The SOCON slate for week 3 features a great conference matchup between Chattanooga and Furman, the return of ETSU to SOCON play, against WCU at Bristol Motor Speedway, OOC games against the Big South and OVC, and a Div II game. VMI and Samford are both idle. (SOCON Weekly Notes)
#9 Chattanooga at Furman 7pm (ESPN3) (UTC Game Notes)
UTC is coming off two dominating performances where they have totaled 100-0 on the scoreboard. Furman is still trying to gain a victory this season after playing Michigan St tough and losing a close one at The Citadel. The Mocs defense has been awesome to say the least, even if it was against mediocre competition. In 2 games they have allowed a combined total of 212 yards which is good enough for the top spot in FCS. Furman has had trouble moving the ball averaging just 249 yards a game and converting under 30% on 3rd downs. Furman QB P.J. Blazejowski needs a break out game. He is averaging just 53% completions, 162 yards a game passing with just 1 TD and 4 interceptions. On offense, the Mocs have moved the ball effortlessly gaining 468 yards a game with QB Alejandro Bennifield leading the way. This week they face tougher competition in Furman and Bennifield will certainly be challenged. Currently ranked second in the SOCON for total defense (behind UTC), Furman has allowed 330 yards a game including 181 on the ground. But that was against a top tier FBS team and The Citadel’s option attack. Mocs running back Derrick Craine has totaled 157 yards to date and Bennifield has tossed 414 yards and 8 TDs going a very respectable 19/26 on the year. Furman will have its hands full, but UTC will not run amok like they have been. Look for special teams to have an impact. Currently, the Mocs punter is #2 in the nation with a ridiculously high 49.2 average. Talk about flipping the field. For Furman this is a must win game. After going 4-10 in conference play over the last two years they need to turn it around and a victory over UTC would stop the bleeding. However, look for the Mocs to win a close one on the road in a hard fought battle.
#13 The Citadel at Gardner-Webb 6pm (Big South Network) (The Citadel Game Notes)
It’s the Bulldogs against the Runnin’ Bulldogs. The Citadel is off to a fast start going 2-0 in SOCON play to start the season. G-W had a great opening when they dominated Elon on the road, but they faltered badly last week going down hard at Western Carolina 44-14. Always a tough foe, the Runnin’ Bulldogs hope to pull off an upset in their home opener. The Citadel has struggled on offense even if they got the wins so far. Their veteran QB Dominique Allen served a one game suspension and was out for 4 weeks due to an injury to his hand. He got some playing time last week and led a critical 4th quarter drive that proved to be the winning score. On the day he went 3/3 through the air for 100 yards. His arm must be ok even if he is a little rusty taking the snaps. In the first 2 games the Citadel has averaged only 4.3 yards a carry which is well off their 5.9 average for 2015. With new faces on the O-line, the coaching changes, and the QB situation, some turmoil was inevitable. The Bulldogs hope that this is behind them and they can generate more offense to relieve their defense which has played some good ball in the first two games. The Citadel has grabbed 4 interceptions already and is on pace to exceed last year’s total of 20. Allowing 332 yards a game (145 rushing/187 passing), the Bulldogs have only given up a respectable total of 4 TDs and 3 FGs in their first 2 games. They know how to finish games as well allowing 0 points in the 4th quarter so far, and only giving up 53 total yards, combined for the final period of the first 2 games. In addition to a sluggish offense, one other issue that has to be of concern to The Citadel is its kicking game. A missed XP and 2 missed field goals of 42 and 44 by an FBS transfer grad student are troubling. Gardner-Webb has totaled 598 yards on the ground in 2 games and moved the ball well against both Elon and WCU, even in a losing effort. They had at least one long drive erased by a turnover last week. G-W’s passing game is not explosive and the Bulldogs should be able to contain it. Expect The Citadel to ramp up its option attack this week and win by a two to three scores on the road.
Western Carolina at ETSU 1:30pm (WCU Radio) (WCU Game Notes)
Talk about a venue for ETSU’s return to the SOCON! The Bucs meet Western Carolina at the Bristol Motor Speedway in the second game played at this unique location. For anyone who saw the Va Tech/Tennessee game played last week, it was obviously a special event. While these two teams are not going to draw the attendance figures of that record breaking game, it is still a special venue and those who attend it will likely never forget the experience. Western Carolina got mauled by ECU the first week out only to recover nicely against Gardner-Webb last week at home. The Catamounts needed to replace their QB this year and they have done just that. RS Freshman Tyrie Adams has led his offense for an average of 505 yards a game so far. Hitting 70% of his passes, Adams has averaged 300 yards a game through the air and has 5 TDs. He also has 3 interceptions, tossing 2 last week against Gardner-Webb. Running back Detrez Newsmen had a slow start in game 1 at ECU, but got in the groove for 148 yards last week. Overall, Western ran for 263 last week. On defense the Cats allowed 271 on the ground, but allowed just 86 through the air as Gardner-Webb only went 11/25 passing. ETSU was idle last week and has been basking in the glory of avenging their 2015 loss to Kennesaw St by upsetting them 20-17 in double overtime in week one. It was their first win over a Div I team since returning to football in 2015 after 11 years in hibernation. Going 2-9 last year, ETSU will have an uphill battle for at least a couple more years as they rebuild their team from the ground up. Their team consists of Fr, RSF, So, and a few Jr transfers. WCU will lap ETSU a few times inside the track at Bristol.
Tennessee Tech at Mercer 4pm (ESPN3) (Mercer Game Notes)
After suffering a close loss at home to The Citadel in week 1, the Mercer Bears traveled to ACC stalwart Georgia Tech last week. Far from a blowout, the Bears held their own and showed that they are a contender in the SOCON in only their fourth season of fielding a team since WWII. Bear QB John Russ is averaging 199 yards through the air and 49 on the ground each game. Mercer has averaged 356 yards a game overall. Running backs Payton Usher and Alex Lakes are both dangerous. On defense the Bears have given up 313 per game on the ground, but considering that their opponent included two of the best FCS and FBS running teams, this is notable. Last year the Bears lost to Tenn Tech on the road when the Golden Eagles scored late in the 4th quarter. Tenn Tech lost their opener to Wofford at home 21-7 and crushed Austin Peay on the road 41-7 this past week. The Golden Eagle offense has averaged 375 a game including 246 through the air, but Mercer’s defense should limit their output if they can shift gears from concentrating on the run for the first 2 weeks of the season. If the Bears can generate a respectable offensive output they should win by 10 at home.
JC Smith at Wofford 3pm (ESPN3) (Wofford Game Notes)
The Golden Bulls of JC Smith travel to Spartanburg this week to face the Wofford Terriers. Wofford is coming off a road victory over Tenn Tech in week 1 and a respectable showing in Oxford, Mississippi this past week where they lost to Ole Miss 38-13. After a relatively disappointing 5-6 season in 2015, the Terriers are hoping to rediscover their winning ways. Averaging 346 yards a game with 290 on the ground, Wofford appears to have settled in with a primary QB in Brad Butler. Last week against Ole Miss they managed to eke out 233 yards rushing and 72 in the air. On defense they are allowing 336 yards a game including 229 through the air. They should pad their offensive and defensive stats quite a bit this week against the DII Golden Bulls. After some good reps for their starters, expect Wofford will go deep into the roster during the game. Wofford will roll by 40+.