Coming off a bye, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga hosts this week a Virginia Military Institute football team that hasn’t won a game in just over two years.
The Mocs don’t want to end that streak.
VMI’s Keydets (0-7, 0-6 Southern Conference) will be the Mocs’ homecoming opponents Saturday at 3 p.m. at Finley Stadium. They have lost 24 consecutive contests but have been close on a number of occasions this season, with four losses by 10 points or less, three of those by three or less.
That’s been enough to get the attention of a UTC team (5-2, 3-2) that has had problems putting opponents away this season, because the Keydets don’t stop playing – regardless of score.
“I think that’s something that (defensive coordinator Matt) Feeney has done a good job of talking to the team and the defense about,” UTC head coach Tom Arth said Tuesday. “It doesn’t matter what the situation of the game is, they have a relentless group and they have the ability to come back and they’ve shown that.
“There are situations when they’ve been down in the fourth quarter, fought their way back and nearly won in a number of instances. They’re right there on the cusp of getting that win, and we’ve challenged our team this week to play four quarters and play as well as we can play for four quarters to be successful and get a win this week.”
In VMI’s 27-24 loss to East Tennessee State on Sept. 14, the Keydets got the ball down three with 1:30 to play and drove into ETSU territory before turning the ball over on downs at the 31-yard line. A week later it was a dropped pass on the tying two-point conversion with 13 seconds remaining in a 52-50 loss at Western Carolina. Last week was another failed two-point try that would have been the tying points with 34 seconds left in a 34-24 loss to The Citadel.
“It’s just like every other game,” UTC defensive lineman Isaiah Mack said. “We have to go in and prepare mentally for what we’re about to accomplish. For the defense it’s getting ready for the pass, getting ready for screens and wheel routes so that nothing surprises us when we get to Saturday.”
A Mocs win would keep them in line for a share of the SoCon championship, as they are in a six-school logjam of teams with one or two league losses. A loss would greatly diminish UTC’s postseason aspirations, although not completely erasing them.
The Mocs don’t want it to get to that, naturally.
“Especially with this being the last stretch of the season, we want to finish strong,” receiver Bryce Nunnelly said. “We still haven’t put together a four-quarter game. If we come off a bye and can put together a four-quarter game, it’ll carry over into next week.”
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.