2008 Woodie Awards
Buckley breaks rushing record as Mocs go 6-5
Nicholas Bradshaw
Issue date: 12/1/05 Section: Sports
The Chattanooga Mocs wrapped up their first winning season in eight years on Nov. 19, with a disappointing 56-35 loss to the No. 4 ranked Paladins of Furman.
The highlight of that game, as with most of the games this year, was the play of junior tailback Eldra Buckley, of Charleston, Miss. Buckley led the team in rushing with 142 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries for the Mocs.
This effort gave Buckley 1,233 yards and 11 touchdowns off of 217 carries on the season and was good enough to put him into the record books. Buckley moved past the mark set by Tyrone Coleman in 1998 of 1,191 yards to become first on Chattanooga's all-time single season rushing list.
Buckley also tied the Mocs single season record with six 100-yard performances on the year. His 112.1 yards per game average was also good enough to make him the third leading rusher in the Southern Conference for the 2005 season.
Buckley was the centerpiece of a much-improved Mocs running game, which rushed for only 1,238 yards as a team in 2004. Sophomore quarterback Antonio Miller, of Charlotte, N.C., was the second leading rusher for the Mocs this season with 441 yards and two scores on 86 carries.
Sophomore running back Lironnie Davis of Macon, Ga., was the third leading rusher for the Mocs this year piling up 391 yards and three touchdowns on 78 carries while playing in only eight games.
Overall, the Mocs rushed for 2,268 yards in 2005, a figure much more in line with head coach Rodney Allison's vision of a running-first Mocs offense.
Versatile quarterback Miller anchored the Mocs passing attack for most of the 2005 campaign. In addition to being the team's second leading rusher, Miller completed 127 of 212 passes for 1,234 yards with three touchdowns and 14 interceptions.
Miller went down with a sprained left shoulder early in the first quarter of the Mocs loss to Furman, giving former starting quarterback Matt Lopez, a Clinton, Tenn., junior, his most playing time of the season. Lopez finished the year with 381 yards passing with three touchdowns and four interceptions, completing 30 of his 68 passes.
The highlight of that game, as with most of the games this year, was the play of junior tailback Eldra Buckley, of Charleston, Miss. Buckley led the team in rushing with 142 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries for the Mocs.
This effort gave Buckley 1,233 yards and 11 touchdowns off of 217 carries on the season and was good enough to put him into the record books. Buckley moved past the mark set by Tyrone Coleman in 1998 of 1,191 yards to become first on Chattanooga's all-time single season rushing list.
Buckley also tied the Mocs single season record with six 100-yard performances on the year. His 112.1 yards per game average was also good enough to make him the third leading rusher in the Southern Conference for the 2005 season.
Buckley was the centerpiece of a much-improved Mocs running game, which rushed for only 1,238 yards as a team in 2004. Sophomore quarterback Antonio Miller, of Charlotte, N.C., was the second leading rusher for the Mocs this season with 441 yards and two scores on 86 carries.
Sophomore running back Lironnie Davis of Macon, Ga., was the third leading rusher for the Mocs this year piling up 391 yards and three touchdowns on 78 carries while playing in only eight games.
Overall, the Mocs rushed for 2,268 yards in 2005, a figure much more in line with head coach Rodney Allison's vision of a running-first Mocs offense.
Versatile quarterback Miller anchored the Mocs passing attack for most of the 2005 campaign. In addition to being the team's second leading rusher, Miller completed 127 of 212 passes for 1,234 yards with three touchdowns and 14 interceptions.
Miller went down with a sprained left shoulder early in the first quarter of the Mocs loss to Furman, giving former starting quarterback Matt Lopez, a Clinton, Tenn., junior, his most playing time of the season. Lopez finished the year with 381 yards passing with three touchdowns and four interceptions, completing 30 of his 68 passes.
