SATURDAY GAME STORY | TICKETS
CHATTANOOGA—The 20th-ranked Chattanooga Mocs look to bounce back from this weekend’s 52-50 shootout loss to No. 14 Western Carolina. Not a choice really with a trip to Mercer looming this weekend
“We talk about it every Saturday after the game,” Coach Rusty Wright explained. “It’s 24 hours, and you move on to the next one. Do what you got to do to get ready for the next one. Our guys have been pretty good about that.
“We’ll have a huge challenge down there. It’s a place we never play very well at, so we’ll work this week to figure out a way to win a football game.”
The Southern Conference race is on full blast. There are six teams with 1.5 games led by the Catamounts at 3-0. The Mocs (3-1) and No. 4 Furman (2-0) are a half-game back in a virtual tie for second, while Mercer is fourth, one game out. Samford (2-2) and VMI (1-1) are 1.5 games from first so there’s a lot to unfold each week. It sets up like this:
(20) Chattanooga at (RV) Mercer, 4 p.m.
(4) Furman at (RV) Samford, 1 p.m.
VMI at The Citadel, 2 p.m.
Wofford at ETSU, 3:30 p.m.
While the 52-50 loss to the Catamounts on a buzzer-beating field goal stings, there is good news to start the week. Sophomore wide receiver Javin Whatley is this week’s Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Week. It’s the fourth POTW award for the Mocs this season, first for an offensive student-athlete.
And man did he earn it. Whatley set a new school record with 353 all-purpose yards (231 rec./6 rush/114 KR) breaking the mark of 328 by Charles McNeill vs. Kentucky State on Nov. 24, 2001. It was the first time a Moc had 300+ in a SoCon game.
The eye-popping part is the 231 receiving yards. That’s the fifth most in school history and just the eighth 200-yard effort. His four scores would’ve made Abraham Lincoln proud.
He did it in every way possible. With catches and runs as well as fly patterns to the back of the end zone. The TDs ranged from 31, eight, 11 and 32 yards. Whatley’s just the third Moc with four or more receiving TDs in a game and most since the record of six by Cos DeMatteo vs Mississippi Valley State on Sept. 16, 2000. NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Owens had the other in the Oct. 1, 1994 matchup at Marshall.
“He had some opportunities and made the most of them,” Coach Wright added. “Good player…competitor, that’s the thing with him. He’s a competitor on Saturdays and plays his tail off. You know, if he continues to do that, he’ll finish it up having a good year.”
Week 7: #20 Chattanooga (4-2/3-1) at Mercer (4-2/2-1)
Last Week: Western Carolina 52, Chattanooga 50 | Mercer 24, at ETSU 6
Game Time: 4 p.m. | Location: Five Star Stadium; Macon, Ga. (Tickets)
Series: 21-11-1 (History) | Media: ESPN+ | Mocs Sports Network | Live Stats
Chat with the Mocs
Chat with the Mocs radio show is back at Miller’s Ale House tonight from 7-8 p.m. Live attendance is encouraged, but fans can also listen in on the Mocs Sports Network Flagship Station, WFLI 96.1 FM/1070 AM. “Voice of the Mocs” Jim Reynolds is joined by Coach Rusty Wright every week during the season along with a selected student-athlete. This week’s guest appearance is Whatley.
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