MARTIN, Tenn. – A total of five incoming freshmen highlight the 2024-25 University of Tennessee at Martin golf signing class as head coach Austin Swafford announced that Luke Beadles, Cole Isbell, Jaden Morrell, Drew Williams and John-Gregory Wilson have all signed National Letters of Intent.
“This is always an exciting day as these young men sign their NLI’s and the future of our program gets brighter,” Swafford said. “Each of these players bring a lot of tournament experience and a work ethic that will benefit them as soon as they step on campus. More importantly, they are great people and I am confident they will fit into our environment and be able to make a positive impact right away.”
Luke Beadles, Freshman, Nolensville, Tenn. (Nolensville HS)
Set to become a second-generation Skyhawk as his father Todd was also a member of the UT Martin golf team…Competes at Nolensville High School under head coach Chris Ladd (the same program that has produced current Skyhawk redshirt junior Jackson Twerdahl)…Is the 20th ranked player in the state of Tennessee for the Class of 2024…Finished in the top-20 in the Division I Class AA state tournament as a sophomore, carding a 148 (+4) after rounds of 73-75 at Sevierville Golf Club…Was the first NHS representative to take part in the TSSAA state tournament when he accomplished that feat in 2021…Was a three-time regional tournament qualifier during his prep career, finishing second in that event with a 71 at Two Rivers as a sophomore…Finished with a three-year high school scoring average of 72.70 (pro-rated through 18 holes)…Was a finalist for the Williamson County Award…Qualified for the Junior Amateur twice.
Cole Isbell, Freshman, Cumming, Ga. (North Forsyth HS)
Set to join his brother Dax (a 2023 OVC All-Newcomer selection) on the 2024-25 Skyhawk roster next season…Played for head coach Rodney Moore at North Forsyth High School…Boasts an extremely impressive amateur background as he has registered nine top-10 finishes, six top-five finishes and a pair of wins since June 2022…Won the Georgia Southern Junior event (145, 70-75) on Jan. 28-30, 2023 and followed that with a victory at the Georgia Amateur Qualifier (69) held at Crystal Falls on June 13, 2023…Placed third in the Georgia State Junior (176; 72-70-34) held at Green Island on June 19-21, 2023…Shot a 67 and qualified for the US Junior Amateur on June 26, 2023…Took part in both the Georgia State Amateur and the 75th US Junior Amateur (held in Charleston, SC) in July 2023…Finished fourth with a score of 218 (79-68-71) at the Georgia PGA Junior Championship held in Athens in June 2022.
Jaden Morrell, Freshman, Knoxville, Tenn. (Bearden HS)
Will join the Skyhawks one year after his brother Bryson (2022 All-OVC honoree) exhausts his collegiate eligibility…Helped lead Bearden High School to its first state appearance in 40 years and first state Elite Eight finish since 1971 as he was a standout under head coach Tyler Lane in 2023…Was the first BHS male to participate in the state tournament in three separate years, placing ninth at the 2023 TSSAA state tournament (the second-best individual finish in school history)…Was a two-time regional champion (70 as a sophomore at Sevierville Golf Club) while also winning the 2022 District 4AA title (67)…Was a member of the 2023 Tennessee Junior Cup squad, representing Team East in the event held at Hillwood Country Club in Nashville…Was the 2023 Sneds Tour Player of the Year, winning the Sneds Elite tournaments at Tennessee National (70) and at Vanderbilt Legends (141, 70-71) while also taking home first-place honors at the Masters 2-Day at Old Fort (138; 72-66) – his 23rd career victory on the Sneds Tour…Tied for fourth with fellow UT Martin signee John-Gregory Wilson on the Sneds Tour Masters 2-Day at Greystone (142; 70-72).
Drew Williams, Freshman, Greensboro, Ga. (Lake Oconee Academy)
Prepped at Lake Oconee Academy, where he was a standout under head coach Johnny Noto…Was a GHSA 1A-D2 all-state and 4-A Division II all-area performer during his senior campaign, notching three runner-up finishes…Finished second out of 69 golfers in the GHSA 1A-D2 state golf championship with a 144 (73-71)…Nabbed all-tournament accolades in three different events as a senior…Was a GHSA A Public all-state and an All-Area 4-A Public honoree during his junior campaign…Placed second with a 69 at the GHSA Area 4-A Public golf championship and finished third (out of 75 participants) with a 152 (74-78) at the GHSA A Public state golf championship in 2022…Managed 11 top-10 finishes, six top-5 efforts and a pair of medalist victories at the junior level in the years of 2022 and 2023 alone…Won the AJGA Huntsville.org Junior Championship qualifier (70) and the GSGS PPS Middle Georgia Junior Challenge (142, 71-71) in 2022…Finished second at the Georgia Junior PGA Middle Georgia Junior Classic (143, 70-73) and fifth in the SJGT Southeastern Junior event (141, 70-71) in 2022.
John-Gregory Wilson, Freshman, Bolivar, Tenn. (University School of Jackson)
Was a standout performer under head coach Jeff Manley at University School of Jackson, who earned back-to-back appearances at the TSSAA state tournament in 2022 and 2023…Was a three-time All-West Tennessee Golf first team performer, helping the Bruins to the 2023 Division II-A regional title…Placed 13th at the TSSAA state tournament as a senior with a 150 (74-76)…Finished second in the region with a score of 73 in 2022, leading to a ninth-place finish (152) at the Division II-A Class state tournament…Enjoyed quite a week as a sophomore in 2021 as he won the Dyersburg Kick Off Classic (70), won a match against South Gibson and Lexington (37) in Jackson and hit a hole-in-one at Humboldt Golf Course all in the span of four days…Tied with fellow Skyhawk signee Jaden Morrell on the Sneds Tour Masters 2-Day at Greystone (142; 72-70) in July 2023…Also placed sixth at the Sneds Elite tournament (73) held at Tennessee National in June, which was one of his three top-10 finishes on that tour during the summer of 2023…Added eight top-10 placements on the Sneds Tour in 2022, including a runner-up finish at the Masters 2-Day at Greystone (142; 72-70) on June 6-7…Placed second in two events on the Sneds Tour in 2020-21 (76) at Jackson Country Club on June 28, 2021; 118 (79-39) at Bay Point on Dec. 30-31, 2020)…Competed as an individual at the 2020 Division II-A TSSAA state tournament, placing 14th with a 157 (79-78).
These five will join a Skyhawk program that has won three Ohio Valley Conference team championships and produced four OVC individual medalists since 2015.
