Defense Reigns! No. 23 Bears Shut Down No. 14 Chattanooga

Saturday, September 14

Chattanooga, Tenn.

6 p.m.

Mercer University

3-0 , 1-0

Chattanooga

0-3 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Mercer

Chattanooga

Defense Reigns! No. 23 Bears Shut Down No. 14 Chattanooga

9/14/2024 4:43:00 PM | Football

Box Score

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Visiting and 23^rd-ranked Mercer limited preseason Southern Conference favorite Chattanooga to its fewest rushing yards in seven years and used a second-quarter rushing touchdown from Brayden Smith to take the lead for good as the Bears toppled the 14^th-ranked Mocs, 10-3, on Saturday evening at Finley Stadium.

Mercer (3-0, 1-0 SoCon) held an opponent to 29 or fewer rushing yards for the third time in as many games this season, this time holding Chattanooga (0-3, 0-1) to just 19 yards (20 carries) on the ground – their lowest rushing total since being held to seven rushing yards in a 2017 loss to Furman. Saturday's win snapped a two-game series skid for the Orange & Black as well.

THE BASICS

SCORE: No. 23 Mercer 10, No. 14 Chattanooga 3
RECORDS: Mercer (3-0, 1-0 SoCon); Chattanooga (0-3, 0-1 SoCon)
LOCATION: Chattanooga, Tenn. (Finley Stadium)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST QUARTER

No scoring.

Nice pass break up by @DainsusM 🚫 pic.twitter.com/SjcyKEl79t
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 14, 2024

2ND QUARTER

A couple of big-gainers keyed an 11-play, 82-yard scoring drive for the Bears as time wound down in the opening half. CJ Miller punched his way through the offensive line for 19 yards on a key 3^rd-and-short situation midway through the possession, and DJ Smith connected with Kelin Parsons on a 31-yard pass-and-catch to move the visitors inside the red zone. Brayden Smith, ultimately, capped the touchdown drive with a 9-yard run. MU 7, UTC 0

Chattanooga swung the momentum immediately as Chase Artopoeus connected with Chris Domercant for 65 yards on the ensuing play from scrimmage to move the hosts all the way down to the 10-yard line. Mercer held tough, however, and inevitably forced the Mocs to settle for a 32-yard field goal from Jude Kelley. MU 7, UTC 3

TOUCHDOWN BEARS ‼️@BraydensmithMU has the speed to get to the edge for the @TruistNews TD! 💨

Q2 | 5:55
Mercer 7, Chattanooga 0 pic.twitter.com/L7ZNPFiov6
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 14, 2024

3RD QUARTER

No scoring.

SACK ‼️ 😤@__44SAVAGE with the @CadenceBank 3rd Down Sack! pic.twitter.com/hSFlfmlxrJ
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 14, 2024

4TH QUARTER

An interception from Myles Redding set the Bears up for what would turn out to be the final score of the evening midway through the fourth quarter. Mercer followed with four-straight run plays before finally settling for a 35-yard field goal from Reice Griffith. MU 10, UTC 3

INTERCEPTION 😤

Off the deflection it's @MylesTooNice with the takeaway! His second INT of the season! pic.twitter.com/PAEYEM1OlD
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 15, 2024

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Senior Dwayne McGee ran for 86 yards on 24 carries against Chattanooga on Saturday to lead the rushing attack. He is the first MU player to log 20 or more rushing attempts since Micah Bell logged 20 carries against North Alabama in last year's season opener.
+ Junior DJ Smith threw for 103 yards on 12-of-17 passing with one interception, while also carrying the ball 13 times for 34 yards.
+ Seniors Isaac Dowling and TJ Moore both turned in a team-best six tackles, while sophomore Brayden Manley posted 1-1/2 sacks against UTC. Senior Myles Redding, who missed the first half of action due to a targeting call against Bethune-Cookman last week, picked off a fourth-quarter pass as well.

NOTABLES

+ Sophomore Reice Griffith matched a 3-year-old school record with his 51^st consecutive extra-point in the second quarter. Cole Fisher bridged the 2017 and 2018 seasons with 51-straight successful extra point attempts to establish the superlative.
+ Junior Dainsus Miller got a hand on a 34-yard field goal attempt in the second period. It was the first blocked kick for the Bears since Jordan Swain stuffed a field goal attempt in the 2023 season opener against North Alabama in Montgomery, Ala.
+ The Bears improved to 5-7 in Southern Conference openers with Saturday's result, while also upping their record to 7-4 in SoCon road openers. MU has now captured five-straight contests against league rivals as well.
+ Mercer improved to 10-23 against nationally-ranked teams, and has now captured two of their last three outings (Western Carolina) against Top 25 competition. Six of MU's nine victories against nationally-ranked opponents have come on the road.

UP NEXT

The Bears will make their long-awaited return to Macon on September 21 when they suit up to host The Citadel (2-1, 0-0 SoCon) in a 6 p.m. Family Weekend contest at Five Star Stadium. Tickets are still available, and can be purchased by visiting MercerBears.com/Tickets.

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