Tom Kaufman is entering his first season at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, but the Mocs' defensive coordinator knows Jacksonville State starting quarterback Bryant Horn's 2016 passing stats by heart.
"Six of seven, two touchdowns, no interceptions," Kaufman quickly said.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound junior still has the Mocs' attention. He's considered a better passing threat than graduated All-American Eli Jenkins, who diced through the Mocs' defense with his legs as well as beating them with his arm some during the past three meetings in the series, all wins for the Gamecocks.
But Horn - who has split time between linebacker and quarterback at Jacksonville State - is also capable of beating teams on the ground, rushing for 114 yards in 2016.
UTC defensive coordinator Tom Kaufman is aware of the potential of new Jacksonville State starting quarterback Bryant Horn."We haven't seen too much of him on film," Mocs safety Lucas Webb said. "He threw seven passes all of last year, but at the same time, our coaches have done a really good job of getting us prepared. He's definitely a tough guy. Eli was a fantastic runner and a great athlete - it was one of the hardest things about defending him - but this guy definitely shows flashes of his athleticism.
"He was a linebacker, so he's tough. He's not going to be one of those guys that's going to lay down easy, and we believe he's a better passer, so we have to be sound on technique and execution."
UTC head coach Tom Arth, also entering his first season with the Mocs, said the defense must respect what Horn - a high school coach's son - can do.
"We're trying to make educated decisions on that," he said. "What does he do well? He runs it well. It's not like he's not a great athlete. I think last year's guy was really, really special, but this guy is a good athlete and he can hurt you running the ball, especially if you don't give him the credit he deserves. We'll find out pretty early in the game what the personality of the offense is going to be."
Horn has the luxury of a nice stable of running backs behind him, led by senior Roc Thomas, who rushed for 782 yards in nine games last year with seven scores. Behind him are sophomore Tyus Flakes and junior Tramel Terry, so the Mocs are aware of the potency of the Gamecocks' backfield.
In the past three meetings with UTC, Jacksonville State has rushed for 285, 298 and 432 yards, so returning Mocs defenders are mindful about stopping the run while still respecting the pass.
"They have a fantastic offense, and they always have," Kaufman said. "The quarterback is a really good football player, but the fact is we don't know exactly what they're going to do, so that hammers home that it's all about us.
"If we execute and do our job on defense, if we have 11 guys that do their job, we have a chance. If we don't do that, they're one of the best teams in the country, so it won't go good for us if we don't execute."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.