UT Martin Golf Picked Second In OVC Predicted Order Of Finish As Caldwell Earns Player To Watch Status
1/28/2026 10:00:00 AM | Golf
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – The Ohio Valley Conference unveiled its annual preseason poll for the sport of men's golf today as the University of Tennessee at Martin was chosen second in the 1-team rankings. Additionally, Skyhawk senior Luke Caldwell was spotlighted as 11 OVC Players to Watch for the upcoming 2026 spring season.
UT Martin received two first-place votes and 85 overall points in the OVC's predicted order of finish, which was conducted by the head coaches. Little Rock was voted as the preseason favorite on eight ballots on the way to a league-high 98 points while Tennessee Tech (81 points), SIUE (77 points, including one first-place vote) and Morehead State (68 points) concluded the top-five. Lindenwood (55 points), Southern Indiana (44), Bryant (32), Eastern Illinois (29), Tennessee State (19) and Western Illinois (16) rounded out the poll.
The Skyhawks finished in the top-five in three fall tournaments, including runner-up appearances at the Grover Page Classic (Sept. 15-16 in Memphis, Tenn.) and Bubba Barnett Intercollegiate (Oct. 6-7 in Jonesboro, Ark.). UT Martin's 286.5 stroke average ranked second in the OVC in the fall while its 267 (-17) in Round 2 of the aforementioned Grover Page Classic was four shots better than any other team round in the league.
Hailing from Cookeville, Tenn., Caldwell produced a 71.2 scoring average in the fall – good enough for the fifth-best mark in the league. The lefty played nine of his 15 rounds under par, including a career-best 66 in Round 2 of the SIUE Dolenc Invitational on Sept. 29. He equaled the best finish of his collegiate career with a fourth-place showing (out of 72 participants) at the Bubba Barnett Intercollegiate on Oct. 6-7 – which was one of his two top-10 and three top-20 tournament finishes of the fall semester. Overall, he has accounted for 14 countable scores in 15 rounds as a member of the Skyhawk scoring lineup so far in 2025-26.
Caldwell joins Bryant senior Dylan Gallagher, Eastern Illinois freshman Luke Watson, Lindenwood freshman Francisco Gavilan, Little Rock sophomore Ed Featherstone, Morehead State sophomore Seamus Bogan, SIUE senior Brady Kaufmann, Southern Indiana senior Carter Goebel, Tennessee State freshman Jackson Pieratt, Tennessee Tech senior Haden Maxwell and Western Illinois sophomore Owen Howe on the OVC's Players to Watch list.
UT Martin was originally set to open the spring semester later this weekend at the Thomas Sharkey Individual Collegiate but the event was cancelled due to inclement weather. The Skyhawks will now begin their spring slate on Feb. 15-17 at the Loyola Intercollegiate in Goodyear, Ariz.
UT Martin received two first-place votes and 85 overall points in the OVC's predicted order of finish, which was conducted by the head coaches. Little Rock was voted as the preseason favorite on eight ballots on the way to a league-high 98 points while Tennessee Tech (81 points), SIUE (77 points, including one first-place vote) and Morehead State (68 points) concluded the top-five. Lindenwood (55 points), Southern Indiana (44), Bryant (32), Eastern Illinois (29), Tennessee State (19) and Western Illinois (16) rounded out the poll.
The Skyhawks finished in the top-five in three fall tournaments, including runner-up appearances at the Grover Page Classic (Sept. 15-16 in Memphis, Tenn.) and Bubba Barnett Intercollegiate (Oct. 6-7 in Jonesboro, Ark.). UT Martin's 286.5 stroke average ranked second in the OVC in the fall while its 267 (-17) in Round 2 of the aforementioned Grover Page Classic was four shots better than any other team round in the league.
Hailing from Cookeville, Tenn., Caldwell produced a 71.2 scoring average in the fall – good enough for the fifth-best mark in the league. The lefty played nine of his 15 rounds under par, including a career-best 66 in Round 2 of the SIUE Dolenc Invitational on Sept. 29. He equaled the best finish of his collegiate career with a fourth-place showing (out of 72 participants) at the Bubba Barnett Intercollegiate on Oct. 6-7 – which was one of his two top-10 and three top-20 tournament finishes of the fall semester. Overall, he has accounted for 14 countable scores in 15 rounds as a member of the Skyhawk scoring lineup so far in 2025-26.
Caldwell joins Bryant senior Dylan Gallagher, Eastern Illinois freshman Luke Watson, Lindenwood freshman Francisco Gavilan, Little Rock sophomore Ed Featherstone, Morehead State sophomore Seamus Bogan, SIUE senior Brady Kaufmann, Southern Indiana senior Carter Goebel, Tennessee State freshman Jackson Pieratt, Tennessee Tech senior Haden Maxwell and Western Illinois sophomore Owen Howe on the OVC's Players to Watch list.
UT Martin was originally set to open the spring semester later this weekend at the Thomas Sharkey Individual Collegiate but the event was cancelled due to inclement weather. The Skyhawks will now begin their spring slate on Feb. 15-17 at the Loyola Intercollegiate in Goodyear, Ariz.
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