By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) announced its 25th annual Academic All-Star Team on Tuesday.
Each member institution was limited to two nominees and with the Tennessee Tech football team putting together another strong semester academically with two student-athletes with a perfect 4.0 grade point average, followed by another 14 with a 3.5 or better, 51 with a 3.0 or better, there were certainly plenty of candidates to go around.
Both Tech nominees – graduate linebacker Seth Carlisle and junior tight end Hunter Barnhart – made it into the list of 53 student-athletes across the FCS. Each nominee had to have a minimum 3.2 grade point average in undergraduate or graduate studies, while also standing as a starter or significant contributor to the team – competing in no fewer than 50 percent of the games played that season.
Carlisle, who recently completed his MBA in December, already has a significant resume. A two-time finalist for the STATS FCS FedEx Ground Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete Award and a National Football Foundation William V. Campbell Trophy semifinalist, Carlisle was a team captain and the 2022 recipient of the team's Sonny Allen Leadership Award, while he was also a recipient of the OVC's Scholar-Athlete Award.
The Red Boiling Springs native recorded a 3.66 GPA in his undergraduate studies toward his 2021 bachelor's degree in Biology Health Sciences with an emphasis on pre-dentistry. The Spring 2021 winner of the prestigious Robert Hill Johnson Award, Carlisle finished his career with 330 total tackles, falling just five outside of Norman Drake (1988-91) for 10th all-time in program history. He had 98 tackles this season with three tackles-for-loss, five pass breakups and two QB hurries. He had five games this season with double-digit tackle totals, including a career-best 16 tackles at Kennesaw State.
Barnhart, a junior from Oneida, posted a 3.87 GPA at the time the nomination was submitted in his studies toward a degree in exercise science and physical wellness. Despite missing four games to injury during the 2022 campaign, Barnhart had a breakout season with 11 catches for 243 yards and a touchdown. The tight end had four catches for 111 yards against Samford, two catches for 81 yards against then-No. 15 UT Martin, then returned in the season finale to catch a 21-yard touchdown pass in the contest against HBCU Celebration Bowl champ North Carolina Central.
Carlisle and Barnhart were two of the three Ohio Valley Conference selections on the list, joining Lindenwood quarterback Cade Brister on the 53-man roster.
