2008 Woodie Awards
Despite recent slide, Mocs expect to bounce back
Commentary
Stefan Hunt
Issue date: 10/12/06 Section: Sports
Commentary By
Stefan Hunt
Sports Editor
I know what you people are thinking after the Mocs completely embarrassed themselves last week against Appalachian State: "Here we go again, same ol' Mocs, same outcome, different year."
Not so fast. Before you start counting down the days until the basketball Mocs take the court, you need to realize one thing: These Mocs are good; they just haven't been that good the past two weeks.
But rest assured Mocaholics, Rodney Allison and his crew will get this thing headed in the right direction.
Just look at what Allison has done to the football program in the short time he has been here.
He took arguably one of the worst football programs in all of college football, and has turned it around into a respectable program.
Sure there are still a few kinks to work through, such as deciding on a quarterback and sticking with him. Rotating quarterbacks is never a good idea, and this is starting to resemble the Tennessee Vols as of a year ago. He also has to figure out why the most athletic unit on the team (the secondary) has become the weakest link.
But the fact that fans are now expecting playoffs is a testament to what Allison has brought to Chattanooga.
Finley Stadium and its cavernous seating capacity are now full of emotional fans, crazy students and excited alumni during football games. Just this past week, Appy State players were talking about how empty the stadium was a few years ago when they played here. Now, you have fans excited about going to support the Mocs. That is saying something, considering half of Chattanooga bleeds orange and white.
It also doesn't help that the Mocs play in the SEC of Division 1-AA football. Every team in the league is capable of beating the other on any given Saturday.
Of course, Chattanooga had the chance to bolt to the Ohio Valley Conference and play in a softer, less-talented league, but new Athletic Director Rick Hart decided against that. Like the old saying goes, "If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best."
Stefan Hunt
Sports Editor
I know what you people are thinking after the Mocs completely embarrassed themselves last week against Appalachian State: "Here we go again, same ol' Mocs, same outcome, different year."
Not so fast. Before you start counting down the days until the basketball Mocs take the court, you need to realize one thing: These Mocs are good; they just haven't been that good the past two weeks.
But rest assured Mocaholics, Rodney Allison and his crew will get this thing headed in the right direction.
Just look at what Allison has done to the football program in the short time he has been here.
He took arguably one of the worst football programs in all of college football, and has turned it around into a respectable program.
Sure there are still a few kinks to work through, such as deciding on a quarterback and sticking with him. Rotating quarterbacks is never a good idea, and this is starting to resemble the Tennessee Vols as of a year ago. He also has to figure out why the most athletic unit on the team (the secondary) has become the weakest link.
But the fact that fans are now expecting playoffs is a testament to what Allison has brought to Chattanooga.
Finley Stadium and its cavernous seating capacity are now full of emotional fans, crazy students and excited alumni during football games. Just this past week, Appy State players were talking about how empty the stadium was a few years ago when they played here. Now, you have fans excited about going to support the Mocs. That is saying something, considering half of Chattanooga bleeds orange and white.
It also doesn't help that the Mocs play in the SEC of Division 1-AA football. Every team in the league is capable of beating the other on any given Saturday.
Of course, Chattanooga had the chance to bolt to the Ohio Valley Conference and play in a softer, less-talented league, but new Athletic Director Rick Hart decided against that. Like the old saying goes, "If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best."
