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Mocs crunched in crunch time against JSU, 23-20 Hargis: Gamecocks frustrate Mocs again Nearly 16,000 see No. 8 Mocs fall to No. 7 Gamecocks, 23-20 UTC uses two QBs together at times Chattanooga Mocs lose fourth down every time Eighth-ranked Mocs drop heartbreaker to No. 7 JSU Jacksonville State defeats Chattanooga Mocs, 23-20
The frustration was obvious. And rightfully so. From the angst on the faces of veterans such as quarterback Jacob Huesman and quarterback harasser Keionta Davis, to coach Russ Huesman expressing his displeasure by pounding his fist into the table at the postgame news conference, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team didn't hide the disappointment after Saturday night's 23-20 loss to Jacksonville State.
Although it was the only game on college football's opening weekend pitting two top 10 nationally ranked teams, nothing could soothe the sixth straight season-opening loss for the Mocs program.
Jacksonville State outgained UTC 411-196 in total yards, and the Gamecocks had 16 more offensive snaps for a nine-minute possession edge. The Gamecocks were also 5-for-5 in red-zone scoring chances, and in the most telling statistic, they converted all three fourth-down attempts, including two on the game-winning drive, while UTC didn't convert either of its two fourth-down tries.
"They made more plays than us, and that's why they won the game," Coach Huesman said matter-of-factly. "We played a really good team. They're a playoff team. I don't think anybody who saw them would doubt that.
"To give up 411 yards, we've got to get it fixed on defense. And our offense isn't cutting it. We had a bad day throwing the ball. If you make first-game mistakes against a team like that, you can't survive."
But if the Mocs learn from this loss, make the needed adjustments and respond the way they did to the early-season overtime loss to the Gamecocks last year, they can still turn even the irritation of a loss in August's humidity into a memorable season as the fall unfolds.
The obvious fixes that must be made begin with a defense whose talent is overshadowed only by its youth in spots. There certainly were positive signs from this unit, beginning with Davis, the junior defensive end who at times made it look easy how quickly he was in the Gamecocks backfield, as well as redshirt freshman Montrell Pardue, who stripped the ball from a JSU runner and returned it 55 yards for a go-ahead score in the fourth quarter.
But the Gamecocks also gashed the Mocs for 298 rushing yards, much of which came on runs inside the tackles. And there was the inability to get off the field in key third- and fourth-down sequences in the second half. Besides being perfect in fourth-down attempts, JSU also converted twice on third down in the second half when the Mocs defense had the chance to get off the field and avoid giving up points.
"We just have to know we've got to get off the field on third and fourth downs," said Davis, who had four tackles - three for lost yardage, including a sack - along with two hurries. "I put this loss on the defense. We worked so hard to get them to those third downs and fourth downs, so for them to convert them late, it's very frustrating."
It was actually a second-down conversion that led to Coach Huesman pounding the press table in his postgame comments. After electing to punt the Gamecocks deep rather than go for it on fourth-and-5 from their 30 with just under two minutes remaining, the Mocs gave up a 13-yard pass on second-and-12, essentially putting the game away.
"If we just stop a pass, we probably get the ball back around the 50 and we give ourselves a chance," Coach Huesman said emphatically. "But we can't defense a pass on second down. That's a tough one. We can't let them complete it there. We should be up so that the only pass they have a shot at completing is a deep ball."
Offensively, the passing game was never a factor as Jacob Huesman completed 9 of 16 for just 86 yards with an interception. But it's also tough to get in a passing rhythm when you're faced with the type pressure JSU brought, sacking Huesman four times and hurrying several other throws. The ground game wasn't much better as the Mocs averaged just 3 yards per carry.
As pedestrian as those offensive stats are, they're still better than last year's home opener against the Gamecocks, and again that game served as the inspiration for the offensive line to begin taking control of games that followed.
"Losing a close one to them again, it's very disappointing," said Jacob Huesman, who finished with 81 rushing yards with a first-half touchdown to go with 86 passing yards. He was intercepted once.
"Frustrating is the only word for it. But we can't let this one game affect our practices getting ready for next week. It can't affect us when we're back on the practice field Tuesday or even when we come to workouts tomorrow. It's a long season and we can't let one game this early get us down. It's a very long season still ahead."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293.