The tight ends are the tipoff.

VMI hasn't had much use for tight ends in its triple-option offense. But tired of racking up yardage only to give the ball away on turnovers, coach Sparky Woods is making a change.

"I would like the tailback to run the ball more than the quarterback," he said Wednesday after the Keydets announced that 12 players signed letters-of-intent to play for VMI starting next season. "We're going to spread the field out and throw it well enough that we can run with some authority."

Woods said he is a fan of the Indianapolis Colts' pro-style offense, which usually uses a one-back set with either three wideouts and a tight end or four wideouts.

"To do that, we've got to have tight ends," Woods said.

The Keydets signed two in this year's class. Conner Mays (6-foot-3, 234 pounds) was a first-team all-state pick out of Bremen (Ga.) High School by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Will Lucas was a third-team all-state pick out of Hartsville (S.C.) High by The (Columbia) State and played in the South Carolina Shrine Bowl. Both are listed as tight ends by the Keydets.

"Tight ends are usually a good thing," Woods said. "They're long and athletic and they can turn into other things, play defensive end or linebacker too."

VMI will also need some receivers, and that was a category left lacking on the first day high schoolers were allowed to sign. Woods said the Keydets have a few more scholarships available and will likely sign more players.

Woods said he expected backup QB Cam Jones and Adam Morgan, who redshirted last season, to lead the competition to replace seniors Kyle Hughes and Tim Maypray, who shared the quarterback role last season. Neither was an option QB in high school.

But the Keydets also signed two quarterbacks. Erik Kordenbrock is a 6-foot-3, 220-pounder from Pine-Richland High School in Gibsonia, Penn. Cameron Walker (6-4, 218 pounds) comes out of Centreville High School in Clifton.

Walker, Woods said, is "athletic enough to do something else" besides quarterback.

The Keydets re-signed Miguel Marshall, who Woods said would help in the secondary.

Marshall (5-10, 193) signed with the Keydets last year out of Forest Park High School in Dale City, but did not qualify academically. He played wide receiver and safety for Fork Union Military Academy's postgraduate team last fall, grabbing eight interceptions.

"He's a year older, and he's been away from home and he's done real well," Woods said.

VMI also signed two DBs from North Carolina. Parker Blazevich (5-10, 180) won a state title and played in two more state championship games at Charlotte Christian School in Matthews, N.C. Demetrius Phillips (6-1, 208) made all-conference out of Northeast Guilford High School in Brown Summit, N.C.

Also on the defensive side of the ball, the Keydets added linebackers Ty Garvin and Logan Staib, and defensive end John Washington.

Garvin (6-2, 210) is the all-time tackling leader at Sullivan South High School in Kingsport, Tenn., with 457 in his career.

Staib (6-1, 210) started at quarterback, safety and punter for Monacan High School in Midlothian last fall, earning Southern Virginia's Army Ironman of the Year award.

Washington (6-2, 240) was the Evergreen District player of the year and a first-team all-state pick for Liberty-Bealeton High School.

The Keydets also picked up running back Martinez Miles, a 6-foot, 198-pound all-state pick out of John I. Burton High in Norton who ran for better than 2,000 yards and led the Raiders to the Group A Division 1 championship game last fall.

Offensive lineman Andrew Marcotte (6-8, 320) out of Lafayette High School in Williamsburg literally rounds out the class.

"We've gotten longer and taller and stronger, and a little better student -- though not all of 'em," Woods said. "But by the looks of who we're playing, they're getting better too. ... But we've got to worry about making our team better."

Woods has already seen signs of that, noting that he expects to have 80 players on the field for spring practice as compared to roughly 50 when he took over two seasons ago. He was picturing two-deep drills on both sides of the ball when practice begins April 7.

"The great thing about this class is we're not saying we just have to have this guy," Woods said.

"I might actually redshirt some of these guys."