Eight Eagles earn spots on SAC's preseason All-Mountain Division team

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Posted: Aug 02, 2024

ROCK HILL, S.C. – Carson-Newman's football program has landed eight Eagles, four offensive players and four defensive, on the South Atlantic Conference's preseason All-Mountain Division team, the league office announced Friday morning.

Representing Carson-Newman on the All-Mountain Offense are running back Jayden Sullins (Cullman, Ala.), offensive linemen Christian Jones (Valdosta, Ga.) and Fletcher Gibson (Kingsport, Tenn.), as well as long snapper Andrew Bradshaw (China Grove, N.C.).

Defensively, the Eagles had defensive lineman Jacorey Long (Atlanta, Ga.), linebacker and reigning Mountain Division Freshman of the Year Mekhi Brown (Wauchula, Fla.), D2Football.com All-American safety Major Williams (Fort Myers, Fla.) and corner Kendall Williams (Winston-Salem, N.C.).

Sullins started in eight games and appeared in all 11 contests as Carson-Newman's F back. He was the Eagles' second-leading rusher with 43 carries for 296 yards. He averaged a team-best 6.9 yards per carry. He found the end zone once, a 71-yard jaunt for a score at Erskein (Oct. 14). He carried the ball for 84 yards on three touches against the Flying Fleet. He had three carries of 20 yards or longer on the season. A prolific kick returner, he had 11 kickoff returns for 221 yards with a long of 32 against Virginia-Lynchburg (Aug. 31) and at Limestone (Sep. 16). He had more than 100 all-purpose yards the first three weeks of the season and two more games with more than 90 all-purpose yards.

Jones returned from an early season injury to rejoin the Carson-Newman offensive line against Erskine (Oct. 14). Carson-Newman's offensive line only gave up 17 sacks on the season, the second-fewest allowed in the South Atlantic Conference. Teams only registered two sacks against Carson-Newman in the final three weeks of the year. Jones has earned All-league laurels for two straight seasons.

Gibson made appearances in all 11 games for C-N on the offensive line with nine starts. Carson-Newman's offensive line only gave up 17 sacks on the season, the second-fewest allowed in the South Atlantic Conference. Teams only registered two sacks against Carson-Newman in the final three weeks of the year.

Bradshaw continues a long line of all-conference longsnappers. With Bradshaw's selection, Carson-Newman's last three long snappers – a stretch that dates back to 2012 – have all garnered all-league laurels. Dusty Nance and Dawson Campbell both were three-time honorees. In 30 career games, Bradshaw has only seen two punts or kicks blocked and those attempts were both 50-plus, line-drive field goals that ricocheted off the line seeking extra distance.

Long turned in an impressive season up front for Carson-Newman's defensive line. Long is the first Carson-Newman defensive lineman with a 50-tackle campaign since Montel Presley's All-SAC season in 2019. Long, Presley and Javaris Neal have the only 50-tackle years by defensive lineman for the football program in the last decade. Long finished the season with 52 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and 8.0 sacks. He also forced four fumbles, sixth most nationally and the third-most for a single-season in school history. His 8.0 sacks are tied for the 14^th-most in a single season in school history. The junior had a career-best 13-tackle day against Tusculum (Oct. 7), the first double-digit tackle performance by a C-N defensive lineman since 2016. He found himself in the backfield frequently, making 3.0 tackles for loss against the Pioneers and 3.5 against Mars Hill (Oct. 21). Long forced fumbles against Virginia Lynchburg (Aug. 31), Tusculum, Mars Hill and UVA Wise (Nov. 4).

Brown was recognized as a member of the All-Mountain Division team at linebacker in addition to being named the SAC's Defensive Freshman of the Year. Brown turned in a stellar freshman campaign that saw him earn conference player of the week honors on two occasions. He is the seventh Eagle to win the defensive honor and the 13th to be presented with either the defensive or offensive freshman of the year accolade. Brown led Carson-Newman with 71 tackles. He also tallied 13 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, picked off two passes (one of which he returned for a score), recovered two fumbles and blocked a kick. He was the first freshman recognized with a weekly honor from the SAC in five years, while also becoming the first player in more than 15 years to go back-to-back as a player of the week for the league for C-N. His first player of the week honor came following Carson-Newman's win at Newberry, its first at Setzler Field since 2010. He finished the day with four tackles, a tackle for loss, the pick six and a blocked field goal. Brown broke through the line to tip and reject a Bryce Early field goal with 1:52 left in the second quarter to keep the Eagles within a touchdown. His more pivotal play came in the third quarter. Brown leapt in front of a Brayden Phillips pass at the 13 yard-line. He scrambled into the right side of the end zone with 9:50 to go in the third to bring the Eagles within a two-point conversion and spark what would go on to be a 28-point second half for C-N. He followed that up a week later against Tusculum. He accounted for a career-high nine tackles, to go along with a sack, a tackle for loss, a fumble recovery and an interception. In the last two weeks, he has forced three turnovers, blocked a field goal and registered 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. Brown generated his first turnover against Tusculum on the Pioneers second possession. With TU at the C-N 22, Brown leapt in front of a Matthew Palazzo pass at the five and returned it out to the nine to thwart the Pioneers in C-N territory. With TU driving in C-N territory again, Brown pounced on a loose football in the end zone coughed up by Kemani Brown to keep TU scoreless. Brown becomes the first C-N player to earn two defensive player of the week honors in the same season since Rondrow Peebles during his All-America campaign in 2019. Brown would turn in a trio of double-digit tackle performance, including a career-best 11 against Erskine (Oct. 14). He finished the year with a tackle for loss in the final seven games of the year. Included in that is a 4.0-tackle-for-loss, 3.0-sack game against Mars Hill (Oct. 21). Brown's 13 tackles for loss are tied for the 20^th-most in a single season in school history, while his 8.5 sacks rank 13^th.

Carson-Newman junior safety Major Williams was been lauded with a spot on the D2football.com Elite 100 list following the 2023 season. The rebranded listing is D2Football.com's All-America team, making Williams the Carson-Newman football program's 129th All-American all-time. Carson-Newman's 129 All-Americans are the most in the South Atlantic Conference. Williams continues a sensational run by Carson-Newman defensive backs, joining Desmond Fairell (2019), Darius Williams, no relation (2017), Jerry Miclisse (2016) and Eien Jacob (2014) as DBs to have earned All-America status in the last decade. Carson-Newman's third-leading tackler in 2023, Major Williams did things no other defensive back has done in the history of the football program. Williams made 53 tackles on the year, including 10 behind the line of scrimmage. He is the first defensive back in the history of the Carson-Newman football program with double-digit tackles for loss in a single season. He also had two sacks, both against Erskine (Oct. 14) to become the first defensive back with two sacks in a game as well. The Fort Myers, Fla.-product also had a pick, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble, five pass break ups and five quarterback hurries on the year. Williams topped out with eight tackles in three consecutive weeks against Newberry (Sept. 30), Tusculum (Oct. 7) and Erskine (Oct. 14). He had multiple stops behind the line of scrimmage against the Fleet, Pioneers and at UVA Wise (Nov. 5). His contest at Wise featured his first career fumble recovery returned for a touchdown, bring back a loose pigskin 40 yards to the house. He tallied his lone interception of the year in the Eagles' opener against Virginia Lynchburg (Aug. 31).

Williams started all 11 games at corner for Carson-Newman in his red-shirt sophomore season. He finished fifth on the team in tackles with 50 for the year. He made 34 solo stops. Williams had eight pass breakups and picked off a pass against UVA Wise (Nov. 4). Williams tallied a 13-tackle day against Lenoir-Rhyne (Sep. 23) - besting his previous career high of 11. Of those 13 tackles, 10 were solo stops. He also had seven-tackle days against both Tusculum (Oct. 7) and Erskine (Oct. 14). Williams had multiple pass breakups in three of the final four games of the season.

ALL- MOUNTAIN OFFENSE

QB – JR Martin, Mars Hill

RB – Jon Gullette, Mars Hill

RB – Jalen Hunt, Tusculum

RB – Jayden Sullins, Carson-Newman

WR – Malik Laurent, Mars Hill

WR – Cam Abshire, Emory & Henry

WR – Cam Peoples, Emory & Henry

OL –       Fletcher Gibson, Carson-Newman
OL –       Garrett Priest, Tusculum
OL –       Noah Sage, Emory & Henry

OL – Christian Jones, Carson-Newman

OL – Deshaun Sharp, Emory & Henry

TE – Beau DeBerry, Mars Hill

PK – Trace Butcher, Emory & Henry

LS – Andrew Bradshaw, Carson-Newman

RS – Cam Peoples, Emory & Henry

ALL- MOUNTAIN DEFENSE

DL – Boris Lewis, Mars Hill

DL – Jacorey Long, Carson-Newman

DL – Andre Crawley, Jr., Emory & Henry

DL – Ean Rhea, Emory & Henry

LB – Kaleb Lundy, Emory & Henry

LB –       Dexter Fitzpatrick, Mars Hill
LB –       Mekhi Brown, Carson-Newman
LB –       Earnest Johnson III, Tusculum
DB –      Major Williams, Carson-Newman
DB –       Addison Knicely, Emory & Henry

DB – Tristan Rankin, Mars Hill

DB – Jermaine Witherspoon, Tusculum

DB – Kendall Williams, Carson-Newman

ALL- PIEDMONT OFFENSE

QB – Dustin Noller, Limestone

RB – Dwayne Wright, Newberry

RB – Marquece Williams, Catawba

WR – Bo Pryor, Catawba
WR – DeAree Rogers, Lenoir-Rhyne

WR – Songa Yates, Lenoir-Rhyne

OL – Porfirio Acosta, Wingate

OL – Charles Couch, Limestone
OL – Damari Joyner, Newberry

OL – Erwil Anthony, Wingate