NMSU football announces 2025 early signing day class

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico - Head Coach Tony Sanchez announced that NM State football has officially signed seven student-athletes in the early signing period.

With the January signing day still on the horizon, the Aggies brought in three high school signees along with four junior college additions.

In total, the Crimson and White added three players on the offensive side of the ball, including a quarterback, wide receiver and offensive line.

Additionally, the Aggies will also bring in a pair of defensive ends, a defensive tackle and a cornerback.

The program’s complete early signing day class can be found below.

Jordan-Lebron Downey | DL | Jr. | 6-2 | 280 | Oakville, Ontario, Canada (Livingstone College / Holy Trinity Catholic School)

• Spent the last two seasons at Livingstone College in Salisbury, N.C.
• Appeared in nine games this season at Livingstone College, where he tallied 25 tackles, including 2.5 sacks
• Season was highlighted by a five-tackle performance at Allen University
• Played in five games and recorded seven tackles as a true freshman
• Plans to join the Aggie program ahead of the spring semester

Kalani Mcleod | QB | So. | 6-2 | 205 | Fairfield, Calif. (Diablo Valley College / Vanden HS)

• Served as the starting quarterback at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, Calif., during his freshman season
• Appeared in all 12 games and threw for 3,022 yards and 28 touchdowns to lead a Viking offense that averaged 459.1 yards of total offense per game
• Averaged 251.8 passing yards per game to rank ninth among all California Community College Athletic Association quarterbacks while completing 232 of 348 attempts (66.7%)
• Helped guide DVC to the 3C2A Northern California Regional Semifinals
• Freshman campaign highlighted by performance at San Jose on Oct. 18, in which he threw for 278 yards and four touchdowns while completing 80% (20-25) of his pass attempts
• As a quarterback at Vanden High School, McLeod helped lead the Vikings to a 3-A state title while finishing the year as the No. 1 passer in the state of California, throwing for 4,494 yards on 276-386 passing.
• As a senior at Vanden, he was named second team all-state, while earning All-Sac Joaquin honors by MaxPreps and being named the Offensive Player of the Year in the Monticello Empire League.
• Plans to join the Aggie program ahead of the spring semester

Isaiah Garcia Perez | OL | Fr. | 6-4 | 300 | Broomfield, Colo. (Broomfield HS)

• Rated a three-star recruit according to 247Sports
• Helped lead Broomfield High School to a 9-3 overall record and the quarterfinals of the Class 4A CHSAA State Playoffs
• Served on an offensive line, which helped the Eagles rush for 258.4 rushing yards per game
• Also received offers from Fresno State and Washington State
• Plans to join the Aggie program this upcoming summer

De’Marcus Peters | CB | Sr. | 5-10 | 175 | Humble, Texas (Texas A&M-Kingsville / Atascocita HS)

• Spent the last three years at Texas A&M-Kingsville, where he finished the 2025 season with 29 total tackles, including 24 solo, 4.5 tackles for loss, three pass breakups and one forced fumble
• Named to the All-Lone Star Conference First Team Defense after serving on a Texas A&M-Kingsville defense that allowed just 200.4 passing yards per game to rank second in the league
• Junior season was highlighted by a season-best five tackles against Western Oregon
• In 2024, Peters logged a career high six pass breakups with all six coming in a single game against Eastern New Mexico. He ultimately finished the season with 15 total tackles while appearing in 10 games for the Javelinas
• Plans to join the Aggie program ahead of the spring semester

JaDarius Sanders | WR | Fr. | 6-2 | 175 | El Paso, Texas (El Dorado HS)

• Explosive wide receiver that is rated a three-star recruit according to 247Sports, Rivals and ESPN
• Played at El Dorado High School in El Paso, Texas, where he helped the Aztecs advance to the second round of the Texas High School Football Playoffs after claiming the District 1-5A title
• As a senior, Sanders was an integral part of the Aztec offense and finished with 38 catches for 788 yards and 11 touchdowns, averaging of 65.7 yards per game and 20.7 yards per reception
• His season was highlighted by three games with over 100 receiving yards, including notching five catches for 101 yards and three touchdowns in the Aztecs’ 77-76 win over Amarillo in the opening round of the Texas District 1-5A playoffs
• He also tallied 20 rushes for 209 yards and three rushing touchdowns during his final year at El Dorado
• In his junior year, Sanders caught 33 passes for 697 yards and 10 touchdowns. This included a four-catch, 163-yard, two-touchdown performance against Bel Air.
• Plans to join the Aggie program this upcoming summer

Zhakius Thomas | DE | So. | 6-2 | 250 | Converse, Texas (Trinity Valley CC / Judson HS)

• Edge rusher who played his freshman year at Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, Texas
• Appeared in nine of the team’s 10 games and recorded 52 total tackles and four sacks to help TVCC to a 7-3 overall record. His season included 40 solo tackles along with one recovered fumble.
• Thomas’ freshman year was highlighted by a nine-tackle, two-sack performance against Kilgore College.
• Averaged 5.8 tackles per game, including averaging 7.7 tackles across the final three games of the season
• Attended Judson High School, where he played three years of varsity football and tallied 131 total tackles, including 57 tackles and 12 tackles for loss as a senior. Also recorded 12 quarterback pressures in 12 games in his final high school season.
• Plans to join the Aggie program ahead of the spring semester

Jamaun Thompson | DE | Fr. | 6-2 | 230 | Sarasota, Fla. (Booker HS)

Plans to join the Aggie program ahead of the spring semester

Versatile defensive player who finished with 31 tackles, including 15 tackles for loss, as a senior at Booker High School

Tallied 7.5 sacks during the 2025 season, highlighted by a three-sack day in a victory over Calvary Christian

Also received offers from UTSA, Akron and Eastern Kentucky

Is the younger brother of Jamall Thompson Jr., who served as one of the Aggies’ top defenders during the 2025 campaign, finishing with 63 tackles and 4.0 sacks