Teams › SoCon · Compare Tennessee Tech with another team
Tennessee Tech
Tennessee Tech returns 72% of last season's minutes and rates #186 on offense and #336 on defense of 365 teams. 80% range: -12.8 to +1.7.
Why we have them here
Tennessee Tech's preseason projection of -5.5 (No. 280 of 365) starts from the roster: its players' ratings, weighted by projected minutes, add up to a roll-up worth -1.8, more than the -3.0 typical of teams ranked near it. Last season's rating (No. 301 at the end of 2025-26) adds -1.6, about its neighbours' -1.1; the program's level two and three seasons back and the roster's experience and shape add -2.4. It returns 72% of last season's minutes, about the same as teams ranked near it (70%). The projection leans most on Davante Hackett (+1.7), JaJuan Nicholls (+1.5) and Caleb Sanders (+0.2); the newcomer who matters most is Davante Hackett, a transfer from Stonehill, at +1.7. Its 80% range, -12.8 to +1.7, is about as wide as that of teams ranked near it.
Generated from the published projection's own terms, not written by hand. "Teams ranked near it" are the thirty nearest in the preseason order. Preseason projection frozen 2026-10-23; how the projection is built.
Roster
Returning 69% · Transfer 24% · Other newcomer 7%
| Rank | Player | Pos | Ht | D1 yrs | Group | From | MPG | Rating | Contrib. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 550 | JaJuan Nicholls | F | 6-8 | 2 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 18 | +3.4 | +1.5 |
| 570 | Davante Hackett | G | 6-3 | 1 | Transfer | Stonehill | 24 | +2.9 | +1.7 |
| 1280 | Caleb Sanders | F | 6-6 | 1 | Transfer | South Florida | 10 | +0.9 | +0.2 |
| 1664 | Mekhi Turner | F | 6-8 | 2 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 10 | +0.0 | +0.0 |
| 2186 | Mekhi Cameron | G | 6-4 | 3 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 23 | -0.4 | -0.3 |
| 2333 | Ty Owens | G | 6-0 | 1 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 22 | -0.6 | -0.3 |
| 2725 | Brandon Muntu | G | 6-4 | 3 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 21 | -0.8 | -0.4 |
| 3065 | Caleb Hollenbeck | G | 6-4 | 1 | Transfer | Marshall | 14 | -1.2 | -0.4 |
| 3401 | Maguire Evans | F | 6-2 | 0 | Other newcomer | 6 | -2.1 | -0.3 | |
| 3609 | Hagan Preston | G | 6-3 | 1 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 4 | -3.0 | -0.3 |
| 3637 | Colin Ayers | G | 6-0 | 1 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 4 | -3.1 | -0.3 |
| 3941 | De'Ante Green | F | 6-9 | 4 | Other newcomer | 7 | -2.6 | -0.5 | |
| 4309 | C.J. McPherson | G | 6-3 | 1 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 11 | -2.6 | -0.7 |
| 4524 | Owen Varnado | F | 6-5 | 1 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 6 | -3.9 | -0.6 |
| 5040 | Jah'Kim Payne | G | 6-6 | 1 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 9 | -4.8 | -1.1 |
| 5178 | Malik Ferguson | G | 6-4 | 3 | Returning | Tennessee Tech | 11 | -5.8 | -1.6 |
A player's rating is points per 100 possessions better than an average Division I player while he is on the floor. Contribution weights it by the share of a rotation slot he is projected to play, so a star on the bench and a role player who never sits both read right. Rank is among all 5,249 rated players. MPG is the projected share of a rotation slot times 40. "From" is last season's team. The bars are contribution, the player's rating times his projected share; their sum is the roll-up the projection starts from.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Proj. margin | Win prob. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon Nov 02 | at |  Mississippi State #78 | -15.4 | 11% | |
| Sun Nov 08 | vs |  Western Kentucky #160 | +0.9 | 53% | |
| Thu Nov 12 | at |  Indiana #55 | -18.5 | 7% | |
| Wed Nov 18 | at |  UNC Asheville #245 | -6.8 | 29% | |
| Sat Nov 21 | vs |  Presbyterian #243 | +3.7 | 62% | |
| Tue Nov 24 | vs |  West Georgia #295 | +6.0 | 68% | |
| Sat Nov 28 | at |  Eastern Kentucky #264 | -6.1 | 31% | |
| Tue Dec 01 | at |  Middle Tennessee #127 | -11.4 | 18% | |
| Sat Dec 05 | vs |  Samford #190 | conf | -1.1 | 47% |
| Sat Dec 12 | at |  Arizona #3 | -28.7 | 1% | |
| Sat Dec 19 | at |  The Citadel #345 | conf | +1.6 | 55% |
| Tue Dec 22 | vs |  Mercer #231 | conf | +0.4 | 51% |
| Wed Dec 30 | at |  Wofford #306 | conf | -0.5 | 48% |
| Sat Jan 02 | at |  Furman #110 | conf | -8.6 | 24% |
| Thu Jan 07 | vs |  VMI #350 | conf | +6.4 | 70% |
| Sat Jan 09 | vs |  UNC Greensboro #246 | conf | +0.8 | 52% |
| Wed Jan 13 | at |  East Tennessee State #171 | conf | -6.2 | 31% |
| Mon Jan 18 | at |  Chattanooga #226 | conf | -3.7 | 38% |
| Thu Jan 21 | vs |  Western Carolina #152 | conf | -2.3 | 43% |
| Sat Jan 23 | vs | Furman #110 | conf | -4.4 | 36% |
| Thu Jan 28 | at | UNC Greensboro #246 | conf | -3.7 | 38% |
| Sat Jan 30 | at | VMI #350 | conf | +1.7 | 55% |
| Wed Feb 03 | at | Western Carolina #152 | conf | -6.8 | 29% |
| Sat Feb 06 | vs | The Citadel #345 | conf | +5.7 | 68% |
| Wed Feb 10 | vs | East Tennessee State #171 | conf | -1.6 | 45% |
| Thu Feb 18 | at | Mercer #231 | conf | -4.3 | 37% |
| Sat Feb 20 | at | Samford #190 | conf | -5.9 | 32% |
| Wed Feb 24 | vs | Wofford #306 | conf | +3.0 | 60% |
| Sat Feb 27 | vs | Chattanooga #226 | conf | +0.1 | 50% |
Projected margin is from Tennessee Tech's side, with home court where the game is not neutral (N). Games are the schedule as posted; tournaments and late additions appear as they are listed. Predictions are as of 2026-10-26 and reflect the roster as the model has it on that date.