Tennessee Chattanooga Football

HEIGHT: 6'6"

WEIGHT: 324

HAND: 10 1/4"

ARM: 35"

WINGSPAN: TBD

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40-YARD DASH: 5.24

3-CONE: 7.7

SHUTTLE: 4.97

VERTICAL: 26.5"

BROAD: 8'9"

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POSITIVES

— Massive frame, excellent length and well-rounded dispersion of weight throughout his build.

— Violent, physical demeanor.

— Uses his girth, length and leg drive to turn out and wall off defenders on base/drive blocks.

— Uncorks with thump and force on defenders when looking for work.

— Naturally is a difficult obstacle to work around in pass protection due to his size.

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NEGATIVES

— Upright, rigid playing style with marginal mobility in his ankles, knees and hips.

— Plays with poor leverage due to high pad level and inconsistent hand placement.

— Struggles to stay attached to the defender on shed attempts.

— Middling movement skills lead to stepping under himself to redirect with minimal change-of-direction ability.

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2022 STATISTICS

— 11 starts with seven at LT and four at RG

— Team captain

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NOTES

— 2-star tackle recruit out of Central High School in Harrison, Tennessee, who also lettered in basketball

— 38 career starts: 30 at RG, seven at LT and one at LG

— Honor student throughout his time at Chattanooga

— Turns 24 years old on September 16

— Invited to the Reese's Senior Bowl

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OVERALL

McClendon Curtis is a four-year starter inside Chattanooga's zone-heavy run scheme with approximately a 55-45 run-pass split. Curtis has a massive frame with excellent arm length and an impressive, well-rounded build. He shows marginal movement skills with an upright, rigid playing style and a stiff lower half.

Curtis wins as a run-blocker using his big body to turn, wall off and pin defensive tackles on base/drive blocks. He plays with a violent, physical demeanor that leads to knockback power when he connects, and he provides thump on adjacent rushers when uncovered in pass protection.

Curtis struggled to sustain blocks against top competition on film (Kentucky in 2021 and Illinois in 2022) due to his high pad level, inconsistent hand placement and an overreliance on trying to outmuscle opponents despite being out-leveraged. Curtis is hit-or-miss with his aiming points on double-teams, routinely allowing penetration and leakage, and his feet get stuck when attempting to redirect and change directions laterally, sapping his recovery ability.

Overall, Curtis is a guard-only prospect for a downhill run scheme, with a large frame, plus length, a violent, physical demeanor and some pop in his hands when he connects on target. His upright playing style and lower-half stiffness are hinderances that will make it difficult to stick in the NFL, but his smarts, size and demeanor make him a worthwhile dart throw at the tail end of the draft or as a priority free agent with backup potential.

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GRADE: 5.5 (Backup/draftable)

OVERALL RANK: 254

POSITION RANK: IOL30

PRO COMPARISON: Marcus McKethan

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Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga announced the firing of offensive line coach Chris Malone on Thursday after he posted a racist tweet directed toward political activist and former Georgia gubernatorial candidate for the Democratic Party Stacey Abrams.

Chattanooga athletic director Mark Wharton and head coach Rusty Wright released the following statements regarding Malone's dismissal:

See below for statements from @MWharton_MocsAD and @GoMocsFB head coach @CoachRustyW. pic.twitter.com/CbNbemdugl

— Chattanooga Mocs (@GoMocs) January 7, 2021

In a tweet that has since been deleted, Malone referred to Abrams, who is Black, as "Fat Albert" in a reference to a Black, male cartoon character. He also accused her of "cheating in an election," as seen in the screenshot provided by Shon Gables of CBS 46:

New: UT Chattanooga offensive line coach Chris Malone deactivates twitter account after posting tweet calling #Georgia #PoliticalActivist @StaceyAbrams “Fat Albert”.@UTChattanooga current football roster displays 55 Black or athletes of color. @UTChattanooga #TheSouth @CBS46 pic.twitter.com/P9DpQYanN8

— . (@shongables) January 7, 2021

Abrams served in Georgia's House of Representatives from 2007 to 2017 and was the minority leader from 2011 to 2017 before leaving to focus on her campaign for governor.

Although Abrams lost the gubernatorial campaign to Republican Brian Kemp, she has remained a hugely influential political figure in Georgia.

Abrams is credited with playing a big role in flipping Georgia from red to blue in Joe Biden's victory over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

She also campaigned for Democratic candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in the Georgia Senate runoff. Both Warnock and Ossoff won, meaning the Senate is a 50-50 split between Democrats and Republicans.

Since Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will break any ties, the Senate is now essentially in control of the Democrats.

Malone spent the past two seasons at FCS Chattanooga after three years as the offensive line coach at Old Dominion. He previously coached at Virginia State, James Madison, VMI and UMass.

Before his coaching career, Malone was a four-year starter at offensive guard at Virginia Tech in the 1990s.

GREENVILLE, S.C.—Chattanooga's second-half implosion on Saturday at home against The Citadel left head coach Russ Huesman and the Mocs in a tough situation. The Mocs have now dropped to 0-2 in the Southern Conference and 2-3 overall.

The Mocs went into their second weekend of Southern Conference football ranked No. 15 in the nation, and it appeared the Mocs might climb up the national polls a little more, leading 27-0 over The Citadel in the third quarter. However, an opportunistic Bulldogs football team never stopped believing and never gave up, coming all the way back to post a miraculous 28-27 win.

Over the past couple of years, the Mocs certainly haven't been strangers to blowing big leads late in football games. Looking back to the 2010 season, the Mocs held pretty substantial third-quarter leads on both Appalachian State (35-14) and Jacksonville State on the road (17-0), only to blow both games and drop back-to-back heartbreakers.

This season, the Mocs appeared as if they would get league play off to a strong start this season, leading Appalachian State 6-0 in the third quarter of their Week 4 matchup. However, a special teams miscue and an interception returned for a score resulted in a 14-12 loss in the High Country.

Talent-wise, Chattanooga appears to have as much as any team, if not more, in the Southern Conference this season. However, with Saturday's 28-27 loss to the Bulldogs, Chattanooga once again finds itself in a "backs-to-the-wall" situation.

With seven wins Division I wins being the minimum considered for making the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs, the Mocs road certainly doesn't get any easier. In fact, the Mocs need to go at least 5-1 the rest of the way to make the postseason.

The Mocs will face top-ranked Georgia Southern on the road this coming Saturday. The Mocs did beat the Eagles 35-27 last season at Finley Stadium, but had to battle back from a halftime deficit.

After the game with the Eagles, the Mocs will face Western Carolina before traveling to Elon the following week.

Upstart Furman visits Finley Stadium on October 29, and the Mocs will play at Samford on November 5.

After an open week, the Mocs will close out the 2011 season by hosting Wofford on Nov. 19, so there is much work still to be done for the Mocs.

Offensive Woes

Most of Chattanooga's troubles can be traced to their lack of production offensively.

The Mocs have had trouble adjusting to losing three starters along their offensive line to graduation, and B.J. Coleman, the Mocs' All-American signal-caller, has had less time to find receivers this season. Coleman has been under constant pressure the past two weeks against Appalachian State and The Citadel.

The Mocs head into Saturday's contest at Georgia Southern ranked No. 8 (out of nine) in the SoCon in scoring (21.4 PPG), No. 8 in total offense (345.2 YPG), No. 9 in rushing offense (92.0 YPG) and No. 3 in passing offense (253.2 YPG). The Mocs have also yielded a league-high 14 sacks through the first five games of the 2011 season.

After the loss to The Citadel, Coleman was left searching for answers. He made a statement in the post-game interviews saying that this is the most challenging point in his three seasons as the Mocs quarterback, and it would be up to him and the offense to try and solve the offensive puzzle this week in preparation for Saturday's monumental road clash at Georgia Southern.

For Coleman personally, it has not been the kind of start he would have hoped for in his final season in the Scenic City. Going into Saturday's showdown in Statesboro, Coleman has completed 109 of 181 passes for 1,270 yards, with six TDs and six INTs.

With the status of All-American wide receiver Joel Bradford (36 receptions, 436 yards, 2 TDs, 12.2 YPR in 2011) not yet known for Saturday, coupled with problems offensively and on special teams, the Mocs are facing themselves as much as preparing for top-ranked Georgia Southern this week.

The Mocs must solve their internal problems before they can worry about the Eagles.

One thing is for sure: the SoCon will find out just what Chattanooga is about on Saturday when it travels to Georgia Southern.

3. Chattanooga Mocs (6-5, 5-3 Southern Conference. Tied for 3rd)

The Mocs had little problem producing on offense last fall, especially through the air. They completed the 2010 season ranked second in the Southern Conference and seventh nationally in passing offense, averaging 277.7 YPG through the air per game.

In all, the Mocs ranked third in the Southern Conference in total offense (430.0 YPG) and scoring offense (31.5 PPG), and with six offensive starters returning, including virtually all the skill positions, the Mocs should once again have the potential to score points in a hurry this fall. For the first time since the 1990 and 1991 seasons, Chattanooga has now enjoyed back-to-back winning seasons and the Mocs are poised for more success in 2011.

The Mocs have only qualified for the FCS post-season once in their football history, and that was way back in 1984. But unlike those teams of the early 1990's which featured the likes of quarterback Kenyon Earl and wide receiver Terrell Owens, this Chattanooga team is one that many think that could be much more competitive in the race this fall. Many think that they could compete for the title.

The Offense:

For the past couple of seasons, Chattanooga quarterback B.J. Coleman (2,996 passing yards, 26 TDs) has been trying to escape the shadow of Elon University Quarterback Scott Riddle. However, the fact remains that Coleman is one of the best passers in the FCS as well as in the Southern Conference, and has been compared to the Southern Conference's version of Peyton Manning because of his intelligence, dimensions and accuracy.

He enters the season as one of the top NFL prospects in Division I college football. At 6'6", one of his greatest attributes is his height.

Coleman doesn't have far to go to become the school's all-time leading passer. He needs just 1,887 passing yards this season to surpass former Mocs gunslinger Chris Sanders (1999-2000), who threw for 7,230 yards in two seasons after transferring in from SMU. 

Coleman put on some outstanding performances for the Mocs in 2010, with his most memorable effort coming in their 36-28 come-from-behind win at Furman. In that contest, Coleman picked apart the Furman defense, passing for a career-best 432 yards and two touchdowns to snap a 15-game losing streak to the Paladins. Conversely, he also threw four interceptions in the game. 

The good news for Coleman is that he will have his top receiver back for the 2011 season in Joel Bradford (1,284 rec. yds, 11 TDs). In just his second season since converting from defensive back to wide receiver, Bradford turned in the best season in school history for a Mocs wide receiver. Not only did Bradford lead the Southern Conference in receiving, he also shattered the school's previous mark of 1,060 receiving yards in a single season which was set by Alonzo Nix in 2003.

His 11 touchdown receptions in 2010 tied for the most scoring grabs in a single season in school history, as former Chattanooga legend Cos DeMatteo hauled in 11 scoring tosses in both 1999 and 2000. In the Furman game, he produced one of the best single-game efforts by a wide receiver in Southern Conference history, hauling in 15 passes for 274 yards and a touchdown. Earlier in the season, in a win over Eastern Kentucky, Bradford posted 254 receiving yards, as well.

Joining Bradford in the lineup at wide receiver this fall is split end Marlon Anthony (17 rec., 195 yds., 3 TDs, 11.5 YPR in 2010). Like Coleman, the 6'5" Anthony has NFL attributes in his size and overall ability. With excellent speed and leaping ability, Anthony is a player that could have a breakout season for the Mocs in 2011.

The Mocs were dealt a blow in early summer, when 2010 starting slot wide receiver Brian Sutherland quit the team for personal reasons. Sutherland's speed and overall contributions will not be easy to replace, as he completed the 2010 season by leading the Southern Conference in all-purpose yards with 1823.

Rounding out the trio of starters expected to fill Russ Huesman's Sept. 3 depth chart in Lincoln, Nebraska is slot receiver Jeff Veres, who served as the team's placekicker last season.

One of the Mocs' biggest offensive losses was at tight end, as All-Conference tight end Garrett Hughes (25 rec., 346 yds., 5 TDs, 13.8 YPR) graduated. Hughes, who finished the 2010 season as the team's third-leading receiver, leaves some big shoes that need to be filled.

Replacing Hughes at tight end this fall will be either talented redshirt freshman Faysal Shafaat or University of Kentucky transfer Sean Stackhouse, who was a three-star recruit coming out of high school. Shafaat might have been UTC's top recruit from a couple of years ago, as he was a Top 100 recruit from the Central Florida area. During his senior season at Orlando Lutheran Academy, Shafaat hauled in 26 passes for 538 yards and eight TDs.

The one major replacement that must be made on the offensive side heading into the 2011 season will be at running back. The Mocs need to find a replacement for Erroll Wynn, who led the team in rushing with 653 yards last fall.

The starting running back is expected to be either junior Chris Awuah (26 rush att., 113 yds., 1 TD, 4.3 YPC/6 rec., 92 yds., 1 TD, 15.3 YPC in 2010) or senior J.J. Jackson (63 rush att., 223 rush yds., 3 TDs, 3.5 YPC). Both Awuah and Jackson are capable ball-carriers, with Jackson coming out of the spring with a slight lead for the starting position.

Awuah started for the Mocs as a true freshman a couple of years ago after Bryan Fitzgerald went down with a career-ending injury. One of Awuah's biggest strengths is catching passes out of the backfield, and he's coming off a 2010 season which saw him catch, run and pass for touchdowns.

Jackson started four times in 2010 and could turn out to be one of the surprise performers in the Southern Conference this fall. He is extremely elusive in the backfield, and recorded his best performance in the season-opening loss to Appalachian State, rushing for 49 yards on 14 rush attempts.

Sophomore Desmond Walker, a transfer into the program from Alabama A&M who sat out last season, and Kendrix Huitt, a three-star recruiting prospect according to Rivals.com, are two players that could also see action at running back in reserve roles this fall. Depth is not as much of an issue as identifying an everyday starer. 

The Mocs will also have a new starter at fullback this fall after Courtland Ellzey's graduation. Thomas Green, a rising senior, saw action in all 11 games last fall, and he is a physical, solid blocking presence for the Mocs. Green made the move from linebacker to fullback in the spring of 2010 and has been a significant contributor on special teams, as well. He recorded seven tackles last season.

The most concerning issue going into fall camp is the Mocs' offensive line, which lost three players this offseason. Starting all-conference left tackle Chris Harr, center Justin Gaylon and right guard T.J. Hurless are all gone. Austin Wilson and Adam Miller are the only starters returning.

Wilson started eight games for the Mocs at left guard last fall, but made the move to center this spring in response to Gaylon's graduation. Miller returns to his right tackle spot, where he logged nine starts a year ago.

Likely to assume Harr's vacated left tackle position will be talented redshirt freshman Taylor Dodds, who won the starting spot after a strong spring. Senior Omre Harris will start at left guard as a result of Wilson's move to center.

Harris has started 12 games for the Mocs, and adds solid experience to the Mocs' 2011 offensive front. Harris played in six games last fall, starting only three.

The final projected offensive line starter is Nick Gipson, who saw action in four games at right guard last season. Gipson, a junior, is coming off a strong spring and is another player that will add experience.

Redshirt freshman Devin Caldwell and true freshman Synjen Herren, two products of strong recruiting classes, will add youthful, talented depth heading into the campaign.

The Defense:

With nine defensive starters returning, the Mocs are coming off a 2010 season which saw them post the league's sixth-ranked defense (370.0 YPG). Their defensive squad was particularly effective against the run last fall, limiting opponents to 162.5 YPG.

Their secondary struggled at times, which was a bit of a surprise considering that three starters, including all-conference cornerback Buster Skrine, returned last fall. The Mocs yielded 207.5 pass yards per game last season, which ranked seventh in the conference.

There's good reason to believe that they will again be one of the top defenses in the league, as they were in head coach Russ Huesman's inaugural season in 2009.

However, the Mocs defense did suffer quite a blow a couple of weeks ago when standout defensive end Chris Donald decided to give up football as a result of nagging wrist injuries. Donald contributed a team-leading 12.5 tackles for losses and 7.5 sacks last season, his first as a starter.

It's a huge blow to a UTC defensive line that figured to have one of the top tandems in the Southern Conference in 2011. All is not lost, however, as the other end of that dynamic duo Joshua Williams, returns. Williams recorded 32 tackles, 8.5 tackles for losses, five sacks in 2010.

An all-freshman performer a couple of years ago for the Mocs, Williams comes into his third season as a starter having posted 18 tackles for losses and 12 sacks during his career. Williams' best performance in 2010 came in the Mocs' win over Eastern Kentucky, in which he recorded three sacks. Coming off of a shoulder surgery, Williams is expected to return to the all-conference form he displayed as a freshman.

The void left by leading pass-rusher Chris Donald will likely be filled by senior De'Markus Lee, who had only five tackles in 2010. Lee didn't see all that much action in 2010, as he missed nine games due to injury. He originally transferred to Chattanooga from Murray State back in 2008, and is a player that is rangy and athletic at 6'4'' and 240 pounds.

Redshirt freshman Zach Rayl and true freshman Darian Stewart are expected to give Lee a run for the starting bookend position. Rayl made the transition from linebacker to defensive end in the spring, and Stewart will likely see action this fall after coming to the Scenic City as a two-star recruit, according to Rivals.com.

Chattanooga is returning both starters at defensive tackle for the 2011 campaign, with Nick Davison (45 tackles, 8.0 tackles for losses, two sacks in 2010) returning to his nose tackle position. Nick Craig (38 tackles, 3.5 tackles for lossess in 2010) returns as well.

Davison enjoyed one of his best games of the season in the Furman game, posting five tackles and the first sack of his career. He should be among the best nose tackles in the conference this fall, and could contend for all-league honors.

Like his defensive interior mate, Craig also put on his best performance of the 2010 season in the streak-breaking win over Furman, posting a career-high eight tackles. Redshirt freshmen Davis Tull and Devin Scates are a couple of talented defensive linemen expected to add depth at defensive end and nose tackle, respectively. 

All three starting linebackers are returning for the 2011 season, with leading tackler Ryan Consiglio (110 tackles, seven tackles for losses, two sacks, one interception, four PBUs, two FRs in 2010) leading the charge for the Mocs at strong-side linebacker. Consiglio, an All-SoCon performer last season, has a motor that constantly runs and is one of the more athletic players on the UTC defense.

Consiglio will likely compete for All-America honors in 2011, and posted his best performance of his 2010 season against Elon, recording a career-best 16 tackles in a 49-35 homecoming loss. Consiglio also posted 14 tackles and the second interception of his career in the Mocs' heartbreaking 21-17 loss at No. 5 Jacksonville State in the second game of the season.

Consiglio will be joined at linebacker by Shane Heatherly (45 tackles, 0.5 tackles for losses, 1 FR in 2010) and Gunner Miller (35 tackles, 4.5 TFLs, 1 PBU in 2010) at middle and outside linebacker, respectively.

Heatherly, a native of Waynesville, N.C., returns as a major piece of this unit and is coming off a pretty strong season of his own. He could be a breakout player in the middle for the Mocs' defense this fall. He enjoyed career afternoons against both Jacksonville State and Furman, recording eight tackles in each of those contests.

Miller completes the trio of projected starters, and will man the weak-side linebacker position this fall. Like Heatherly and Consiglio, Miller is a good athlete and an active player. As a redshirt freshman last fall, Miller was selected to the the Southern Conference's All-Freshman team and gave his best performance of the 2010 season in a win at Western Carolina, recording a career-high nine tackles, four of them for losses.

There are some solid linebacking reserves returning in 2011 season, as well. Brothers J.D. Dothard (17 tackles, 6.5 tackles for losses, one sack, one interceptions in 2010) and Wes Dothard (32 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss in 2010) both return to provide support. J.D. moved from safety to linebacker, but has been slowed by a foot injury during the offseason. Wes saw action in 10 games for the Mocs last fall.

The Mocs suffered perhaps their greatest loss in the defensive backfield, with the graduation of Buster Skrine. Skrine was arguably the league's top cornerback last fall, and was rewarded for his strong career by being drafted in the fifth round of the NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns.

Leading the secondary, which hopes to improve against the pass after ranking eighth in the league last fall, will be sophomore Kadeem Wise (29 tackles, six interceptions, six PBUs) at left cornerback. For his efforts in the 2010 season, Wise was selected as the SoCon's Freshman of the Year last fall. Against Western Carolina, he recorded three tackles and a couple of picks in UTC's 27-21 road win.

Set to fill the vacancy as a result of Skrine's graduation will be Chaz Moore (19 tackles, three tackles for losses, 1 FF), who saw some time in all 11 games at cornerback last season. Moore, a 5'10", 165-pound native of Memphis, was solid in his first season with the Mocs and he enjoyed his best game of the season in the road loss at Jacksonville State. Moore is coming off a strong spring and could be set for a real breakout season.

Chattanooga will be in great shape at the safety positions heading into the 2011 season. Returning to man the safety spots will be Chris Lewis-Harris (55 tackles, four PBUs, one interception, two FFs, one FR) at free safety, while Jordan Tippit (29 tackles, three interceptions, one FF) will start at strong safety. Both Lewis-Harris and Tippit should contend for all-league honors this fall.

Lewis-Harris ranked third on the team in tackles last fall with his 55, and posted his best game of the season against Appalachian State in the season-opener with nine tackles. Tippit, who has picked off eight passes coming into his senior season, came up with a huge interception late in the Mocs' 35-27 win over Georgia Southern.

Special Teams:

Any Chattanooga fan will tell you that this is the area where the Mocs had the most difficulty last season, and injuries in the opener against Appalachian State forced a shaky Jeff Veres into the lineup.

This season, the Mocs should be in much better shape at placekicker with Nick Pollard returning to handle kicking duties this fall after sitting out the 2010 season with an injury. Pollard came to Chattanooga after winning the Tennessee Mr. Football Kicker of the Year in 2009. He connected on 12 out of 15 field goal attempts during his senior season in high school, including one from 53 yards, which shows he has plenty of leg strength.

At punter will be Mike Hammons (37 punts, 1,422 yds., 38.6 YPP, 8 punts inside 20 in 2010). Hammons is the Moc's longest-tenured special teams returnee in 2011. He had two blocked punts last season, and has a chance to compete for all-league accolades this fall. 

UTC's return game took a big hit with the loss of Brian Sutherland. Set to assume the kick-returning responsibilities this fall will likely be junior running back Chris Awuah. Awuah returned four kicks for 61 yards last fall.

The Mocs will be in great shape in the other half of the return game, as Joel Bradford (10 punt ret., 89 yds. in 2010) returns to that role this season. Bradford ranked second to only Elon's Lance Camp in punt return average last season with 8.9 yards per return.

Final Analysis:

Chattanooga was dealt some difficult issues during the off-season, as three key players departed from the program. The Mocs lost one of their top playmakers in Brian Sutherland, and the once-promising Keon WIlliams has left the program, as well.  

The biggest loss on the defensive side is defensive end Chris Donald, who burst onto the scene for the Mocs last season replacing Josh Beard at defensive end after transferring in from Tennessee.

The Mocs will still have a strong defensive line, especially with the return of defensive end Joshua Williams, who now needs to find the form he displayed as a freshman two years ago. Stepping in to fill Donald's vacated slot at defensive end will likely be Davis Tull, who redshirted last year.

Not only will the offense miss Sutherland and Williams, but the Mocs must find a way to replace three veteran starters on the offensive line. They need to pull things together quickly before they face the vaunted "Black Shirts" defense of Nebraska in their season opener on Sept. 3. The loss of Williams probably won't affect the running game all that much, as running back may be the position in which the Mocs have the most depth.

The Mocs have the toughest schedule in the league, with the aforementioned trip to Nebraska as well as a non-league game at one of the tougher places to play in the FCS, Eastern Kentucky's Roy Kidd Stadium.

They will also host Jacksonville State at Finley Stadium on Sept. 10.The Gamecocks will likely visit the Scenic City with a Top 10 ranking. Adding to the difficulty of their 2011 schedule is the fact that UTC will have to travel to Appalachian State on September 24 and Georgia Southern on October 8.

With B.J. Coleman back under center and Joel Bradford returning to catch his passes, the Mocs should again have one of the top passing attacks in FCS this season. If the young offensive line matures quickly, if Awuah performs well, and if the defense can stabilize its pass rush, the Mocs might have a chance to post one of their best seasons in school history.

The transformation of Chattanooga football last fall was quite remarkable and is one of the best turnaround stories in league history. This story began with Richmond’s march to the 2008 national title game and the stars aligned for the Mocs to write such a dramatic turnaround story in 2009.

Russ Huesman, the orchestrator of the Richmond Spiders title-winning defense, took the reigns of the UTC football program on Dec. 20, 2008, interviewing for the head coaching position, conveniently while the Spiders were in the “Scenic City” for their national title game against Montana.

Huesman, who played defensive back at UTC in the mid 1980's, hit the ground running looking to restore the program to respectability. He was taking over a program that had only two winning seasons in 12 years and hadn’t come close to a playoff bid in at least that period of time. Adding to the difficulty of reviving the stagnant tradition that had crept in to the school that had host the annual FCS national title game for the previous 12 seasons was picking up the pieces of a 1-11 2008 campaign, without a win against division competition.

The Mocs got more good news in the spring, as Tennessee Volunteer reserve quarterback B.J. Coleman decided to give the program even more of a boost by transferring to play back to his hometown in front of family and friends.

Things were beginning to come together for UTC, but hopes were somewhat disappointed when UTC was penalized by the NCAA for failing to keep its Academic Progress Report (APR) in order and were automatically disqualified from the FCS postseason, although no one really expected the Mocs to be in line to challenge for a postseason bid to begin with.

Along with the efforts and increased intensity by Huesman and his newly hired coaching staff during spring drills, there was also some serious marketing efforts going on by the school to help usher in change and a new mentality towards Chattanooga football. A staunch dedication was made to make the school’s football program a part of the community and history of the Scenic City.

Those efforts would pay off, as the Mocs drew more fans to Finley Stadium than it had since its opening in 1997. The Mocs drew a strong contingent of 14,002 fans to their home opener on a Thursday night against NAIA power Glenville State.

UTC’s play on the field in 2009 would support the increased efforts off the field to promote the product, as the Mocs finished 6-5, which was the most wins since the Mocs finished 7-4 in 2005. UTC saw a significant change in mentality on both sides of the football in 2009 and delighted the increased throngs of fans showing up to see them on Saturday afternoons, with a physical and opportunistic defense and one of the league’s most-balanced offenses.

The Mocs broke the all-time season ticket mark at Finley Stadium with 2,527 sold in 2009. The record ticket sales helped UTC tally its best home record (4-1) since the 1997 season.

Fittingly, the theme for the marketing campaign entering the 2009 campaign was "Restore The Glory" and that’s exactly what the Mocs would do. Instead of a "ghost stadium" so many SoCon opponents and fans had experienced when visiting Finley Stadium in the past, opposing coaching staffs had no need to creatively motivate their players.

The excitement and noise was there, even maybe a little hostility from the partisan Chattanooga crowds. In years past, it would have been considered a small victory if UTC could out-draw its opponents. That rarely happened when UTC faced perennial SoCon powers Appalachian State, Georgia Southern or Furman.

B.J. Coleman was as good as advertised in his first season donning the Chattanooga Blue and Gold, as he passed for 2,348 yards (seventh Moc to throw for over 2,000 yards in a season) and was the first quarterback to throw for over 2,000 yards since Cedric Stevens did so in 2004. Coleman also threw 17 TD passes and just nine interceptions.

One player that exemplified the overall improvement of the Chattanooga defense in 2009 was senior defensive end Josh Beard. Beard was an off-the-radar player for many coming into the campaign and few others, than maybe Nostradamus, would have prophesized him to win the league’s Defensive Player of the Year honor. However, after tallying 62 tackles and a league-leading 12 sacks, Beard was an easy selection for the award.

Beard was a big part of a defense that went from being the worst unit in the SoCon in 2008 (442.5 YPG) to finishing as one of the league’s top units in 2009 (307.7 YPG). Another stat that bared out the defensive improvement, is the Mocs held five of its 11 opponents to less than 20 points and the unit displayed one of the nation’s top aerial defenses.

The Mocs finished the campaign ranking 13th nationally in pass defense (158.9 YPG), while the unit’s 11 interceptions tied for second-most in the league in 2009.
The Mocs‘ defense wasn’t the only noticeable improvement in 2009. With Coleman at the controls of the UTC offense, the offense also saw some drastic changes for the better in 2009.

The Mocs finished the season ranking fourth in the league in passing offense (216.8 YPG), while ranking seventh in the league in total offense (301.8 YPG). Both were improvements for an offense that ranked dead last in the league in those two categories in the previous campaign.

Newcomers on the offensive side of the ball like Chris Awuah were also responsible for the revived excitement to the program that some think has been a sleeping giant in the SoCon for quite sometime. Awuah, a true freshman running back from Marietta, GA., did a nice job of coming in and filling the starting running back’s role after Bryan Fitzgerald went down with a second-straight season-ending injury.

Awuah proved to be effective both in the running game as well as the passing game, catching passes out of the backfield. He finished the season as the Mocs’ leading rusher, with 459 yards and four TDs on 153 rush attempts (3.0 YPC). For his efforts, he garnered SoCon All-Freshman Team honors.

The overall enhancements Huesman made in his inaugural season at the helm of the program were also evident in the post-season league awards, as a school-record eight Mocs players earned All-SoCon honors in 2009, while four Mocs would garner first-team All-SoCon accolades, led by All-American selection defensive end Josh Beard.

Senior wide receiver Blue Cooper (second team All-SoCon coaches and media), junior defensive back Buster Skrine (first team All-SoCon coaches), sophomore defensive back Jordan Tippitt (first-team All-SoCon media), and senior kicker Craig Camay (first team All-SoCon coaches) round out the all-league selections for the Mocs in 2009. Not surprisingly, Huesman garnered the co-Coach of the Year honor, sharing the accolade with Appalachian State’s Jerry Moore.

The Mocs will be challenged to respond to higher expectations in 2010, which is something this program is not accustomed to. The Mocs return 18 starters for the 2010 season, but must replace some significant talent, as linebacker Joseph Thornton and wide receiver Blue Cooper have both graduated.

UTC will again have Coleman returning to lead what should be a big-play offense this fall. Marlon Anthony, a red shirt freshman wide receiver that came in as a three-star recruit by rivals.com last fall, will give the Mocs a big-play threat to replace Cooper.

On defense, the Mocs were given a big boost with another big-time transfer via that Tennessee Volunteer pipeline, as Chris Donald will make his home at linebacker this fall, hoping to compensate for the loss of Thornton. Donald is a player that was a five-star recruit coming out of high school and will be the highest rated recruit to ever step foot on the Finley Stadium turf for the Mocs this fall.

Excitement will again be the buzzword on the UTC campus as the summer gives way to fall camp and the Mocs take the field for year two in the Russ Huesman era. In 2010, the Mocs will open the season on Sept. 4 against five-time defending SoCon champion Appalachian State at Finley Stadium. The argument could even be made that it will be the biggest game in the modern era of Chattanooga football. The Mocs haven’t beaten the Mountaineers since that epic, 59-56, win over ASU at Finley Stadium in 2004.

With its toughest conference game at the beginning of the 2010 schedule, the Mocs will be able to gauge just how much a factor they will be in the SoCon race from the outset of the campaign. The Mocs then have games against two of the best teams the Ohio Valley Conference has to offer, taking on the likely league favorite Jacksonville State on the road on Sept.11, followed by a return to Finley Stadium to face Eastern Kentucky on Sept. 18.

It’s safe to say that after facing at least two ranked opponents in the first three weeks of the season, we’ll know plenty about the Mocs by the end of September. The excitement will likely be around the Scenic City for a while, though, now that Huesman has returned to campus.

After a year-plus of toiling in ‘Big Brother’s’ dungeon, B.J. Coleman decided to come home and play for the little brother.

The local star signed UTC scholarship papers today at his alma mater, the McCallie School.

Coleman could not convince two coaching staffs at UT-Knoxville that he was the best QB on campus.

The new staff at UT-Chattanooga, however, will welcome him with open arms.

First year head coach Russ Huesman and B.J.’s father, Bryan, played football together at UTC in the late 70s. I am sure that had a great deal to do with this decision.

It is a great decision that should work out for all parties, except for current-UTC senior QB’s Jare Gault, and Tony Pastore.

But when you get a chance to get an FBS-caliber QB at UTC, you have to jump on it.

Coleman was a high school hero at the McCallie School in Chattanooga. He enjoyed what was quite possibly the best high school career of any QB in Chattanooga history.

Former Vols Offensive Coordinator, David Cutcliffe, fell in love with Coleman’s game and was by all accounts his next QB building project (Ex. the Manning brothers, & Tee Martin). That is, until Cutcliffe left for the Duke Head Coaching position after the 2007 season.

After two attempts to unseat Jonathan Crompton as the starting QB at Tennessee fell short, for some unknown reason, Coleman decided it was time to move on.

Now he has a chance to build onto his Chattanooga-hero status by taking UT-Chattanooga from the Southern Conference cellar to the FCS playoffs.

The Mocs are banned from the postseason in 2009 because of a poor APR, although there was never a real chance of that happening anyway.

For this new staff to get Coleman on top of having a pretty good recruiting haul this year definitely gives the Mocs-faithful some hope.

This is a program that some people, including myself, have called on the University to cut.

UTC football has been awful for a long time. But for once the future goes from being bleak—yet hopeful, to being cautiously optimistic—yet promising.

2010 and beyond now have to be considered as potential seasons to put Chattanooga on the FCS map for reasons other than hosting the National Championship each December.

One thing is certain; if Chattanoogans start to fill Finley Stadium in September, October, and November; ‘Big Brother’ in Knoxville will take notice.

It has been a tough run for Chattanooga Mocs fans. Former Head Coach Rodney Allison gave them little to cheer about during his six-year run at the helm of the UT-Chattanooga Mocs football program.

Allison’s contract expired and he was let go following the 2008 season after posting his worst season yet, a dismal 1-11 finish, with the only win of the season a 47-6 blowout of undersized NAIA opponent Cumberland University.

Allison wrapped up his tenure at UTC with a 17-51 cumulative record, and his best finish was in 2005, his only winning season, when the Mocs finished 6-5, albeit only going 3-4 in Southern Conference play.

Allison should be given some credit though, considering that the Mocs last winning season before him was in 1997 when they finished 7-4, and went .500 in conference action.

The Mocs last conference title was in 1984, with a 6-5 finish and a 5-1 record against conference foes. Other than a run atop the conference in the late 1970s, the Mocs have struggled to stay out of the Southern Conference basement.

These numbers show how tough climbing the rankings can be in college football, especially in arguably the most competitive conference in the FCS.

Georgia Southern and Appalachian State annually field some of the best programs in FCS football. Combined, these two teams have taken home the I-AA/FCS national title in five of the last 10 years! (The conference boasts another three national titles in the 11 years before that.)

Aside from these two teams being a lock for postseason play, the Mocs have had to contend with annual matchups against very solid Wofford and Furman teams as well.

This leaves the Mocs in the middle of the pack at best, and scrapping with the Citadel and Elon to not end up with Western Carolina in the bottom of the standings. Southern Conference newcomer Samford bested Chattanooga in 2008 by a score of 30-7 and looks to improve on their 6-5 finish and four conference wins next season.

On Dec. 22, 2008, just days after the Richmond Spiders defeated the Montana Grizzlies for the FCS national championship in Chattanooga’s very own Finley Stadium, the Mocs lured away Richmond defensive coordinator Russ Huesman to become their next head coach.

Things had come full-circle for Huesman, who had spent the last four seasons on the Spiders staff. He was a four-year starter at defensive back for the Mocs in the late 1970s during their above-mentioned brief dominance of the Southern Conference.

This could only be good news for a defense that gave up a whopping 455 points in 12 contests last year.

While Huesman’s defensive expertise can be expected to make an immediate impact on the team, it wouldn’t hurt if the offense improves to help the effort. The Mocs only put up a total of 153 points all season, via 20 touchdowns (two were defensive) and four field goals.

Other offensive stats the Mocs can look to improve upon are their third-down conversion percentage (just 27 percent to opponents 45 percent), their 11-19 TD-INT ratio at quarterback, and their average yards per rush (2.3).

One other stat the Mocs and Huesman hope to increase next year is home attendance, which dwindled below 6000 per home game.  This is really a shame considering the Mocs’ Finley Stadium can accommodate 20,000 fans and is among the nicest and newest facilities in the entirety of FCS.

Coming up in a few weeks; a complete position-by-position breakdown of the Mocs and their personnel coming out of spring training and what the depth and strategy looks like heading into the 2009 season.