Chattanooga Football Game Notes
No. 9/11 Chattanooga Mocs (9-3, 6-2 SoCon) at No. 1 Sam Houston State (11-0, 8-0 Southland)
Bowers Stadium (12,593) – Huntsville, Texas
Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016 – 3:05 p.m. (E.S.T.)
Radio:  Mocs Sports Network (96.1 The Legend – Flagship) - Jim Reynolds (pxp), Todd Agne (color), Will Poindexter (sideline)
TV:  ESPN3 – Dave Raymond (pxp), Watson Brown (analyst)
Online: Live Audio, ESPN3 & Live Stats Links on GoMocs.com
 
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team has advanced to the second round of the FCS Playoffs for the third year in a row.  The ninth-ranked Mocs travel to fifth-seeded and No. 1 ranked Sam Houston State on Saturday, Dec. 3.  Game time is set for 3:05 p.m. at Bowers Stadium in Huntsville, Texas. 
 
Chattanooga is coming off a 45-14 win over No. 23 Weber State in last weekend's first round action at Finley Stadium.  The Mocs are 9-3 overall after finishing tied for second in the Southern Conference race with a 6-2 league record. 
 
Sam Houston State is undefeated at 11-0, including a perfect 8-0 mark in Southland Conference action.  The Bearkats are the No. 5 seed in the FCS Playoffs and earned a first round bye.  This is the sixth consecutive postseason for Sam Houston State, after advancing to the semifinals each of the last two years.  The Bearkats were in the championship game in 2011 and 2012. 
 
UTC has already posted its third consecutive 9-win season, the longest such streak in school history.  Chattanooga has been ranked for 47 consecutive weeks, the sixth longest active run in the nation.
 
This is the fourth appearance in the FCS Playoffs for Chattanooga, having also made the postseason in 1984.  UTC advanced to the second round last season and the quarterfinals in 2014. 
 
MOCS SPORTS NETWORK
The Mocs Sports Network broadcasts the game on 96.1 The Legend in Chattanooga.  Jim Reynolds has the play-by-play with Todd Agne giving the color commentary and Will Poindexter on the sideline.  A link for a free audio broadcast is available on the football schedule page on GoMocs.com.  Fans can also listen to the game on the iHeart Radio or the TuneIn radio apps, by searching for US 101 The Legend at 96.1 on their mobile device.
 
ESPN3
Saturday's game broadcasts nationally on ESPN3.  Dave Raymond is the play-by-play announcer and Watson Brown is the color commentator.  Access the broadcast through the link on the football schedule page on GoMocs.com. 
 
IT'S ALL IN THE NAME
On first reference, it is acceptable to refer to us as the "University of Tennessee at Chattanooga". After that, we prefer to be called "Chattanooga" or "UTC."  Our nickname is "Mocs."
 
TRIPS TO TEXAS
It has been 50 years and two weeks since the Mocs' last trip to the Lone Star state, a 42-7 loss at North Texas on Nov. 19, 1966.  The Mocs visited the Mean Green two other times in 1955 and 1957.  Chattanooga's lone win in Texas was a 14-6 win in Denton on Nov. 5, 1955.  UTC also suffered a 40-7 loss at Houston on Oct. 20, 1966, in the second college football game in the Astrodome. 
 
QUICK NOTES TO KNOW ABOUT THE MOCS
General
• Head coach Russ Huesman is in his eighth season at his alma mater.  He is 59-36 (.621) overall and 42-20 (.677) in Southern Conference action ... 3-2 in the FCS Playoffs and 0-2 on the road.
• Ranked in the FCS Top 25 for 47 consecutive weeks ... sixth-longest active streak in the nation.
• 57-52 all-time at Finley Stadium …  33-12 in the Huesman era.
• Mocs have earned six SoCon weekly honors this season ... Nakevion Leslie (W3 & W7), Derrick Craine (W4), Henrique Ribeiro (W4, W5) and Montrell Pardue (W6).   
• The Mocs are No. 101 among all 253 NCAA Division I programs (FBS & FCS) in this week's USA Today Sagarin ratings ... that is ahead of 39 FBS programs, including Rutgers, Purdue and Kansas from Power 5 Conferences.
• Mocs have been ranked in the FCS Top 10 in 20 of the last 21 weeks.
• UTC is 3-3 all-time in the playoffs ... 3-2 in the last three seasons.
• Finley Stadium was the host of the FCS Championship Game for 13 seasons from 1997-2009.   
 
Offense
• Chattanooga is second in the SoCon and No. 18 in the FCS in scoring offense (34.1 ppg).
• Third in the SoCon and No. 37 in the FCS in total offense at 402.7 yards per game. 
• 13th in the FCS in Team Passing Efficiency (154.82).
• Third in the SoCon - behind two triple-option teams - in rushing offense (203.8) ... 26th in the FCS.
• Two preseason All-Americans on offense.  Senior RB Derrick Craine is on the STATS Offensive Player of the Year Watch List.  Senior offensive lineman Corey Levin is a two-time winner of the Jacobs Blocking Award as the top offensive lineman in the SoCon.
• Craine has topped 150 yards rushing three times, including 222 yards against Samford on Sept. 24, earning SoCon Player of the Week honors ...  second the SoCon with 10 rushing TDs and 96.8 rushing ypg.
• Senior WR C.J. Board has caught a pass in 29 straight games, longest active streak on the team ... third longest at UTC.
• Junior WR James Stovall has caught a pass in 24 games in a row.
• Junior Alejandro Bennifield's pass efficiency rating is eighth in the nation (156.6) ... second in the SoCon and No. 10 in the FCS with 25 passing TDs ... 11 of his passing TDs have been 30+ yards ... 17th in the FCS in points responsible for (15.5) ... 10th in the country in completion % (64.9%). 
 
Defense
• UTC is currently sixth in the nation in total defense (282.5) and ninth in scoring defense (17.8) ... leads the FCS in passing yards allowed (147.2).
• Also leads the SoCon in team pass efficiency defense (113.8) ... No. 19 in the FCS. 
• Posted back-to-back shutouts in the first two games of the season for the first time since 1964 … 18-0 vs. Tennessee Tech (Sept. 23) and 7-0 vs. ETSU (Oct. 3). 
• The shutout against Presbyterian was the fifth in the Russ Huesman era.
• Held three teams to under 200 yards of total offense this season ... Shorter (16), Presbyterian (196) and ETSU (132).
• Held seven teams to under 100 rushing yards this season ... Shorter (14), Presbyterian (86), Furman (85), Samford (46), ETSU (81), VMI (11) and Weber State (69) ... No. 3 in the SoCon in rushing defense (135.3).
• Held Alabama to its third-lowest offensive output the last two seasons ... 2015 vs. Louisiana-Monroe, 303 yards ... 2016 vs. LSU, 323 yards ... 2016 vs. Chattanooga, 332 yards.
• Three preseason All-Americans on defense, including Keionta Davis (DL), Nakevion Leslie (LB) and Lucas Webb (DB). 
• Davis is on the STATS Defensive Player of the Year Watch List ... his 29.0 career sacks are second all-time at UTC behind Davis Tull's SoCon-record 39.5 (2011-14) ... leads the SoCon with 8.5.  
• Webb has three career pick-6s ... school record and tied for the SoCon record ... 10 career INTs is tied for sixth all-time at UTC.
• Leslie posted his second SoCon Player of the Week honor with 19 tackles at The Citadel.  It was the most tackles by a Moc since Ryan Consiglio against Wofford in 2011.
• Junior LB Dale Warren leads the SoCon with 18.0 TFLs.
 
Special Teams
• Senior Henrique Ribeiro is on the Fred Mitchell Award Watch List for the kicker of the year outside of the FBS (FCS, DII, DIII, NAIA) ... preseason third team All-American according to College Sports Madness ... preseason first team All-SoCon.
• Ribeiro's 76.3 (45/59) career FG% is currently second all-time at UTC ... 45 makes is a new school record ... 160-165 on PATs (school-record) in his career is fifth-most in SoCon history.
• Ribeiro's 295 career points is the most in school history. 
• Ribeiro hit a career-long 52-yard FG at ETSU to earn his second consecutive SoCon Special Teams Player of the Week against ETSU ... 47-yarder at Alabama ... 4-5 from 40+ this season.
• Senior C.J. Board was a second team All-SoCon returner in 2015 ... currently second in the SoCon with 8.9 yards per return.
 
NOTES TO KNOW ABOUT SAM HOUSTON STATE
• Head coach K.C. Keeler is the 2016 Southland Conference Coach of the Year.  He is 33-9 in three seasons at Sam Houston State and 207-82-1 in 23 years overall. 
• SHSU is among the national leads in wins since the start of the 2011 season.  The Bearkats are 67-19 in that span, trailing only North Dakota State (81) and Alabama (74) for number of wins among NCAA Division I programs.  
• The Bearkats lead the nation in total offense (584.0) and scoring offense (54.2) ... SHSU is second in the nation in passing offense (387.0) and No. 28 in rushing offense (197.0). 
• Junior QB Jeremiah Briscoe is the 2016 Southland Conference Player of the Year ... he leads the nation in passing yards (4,096), passing TDs (52), pass efficiency (187.0) and points responsible for (28.9) ... he is second in total offense (370.6) and fifth in completion percentage (67.3%) and completions per game (25.6).
• Junior Yedidiah Louis is the Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year and leads the league in receptions (65), receiving yards (977) and is tied with teammate Nathan Stewart for the league lead with 11 touchdown catches. The versatile Bearkat slot man also ranks fourth in the league in all-purpose yards (102.7).  He has 20 catches for 293 yards and five TDs in his last two games.
• Sophomore RB Remus Bulmer is No. 7 in the country in rushing yards per carry (6.8).
• Receiver Nathan Stewart is the Southland Conference Freshman of the Year ... second in the league with 47 catches and 903 receiving yards and with Louis with 11 touchdown catches. His yardage and touchdown totals lead all freshmen nationally, while his 19.2 yards per catch ranks 10th in the nation among all players.
• Senior Bridge Blount is the Southland Conference Offensive Lineman of the Year.  He has started all 11 games at center. 
• No. 5 in the nation on third down (79/153 - 51.6%).
• Only lost four fumbles this season ... No. 7 in the FCS.
• Of Sam Houston's 83 touchdown drives this season, 50 have lasted less than 2 minutes.
• 15 Bearkats have hauled in a pass reception this year, including 11 who have caught a TD.
• Junior P.J. Hall is the Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Year.  The defensive end is No. 7 in the FCS with 21 TFLs and second in the Southland with 9.5 sacks.
• The Bearkat defense has had at least four tackles for loss in each game this season.
• Third in the FCS in kickoff returns (25.1) ... Weber State led the nation in KOR going into last week's game with the Mocs (25.7) ... UTC held the Wildcats to just 11.5 yards on six returns. 
• No. 6 in the country in net punting (40.2) ... Senior Joe Figenshaw is No. 5 in the FCS in punting (44.6).
 
CONNECTIONS
• The two head coaches in this game went against each other when both were in the Colonial Athletic Association.  Russ Huesman was the defensive coordinator at Richmond (2004-08) while K.C. Keeler was the head coach at Delaware (2002-12).
• Both teams had their seasons ended last year by Jacksonville State.  The Mocs lost at JSU in overtime (45-31) in the second round.  SHSU lost on the road (62-10) two weeks later in the national semifinals. 
 
NOTES TO KNOW ABOUT THE SAM HOUSTON STATE SERIES
• This is the first meeting between these two teams.
• The Mocs are 11-5-1 all-time against teams currently in the Southland Conference, including Abilene Christian (8-2-1), Central Arkansas (0-1), McNeese (0-2) and Southeastern Louisiana (3-0).  The last game was a win over Southeastern Louisiana in 1985. 
 
MOCS VS. NO. 1
UTC has two wins in 12 tries against the No. 1 ranked team in the country in school history. The Mocs defeated No. 1 Marshall 33-31 at home on Oct. 2, 1993. Chattanooga also bested No. 1 Furman 21-14 at home on Sept. 29, 1984. UTC has faced Georgia Southern five times when the Eagles were ranked No. 1.
Below is the list of the 12 games against top-ranked teams for the Mocs.
Defeated No. 1 Furman at home - 21-4 - Sept. 29, 1984
Lost to No. 1 ETSU on the road - 14-34 - Sept. 19, 1987
Lost to No. 1 Georgia Southern at home - 3-13 - Sept. 17, 1988
Lost to No. 1 Georgia Southern on the road - 13-34 - Nov. 11, 1989
Defeated No. 1 Marshall at home - 33-31 - Oct. 2, 1993
Lost to No. 1 Marshall on the road - 20-56 - Oct. 1, 1994
Lost to No. 1 Marshall on the road - 0-45 - Oct. 5, 1996
Lost to No. 1 Georgia Southern on the road - 10-49 - Sept. 25, 1999
Lost to No. 1 Georgia Southern on the road - 7-70 - Sept. 22, 2001
Lost to No. 1 Georgia Southern on the road - 27-28 - Oct. 8, 2011
Lost to No. 1 New Hampshire on the road - 35-30 - Dec. 6, 2014
Lost to No. 1 Jacksonville State on the road - 41-35 (OT) - Dec. 5, 2015
 
PASSING OFFENSE VS. PASSING DEFENSE
This game features Chattanooga's No. 1 ranked passing defense in the FCS against Sam Houston State's top-ranked passing offense.  The Mocs are allowing just 147.2 yards per game in the air, while SHSU is putting up a gaudy 387.0 passing yards per game.  The Mocs are No. 9 in the nation in scoring defense, while the Bearkats lead the FCS with 54.2 points per game.  The Bearkats are led by Southland Conference Player of the Year Jeremiah Briscoe at quarterback.  He has 52 passing TDs against one interception.  The Mocs have Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year Keionta Davis on its line.  He leads the league with 8.5 sacks and has six PBUs and seven hurries. 
 
FIRST HALF SCORING VS. FIRST HALF DEFENSE
The Mocs have been strong on defense in the opening 30 minutes this season, shutting out five opponents in the first half.  This includes the 24-0 lead they took into the break last week against Weber State.  UTC is outscoring opponents 113-30 in the first quarter and 258 to 77 in the first half overall.  Sam Houston State's top-ranked offense has put up a third of its points in the first 15 minutes of games this season.  The Bearkats have outscored its opponents 201 to 37 in the first quarter and 379-93 in the first half.
 
CRAINE NEEDS 32 YARDS TO HIT 1,000
Senior RB Derrick Craine is 32 yards away from the 12th 1,000-yard rushing season in school history.  He is currently second in the SoCon with 96.8 yards per game and is trying to become the third in school history with two 1,000-yard seasons in a career (Jacob Huesman 2014 & 2015 and Eldra Buckley 2005 & 2006).  He set a school record with 1,251 yards in 2015.   
 
CRAINE CLIMBS THE SCHOOL RECORD BOOKS
Craine has 2,882 career rushing yards.  He is currently fifth all-time at Chattanooga and 209 behind fourth-place James Roberts (1989-91). Craine's 29 rushing TDs one behind second-place Keon Williams (2010-14).  He also has 11 career 100-yard rushing games, which is fifth all-time at UTC.
 
BENNIFIELD PUTTING UP TOP 10 NUMBERS
Junior QB Alejandro Bennifield has thrown 25 touchdown passes this season, third-most in a season at UTC.  The school record is 27 set by Chris Sanders in 1999.  His 25 passing TDs are second in the SoCon and No. 10 in the FCS. 
 
DAVIS NAMED SOCON DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Senior DL Keionta Davis is the 2016 Southern Conference Coaches Defensive Player of the Year.  This is the fourth time in the last five seasons a Moc has been named SoCon Defensive Player of the Year.  It's also the fifth time in the eight-year tenure of head coach Russ Huesman that a defensive player from UTC has taken the honor.  Davis Tull won it three times in a row from 2012-14, while Josh Beard was honored in 2009. 
 
Davis twice posted three sacks in a game this season, three against Samford and another three against VMI.  It was the third time in his career he has tallied three sacks in a game.  He leads the SoCon with 8.5 sacks this season.  UTC's school record for sacks in a game is 3.5 set by Davis Tull (Furman 10/12/13) and Tyler Unzicker (ETSU 11/10/01).   
 
MOCS LEAD THE SOCON WITH 11 HONOREES ON THE COACHES ALL-SOCON TEAM
Chattanooga led all teams in the SoCon with 10 honorees on the Coaches' team.  Joining Davis on the first team defense were senior linebacker Nakevion Leslie, junior linebacker Dale Warren and junior defensive back Lucas Webb. 
 
Senior offensive lineman Corey Levin made his third straight All-SoCon first team.  He was joined by senior running back Derrick Craine and junior lineman Jacob Revis.
 
Senior defensive lineman Vantrel McMillan and junior defensive back Montrell Pardue made the second team defense, while junior offensive lineman Josh Cardiello was second team offense.  Offensive lineman Malcolm White and punter Colin Brewer both made the SoCon All-Freshman Team.
 
The media team had a different take with Levin on first team offense and Davis, McMillan and Leslie on first team defense.  Bennifield, Craine and Revis made the second team offense, while Warren and Pardue were second team defense. 
 
7-8-9-WIN SEASONS
The Mocs have put up some unprecedented numbers since head coach Russ Huesman took over in 2009.  During that time, UTC finished above .500 eight times, which is an amazing accomplishment considering there were only 30 winning seasons in the entire history of the program prior to his arrival. 
7-win seasons - 23 overall - 4 under head coach Russ Huesman
8-win seasons - 9 overall - 4 under head coach Russ Huesman
9-win seasons - 7 overall - 3 under head coach Russ Huesman (2014, 2015, 2016).
10-win seasons - 1 overall - 1 under head coach Russ Huesman (2014). 
 
WEBER STATE & UTC RAISE FUNDS FOR WOODMORE TRAGEDY
The week prior to the UTC-WSU playoff game on Nov. 26, 2016, Weber State Athletics Director Jerry Bovee and head football coach Jay Hill reached out to their fans and supporters, asking for donations to help the victims and families of the Woodmore Elementary School bus tragedy that occurred in Chattanooga.  Six students were killed when their bus crashed on Monday, Nov. 21.  UTC also asked our fans to join in and together, the Mocs and Wildcats raised over $8,000.  In response, the Mocs would like to send our most sincere thanks to Coach Hill, Mr. Bovee and the entire Weber State Athletics fans base.
 
MOCS IN THE PLAYOFFS
• UTC is 3-3 all-time in the FCS Playoffs.
• 0-3 all-time on the road in the FCS Playoffs.
• 3-2 in the Russ Huesman era.
• 2016 - Nov. 26 - Beat No. 23 Weber State at home - 1st Rd.
• 2015 - Dec. 5 - Lost at No. 1 Jacksonville State 35-41 in overtime at Jacksonville, Ala.- 2nd Rd.  
• 2015 - Nov. 28 - Beat No. 17 Fordham 50-20 at home - 1st Rd.
• 2014 - Dec. 12 - Lost at No. 1 New Hampshire 30-35 in Hanover, N.H. - Quarterfinals.
• 2014 - Dec. 6 - Beat No. 21 Indiana State 35-14 at home - 2nd Rd.
• 1984 - Nov. 24 - Lost at Arkansas State 10-37 at Jonesboro, Ark. - 1st Rd.
 
SENIORS HAVE SCHOOL RECORD FOR WINS
The 2016 senior class has a 36-15 (.706) record with three SoCon titles.  That is the most wins in school history.  This group passed the 2015 and 1980 seniors with the victory against VMI on Oct. 22.  Coach Huesman's 1981 class is fourth all-time at UTC with 31 wins.
 
BOARD CLOSING IN ON TERRELL OWENS FOR CAREER RECEPTIONS
Senior receivers Xavier Borishade and C.J. Board are moving up the UTC ranks for career numbers.  Borishade is currently sixth all-time at UTC with 15 receiving touchdowns.  Board is currently eighth with 140 catches and needs seven more to pass Jeremy Grier (2001-03) and Terrell Owens (1992-95) for sixth all-time at UTC.  Board is sixth in all-time receiving yards with 1,903 receiving yards ... needs 42 yards to pass Joel Bradford (2013-16) for fifth.
 
RIBEIRO SETS SCHOOL FG RECORD
Senior kicker Henrique Ribeiro nailed a 41-yarder last week against Weber State, the 45th make of his career.  That broke a tie with Matt Vick (1997-00) for the school record.  He is currently second in UTC history in FG% (45/59 - 76.3%).  He would need to make three in a row to grab that mark from Patrick Shutters (77.3% - 17/22 - 2002-03).    
 
DEFENSIVE SCORES
Since head coach Russ Huesman took over in 2009, the Mocs have posted 21 defensive scores, including three this season.  That is the most in the SoCon during that time.  These include 15 pick-6s and six fumbles returned for a score.  Junior Lucas Webb has three of those pick-6s, tying a Southern Conference record.  Junior Montrell Pardue had a school-record 99-yard fumble return for a TD against Weber State.   
 
MOCS RANKED FOR 47 CONSECUTIVE WEEKS
The Mocs are No. 9 in the FCS Coaches Poll and No. 11 in the STATS Top 25 this week.  UTC has been ranked in the Top 25 for 47 consecutive weeks, dating back to Nov. 4, 2013.  That is the sixth-longest active streak in the country.  The Mocs have been among the Top 25 for 51 weeks in the Russ Huesman era (since 2009) and are 31-18 when ranked under Huesman.  UTC was ranked as high as No. 3 on Nov. 1, 1968, in the Small College Top 20, before the FCS was created in 1978.