There's something to be said about the process of becoming a successful group.
The eight fifth-year seniors for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team know all about that process and the rise of a program.
Nine seniors will play their final regular-season home game Saturday at Finley Stadium, in what could be the biggest game of their respective careers. UTC's Mocs, ranked eighth in one national poll and ninth in another, host The Citadel, ranked 20th and 21st, at 2 p.m. on Military Appreciation Day.
Of the nine, only cornerback Jeremiah Hay didn't enroll originally at UTC. His college career started at Ole Miss and detoured to Pasadena City College in California before he became the first junior college signee for Mocs coach Russ Huesman. The other eight were around through the entire process, although their redshirt seasons came at different times.
Defensive tackle Josh Freeman made the Southern Conference's all-freshman team in 2011 but sat out the following season. Offensive lineman Brandon Morgan started eight games in 2011, but a shoulder injury caused him to sit out the following year.
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga vs Virginia Military Institute Five others sat out their first years. Those include quarterback Jacob Huesman, a two-time SoCon offensive player of the year, and linebacker A.J. Hampton, a starter this season for the first time.
There's been sacrifice. Offensive lineman Casey Hybarger, a former Walker Valley standout who walked on at UTC, earned a scholarship prior to the 2014 season. Morgan has started 32 UTC games but has moved into a backup role this year. Offensive linemen Synjen Herren and defensive lineman Toyvian Brand both missed the 2014 season - Herren tore his ACL, while Brand chose to redshirt due to the Mocs' depth on the line.
Collectively, they were all present for the 5-6 season in 2011, the ensuing 6-5 season and the following three years in which the Mocs have been 25-10 and will be SoCon champions for the third year in a row if they win Saturday.
"I tell our guys that if we take care of business, Saturday won't be our last game at Finley," Coach Huesman said. "I'm so proud of these seniors. This group was here before we turned the corner with this program. They were here; they were part of it. We hadn't accomplished a thing up to that point, and that group brought us to where we are now."
Now, to assure that their season extends beyond next week's date at Florida State, they will have to defeat the Bulldogs.
"When I first was thinking about coming here, this kind of talk about championships or playoffs wasn't a question," Herren said. "Guys before me like (former Northwest Whitfield and UTC standout) Adam Miller helped build what we have today.
"Our success means more to us because we know where the program started, and where it's gone since we got here."
Defensive back Sema'je Kendall, whose successful return from offseason knee injury was in question in the preseason, said the best part of his career has been watching the program change. Now losses, now wins, are a surprise to the average fans.
"It's been fun to watch people's attitudes change, because once people's attitudes started changing, our record started changing and it started showing," Kendall said. "Now we're trying to pass that along to the young guys. People are disappointed when we lose now, and I like that. That's what we wanted to do. We wanted to build that strong tradition, that winning tradition around UTC, and we're moving toward that.
"We just want to keep it going. Saturday will be fun because it's senior day and Military Appreciation Day, but at the end of the day I have a responsibility to take care of, and so does everybody else on this team."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.