Before the season, who would have guessed that when the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga hosted Western Carolina on Oct. 15, it would be a matchup of teams without a Southern Conference win?
But that's where things stand today. UTC's Mocs (2-4, 0-3) have been the league's hard-luck squad with three losses by a total of four points. The Catamounts (1-4, 0-3), meanwhile, are in their sixth year of a SoCon rut in which they've lost 38 of 41 league games.
"They're all huge right now, and this one's a really big game because we need a win, it's homecoming and we need to win, we need to play well," UTC coach Russ Huesman said. "We need to come out of this game with a win, however we get it.
"Western Carolina's saying the same thing. They need a win badly and I guarantee you right now, [WCU coach] Dennis Wagner's over there talking about 'we need a win.'"
There was no preseason hype or playoff talk regarding the Catamounts, however. Making the playoffs has been a talking point for UTC's players since last season ended with a loss to Wofford that kept the Mocs from seven wins and a likely at-large invitation.
The Mocs had been ranked all season until this week, and despite their record they're still receiving the third-most votes among the FCS teams outside the Top 25.
UTC has five games left on its schedule, including three at Finley Stadium, and it has to win all five to get to seven wins. So the playoffs essentially start this evening.
"Your backs are against the wall and you've just got to go out there and play," Mocs running back J.J. Jackson said. "You can't worry about anything else but just playing football and playing your best."
A 5-0 finish to the season has to begin with a win tonight, with redshirt freshman Terrell Robinson making his first career start at quarterback. Offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield gave the 2009 state high school 1A back of the year the nickname "Silk" before Robinson's senior year at South Pittsburg.
"He's Silk because when he does things it's effortless and smooth," Satterfield said.
Little has been effortless or smooth for the Mocs this season, but they've still got five games left to make this season a memorable one.