Derek Wolcott – Assistant Athletic Director, Brand Engagement and Digital Strategy – University of Idaho Department of Athletics
MOSCOW, ID – Idaho Vandal football added 15 additions to the roster at the semester, including seven transfers, four early enrollee freshmen, a pair of grey shirt freshmen and two other true freshmen who have not been previously announced. The players have all enrolled in classes this semester and will participate in winter conditioning and spring ball.
The Vandals added Washington State receiver Orion Peters, North Alabama transfer defensive back and California native K.J. Trujillo, Northern Iowa defensive back Corry Thomas Jr. and South Dakota running back Nate Thomas. Idaho brings in a pair of long snappers in Alabama Birmingham’s Zander Echols and Dylan Fischer from Alcorn State. Former Vandal commit Cruz Hepburn, who played one season of baseball at Lewis-Clark State, will join the team as a linebacker.
True freshman receiver Crew Clark from Sugar City, Idaho, joined the team after a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He was originally committed to Weber State. Calvin Macy, a linebacker from Lake Oswego, Oregon, comes to Moscow after a semester at a prep school, he was originally committed to Air Force.
Previously announced true freshmen Nathan Knapik (OL/Kennewick, Wash.), Diezel Wilkinson (DB/Spokane, Wash.), Owen Forsman (K/P/Rathdrum, Idaho) and Titus Ringor (DL/Ewa Beach, Hawaii) have all enrolled in classes to start the semester.
Grey shirt players Ty Hillinger (DB/Sugar City, Idaho) and Wyatt Gordon (DB/Puyallup, Wash.) also joined the team at semester. Both players were announced as members of the 2023 recruiting class.
The Vandals are scheduled to start spring football on March 26 and will conclude with the annual spring game on April 26 at the P1FCU Kibbie Dome.
TRANSFERS
Orion Peters • WR • Washington State • Inglewood, Calif. • 5-8/169
Peters played in 15 games, including two starts in two seasons at WSU. He had 13 receptions for 138 yards and a touchdown, a 27-yard reception against Stanford in 2022. He redshirted during the 2021 season due to injury.
At Inglewood High School, he was an All-Area First-Team player after grabbing 50 receptions for 1,478 yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior. He missed his senior season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He has two years of eligibility remaining.
K.J. Trujillo • DB • North Alabama/Wake Forest/Colorado • Los Angeles, Calif. • 6-0/179
Trujillo began his career at Colorado where he played two seasons before transferring to Wake Forest and playing last season at North Alabama. As a freshman, he played in eight games, picking up 19 total tackles and a tackle for loss as a freshman. He played in six games, recording five tackles as a sophomore. He played in two games for Wake Forest during the 2021 season, but didn’t record a statistic and redshirted. In two seasons at North Alabama, he played in 18 games, earning 40 total tackles, a tackle for loss, an interception, a pair of forced fumbles and 10 passes defended.
In high school, he played his senior season at Lutheran High School in Orange, Calif. He was in on 36 tackles, including two for a loss and had 14 pass break-ups and one interception as a senior. Trujillo played his sophomore and junior seasons at Servite High School in Anaheim, Calif., where he had 18 tackles and two pass break-ups on defense and saw action at wide receiver as a junior when he missed half the season due to injury. He had 48 tackles, five interceptions, four pass break-ups, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery as a sophomore. Played quarterback at Buena Park as a freshman, helping the team to a 10-3 record.
He has one season of eligibility remaining.
Corry Thomas Jr. • DB • Northern Iowa/Eastern Michigan • Ecorse, Mich. • 5-9/176
Thomas comes to Idaho from UNI where he played in all 11 games for the Panthers. He tallied 44 tackles, including a tackle for loss. He also forced a fumble and grabbed a pair of interceptions and had a pass breakup.
Before UNI, he played in nine games for Eastern Michigan in 2021 and 2022, including seven in 2022. He recorded one tackle in his career there. He redshirted in 2019, received a COVID redshirt in 2020.
He attended Westlake High School in Atlanta, Ga., and played under Head Coach Kareem Reid as a member of the Lions. Was a captain for two years. He played as a wide receiver and a cornerback, totaling 345 receiving yards, four touchdowns, seven pass breakups, and 18 tackles in his senior season, leading his team to a regional title. He also participated in track and field for Westlake. He was originally from Ecorse, Mich., and attended River Rouge High School. He has one year of eligibility remaining.
Nate Thomas • RB • South Dakota • South Holland, Ill. • 5-8/210
Thomas comes to Idaho after a solid couple of seasons at South Dakota. In 2021, his freshman season, he racked up 717 yards and five touchdowns on 114 carries, averaging 6.3 yards per carry and picking up MVFC All-Freshman team despite not playing until three games into the season. He had 100-yard games against Western Illinois and Indiana State. He missed the 2022 season because of injuries, but returned to the field in 2023, making the most of limited carries. He ended the season with 398 yards and five touchdowns on just 64 carries, again averaging over six yards per carry. He had 164 yards rushing and two touchdowns against Lamar and 102 and a score against Western Illinois.
In high school at Thornwood in the Chicagoland area, after running for 1,754 yards and 26 touchdowns for the St. Laurence Vikings as a junior. He was named the Offensive Player of the Year in the CCL/ESCC Orange his junior year. He had 193 yards and three touchdowns in the Vikings’ 35-34 victory against Simeon in the Prep Bowl and was named to the 7A All-State Team after playing 2.5 games at Thornwood during the spring 2021 season that was moved because of COVID 19.
Xander Echols • LS • Alabama Birmingham • Chelsea, Ala. • 5-11/215
Echols comes to Idaho after two seasons on the field and one as a full-time starting long snapper at UAB. He redshirted in 2021 and played in 12 games for the Blazers in 2023. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
He attended Chelsea High School in Chelsea, Alabama.
Dylan Fischer • LS • Alcorn State • Burnsville, Minn. • 6-0/212
Fisher played in three games for Alcorn State as a long snapper, starting against Tulane and playing against Alabama State and Grambling. He also played defense as a scout team player for Alcorn. He has three years of eligibility remaining.
He attended Burnsville HS in Minnesota.
Cruz Hepburn • LB • Lewis-Clark State (Baseball) • Lewiston, Idaho • 6-0/208
Hepburn returns to Idaho where he committed as a member of the 2022 recruiting class before changing his mind to play baseball at LCSC. During his freshman season on the diamond, he played in 19 games, with a .308 average on 26 at-bats. He recorded eight hits, including two doubles and four RBIs. He walked six times for a .471 on base percentage.
As a high schooler at Lewiston High School, he is the all-time leading rusher where he exceeded the 1,000-yard rushing mark three times. His senior year, he racked up 1,210 yards and 20 touchdowns and earned All-conference honors. He was also a standout player as a linebacker for Bengals.
NEW FRESHMEN ENROLLEES (Not Previously Announced)
Crew Clark • WR • Sugar-Salem HS • Sugar City, Idaho • 5-11/188
Was a starter at wide receiver and defensive back at Southern Idaho power Sugar-City. Was a two-time first-team all-state defensive back and the Idaho kicker of the year. He also earned all-conference honors at wide receiver. He led his team to back-to-back state championships. He committed to Weber State before serving a two-year mission in Arizona for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
His father, Mike Clark, was a kicker for the University of Houston and the Oakland Raiders.
Calvin Macy • LB • Lake Oswego HS • Lake Oswego, Ore. • 6-0/210
Macy joins high school teammates Jack and Dylan Layne as a true freshman for the Vandals. He had offers from multiple Big Sky and Ivy League schools but chose to play a season at the Air Force Academy Prep School in Colorado. He was a three-time all-league and two-time All-State running back and linebacker for Lake Oswego. He was a four-year honor roll student and played lacrosse, twice earning All-State honors.
