A total of four Newberry athletes signed their Letter of Intent on Monday, including three who will be playing football at the next level.

Among the trio is one of the best running backs to put on a Panthers uniform.

Kaleb Woods is going the JUCO route, signing with Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson, Kansas, with hopes of showcasing his talents for the next level.

“That’s the goal,” said Newberry football coach Ed Johnson. “That’s the main objective with him going to Hutchinson is to open that recruitment up again. The maturation process he’s improved in, and hopefully he’ll take advantage of this opportunity.”

Woods rushed for 882 yards on 126 carries (7.0 average), with 7 touchdowns,  as a senior for the Panthers.

“Dynamic,” Johnson said. “He was a kid that could do anything we needed him to do on the offensive side of the ball. Obviously, a big-time rusher, but he was also just a big-time athlete, a four-year starter for us that we’ve got to replace, so that’s a big hole to fill.”

He also had 13 catches for 241 yards with a pair of receiving scores.

As a junior, Woods went over 1,000 yards (1,090) and averaged 9.2 yards per carry with 13 scores, garnering interest from D-I schools.

“I took too long to find a school, so everybody got full,” he explained. “(Hutchinson’s) coach has got a good reputation for sending kids off, Alvin Kamara for one, so I think I’m in good hands out there.”

Woods was selected to Mainstreet’s All Area first team for the 2025, 2024 and 2023 seasons.  

Two offensive linemen who helped pave the way on the ground are also heading to the next level.

Offensive lineman Brandon Sullivan (6’5, 350) signed with Gordon State College in Barnesville, Georgia.

“Big, great kid, a big ol’ teddy bear off the field, but intense when he gets inside those lines, and a great guy we got to see develop,” Johnson said. “When he came here, we obviously saw the size, the work ethic, and the technique. Just to see him keep working, develop, handle adversity, and get a chance to go play football beyond high school.”

Sullivan, who played right guard, transferred from P.K. Yonge for his junior and senior years.

“I had contacted the (Gordon State) coach on Twitter, and it felt like family once I had texted them,” he said. “I had visited yesterday (Sunday) actually and they were just welcoming, and I felt like home, so that’s how I decided to go there.”

Je’Kai Dawson (6’1, 290), who was a four-year starter at left tackle, signed with St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens, Florida.

“He’s been a leader on our O-line for the last four years and that leadership part is going to be the biggest thing to replace,” Johnson said. “He’s very good too, didn’t give up many sacks. If we wanted to run the ball behind him, we could at any time. He’s just super athletic, very coachable, and his height was the only reason he’s not playing P4. He definitely has that capability.”

There were several things that drew Dawson to the South Florida program.

“It was the coaches, the school, the campus, where they’re at, where they’re located, and I’m by home boys at the University Miami, they’re like 10 minutes down the road,” he said, referring to former Newberry teammates Mykah Newton, who signed with Miami in December 2024, and Jarquez Carter, who transferred to Miami from Ohio State in January.

Dawson was selected to Mainstreet’s All Area first team for the 2025, 2024 and 2023 seasons.  

Cayden Francis will play soccer at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas.

“It was a pretty campus, very small,” he said. “It was a lot like here in Newberry, just the Texas version. Oil rigs everywhere, it’s all sandy, but I like the small-town feel of it. It’s a Christian school, which I like, and it has mechanical engineering there in specific automotive engineering, which is what I want to do for college.”

Francis has been Newberry’s goalkeeper for the past two years.

“As a coach, Francis was an example of what it takes to be a high-level competitor,” said first-year Newberry boys soccer coach Nathan Smith. “He demonstrated to the team the dedication, work ethic and attitude it takes to be successful.”

Smith said that, from a coaching perspective, they try to teach their players skills that prepare them for success in all areas of their lives. In Special Forces, they determined that there is a set of core attributes that will make you successful in all activities – physical, mental or spiritual.  

“So, having Francis there to be an embodiment of those attributes allows people to emulate what they can observe,” he said. “It makes success obtainable because it is no longer a nebulous concept. Being able to point to Francis in this case gave me the ability to show concrete actions that successful people take in order to attain their goals.”

As a junior, Francis, who joins just a small handful of area soccer players to sign with a college, helped lead the Panthers to their first district championship first district title since 2002.

He finished his senior year with 233 saves, an average of 12.3 saves per game.