TICKETS
CHATTANOOGA---The 15th-ranked Chattanooga Mocs close out the regular season Saturday at Western Carolina. Both teams are chasing significant numbers.
For the Mocs, a win is eighth of the season. It would be the 13th 8-win campaign in school history and just the fifth in the last 42 years as well as the first since 2016. The other four came in the brilliant 2013-16 run that included three SoCon titles, three FCS Playoff appearances and a 2014 trip to the quarterfinals.
For the Catamounts, a win gets them to 6-5. That winning record would be the first since 2017 and the sixth this century. So there's a lot on the line for both squads. Speaking of the line…
Senior offensive lineman
McClendon Curtis is headed to the Reese's Senior Bowl in January. Curtis was invited there, the East-West Shrine Game (Las Vegas, Nev.) and the Hula Bowl (Orlando, Fla.), but the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., got the nod. It was the start of
Cole Strange path to the 2022 NFL Draft's first round.
"It's huge because I think you see people get developed and then go play here," Coach Rusty Wright explained. "Biggest thing is he had an opportunity to play last two or three years and develop himself. You stay and get a chance to play every down instead of going somewhere else and maybe sit behind somebody or share snaps.
"He got the opportunity to play every down here and made the most of it."
The Mocs have long held a national reputation on the defensive line. But now, the offensive line is taking some headlines as well. Curtis will try to follow in the footsteps of fellow Mocs and Senior Bowl alums Strange (New England) and Corey Levin '16 (Tennessee) in playing in the NFL.
Coach Wright joins "Voice of the Mocs" Jim Reynolds on Chat with the Mocs tonight at Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux on Broad Street in Chattanooga's Aquarium District. CWTM airs from 7-8 p.m., on 96.1 FM/1070 AM in the Scenic City area or
access it online here if you can't make it.
Senior defensive back CaMiron Smith is the special guest. He is a 5-year starter in the Mocs defensive backfield at corner.
3 NOTES TO KNOW
- Rusty Wright is the first head coach since Brother Bill Oliver (1980-83) to have .500 or better seasons in his first four years: 2019 (6-6), 2020-21 (3-2), 2021 (6-5) & 2022 (7-3); 22-16. Rusty, Brother, CFB Hall of Famer Frank Thomas (1925-28) & Leslie Stauffer (1910-13) are the only ones to accomplish that in school history.
- Saturday, junior RB Ailym Ford became the first Mocs rusher to record three 1,000-yard seasons. Ford has 1,097 on the season, 154 short of Derrick Craine's school-record 1,251 in 2015. He's third on all-time rushing list with 3,341 yards.
- Senior defensive tackle Devonnsha Maxwell needs a half sack Saturday to match the school and Southern Conference record for career sacks of 37.0 by Davis Tull (2011-14).
MEDIA
TV – Nexstar/ESPN+- Pete Yanity (PxP) & Jared Singleton (Analysis)
Radio – Mocs Sports Network: 96.1 FM, 100.3 FM & 1070 AM – Jim Reynolds (PxP), Todd Agne (Analysis) & Will Poindexter (Sideline). Also available online at GoMocs.com.
Listen Live – Radio broadcast is available for free online at GoMocs.com & on the Varsity Network App
2022 WEEKLY HONORS
Week 1
Reuben Lowery III, SoCon Defensive Player of the Week
Reuben Lowery III, TSWA Tennessee Defensive Player of the Week
Ailym Ford, TSWA Tennessee Offensive Player of the Week
Week 2
Preston Hutchinson, SoCon Offensive Player of the Week
Preston Hutchinson, TSWA Tennessee Offensive Player of the Week
Week 3
Preston Hutchinson, SoCon Offensive Player of the Week
Preston Hutchinson, TSWA Tennessee Offensive Player of the Week
Ty Boeck, TSWA Tennessee Defensive Player of the Week
Week 5
Ailym Ford, TSWA Tennessee Offensive Player of the Week
Reuben Lowery III, SoCon September Defensive Player of the Month
Jay Person, TSWA Tennessee Defensive Player of the Week
Week 8
FedEx Ground FCS National Team of the Week
Athlon FCS National Team of the Week
Kameron Brown, SoCon Defensive Player of the Week
Week 9
Ty Boeck, TSWA Tennessee Defensive Player of the Week
Week 10
Reuben Lowery III, SoCon Defensive Player of the Week
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