Unable to move the ball on offense and unable to consistently stop Wofford on defense, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga dropped a 21-10 decision to the Terriers at Finley Stadium Saturday.
The Mocs (4-2, 2-2 Southern Conference) are at Western Carolina next week before a bye on Oct. 20.
The Mocs had a successful first drive, going 75 yards on 13 plays to take a 7-0 lead after Nick Tiano found Bryce Nunnelly for an 11-yard score. That was pretty much it for the UTC offense, who was only able to muster 111 yards of total offense against a Wofford defense the rest of the game.
The 186 yards of total offense marked a season low for the Mocs.
Wofford’s answer came swiftly, with quarterback Joe Newman scoring from 12 yards out. The junior signal-caller was a thorn in the Mocs’ side Saturday, finishing with 155 yards on 16 carries and two scores, the latter a 66-yarder that put the game away with 12:01 remaining. He also finished 8-for-9 for 69 yards.
The Terriers finished with 511 yards of total offense, but more importantly was how they were 8-for-14 on third down. The Mocs were 2-for-9 and failed on seven of their final eight attempts.
Andre Stoddard added 111 yards on the ground for the Terriers, who finished with 442 yards rushing and three scores, the other by Lennox McAfee in the second quarter.
The Mocs entered that quarter up 10-7 after a Victor Ulmo field goal, but McAfee capped a 10-play, 80-yard drive with a 4-yard run.
While the UTC defense was bent but didn’t break, the Mocs offense failed to move the ball. Tiano finished with 21 completions on 33 attempts, but only threw for 165 yards and was intercepted on the Mocs’ final possession. Again the rushing attack failed them, as UTC finished with 21 yards on 16 attempts.
Nunnelly was the leading receiver, with 47 yards on eight catches, while Wil Young had 55 yards on six receptions. Joseph Parker added 43 yards on four catches.
The Mocs’ Michael Bean had a career-high 17 tackles while Brandon Dowdell added 12 and Isaiah Mack 10, but UTC was unable to penetrate the Wofford backfield and finished with one tackle for loss.
The Mocs are at Western Carolina next week.
For a full story, read Sunday’s Times Free Press.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.