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App Standouts Cadet, Presley Agree to NFL Free-Agent deals

Photo courtesy of Keith Cline, David Scearce and Appalachian Sports Information

April 30, 2012. Former Appalachian State University standouts Travaris Cadet (Miami, Fla./Central) and DeAndre Presley (Tampa, Fla./Middleton) agreed to terms on Saturday evening to join the National Football League’s New Orleans Saints and San Diego Chargers, respectively, as rookie free agents.

Cadet and Presley are among the most versatile and explosive players in Appalachian history. Both played multiple positions during their collegiate careers with Cadet seeing time at running back, wide receiver and quarterback and Presley playing quarterback, wide receiver and cornerback. Cadet is expected to play running back for the Saints while Presley is tabbed as a corner for the Chargers. Both are also likely to contribute on special teams, perhaps as kickoff and punt returners, roles that they had at ASU.

Cadet, who played three seasons at Appalachian after transferring from Pearl River (Miss.) C.C. in 2009, was a two-time all-Southern Conference running back and also earned all-conference recognition once as a return specialist. The Miami, Fla. native racked up 3,929 all-purpose yards and 1,929 yards of total offense during his three-year ASU career, including 1,688 rushing yards and 1,376 kickoff return yards (good for fifth in school history).

Presley is best known for his electrifying junior campaign as Appalachian’s starting quarterback, when he became one of only 13 players in NCAA Division I history (and just the fourth in Division I FCS) to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a single season. He was named the SoCon Offensive Player of the Year and placed third in voting for the 2010 Walter Payton Award (nation’s top FCS player) following his scintillating junior season but made just five starts at quarterback as a senior before suffering a shoulder injury and losing the starting assignment to sophomore Jamal Jackson. Presley unselfishly bounced back to become a key contributor down the stretch for the Mountaineers on offense (wide receiver, quarterback), defense (cornerback) and special teams (kickoff and punt returns and coverage units).

The rookie free-agent deals give Appalachian 10 former players in the NFL. Cadet and Presley join former Mountaineers Jason Hunter (Denver Broncos), Dexter Jackson (New York Jets), Corey Lynch (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Armanti Edwards (Carolina Panthers), Daniel Kilgore (San Francisco 49ers), Mark LeGree (San Francisco 49ers), D.J. Smith (Green Bay Packers) and Brian Quick (St. Louis Rams), who was selected with the first pick of the second round in the 2012 NFL Draft on Friday evening, in the NFL ranks.