Tech Football ranked No. 19 in early preseason poll as Golden Eagles bring in exciting group of newcomers
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.
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
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.
The transfers have been cycling in since December when the transfer portal opened and these new Golden Eagles are already on the Tucker Stadium turf working toward 2025 success.
FCS football media is already taking notice of the Golden Eagles' new additions and what the team has coming back as Stats Perform's Craig Haley listed Tech at No. 19 on his "Never-Too-Early" Top 25. Recruiting class rankings will be released following the conclusion of the signing period.
Here's the newest Golden Eagles so far:
Brian Courtney | TE | 6-3 | 240 | Ashburn, Va. | Florida State – A highly sought-after prospect from Virginia coming out of the prep level, Courtney played quarterback at Independence (Va.) High, where he collected 6,885 yards of offense and 75 touchdowns in his career, including 1,117 passing yards and eight touchdowns as a senior. In Tallahassee, he was converted to a tight end and played in 38 total games with the Seminoles. Tulsa and Tulane had expressed interest before Tech beat them out.
Kennedy Fauntleroy | RB | 5-8 | 212 | Baltimore, Md. | Wake Forest – Fauntleroy saw action in one game at Wake Forest after transferring from Bridgewater College and Allegheny College. In his redshirt sophomore season, he was named a second-team All-Region 3 selection by D3Football.com and a first-team All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference pick. He led the team with 1,390 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns on 224 carries with eight games over 100 rushing yards and two for more than 200, including a career-high 246 yards and four touchdowns against Hampden-Sydney.
Josh Hand | LB | 6-1 | 230 | Ashburn, Va. | Virginia Tech – Hand was a decorated wide receiver and kick returner at Independence HS in Virginia, earning two all-state honors as well as all-region recognition as he accounted for 2,223 total yards and 22 touchdowns as a senior. As a two-sport athlete, he helped lead Independence to a 2021 state baseball championship. He played primarily on special teams and recorded one tackle at Old Dominion. At Virginia Tech, he played linebacker for 14 games, collecting three total stops.
Ahmad Haston | QB | 6-0 | 200 | Royal Palm Beach, Fla. | UMass – As a freshman with the Minutemen, Haston completed 11 passes for two touchdowns and 176 yards in three games. He saw action in five games in 2024, completing eight of his nine passes thrown for 39 yards, including 4-for-5 at Mississippi State for 25 yards. On the ground, he also rushed 18 times for 174 yards and a touchdown, including six carries for 62 yards and a touchdown against Liberty, while also running three times for 50 yards at Georgia. Haston comes from a Division I athletics background has he has four cousins who have played, including Javelin Guidry (Utah, football), Elisha Guidry (UCLA, football), Tyler Guidry (Louisiana, football) and Samar Guidry (Virginia, soccer).
Tre Holloway | WR | 5-11 | 195 | Washington, D.C. | Wheeling – The Golden Eagles beat out UT Martin for this receiver, who had a strong career for Wheeling. In his first go-round in 2023, he collected five catches for 39 yards and a score, then broke out this past season with 53 catches for 785 yards and 12 touchdowns – averaging 71.4 yards per game and 14.8 yards per catch. Holloway was also an excellent returner, bringing back 15 punts for 110 yards and 23 kickoffs for 620 yards and two touchdowns – including a 99-yarder.
Tucker Kyne | TE | 6-5 | 225 | Woodbury, Tenn. | Tennessee State – A two-sport student-athlete at Cannon County High, where he was an All-State defensive end, Kyne originally signed with Tennessee State. He did not see any action with the Tigers and will come to Cookeville with four years of eligibility.
Jeremy Mendez | DL | 6-2 | 265 | Paterson, N.J. | Pace – Monmouth had an interest in this D-lineman from New Jersey, who put up good numbers with Pace. Each season, he improved as he had 11 tackles with half-a-sack and a blocked kick as a freshman, 21 tackles with a block, a sack and an interception as a sophomore, then 39 total tackles with three blocks, 1.5 sacks and a fumble recovery this past season.
Kaleb Purdy | S | 5-11 | 185 | St. Louis, Mo. | Kansas – A highly decorated player at Desmet Jesuit HS in Missouri, Purdy helped lead the team to a state title, while also competing for the school's track and field program. He played three games in 2023, then saw action in all 11 games for the Jayhawks in 2024. He collected four total tackles, including two stops against in-state rival Kansas State.
Quintell Quinn | RB | 6-1 | 225 | Columbus, Ohio | Texas Southern – Quinn had an impressive high school career, earning three All-State honors and the all-time rushing record at St. Francis DeSales as he collected 48 career touchdowns and leading the team to a the 2021 stats title game. He saw action at Ohio University, but flourished at Texas Southern this past season, rushing for 651 yards and six touchdowns on 113 carries. His best game last season was at Arkansas-Pine Bluff, rushing for 154 yards and two scores with a season-long 75-yard rush.
Noah Robinson | WR | 6-3 | 190 | Mineral, Va. | Robert Morris – Robinson is familiar with the OVC-Big South teams, spending time at Robert Morris in the Colonials' lone season in the football alliance. While at Robert Morris, he was an All-NEC Preseason pick. This past season, he had 57 catches for 796 yards and five touchdowns, including a season-long catch of 75 yards among season-high single-game total of 126 against Long Island. Robinson also had two touchdowns and 116 yards vs. Mercyhurst. He was a first-team All-Big South/OVC pick in 2023 as he broke program's season-single receptions record with 70 and had 859 yards and six touchdowns in lone season in the Big South-OVC. Eastern Michigan and Liberty both expressed interest in Robinson before he joined the Golden Eagles.
Maury Sullivan | WR | 6-2 | 185 | St. Louis, Mo. | Washburn – The Golden Eagles beat out Southeast Missouri for this talented wide receiver who recorded 61 catches for 875 yards and 11 touchdowns in his career with the Ichabods. This past season, he caught 39 passes for 550 yards and six scores, including 120 yards and a touchdown against Central Oklahoma and two scores against Northwest Missouri. He earned an All-Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association spot for his efforts. As a freshman, he also had 19 catches for 230 yards and seven touchdowns.
Leon Thomas | CB | 5-10 | 185 | Stockbridge, Ga. | Charleston Southern – Tech snagged Thomas away before UT Martin was able to bring him into the fold. One of the top returners in the OVC-Big South, Thomas finished the season with nine returns for 200 yards, including a season-long 40-yarder at Richmond. On the defensive side, he recorded 29 total tackles, including four each against UT Martin and Eastern Illinois. Thomas also had one interception at EIU, as well as two pass breakups. As a freshman, he had a 67-yard interception return for a touchdown at Clemson as he finished the season with 24 tackles.
Greg Turner III | LB | 6-3 | 221 | Ellenwood, Ga. | East Carolina – Turner saw action in 12 total games with East Carolina as a linebacker, collecting a tackle last season against Temple. In high school, he helped lead Cedar Grove, Ga., to an 11-3 overall record in his final season and a spot in the Georgia Class 3A state title game.
Kekoa Visperas | QB | 6-0 | 193 | Eatonville, Wash. | Eastern Washington – A dynamic passer for Eastern Washington, Visperas threw for 2,171 yards and 17 touchdowns, while rushing for 375 yards and nine more scores last season. He had five passing touchdowns and 275 yards vs. Monmouth, then had four passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns vs. Montana with 326 total offensive yards. In his career at EWU, he has passed for 5,247 yards and 39 touchdowns, while rushing for 666 yards and 12 more scores. The Golden Eagles beat out FCS traditional power Montana in the recruiting process for Visperas.
Drew Wilder | OL | 6-3 | 305 | Jamestown, Va. | Eastern Illinois – Wilder has seen success at Navy, Iowa Western CC and at Eastern Illinois before joining the Golden Eagles and his father, head coach Bobby Wilder, in Cookeville. Last season, he was a second-team All-Big South/OVC selection after starting all 12 games at center, blocking for a first-team all-conference running back and a quarterback who passed for more than 3,000 yards – the fourth in EIU history. Under Wilder's protection, the Panthers averaged 342.4 yards of total offense. While on the JUCO level, he helped bring Iowa Western a NJCAA national title in 2022 with the team averaging 31.3 points and 354.8 yards of offense – including 200.8 rushing yards a game. Wilder was also a four-sport athlete in high school, playing football, lacrosse, wrestling and basketball.
