Chattanooga Mocs wrestling

Chattanooga Mocs wrestling

University University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Conference SoCon
Location Chattanooga, TN
Head Coach Heath Eslinger (6th year)
Arena Maclellan Gymnasium
(Capacity: 2,639)
Nickname Mocs
Colors Navy and Old Gold and Silver

                     

NCAA Individual Champions
6
All-Americans
24
Conference Champions
SIWA 62
SoCon 189
Conference Tournament Championships
1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015

The Chattanooga Mocs wrestling team represents the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC) as a Member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) of NCAA Division I wrestling.[1] The Mocs host their home matches at the Maclellan Gymnasium on the university's campus in Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA.[2] The Mocs' current head coach is UTC alumnus Heath Eslinger who has headed the program since 2009.

History

The wrestling team at UTC began competing in the Southern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (SIWA) in 1947. The program joined Division II when the NCAA started the new division in 1963. Under five coaches during the Division II era, 40 Mocs won 62 SIWA individual championships, and the program qualified for the NCAA Division II Championships as a team 1972–77, placing as high as second in the 1976. Also, seven wrestlers earned twelve NCAA Division II All-American citations, and three won six individual championships.[3]

The Mocs moved to Division I and the Southern Conference in 1978 and is the only NCAA Division I wrestling program in the state of Tennessee. Since joining, the Mocs have been the single most dominant team in the SoCon, winning 186 individual conference championships, 13 regular season league crowns (only awarded since 1992), and 28 conference tournament titles. During the Division I era, nine UTC wrestlers have earned twelve All-American citations, and the Mocs have scored at the NCAA Division I Championships every year except 1990, placing as high as 21st in 2005 and 2007. Eight of nine Division I head coaches have been named SoCon Coach of the Year sixteen times, including twice by current coach Heath Eslinger.[3]

Head Coaches

Coach Years W–L–T %age SoCon titles
Ken Carpenter 1947-51 (5) N/A N/A 0
Russ Scall 1952 (1) 3–5–0 .375 0
Andy Nardo 1953-67 (15) 77–30–4 .712 0
Joe Geri 1968 (1) 0–8–0 .000 0
Jim Morgan 1969-84 (16) 209–70–3 .746 6
Ethan Reeve 1985-90(6) 57–38–2 .598 5
Ralph Manning 1991-95 (5) 33–26–0 .556 4
Mark Leen 1996-2001 (6) 43–35–1 .551 3
Frankie James 2002 (1) 9–8–0 .529 1
Terry Brands 2003-05 (3) 31–33–0 .484 1
Joey Seay 2006 16–8–1 .660 1
Chris Bono 2007-09 (3) 39–17–0 .696 3
Heath Eslinger 2010-2014 (5) 68–35–0 .635 5

Coaches

The Mocs' current head coach is Heath Eslinger, a four-time letter winner for the Mocs (1995-2000) and three-time qualifier for the NCAA Championships. Having served as an assistant coach in the program (2002–04), Eslinger took the reins in 2009 after making the Cleveland (TN) High School wrestling program one of the premier programs in the state. In his first five years, he has led the Mocs to four ScCon championships and been named the SoCon Coach of the year in 2011 and 2103. Eslinger's staff includes assistant coaches Jeff Bedard and Niko Brown.[4]

References

  1. ↑ "SoCon Southern Conference". The Southern Conference. Retrieved 2014-12-26.
  2. ↑ "Maclellan Gymnasium". University of Tenn. Chattanooga Athletics. Retrieved 2014.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "2013-14 UT Chattanooga Wrestling Media Guide". University of Tennessee Chattanooga Athletics. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Wrestling - 2014-15 Coaches". University of Tennessee Chattanooga Athletics. Retrieved December 27, 2014.

External links