By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – With a share of the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association championship, seven wins in a single year for the first time since 2011 and ending the season on a five-game winning streak, the Tennessee Tech football team is trending upward.
With the success the program had this season, the Tennessee Tech Department of Athletics extended head coach Bobby Wilder's contract another year through the 2029 campaign.
"I am grateful for the commitment from Tennessee Tech Athletics and our University," Wilder said. "We won a conference championship in our first season together and we are hungry for more. Our program goal is to continue to 'aim high' in everything we do as people, students and athletes. We have a collective vision to build a consistent winning program that competes for championships. Every person associated with our team is focused on the process of winning."
After leading Tech to its first winning season since winning the OVC championship in 2011 and doubling the win total from the last four campaigns, Tech Director of Athletics Mark Wilson is excited about the future prospects of the program.
"There is so much construction around this program," Wilson said. "With the Tucker Stadium project and the continued development of the Football Operations Center serving as a backdrop, Coach Wilder's own construction within the football program has already started to pay off in tremendous ways. He has an incredible football mind and it has shown on the field.
"With the success the team had this season, we wanted to show our appreciation and our faith in his process by modifying his current contract. We believe in Coach Wilder, his staff and his student-athletes. They continue to aim high and we can't wait to see what heights he will continue to lead the Golden Eagles."
Tech Football's accomplishments this season were impressive as Wilder's squad brought the program its 11th Ohio Valley Conference championship as well as the team's first since 2011.
The Golden Eagles earned 11 All-Conference selections last week with five on the first team and six on the second team. That stands as the most by the Tech team in a single season and the most on the first-team roster since the 2000 campaign.
The seven victories gave Tech its 17th season in program history with seven or more wins. During the course of the campaign, the Golden Eagles defeated Tennessee State and UT Martin – who both received at-large bids to the Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs – to win the Sergeant York Trophy for the first time since the Spring 2021 season and outright for the first time since 2009.
Under his guidance this season, the Golden Eagles earned two Stats Perform FCS National Defensive Players of the Week as defensive linemen Theron Gaines and Daniel Rickert were honored nationally.
The defense was a strong point of pride coming into the season and they proved why as Tech held seven opponents to under 100 rushing yards – including zero yards for Tennessee State – and held five opponents to under 300 yards of total offense. Following the most recent FCS Playoff games, the Golden Eagles currently stand second in the FCS in rushing defense with an 82.9 yards per game mark.
Tech also stands second nationally in blocked punts, fifth in blocked kicks, fifth in team tackles for loss, seventh in team sacks, ninth in passes intercepted and 10th in defensive touchdowns.
With their five-game winning streak to close out the campaign, the Golden Eagles were receiving votes in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 poll in the final two weeks as they looked for their first Top 25 ranking since the Spring 2021 campaign.
"We are excited about what Coach Wilder has done with the program and can not wait to see what he continues to develop," said University President Dr. Phil Oldham. "We know how much a successful football program can bring to a university and we have the utmost confidence that he will continue giving us a football program that we can be proud to support."
Coach Wilder was hired on Dec. 3, 2023, as the Golden Eagles' 13th head coach in its 103 seasons of play as he continued his coaching career after a successful tenure restarting Old Dominion's football program. With his 7-5 mark this season, he currently has a 53-19 record in the Football Championship Subdivision.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
