The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga took the field at Gibbs Stadium on Saturday excited about the program’s biggest game in decades.
Unfortunately for the Mocs, they produced their most disappointing performance of the season in a 45-14 loss at No. 9 Wofford. The loss spoiled any hopes UTC had of returning to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 1984.
“Any loss is disappointing,” Mocs coach Russ Huesman said. “Any single, solitary loss that we have ever had or will have is disappointing and gut-wrenching. This was not different [because of the circumstances].”
The Mocs finished their season 6-5, 5-3 in the Southern Conference, while the triumphant Terriers (9-2, 7-1) earned a share of the league title with Appalachian State.
From the start, the Mocs looked nothing like the team that drilled Samford 48-14 the week before. The offensive timing was off and UTC’s defense had no answers for Wofford’s triple-option offense.
“You’ve got to tip your hat to Wofford,” Mocs linebacker Ryan Consiglio said. “They played great and they’re a great football team. They’re SoCon champs and that’s not an easy task.”
Wofford’s offense moved the ball almost at will, gaining 474 yards. The Terriers’ 295 yards on the ground was no surprise for the nation’s top rushing team, but quarterback Mitch Allen also hurt UTC with 165 passing yards.
The Mocs came into the game leading the SoCon in total offense with 440.8 yards per game, but the league’s top defense held UTC to a season-low 322 yards and one offensive touchdown.
“Defensively, nobody defended Chattanooga like we defended them,” Wofford coach Mike Ayers said. “The defense was phenomenal all night. There was a sense of urgency out of our kids that we had to have. We knew that they were a quality football team.
“Their offense had been unstoppable, and to do what we did against them was huge.”
The Mocs talked openly all week about how much it would mean to them to make the playoffs. They were also riding high after thumping Samford, while Wofford was regrouping from its 43-13 loss at Appalachian State.
Huesman said he didn’t think the Mocs played poorly because of the pressure and he said UTC had a good week of practice leading up to the game.
“You never know why you play good or don’t play good,” he said. “I don’t know what happened.”