Mocs working to improve offensive execution

UTC wide receiver C.J. Board, left, catches a pass ahead of defensive back Ryan Bossung during the Mocs' first spring football scrimmage Saturday, March 28, 2015, at Scrappy Moore Field in Chattanooga, Tenn.
UTC wide receiver C.J. Board, left, catches a pass ahead of defensive back Ryan Bossung during the Mocs' first spring football scrimmage Saturday, March 28, 2015, at Scrappy Moore Field in Chattanooga, Tenn.

As tough as it was for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga defense to watch parts of the video of the game against Jacksonville State last weekend, it couldn't have been easier for the offense.

Coach Russ Huesman said early this week that the Mocs weren't "where they needed to be offensively." Receiver C.J. Board called watching video of Saturday's 23-20 loss "hard."

"You see things that you don't realize when you're out there," the junior said. "I missed a couple of blocks - things I could have done on my part to help the team win. It's hard watching the film, but you've got to watch film to learn - and make sure you don't make the same mistakes next game."

The 6-foot-2, 180-pounder provided one of the game's first big moments, returning a punt 48 yards to set up what was the Mocs' only offensive touchdown. The offense was anemic for the most part.

After a quality first quarter, UTC was limited to five first downs and 114 yards on 34 plays. The Mocs had the ball for only 9:35 of the second half due to an inability to convert first downs, which meant more time on the field for the defense. The Gamecocks ran 41 plays for 223 yards in the final 30 minutes.

UTC had eight plays of 10 yards or more and only one play exceeding 30 yards, which came on the first possession on a completion from quarterback Jacob Huesman to Richardre Bagley.

The Mocs finished 4-for-12 on third downs, with an average "yards-to-go" of over 7 yards, which gave Jacksonville State opportunities to bring extra pressure and limited the amount of time quarterback Huesman had to look downfield for receivers.

"We put ourselves in too many third-and-long situations," he said. "No offense is set like that; every offense in America wants third-and-2 instead of third-and-10, because that opens up the playbook. Even if we get 5 or 6 yards on first down, there's a wide range of plays that we can run. We kind of limit ourselves and become a one-dimensional team when we're in a third-and-12 situation.

"Offensively, we've got to put ourselves in better positions. We don't need to make it difficult on ourselves."

The Mocs' opponent this week, NCAA Division II school Mars Hill, will present a different challenge. The Lions don't have the size of the Gamecocks up front but average 261 pounds, led by defensive lineman Christiaan Davis, who had seven tackles last week against Western Carolina. Strong safety Trey Clark is a playmaker, registering 16 tackles and a forced fumble last week.

UTC offensive coordinator Jeff Durden said the fact the Lions run an odd front will be beneficial later in the season, since some other teams in the Southern Conference run a similar defense at times.

The emphasis this week in practice has been improving, he said.

"That's what this game is about - improving week to week," Durden said. "When you drop the ball and don't throw and catch the way you're capable, you have to get better. I thought we ran the ball effectively, but the passing game was off and we're going to have to improve on that, because we're going to need it this year."

QB moving up

Jacob Huesman already has set one record this season, as the touchdown he scored against the Gamecocks was his 31st career rushing score, breaking the tie he had with his former backfield mate, Keon Williams. His 86 passing yards gave him 6,146, which puts him 55 yards from moving ahead of Brian Hampton (1995-98) into third place all-time.

The next touchdown pass he throws will give him 53 for his career, which will break the tie he currently has with B.J. Coleman (2009-11) for first place.

Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.

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