saturday, July 11 and Sunday, July 12, NASA said in a monthly skywatching guide.
While the term “planet parade” is not an official astronomy term, it is an unofficial way for astronomers and stargazers to refer to certain celestial events.
The planets in our solar system orbit the sun essentially along a line across the sky in a flat disc-shaped plane called the ecliptic.
Another term for a certain kind of planetary alignment, planet parades are what happens when planets line up along the ecliptic in a straight line and appear to us on Earth to be marching across the night sky, according to NASA. So, while planetary alignments themselves aren’t special, it is notable to have an opportunity to observe multiple planets at once.
During the celestial alignment, the moon will be entering a waning crescent phase before we have a new moon, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac. That means Earth’s only natural satellite is getting less and less full and bright each night as its crescent gets thinner and thinner, NASA explains.
That’s good news for stargazers, as the moon will still be visible without outshining the planets nearby.
Look toward the eastern sky to catch the cosmic lineup in the early morning.
While the moon will of course be the easiest to locate, Mars will look like a small reddish point of light, while Saturn is also bright and easy to spot, NASA explained in a video.
For the clearest views, there are several places that are an easy drive from Reno where you can get a clear view of the stars, including:
Cloudy conditions may bring relief from the recent heat wave, but they could spoil the early-morning view of the planetary parade in much of northwestern Nevada.
Mars and Saturn are among the five planets in our solar system visible without optical aid — along with Mercury, Venus and Jupiter. Telescopes certainly will enhance the view but spectators don’t need any equipment to spot those planets joining the moon in the pre-dawn sky.
As for Uranus, the planet is typically not as bright — despite being the third largest in our solar system — and will require a telescope to see, NASA said.
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@usatodayco.com. The Reno Gazette Journal’s Carly Sauvageau and Brett McGinness contributed to this report.
A Nevada man is believed to have suffered a deadly fall while climbing in Oregon.
He’s been identified as 77-year-old Robert Pickering.
Search and rescue crews say they found his body along Mount Washington, northwest of Bend, according to a social media post from the Linn County Sheriff’s Office.
A climbing guide reported hearing a rockslide near the summit after Pickering passed his group.
The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office was one of several groups that assisted in the search.
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