UTC football: Five young players who have stood out in preseason

Aug. 21—University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football coach Rusty Wright knows that when it comes to evaluating the 2021 signing class, he and his staff stole a few players in recruiting.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, it led the NCAA to start a dead period — during which in-person contact was not allowed between college coaches and recruits — that wound up lasting more than a year for Division I programs. While there were obvious drawbacks to recruiting under those conditions, there were ways in which Football Championship Subdivision teams such as UTC benefited.

The pandemic also shut down the on-campus summer camps that serve as opportunities for high school athletes to get noticed by Football Bowl Subdivision coaches, including those in the Power Five conferences. Wright and his staff adjusted to recruiting remotely and never quit working, and as a result the Mocs signed some players who were projected to potentially play at a higher level.

That's been evident in training camp this month, with some early solid efforts by signees.

With the Mocs' depth and experience on both sides of the ball, there was a time when those players probably would not have appeared in a game in their first year of college. However, with the NCAA changing its redshirt rule ahead of the 2018 season to allow football players to appear in up to four games without losing a year of eligibility, teams now have an opportunity to get younger guys valuable game experience and still be able to have them for four full seasons of eligibility.

Here are five first-year UTC players who have stood out:

Javon Burke: The former Bradley Central star will find his way on the field at some point, based on his speed and his ability to catch the ball. He played receiver early in his high school career before moving to running back and rushing for 1,867 yards as a senior. But he also showed ability in the passing game with 31 catches and four touchdowns as a receiver. In practice, the 5-foot-10, 165-pounder has shown that burner ability, getting past defensive backs and hauling in some touchdowns and long passes from third-string quarterback Ty Gossett.

Reggie Davis: An all-state selection in Alabama, he backed off his commitment to Florida Atlantic two weeks before signing day and chose the Mocs. Despite being in a deep position group at running back, Davis (6-0, 194) has made the most of his limited reps in practice. He could be a guy who makes his way onto the travel squad and gets a few looks against a team such as Kentucky, which will be a heavy favorite when UTC visits Lexington on Sept. 18.

Keshawn Toney: Although he isn't in his first year of college, Toney (6-4, 250) is still a freshman on the roster after playing in four games before redshirting at South Carolina in 2019, playing in five games for the Gamecocks last fall and sitting out this past spring at UTC. (The NCAA did not count last season against a player's eligibility due to allowing athletes to opt out amid the pandemic.) If the Mocs didn't already have an All-Southern Conference tight end in Chris James, who's entering his seventh year of college, Toney would be in a good spot to potentially start for the Mocs this season. He's still the safest bet on this list to play at least four games, if not more.

Josh Battle: The Mocs have two experienced starting safeties in Brandon Dowdell and Jerrell Lawson, but those guys will be gone after the 2021 season, and Battle will be one of the players fighting to replace them. The signing of Battle (5-11, 188) was substantial for UTC, considering FBS members Central Florida, Connecticut and Temple were among the programs that made him offers coming out of Mill Creek High School in the Atlanta suburbs.

Nasir Howell: The one-time North Dakota State signee has wasted no time working his way into the mix at cornerback, getting some reps with the second team. It's another position where the Mocs are experienced, with senior Jordan Jones and junior CaMiron Smith firmly entrenched as starters, but that doesn't mean there won't be an opportunity for the 6-2, 175-pounder from North Cobb High School, another Atlanta-area program.

Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.