STATS | NOTES | QUOTES
 
CHATTANOOGA --- The sixth-ranked Chattanooga Mocs football team had its chances in the fourth quarter but could not make the plays in a 24-20 loss at No. 24 Furman. It's the first FCS loss of the season for the Scenic City men.
 
The Mocs rushing attack never got on track, while the Paladins did with a 101-yard advantage (185-84) on the ground. The passing attack behind Preston Hutchinson gained 270 yards, but the offense was able to convert only four of six trips in the red zone on the day.
 
The loss puts Chattanooga at 4-1 in the SoCon standings dropping from a first-place tie into fourth but just a game out of first. Samford leads at 5-0 with Mercer and Furman second at 5-1.
 
"We didn't play well enough to win," Coach Rusty Wright said afterwards. "They made plays, and we didn't. That was it.
 
"We will be fine. I expect the same group that showed up today on Monday this past week for work to show up this Monday for work. It is just how it is and the way it is going to be."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was rough at the start with an interception on the Mocs first play. The short field advantage was thwarted; however, as the defense stopped the Paladins in the red zone. Furman's short field goal attempt was fumbled on the hold. The holder became a runner which was no match for Devonnsha Maxwell who forced a fumble on the tackle recovered by Jordan Walker.
 
The Mocs held leads of 3-0 and 10-7 in the first half before 17 straight Paladin points. The last of those making it 24-10 with 14:15 left in the third quarter. Chattanooga responded with a second Aaron Sears field goal in the third quarter and a 5-yard Preston Hutchinson touchdown run with 13:00 left.
 
The final two drives went to the Furman 7 resulting in a blocked field goal. The next started at the Furman 40 after an 11-yard Paladin punt under duress from the Mocs rush. A 5-yard scramble from Hutchinson and three incomplete passes ensued to turn it over on downs, but with all three timeouts remaining and 2:26 to go.
 
Just 10 seconds ran off the clock on the first two running plays. Furman converted on third down, a thorn to the defense on the day, to move the chains and essentially salt the game away.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
Offense
QB – Preston Hutchinson – 17-35-2, 270 yards, 1 TD
RB – Gino Appleberry – 22 carries, 56 yards
WR – Tyron Arnett – 6 catches, 100 yards (career highs)
WR – Sam Phillips – 4 catches, 49 yards, TD
OL – No sacks allowed for last nine quarters
 
Defense
LB – Ty Boeck – 14 tackles, 1 INT
DT – Devonnsha Maxwell – 6 tackles, 1.0 TFL, 1 forced fumble
DT – Marlon Taylor – 4 tackles, 1.0 sacks, 1 forced fumble
DB – Jordan Walker – 5 tackles, 1 fumble recovery
 
TEAM 
TOTAL OFFENSE – UTC: 354, FUR: 388
PASSING – UTC: 270, FUR: 203
RUSHING – UTC: 84, FUR: 185
 
RECORDS – #6 Chattanooga (6-2, 4-1 SoCon) – #24 Furman (7-2, 5-1 SoCon)
 
SERIES – Chattanooga trails the all-time series 21-31 and 12-13 on the road against the Paladins.
 
3 NOTES TO KNOW
- Leading rusher and all-around good guy Ailym Ford missed today's game with an injury…he'll wait a week to continue his assault on the program record books.
 
- Furman was 9-16 (56.3%) on third-down conversions…that's a season high for an opponent in both number of conversions and percentage made…UTC gave up just 11 conversions in the last three games combined.
 
- Ty Boeck's fourth quarter interception is the third of his career, second in Paladin Stadium…all of his interceptions have come on the road.
 
QUOTABLE
"Just got to watch the film, get better and come into The Citadel week. One of my coaches I played for in the past had a 24-hour rule. You have 24 hours to celebrate a win or 24 hours to mourn a loss. After this 24 hours, it is on to the next one. That is how you do it." - QB Preston Hutchinson
 
"We have to be way better on third down. I think they went 9/16 on third down and that's just unacceptable. We just have to stay focused, and we gotta keep our eyes right, know what we are doing and communicate defensively. We just have to be a lot better in that area." - LB Ty Boeck
 
NEXT GAME – Chattanooga at The Citadel – Sat., Nov. 5 – 2:00PM – ESPN+
 
GoMocs.com is the official website of the Chattanooga Mocs. Buy officially licensed gear in our online store. The Mocs can also be followed on their official Facebook page or on Twitter. Find out how to join the Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes by clicking here.