GOLDEN, Colo. – Colorado School of Mines head men's basketball coach Pryor Orser has announced the signing of five more student-athletes who will join the reigning Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference champions for the 2025-26 season.
 
Jackson Brennan // 6'4" // 180 // Guard // Highlands Ranch, Colo. // Santa Ana College (ThunderRidge HS)
Brennan returns to the Centennial State after a well-traveled collegiate career that included stops at Division III Chapman, Division I Wofford and most recently Santa Ana College in California. There he helped lead the Dons to an 18-14 record and earned First Team All-Orange Empire Conference honors, averaging 13.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game while shooting 46.4% from the floor, 40% from three and 80.1% at the stripe while dishing out 47 assists, pocketing 54 steals and hauling in 153 rebounds. Before heading west collegiately, Brennan prepped at ThunderRidge High School where he helped lead the Grizzlies to back-to-back CHSAA Class 5A championships in 2021 and 2022 before finishing his prep career at Bridgton Academy in Maine. Off the court, Brennan was named to the Continental Conference All-Academic Team and was a Colorado DECA Manual State Champion and two-time DECA National Qualifier. He plans to study Business Engineering & Management Science at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Brennan: "Jackson Brennan was someone who appeared on the radar late in this spring's recruiting period and Jackson is someone you don't pass on. He has a good skill set, is aggressive defensively, a very good rebounder, and is a proven shot maker at the college level. He is a proven winner with two state championships on his resume as well as college playing experience. He has leadership skills and is a person of high character. He is just too good of a player with intangibles to pass on. He was nurtured in a great program at ThunderRidge High School and we could not be happier to have our third player from that magnificent program."
 
Will Essman // 6'8" // 205 // Forward // Tulsa, Okla. // Bishop Kelley HS
The first of two big men in the latest group to sign with the Orediggers, Essman comes to Golden by way of Bishop Kelley High School in Tulsa where he was a three-year letter winner. He averaged 19.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 blocks in his senior year and earned numerous accolades. As a junior he was named a Second Team All-District selection and as a senior was a McDonald's All-American nominee. He also earned First Team All-District honors and was named Co-Offensive Player of the Year. Essman was also named an Oklahoma All-State All Star and Tulsa World Mr. Inside Player of the Year. Off the court, he was an honor roll student and a member of the National Honor Society and plans to study Business Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Essman: "Will was someone we identified last summer as a great fit for what we are looking for in a big. He is versatile at the four and five positions in our system. He has a great upside and still appears to be growing. He is comfortable shooting three's and can play around the basket. He has a terrific upside and would like to redshirt him if possible and let the development process take shape. He is also a top-notch student, a high character person, and comes from a great family. We are thrilled that Will chose Mines. We think Will can be a sneaky good player here at Mines."
 
Kasen Lehman // 6'4" // 185 // Guard // Castle Rock, Colo. // Rock Canyon HS
Another local product in this year's signing class, Lehman prepped at Rock Canyon High School where he was a three-year letter winner. A versatile guard with the ability to play any spot on the floor, he continued to elevate his statistics in each of his final three seasons. As a sophomore, he netted 6.1 PPG before more than doubling his numbers as a junior, scoring 15.0 PPG and dishing 2.0 APG and pulling in 2.7 RPG along with 1.4 SPG. As a senior, he closed his career scoring 19.2 PPG with 3.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals per contest on his way to First Team All-Continental League honors, being named a conference All-Star for the second time and earning CHSAA Class 6A All-State Honorable Mention honors. He also earned Second Team All-Conference honors as a junior. On the club level, Lehman has played for the CP Magic, Hardwood Elite and Colorado Collective, where he averaged 11.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 43% from the three-point line. Off the court, Lehman was an honor roll and high honors student and earned the Seal Biliteracy in Spanish. He plans to major in Business Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Lehman: "Kasen is another type of player you can't pass on. He averaged almost 20 a game in arguably the top 6A league in the state. He has a beautiful shooting stroke that can extend well beyond the three-point line. Kasen is also a very good runner who can really get out and fill the lanes.  Kasen also has a very good basketball IQ and has really good basketball instincts. He also comes from a really good high school program plays similar to ours. As Kasen develops defensively and rebounding, he could develop into a very good player here at Mines." 
 
Cooper Mroczek // 6'8" // 210 // Forward // Elkhorn, Neb. // Elkhorn South HS
Mroczek brings an imposing frame and an impressive resume with him to Golden after prepping at Elkhorn South High School. There he averaged 22.0 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. Mroczek was a Second Team All-Metro Selection during his prep career and twice earned Honorable Mention All-State honors. On the club level, he played for the Omaha Elite where he averaged 15.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Off the court, Mroczek was an Academic All-State Honorable Mention honoree and a four-year honor roll student and plans to study Business Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Mroczek: "Cooper was another player not on the Mines radar, but after seeing him play and finding out that he is a person of great character, a terrific student, and loves basketball, it was a no brainer to recruit him. Cooper is a sneaky good athlete who can play multiple positions.   He has a very good skill set as well. He shoots the ball on the perimeter very well but can also attack off the dribble and score. He is a guy that has a great upside but could also blow up and play right away. We are thrilled Cooper chose Mines as he had many other offers."
 
Ryan Pramenko // 6'6" // 185 // Forward // Centennial, Colo. // Arapahoe HS
The third Colorado native to join the Orediggers for the 2025-26 season, Pramenko prepped at Arapahoe High School where he was a four-year letter winner. As a senior, he was named Second Team All-Centennial League and voted Arapahoe's Most Valuable Player. Pramenko averaged 14.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 54% from the floor and 40% from three-point land in his final season. On the club level, he competes for the Elevation Flyers. Off the court, Pramenko was twice named First Team All-State Academic and twice won the Scholar-Athlete Award. He was a member of the National Honor Society and earned the Seal of Biliteracy as well. Pramenko plans to study Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Pramenko: "Ryan is the type of student athlete we covet here in our program. A high character guy who is genuine, caring, and is an outstanding student. He has work to do in his skill set and will most likely redshirt. Ryan has potential to be a contributor here at Mines because he is a good athlete but just needs time to develop his offensive skills. Ryan is a guy who was flying under the radar, but in three years, could be a player everyone will say, wow, what a get. We look forward to developing him here at Mines."
 
That quintet joins Shelton Henton, Kellon Johnson, Trent Minter and Gil Schayes as part of the 2024-25 signing class. Read more about the first four signees here.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's basketball on X and Instagram at @minesmbb. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.