Frank Reed is in a much different position than usual.
His University of Tennessee at Chattanooga softball team, which lost a lot of its hitting production and all of its pitchers from the 2016 season, will not be under a bright spotlight entering the 2017 season today at the NTC tournament in Clermont, Fla.
The Mocs were picked in a tie for sixth - last - in the Southern Conference. Last season's team was picked to win the league but stumbled to a 30-29 overall finish.
This season's team has only two seniors on the roster, utility player Katy Richardson and first baseman Jesslyn Stockard, so Reed will have to rely on a lot of youth to be successful this season. Sophomore catcher Amanda Beltran is the leading returning hitter, as she hit .322 last season.
"We're young, but we're very talented," she said. "We're excited for the season to start. We represent Chattanooga across our chest, so we're excited to put it on the field and see what we've got."
Sophomore third baseman Katie Corum said that with the youth on the roster, the team has to change its mindset. It helps that many of the players have experience playing with each other in travel ball, which has helped them bond, and that bond will be important as the Mocs don't return a player who has thrown a pitch in a college game.
Reed signed freshmen Alex Connell, Celie Hudson and Payten Price.
"I'm excited for them," Beltran said. "The pitchers, the seniors, everybody. We're excited to get on the field the first weekend in Florida."
It seemed as though the thought of a low ranking motivated the young team.
"It's a mixed feeling," Corum said of flying under the radar. "We're going to prove a lot of people wrong that don't think we'll be any good, but we have to work for it because we have a lot of newbies.
"But we're ready to work for it."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.