New faces, New Excitement
There is a lot of “new” around the Tennessee Tech football program leading into the 2024 season: new head coach, new assistant coaches, new players, and new goals.
There is a completely different feel around the program that has not been there in many years. New head football coach Bobby Wilder has done an excellent job so far at changing the culture at TTU.
So what will the team look like on the field? The Golden Eagles are returning some key players, especially on defense, from the 2023 season as well as an array of new faces.
Starting on the offensive side of the ball, there appears to be healthy competition at the quarterback position.
Quarterback Battle
The Golden Eagles bring back starting quarterback Jordyn Potts from 2023 as he enters his Sophomore season. Potts came in mid-season as a true freshman last year and finished with over 1,000 yards passing and eight touchdowns with an additional two touchdowns on the ground.
Tech also welcomes transfer Dylan Laible to the quarterback room. Laible began his career at Hutchinson Community College before transferring to Missouri in 2023.
Hutch has produced NFL talent such as Cordarrelle Patterson and Alvin Kamara among others. In Laible’s 2022 campaign, he led Hutch to the national championship while throwing for 2,000 yards and 22 touchdowns.
New Offensive Coordinator Brian Scott will have a decision to make at quarterback this fall. While Potts is the returning starter and can create with his legs and extend plays, Laible has a completely different skill set that revolves around his strong arm and accuracy.
One thing that is for sure, however, is that whoever the starter is will have plenty of weapons to target.
Offensive Weapons
These targets include grad transfer Jordan Yates, redshirt junior Tremel Jones, junior D.J. Linkins, and Western Illinois transfer Jay Parker along with a list of others. Not to mention the tight end room with returning threats Hunter Barnhart and Reece Perkins.
The offense has brought in a lot of exciting firepower and it should be interesting to see how all the pieces of the puzzle mesh.
Defensive Leaders
The defensive side of the ball for TTU has more familiar faces however, and that is by no means a bad thing.
The Golden Eagles return a key starter from last year at every level of defense, which is paramount for Coach Wilder as he tries to get his guys bought in.
Starting on the defensive line, the name that stands out is junior defensive end Daniel Rickert who accounted for 49 total tackles and nine sacks in 2023.
Opposite of Rickert at the other end position is returning starter Hudson Tucker, who is coming off a sophomore season where he racked up 21 tackles and six sacks.
Moving on to the linebacker position, junior Aaron Swafford is a returning starter who has garnered preseason attention. Swafford was a PhilSteele.com Preseason Big South/OVC first team mention as well as his teammates Daniel Rickert, Hudson Tucker, and Tim Coutras.
Swafford led the team with 72 total tackles and also had two interceptions, one forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries.
Last but not least, the Golden Eagles are returning an FCS preseason 4th team all-american in senior safety Tim Coutras.
Coutras was arguably the most productive player on the entire squad in 2023, finishing third on the team in total tackles with 55 and leading the team with four interceptions. Coutras is a nice familiar face for TTU football fans in a secondary that has a lot of new talent via the transfer portal.
“Aim High”
As mentioned earlier, there is plenty of “new” this year for the Golden Eagles, but that also comes with a lot of excitement as well. Everyone around the program seems to want the same thing ranging from the president of the University down to the common fan, and that’s success.
With everyone working together with the common goal of “aiming high” in mind, the future of Tennessee Tech Golden Eagle football is at the very least exciting.
