By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – As the summer continues to wear on, more preseason honors have been announced for the Tennessee Tech football team as PhilSteele.com released its All-Ohio Valley Conference/Big South Conference teams Thursday night.
In addition to the teams, graduate defensive back Tim Coutras was named the organization's pick as the OVC/Big South Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
Tech collected 17 players across 19 spots – Tremel Jones made all three teams as a kick returner, all-purpose player and a punt returner.
The first-team roster included quarterback Kekoa Visperas, wide receiver Noah Robinson, offensive lineman Drew Wilder, defensive lineman Hudson Tucker, linebacker Aaron Swafford, defensive back Coutras and kick returner Jones.
On the second-team roster, the Golden Eagles picked up running back Aidan Littles, wide receiver D.J. Linkins, offensive lineman Nason Simmons, defensive lineman Kanstin Brooks, defensive lineman Theron Gaines, defensive back Jalin Shephard, kicker Dom LeBlanc and all-purpose player Jones.
The third-team lineup had offensive lineman Wes Delk, defensive back Omari Philyaw, punter Spencer Ashby and punt returner Jones.
The entire list can be seen here.
Visperas was a standout at Eastern Washington last season as he threw for 2,171 yards last season with 17 touchdowns, while also rushing for 375 yards and nine more trips into the end zone. He finished the season with a 74.3-percent passing rate – leading both the Big Sky Conference and the Football Championship Subdivision.
Last season, Visperas threw for five touchdowns in the opener against Monmouth, then threw for four scores and ran for two more against Montana.
Robinson, who is making a return to the OVC-Big South after finishing his career at Robert Morris, had strong seasons with the Colonials, including a first-team All-OVC/Big South selection in 2023 with 70 catches for 846 yards and six touchdowns. Last season, he finished the year with 57 catches for 796 yards and five scores.
Wilder was a second-team All-OVC/Big South selection while at Eastern Illinois before transferring to Cookeville to join his father. Wilder played every offensive snap at center, helping create 342.3 yards of total offense per game in Charleston. Under his protection, EIU was able to get room for a 3,000-yard passer and that ability will be crucial for the Golden Eagles' success this season.
Tucker played in all 12 games last season, recording 20 total tackles with seven solo stops and 13 assists. He had two sacks for 14 yards and 5.5 tackles-for-loss for 20 yards. His best outing last year was against Tennessee State as he posted a season-best six tackles and two sacks against the visiting Tigers.
Swafford played in 11 games as he continued to battle an injury and powered through for 66 total tackles on the year, including 11 against Charleston Southern. Among his 30 solo stops and 36 assists, Swafford was also credited for 7.5 tackles-for-loss for 23 yards and two sacks for 11 yards. He also forced two fumbles and broke up a pass.
Coutras, named to the Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-America second-team and the Sports Illustrated FCS Football Central Preseason All-America second-team, finished the campaign with 59 total tackles – 46 solo and 13 assisted – with three tackles-for-loss for 12 yards. He also forced two fumbles, intercepted three passes for 30 yards and broke up eight passes.
He had a season-best seven tackles twice last year against Western Illinois and Samford, broke up three passes against South Carolina State and had a 28-yard interception return against Charleston Southern.
Jones was a jack-of-all-trades last season with the Golden Eagles as he caught 27 passes for 304 yards and a touchdown, ran 10 times for 155 yards and three scores and returned 19 kicks for 505 yards, including a 53-yard breakaway.
Littles ran for 389 yards and three touchdowns last season for the Golden Eagles, rushing for a season-best 118 yards and a score at Gardner-Webb to earn Stats Perform honorable mention National Freshman of the Week honors with the longest touchdown run in 10 years.
Linkins was a highlight reel at receiver as he collected 49 catches for 631 yards and three touchdowns. He had three catches for 106 yards and a score against Charleston Southern, including a 69-yard long pickup. He also had seven catches for 90 yards at Southeast Missouri.
Simmons and Delk provided coverage for an offense that collected 3,930 yards of total offense last season – averaging 327.5 yards per game. That included 1,983 rushing yards (165.3 per game) and 1,947 passing yards (162.3 per game). The Golden Eagles yielded 29 sacks over the year.
Brooks ended the 2024 campaign with 30 total tackles – 16 solo and 14 assisted – with 9.5 tackles-for-loss for 34 yards and 3.5 sacks for 21 yards. He also had an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. He had five tackles, as well as the fumble forced and recovered against Lindenwood.
Gaines collected 27 total tackles in 2024 – 17 solo and 10 assisted – with eight tackles-for-loss for 28 yards and five sacks for 44 yards. He also broke up three passes, had a QB hurry and forced a fumble. He had the force and a season-best seven stops at Gardner-Webb.
Shephard finished the 2024 season with 52 total tackles – including 32 solo and 20 assisted – while also intercepting two passes. He recorded a season-best nine tackles at Southeast Missouri.
LeBlanc was the team's leading scorer last season as a kicker with 68 points as the true freshman was 13-for-19 on field goals, hitting a season-long from 46 yards out. He was also 29-of-31 on extra points.
Philyaw had 42 stops last year – 25 solo and 17 assisted – with a tackle-for-loss for two yards. He recovered a fumble against Lindenwood and had three interceptions on the campaign for 27 yards against UT Martin, Charleston Southern and Gardner-Webb. He also had a season-best eight tackles at Middle Tennessee.
Ashby had a solid leg in his rookie campaign, punting 61 times for 2,347 yards – an average of 38.5 yards per punt. He had a season-long punt of 55 yards twice against South Carolina State and UT Martin, while 20 ended in fair catches, 25 were inside the 20 and five were for 50 or more yards.
The Golden Eagles open the season on August 30 against Cumberland for the first of seven home games this season at Tucker Stadium as Tech looks to win the OVC-Big South title outright.
Season tickets for Golden Eagle Football are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
