Six Kennesaw State football players earned spots on Pro Football Network's preseason All-Conference USA team, the outlet announced Monday, Aug. 10, giving the defending CUSA champions a wave of national recognition less than a month before their season opener in Kennesaw.
Running back Latrelle Murrell, defensive lineman Marcus Patterson and linebacker Baron Hopson each landed on the first team. Wide receiver and kick returner Davis Bryson was named to the second team, while wide receiver and punt returner Zion Booker and free safety Isaac Paul earned third-team nods.
The honors cap a remarkable stretch for a program that went 2-10 in its FBS debut before winning the conference title in year two under head coach Jerry Mack.
Hopson headlines the defense
Hopson, a graduate linebacker from Leesburg, Ga., is the reigning 2025 CUSA Defensive Player of the Year and was already named the 2026 Preseason CUSA Defensive Player of the Year. He recorded 138 tackles, nine tackles for loss, a forced fumble and an interception across 14 games last season, breaking the KSU single-game tackle record with 16 in the regular-season finale that clinched a championship berth. He was also placed on the Bronko Nagurski Trophy preseason watch list on Aug. 4, one of just 21 linebackers nationally.
Patterson, a redshirt senior end, posted 9.0 sacks in 2025 and forced the first defensive safety in a CUSA Championship Game since 2007 during KSU's 19-15 title win over Jacksonville State.
Transfer talent on offense
Murrell, a redshirt junior from Douglasville, Ga., transferred to KSU from West Georgia after rushing for 893 yards on 176 carries with five 100-yard games, earning All-United Athletic Conference second-team honors. In a July 30 KSU Athletics feature on the team's summer workouts, Murrell explained why he chose Kennesaw State: "It's a winning program now. That's one of the reasons why I came. I see how Coach Mack changed the program."
The number speaks for itself. Five 100-yard rushing games in one season at West Georgia made Murrell a priority addition.
Bryson, a redshirt senior, returns from the 2025 championship squad and is listed as a starter at wide receiver and kick returner. Booker, a senior who transferred from Tulsa, brings nearly 3,000 career receiving yards. Paul, a redshirt junior, is the projected starter at free safety.
What it means for 2026
The Owls return only 42 percent of their offensive production from 2025, according to ESPN's preseason preview, making the preseason recognition of newcomers like Murrell and Booker a signal that evaluators believe KSU reloaded rather than rebuilt. Athlon Sports' preseason All-CUSA team, published in July, also recognized several Owls, placing Patterson and Hopson on its first team and Booker, Bryson and Paul on lower tiers.
KSU opens the 2026 season Thursday, Sept. 3 at 7 p.m. against West Georgia at Walens Family Field at Fifth Third Stadium in Kennesaw. Season tickets start at $125 and include home games against Georgia State (Sept. 12), Jacksonville State (Oct. 7), Liberty (Oct. 22), Delaware (Nov. 7) and FIU (Nov. 21).
