Ranked as the #8 returning linebacker in the FCS by HERO Sports...Rated #10 among the top returning linebackers in the FCS by Sports Illustrated.
2023: Earned First-Team Big South-OVC Association honors for the second year in a row...Started 10 games at inside linebacker...Led Southeast Missouri in tackles for the third-straight season...Notched 87 tackles, 44 solo stops, a team-high 9.5 tackles for loss and team-best five sacks...Had one interception, four pass breakups and four quarterback hurries...Also forced a fumble and returned a fumble 46 yards for a touchdown...Ranked third in the Big South-OVC in tackles and 10th in sacks...Finished with double-digit tackles in five of his starts...Turned in a season-high 12 tackles on three occasions -- vs. Southern Illinois (9/16), at Nicholls (10/28), vs. Robert Morris (11/4)...Had 11 tackles vs. Eastern Illinois (10/14) and 10 at Eastern Kentucky (9/23)...Averaged 8.7 tackles per game.
2022: Made the Phil Steele (Third-Team) and HERO Sports (Sophomore) All-America teams…First-Team All-Ohio Valley Conference linebacker…Started 11 of 12 games…Finished as Southeast Missouri’s leading tackler for the second-straight season…Recorded 100 tackles in a season for the first time in his career with his team-high 119 stops…Led the team with 57 solo stops…Tallied 5.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks…Had one interception, a forced fumble, one fumble recovery, five pass breakups and eight quarterback hurries…Scored a touchdown on a 3-yard fumble recovery vs. Central Arkansas (9/24)…Ranked second in the OVC in tackles as one of three players in the conference with over 100 stops…Averaged 9.9 tackles per game…Rated 16th in the nation in total tackles…Ended the season with double-digit tackles in each of his final five starts…Posted a career-high 17 tackles vs. Nicholls (9/17)…Finished with 12 tackles vs. Tennessee Tech (10/8), at Tennessee State (11/5) and vs. Murray State (11/19)…Registered 16 tackles vs. Eastern Kentucky (10/29) and 11 at Eastern Illinois (11/12) and Montana (11/26)…Was SEMO’s leading tackler in eight games…Was named OVC Defensive Player of the Week once (9/18)…Finished 21st in the overall voting for the Buck Buchanan Award which goes to the top defensive player in the FCS each year.
2021: Named to the HERO Sports Freshman All-America Team and earned First-Team Phil Steele Freshman All-America accolades…Was a finalist for the Stats Perform Jerry Rice Award…Claimed Second-Team All-OVC and All-Newcomer honors…Played in every game and started the last seven contests as a true freshman…Led the Redhawks with 66 tackles, including a team-high 32 solo stops…Ranked second on the team with 7.5 tackles for a loss of 25 yards…Had 1.5 sacks and a team-best three forced fumbles…Had the second-most tackles among any freshmen in the OVC…Ranked 13th among league leaders in tackles (6.0 per game), 11th in tackles for loss and tied for first in forced fumbles…Was 26th in the Football Championship Subdivision in forced fumbles…Put together a pair of double-digit tackle performances with a season-best 14 at UT Martin (10/23) and 10 vs. Murray State (10/16)…Had eight tackles at Sam Houston (9/11)…Finished with seven tackles, one for loss, forced a fumble and added a sack in his first career start at Tennessee Tech (10/2).Â
Prep: Helped lead nearby Jackson High School to its first Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) Class 5 state title...Finished the 2020 season with 170 tackles and six sacks...Class 5 Defensive Player of the Year and First-Team All-State honoree...Won First-Team All-State accolades for the second year in a row...Is a finalist for the coveted Derland Moore Award which goes to the top defensive player in the SEMO Conference...Was both the 2019 SEMO Conference Defensive Player of the Year and Regional Defensive Player of the Year.
Personal: Born September 27, 2002...Majoring in Agribusiness...Son of Brandon and Rhonda Norman...His father was a two-time All-OVC selection as a center at Southeast Missouri.
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