February 7, 2024

Golden Eagle Football adds six on National Signing Day

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech football staff, under the first-year direction of Bobby Wilder, are working away, filing the paperwork and crossing the T's and dotting the I's as they bring in a new class of Golden Eagles as part of Wednesday's National Signing Day. More paperwork is expected to come across as the day continues. The signees Wednesday so far include: Max Leven (Murrysville, Pa.), Turner McLaughlin (Pensacola, Fla.), Mason Taylor (Cookeville, Tenn.) and Steve Brown (Birmingham, Ala.).

By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The paperwork is in and Tennessee Tech has completed its first National Signing Day under the direction of Bobby Wilder, addressing team needs and positioning the Golden Eagles toward a successful run in 2024.

The signees Wednesday included: Max Leven (Murrysville, Pa.), Turner McLaughlin (Pensacola, Fla.), Mason Taylor (Cookeville, Tenn.), Steve Brown (Birmingham, Ala.), D'Arious Reed (Nashville, Tenn.) and Naquavious Giles (Charlottesville, Va.).

Steve Brown | 6-2 | 205 | Wide Receiver | Birmingham, Ala. | Shades Valley HS
An exceptional athlete, Brown put together awesome numbers as a quarterback for the Mounties. This past season, he had a four-touchdown game over Bessemer City, while also earning a Trussville (Ala.) Tribune Player of the Week nod after collecting 408 yards of total offense in a victory over Pell City. Brown has explosive ability and will look to be a tremendous asset to the wide receivers corps.

Naquavious Giles | 6-6 | 325 | Offensive Line | Charlottesville, Va. | Albemarle HS
Bringing incredible size to the offensive front, Giles helped pave the road for teammates who signed with Division I institutions – including a quarterback with over 7,000 passing yards and 89 touchdowns and a receiver with over 3,000 receiving yards and 44 touchdown catches. Giles' production speaks for itself as Albemarle's offense compiled over 4,000 yards of offense in 2022 and 3,500 this past year. Giles had 30 pancake blocks with no sacks allowed in 2023.

Max Leven | 6-8 | 285 | Offensive Line | Murrysville, Pa. | Bridgton Academy
Leven had an impact as he played a post-graduate year at Maine's Bridgton Academy following a successful career at Franklin Regional High in Pennsylvania. Under his protection this past season, the Wolverines averaged 26 points and 260 yards of offense, while yielding just 1.5 sacks.

Turner McLaughlin | 6-1 | 220 | Linebacker | Pensacola, Fla. | Pensacola Catholic HS
McLaughlin had an awesome season for Pensacola Catholic as he helped lead the team to a Florida Class 2S state semifinal appearance. He collected 113 total tackles, including 83 solo stops, and averaged 8.1 tackles per game. McLaughlin recorded 10 tackles-for-loss with two sacks, while also recovering two fumbles and forcing five.

D'Arious Reed | 6-0 | 180 | Wide Receiver | Nashville, Tenn. | Pearl-Cohn HS
Adding some firepower to the receiver corps, Reed was a huge weapon in Pearl-Cohn's arsenal in 2023. Leading the Firebirds to a TSSAA Class 4A state championship over Upperman and a perfect 15-0 season, Reed hauled in 37 passes for 832 yards and 12 touchdowns, averaging 22.5 yards per catch. He had a season-long catch for 89 yards. On defense, Reed also collected 23 tackles with a 46-yard interception return.

Mason Taylor | 6-1 | 190 | Defensive Back | Cookeville, Tenn. | Cookeville HS
Taylor was a force for the Cookeville Cavaliers this past season, recording 106 tackles, including 78 solo stops. He had three interceptions while breaking up six passes and deflecting nine. Taylor also had three forced fumbles. A versatile threat on the field, Taylor also caught 28 passes for 307 yards and three touchdowns, rushed nine times for 86 yards and two more scores and had six punt returns for 77 yards. Taylor was also the Cavaliers' punter, averaging 40.2 yards per punt with a season-long of 62 yards, pinning three inside-the-20 and kicking five for 50 yards or more. He was a first-team All-Region 4-6A selection in December.

The 2023-24 Golden Eagle signing class to date includes: