Walking away from Scrappy Moore Field on Friday afternoon wearing a pair of blue, low-top Chuck Taylor sneakers, with his cleats stuffed into his helmet, Christopher Marshall demonstrated some of his Southern California style. All the while, however, he raved about his first week at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

“So far I love it,” the Pasadena, Calif., native said. “It’s a different pace than L.A. Everybody’s a lot cooler, actually; everybody says hi and smiles and stuff like that. The coaches have really helped me fit in and feel like I’m at home, which has been a big help.”

Marshall, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound wide receiver, wasn’t able to complete his coursework at Glendale (Calif.) Community College in time to join the Mocs for the start of preseason practice. He arrived in town last Thursday not only having missed the worst of the preseason — the four two-a-day practices — but also a lot of time learning the Mocs’ offense.

Having missed so much time, Marshall, who had 21 catches for 350 yards and four touchdowns for Glendale last season, said he didn’t anticipate the friendly reception he received from his new teammates.

“The players have been real nice, and I didn’t expect that, to be honest,” he said. “Coming in late, missing camp, I kind of thought guys might be like, ‘Who’s this guy coming all late?’ Overall, everybody’s been real cool and they hope I can catch on and learn the offense and help the team, which is all I really want to do.”

He has slowly gotten more involved in practice this week, but until he gets up to speed on the offense he knows he’ll be limited in what he can do.

“It’s mainly on me learning the offense, knowing what routes to run, and I’m getting it,” he said. “I felt a lot more comfortable out there today.”

Marshall is one of three players UTC signed out of Glendale. Quarterback Michael McDonald joined the team in January and went through spring practice but struggled with the offense and did not return. But running back Shaun Kermah is expected to get a lot of carries behind starter Erroll Wynn, and Marshall said it was nice to see at least one familiar face when he joined the team.

“That has helped a lot. When I first got here, it was like I was just going to a friend’s house,” he said, adding with a laugh, “We’re just going wild out in Tennessee.”

Mocs getting healthy

After a couple of weeks of one injury after another, the training tables under the tents at Scrappy Moore Field were packed with players at the end of last week. But throughout this week one player after another returned to the field, and by Friday afternoon’s practice, only linebacker Steven Smigelsky (ankle), cornerback Buster Skrine (knee), center Brian Heflin (back) and defensive back Reed Quillen (leg) were out of action.

Offensive lineman William Giles, a preseason second-team All-Southern Conference selection, returned to limited action earlier in the week following a knee injury and will be ready to go next Saturday in the opener against fourth-ranked Oklahoma. Giles’ return will add some needed experience to a young line that has been shuffled often in the preseason due to injuries.

Situational session

The Mocs will practice at Finley Stadium at 10 this morning, and they will cover some of the rarer situations in a game such as the kickoff after a safety, kickoff return after a safety and onside kicks.

Afterward, at about 11:30, a “Meet the Mocs” lunch and autograph session will be held at the First Tennessee Pavilion. The first 500 fans in the pavilion will receive free lunches.