It’s official.

Wednesday marked the beginning of the early signing period for Division I football, the day some top players make their oral commitments to a college binding by signing a national letter of intent.

Here is the list of area athletes who already have signed or planned to do so during the early period, which runs through Friday.

This period is only for Division I football players. There will be many more commitments when the regular signing period begins Feb. 6.

Here is a list of area athletes expected to sign. If someone needs to be added to list, send an email to mstewart@journalsentinel.com and chogg@gannett.com.

Be sure to check back throughout the day for updates, highlights and interviews.

Racine St. Catherine's quarterback Da'Shaun Brown committed to Indiana University.

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Port Washington senior wide receiver Jaocb Lippe signed to play at FCS North Dakota State.
Jacob Lippe signs his National Letter of Intent to play football at North Dakota State University on Wednesday.

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Port Washington senior Jacob Lippe smiles with family and coaches after signing to play at North Dakota State on Wednesday.

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Muskego kicker Lucas Amaya (6) kicks a PAT during the

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Homestead senior Jake Raddatz poses with family and the Division 2 state championship trophy after signing to play football at Air Force on Wednesday.
Kettle Moraine senior Blake Wilcox makes a few remarks at his Under Armour All-America Game jersey presentation in November. Wilcox signed to kick at Wisconsin.

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Wauwatosa West senior Austin Ertl signed his letter of intent to play at Miami (Ohio) on Wednesday.
Slinger offensive lineman Ben Hoitink signs his letter of intent to play at Penn next fall.
Oconomowoc left tackle Leif Engstrand signed to play at Northern Illinois University.
Wauwatosa West offensive lineman Austin Ertl (71) signed to play at Miami (Ohio) next season.

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Sussex Hamilton's Jackson Kollath signed his letter of intent to play at the University of Wisconsin.
Sussex Hamilton's Jackson Kollath accepted a preferred walk-on offer from the University of Wisconsin.

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Menomonee Falls running back Julius Davis signed to play for the University of Wisconsin.
Homestead defensive end Jake Raddatz is committed to play at Air Force.

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Homestead: Jake Raddatz, DE, Air Force.

Kenosha Indiana Trail: Ben Jansen, OL, North Dakota.

Kettle Moraine: Jacob Rock, OL, North Dakota State; Blake Wilcox, K, Wisconsin.

Menomonee Falls: Julius Davis, RB, Wisconsin.

Muskego: Lucas Amaya, K, Iowa.

Oconomowoc: Leif Engstrand, OL, Northern Illinois.

Port Washington: Jacob Lippe, WR-DB, North Dakota State.

Racine St. Catherine’s: Da’Shaun Brown, ATH, Indiana.

Sussex Hamilton: Jackson Kollath, LB, Wisconsin.

Slinger: Ben Hoitink, OL, Pennsylvania

Wauwatosa West: Austin Ertl, OL, Miami (Ohio).

This is a big day for the college programs and many of them don’t hide their excitement. Check out their tweets and the highlight videos that are sometimes attached.

Davis plans to have a signing ceremony at the high school Thursday, but he signed his letter of intent today.

The Badgers also spread the news on Wilcox and Kollath. They each accepted a preferred walk-on opportunity with the program.

Wilcox was a first-team all-state pick as a punter and kicker by the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association and Associated Press.

Kollath posted 39 tackles, including 10 or a loss and 2 1/2 sacks for Hamilton. He was also the team’s top running back, gaining 767 yards in 99 carries, an average of 7.7 per rush.

Brown also will experience Big Ten football. He signed with the Hoosiers after leading St. Catherine’s to its first state championship. He’s an electric performer who completed 54.5 percent of his passes  (72 of 132) for 1,307 yards, 25 touchdowns and three interceptions. He also ran for 1,505 yards for an average of 11.8 yards per carry and 21 touchdowns.

Ertl was another early riser. The two-time all-state performer signed at 7:30 this morning and Miami wasted no time letting the world know he is officially a Redhawk.

Lippe was one of the area’s top two-way talents this past season. He received all-state mention on both sides of the ball, but he is listed as a receiver for the Bison. He was the North Shore Conference’s offensive player of the year.

Rock, another North Dakota State recruit, helped Kettle Moraine reach the playoffs the past years. Watch him move people.

Rock wasn’t the only offensive lineman from the Classic 8 to sign early. Engstrand made his commitment to the Huskies official.

Amaya is one of four athletes who are invited walk-ons at Iowa. This marks the second straight year the Hawkeyes have offered preferred walk-on status to an area players. suLast year Kettle Moraine linebacker Mike Timm accepted the invitation.

Surrounded by his family and coach and in front of a host of teammates, Hoitink signed the papers to join Penn’s program. The all-state performer announced his commitment before the season. Since then Notre Dame and Stanford offered preferred walk-on opportunities.

Hoitink, however, didn’t waver in his commitment to the Quakers. He explained why.

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Slinger football standout Ben Hoitink explains why he committed to the University of Pennsylvania
Mark Stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

When Raddatz signed his papers for Air Force, he wasn’t signing up for the typical college commitment. He’ll also be required to serve five years in the service after graduation, but that’s fine with him.

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Homestead’s Jake Raddatz explains what appeals to him about playing for the Air Force Academy.
Mark Stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Jansen joined North Dakota, a program set to join the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2020.

 

Read more about the signees

Julius Davis

Badgers recruit Julius Davis analyzes film of UW’s best running backs … plus his own greatest hits

Leif Engstrand

Leif Engstrand’s stock (and size) skyrocketed, and now he hopes to be cornerstone that returns Oconomowoc to the playoffs

Jacob Lippe

Good luck trying to cover Port Washington’s Jacob Lippe, a North Dakota State commit who leads a Pirates team full of potential

Blake Wilcox

Blake Wilcox is making special teams must-see. Yes, a kicker is one of the area’s 16 best players.

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Ranked as one of the top kickers and punters in the country, the Lasers senior didn’t even start playing football until last season.
Curt Hogg, Now News Group

Da’Shaun Brown

Da’Shaun Brown nearly quit football three years ago; now he’s one of the state’s top recruits (and maybe No. 1 overall)

WIAA football: Racine St. Catherine’s come through in the clutch, wins first championship

Jake Raddatz

 

 

Homestead’s Jake Raddatz had an offer from Wisconsin but elected to pursue a higher purpose

Jake Raddatz sets state record Homestead rolls to its sixth football state championship

Jackson Kollath

With ‘dream’ offer from Badgers in hand, Jackson Kollath is back and better than ever for Sussex Hamilton