On a day full of big plays and big hits, the biggest cheer from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team came after first-year coach Tom Arth stood in front of the Mocs and canceled their practice that was scheduled for today.
"It's probably the loudest I've heard those guys," Arth said after Saturday's spring showcase in front of fans at Finley Stadium. "You could see it in their eyes. They were so devastated they had to come back in tomorrow morning. We were able to give them off, and they've earned it.
"It's nowhere near where it will be, but I'm pleased with the attitude and the effort they've put forth everyday."
The defense got the better of the day, which was a mix of practice and scrimmage. Junior Isaiah Mack and redshirt freshman Jonathan Decker each had a sack, and senior Taylor Reynolds had a tackle for loss. Defensive backs Trevor Wright and Tavon Lawson broke up passes, along with outside linebacker Josh Phillips - who returned an interception for a touchdown in an earlier drill.
The line continually created pressure, with tackle Derek Mahaffey, Mack and Reynolds leading that charge. Phillips, Khayyan Edwards and Hawk Schrider made some plays at outside linebacker, while inside linebackers Tae Davis and Michael Bean had solid days in the middle.
The offense's highlight of the day was a perfectly placed 33-yard touchdown pass from returning starter Alejandro Bennifield to Baylor School graduate Kota Nix, who had tweeted earlier in the day for fans to "come watch me torch (Trevor Wright)."
Wright was the defender on the play.
"I started smiling when I saw he was lined up across from me when I knew what the play was," Nix said. "It's all in good fun. He's like that, too."
They split their two matchups against one another, though, because Wright stopped Nix on a goal-line route earlier during practice.
The defense got its revenge on Nix when safety Lucas Webb delivered a hard hit on a 3-yard completion over the middle.
"We had a good day," Arth said. "There's a lot to go back and learn from, and that's the important thing as a coach. You always want to go back and find some teachable moments to go back and talk about and learn from. There was a lot of good stuff. I saw some good things on special teams, the defense played well and the offense made some big plays."
Backup quarterback and Baylor School graduate Nick Tiano, who transferred from Mississippi State in the offseason, completed a 38-yard touchdown pass to Bingo Morton on another perfectly thrown ball. Bennifield finished 4-for-5 for 44 yards during the open period, while Tiano completed both passes for 53 yards. Hunter Moore was 4-for-8 for 44 yards.
Morton had 65 yards on three catches, while Nix had 41 yards on two. Running back Shaqualm McCoy was the leading rusher with 51 yards on nine carries while adding a 20-yard reception, and Alex Trotter had 39 yards on four carries.
The Mocs still have three more practices before the end of their spring season, with the next one Tuesday. There's still plenty to improve, but they took a step forward during both drills and the live period Saturday.
"We're going to build on the spring going into the summer," Davis said. "We have to work hard, continue to learn the playbook, come together as one and get ready for the season."
Mocs notes
Quarterback Zack Weatherly is no longer with the program. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound redshirt freshman, who was competing with Tiano for the backup position, was a two-star prospect coming out of Christ Presbyterian Academy in Nashville, and he figured to be in what could have been a tight battle for the starting job in 2018 with Tiano and incoming freshman Cole Copeland from Bradley Central, one of many 2017 signees at the game on Saturday. In addition to the signees, there were some prospects and potential graduate transfers at the game. One was former Bradley Central standout Austin Sanders, an offensive lineman who has graduated from Tennessee and still has one year of eligibility remaining. Another was Red Bank rising senior Jamel Davis, the younger brother of former UTC defensive end Keionta Davis, the two-time UTC All-American who recently completed his college career and could be picked in the NFL draft this month.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.