With just over 24 days until the kick-off of the 2009 University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football season, GoMocs.com begins its breakdown of the team. The Mocs held their 10th preseason workout at Scrappy Moore Field today and recaps, photos and videos from each practice can be found on the Training Camp Central page.
UTC's home-opener is against Glenville State on Thursday, Sept. 3, at 7 p.m. (E.D.T.) at Finley Stadium. Season tickets begin at $22 for youth, alumni, faculty and staff and can be purchased at the UTC Ticket Office - (423) 266-MOCS (6627) - or online at GoMocs.com.
Season Outlook Part 1 - Season Overview
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga plays its 102nd year of college football in 2009 and, led by first-year head coach Russ Huesman, is on a mission to "Restore the Glory" to the proud program. Huesman has first-hand knowledge of the glory years of Chattanooga football after a standout career with the Mocs from 1978-81. During his time at UTC, Huesman helped guide the Mocs to two Southern Conference Championships in 1978 and 1979.
When the Mocs began looking for a new football coach following last season, they were in search of a proven winner who could unite the fan base and had a passion for UTC. Huesman possesses all of those qualities and the Mocs are already benefitting from his leadership and enthusiasm before the first snap has taken place.
Huesman comes to UTC with 25 years of college coaching experience, spending the last five as the defensive coordinator at the University of Richmond. His coaching prowess was on hand for all of Chattanooga to see in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision national title game at Finley Stadium on Dec. 19, 2008. The Spider's defense held the Montana Grizzlies to just 39 yards rushing and seven points in a 24-7 win for Richmond.
Three days later, a capacity crowd jammed into the Stadium Club at Finley Stadium to watch Huesman's introduction as the team's 22nd head coach. Since that time, there has been a buzz around Chattanooga about the Mocs football program that has not been felt since the last time UTC won a conference title in 1984.
Huesman hit the ground running immediately after being hired. Within days he had put together an impressive staff of assistant coaches and pulled together a strong 15-member recruiting class. Despite only having a few weeks to recruit, Huesman's first class at UTC was ranked No. 9 in the FCS by Rivals.com. The Signing Day event at Smoke Bones Restaurant drew another capacity crowd, providing further evidence that the interest in Chattanooga Football was growing.
More proof that the fan base has been ignited by Huesman and his staff was seen throughout spring practice. Over 100 fans showed up for both of the team's informal scrimmages during the month-long drills. A near record crowd of over 1,100 were in attendance for the Spring Game and accompanying festivities at Finley Stadium. Another 200-plus fans returned to Finley Stadium on Aug. 9 for the team's first scrimmage of fall practice.
Season tickets are selling at a record pace and are way up from this time last year. Chattanooga just topped the 1,800 season tickets sold mark for the first time since the 1997 season. UTC's athletic website, GoMocs.com, is seeing record traffic since Huesman was hired and fans throughout the city and region are anticipating the home opener against Glenville State on Thursday, Sept. 3 at 7:00 p.m.
"Obviously, in the spring I thought we got better and we improved in a lot of areas," stated Huesman. "I have said this for a long time and I really believe that summer is important. The kind of effort they put in during the summer will go a long way in how we do in the fall."
Huesman has also brought some much-needed structure, stability and accountability that will benefit the Mocs for years to come. In just a few short months, he and his staff have overhauled the culture of the program. Now the Mocs are ready to begin work to "Restore the Glory" on the field and in the win column.
Be sure to check back to GoMocs.com tomorrow for a full breakdown on the quarterbacks.
