LOGAN, Utah – Utah State head men's basketball coach Ben Jacobson announced the signing of transfer forward Connor Turnbull on Tuesday. Turnbull will join the Aggies in 2026-27 as a fifth year, after beginning his collegiate career at Butler then playing the past two seasons at Evansville.

Turnbull, a 6-foot-10, 225-pound forward, was named the 2025 Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year. That season, he appeared in all 32 games for the Purple Aces, averaging 9.2 points and 4.3 rebounds, along with 1.5 assists and 1.9 blocks per contest. His 1.91 blocks per game ranked second in the MVC and 27th in the nation. He started 20 of the team's final 21 games and saw his efficiency jump in the second half of the season, scoring in double-figures in 12 of the team's final 15 games and pulling down five or more boards 10 times during that span, including a 20-point, 13-rebound double-double against Bradley. Turnbull led the team in shooting efficiency that season, making 53.6 percent (119-of-222) of his shots from the field.

In 2025-26, Turnbull took a statistical step forward despite missing much of the year due to injury. In 16 games, he averaged 11.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per contest. He neared a triple-double against Western Kentucky as he went for 19 points, eight rebounds and a program record nine blocked shots. Against Drake, he went for 20 points and 15 rebounds with three blocks. 

Prior to his time at Evansville, Turnbull spent his first two collegiate seasons at Butler. There, he appeared in 22 games as a freshman in 2022-23. As a sophomore the following year, he jumped from 5.3 to 11.7 minutes per game, but was limited to just nine games that year before suffering a season-ending injury in mid-December. Before getting injured, he averaged 4.1 points and 2.2 rebounds per game with 16 blocks. 

Turnbull, a native of St. Paul, Missouri, prepped at Fort Zumwalt North High School in O'Fallon, Missouri. There, he was a four-year letterwinner and earned Class 6 All-State honors his junior and senior seasons. During his prep career, he scored over 1,000 points, and he holds school records for career rebounds, single-season rebounds, career blocks and single-season blocks while helping the Panthers to a 60-24 combined record during his career. As a senior, he averaged 23.5 points and 12.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 60 percent from the field, 39 percent from 3-point range and 81 percent at the free throw line. He scored 30-plus points seven times and was named to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch All-Metro Team. As a junior, he averaged 14.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.0 blocks per game while leading his squad to 27 wins and the Class 6 state semifinals. Turnbull was rated as a four-star recruit by ESPN coming out of high school. 

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