Nakevion Leslie (5) plays linebacker for UTC. The University of Tennessee/Chattanooga Mocs hosted the Shorter University Hawks in NCAA football action on Sept. 1, 2016. Since arriving in the Southern Conference in 2014, Mercer has been able to find football success offensively against the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
In two games against the Mocs, the Bears have shown balance as well as an ability to make the big play. That combination aided in their 17-14 upset of third-ranked UTC last year and their 38-31 scare of the Mocs in Chattanooga in 2014.
This season has shown a similar style. Led by fourth-year starting quarterback John Russ, Mercer leads the SoCon in total offense in conference play with 418 yards per game. The Bears rank fourth in rushing at 207.5 yards per game and fourth in passing at 210.5.
They had almost 400 yards of offense against No. 9 The Citadel on Sept. 1, losing 24-23 on a late field goal. The yardage total was a season high against the Bulldogs.
“They’re a great, balanced team,” UTC coach Russ Huesman said. “They ran the ball on us the past two years, and not many run the ball great against us, but they’ve had success running the ball the past couple of years. They scheme us up pretty good, run hard, blocked us last year pretty good, but they’ve always been that way.”
The Bears had 173 yards rushing and 162 passing in last season’s win over UTC. They took advantage of every mistake the Mocs made, including a number of missed tackles and broken tackles that led to additional yardage, as well as busted coverages. One of those led to a 64-yard hookup between Russ and receiver Jimmie Robinson that gave Mercer a 17-7 lead 1:12 into the third quarter.
“We have to have a good plan with what we do,” UTC defensive coordinator Adam Braithwaite said. “They know how to magnify their strengths and take away your strengths. They have good players at all levels.
“We didn’t play well enough to win that game (last year), and that’s all that really matters. We’ve got to play well enough to win in the end.”
Mercer has two effective running backs, senior Payton Usher and junior Alex Lakes. The two have combined for 327 yards and a pair of scores this season.
Lakes has been a thorn in the Mocs’ side, with 149 yards on the ground in the two meetings.
With a lot of misdirection plays the Bears could try to do, Mocs defenders said the key for their unit will be playing assignment football.
“We have to have a good week of practice,” linebacker Nakevion Leslie said Tuesday. “They have a lot of different things they do, and we have to get ourselves mentally prepared for anything we may see them trying to do to us on Saturday.”
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.