Sierra Canyon High School’s Kanan Ray could hardly sleep the night before National Signing Day.

So what did the longtime UCLA commit and Army All-American do Wednesday morning? Woke up, signed with the Bruins via an app and went back to sleep.

“I’ve never been a flashy guy,” Ray said, “I just want to get signed and get to work because I can’t wait to be a Bruin.”

In Florence, Italy, Ray’s teammate, Niko Harris, was so eager that he had a table set up outside the Duomo, one of Florence’s most famous landmarks, where he signed with UC Davis while on a school trip.

PHOTO GALLERY: Oaks Christian’s signing day ceremony by Ed Cristosomo

Both captured the wide range of emotions felt around the area as football players solidified their verbal commits by signing letters of intent to play in college.

Ray’s no-nonsense approach fell in line with him signing with UCLA despite several late offers from TCU, Baylor and Oregon after UCLA fired its offensive line coach, Adrian Klemm.

“I really thought about taking trips to TCU and Oregon, but I thought it was best for me and for my family to stay home,” Ray said.

Sierra Canyon had a third player sign on Wednesday as tight end Sam Shadorf signed with Brown.

Oaks Christian’s Colby Parkinson also honored a long-standing commitment as the Army All-American tight end signed with Stanford after he gave his verbal commitment 14 months ago.

Parkinson was one of the last to show up at the school’s ceremony that honored 10 football players, but the first to sign as he quickly wrote his signature before things began.

“I’m just excited because now I’m part of the team and I can start being a Stanford football player,” said Parkinson.

As the Oaks Christian players signed along with 20 other students, the emotions got to Michael Owusu. He had watched his older brothers, Francis, Chris and Brian, sign to play Division 1 football and now it was his turn to sign with Vanderbilt.

“I’m at a loss for words,” Owusu said with tears in his eyes. “It’s been an arduous process and I didn’t know where I was going. I’m happy to expand the Owusu name.”

Watch a collection of National Signing Day memories and moments around Southern California

Fellow Lions teammates Brandon LaBrie (South Dakota School of Mines), Anthony Burgos (La Verne), Devon Calloway (San Jose State), Nicolo Difronzo (Cal Poly SLO), Grant Marcketta (Washington University in St. Louis), Danny Redell (San Diego), Harrison Turlington (Virginia) and Shea Pitts (UCLA) also signed their name in unison.

The Calabasas trio of Darnay Holmes, Tristan Gebbia and Keyshawn Johnson Jr. all enrolled early, but made their commitments official Wednesday when Holmes signed with UCLA and Gebbia and Johnson signed with Nebraska.

Newbury Park’s Marques Evans signed with Boise State after enrolling early.

While some knew the colleges they would sign with, others had to wait until the last minute. That was the case for Chaminade’s Kyle Bilchik, who decided to sign with San Diego an hour before the school’s ceremony.

His teammate, Jahlil Pinkett, had committed to Northern Arizona only a few days earlier, but Bilchik agonized over his decision with a sleepless night.

“I’m just grateful for the opportunity to show what I can do at the next level,” Bilchik said.

Bilchick, Pinkett, Jackson Parks (San Jose State) and Isaiah Richardson (San Diego State) all signed Wednesday as Chaminade celebrated its latest class of college-bound athletes.

Moorpark had five players sign with colleges, along with Alemany and Grace Brethren. Antelope Valley had three players sign.

Tyger Goslin (Navy), Zane Pope (Fresno State), Bentley Hanshaw (BYU), Scott Brooks (Colorado State) and Derrick Rodriguez (Montana Tech) enjoyed one last moment together as Moorpark teammates before they joined other Ventura County players at the annual coaches luncheon.

“We all had the same goal when we were young, but now it’s cool to sign together because we’ve all put in the same work together,” Goslin said, “It’s a dream.”

Antelope Valley’s Morrell Osling and Moses Robinson-Carr signed with UCLA while teammate Tyrese Dedmon signed with Idaho after committing earlier in the day.

Crespi’s Nick Ghazarian signed with Army and teammates Mario Marroquin and Sekou Hara signed with Western State Colorado and Dixie State, respectively.

Alemany quartet Lamin Touray (Nevada), Warren Jackson (Colorado State), Chris Ojoh and Johnny Edwards (Eastern Washington) all signed on Wednesday, as did Notre Dame’s Kylan Wilborn (Arizona).

A fifth Alemany student, Ladji Bagayoko, signed with San Diego State after enrolling early.

“I haven’t been this excited for a football season in my life,” said Touray, who missed most of his senior season with an injury. “The injury was a setback, but I’m glad I made my decision early.”

For Grace Brethren, Noah Bean (UNLV), Tucker Robertson and Setefano Aina (Iowa State), Karl Kniseley (Colorado School of Mines) and Nick Juels (UCLA) honored their verbal commitments.

St. Francis’ Daniel Scott signed with Cal and teammate Maxx Jakeway signed with Union College. Paraclete’s Branden Smith also signed with Cal and Hart duo Nick Moore and AJ Stanley signed with Eastern Washington and Southern Utah, respectively.

Westlake’s Cameron Trimble signed with UC Davis, along with Thousand Oaks lineman Connor Pettek. San Fernando’s Darrius Nash signed with Dixie State and St. Genevieve had a trio of signees in Elijah Ebe and Darrious Gaines (Western State Colorado) along with Jordan Blackman (Army).

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