OVC Basketball: Ranking of 25 best players from last decade (2013-23)

12. Tahjere McCall

McCall was the best player that Dana Ford had during his run as head coach at Tennessee State, but that’s not where his playing career began. A 6’4 guard from Philadelphia, McCall spent his two seasons at Niagara before transferring into the OVC. After sitting out a season, he was on court for the Tigers beginning in 2015, putting up some impressive figures in his final two campaigns.

As a redshirt junior, McCall averaged 14.6 points and 5.1 rebounds and quickly became a key part of the program for Tennessee State. He helped the Tigers to a 20-win season and 2nd place finish in the OVC East, including a 32-point effort at Belmont. That junior year ended in the CIT, but McCall’s individual numbers were even better as a senior. He’d average 14.3 points, 5.1 assists, and 2.8 steals as the full-time point guard.

The conference’s leader in steals in both seasons in the OVC, McCall’s defensive intensity led him to be named First Team All-OVC and Defensive Player of the Year in each of those two years. McCall was a solid offensive player but truly did his best work on the defensive end for the Tigers. That junior year was Tennessee State’s best season of this past decade and it’s easy to argue that the Tigers haven’t had anyone who could play defense the same way since McCall graduated.