2008 Woodie Awards
Defense steps up as Chattanooga prevails 17-14
Stefan Hunt
Issue date: 10/19/06 Section: Sports
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By Stefan Hunt
Sports Editor
Place kicker Esteban Lopez drilled a 38-yard field goal in overtime, and the Chattanooga defense held Western Carolina to a missed field goal to give the Mocs an ugly 17-14 win last Saturday.
The win was a much-needed one for a maligned Chattanooga team that has failed to live up to its lofty preseason expectations.
Chattanooga improved to 3-4 overall and 2-2 in conference play.
After battling back-and-forth throughout regulation, Chattanooga lost the overtime coin toss and was forced to start on offense.
A penalty and an incomplete pass forced Chattanooga to kick a field goal and leave the game in the hands of the defense.
And the defense stepped up. After holding WCU's offense on the ensuing possession, Jonathan Parson missed a 41-yarder that gave the Mocs the victory and some momentum heading into the last half of regular season.
The UTC defense, which has come under fire recently for its poor play, responded with one of its best games of the season.
The secondary, probably the biggest reason for the blame, played wonderfully as they held WCU to 125 yards passing, a far cry from the 336 yards it gave up last week against Appalachian State.
The winning kick was Lopez's second this season and fourth in the past two seasons.
"We made enough plays to win the game, but we made more than enough to lose it also," Allison stated after the game.
The Catamounts lead 14-7 in the third quarter after Western Carolina defensive back Mitchell Dukes returned a Matt Lopez interception 28 yards.
Chattanooga fought back with one of their most impressive drives of the season.
Lopez, a senior from Clinton, Tenn., led the Mocs on an 80-yard, 17-play drive that took 9:03 off the clock.
The long drive was capped off by a gutsy fourth-and-one quarterback sneak that knotted the game up at 14 with 4:19 remaining in the third quarter.
Chattanooga was aided by two big plays on the drive - a 15-yard pass to Michael Johnson on third down and running back Erroll Wynn's 21-yard scamper down to the WCU 4-yard line that set up Lopez's plunge.
Sports Editor
Place kicker Esteban Lopez drilled a 38-yard field goal in overtime, and the Chattanooga defense held Western Carolina to a missed field goal to give the Mocs an ugly 17-14 win last Saturday.
The win was a much-needed one for a maligned Chattanooga team that has failed to live up to its lofty preseason expectations.
Chattanooga improved to 3-4 overall and 2-2 in conference play.
After battling back-and-forth throughout regulation, Chattanooga lost the overtime coin toss and was forced to start on offense.
A penalty and an incomplete pass forced Chattanooga to kick a field goal and leave the game in the hands of the defense.
And the defense stepped up. After holding WCU's offense on the ensuing possession, Jonathan Parson missed a 41-yarder that gave the Mocs the victory and some momentum heading into the last half of regular season.
The UTC defense, which has come under fire recently for its poor play, responded with one of its best games of the season.
The secondary, probably the biggest reason for the blame, played wonderfully as they held WCU to 125 yards passing, a far cry from the 336 yards it gave up last week against Appalachian State.
The winning kick was Lopez's second this season and fourth in the past two seasons.
"We made enough plays to win the game, but we made more than enough to lose it also," Allison stated after the game.
The Catamounts lead 14-7 in the third quarter after Western Carolina defensive back Mitchell Dukes returned a Matt Lopez interception 28 yards.
Chattanooga fought back with one of their most impressive drives of the season.
Lopez, a senior from Clinton, Tenn., led the Mocs on an 80-yard, 17-play drive that took 9:03 off the clock.
The long drive was capped off by a gutsy fourth-and-one quarterback sneak that knotted the game up at 14 with 4:19 remaining in the third quarter.
Chattanooga was aided by two big plays on the drive - a 15-yard pass to Michael Johnson on third down and running back Erroll Wynn's 21-yard scamper down to the WCU 4-yard line that set up Lopez's plunge.
