CHATTANOOGA --- With the hectic and busy roster-building weeks now complete, it's time to look at the Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball team's off-season activity as the program and head coach Dan Earl officially announce the signings of seven newcomers to the now-finalized 2024-25 roster.
In addition to November's early signees of Latif Diouf and Isaiah Otyaluk, Chattanooga welcomes six newcomers via the transfer portal while adding a local walk-on from the scholastic ranks. The new faces will join returning All-Southern Conference guards Trey Bonham and Honor Huff and a strong core of young talent including Noah Melson, Sean Cusano and Collin Mulholland.
The 2024-25 roster, in its entirety, can be viewed HERE. A complete list of the newcomers including thoughts from head coach Dan Earl can be found below. Season ticket renewals for existing holders will be available early next week with more details to be released during that time.
TRANSFER PORTAL ADDITIONS
Frank Champion – Forward – 6'7, 220 – Lithonia, Ga. (Lithonia HS/North Georgia)
Eligibility: Senior (one year remaining)
Champion arrives to the UTC program following an illustrious career at nearby North Georgia in the Division II ranks where he was named an NABC All-American in 2024 following D2CCA All-American, D2CAA Southeast Region Player of the Year and Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year honors after the 2022-23 season. In 100 career games at UNG, he finished with 1,763 points, 839 rebounds and 375 assists while shooting 57.1% from the field.
The 6'7 forward helped lead North Georgia to a 28-7 overall record in 2023-24 as the squad reached the NCAA DII Tournament Elite Eight stage. Last season, Champion led the PBC in points per game (17.5), field goals made (216), field goal percentage (58.6), total assists (154) and assists per game (4.7) while ranking second in double-doubles (25), total points (579), total rebounds (249) and rebounds per game (7.5).
Earl on Champion: "We are thrilled to be adding Frank to our program. Frank has had a tremendous career at North Georgia leading them to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. He had a decorated career leading them in points, rebounds, assists, and finishing as a DII All-American. He impacts the game in multiple ways with his size, skill and versatility. He is very physical and does a great job of getting downhill to make plays for himself and others."
Jack Kostel – Guard – 6'2, 185 – Dacula, Ga. (Mill Creek HS/Alabama-Huntsville)
Eligibility: Senior (one year remaining)
Kostel comes to Chattanooga after spending the past four seasons at DII Alabama-Huntsville playing for former UTC head coach and now Central Arkansas bench boss John Shulman. Kostel was tabbed to the All-Gulf South Conference Second Team last season while rounding out his career with 885 points, 388 rebounds and 354 assists in 114 total contests.
Kostel, a 6'2 guard, finished the recent 2023-24 season ranked 43rd in NCAA DII basketball in total assists (136) and 46th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.27). In 32 games last season, Kostel reached double digits in scoring 20 times with six games featuring 20 or more points including a career-high, 36-point performance against Union (TN) on February 22.
Earl on Kostel: "Jack is a great addition to our program. He has great size for the position and brings winning intangibles. He was the team captain for a very good UAH team that made the NCAA Tournament. Jack is an elite passer and very good ball-handler that impacts winning in many different ways."
Garrison Keeslar – Guard/Forward – 6'7, 205 – Green, Ohio (Green HS/Walsh)
Eligibility: Senior (one year remaining)
Keeslar also joins the Mocs program from the DII platform, excelling at Walsh University (OH) over the past four seasons while wrapping up the 2023-24 campaign as the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Tournament MVP. Keesler concluded his Walsh career with 1,209 points, 630 rebounds, 434 assists and 145 steals in 94 total games played.
Helping the Cavaliers to a 24-6 overall record and a G-MAC Tournament Championship last season, Keeslar provided floor general duties and finished second in NCAA DII basketball in assist-to-turnover ratio (4.09) while finishing 31st in assists per game (4.9) and 33rd in total helpers (143). He finished second on the team in points per game (15.5), rebounds per game (6.7) and field goals made (156) while leading in steals (46) and steals per game (1.59).
Earl on Keeslar: "We are very excited to add Garrison to our roster. Garrison comes from a winning program at Walsh University where he helped lead them to the NCAA Tournament. He was an All-Conference player in one of the top DII leagues in the country. Garrison will bring great versatility with his size and skill allowing him to play multiple positions. He is an elite passer, with a great assist to turnover ratio, that will be a great fit for our playing style."
Bash Wieland – Guard – 6'6, 215 – Cincinnati, Ohio (Lakota East HS/Bellarmine)
Eligibility: Graduate (one year remaining)
Wieland heads to the Scenic City after spending the past five seasons as DI Bellarmine, beginning his collegiate career as a freshman during the 2019-20 season. He scored 531 total points, grabbed 214 rebounds and dished out 89 assists during 87 career games with the Knights while making 25 starts.
After missing the final 25 games of the 2022-23 season due to injury, Wieland rebounded this past season and led the team in points per game (14.2) and field goal percentage (51.8) while ranking second in rebounds per game (5.3) and assists (50). He finished the year with double-digit scoring efforts in all but four games including 10 of the final 11 games with a career-high 25-point performance coming during the late span.
Earl on Wieland: "Going into the transfer portal, Bash is someone that we knew a lot about having played against him last season. He was the leading scorer for a tough team at Bellarmine. Bash is a veteran player that affects the game in a lot of different areas. He is extremely physical and can guard multiple positions. On the offensive side he has a great basketball IQ and plays the right way."
Adam Larson – Forward – 6'9, 180 – Fennimore, Wisc. (Fennimore HS/SEMO)
Eligibility: Junior (two years remaining)
Arriving to Chattanooga with a pair of years remaining on his eligibility status, Larson appeared in 65 games at DI SEMO over the past two seasons following an initial redshirt season with the Redhawks as a freshman in 2021-22. Larson finished his SEMO career with 397 points (6.1 per game) and 130 rebounds (2.0 per game) while knocking down 90 triples at a respectable 39.3 percentage.
Averaging 20.1 minutes per game last season over 31 appearances and 23 starts, Larson averaged 7.2 points and 2.3 rebounds while shooting 42.8% (71-of-166) from the field and leading the team with a 40.5% (51-of-126) mark from deep. The long sharpshooter notched eight games with three or more triples including six against Evansville (11/25) and four against Chattanooga (11/26) in a two-game span as part of the co*ke Zero Sugar Classic here in the Roundhouse.
Earl on Larson: "Adam will be a name that Chattanooga fans should remember after hitting 10 threes in two games last season during the co*ke Zero Sugar Classic at McKenzie Arena. He has great size at the forward position and is an elite shooter with an extremely quick release. He is a good athlete that has a high basketball IQ."
Makai Richards – Forward – 6'10, 225 – Oak Park, Calif. (Oak Park HS/Eastern Washington/Pacific)
Eligibility: RS Junior (two years remaining)
The final scholarship signing of the offseason, Richards comes to the Chattanooga program following two seasons at DI Pacific covering the 2022-23 and 2023-24 campaigns. After redshirting at Eastern Washington as a rookie in 2021-22, Richards appeared in 41 games for the Tigers over the last two years and finished with 106 points and 75 rebounds while shooting an impressive 65.8% (48-of-73) from the floor.
Seeing action in 22 games while making 14 starts last season, Richards led the team in field goal percentage (66.2%) and reached double figures in scoring twice which included a career-high 17 points on eight-of-12 shooting against Portland on February 1. In his final seven appearances of the season, he shot a combined 72.2% (26-of-36) from the floor while averaging 8.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
Earl on Richards: "We are very happy with the addition of Makai to our roster. He brings an experienced and college-ready player to our front court. He is extremely athletic for his size and has very good hands. He will bring rim protection and rebounding to our center position. We look forward to getting to work with Makai soon."
SCHOLASTIC ADDITION
Parker Robison – Guard – 6'0, 175 – Chattanooga, Tenn. (McCallie HS)
Eligibility: Freshman (four years remaining)
Robison won't have to travel far to join the UTC program after starring for nearby McCallie School during his scholastic career. The local product was a two-sport standout on campus and helped the McCallie track program capture the 2024 TSSAA DII-AA State Championship following gold medal efforts as part of the 4x100 relay team.
Robison was tabbed to the Times Free Press "Best of Preps" grouping in April which recognizes the Chattanooga area's top scholastic performers on the hardwood. The team captain and floor general, Robison finished his senior season in 2023-24 averaging 14.7 points, 5.2 assists and 2.3 steals per game while concluding his career with 764 points, 190 rebounds, 190 assists and 135 steals in 64 games.
Earl on Robison: "We are excited to add local product Parker Robison to our program and believe he will be an excellent fit for our culture. As a two-time team captain at McCallie School, he is well-known to Chattanoogans for the competitiveness and toughness that he brings on the court."
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