First-year YSU Head Coach Doug Phillips announced on Wednesday that the Penguins have signed Dawan Martin and Deamontae Diggs to National Letters of Intent.
Both players will be eligible to play for the Penguins this fall. Martin is from nearby Youngstown East High School. He was a senior for the Golden Bears in 2018 and played with current Penguin defensive lineman Chris Fitzgerald. Diggs was a standout two-sport athlete at McKeesport High School. He played basketball and football during his scholastic career with the Tigers.
Dawan Martin | DL | 6-5 | 250 | Youngstown, Ohio | East HS
Two-star rated player by 247sports.com…played in the OHSFCA North-South Football Classic…was a second-team Division IV All-Northeast Inland District on the defensive line…also earned second-team All-American Conference Red Tier honors…helped lead East to the Class 4 Quarterfinals where the Golden Bears dropped a hard-fought 34-30 contest to Girard and current YSU quarterback Mark Waid...East finished the season with an 8-4 mark…coach was Bryan Marrow.
Deamontae Diggs | TE/H-Back | 6-6 | 225 | McKeesport, Pa. | McKeesport Area HS
Two-sport standout at McKeesport…as a senior, was named Big East Conference as a defensive lineman…the Tigers reached the WPIAL Class 5A semifinals and finished the season 9-4…as a junior, had 14 catches for 424 yards and seven touchdowns…was a second-team Big East pick as a junior…also kicked two extra points…in 2018, the Tigers finished with a 9-3 record and reached the WPIAL quarterfinals, falling to eventual district and state champion Penn Hills…coach was Matt Miller…as a basketball player, averaged a team-best 20.3 points and 12 rebounds per game as a junior…McKeesport reached the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs last year.