National Signing Day in February is always an exciting moment for NCAA Division II football programs, and Hillsdale College is no different.

On the 2026 edition of Signing Day, 16 prep players have confirmed their commitments to become Chargers this fall, forming a strong foundation for the future of the team as Hillsdale heads into spring practices and begins looking ahead to the season to come.

With many players returning from last year's squad, Hillsdale head coach Nate Shreffler and his staff were able to focus in on areas of need on the roster and be selective with recruits to bring in a high-quality class. You can find the full list of players added below.

"I feel we were very successful with this group in looking at where our roster sits right now, and targeting guys that are going to make our team stronger and shore up our depth and talent in key areas," Shreffler said. "We knew we needed impact guys in the trenches, and we feel like the offensive and defensive linemen we brought in have a lot of potential and will address that area.

"We're really excited with our new skill position players on offense. We graduated a lot of wide receivers off of last year's team, and we feel with this group we restocked the room with high-quality prospects, some of whom might be ready to make a difference for us right away. All of the guys in this class really fit that mold in terms of adding something we need or filling a gap that we need field, and we're excited about what each of them brings to the table."

The 2026 class is heavy on players from Hillsdale's nearby recruiting ground in the Midwest, with five in-state players joining the class, in addition to four from across the border in Indiana and four from nearby Ohio. Hillsdale also continued a recent trend of adding players from the Lone Star State, with two players from the highly-successful Kingwood program in the northern suburbs of Houston joining the class.

Two players have prior ties to the Hillsdale College athletic department through their families. Drew Ruddy is the fourth in his family to attend Hillsdale College and joins older brothers Shea, a rising senior, and Ryin, a rising junior, on the 2026 squad, while Louis Raffin follows in the footsteps of family members Matt and Ben, who were both successful track and field athletes for the Chargers. 

The class is also heavily on players from tradition-rich programs with recent playoff success at the prep level. Defensive lineman Greg Smith signed to Hillsdale after winning back-to-back MHSAA Division 2 state championships at Michigan prep power Orchard Lake St. Mary's in the Detroit area, and wide receiver Sammy Stephenson also was part of an Edina team that won the 2025 6A state title in Minnesota. Additionally, the Chargers are adding two players whose team earned state runner-up honors, three players whose teams reached the state semifinal round, and five players whose teams played in the state quarterfinal round of the playoffs during their high school careers in their respective states.

While Hillsdale has a strong class of 16 at the end of Signing Day, the Chargers are still looking to add more players to round out the class and strengthen the roster for 2026 and beyond. Check back at this space for more signings as they come in.
 

2026 Charger Football Recruiting Class

POS.	NAME	HT.	WT.	HOMETOWN/HIGH SCHOOL	COACH
DB	Jonathan Ankutse	5-8	175	Porter, TX/Kingwood	Cale Melton
OL	Walt Autrey	6-4	299	Ludington, MI/Ludington	Charles Gunsell
WR	Carter Bobe	5-10	168	Newburgh, IN/Castle	Doug Hurt
DL	Isaiah Coolman	6-2	280	Fort Wayne, IN/Leo	Jason Doerffler
DB	KK Dada	6-1	172	Atascocita, TX/Kingwood	Cale Melton
WR	Drew Enright	5-11	179	Schoolcraft, MI/Schoolcraft	Daniel Devries
ATH	Hawk Hasselman	5-11	189	Pleasant Lake, IN/Angola	Andy Thomas
P	Dallas Johnston	6-4	183	Winfield, IL/Wheaton Academy	Justin Swider
DL	Matthew McIlroy	6-2	215	Chardon, OH/Chardon	Brian Landies
LB	Andrew Petzinger	5-10	203	Columbus, OH/Upper Arlington	Justin Buttermore
WR	Louis Raffin	6-2	181	Valparaiso, IN/Chesterton	Mark Peterson
DB	Connor Richards	6-3	197	Newburgh, IN/Castle	Doug Hurt
ATH	Drew Ruddy	5-8	162	Temperance, MI/Ottawa Lake Whiteford	Todd Thieken
TE/DL	Will Simpson	6-7	220	Dexter, MI/Dexter	Phil Jacobs
DL	Brayden Smith	6-1	245	Howell, MI/Howell	Brian Lewis
DL	Greg Smith	6-0	300	Farmington, MI/Orchard Lake St. Mary's	Jermaine Gonzales
WR	Sammy Stephenson	6-1	201	Bloomington, MN/Edina	Jason Potts
OL	Nolan White	6-3	290	Mt. Vernon, OH/Mt. Vernon	Mark Weber
RB	Cross Zeedyk	5-10	188	Hicksville, OH/Hicksville	Lucas Smith