Ohio University announces mid-year football roster additions; Blankenship to transfer from Marshall

The Ohio University football program announced its mid-year roster additions Wednesday (Feb. 7).

The Bobcats would like to welcome offensive lineman Trent Allen (Windemere, Fla.), tight end Beau Blankenship (Hillsboro, Ohio), tight end Jake Bruno (Amherst, N.Y.), offensive lineman Tigana Cisse (Oakland, Calif.), defensive lineman CJ Doggette (Pickerington, Ohio), long snapper Colby Garfield (Clemmons, N.C.), safety Dustin Johnson (Denver, Co.), linebacker Blake Leake (Culpeper, Va.), kicker Jacob Lewis (Delaware, Ohio), defensive lineman Ben McNaboe (Rogers, Minn.), wide receiver Coleman Owen (Gilbert, Ariz.) and cornerback Jacob Proche (Dallas, Texas) to the 2024 roster. 

The 2024 signing class boasts 31 athletes, including those who signed during the early signing period. 

TRENT ALLEN 
OL | 6-3 | 290 | Windemere, Fla. | Davenport 
Prior to Ohio: Named First-Team All-GLIAC honoree his sophomore year at Davenport ... Earned honorable mention as a freshman ... Appeared in 19 games over two seasons and helped the offense record record-breaking numbers ... . Attended Bishop Moore High School 

BEAU BLANKENSHIP 
TE | 6-3 | 227 | Hillsboro, Ohio | Marshall 
Prior to Ohio: Transferred from Marshall ... played in one game, registering a tackle against Georgia State ... Attended Paint Valley (Ohio) High School in Bainbridge.

JAKE BRUNO 
TE | 6-6 | 243 | Amherst, N.Y. | Saint Francis 
Prior to Ohio: Recorded 132 yards and two touchdowns on 10 receptions during the 2023 season for Saint Francis ... Scored his first career touchdown on November 4 against Long Island ... In 2022, he appeared in 12 games and recorded three catches for 29 yards ... Made his collegiate debut against Akron in September of that season. 

TIGANA CISSE 
OL | 6-3 | 285 | Oakland, Calif. | Idaho 
Prior to Ohio: Played in 11 games for Idaho in 2023 ... Also played in six games as a true freshman in 2022 ... Helped lead McClymonds to a state championship ... First-Team All-League and First-Team All-Bay Area honoree. 

CJ DOGGETTE 
DL | 6-2 | 286 | Pickerington, Ohio | Cincinnati 
Prior to Ohio: Spent previous two seasons at Cincinnati (2022-23) ... A consensus three-star recruit who ranked among the Top 30 players in Ohio ... Finished with 72 tackles, five sacks and an interception during his senior season at Pickerington Central ... Named to the 2021 Ohio Prep Sportswriters Division I All-Ohio First Team ... A semifinalist for Scorestream's Top Defensive Player in Ohio award ... All-OCC Buckeye First Team.

COLBY GARFIELD 
LS | 6-1 | 229 | Clemmons, N.C. | East Carolina 
Prior to Ohio: Appeared in 11 games for East Carolina in the 2022 and 2023 seasons ... Previously played at Charlotte, where he made four appearances in the 2021 season ... Earned Conference-USA All-Freshman Team honors after playing in five of the 49ers six games in the 2020 season ... In high school, was named Five-Star Rubio Long Snapper ... Ranked No. 1 in North Carolina and 15th nationally ... Runner-up in state championship game. 

DUSTIN JOHNSON 
S | 6-1 | 191 | Denver, Colo. | Northern Colorado 
Prior to Ohio: Appeared in 11 games for Northern Colorado in 2023 ... Finished the season with a team-high 85 tackles ... Over the course of three seasons, Johnson recorded 151 tackles and two interceptions for Northern Colorado ... Spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons at Colorado ... Two-time all-league honoree for Cherry Creek High School. 

BLAKE LEAKE 
LB | 6-1 | 215 | Culpeper, Va. | Bucknell 
Prior to Ohio: Spent previous four seasons at Bucknell, serving as a team captain in his senior season ... Over Bucknell career played in 31 games, collecting 208 total tackles, four sacks, two interceptions, eight pass deflections, and one touchdown on an interception return in 2021 ... Senior year named recipient of the Theodore S. Ratkus Leadership Award for character, courage and commitment to team play ... Lettered in football at Eastern View High School playing on both sides of the ball ... Lead team to four-straight district titles and a 2018 regional win ... 2018 all-state first team wide receiver and defensive back ... two-time all-region wide receiver and defensive back ... two-time all-district first team wide receiver and defensive back ... also lettered in basketball, helping Eastern View win a district title as a freshman ... two-time all-district honoree and honorable mention all-region selection. 

JACOB LEWIS 
K | 6-2 | 207 | Delaware, Ohio | Minnesota | Ball State 
Prior to Ohio: Spent previous two seasons at Minnesota (2022-23), after playing for Ball State (2020-21) ... At Ball State appeared in 19 games, scoring 45 total points on 12 for 16 field goal attempts ... Served as team's primary kickoff specialist ... Career long of 51 yards ... Converted a 22-yard field goal in a 2020 MAC Championship victory over Buffalo ... In high school, earned two letters at Olentangy Berlin High School ... Named first team all-conference and second-team all-state as a Senior ... Hit 15 of 22 field goals throughout career ... Ohio High School Athletic Association Scholar Athlete in 2021. 

BEN MCNABOE 
DL | 6-3 | 245 | Rogers, Minn. | North Dakota/Minnesota 
Prior to Ohio: Spent two seasons at Minnesota (2019-20) before transferring to North Dakota .. Appeared in 22 games over two seasons at North Dakota ... Averaged 1.1 tackles per loss and 0.59 sacks per game as a junior ... Led UND in sacks with 6.5 as a junior ... Named Second-Team All-MVFC as a junior ... Also named Second Team MVFC All-Academic honors ... Named to MVFC All-Newcomer Team as a sophomore ... Academic All-Big Ten in 2020 

COLEMAN OWEN 
WR | 5-11 | 175 | Gilbert, Ariz. | Northern Arizona 
Prior to Ohio: Spent last five seasons with Northern Arizona, appearing in 39 total games ... Scored 18 touchdowns over NAU career, with one coming on an 85-yard punt return in 2023 ... Named 2023 second team all-Big Sky, 2022 second team all-Big Sky, 2022 Phil Steele all-Big Sky, 2021 Phil Steele Freshman All-American and all-Big Sky fourth team ... Had a career-high 196 receiving yards in a game in 2022 against Montana State ... Named 2022-23 NAU Top-Scholar Athlete ... Big Sky All-Academic selection in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

JACOB PROCHE 
CB | 5-9 | 191 | Dallas, Texas | Coastal Carolina 
Prior to Ohio: Played in three games for Coastal Carolina in 2023, where he recorded three tackles ... In 2022, he played in all 13 games and started two at cornerback, recording 31 tackles that season, including 23 solo stops ... Started his career at Coffeyville Community College ... Graduated from Red Oak High School where he was a 2017 first-team all-district selection.