The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

RONDRE Knowles-Tener struggled for playing time over the first two years of his collegiate career but the junior defensive tackle has developed into an elite pass rusher with several career high marks this season.

He finished with a team leading and career high eight sacks for the Virginia-Wise Cavaliers this season.

He also led the team with five quarterback hurries, finished second on the team with 11 tackles for a loss and fifth in total tackles with 41.

In his second season with the Cavaliers, Knowles-Tener appeared in all 11 games and recorded at least 0.5 sacks in eight of those 11 appearances.

The junior defensive tackle leads the Cavs with 5.5 sacks in their first year of play in the South Atlantic Conference.

He opened the season with one sack and four tackles, including one for a loss against Chowan University. In game two he had a season high two sacks and four tackles against Tennessee Tech.

He finished with a career high seven tackles against Wingate and also added one sack, three tackles and one forced fumble against Catawba.

Despite his personal success, the Cavs finished the season just 2-9 in NCAA Division II’s South Atlantic Conference.

As a sophomore, he finished his first full season of college football on the field and first as a member of the Cavs with 21 tackles (including three for a loss), three sacks, two fumble recoveries, two quarterback hurries and one field goal block.

After struggling to earn playing time over the previous two seasons with the James Madison Dukes, Knowles-Tener decided to leave the programme and transfer to the Cavs.

Coming out of high school, Knowles-Tener originally committed to the East Carolina Pirates but eventually chose to join the programme at James Madison. He sat out his true freshman season last year as a redshirt but was expected to be an important factor in the Dukes’ plans for its defensive front line moving forward.

The 6’1”, 295-pound defensive lineman is a former standout performer at Tabernacle Baptist Academy and also anchored the defensive line at Liberty Christian Academy.

Knowles-Tener drew interest from a number of elite Division I programmes, including Wake Forest and East Carolina.