Bearkats Newsletter: Another BigTen Badger Heading to Huntsville
Plus, a Sam Houston conference rival makes a major QB splash.
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Former Wisconsin DB Follows Longo To Huntsville
As new head coach Phil Longo begins to create his vision at Sam Houston, another guy from his old stop will be along for the ride.
Meet defensive back Jace Arnold. He and Longo were in Camp Randle last year and will remain together through 2025. The freshman appeared on 14 games, mostly on special teams, recording one tackle against Penn St.
Along with quarterback Mabrey Mettauer, that makes two former Badgers joining Longo on the Bearkats.
Conference Player of the Week Returning to Sam Houston
The Sam Houston player exodus of the last few weeks took a break for some good news, as starting punter Jaden Cardell announced he is returning to Huntsville after a solid season. He was named Conference Player of the Week during the year and, given Sam Houston’s limited 2024 offense, was a crucial piece to the game of field position.
And One More Bearkat Returns to Bowers
The good news continued for the Bearkats roster as wide receiver Michael Phoenix II announced his return as well. The WR group was underrated as a group, with Phoenix making a number of key grabs all season. With Longo’s new offensive ideals growing into shape, I expect Phoenix to have a larger impact in 2025.
Former Bearkat Lands In The SEC
There were, of course, a few notable losses for the Bearkats. Chris Murray, the excellent defensive lineman for Sam Houston, has committed to play for Auburn in 2025. Murray was a force for the ‘Kats front seven. It wasn’t just his 5.5 sacks but rather the key moments in which they came. Don’t feel bad, however, you can catch Murray when he and the Tigers come to play my Texas Aggies this upcoming season (GET YOUR JOKES IN NOW).
Bearkats Wide Receivers Coach Finds A New Home
The Bearkat exodus is not limited to just the players. Prairie View A&M, this week, announced the hiring of Sam Houston WR coach Chris Buckner as offensive coordinator and QB coach. Buckner was also the pass game coordinator during his time in Huntsville, helping lead the ‘Kats to 10 wins in 2024.
The Sam Houston WRs were underrated all season, with no QB truly rewarding them for their disciplined route running and key grabs in games. Considering the Panther’s looked the opposite of that on offense last year, this could be a solid pickup on The Hill.
Sam Houston Rival Lands Big Time QB in Portal
There’s some noise being made in Far West as UTEP picked up former 5-star QB Malachi Nelson in the transfer portal. I’m old enough to remember back in 2023 when Nelson held offers from every program in the country before deciding on USC and later heading to Boise St. He didn’t win the Broncos starting job as they went on to a CFP appearance so, naturally, a transfer was in order and the Miners were his selection. To me, this is the biggest transfer portal signing in CUSA. Nelson has raw tools and given UTEP’s 3-9 2024, a starting job should be sitting at the ready. Here is hoping the schedule Gods smile on Sam Houston fans and they are able to see Nelson lead UTEP into Bowers during the Miners’ final year in CUSA, before heading to the Mountain West.
CUSA Rival Dismisses Athletic Director
Staying out west, Sam Houston’s conference rival, New Mexico St., is making headway, choosing to fire athletic director, Mario Moccia, following a scathing report from the New Mexico Department of Justice. The report essentially says Moccia helped to create an environment of fear that led to the sexual assaults and violence that ran rampant throughout the New Mexico St. basketball team. So, while Moccia did usher in several years of football excellence through the hiring of Jerry Kill, and, ultimately, QB Diego Pavia, the off-field chaos of the Aggies’ basketball program was too much to ignore.
FIU Hires Offensive and Defensive Coordinators
Turning in south Florida, new head coach Willie Simmons continues to build out the FIU program with the hiring of a new offensive coordinator (Nick Coleman) and defensive coordinator (Jovan Dewitt)
Coleman was one of the lone bright spots of the UAB program, serving as quarterbacks coach there, helping to develop current Texas A&M QB Jacob Zeno in the process. Dewitt, meanwhile, was one of the lone bright spots of FIU as he remains on in his same position. Look, I have no clue how these hires will work out, but programs like FIU need youthful energy and new approaches. This is a young coaching staff compared to the previous regime of retread coach Mike McIntyre, and that alone should give Panther’s fans hope in CUSA next year.
