Photo by: Ray Soldano
Men’s Basketball’s Tate Darner Named to Preseason All-Southern Conference Team
10/7/2026 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Chattanooga Mocs sophomore guard earned preseason all-league status after a stellar rookie campaign last year.
2026-27 TICKET INFORMATION
SPARTANBURG, S.C. (October 7, 2026) --- Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball sophomore guard Tate Darner has been named a preseason All-Southern Conference honoree as the league office released its preseason all-league team and coaches poll on Wednesday morning.
Chattanooga was slotted fifth in the preseason coaches' poll after collecting 59 points from the balloting process. Furman (100; 10 first-place votes) was tabbed as the preseason favorite as ETSU (86; 1), Wofford (78), Samford (70) and Chattanooga rounded out the top five.
Darner was the Mocs lone representative on the 10-man preseason all-league team as VMI's Rickey Bradley Jr. claimed preseason player of the year honors for the second-straight offseason. Darner and Wofford's Chace Watley are the only sophomores to earn all-league status this preseason.
The Lakeland, Fla., native is coming off a stellar freshman season after starting in 30 of 32 games played, finishing third on the team in scoring at 9.9 points per game and first in rebounding with a 4.4 per-game clip. He added 1.7 assists and 0.7 steals while playing 27.5 minutes per game, the second-highest minute average on the team.
Darner set a Chattanooga freshman program record for made threes in a single season with 53, surpassing the previous mark of 50 set by Kevin Easley back in 2019, and three-point attempts with 140. He finished the season shooting 45.1% (102-of-226 FG) from the floor in total while shooting 37.9% (53-of-140 3FG) from deep and 73.6% (39-of-53 FT) from the line.
Fans can catch an early glimpse of the 2026-27 Chattanooga Mocs during its annual "Boo & Gold" Halloween event set for Friday, October 30 (5:30 p.m. doors open) inside McKenzie Arena. The event is FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC (click here for more).
Chattanooga opens the season on the road at ACC-member Louisville on Monday, November 2 inside the KFC Yum! Center before heading to State College, Pa., to face Big Ten-member Penn State on Thursday, November 5 inside the Bryce Jordan Center. The Mocs open its home slate on Monday, November 9 against Covenant.
2026-27 Southern Conference Preseason Coaches Poll
Team (1st-place votes) Total
1. Furman (10) 100
2. ETSU (1) 86
3. Wofford 78
4. Samford 70
5. Chattanooga 59
6. Tennessee Tech 57
7. Mercer 47
8. Western Carolina 41
9. VMI 32
10. The Citadel 21
11. UNCG 14
2026-27 Preseason Southern Conference Player of the Year
Rickey Bradley Jr, Sr., G, VMI
2026-27 Preseason All-Southern Conference Team
BJ Ward, Sr., G, ETSU
Marcus Kell, Gr., F, Furman
Charles Johnston, 5th, F, Furman
Brady Shoulders, Jr., G/F, Mercer
Cooper Noard, 5th, G, Samford
Tate Darner, So., G, Chattanooga
Rickey Bradley Jr, Sr., G, VMI
TJ Johnson, Sr., F, VMI
Cam Lowe, R-Jr., G, Wofford
Chace Watley, So., G, Wofford
Chattanooga Basketball 2026-27 Ticket Information
Follow Chattanooga Basketball
Follow @GoMocsMBB on Twitter & on Instagram for the most up-to-date information and news regarding Chattanooga men's basketball.
Buy officially licensed gear in our online store. The Mocs can also be followed on their official Facebook page or on Twitter. Find out how to join the UTC Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes by clicking here.
SPARTANBURG, S.C. (October 7, 2026) --- Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball sophomore guard Tate Darner has been named a preseason All-Southern Conference honoree as the league office released its preseason all-league team and coaches poll on Wednesday morning.
Chattanooga was slotted fifth in the preseason coaches' poll after collecting 59 points from the balloting process. Furman (100; 10 first-place votes) was tabbed as the preseason favorite as ETSU (86; 1), Wofford (78), Samford (70) and Chattanooga rounded out the top five.
Darner was the Mocs lone representative on the 10-man preseason all-league team as VMI's Rickey Bradley Jr. claimed preseason player of the year honors for the second-straight offseason. Darner and Wofford's Chace Watley are the only sophomores to earn all-league status this preseason.
The Lakeland, Fla., native is coming off a stellar freshman season after starting in 30 of 32 games played, finishing third on the team in scoring at 9.9 points per game and first in rebounding with a 4.4 per-game clip. He added 1.7 assists and 0.7 steals while playing 27.5 minutes per game, the second-highest minute average on the team.
Darner set a Chattanooga freshman program record for made threes in a single season with 53, surpassing the previous mark of 50 set by Kevin Easley back in 2019, and three-point attempts with 140. He finished the season shooting 45.1% (102-of-226 FG) from the floor in total while shooting 37.9% (53-of-140 3FG) from deep and 73.6% (39-of-53 FT) from the line.
Fans can catch an early glimpse of the 2026-27 Chattanooga Mocs during its annual "Boo & Gold" Halloween event set for Friday, October 30 (5:30 p.m. doors open) inside McKenzie Arena. The event is FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC (click here for more).
Chattanooga opens the season on the road at ACC-member Louisville on Monday, November 2 inside the KFC Yum! Center before heading to State College, Pa., to face Big Ten-member Penn State on Thursday, November 5 inside the Bryce Jordan Center. The Mocs open its home slate on Monday, November 9 against Covenant.
2026-27 Southern Conference Preseason Coaches Poll
Team (1st-place votes) Total
1. Furman (10) 100
2. ETSU (1) 86
3. Wofford 78
4. Samford 70
5. Chattanooga 59
6. Tennessee Tech 57
7. Mercer 47
8. Western Carolina 41
9. VMI 32
10. The Citadel 21
11. UNCG 14
2026-27 Preseason Southern Conference Player of the Year
Rickey Bradley Jr, Sr., G, VMI
2026-27 Preseason All-Southern Conference Team
BJ Ward, Sr., G, ETSU
Marcus Kell, Gr., F, Furman
Charles Johnston, 5th, F, Furman
Brady Shoulders, Jr., G/F, Mercer
Cooper Noard, 5th, G, Samford
Tate Darner, So., G, Chattanooga
Rickey Bradley Jr, Sr., G, VMI
TJ Johnson, Sr., F, VMI
Cam Lowe, R-Jr., G, Wofford
Chace Watley, So., G, Wofford
Chattanooga Basketball 2026-27 Ticket Information
- Season tickets for the upcoming Chattanooga men's and women's basketball seasons are ON SALE NOW with complete information, details, and ways to purchase located HERE.
- Special "Pick-6" Mini Packs are also ON SALE NOW! The special packs give fans the flexibility to pick the games of their choice while saving costs against purchasing individual game tickets. To purchase, visit HERE.
- Fans can purchase tickets online at the links above, in person at the UTC Ticket Office at McKenzie Arena, or by calling the ticket department at (423) 266-6627. (M-F, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. ET).
Follow Chattanooga Basketball
Follow @GoMocsMBB on Twitter & on Instagram for the most up-to-date information and news regarding Chattanooga men's basketball.
Buy officially licensed gear in our online store. The Mocs can also be followed on their official Facebook page or on Twitter. Find out how to join the UTC Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes by clicking here.
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