Fresh off its first win over a top-10 team since 2000, two members of University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team garnered Southern Conference Player of the Week honors today.
Senior receiver Joel Bradford earned the offensive award while sophomore linebacker Wes Dothard was the defensive honoree.
Bradford tied a career high with 15 receptions as the Mocs knocked off No. 10 Jacksonville State, 38-17. He finished with 162 receiving yards and one touchdown, the yardage being a single-game high in the FCS this season.
Late in the second quarter, Bradford broke a 17-all tie with a 47-yard touchdown reception. He added one rush for 7 yards in the win. This is his third career SoCon Player of the Week honor.
Dothard recorded five tackles against the Gamecocks. He added a forced fumble, one pass break-up and a quarterback hurry.
With the Mocs holding a 14-point advantage midway through the fourth quarter, Dothard picked off a pass and raced 30 yards for a touchdown to clinch the win.
He helped anchor a UTC defense which gave up just 17 second-half yards to 10th-ranked JSU.
The win over Jacksonville State has pushed the Mocs up to No. 14 in this week's Sports Network/Fathead.com FCS Top-25 and No. 17 in the FCS Coaches Poll.
Chattanooga visits another Ohio Valley Conference opponent this weekend with a trip to Eastern Kentucky. Game time is set for 6 p.m. in Richmond, Ky.
(Contact Larry Fleming at fleminglrry@aol.com)