It’s not unusual for Dayton to not have a commitment at this point in the offseason. Of the 15 Division I transfers who committed to Dayton in the spring in coach Anthony Grant’s tenure, only Enoch Cheeks made a decision before April 7, committing to Dayton on March 30, 2023. The next quickest offseason commitment came from Toumani Camara, who announced he would transfer from Georgia to Dayton on April 8, 2021.
It takes time to figure out who to recruit from a group of transfers that now includes 1,897 names, according to the list kept at VerbalCommits.com, and then to schedule visits with those recruits. That should ramp up later this week when an eight-day recruiting dead period that started last Thursday ends. Transfers can start taking visits to campus again on Friday.
While Dayton waits for its first commitment, other Atlantic 10 Conference schools have secured early commitments. Saint Louis added four transfers in a four-day period last week. George Mason has added three players. Virginia Commonwealth has added two.
With the roster limit increasing from 13 to 15 players, Dayton has eight open spots, though it likely will fill some of those spots with walk-ons.
The most transfers Dayton has added in any one spring transfer period is four. Cheeks, Javon Bennett, Isaac Jack and Nate Santos all joined the roster in 2023. Dayton added three transfers in 2024 and three in 2021 as well.
With eight players leaving the 2024-25 roster, including three who entered the transfer portal (Malachi Smith, Isaac Jack and Marvel Allen) and only two players (incoming freshmen Damon Friery and Jaron McKie) in the 2025 recruiting class at this point, Dayton has plenty of room for newcomers.
Here’s a look at some of the players in the portal Dayton has reached out to in recent weeks. The list does not include the names of players who have not talked to the various national recruiting writers about the schools recruiting them.
Tayshawn Comer, 6-foot-1 junior guard, Evansville: He averaged 16.2 points in his first season after Evansville after two seasons at Eastern Kentucky. He’s from Indianapolis. Sam Kayser, of of 24/7 High School Sports, reported Monday that Dayton contacted him.
Wes Enis, 6-2 sophomore guard, Lincoln Memorial University: Dayton contacted Enis in March, according to The Portal Report. He’s a Miami East graduate who averaged 20.1 points for the D-II program in Harrogate, Tenn. He’s the son of former NFL running back Curtis Enis.
Ryan Forrest, 6-4 sophomore guard, North Carolina A&T: Forrest, of Marion, Ark., averaged 19.1 points. Dayton was one of the schools to contact Forrest in March, according to a report by Dylan Lutey.
Colby Garland, 6-1 sophomore guard, Longwood: He averaged 12.1 points in one season at Longwood after playing one season at Drake. He’s from Magnolia, Ark. Dayton contacted him in March, according to The Portal Report.
Kaleb Glenn, 6-7 sophomore forward, Florida Atlantic: He averaged 12.6 points in one season at Florida Atlantic after playing one season at Louisville. Dayton contacted him in March, according to The Portal Report.
Christian Henry, 6-3 junior guard, Eastern Michigan: Henry, a Chicago native, averaged 14.7 points and 3.4 assists. Dayton and Duquesne were among the schools to reach out to Henry, according to Jovic.
Keonte Jones, 6-6 senior forward, Cal State Northridge: Dayton was one of many schools to reach out to Jones in March, according to The Portal Report, but he committed to Southern California. He averaged 13.1 points per game last season.
Will McClendon, 6-2 junior guard, San Jose State: McLendon, of Las Vegas, Nev., played his first two seasons at UCLA and averaged 12.0 points last season. Dayton contacted him last week, according to a report by Jeff Goodman.
Tanahj Pettway, 6-2 guard, Prairie View A&M: He played at Stony Brook and New Mexico State earlier in his career and averaged 17.0 points last season. He’s from Worcester, Mass. Pettway received interest from Dayton in March, according to The Portal Report.
Jaron Pierre Jr., 6-6 redshirt senior guard, Jacksonville State: He averaged 21.6 points last season. He started his career at Southern Miss and Wichita State. He’s from New Orleans. Dayton contacted him earlier this month, according to Kayser.
Amahrie Simpkins, 6-4 senior guard, Morgan State: He averaged 12.1 points in his second season at Morgan State. He previously played at Harcum College. He’s from Brooklyn, N.Y. Dayton contacted him in March, according to Jeff Borzello.
Alex Steen, 6-foot-9 sophomore forward, Florida Southern: Dayton was one of more than 80 schools to contact Steen, according to Arman Jovic, of PDT Scouting. Steen averaged 17.9 points for the Division II program.
Jamichael Stillwell, 6-8 junior forward, Milwaukee: He averaged 13.0 points in his first season at Milwaukee after starting his career at Butler Community College and Miami-Dade Community College. He’s from Atlanta, Ga. Dayton contacted him in March, according to Kayser.
About the Author
