By Mike Hutchens, UC Schools Communications Director
Bethel University football has grabbed up another Golden Tornado.
Linebacker Dayton Buckley, who led Union City in tackles his senior season, will trade one shade of purple and gold for another after joining Twister teammate Andre Small as a BU signee recently.
Buckley, playing linebacker for the first time in his final prep campaign, recorded 72 total tackles during the 2025 season. His top individual highlight came when he made 15 tackles (10 solos) in the Tornadoes’ first win of the season against Decatur County Riverside.
For his UC career – most of which was spent along the defensive and offensive lines – Buckley was credited with 153 stops, including 14 for lost yardage.
The sting of a disappointing 3-7 senior year, coupled with his “love for the game,” were significant factors in Buckley wanting to extend his playing career to the next level.
“That’s not the way I wanted to go out,” he said. “I felt like I could’ve done better – we all could have. I had some highs, like the game against Riverside, but I also had some games where my numbers were not up to my level of expectations.
“I’ll get the opportunity now to play the game I love against grown men and see how I stack up.”
A member of three consecutive state quarterfinal teams in his first three seasons on the varsity level, Buckley listed UC’s second-round playoff victory against Westview his freshman year, and a Round 2 postseason win against MASE as a sophomore in which he made four tackles for losses as his favorite Tornado memories.
Buckley said he visited Georgia State and drew interest from other schools. He cited the distance to BU’s McKenzie campus – one not too close, but also not too far away – as instrumental in his decision.
“I have a cousin there (T.J. Hart), and we’ve talked about it being a really good NAIA school and one that has a lot of guys who are good players that just flew under the radar when it came time to be recruited,” he continued. “I’ve played against some of those guys in high school, and I’m looking forward to seeing how I measure up against them now.”