JOHNSON CITY – Is it better to be young or new?
We’re about to find out.
An ETSU football team with roughly 70 freshmen and sophomores opens its 2026 season against a Campbell squad with approximately 75 players who joined the program this offseason. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m., from William B. Greene Stadium, with the Buc Walk slated to take place at 3:05.
For the Bucs, who went 7-5 last season, there seems to be a “playoffs or bust” mentality. Getting off to a good start is crucial to meeting that objective. ETSU has never lost a home opener at Greene Stadium, going 9-0 in such contests, and faces a Campbell team that went 2-10 last season.
Still, with Campbell returning its quarterback Kamden Sixkiller and adding a slew of big, physical players, the Bucs aren’t taking anything for granted.
“What you see in the CAA and we saw it with Elon last year, typically you see size. It’s a big league,” ETSU coach Will Healy said. “It’s large humans and I think when you look at their roster you see a lot of that. A 6-4, 255-pound Jack. Length at the corner position: a 6-1 corner, a 6-foot corner. You see really good length and size in that league and these guys are no different.”
Healy thought so highly of his counterpart at Campbell, Braxton Harris, that he offered Harris a job back when Healy was the head man at Charlotte.
“He’s got great energy,” Healy recalled. “He’s a passionate coach, a really, really good teacher, motivator, and develops great relationships. I thought he was a tremendous recruiter. He was going to help me get organized and run all of our recruiting stuff. You could see whenever you had opportunities to be around him that he was going to be a tremendous head coach and he’s already done a great job.
“I’ve been very impressed with what Campbell has invested their facilities, what they’ve done from an NIL and a rev share perspective.”
There are plenty of new faces for ETSU as well, a common sight in this era of the transfer portal. In fact, the two-deep released by the Bucs listed seven transfers starting on offense, headed by new quarterback Mason Mims.
All eyes will be on Mims, a three-star prospect coming out of high school in Alabama who will be throwing his first pass in live action since the fall of 2024. On his coaches show, Healy shared a couple of noteworthy nuggets. First, when Mims committed to ETSU, he did so with Jaydyn Davis already in the fold, and knowing the Bucs were attempting to secure another year for Jacolby Criswell. Second, that Mims received no money from ETSU: no NIL, no rev share. Just a shot to play.
The other transfers slated to start on offense include running back TJ Peyton (Georgia State), who’s also listed as one of the two primary kickoff return men; receivers Trey Weary (Tennessee), Brandon Winton (USF), and Suderian Harrison (Virginia); left tackle Sam Browder (Memphis), the younger brother of ETSU’s returning all-conference tight end Charlie Browder; and Ty Williams (Austin Peay).
Maddox Radcliffe is a returning Buc but a new starter, getting the call at center after playing sparingly last season. Two more returnees, Micah Sumpter and Isaiah Hall, who got some run in 2025, are the projected starting guards.
There’s more consistency on the defensive starting lineup, at least as it relates to returning players. Tackle Brenden LeBlanc is the constant. The senior has played in all 35 games for ETSU since he first stepped onto campus. Leblanc, like returning senior receiver / punt returner Xavier Gaillardetz, has been played for three different head coaches during his time at ETSU.
“I didn’t come here on full scholarship. I came from a long ways away,” said LeBlanc, who hails from Marrero, Louisiana, describing ETSU as “my only opportunity. It was the only thing I knew.
“People doubt me. I had to sit on this floor on my official visit and have somebody tell me, ‘You’re a little tweener.’ The guy that wasn’t even going to be here for my whole time here told me I wasn’t worthy of a full scholarship. That type of motivation has kept me here. I’m just here to prove every year that I’m good enough to do it.”
Preseason all-conference choice Dre Delinois heads the group at linebacker. The defensive backfield brings back several veterans from the 2025 team: nickel Jivon Oggs, another preseason All-SoCon selection; cornerbacks CJ Gilmore and Jimmy Bowdry; and safety Mike Jenkins.
Incoming transfers projected to start on defense include linebacker Jarvis Johnson (FAU), end Charles Woodard (Northwest Mississippi CC) and safety Devin Hunter (Tennessee Tech).
Elizabethton native Mason Ball, a junior, projects to make his first career start at defensive tackle. He played in all 12 games last season, seeing spot duty on the line and regular work on kick coverage units. KJ Gillespie, a true freshman, tops the two deep at ETSU’s Jack position, a hybrid rush end/linebacker. Gillespie is the only player topping the depth chart at an offensive or defensive position who was playing in high school at this time a year ago.
Ewan Johnson returns at kicker and junior-college transfer Luke Stewart steps in as the new punter.
The new faces at ETSU aren’t restricted to the roster. There were also changes on the staff during the offseason, most notably the addition of defensive line coach J.C. Price, most recently at Virginia Tech. Price isn’t listed as an associate head coach on the ETSU site, but he’s essentially assumed that role, according to Healy, who called Price “arguably the best defensive line coach in the country” during his coaches show.
“I think J.C.’s voice has been heard. He’s the assistant head coach for us and I wanted his voice to be heard, not just in the defensive room but the entire team,” Healy said at his weekly press conference. “He’s been a great ally for me. He’s a very loyal person, even though we’ve never worked together. But he’s also been a really good critic in a good way. Like, ‘Why are you doing this?’ If you’ve ever been around him you know he’s not a very politically correct human being and so he has no problem telling you how he feels. That’s been great for me but knowing that it’s coming from a loyal place. I have no problems with being questioned if we’re about getting the right answers for our players. I have a problem being questioned because you just feel like you know more than me.”
Buc Bits
New offensive coordinator Brian Blackmon, who already was on staff but moved to that role, will call plays from the booth. He will be joined up top by quarterbacks coach Neal Posey. Hudson Gibbs, who’s in charge of offensive quality control, will be on the sideline to help with communication. … ETSU plans to hold a moment of silence for Dale Steele prior to the game. Steele served as assistant head coach for the Bucs in 2003, the year the program folded. … ETSU has five of its first six games at home this year, something that has never happened for the Bucs. … Isaiah Potts, a Fifth Year defensive lineman heading into his second season at ETSU, arrived as a transfer from Campbell.