The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team reported on Aug. 2 to begin official practices for the 2023 season the following day.
Since then, it's been 14 weeks of being in each other's presence, with no break, as the Mocs went from preseason conditioning and camp to practices focused on each Saturday's opponent. Since the start of September, it's been 10 straight Saturdays of games, all while playing the most physically grueling sport around. Even UTC's fall break in mid-October only meant the Mocs got to practice an hour later than usual on the Monday and Tuesday of that week.
Head coach Rusty Wright said after Saturday's 17-14 home loss to second-ranked Furman — which has put the program's playoff fate in serious peril for yet another season — that his players had "battled as long as they can." Those battles have taken their toll on the Mocs, though.
Ailym Ford, the school's No. 2 all-time leading rusher, played seven games before his sixth season ended due to a torn ACL. The Mocs lost senior tight end Jay Gibson to injury after four games. Defensive back Reuben Lowery, an All-Southern Conference selection a year ago, has been slowed all season, and starting defensive lineman Quay Wiggles missed the Furman game after going down against Virginia Military Institute.
"We haven't really had an off day or week since the end of July," quarterback Chase Artopoeus said after Saturday's loss dropped the Mocs to 7-3 overall with a final record of 6-2 in SoCon competition. "So it's been a while, and I think physically some of our guys are kind of beat up. I don't think that necessarily affected us today, but I think (rest will) definitely be beneficial for the future of this team."
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / UTC defensive back Reuben Lowery III (7) celebrates a stop during last Saturday's game against Furman. Slowed by injuries all season, Lowery is among the UTC players who should benefit from the team's open date this week before the Nov. 18 regular-season finale at Alabama.The damage continued Saturday, most notably with redshirt sophomore Sam Phillips — who has 50 receptions for 520 yards and four touchdowns this season — being knocked out after a catch in the first quarter. The Furman defender was ejected, but Phillips couldn't return, either, and it was evident as the offense at times struggled to get aligned properly with one of its starters missing.
"We've got to get away," Wright said afterward, knowing an open date was ahead the following weekend. "We have not been away from this game for 14 straight weeks, OK? We've been at it for 14 straight weeks without a break, around each other, with each other. We lost two or three guys today, and we'll try and figure it out and go from there.
"We'll see what we've got going into Alabama, and then go see if we can still play after that."
The Mocs took the first four days of this week off, with plans to return to practice Thursday morning as they start preparation for the regular-season finale on Nov. 18 at Alabama. Beyond that, nobody has a clue, because there really isn't much this team can do to enhance its resumé for the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.
With Furman having clinched the SoCon's automatic bid, will 7-4 be good enough for UTC to receive one of the at-large spots in the bracket? That won't become evident until the afternoon of Sunday, Nov. 19, when the entire 24-team field will be revealed.
"We really don't have a say in it anymore," said Artopoeus, who is having one of the best regular seasons in UTC history with 2,672 yards and 20 touchdowns passing. "Hopefully, God willing, there's a way we can get in, squeeze in one of those wild-card spots and be able to go play a team, try to compete in these playoffs.
"But right now, I think the best thing to do is just kind of recuperate and then reengage once we do that, give Bama our best shot, and then control what we can control from here, whether it's our attitude or mindset or effort, how much we prepare, and then how much better we're going to get."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com.