The Chattanooga Mocs football team concluded its spring practice period with the 2026 Spring Showcase, according to an April 18 announcement. The event marked the end of several weeks of on-field drills following an eight-week strength and conditioning program for the squad.
The showcase drew a large crowd at Scrappy Moore Field in the Murphy-Haugerud Football Practice Complex, with fans filling lawn chairs, bleachers, and picnic blankets along the Tennessee Riverwalk. This turnout was noted by players as a positive sign for support heading into the upcoming season.
Coach Rusty Wright said, “We’ll go back and look at it. I think the biggest thing is we gave us a good springboard to figure it out what we can do with this group. That was my concern coming into it was trying to figure out what and who we had. I like the way they’ve let us push them up until now and get some things done. We’ll see how healthy we are after this and see if we can get back, start fall camp and go from there.” A senior safety commented on changes in offseason preparation: “I think it was way better than in the past. We used to get about four weeks, and then went right onto the field, hitting each other and working on the game. The eight weeks this spring made us feel bigger out here, stronger out here. And it’s just way better.” A junior center also highlighted fan engagement: “I was pretty fired up to see (the setup), I really didn’t know with it being at the practice field, how many would be here and what kind of atmosphere we would be in, but it really fires me up to see our fans here and supportive. It gets the juices flowing and excited for the season.”
During entry to Scrappy Moore Field for this event, attendees donated food and personal care items for Scrappy’s Cupboard—a resource that helps address food insecurity within UTC’s community.
Reflecting on progress during spring drills, Lively spoke about offensive developments: “We put in some new stuff which I think is going to be really good for us…But I think from this spring, we have some experience and got to put some stuff in that we really liked…We still have a long way to go, but I think it ended the right way.” On defense Baah-Slay said: “We’ve gotten a lot better since January…We got time off spending it in the film room and studying more…and we adapted real fast.”
Season ticket renewals began April 18 as well; prices remain consistent with last year’s offerings.
