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Combs headlines Signing Day at Iona Prep
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A total of 12 Iona Prep student-athletes signed National Letters of Intent on Wednesday afternoon.
The ceremony was headlined by UCLA-bound cornerback Justin Combs, who was accompanied by his parents, family and a host of friends.
Combs, who also starred at quarterback for the Gaels, will head out to the West Coast to begin his career as a Bruin on June 24.
“I spoke to coach (Jim) Mora today and I'm very excited,” said Combs, who is the son of Mount Vernon born music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs. “I had to hurry up and get my letter in so they could announce it at the press conference for the new commits. I'm just very excited.”
Like Combs, it will also be Mora Jr.'s first year at UCLA. He takes over the program from former coach Rick Neuheisel, who was ousted after four years on the job. The Bruins went 6-8 in 2011 and lost to Illinois, 20-14, in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl.
Judging by the high volume of activity on his Twitter account, Combs was more than anxious to sign the dotted line.
"I was very nervous and I couldn't wait to get here," he said. "Everybody kept congratulating me and it just made me more and more anxious, so I kept tweeting and tweeting."
Combs also gave some shine to his fellow classmates.
"Our class had a lot of Division I athletes sign today," he said. "I'm happy to do it with them because we spent our four years here together, so it was only right that we went out together."
Star soccer players Cesar Ceja (Marist) and Alex Kapp (Boston College) were also in attendance. The dynamic duo took the program to unforeseen heights during their tenure at the school, leading the Gaels to their first-ever CHSAA Class A intersectional title in 2010.
Here's a list of all 12 Iona Prep student-athletes and where they will be attending school in the fall:
Matt Berni (football) - Springfield College
Cesar Ceja (soccer) - Marist College
Justin Combs (football) - UCLA
Matt D'Ariano (baseball) - University of Connecticut (UConn)
Vinny DeMaria (baseball) - Iona College
Shane Fee (lacrosse) - Bucknell University
Greg Gallagher (pole vault) - The College of William & Mary
Sam Garito (baseball) - Eastern Connecticut State University
Darin Gillenwater (swimming) - SUNY Binghamton
Alex Kapp (soccer) - Boston College
Tim McCarthy (baseball) - Temple University
Luke Wooters (lacrosse) - Nazareth College
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