University of Memphis Athletics
Eight Tigers Earn American Conference Honors
Dec 02, 2025 | Football
IRVING, Texas – The University of Memphis football team placed eight athletes on the American Conference's Football Honors for 2025, it was announced Tuesday.
Cortez Braham Jr., Sam Brumfield, Travis Burke, Sutton Smith (RS) and William Whitlow Jr. were all named First Team All-Conference while Omarion Cooper was named to the Second Team. Gianni Spetic, Pooda Walker and Smith (RB) all garnered Third Team honors.
Braham Jr., a redshirt senior out of Baltimore, Maryland, had a breakout year with the Tigers, leading the team with 63 receptions and 889 yards. The wideout recorded eight touchdowns – all coming from former Nevada quarterback Brendon Lewis.
Braham Jr. recorded a season-best 127 yards against Florida Atlantic while scoring two touchdowns against then 18th-ranked South Florida. He finished the regular season ranked second in the conference and 21st in the country with eight receiving touchdowns and in the top 30 in Division I with his 889 receiving yards.
Brumfield, a redshirt senior from Pearl, Mississippi, was the driving force of the Tiger defense this season, totaling a team-best 106 tackles with 13.0 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. The middle linebacker played and started in all 12 games for Memphis this season while finishing the last five regular season games with 11+ tackles in each game.
Brumfield had a career-game against Navy with 17 tackles – nine of them being solo.
Burke, a redshirt senior from Hollywood, Florida, played and started in 11 games for Memphis this season while helping the Tiger offense to rank in the top 60 in passing offense, sixth in red zone offense, 19th in scoring offense and first downs and 38th in rushing offense.
The 34 rushing touchdowns Memphis recorded this season rank tied for fifth in the country while the team's 2,231 rushing yards rank in the top 40 in DI.
Smith, a redshirt junior out of Powder Springs, Georgia, had a monster comeback season with a team-best 688 rushing yards and seven scores. The dual-threat runner also totaled a combined 280 yards in kick and punt returns this season while recording a 99-yard kickoff touchdown against UAB.
A threat on the ground and through the air, Smith also totaled 109 reception yards while recording 669 all-purpose yards.
Whitlow Jr., a redshirt senior out of Millbrook, Alabama, was the only defensive returner for Memphis this season. The captain and 12-game starter recorded 31 tackles with 6.5 tackles for loss. The defensive end also added in 2.5 sacks and had a blocked field goal attempt in the team's season-opening game against Chattanooga.
Whitlow Jr. had a season-best seven tackles at Georgia State. This is the second First Team All-Conference honor for Whitlow Jr.
Cooper, redshirt senior from Lehigh Acres, Florida, helped keep the backfield for Memphis clear with 36 tackles, six pass breakups and a 23-yard interception against Rice. The defensive back also forced a fumble against East Carolina.
Cooper helped to anchor a backfield that ranked 28th in the country in interceptions (12), 32nd in red zone defense (0.794) and 47th in scoring defense (22.5).
Spetic, a placekicker from Chadron, Ohio, was nearly perfect for the Tigers this season hitting 15-of-19 field goal attempts while going a perfect 4-for-4 from 50+ yards out. The junior recorded three of his four 50+ yard field goals during conference play, including back-to-back makes of 52 and 50 against Florida Atlantic and Tulsa, respectively.
Spetic also converted on all 48 point after attempts while ranking in the top 20 in the conference in points responsible for and total points scored (93) and eighth in scoring per game (7.8).
Walker, a defensive lineman from Pensacola, Florida, played and started in all 12 games for the Tigers this season while recording 28 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. The redshirt junior totaled three quarterback hurries and a fumble recovery at East Carolina.
A hassle for offensive lines, Walker tallied a season-best seven tackles at Rice while recording half a sack for five yards against the Owls.
How to follow the Tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tigers Football, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Cortez Braham Jr., Sam Brumfield, Travis Burke, Sutton Smith (RS) and William Whitlow Jr. were all named First Team All-Conference while Omarion Cooper was named to the Second Team. Gianni Spetic, Pooda Walker and Smith (RB) all garnered Third Team honors.
Braham Jr., a redshirt senior out of Baltimore, Maryland, had a breakout year with the Tigers, leading the team with 63 receptions and 889 yards. The wideout recorded eight touchdowns – all coming from former Nevada quarterback Brendon Lewis.
Braham Jr. recorded a season-best 127 yards against Florida Atlantic while scoring two touchdowns against then 18th-ranked South Florida. He finished the regular season ranked second in the conference and 21st in the country with eight receiving touchdowns and in the top 30 in Division I with his 889 receiving yards.
Brumfield, a redshirt senior from Pearl, Mississippi, was the driving force of the Tiger defense this season, totaling a team-best 106 tackles with 13.0 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. The middle linebacker played and started in all 12 games for Memphis this season while finishing the last five regular season games with 11+ tackles in each game.
Brumfield had a career-game against Navy with 17 tackles – nine of them being solo.
Burke, a redshirt senior from Hollywood, Florida, played and started in 11 games for Memphis this season while helping the Tiger offense to rank in the top 60 in passing offense, sixth in red zone offense, 19th in scoring offense and first downs and 38th in rushing offense.
The 34 rushing touchdowns Memphis recorded this season rank tied for fifth in the country while the team's 2,231 rushing yards rank in the top 40 in DI.
Smith, a redshirt junior out of Powder Springs, Georgia, had a monster comeback season with a team-best 688 rushing yards and seven scores. The dual-threat runner also totaled a combined 280 yards in kick and punt returns this season while recording a 99-yard kickoff touchdown against UAB.
A threat on the ground and through the air, Smith also totaled 109 reception yards while recording 669 all-purpose yards.
Whitlow Jr., a redshirt senior out of Millbrook, Alabama, was the only defensive returner for Memphis this season. The captain and 12-game starter recorded 31 tackles with 6.5 tackles for loss. The defensive end also added in 2.5 sacks and had a blocked field goal attempt in the team's season-opening game against Chattanooga.
Whitlow Jr. had a season-best seven tackles at Georgia State. This is the second First Team All-Conference honor for Whitlow Jr.
Cooper, redshirt senior from Lehigh Acres, Florida, helped keep the backfield for Memphis clear with 36 tackles, six pass breakups and a 23-yard interception against Rice. The defensive back also forced a fumble against East Carolina.
Cooper helped to anchor a backfield that ranked 28th in the country in interceptions (12), 32nd in red zone defense (0.794) and 47th in scoring defense (22.5).
Spetic, a placekicker from Chadron, Ohio, was nearly perfect for the Tigers this season hitting 15-of-19 field goal attempts while going a perfect 4-for-4 from 50+ yards out. The junior recorded three of his four 50+ yard field goals during conference play, including back-to-back makes of 52 and 50 against Florida Atlantic and Tulsa, respectively.
Spetic also converted on all 48 point after attempts while ranking in the top 20 in the conference in points responsible for and total points scored (93) and eighth in scoring per game (7.8).
Walker, a defensive lineman from Pensacola, Florida, played and started in all 12 games for the Tigers this season while recording 28 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. The redshirt junior totaled three quarterback hurries and a fumble recovery at East Carolina.
A hassle for offensive lines, Walker tallied a season-best seven tackles at Rice while recording half a sack for five yards against the Owls.
How to follow the Tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tigers Football, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
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