East Carolina and new head coach Ruffin McNeill are poised to add 23 new names to the Pirate football framework on national signing day today.

Just two weeks after McNeill was named the Pirates’ 20th head coach, a whirlwind of travel and talking with the team’s verbal commitments will end today when recruits across the country will sign national letters of intent with the schools of their choosing.

McNeill’s class largely features the crop of players who committed to former ECU coach Skip Holtz, but getting them to sign today was the result of a good deal of legwork by McNeill and recruiting coordinator Donnie Kirkpatrick, who was the lone assistant coach from the Holtz era to be retained.

The 23-man class includes seven players who are already in school at ECU, as well as a pair of players from the 2009 class who did not immediately qualify academically.

The class represents 10 different states — North Carolina (seven players), Florida (3), Maryland (3), South Carolina (3), Mississippi (2) and one each from Georgia, Kansas, Missouri, Texas and Virginia.

If all projected ECU commits follow through with signatures today, the Pirates will bring in four offensive and four defensive linemen, three defensive backs, three linebackers, two quarterbacks, two running backs, a wide receiver, two athletes projected as either receivers or defensive backs, one that could play linebacker or defensive end and one that could play linebacker or defensive back.

Already enrolled for the spring semester are defensive end Maurice Falls (Belmont/South Point High School), offensive lineman Anthony Garrett (Prairie Village, Kan./Fort Scott Community College), linebacker Jeremy Grove (Ijamsville, Md./Gov. Thomas Johnson), defensive back Bradley Jacobs (Long Beach, Miss./Miss. Gulf Coast C.C.), defensive end/linebacker Derrell Johnson (Baltimore, Md./The Cardinal Gibbons School), running back Alex Owah (Harrisonburg, Va./Hargrave Military Academy) and offensive lineman Diavalo Simpson (Moss Point, Miss./East Mississippi C.C.).

Linebacker Justin Dixon (Smithfield/Smithfield-Selma) and running back Damonte Terry (Laurinburg/Scotland) both become official members of the program after signing in 2009 but not qualifying.

New commits expected to sign today are defensive back Detric Allen (Norwood/South Stanly), defensive back Desi Brown (Webster Groves, Mo./Webster Groves), quarterback Shane Carden (Bellaire, Tex./Episcopal), quarterback Dominique Davis (Lakeland, Fla./Fort Scott C.C.), linebacker Jacob Geary (Hillsborough/Cedar Ridge), offensive lineman Drew Gentry (Tallahassee, Fla./North Florida Christian), defensive end Mack Helms (Tallahassee, Fla./Leon), offensive lineman Taylor Hudson (Greenville, S.C./Mauldin), defensive back/wide receiver Lamar Ivey (Mebane/Eastern Alamance) wide receiver/defensive back Damon Magazu (Charlotte/Providence), defensive end Lee Pegues (Bennettsville, S.C./Marlboro County), wide receiver Torian Richardson (Duncan, S.C./Byrnes), defensive end Chrishon Rose (Forestville, Md./Bishop McNamara and linebacker/defensive end Terry Williams (Loganville, Ga./Grayson).

Following a 3:30 p.m. press conference today to unveil the 2010 signing class, McNeill will appear at a fan signing day event at 5:30 p.m. (doors open at 4:30) at Harvey Hall inside the Murphy Center.

Contact Nathan Summers at nsummers@reflector.com or (252)329-9595.