Tennessee
Middle Tennessee High School Sports Awards: Meet the winter sports nominees
The Middle Tennessee High School Sports Awards is proud to announce the nominees for the winter sports played this season. The winners will be announced during the live show to take place June 10 at Marathon Music Works.
The show is produced in partnership with Nissan.
The Middle Tennessee High School Sports Awards, one of 20 regional shows across the United States, is a nine-month student-athlete recognition program that will culminate at a red-carpet show this spring. The show will recognize athletes, coaches, and teams from the Mid-State.
During the live show, these nominees will be honored, along with the players of the year for each of the fall and winter sports. The awards showcase will also feature other premier awards for both on- and off-the-field accomplishments of student-athletes, coaches and teams, including a Courage Award and Coach of the Year, Team of the Year, and the Boys and Girls Athlete of the Year awards.
All nominees who RSVP will receive complementary tickets to the event at no charge thanks to sponsors. Nominated athletes can register here.
Guests of the nominated athletes can purchase tickets at this link.
Read more about the show and sign up for updates here.
Nominees for Boys Basketball Player of the Year, presented by Slim Chickens of Middle Tennessee:
Fred Bailey, Pope John Paul II High School — SR
Judson Bjornstad, Providence Christian Academy High School — SR
Christian Brown, Franklin High School — JR
Grayson Burleson, Summertown High School — JR
Daniel Cochran, Brentwood High School — SR
Cortez Graham-Howard, Hillsboro High School — JR
Jeremy Jackson, Columbia Academy (Upper School) — JR
Jayden Jones, Goodpasture Christian School — JR
Kavien Jones, Battle Ground Academy — SR
Jett Montgomery, Independence High School — SR
Auden Slaughter, Santa Fe High School — JR
Tyler Tanner, Brentwood Academy — SR
Nominees for Girls Basketball Player of the Year, presented by Slim Chickens of Middle Tennessee:
Blair Baugus, Wayne County High School — JR
Reese Beaty, Alvin C York Institute — JR
Imari Berry, Clarksville High School — SR
Dasha Biriuk, Webb School – Bell Buckle — JR
Daisy Gale, Providence Christian Academy High School — SR
Addison Melton, Central Magnet High School — SR
Zoey Nicholas, Pickett County High School — SO
Allye Pennington, East Robertson High School — FR
Celeste Reed, White County High School — SR
Ella Ryan, Brentwood High School — JR
Olivia Vinson, Coffee County Central High School — JR
Ally Weathers, Loretto High School — JR
Nominees for Boys Bowler of the Year:
William Davis, Columbia Central High School — JR
Finn Donnelly, Pope John Paul II High School — SR
Josh Morgan, Smyrna High School — SR
Aiden Neal, Green Hill High School — SR
Matteo Quintero, Stewarts Creek High School — FR
Logan Winkler, Friendship Christian High School — SR
Nominees for Girls Bowler of the Year:
Riley Akins, Creek Wood High School — FR
Mina Chen, Lipscomb Academy — 8TH
Gabi Mann, Creek Wood High School — JR
Olivia Rush, Friendship Christian High School — SR
Samantha Stepp, Lawrence County High School — SO
Landry West, Friendship Christian High School — SR
Nominees for Hockey Player of the Year, sponsored by the Nashville Predators:
Owen Appel, Ravenwood High School — JR
JT Borland, Nolensville High School — SO
Alec Dawes, Homeschool — SO
Justin Dickinson, Smyrna High School — SR
Zachary Ellis, Page High School — FR
Lee Guy, Montgomery Bell Academy — SR
Austin Hester, Father Ryan High School — SR
Hudson Honeybone, Ensworth High School — SO
Liam Powell, Ravenwood High School — JR
Jacob Schenk, James Lawson High School — SR
Ben Sonkin, Ensworth High School — SR
Hunter Wieck, Montgomery Bell Academy — SR
Nominees for Boys Swimming & Diving Athlete of the Year:
David Amlicke, Pope John Paul II High School — JR
George Attmore, Brentwood High School — SR
Maston Ballew, Franklin Road Academy — JR
Gabe Lett, Montgomery Bell Academy — SR
Spencer Nicholas, Martin Luther King Jr Academic Magnet High School — SR
Mack Schumann, Donelson Christian Academy — SR
Nominees for Girls Swimming & Diving Athlete of the Year:
Elizabeth Helmer, Father Ryan High School — FR
Anna Hulan, University School Of Nashville — JR
Margaret Petty, Harpeth Hall — SR
Lilly Robertson, Ensworth High School — JR
Lucy Trailov, Father Ryan High School — JR
Bryce Winzenread, Mount Juliet Senior High School — FR
Nominees for Boys Wrestler of the Year:
Rob Atwood, Trousdale County High School — SR
Joseph Calvin, Father Ryan High School — SR
Sebron Colson, Blackman High School — SR
Dylan Davenport, Sycamore High School — SR
Chancery Deane, Father Ryan High School — JR
Landon Desselle, Summit High School — SR
Brody Gobbell, Father Ryan High School — JR
Spencer Kon, Independence High School — SR
Jarvis Little, Summit High School — SR
Chase Mayes, Nolensville High School — JR
Tre McTorry, Nolensville High School — SR
Thomas Rubio, Blackman High School — SO
Nominees for Girls Wrestler of the Year:
Jes’Onia Barefield, West Creek High School — JR
Mariana Bowen, West Creek High School — SO
Halai Cox, Mcgavock High School — JR
Lexi Dean, West Creek High School — FR
Jaden Evans, Alvin C York Institute — JR
Carter Grissom, Riverdale High School — SR
Janiya Johnson, Kirkwood High School — FR
Audrey Levendusky, Montgomery Central High School — SO
Vivian Mariscal, John Overton High School — SR
Cearyona O’Connor, Montgomery Central High School — SR
Melanie Val Saint, Andrews-Sewanee High School — SR
Shaniayah Wysinger, Clarksville High School — SR
Tennessee
Remembering one of Middle Tennessee’s largest tornado outbreaks 4 years later
Tennessee
Tracking Music City Bowl opt outs for Tennessee and Illinois
Tracking the opt outs for both Tennessee and Illinois before the Music City Bowl on December 30 (5:30 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN) at Nissan Stadium in Nashville:
Tennessee
Linebacker Arion Carter: Carter over the last seasons had 96 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks in 31 career games. He had a team-high 76 tackles this season, with 6.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks while appearing in 10 games. He missed two games and was limited against Oklahoma in November while dealing with turf toe injuries. Carter had 68 tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss in 13 games last season and 17 tackles and 1.0 tackles for loss in eight games as a freshman in 2023.
Wide Receiver Chris Brazzell II: He a breakout senior season in his second year with the Vols, catching 62 passes for 1,017 yards and nine touchdowns. He had 19 catches for 333 yards and two touchdowns in 2024, after transferring from Tulane. In 15 games at Tulane he caught 45 passes for 722 yards and five touchdowns. Brazzell is ranked No. 7 at wide receiver on Mel Kiper Jr.’s NFL Draft Big Board. He’s ranked No. 34 overall on ESPN’s list of the best available prospects in the draft.
Cornerback Jermod McCoy: Did not play this season after tearing his ACL during offseason training in January. He was a star last season with 44 tackles, nine passes defended and four interceptions. He had 31 tackles and two interceptions in 12 games as a freshman at Oregon State before transferring to Tennessee.
Illinois
Offensive Tackle J.C. Davis: Bret Bielema said the Illinois starting left tackle is opting out of the Music City Bowl. He was an All-Big Ten First Team pick by the league coaches this season and the No. 3 left tackle this season according to Pro Football Focus grades. He had made 49 straight starts before opting out of the bowl game.
EDGE Gabe Jacas: The Illinois outside linebacker declared for the NFL Draft on Friday night. He led the Big Ten this season with 11.0 sacks. He had 13.5 tackles for loss and 43 total tackles in 12 games this season. He finishes second in Illinois program history for career sacks, with 27.0, trailing only Simeon Rice. Jacas had 74 tackles, 8.0 sacks and 13.0 tackles for loss last season, after combining for 8.0 sacks and 9.0 tackles for loss in his first two seasons at Illinois.
Tennessee
More than 8,500 layoffs hit Tennessee in 2025, nearly 19% increase from 2024
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — Tennessee employers laid off more than 8,500 workers in 2025 compared to 7,320 last year, according to the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development.
This is about a 19% increase in layoffs, with WARN notices impacting 8,691 Tennesseans to date. As of 2023, 5,168 Tennessee workers were laid off through WARN notices.
Counties in Middle Tennessee impacted include:
- Davidson
- Sumner
- Maury
- Rutherford
- Williamson
- Wilson
- Coffee
- DeKalb
- Bedford
- Lawrence
- Putnam
The largest layoff this year was in Maury County. Come January, 710 employees will be laid off from GM Ultium Cells’ Spring Hill facility. Research Assistant Professor at the University of Tennessee Knoxville Michael Kofoed tells FOX 17 News that the facility is is likely impacted by the rise on steel tariffs ruled out by the Trump administration. He adds steel tariffs raise input costs for employers which directly impacts employees’ salary or employment.
The second largest layoff impacted 658 workers at Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, LLC in Rutherford County with 615 workers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center permanently laid off. WARN notices are reports a company is required to file with the state to give workers time to find future employment.
Kofoed states that Tennessee is seeing a troubling trend, with layoffs skyrocketing since 2023.
“That is a very big and concerning number,” Kofoed said.
According to CNBC, more than 1.1 million U.S. employees were laid off this year, the highest 11-month total since 2020.
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