Portland, Maine — As the calendar turns toward the inaugural season on the field, Maine State University has quietly completed one of the most important steps in building its football program: finalizing a 2024 recruiting class that will not play a down this fall, but may ultimately define the Majestic Pines’ future.
The group, made up of high school signees and a handful of strategic transfers, will spend the next two seasons practicing, learning the system, and developing physically before becoming eligible to compete in 2026. It’s a long-term investment, one that head coach Rob Tierney and his staff believe will pay dividends when the program takes its next step.
“This group didn’t sign up for instant gratification,” Tierney said. “They signed up to build something.”
The bulk of the class comes from the high school ranks, with 15 players enrolling knowing they would spend a full year developing without game reps. That kind of commitment isn’t common in modern recruiting, and it wasn’t accidental.
“This was about identifying players who understood the vision,” Tierney said. “Guys willing to practice, lift, and compete every day without seeing the field right away.”
That group includes players across every position group, quarterback Tavion Reese, running backs Jamari Dixon and Andre Wallace, wideouts Tobias Westbrook and DeShawn Kelly, and a defensive core highlighted by linemen Tyler Branch, Erick Talbert, and Donte Willis. Several of those players already project physically closer to upperclassmen than true freshmen, giving the staff confidence that the redshirt year will accelerate, not stall, their development.
Alongside the high school signees, Maine State added key transfer pieces to anchor the locker room and raise the program’s baseline.
Former UMass left tackle Marquis Dalton brings FBS experience to a young offensive line, while Isaiah Copeland arrives from Rhode Island with multiple seasons of FCS game action in the secondary. On special teams, long snapper Cole Schmidt (Plymouth State) and kicker Cole Armstrong (Virginia Union) provide immediate reliability, a priority for a staff focused on winning the margins early.
Bridgton Academy products Xavier Delmar and Beau Landry add polish and maturity on the offensive side, while Malcolm Clay, another Virginia Union transfer, bolsters the interior defensive line with size and strength.
“These guys understand college football,” Tierney said. “They’ve been through camps, depth charts, adversity. That matters when you’re setting standards.”
By design, none of these players will see game action until 2026. Instead, they’ll spend the year immersed in the strength program, the playbook, and the culture Tierney and his staff are establishing from day one.
For Maine State, that patience is part of the plan.
“We’re not chasing shortcuts,” Tierney said. “We’re building layers. When these guys take the field in 2026, they won’t feel new. They’ll feel ready.”
As the Majestic Pines prepare for their first season under the lights, this redshirt class represents something less visible, but arguably more important than any single game result. It’s proof that Maine State isn’t just starting a team.
They’re building a program.
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