Sun Belt Announces 2025 Football Preseason Awards & Poll

NEW ORLEANS — The Sun Belt Conference announced its 2025 Preseason All-Sun Belt Teams, individual awards and Preseason Poll on Monday. 
 
Southern Miss redshirt senior quarterback Braylon Braxton was named the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, South Alabama redshirt junior linebacker Blayne Myrick was selected as the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year and Arkansas State junior kicker Clune Van Andel was dubbed the Preseason Special Teams Player of the Year. 

          

 

Braxton—the 2024 Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year and an All-Sun Belt Second Team honoree—ranked second in the Sun Belt in passing efficiency (154.91) while leading Marshall to its first Sun Belt title a year ago. The Frisco, Texas, product threw for 1,624 yards and 19 touchdowns and ran for 610 yards and four scores for the Thundering Herd before following head coach Charles Huff Hattiesburg. 

 

Myrick—a 2024 All-Sun Belt Second Team selection—averaged 7.7 tackles per game a year ago to rank fifth in the conference. The Fairhope, Ala., native tallied 101 tackles, 8.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, three passes defended, an interception and a fumble. 

 

Van Andel—a 2024 All-Sun Belt Third Team pick—went a perfect 17-for-17 on field goal tries and 18-for-18 on point-after attempts in conference action a year ago. The Grand Rapids, Mich., product went 21-of-25 on field goal attempts and 33-for-33 on extra-point tries on the season. 

 

Georgia Southern paced all conference programs with nine Preseason All-Sun Belt picks, followed closely by James Madison (8), Arkansas State (6), Louisiana (6), South Alabama (5) and Southern Miss (5). 13-of-14 Sun Belt programs were represented by at least one student-athlete across the two Preseason All-Sun Belt teams. 

Georgia Southern also led all teams with seven First Team picks, while Arkansas State (4), Southern Miss (4), James Madison (3), Louisiana (2), Old Dominion (2) and South Alabama (2) also produced multiple First Team honorees. James Madison tallied a conference-high five Second Team selections, followed by four apiece from Louisiana and Troy and three from South Alabama. 

 

James Madison was picked to finish atop the Sun Belt East Division and qualify for its first-ever Sun Belt Football Championship Game in the Sun Belt Conference Football Preseason Coaches Poll. The Dukes claimed 11-of-14 first-place votes, with Georgia Southern, Coastal Carolina and Marshall each receiving one first-place nod. 

 

Louisiana was picked to claim the Sun Belt West Division crown and qualify for its second-straight Sun Belt Football Championship Game. The Ragin’ Cajuns earned 6-of-14 first-place votes, with Texas State (6), Arkansas State (1) and South Alabama (1) also earning first-place mentions. 

 

Marshall defeated Louisiana, 31-3, in the 2024 Sun Belt Football Championship Game, becoming the first road victor in the seven-year history of the postseason contest. 

 

The Sun Belt is coming off a 2024 campaign in which it defeated three autonomy conference foes—running its tally to 22 such victories since 2016 and 11 since 2022, when the league expanded to its current 14-member configuration. The Sun Belt also paced all non-autonomy conferences in Bowl Season representation for the third-straight year.  

 

The 2025 Sun Belt football season will officially kick off with Sun Belt Football Media Days on Tuesday, July 22, and Wednesday, July 23. The West Division head coaches and student-athletes will appear on Tuesday, with the East Division to follow on Wednesday. 

 

The event will be held at the New Orleans Marriott Warehouse Arts District in downtown New Orleans, La., and will be broadcast nationwide on ESPN+. For the second-straight year, the multicast will feature two separate feeds—the traditional Sun Belt Football Media Days Show, which will incorporate portions of the Main Stage and Sun Belt Studio appearances from each team alongside analysis from hosts Matt Stewart and Rocky Boiman, and the Sun Belt Football Media Days Podium Feed, which will showcase the Main Stage appearances from each team in their entirety. 

 

2025 SUN BELT CONFERENCE FOOTBALL PRESEASON AWARDS

Preseason Offensive Player of the Year

Braylon Braxton, Southern Miss (RS Sr., QB – Frisco, Texas)

 

Preseason Defensive Player of the Year

Blayne Myrick, South Alabama (RS Jr., LB – Fairhope, Ala.) 

 

Preseason Special Teams Player of the Year

Clune Van Andel, Arkansas State (Jr., K – Grand Rapids, Mich.) 

 

Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team Offense

QB – Braylon Braxton, Southern Miss (RS Sr., QB – Frisco, Texas) 

RB – George Pettaway, James Madison (RS Jr., RB – Suffolk, Va.) 

RB – Kentrel Bullock, South Alabama (Sr., RB – Columbia, Miss.) 

OL – Nick Del Grande, Coastal Carolina (RS Jr., OL – Lancaster, Pa.)

OL – Caleb Cook, Georgia Southern (RS Sr., OL – Brunswick, Ga.)

OL – Pichon Wimbley, Georgia Southern (Sr., OL – Newnan, Ga.) 

OL – Pat McMurtrie, James Madison (Gr., OL – Verona, N.J.) 

OL – Zach Barlev, Old Dominion (Sr., OL – Bolingbrook, Ill.) 

TE – Toby Payne, Marshall (RS Jr., TE – Poca, W.Va.) 

WR – Corey Rucker, Arkansas State (RS Sr., WR – Bentonia, Miss.) 

WR – Josh Dallas, Georgia Southern (RS Jr., WR – Sharpsburg, Ga.)

WR – Ted Hurst, Georgia State (Sr., WR – Savannah, Ga.) 

 

Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team Defense

DL – Bryan Whitehead, Arkansas State (RS Sr., DL – Bartlett, Tenn.)

DL – Latrell Bullard, Georgia Southern (Sr., DL – Smyrna, Ga.)

DL – Jordan Lawson, Louisiana (RS Sr., DL – Brandon, Miss.) 

DL – Kevontay Wells, ULM (Sr., DL – Jackson, Miss.) 

DL – Brodarius Lewis, Southern Miss (Gr., DL – Prattville, Ala.) 

LB – Brendan Harrington, Georgia Southern (7th Yr., LB – Moncure, N.C.)

LB – Jason Henderson, Old Dominion (RS Sr., LB – Dingmans Ferry, Pa.) 

LB – Blayne Myrick, South Alabama (RS Jr., LB – Fairhope, Ala.) 

DB – Chance Gamble, Georgia Southern (RS Sr., DB – Fitzgerald, Ga.) 

DB – Jacob Thomas, James Madison (Sr., DB – Ashburn, Va.) 

DB – Tyree Skipper, Louisiana (RS Sr., DB – New Orleans, La.) 

DB – Josh Moten, Southern Miss (RS Sr., DB – Waldorf, Md.) 

 

Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team Special Teams

K – Clune Van Andel, Arkansas State (Jr., K – Grand Rapids, Mich.)

P – Alex Smith, Georgia Southern (Jr., P – Melbourne, Australia) 

RS – Ian Foster, Southern Miss (RS So., RS – Brundidge, Ala.) 

AP – Ja’Quez Cross, Arkansas State (RS Sr., AP – Hampton, Ark.) 

 

Preseason All-Sun Belt Second Team Offense

QB – Alonza Barnett III, James Madison (RS Jr., QB – Whitsett, N.C.) 

RB – Ja’Quez Cross, Arkansas State (RS Sr., RB – Hampton, Ark.)

RB – Bill Davis, Louisiana (RS So., RB – LaPlace, La.) 

OL – Jax Harrington, Louisiana (RS Sr., OL – Erath, La.) 

OL – George Jackson, Louisiana (RS Sr., OL – Stone Mountain, Ga.)

OL – Jalen Slappy, Marshall (RS Jr., OL – Columbus, Ohio) 

OL – Jordan Davis, South Alabama (RS Sr., OL – Fairburn, Ga.)

OL – Eli Russ, Troy (Sr., OL – Ardmore, Okla.) 

TE – Kyirin Heath, Southern Miss (Sr., TE – Mansfield, Texas) 

WR – Dalton Stroman, App State (RS Sr., WR – Rockingham, N.C.)

WR – Jameson Tucker, Coastal Carolina (RS Sr., WR – Mauldin, S.C.) 

WR – Dalen Cobb, Georgia Southern (Sr., WR – Washington, Ga.)

 

Preseason All-Sun Belt Second Team Defense

DL – Henry Bryant, Georgia State (RS Sr., DL – Delray Beach, Fla.)

DL – Immanuel Bush, James Madison (RS Sr., DL – Lancaster, S.C.) 

DL – Kris Trinidad, Old Dominion (RS Sr., DL – Richmond, Va.) 

DL – Luis Medina, Troy (Sr., DL – Summerville, Ga.) 

LB – Shane Bruce, Coastal Carolina (Gr., LB – Carrollton, Ga.) 

LB – Trent Hendrick, James Madison (Sr., LB – Richmond, Va.)

LB – Cameron Whitfield, Louisiana (RS Sr., LB – Houston, Texas) 

LB – Koa Naotala, Old Dominion (RS Jr., LB – Newport News, Va.)

DB – Tracy Hill Jr., Georgia Southern (RS Jr., DB – Athens, Ga.)

DB – DJ Barksdale, James Madison (Jr., DB – Rock Hill, S.C.) 

DB – Wesley Miller, South Alabama (RS Jr., DB – Columbia, Miss.)

DB – Devin Lafayette, Troy (Sr., DB – Brunswick, Ga.) 

 

Preseason All-Sun Belt Second Team Special Teams

K – Scott Taylor Renfroe, Troy (Sr., K – Troy, Ala.) 

P – Aleksi Pulkkinen, South Alabama (Jr., P – Helsinki, Finland) 

RS – Ja’Quez Cross, Arkansas State (RS Sr., RS – Hampton, Ark.) 

AP – George Pettaway, James Madison (RS Jr., AP – Suffolk, Va.) 

 

2025 SUN BELT CONFERENCE FOOTBALL PRESEASON COACHES POLL 

(First-Place Votes)

East Division

1. James Madison – 94 Points (11) 

2. Georgia Southern – 76 Points (1) 

3. App State – 60 Points

4. Coastal Carolina – 49 Points (1)

5. Old Dominion – 48 Points

6. Marshall – 42 Points (1)

7. Georgia State – 23 Points

 

West Division

1. Louisiana – 86 Points (6)

2. Texas State – 78 Points (6)

3. Arkansas State – 64 Points (1) 

4. South Alabama – 50 Points (1)

5. Southern Miss – 47 Points

6. Troy – 43 Points

7. ULM – 24 Points