Football

COOKEVILLE – With National Signing Day underway, the Tennessee Tech football team is already at work with a tremendous group of transfers that the staff has brought in to help lead the Golden Eagles to another Ohio Valley Conference-Big South championship. With the concept already proven that the Golden Eagles are championship-caliber, the next step is to get the program back into the Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs and bring Tech Football’s first National Championship.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Daniel Rickert and Tim Coutras put up a lot of highlight reel plays over the course of the 2024 campaign. It’s only fitting that the defensive duo also picked up two of Tennessee Tech’s top football honors as Rickert was named the winner of the Robert Hill Johnson Award and Coutras the Tony Stone Bumble Bee DB Award. Among the team’s other year-end awards, D.J. Linkins was named the winner of the Bill Dupes Inspiration Award, Jordan Yates the winner of the Sonny Allen Leadership Award, Aidan Littles the winner of the Josh Poplar Tech Pride Award, Donnell Wilson the winner of the Frank Omiyale Block Award, Wyatt Watson the winner of the Unsung Hero Award and Hunter Barnhart the Academic Award.

COOKEVILLE -- Fans looking to circle the calendar for Tennessee Tech's 2025 Homecoming will be able to mark down November 1 as it was announced Wednesday that the Golden Eagles' home Ohio Valley Conference/Big South Football Association contest against Gardner-Webb will be the date. Game times have not been finalized yet and those will be provided when available.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – In just a short time, Chase Mummau has proven himself to be a great defensive mind and a young talent in the profession. Now, with an Ohio Valley Conference-Big South Conference Football Association title under his belt, Mummau will get an opportunity to help lead the Tennessee Tech football team to new heights as Golden Eagle head football coach Bobby Wilder has promoted Mummau to the defensive coordinator position. The team announced the move on Friday.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Ohio Valley Conference-Big South Football Association announced its 2025 slate on Tuesday as all nine teams will play an eight-game conference schedule between weeks 5 and 13. Tennessee Tech will open its title defense on Saturday, Sept. 27 as the Golden Eagles travel to fellow co-champ Tennessee State. The following week, on October 4, Tech will host Western Illinois.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – With the 2024 campaign in the books, the Football Championship Subdivision Athletic Directors Association announced its 54-man Academic All-Star Team on Tuesday. Tennessee Tech was among the schools with a player on the roster as tight end Hunter Barnhart was selected to the team. Barnhart, a graduate with a 3.84 grade point average, finished the season with six catches for 65 yards and a touchdown, playing in all 12 games in the 2024 campaign. It is his second selection to the FCS ADA Academic All-Star Team.

COOKEVILLE – The postseason football awards season continued on Friday as PhilSteele.com announced its annual conference and All-America teams. The Tennessee Tech football team finished with 16 total players on the squads.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – As various groups release their postseason football honors, one of Tennessee Tech’s own was named as one of the top freshman players of the 2024 campaign as long snapper Turner McLaughlin was selected to Stats Perform’s FCS Freshman All-America team on Wednesday. He was one of three picks in the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association as he was joined by Southeast Missouri offensive lineman Carter Guillaume and Tennessee State linebacker Sanders Ellis.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Nashville Sports Council and the Ohio Valley Conference, along with partners Vanderbilt University and the City of Nashville, have been awarded the 2026 and 2027 Division I Football Championship games. Nashville becomes the 11th city to host the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Championship since 1978. The games will be played at FirstBank Stadium on the campus of Vanderbilt University on January 5, 2026 and January 4, 2027.

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.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – With the regular season complete and post-season accolades continuing to file in, the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference announced its All-Academic Team on Tuesday with defensive back Tim Coutras standing as Tennessee Tech’s representative on the roster. Each institution nominated one individual – with at least a 3.0 cumulative grade point average – for inclusion for the All-Academic Team. To be considered for Scholar-Athlete of the Year, which was voted on by the combined conferences’ football communications contacts, the nominees had to have at least a 3.30 GPA.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. -- With a share of the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association title, the Tennessee Tech football team took home a lot of awards on Tuesday as the Golden Eagles collected 11 players on the all-conference team.  Five players made it on the first-team roster, while six were on the second-team. With defense being the team's strength, there was no surprise that seven of the 11 players selected were on that side of the ball. 

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – True freshman kicker Dom LeBlanc kept putting points on the board Saturday as Tennessee Tech defeated Eastern Illinois 23-6 to earn a share of the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association title. On Monday, he was selected as the league’s Special Teams Player of the Week as the combined conference released its final Player of the Week honors.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech football team watched as team after team was announced Sunday morning during the 2024 NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision selection show. Southeast Missouri was no surprise – the Redhawks earned the automatic qualifier by virtue of the tiebreaker with the Golden Eagles as Tech, SEMO, TSU and UT Martin all shared the conference title with identical 6-2 records in the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech will host an FCS Playoffs Selection Show watch party on Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m. Fans, alumni and supporters are all welcome as the event is open to the public. The event will be held at Robert and Gloria Bell Hall – Tech’s Nursing building on West 7th Street. Parking will be available in the lot outside the building at the corner of Mahler Ave. and West 6th Street. Doors open at 11 a.m.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech certainly did its part. With UT Martin defeating Lindenwood in overtime and Tennessee State beating Southeast Missouri in Nashville, the Golden Eagles earn their 11th Ohio Valley Conference championship – the first in tandem with the Big South. Not too shabby for a team that was projected seventh in the preseason. Now, the waiting game begins as the Golden Eagles will find out whether they will make their second NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs appearance on Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m. The selection show will be aired live on ESPNU. 

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Saturday could be a huge day for the Tennessee Tech football team. Depending on what happens Saturday at Tucker Stadium when the Golden Eagles host Eastern Illinois, as well as in Nashville and Martin, it could be championship worthy. It all starts in Cookeville though as the 6-5 Golden Eagles host the 3-8 Panthers. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:02 p.m. Roger Ealey and Marcelo Metzelar will have the call on 106.1 The Eagle, while Dylan Vazzano and Sam Brooks will narrate the action on ESPN+ (subscription required).

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- Saturday's win over No. 18-ranked UT Martin was a tremendous win as the Tennessee Tech football team claimed its first outright Sergeant York Trophy championship since 2009 and first championship in the round-robin since the spring campaign in the 2020-21 season. However, the victory also put the Golden Eagles in position to play for the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association championship and its automatic qualifier to the Division I Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs when the Golden Eagles take on Eastern Illinois this Saturday at Tucker Stadium at noon. Tennessee State, UT Martin and Tennessee Tech are all tied for second place in the league at 5-2 each, while Southeast Missouri leads with a 6-1 conference mark entering this weekend.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech defensive lineman Daniel Rickert was devastating to the UT Martin offense on Saturday as he helped lead the Golden Eagles to their first victory over the No. 18-ranked Skyhawks since 2012, win the Sergeant York Trophy for the first time since Spring 2021 and outright for the first time since 2009 and put Tech in position for potentially winning the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference’s automatic qualifier to the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs or at least a share of the conference title. It was an important win and Rickert was rewarded for his efforts as he was named the Stats Perform FCS National Defensive Player of the Week along with Big South-OVC Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Sergeant York is coming home. With a tremendous defensive effort, Tennessee Tech knocked off No. 18 UT Martin 10-9 to claim the Sergeant York Trophy for the first time since the Spring 2021 season as well as the Golden Eagles’ first win over a ranked opponent since 2014. It also gives Tech (6-5, 5-2 Big South-Ohio Valley Conference) a chance next week to potentially earn a share of the conference championship for the first time since 2011. Tech hosts Eastern Illinois next Saturday starting at Noon.

MARTIN, Tenn. – While the Sergeant York Trophy is in play Saturday with the winner between UT Martin and Tennessee Tech taking home the bronze bust, there are bigger stakes as well. If Tennessee Tech wins out and Southeast Missouri falls in its final two games of the season, the Golden Eagles will be Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association champions. It’s a tall order, but not an out-of-question one as the Golden Eagles head to Martin for Saturday’s contest. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.

MARTIN, Tenn. – As the Tennessee Tech football team locks horns with the UT Martin Skyhawks on Saturday, there’s a lot on the line. The Golden Eagles are very much in the hunt for the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association championship and the annual battle for the Sergeant York Trophy is at a fever pitch. For Tennessee Tech’s Tim Coutras, the battle for the Sergeant York Trophy cuts a little closer to home. After all, Coutras is the eponymous war hero’s great-nephew. Alvin York’s sister, Hazel, married Tim’s grandfather Nick Coutras. Tennessee students have studied York’s exploits in World War I for over a century as the Pall Mall native was one of the most decorated American soldiers of that conflict. As a corporal in the 2nd battalion in the 328th Infantry, York earned the Congressional Medal of Honor as he led an attack with sixteen other soldiers on a German machine gun nest, capturing 132 prisoners during the Battle of the Meuse River-Argonne on Oct. 8, 1918.

Tennessee Tech University junior Jameson Wharton is making an impact as a standout student-athlete for the Golden Eagle football team, but it’s his efforts off the field that are forming the greatest difference in others’ lives. When the Sumner County native was 10 years old, his beloved Aunt Susie lost a valiant battle with ovarian cancer. Wharton, now 20, still remembers the special bond they shared.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – On a rainy Saturday afternoon, it took a little while for Tennessee Tech to get going, but once the Golden Eagles did, they proved to be unstoppable by Samford as Tech took a 27-7 victory at Pete Hanna Stadium. The Golden Eagles improve to 5-5 on the season with two games remaining in the regular season. Tech returns to Big South-Ohio Valley Conference play next week as they head to UT Martin.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Tennessee Tech football team will get a one-week reprieve from the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference jaunt this weekend as the Golden Eagles head down to Birmingham to take on Samford in a Saturday battle. Kickoff against the Bulldogs is set for 2 p.m. Roger Ealey and Dylan Vazzano will have the call locally on 106.1 The Eagle, while the game will also be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Cayman Spaulding was a force Saturday as the Tennessee Tech Football team shut down Lindenwood’s offense in a 52-10 victory at Tucker Stadium. Spaulding, a sophomore from Lithonia, Ga., was recognized for his efforts on Monday morning as he shared the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference’s Defensive Player of the Week honor with Charleston Southern’s Davion Williams.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – It was almost a record day for the Tennessee Tech football team as the Golden Eagles rushed for 400 yards on Saturday to take a 52-10 victory over Lindenwood on Homecoming. Tech rushed 38 times for 400 yards, led by 128 yards on 13 carries from Jalen Mitchell. In all, the Golden Eagles ran for five touchdowns while averaging 10.5 yards per carry. Aidan Littles, Torin Baker, Jordan Yates and Tyler Wilson also ran for scores, while quarterback Dylan Laible also threw a touchdown strike to D.J. Linkins among his 13 pass completions of 119 yards.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – As the calendar page turns from October to November and the final month of the 2024 Tennessee Tech football season begins, the temperatures are getting cooler and the fall colors are starting to shine through. That must mean it's time for Homecoming in Cookeville. The Golden Eagles will entertain Lindenwood for the 93rd edition of Tech's Homecoming. Kickoff is slated for 1:30 p.m. Dylan Vazzano and Sam Brooks will have the call on ESPN+ (subscription required), while Roger Ealey and Marcelo Metzelar will narrate the action on 106.1 The Eagle.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech Sports Hall of Famer Lonnie Warwick passed away Monday. He was 82. He was a legendary figure among the Golden Eagle football alumni, earning a spot in one of the first classes in the TTU Sports Hall of Fame in 1978. Warwick spent a year at the University of Tennessee before joining Wilburn Tucker’s Golden Eagle squads from 1961 to 1963.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Charleston Southern made things interesting in the fourth quarter as the Buccaneers returned an intercepted two-point conversion for two points of its own to make it a two-point contest. But Tennessee Tech persevered. The defense came up strong on a couple of short-field situations created by a fumble and a punt as the Buccaneers missed a field goal on the first try, then Tim Coutras snagged the ball out of the air off of a tip by Theron Gaines on the second run at the end zone. With Dom LeBlanc’s 32-yard field goal with 1:47, the Golden Eagles forced Charleston Southern to score a touchdown in the final possession. Once again, Tech’s defense held strong, limiting the Bucs to a last-ditch fourth-down try on the Golden Eagle 44, but Kaleb Jackson’s pass fell incomplete, giving Tech a fresh set of downs in victory formation to close the contest with a 28-23 victory.