What's a Moc? What are the Mocs? Well, here's a history lesson.
 
The UTC Athletics Department changed logos in 1997, moving away from Native American imagery to a package of logos using railroad images, the nickname "Mocs," and the Scrappy mascot. The new package emphasized UTC's connection to Chattanooga and the city's railroad heritage and incorporated the Tennessee state bird.
 
Mockingbirds are fiercely territorial creatures which protect their homes with courage, determination and skill. Those attributes reflect the intellect, spirit and character of UTC student-athletes and alumni.
 
In the simplest term, a Moc is a champion on the playing surface, in the classroom and, most importantly, in life.
 
If you ask head volleyball coach Travis Filar about what it means to be part of the "Mocs" culture – you'll get a very similar answer.
 
"Making, Our, Culture, Stronger. We do that by the culture and motto of our program, which is Mission First, Family Always," said Filar. "So what that truly is that we want to think about every day as a mission, and that's where our mindset starts when we make up in the morning.
 
"Each day, there is a ton of little missions during that entire day, and what we want to try to do is attack those missions with the mentality of getting better and improving not only on the court, but in the classroom, in the community, it's growing as human beings and as a team."
 
Since being named head coach on February 17, 2011, Filar knew exactly the type of culture and program he wanted to implement at Chattanooga. Spending time on coaching staffs at the likes of Furman, Memphis, North Carolina and Kentucky before UTC helped polish off a structure that was created ever since he was a kid.
 
"I was born into a coaching family. Teaching and coaching is in my blood, no doubt. I was definitely that coach's kid, that gym rat growing up," Filar laughed.
 
John Filar, Travis's father, was the head women's basketball coach at then Southern Conference member Davidson College from 1992-93 to 2000-01. In addition, John racked up nearly 30 years of experience coaching at the youth and young adult level.
 
"It was a great way to grow up around sports, around competition. There were so many valuable life lessons I learned being a coach's kid. I knew going into college that I wanted to be around sports and be around young people."
 
Filar kept his SoCon ties close and attended Furman University from 1997-2000 where he graduated with a degree in Health and Exercise Science. He played two seasons of men's club volleyball in Greenville, gaining interest and experience within the sport.

Following graduation, Filar earned his first assistant coaching position at his alma mater alongside women's volleyball head coach at Furman, Michelle Young, at just 22 years old.
 
"I was fortunate enough to just get an interview as a 22 year old especially for a full-time, Division I assistant coaching position. Thankfully, she gave me a great chance. That's kind of where it all started down the volleyball path."
 
After serving two years on the Furman bench, Filar became a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Kentucky in 2003 and 2004 before heading to Memphis as a full-time assistant during the 2005 and 2006 seasons. The 2007-2010 seasons were spent as an assistant coach at North Carolina upon taking the Chattanooga job in 2011.
 
During his five seasons with the Tigers and Tar Heels, he coached five AVCA All-Americans and nine AVCA All-Region players including the Conference USA Libero of the Year in 2006 and ACC Defensive Player of the Year in 2010.
 
These different experiences, along with the all-natural coaching blood, prepared Filar to take the next step and become a leader of a Division I program.
 
"I'm going into my 10^th year at Chattanooga, and I learned something from each and every one of those stops at Furman, Kentucky, Memphis and North Carolina.
 
"It really prepared me and gave me the tools, the confidence, to know that I can lead my own Division I program and thankfully, I've been doing that here at Chattanooga for a while," added Filar.
 
On-court achievements and success has struck often during the nine-year tenure. Filar led UTC to one of its most successful seasons in program history, rolling to a 26-6 overall record and regular season Southern Conference title in 2015. It marked the program's first conference crown since 1998.
 
In addition, Chattanooga appeared in back-to-back SoCon Tournament title matches in 2015 and 2016. Individually, the program has amassed 14 All-Southern Conference selections including five All-Freshman honors during Filar's reign.
 
More importantly, off the court, the UTC volleyball program has never been stronger. In the classroom, the team has set numerous GPA records including a program record 3.61 GPA in Fall of 2018. Senior Megan Kaufman carries a perfect 4.0 GPA and is a back-to-back CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree.
 
One can take away the numbers, stats, and the awards, but one cannot take away from the family bond and culture Filar has created. From day one, it has never altered.
 
"From my first team meeting on March 1, 2011, all the way to now in 2020, it has always been about family. No matter what, our program is going to be an atmosphere of family.
 
"It's going to be one where everyone involved, not just our coaches and student-athletes, but all of our support staff, it's about family. A family that's based on care, trust, respect, loyalty, honesty, and constant growth and betterment of one's self."
 
The fabric of the culture and program in four simple core values:
 
We are confident and competitive.
We are driven and disciplined.
We are positive and present.
We are tough and thankful.
 
The "we" statements reflect on the importance of sticking beside one another through the tough times. Battling it out for the person beside you. Showing constant growth as a collective unit.
 
"Our culture within the volleyball program is what really sets us apart and makes our program unique and special. I think that's the case across the board in the entire athletic department. Chattanooga is such a special place."
 
A special culture full of MOCS, who are becoming stronger together, each and every day.

MORE ABOUT CHATTANOOGA VOLLEYBALL
Watch "Mission First, Family Always" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8mOmxbzHk4&t=2s
Read "Mission First, Family Always" here: https://gomocs.com/news/2019/9/27/general-chatt-chats-mission-first-family-always.aspx?path=general

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