The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football program starts replenishing the roster for the 2022 season Wednesday with the start of the early signing period, which since its inception in 2017 has become the more popular time for kids to make college decisions.
The Mocs went 6-5 last season, a disappointing finish considering the team was the Southern Conference favorites going into the year. While the team suffered some losses at some key positions, the cupboard is far from bare.
The Times Free Press looks at three positions that the Mocs - who will probably sign just a handful of players during the initial period - will be looking to improve, in terms of importance:
Offensive line: The Mocs lost four senior offensive linemen who started games in 2021 - two-time Southern Conference Jacobs Blocking Award (league's best offensive lineman) winner Cole Strange; left tackle Harrison Moon; center Kyle Miskelley and Blake Mitchell, who logged three starts in 2021. The other three are huge losses as they combined for 91 career starts, so it becomes the team's biggest area of need for the offense. There is some depth already on the roster, but it wouldn't be surprising to see the staff find an answer or two in the portal to go along with perhaps an incoming freshman or two. Remember UTC did field an all-freshman offensive line in the final game of the 2021 spring season that held its own against Mercer, and that group will have an entire offseason to get stronger before the season opener next year against Eastern Illinois.
Wide receiver: Frankly, this feels as if it could be the biggest area of need. The receiver group wasn't great in 2021, and even if the coaching staff didn't feel great about the quarterback position the receivers didn't do much in the way of favors with drops, miscommunication between receivers and quarterbacks and playing below what was expected. This could be another position where it wouldn't be surprising to see the staff attempt to reach into the portal and find some answers, but there is talent with some of the younger pieces, led by sophomore-to-be Jamoi Mayes.
Quarterback: This position might not be as much of a need as some believe because it really doesn't matter how good that position is if there aren't people up front to block and receivers out wide to catch. Cole Copeland has shown he can win games at UTC under two different staffs (he's won eight of his last 12 games and is 8-7 overall as a starter), but he's also thrown 21 interceptions to just 14 touchdowns over a 17-game sample size. The program got a commitment from Sparkman High School prep product Lukas Schomburg Monday and returns sophomore Ty Gossett, but the staff has been active in the transfer portal, hoping to add a player with some experience to the roster and provide some competition. The staff is hoping it can find its 2022 starter in the portal, but at the very least has to find a player with some level of college experience to back up Copeland.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.