A pair of University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football seniors received the first of what should be plenty of preseason recognition today. Offensive lineman Corey Levin and defensive lineman Keionta Davis were both named to the Athlon Sports 2016 FCS Preseason All-America Team.
Levin (6-5, 305) is a two-time All-American at left guard. The Dacula, Ga., native is also a two-time winner of the Jacobs Blocking Award, given to the top offensive lineman in the Southern Conference.
Davis (6-4, 270) is coming off an All-American campaign of his own where he set the UTC single-season record with 13.5 sacks.
The Chattanooga native has 20.5 career sacks and finished 17th in the STATS FCS National Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2015.
Chattanooga is one of just six programs in the FCS with two individuals on the Athlon Sports Preseason FCS All-American Team. Five-time defending FCS champion North Dakota State, national runner-up Jacksonville State, Chattanooga, The Citadel, James Madison and New Hampshire have two selections each.
Both Levin and Davis were listed by Athlon as Top FCS 2017 NFL Draft Prospects to Watch in May. That preceded the Mocs' No. 7 national ranking according to Athlon Sports that was released yesterday.
Chattanooga is coming off a 9-4 record and its third consecutive SoCon title. UTC returns 47 lettermen from last season, the most from one year to the next in the Russ Huesman era.
UTC opens the season on Thursday, Sept. 1, against Shorter at 7:00 p.m. (E.D.T.) at Finley Stadium. Season tickets are on sale on GoMocs.com or by calling the UTC Ticket Office at 423-266-MOCS (6627).