CANTON, Ga. – An impressive turnaround season for the Millsaps football program was recognized by Southern Athletic Association coaches as 11 Majors were voted onto the All-SAA football teams and Brandon Lechtenberg was selected the SAA Football Coach of the Year. The SAA office made the announcement on Friday. 
 
The 11 selections match the total set in the 2018 season, while senior Nicholas Eaton earned a spot on the SAA All-Sportsmanship Team. 
 
Junior linebacker Nehemiah Coalson made All-SAA First Team Defense to highlight the All-Conference selections. 
 
Sophomore safety Tre Jones, senior punter Ethan Klapatch and junior Braylon Wills garnered placement on the All-SAA Second Team Defense. 
 
The All-SAA Honorable Mention Team was also stacked with Majors on the offensive side of the ball, including freshman quarterback Cole Canatella, classmate wide receiver Willie Elliott, junior offensive lineman Larry Francois III and freshman tight end and halfback Kaiden Reese. 
 
The defensive selections also featured freshman cornerback and returner W.H. Carver as well as defensive linemen freshman Myles Johnson and sophomore Nathan Johnson. 


 
Lechtenberg helmed the Majors to the most overall wins and conference victories in a season since 2019. Millsaps won five games against four NCAA-countable opponents, including conference triumphs over Hendrix, Sewanee and Southwestern. 
 
The Majors also opened the season with a 23-21, tone-setting win over Belhaven University in the annual Riverside Rumble. It was the first such victory since the same 2019 campaign. 
 
Lechtenberg, in his first season back after being the Millsaps defensive coordinator (2011-16) and first year as head coach, guided the Majors to fourth place in the SAA standings after being picked to finish last prior to the season. The fourth-place conference showing is the best dating back to the 2013 campaign. 
 
Millsaps now has three SAA Coach of the Year nods as well (Aaron Pelch in 2012 & 2013).
 
Hailing from Belzoni, Miss., Coalson currently is tied with a Southern Athletic Association-best 4.5 sacks, while also ranking second with 8.2 sacks per game. He was named the Majors' 2024 C Spire Conerly Trophy nominee, which recognizes the state's most outstanding college football player, on Tuesday.
 
The junior sits third with both 74 total tackles and 35 assisted tackles. His 39 solo stops are sixth in nine contests. 
 
Coalson was named SAA Football Defensive Athlete of the Week on Oct. 21 after delivering a key fumble recovery and returning it for a touchdown. The defensive standout helped the Majors power past Southwestern University 17-14. 
 
The Business Administration major tallied 8.5 tackles for loss, ranking him eighth leaguewide, including the eighth-most sacks of 3.5. Coalson also holds five quarterback hurries.
 


Jones made the Second Team after finishing tied for sixth with 6.8 tackles a game and seventh in total tackles with 61. 
 
He also holds the eighth-highest solo stops (36) and 10th-most assisted tackles (25), which are impressive for a safety usually tasked with deep coverage. The Birmingham product also sits fourth with a pair of interceptions. 
 
Klapatch made his fourth All-SAA Team after making First Team a year ago and securing Honorable Mention plaudits as a freshman and sophomore. He tallied a total of 2,174 yards off 53 total punts, both were the most of any punter in the SAA.

Out of those punts, he ranks third with punts over 50 yards (seven) and fourth with punts inside the 20-yard line (11). His average just over 41 yards per punt rank 16th across NCAA Division III, with the second longest punt set at 63 yards in the SAA.

Wills, a Moundville, Ala., native improved from an All-SAA Honorable Mention pick in 2023 to a Second Team selection. The junior's 6.0 tackles for loss rank 17th in the conference, with five of them being solo. He was also second in the regular season with two forced fumbles.

He also added a key fumble recovery in the win over Belhaven. The defensive lineman collected 27 tackles, 15 solo stops, 1.0 sack and six quarterback hurries.

Quarterbacking the offense and making All-Honorable Mention was Canatella. In nine games, he threw for 1,599 yards on 162-of-268 passing and 10 touchdowns. He added 199 yards rushing and scored four times with his feet.

His rushing total is 17th in the SAA and his impressive low total of four interceptions leads the league.

Carver was a dual threat in special teams and on defensive. He ranks third with 308 return yards and 15 returns, which offered a healthy 20.5 yards per kickoff attempt.

As a corner back, the Memphis, Tenn., product was second across the conference with 12 pass breakups. He also amassed 26 tackles, 21 solo stops, 2.0 tackles for loss, grabbed an interception and also recovered a fumble in a win at Sewanee.

Elliott was the team's top receiver statistically and ended the regular season in the SAA's top 20 in seven statistical categories.

Hailing from Houston, Texas, Elliott hauled in 39 receptions (eighth) for 536 yards (seventh) as well as the fourth-most receptions per game at 4.3 catches. He averaged 59.6 receiving yards a contest (eighth), 13.7 yards per reception (17th), recorded a 68-yard catch (ninth) and secured two touchdown catches (19th). 

Fellow freshman Reese was another threat in the passing attack at tight end and halfback. His role made Reese instrumental in pass and run protection, while securing 24 receptions for 179 receiving yards. He finished with a team-best three touchdown catches (14th SAA).
 
Francois III started all nine games for the Majors at left tackle and protected Canatella's blind side. He helped the Majors total 1,800 passing yards, 10 passing touchdowns, 827 rushing yards and 13 rushing scores. 
 
Myles Johnson appeared in all nine games and started eight at defensive tackle. The freshman played up front opposite the opponent's guards and center. His pressure allowed the Majors to generate 18 sacks and hold five opponents to 26 points or less.

Individually he collected 22 tackles (12 solo), 5.0 TFLs, 2.5 sacks (24th SAA), two forced fumbles (second SAA) and one pass breakup.
 
Nathan Johnson impressed in nine starts at defensive end to round out the All-SAA Honorable Mention selections. His pursuit of 32 tackles ranked sixth on the team.
 
Johnson was a ballhawk, adding eight quarterback hurries and he blocked a crucial PAT against Hendrix. The block was pivotal as it prevented the Warriors from tying the game in the fourth quarter, leading Millsaps to a 27-26 victory.

Both Myles and Nathan Johnson's 2.5 sacks are also 17th in the conference.
 
Eaton was selected to the SAA All-Sportsmanship Team by Millsaps head football coach Brandon Lechtenberg. The Metairie, La., student-athlete has made the SAA Academic Honor Roll three times to date, both the Dean's and President's Lists twice and he made Club 40 last Spring semester for a perfect 4.0 GPA.

He also made the CSC Academic All-District® Football Team, holds a 3.7 cumulative GPA and is active in community service. On the field, he totaled 18 tackles, 4.0 TFLs, 2.5 sacks (17th SAA) and two quarterback hurries in nine starts.
 
 
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the football program this year follow the Majors on X and Instagram, like Millsaps Majors Athletics on Facebook or visit gomajors.com.  
  
Founded in Jackson, Mississippi in 1890, Millsaps College is a national liberal arts college dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry and free expression, the exploration of faith to inform vocation and the innovative shaping of the social, economic and cultural progress of our region. Consistently ranked as one of the best values in higher education, Millsaps has been praised by Colleges That Change Lives, The Princeton Review, Forbes Magazine, U.S. News & World Report, The John Templeton Foundation, and The Fiske Guide to Colleges.