Ask Russ Huesman about the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s freshman football players, and the third-year Mocs coach will smile. And for good reason.
Of the 18 scholarship freshmen practicing with the Mocs, more than half are playing well enough to have a shot at playing this season, he said.
“We didn’t miss,” he said. “There’s not a freshman in this group, not one, that we’re going, ‘Uh-oh, we may have missed on that one.'”
Huesman said the coaches have identified several who definitely will redshirt because they’re not quite ready to play, “but there’s probably still 10 or 11 that are playing good enough that right now, if they keep getting better, they’re in the mix and they can play and help us.”
Fullback Taharin Tyson has known since he signed with UTC that he would be expected to contribute as a freshman. A three-time all-state player at Alcoa High School, Tyson said he’s prepared for the challenge.