MOCS GLANCE
UTC (1-2, 0-1 SoCon) at Western Carolina (1-2, 0-0)
6 p.m., Whitmire Stadium, Cullowhee, N.C.
105.1 FM
WHEN UTC HAS THE BALL
UTC OFFENSIVE STARTERS
QB B.J. Coleman 6-5, 220, Jr.
TB Erroll Wynn 5-11, 215, Sr.
FB Courtland Ellzey 6-0, 230, Sr.
WR Joel Bradford 6-0, 165, Jr.
WR Chris Pitchford 6-0, 180, Sr.
TE Garrett Hughes 6-4, 225, Sr.
LT Chris Harr 6-6, 280, Sr.
LG Austin Wilson 6-3, 260, So.
C Justin Galyon 6-4, 290, Sr.
RG T.J. Hurless 6-4, 295, Sr.
RT Dustin Tate 6-5, 280, So.
PK Jeff Veres 5-11, 195, So.
WESTERN CAROLINA DEFENSIVE STARTERS
DE Trey Selby 6-3, 235, Jr.
DT Charles Johnson 6-2, 270, Sr.
NG Roland Johnson 6-1, 265, Fr.
DE C.J. Johnson 6-2, 285, Sr.
SLB Adam Hearns 6-0, 220, Sr.
MLB Ricky Schwarz 6-1, 220, Jr.
WLB Brandon Vaught 6-2, 215, Jr.
CB Torez Jones 6-1, 180, Jr.
SS Angelo Brown 6-0, 200, Sr.
FS Mitchell Bell 6-2, 215, Sr.
CB Jaron McNeill 5-9, 180, Sr.
P Blake Cain 5-10, 195, Jr.
The matchup: The Southern Conference's leading rusher, UTC's Wynn (110 yards per game), is going up against the league's top run defense, which is holding opponents to 86.3 a game. The Mocs' ground game will be complementary because UTC's high-performance passing game is facing a Catamounts defense that is allowing 354.7 passing yards a game, the most in the league.
WHEN WESTERN CAROLINA HAS THE BALL
WESTERN CAROLINA OFFENSIVE STARTERS
QB Zac Brindise 6-0, 200, Jr.
TB Michael Johnson 5-11, 200, So.
FB Wes Locust 5-8, 225, Fr.
WR Jacoby Mitchell 6-0, 200, So.
WR Marquel Pittman 6-3, 205, Sr.
TE Andrew Rogers 6-3, 235, Jr.
LT Nathan Postelle 6-4, 270, So.
LG Teddy Rhoney 6-3, 290, So.
C Edixon Pino-Alvarez 6-1, 300, Jr.
RG Ryan Moore 6-3, 295, Jr.
RT Rory Pederson 6-2, 290, So.
PK Blake Bostic 5-11, 205, Sr.
UTC DEFENSIVE STARTERS
DE Chris Donald 6-1, 225, Jr.
DT Nick Davison 6-0, 280, Jr.
DT Nick Craig 6-2, 295, Jr.
DE Josh Williams 6-2, 230, So.
LB Ryan Consiglio 6-1, 210, Jr.
LB Shane Heatherly 6-3, 215, So.
LB J.D. Dothard 6-0, 190, Jr.
CB Kadeem Wise 5-10, 180, Fr.
FS Chris Lewis-Harris 5-11, 175, Jr.
SS D.J. Key 6-0, 190, Fr.
CB Buster Skrine 5-10, 185, Sr.
P Mike Hammons 5-10, 180, Jr.
The matchup: The Catamounts are last in the SoCon is rushing with an average of 90.7 yards per game. Because UTC's offense is capable of putting up a lot of points, Western Carolina will need to run the ball effectively and chew up the clock. The Mocs are allowing only 100 rushing yards a game, so those yards won't come easily.
THE ONE TO WATCH
B.J. Coleman
The Mocs' quarterback leads the SoCon with an average of 288 passing yards per game. Coleman, who threw for 375 and four touchdowns last week against Eastern Kentucky, is going up against statistically the worst pass defense in the SoCon. If Coleman is sharp, the Mocs should be able to spread the ball around and produce a lot of big plays.
IN THE END
Breaking it down: UTC finally put together something resembling a complete game last week against Eastern Kentucky. The Catamounts, after a humiliating blowout loss to Division II Tusculum, rebounded last week to beat Gardner-Webb. Both teams are trying to build a little momentum, but the Mocs are playing with more confidence. Western Carolina won't be able to stop UTC's offense, which will have another big game.
Prediction: UTC 33, Western Carolina 20
- John Frierson