Chattanooga Mocs
SoCon
With its victory over The Citadel on Nov. 14, Chattanooga earned its third consecutive Southern Conference title. To show the impact of the Huesman family (Russ is the coach and Jacob is the quarterback), Chattanooga was 49-32 after the regular season concluded. In the 80 games prior to Russ Huesman’s arrival, the Mocs were 19-61. Chattanooga advanced to the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs in 2014 before losing at New Hampshire in a close contest.
2015 Record: 8-3, 6-1
Coach: Russ Huesman
Big Wins: 10/31 Western Carolina (41-13), 11/14 Citadel (31-23)
Bad Losses: 9/5 Jacksonville State (20-23), 11/7 at Mercer (14-17)
Strengths:
Senior quarterback Jacob Huesman is Chattanooga’s all-time leading rusher and is in the top 10 all-time for FCS for rushing yards by a quarterback. He might not dazzle you with his passing numbers, but Huesman is a winner and the Mocs are a team that could make a deep run in the playoffs thanks to their quarterback. This is a veteran team whose senior class has 32 wins. The 1980 seniors have the school record with 33 wins. As mentioned, Chattanooga doesn’t have gaudy stats – its passing attack is in the lower third nationally in FCS, but its in the top 15 in rushing and in the top 50 in total offense. Plus, Chattanooga is in the top 10 nationally in third-down conversions. Defensively, the numbers are better. The Mocs are in the top 20 nationally in total defense and in the top 10 in pass defense. They entered the Citadel game (Nov. 14) as the leading rushing defense in the Southern Conference and held The Citadel to 291 rushing yards, well below the Bulldogs’ 349 ypg average. They can get after the quarterback, too, as defensive lineman Keionta Davis is among the nation’s leaders in sacks.
Weaknesses:
If the Mocs did fall behind in a game and had to rely on the pass, they’re ranked just 90th in passing offense. In the opening-game loss to Jacksonville State, the Mocs had just 86 yards passing, although that wasn’t a game where they were behind. It was a close contest the entire way with the lead flip-flopping. Meanwhile, they were ranked in the bottom half of the nation in pass defense efficiency, but generally, Chattanooga is solid on that side of the ball. If anything is going to get it in trouble, its turnovers. In the 17-14 loss to Mercer, they had four and two were inside the Mercer 20.
Statistical Leaders:
Rushing: Jacob Huesman, QB, 1,018 yards
Passing: Jacob Huesman, QB, 1,745 yards
Receiving: C.J. Board, WR, 442 yards
Tackles: Nakevion Leslie, LB, 76
Sacks: Keionta Davis, DL, 10.5
Interceptions: Lucas Webb, DB, 2; Sema’je Kendall, DB, 2
2015 Team Stats:
Rushing Offense: 238.7 (12th in nation, 3rd in conference)
Passing Offense: 173.6 (90, 6)
Total Offense: 412.3 (40, 4)
Scoring Offense: 28.6 (50, 4)
Rushing Defense: 155.2 (51, 2)
Pass Defense: 153.9 (8, 1)
Total Defense: 309.1 (18, 1)
Scoring Defense: 17.8 (16, 1)
Turnover Margin: 0.30 (38, 4)
Sacks: 2.60 (24, 1)
Sacks Allowed: 1.30 (29, 5)
Recent Playoff Appearances:
2014 Second Round Defeated Indiana State
2014 Quarterfinals Lost to New Hampshire
1984 First Round Lost to Arkansas State
*all team stats through 11/14
