Troy Lands Seven on Preseason All-Sun Belt Team; Tabbed Third in the West

TROY, Ala. – Seven Troy players, including five on the defensive side of the football, have been tabbed to the Sun Belt Conference Preseason Teams released by the league office Monday. Troy boasts a league-best five players on the first team, and the Trojans were picked to finish third in the Sun Belt West Division.

Offensive lineman Austin Stidham and wide receiver Tez Johnson represented Troy on the first team offense, while defensive linemen Will Choloh and Javon Solomon, along with linebacker Carlton Martial were first team selections on defense.

Defensive lineman Richard Jibunor and defensive back TJ Harris earned second team nods to round out Troy's selections. The Trojans' three first team defensive selections and five overall defensive picks were the most in the Sun Belt; no other school had more than three defensive players on both teams combined. Troy's seven overall selections were third only to App State and Georgia State's eight picks.

Despite a four-game winning streak in the "Battle for the Belt" and a better conference finish each of the six past seasons, Troy was slotted behind South Alabama in third place in West Division in the preseason poll; both the all-conference teams and division polls were voted on by the league's head coaches and a media member from each school. Louisiana was picked to win the division, while Texas State, Southern Miss, Arkansas State and ULM rounded out the preseason poll behind South Alabama and Troy.

Troy will be represented by Martial and Stidham, along with head coach Jon Sumrall, at Sun Belt Conference Media Day on Wednesday. The Trojans open fall camp on Wednesday, Aug. 3.

Below are capsules for each of Troy's all-conference selections highlighting their 2021 season.

Will Choloh
Earned his third career All-Sun Belt honor after being named to the second team … Sun Belt's top-rated run-stopper per Pro Football Focus and became just the third Troy player since 2000 to record at least 2.5 sacks, eight tackles and four tackles for loss in a single game when he did so against Liberty … Ranked in the top 10 among interior defensive linemen in the league in pressures and hurries … Finished the year with 40 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks … Forced a fumble in the season finale at Georgia State … All seven of his stops behind the line came in the first five games of the season … Credited with 19 total pressures and 14 hurries … Posted a 12.8 win percentage on pass rushing opportunities … Played 513 total snaps defensively … Graded out at a season-high 90.2 percent overall and 86.6 percent on his rush defense at Coastal Carolina

Richard Jibunor
Earned All-Sun Belt Third Team honors … Only player in the country with at least eight sacks, 10 tackles for loss and two interceptions … Became just the fourth player in Sun Belt history to reach eight sacks in the first seven games of the season … Finished the season with 41 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery … Recorded a tackle for loss in seven different games, including a streak of five straight contests – had a sack in all five of those games as well … Finished fifth in the Sun Belt with 0.73 sacks per game and eighth with 0.91 tackles for loss per game, this despite splitting time with Javon Solomon … Finished with 35 pressures on the year in just 410 snaps; averaged a pressure every 4.97 pass rushing snaps, which ranked fifth nationally among players with at least 150 pass rush snaps (Jibunor had 174) … Had 2.5 sacks, an interception and seven tackles in Troy's win at Southern Miss … Sixth-rated pass rusher in the Sun Belt per Pro Football Focus … Forced a fumble and recovered it in Troy's near upset at South Carolina; also had 1.5 sacks in the game

Tez Johnson
Named to the All-Sun Belt Third Team … Finished second in the league with 67 catches on the year and led all Sun Belt receivers (min. 80 targets) with a 72.0 reception percentage as he caught 67-of-93 targets … Had a breakout game at Southern Miss with 10 catches for 105 yards … Reception total tied for the eighth-most in a season in Troy history … Caught five or more passes in 7-of-12 games … Nine receptions for 81 yards and a touchdown at Texas State … Had a 31-yard rushing touchdown against South Alabama … Lined up in the slot on 91.2 percent of his offensive snaps … Led the Sun Belt averaging 7.5 yards after catch per reception … Returned eight punts for a 7.88 per return average

TJ Harris
Troy's leading tackler from the secondary with 58 on the year … Named to the All-Sun Belt Third Team … Added 6.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks … His tackle for loss total was the most by a secondary player in the Sun Belt, while his sacks were the most by a defensive back in the conference … Led Troy's secondary with 13 pressures on the year and seven quarterback hurries … Season-high 10 tackles with a half tackle for loss in the "Battle for the Belt" victory over South Alabama and against Liberty … Put together a two-game run (Georgia Southern & Texas State) where he recorded 12 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks … Intercepted passes against Southern and Georgia Southern … Played 574 total defensive snaps

Carlton Martial
Named one of three finalists for the Burlsworth Trophy, which is presented annually to the nation's top player who began his career as a walk-on … Earned All-Sun Belt First Team honors and was selected to the Pro Football Network All-America Team … Finished the regular season with 24 more tackles than anyone else in the Sun Belt – seven more overall despite playing two fewer games – and was the only player averaging double-digit tackles per game … Ranked sixth nationally with 10.6 tackles per game and ended the season just 17 tackles shy of the all-time Sun Belt record … Enters the 2022 campaign just 104 tackles shy of setting the all-time FBS record … Is one of just two players at the FBS level since 2000 to record more than 425 tackles, 45 tackles for loss and five interceptions in their career – he has 442 tackles, 47 tackles for loss and five interceptions … Is the nation's leading tackler since the start of the 2018 season, with 442 tackles: 66 more than the next closest player … Posted six games with double-digit tackles, including games with 18 and 19 tackles … Registered double-digit tackles in five straight games from Oct. 16 to Nov. 20 … Credited with a tackle for loss in eight different games, including the first six games of the season … Intercepted a pass in Troy's win at Southern Miss … Among linebackers with at least 650 snaps, ranked eighth per Pro Football Focus with an overall 81.8 defensive grade and second with an 87.1 rush defense grade – among all players, his rush defense-grade ranks 17^th … One of just three players in Troy history – Boris Lee and Jerrel Jernigan – to earn a trio of All-Sun Belt First Team honors

Javon Solomon
One of the nation's premier defensive players … Earned Pro Football Network All-America honors and All-Sun Belt First Team distinction … Led the Sun Belt in tackles for loss (1.42 per game) and ranked 12th nationally in 2021 … Eighth nationally with 0.92 sacks per game … Became one of just 31 players nationally since 2000 to record 17 tackles for loss and 11 sacks through the first 10 games of a season; one of just nine from a Group of Five school to do so and the only Sun Belt player … Became just the third FBS player since at least 2000 to record 12 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks and one interception in the first six games of the season -- Carl Nassib (Penn State, 2015), Elvis Dumervil (Louisville, 2005) … 11 sacks were the most by a Trojan since Jonathan Massaquoi's 13 in 2010 … Set Troy single-game record with five tackles for loss in victory at Southern Miss and added the second-most sacks in a game with 3.5; sack total was 10th best in Sun Belt history, and TFL total was a half off the league record … Became the fifth player nationally since 2017 to record at least nine tackles, five tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in a game; first player in Sun Belt history to do so … Tied for third nationally with three games where he recorded at least 2.5 tackles for loss … Added 3.5 stops behind the line at ULM and 2.5 against South Alabama … Had a TFL in 9-of-12 games and a sack in 7-of-12 games … Recovered fumbles at ULM and Georgia State and intercepted a pass against Georgia Southern to preserve the victory … Credited with 37 total pressures including a team-high 10-high 10 hits on the quarterback

Austin Stidham
Named to the All-Sun Belt First Team … Became just the fifth two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American in Troy Athletics history … Finished third in the league among tackles (min 400 pass blocking snaps) with a 77.1 pass blocking grade per Pro Football Focus; ranked 13^th among all tackles in the Group of Five … Not called for a penalty in a pass blocking situation all season; one of just 12 tackles in the Group of Five to not be called for a passing penalty all season … Earned a 100 percent efficiency grade from Pro Football Focus for the Southern Miss, Georgia Southern and South Alabama games – all Troy victories … Did not allow a sack in 8-of-12 starts

2022 SUN BELT CONFERENCE FOOTBALL PRESEASON AWARDS
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina

Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Josaiah Stewart, Coastal Carolina

Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team Offense
QB – Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina
RB – Rasheen Ali, Marshall
RB – Camerun Peoples, App State
OL – Willie Lampkin, Coastal Carolina
OL – Dalton Cooper, Texas State
OL – Austin Stidham, Troy
OL – Malik Sumter, Georgia State
OL – Cooper Hodges, App State
TE – Zack Kuntz, Old Dominion
WR – Ali Jennings, Old Dominion
WR – Kris Thornton, James Madison
WR – Tez Johnson, Troy

Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team Defense
DL – Josaiah Stewart, Coastal Carolina
DL – Javon Solomon, Troy
DL – Zi'Yon Hill, Louisiana
DL – Will Choloh, Troy
LB – Carlton Martial, Troy
LB – Blake Carroll, Georgia State
LB – Kivon Bennett, Arkansas State
DB – Darrell Luter Jr., South Alabama
DB – D'Jordan Strong, Coastal Carolina
DB – Antavious Lane, Georgia State
DB – Eric Garror, Louisiana
DB – Keith Gallmon, South Alabama

Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team Special Teams
K – Seth Keller, Texas State
P – Rhys Byrns, Louisiana
RS – Johnnie Lang, Arkansas State
AP – Chris Smith, Louisiana

Preseason All-Sun Belt Second Team Offense
QB – Chase Brice, App State
RB – Nate Noel, App State
RB – Tucker Gregg, Georgia State
OL – Travis Glover, Georgia State
OL – Kyle Hergel, Texas State
OL – Damion Daley, App State
OL – Pat Bartlett, Georgia State
OL – Nick Saldiveri, Old Dominion
TE – Aubry Payne, Georgia State
WR – Te'Vailance Hunt, Arkansas State
WR – Jalen Wayne, South Alabama
WR – Boogie Knight, ULM

Preseason All-Sun Belt Second Team Defense
DL – Richard Jubinor, Troy
DL – Thomas Gore, Georgia State
DL – Jerrod Clark, Coastal Carolina
DL – Justin Ellis, Georgia Southern
LB – Nick Hampton, App State
LB – Abraham Beauplan, Marshall
LB – Andre Jones, Louisiana
LB – Trey Cobb, App State
DB – Steven Jones Jr., App State
DB – Derrick Canteen, Georgia Southern
DB – Steven Gilmore, Marshall
DB – TJ Harris, Troy

Preseason All-Sun Belt Second Team Special Teams
K – Calum Sutherland, ULM
P – Anthony Beck II, Georgia Southern
RS – Camron Harrell, Southern Miss
AP – Amare Jones, Georgia Southern

2022 SUN BELT CONFERENCE FOOTBALL PRESEASON COACHES POLL
East Division
1. App State – 94 Points (10)
2. Coastal Carolina – 77 Points (2)
3. Georgia State – 68 Points (1)
4. Marshall – 62 Points
5. Georgia Southern – 35 Points (1)
6. James Madison – 31 Points
7. Old Dominion – 25 Points

West Division
1. Louisiana – 95 Points (12)
2. South Alabama – 79 Points (2)
3. Troy – 76 Points
4. Texas State – 41 Points
5. Southern Miss – 40 Points
6. Arkansas State – 37 Points
7. ULM – 24 Points

Troy University Athletics

Troy Lands Seven on Preseason All-Sun Belt Team; Tabbed Third in the West

Players Mentioned

Will Choloh

TJ Harris

Richard Jibunor

Tez Johnson

Carlton Martial

Javon Solomon

Austin Stidham

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