SLIPPERY ROCK — While he wouldn’t call his 2023 recruiting class perfect, Slippery Rock University football coach Shawn Lutz gave it an extremely high grade.

The Rock, coming off another co-PSAC West championship and NCAA Division II playoff appearance, announced its 24 recruits Wednesday. The group includes five transfer players.

“We only lose two starters offensively, but we have holes to fill defensively and that’s what we targeted with the transfers,” Lutz said. “I’m very excited about the two defensive linemen and two linebackers we got that way.

“We lost starting linebackers Brandon Tuck-Hayden and Brandon Bischof, along with D.J. (Adediwura) and Jeff Marx up front. These guys should be able to pick up a lot of that slack.”

The defensive linemen coming in are Sherman Hatten and Aeden Holler, who come from Marshall and Kent State, respectively. The incoming linebackers — Kyle Kudla and Andrew Vince — are from Hillsdale and Rutgers.

Kudla was a three-year starter and two-year captain at Hillsdale. Vince stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 230 pounds.

“Vince is one of the biggest linebackers we’ve had here in a while,” Lutz said. “We also brought in a quarterback (Brad Hoffman) to provide some competition for Brayden Long.”

Hoffman has for years of eligibility after playing for Diamond Academy Prep in Texas last season. During his senior year at Wilson High School in Pennsylvania, he rushed for 1,080 yards and 12 touchdowns, threw for 850 and 11 scores.

“He’s a big, strong kid who could be effective in packages down around the goal-line,” Lutz said. “He’ll be given the opportunity to compete with Brayden for the starting job.”

Three Butler County products — defensive back Ben Lane from Freeport, receiver John Sabo from Slippery Rock and tight end Jake Murphy from Knoch — are among SRU’s 19 high school senior recruits.

Lutz said Lane has a chance to play at a cornerback position right away. He compared Sabo’s size to that of standout Rock receiver Kyle Sheets and said Murphy can be used as a blocking tight end or fullback, along with on special teams.

“Murphy is just an athlete,” the coach said.“I see him as a utility player for us right now, someone who can do a lot of things.”

Murphy caught 42 passes for 840 yards and three touchdowns for the Knights last season. He also had 70 tackles from his linebacker position. He plans to major in physical education.

“They like me as a blocking tight end and special teams guy for now and I’m fine with that,” Murphy saiod. “I like hitting people and I have to prove I can put guys on their backs.

“In time, I’ll get the chance to prove I can catch the football and avoid being tackled. It’s up to me to prove myself.”

Murphy also considered Clarion, Notre Dame (Ohio) and Wheeling — receiving offers from each — before deciding on The Rock.

“I wanted to go to a school that wins and is consistent in winning,” Murphy said. “I could feel the energy there when I visited. I wasn’t even on the team yet and they made me feel a part of it.”

Sabo, who had 47 catches for 673 yards and eight touchdowns for Slippery Rock High School last fall, said the 2023 recruiting class has already bonded.

“We’ve set up a group chat and we’re all getting to know each other,” Sabo said. “I’ve already met up with a lot of current players. They’re anxious for us all to get in there and get to work.”

Among SRU’s other recruits are Farrell running back Kylon Wilson, who generated 1,667 all-purpose yards and 30 touchdowns last season, Plum running back Eryck Moore-Watkins (1,493 yards, 19 TDs last year) and Pine-Richland linebacker Max Heckert, who led the state with 162 tackles a season ago, including 13 tackles for loss.

“Wilson may be the fastest player on our roster,” Lutz said. “He’s just explosive. The Plum kid had a lot of offers and Heckert was captain of a team that won a state championship.”

Neshannock’s Jonny Huff rushed for 1,877 yards and accounted for 25 touchdowns last season. Joseph Mayer had a solid year as Hampton’s quarterback. They were recruited as safety and defensive backs, respectively.

“A lot of our defensive recruits excelled on the offensive side of the ball,” Lutz said. “Xavier Lewis (wide receiver) is a two-time all-state player from Virginia. There’s a lot of athleticism in this group.

“Coaches always say this is the best recruiting class they’ve ever had, but I honestly feel that way. Ther tansfer portal now gives us a chance at high school recruits who otherwise might go higher. We got every player on the top of our board. We didn’t losedany player to another school.

“If this class doesn’t pan out, it’s on myself and the coaching staff. Simple as that,” Lutz added.