VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson has announced the signing of five student athletes for the 2017-18 season.
With the early signing of Cameron Andre in the fall, these signing bring Carson-Newman's total recruiting haul to six payers for the upcoming season.
"We brought in a big class when you consider our only graduates were Sawyer Williams and Andy Barnett," Benson said. "We'd been waiting for this though. I feel like this class enhances our roster with their skills as players and with who they are as people. I go into this year very excited about the way things look for 2017-18."
The Eagles bring in guards Nick Rogers (Knoxville, Tenn./Farragut High School), Grant Teichmann (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood High School/Freed Hardeman University) and Kellen King (Franklin, Tenn.)/Brentwood High School), as well as forwards Chris Clayton (Marion, N.C./McDowell High School) and Brendan Coleman (Johnson City, Tenn./David Crockett High School).
Rogers makes his way to Mossy Creek from Farragut High School where he played for Chris Cool. As a senior, he led his team in points and free throw percentage. He averaged 21.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while knocking down 85 percent of his free throw tries. He finished his high school career with 1,175 career points.
"This is a guy who was one of the better scorers in Knoxville area basketball the past couple years," Benson said. "He's a big guard and we wanted to give him an opportunity to see if he can transition the things he did in high school to college and add some scoring punch to our roster."
As a senior, he was named all-district, second team All-PrepXtra and first team All-KIL.
The son of Kathi and Greg Rogers, he plans to study biology at Carson-Newman.
Grant Teichmann – G – 6-3 -200 – Brentwood, Tenn. – Brentwood High School – Freed Hardeman University - @granteichmann
Teichmann will have two years of eligibility remaining after spending his freshman and sophomore campaigns at Freed Hardeman University. As a sophomore, he appeared in all 30 games the Lions played with 19 starts. He wound up as the team's second leading scorer with 10.3 points per game, 4.1 boards a game and 98 assists against 35 turnovers on the year. He connected on 51 percent of his shots and 42 percent of his threes. He scored a career high 27 points on Nov. 19, 2016 against Lindenwood-Belleville (Ill.).
Teichmann had a strong freshman campaign with the Lions, as he averaged nearly five points per game off the bench while shooting 36 percent from the field.
"He's a first year guy in the program, he's a veteran in terms of experience," Benson said. "He's a guy we feel from day one will be impactful to our program. And that's from a standpoint of on the floor, off the floor, in the classroom and building on our core values."
A high school star at Brentwood High School in Brentwood, Tenn., where he averaged 20.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. His career high was a 40-point game in the district semifinals his senior season. He finished his career with over 1,100 points. He garnered All-State, All-Mid State, All-Tournament and District Tournament MVP honors in high school while helping guide the Bruins to three straight state tournament appearances and a spot in the finals in 2015.
The son of Jack and Caren Teichmann, he plans to study marketing at Carson-Newman. His father played football for UT-Chattanooga, as did his brother Logan. Another brother Kyle, played basketball with him at FHU.
Chris Clayton – F – 6-8 – 230 – Marion, N.C. – McDowell High School - @chrisclayton973
Clayton comes to Carson-Newman after playing for Andy Ray at McDowell High School where he averaged 17 points and nine rebounds per game for the Titans. He led his team on the glass with those nine boards a game.
"He came out early and was supposed to be a 2018 grad," Benson said. "We feel like we stole one here. He can shoot it and is unbelievably bouncy. He's just a good guy and will fit in well here."
He was an all-conference selection three straight seasons and also helped the Titans to three straight conference championships.
He chose Carson-Newman over East Carolina, UNC Charlotte and Furman. Clayton is the son of Teresa Turner.
Brendan Coleman – F – 6-7 – 195 - Johnson City, Tenn. – David Crockett High School
Coleman played for John Good at David Crockett High School, where he helped the Pioneers to a pair of district titles, a substate championship and the first state tournament berth in school history.
"When you consider his size, length and skill set, he has a really high ceiling," Benson said. "One of the thing he brings to the table more so than anyone since I've been here is his passing ability as a guy at 6-7. His passing ability is second to none. He may be a guy who can step in there and give us significant minutes as a freshman."
Coleman led his team in rebounds as a junior and senior. He was named to the district and regional all-tournament teams and was a second team all-conference selection as a senior.
The son of Felicia and Brendan Coleman, he plans to major in general studies.
Kellen King – G – 6-3 – 190 – Franklin, Tenn. – Brentwood High School
King makes the transition to college basketball after a stellar career for Greg Shirley at Brentwood. As a senior, he led the team in points per game, assists, offensive boards, three point field goal percentage and free throw percentage. He tallied 18.9 points per game, six boards and 3.5 assists.
"He's an interesting guy, because he's grown about five or six inches and added about 50 pounds late in his high school career," Benson said. "He's 6-3, 190, but he has the mindset and skillset of a point guard. His college basketball future is very bright."
He was named All-District, All-District Tournament and All-Region Tournament as a senior. He helped Brentwood to a pair of state tournament appearances, including a runner up finish in 2015.
The son of Davi and Kevin King, he plans to study business at Carson-Newman. Academically, he was recognized three times as the TSSAA Student Athlete Merit Award winner. He was a DECA Regional Champion in 2017 and a two-time DECA State finalist. He was a finalist for the John Maher Builders Scholar Athlete Award.