FLORENCE, Ala. (Sept. 1, 2023) – The month of September has arrived in the Shoals, meaning home football at Braly Stadium as the University of North Alabama Lions gear up for their home opener against Chattanooga on Saturday, Sept. 2 at 6 p.m.
While Saturday will mark the first week of competition for many college football teams — Chattanooga included — the Lions got a head start last week with a nationally-televised game last week against nationally-ranked Mercer in Montgomery, Ala. The Bears defeated UNA in a competitive 17-7 final at the Cramton Bowl, lifting the lid on the FCS season.
Saturday's home game at Braly Stadium will kick off at 6 p.m.
For a list of "Things to Know" before you go, including information on tickets, parking, tailgating, the Lion Walk and how to follow the game from home,
click here.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Game: North Alabama vs. Chattanooga
Date: Saturday, September 2
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Florence, Ala.
Stadium: Braly Municipal Stadium
TV: ESPN
Radio: WLX 98.3 / 103.5 FM
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets: Click Here
Social Media:
@UNAFootball
Presenting Game Sponsor: Bojangles
UNA Game Notes |
Opponent Game Notes |
UAC Website
ABOUT THE LIONS
- Last week, North Alabama participated in the annual FCS Kickoff against No. 20 Mercer, falling 17-7 in a competitive bout inside the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Ala.
- The Lions are 51-20-3 in home openers all-time, including a 3-2 record in home openers since moving to the FCS level. This includes last season's 49-17 victory over UVA Wise last season
- Making his debut for the "Purple Swarm" last week, redshirt sophomore safety Edwin White Schultz recorded a game-high 14 tackles against Mercer to set both an FCS Kickoff game record and UNA's FCS era game record. He had nine solo tackles, a tackle for loss and a forced fumble.
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Though Mercer had the slight edge in total yards last week, UNA won the turnover battle. The Lions turned in a clean sheet while forcing a pair of Mercer turnovers, including a muffed punt recovery and a fumble recovery inside the five-yard line to prevent a Mercer touchdown.
- UNA's first touchdown of the year came late in the first quarter last week, as quarterback TJ Smith powered his way into the endzone on a three-yard QB sweep. Smith and sophomore Noah Walters split QB duties last week, combining for 138 all-purpose yards.
- Sophomore running back Jalyn Daniels led the Lions last week with 49 yards rushing on just three attempts. His longest play from scrimmage came on a 30-yard sweep to the right side on the first play after an hour-long weather delay.
- The aforementioned weather delay came early in the third quarter as UNA was in the middle of a seven-play, 30-yard drive before lightning was detected in the area and caused an hour-long pause. The last known time UNA had an extended weather delay was on Sept. 22, 2018 against Azusa Pacific — UNA's first home football game in Division I history.
- Redshirt junior Kobe Warden led the receiving corps last week with six catches for 37 yards, including 15 yards after catch. Warden caught all six of his targets with a long of 14 yards.
- Freshman punter Adam Watford averaged 43.2 yards per punt on four attempts with a long of 50 yards in his UNA debut last week.
- The Lions will look to improve its third and fourth down conversions this week after going a combined 6-for-20 in those situations in the season opener.
- The Lions are in their 75th season of football in 2023 with an all-time record of 480-299-16.
- This season will be the sixth for UNA since transitioning to the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and the second as a full-fledged FCS member. UNA has an all-time record of 16-35 versus FCS opponents.
- Last week, UNA will became the first school to play a football game as a member of the newly-formed United Athletic Conference. The Lions are charter members along with Abilene Christian, Austin Peay, Central Arkansas, EKU, Southern Utah, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton State, Utah Tech and UTRGV, who will be joining in 2025.
- North Alabama remains the second-winningest program in the state of Alabama since 1990 with 253 wins in the last 33 years, ranking second only to the University of Alabama with 295 wins. The Lions boast 21 NCAA playoff appearances, 17 conference championships and three national championship victories.
ABOUT THE MOCS
- Chattanooga is coming off a respectable 7-4 record last season and entered the preseason receiving votes in both the FCS Coaches Poll and Stats Perform FCS Media Poll.
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The Mocs have a number of players on national preseason watch lists, including a pair of Buck Buchanan Award contenders in seniors Kam Brown and Jay Person. Person was the 2022 Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year and finished as a 2022 finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award, posting 17.5 tackles for loss and 8.0 sacks.
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Brown earned similar recognition last season, landing All-American honors in the secondary. He had six interceptions last season — one off the national lead and tied for tops in the SoCon.
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Offensively, Chattanooga boasts a strong run game led by Walter Payton Award watch list honoree Ailym Ford. The senior running back was a 2022 finalist for the award and made the 2021 watch list. Ford has 18 100-yard rushing performances in his career and 32 career touchdowns — both school records among all-time UTC running backs.
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The passing game is more of a question mark, as UCLA transfer Chase Artopoeus is the projected starter at quarterback in what would be his first collegiate start. Despite this, the Mocs return three starters at receiver and three more on the offensive line.
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The Mocs are coached by Rusty Wright, who enters his fifth season at the helm. Wright will look to become the first coach in Chattanooga's history to tally winning seasons in each of the first five seasons of his tenure. His career record is 22-17 overall and 18-10 in the SoCon.
SERIES HISTORY
- Saturday will mark the fourth all-time meeting between UNA and UTC. Chattanooga owns a 3-0 advantage in the series.
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This year marks the third-straight season UNA and UTC will battle, with Chattanooga winning 20-0 in 2021 and 41-14 in 2022. The Mocs also won the first all-time meeting in 1963 by a 25-6 final in the Scenic City.
- The Mocs spoiled a pair of long shutout-less streaks for UNA with the 20-0 win in 2021, including a 54-game scoring streak at Braly Stadium and a 31-game scoring streak against FCS opponents. UNA has only been shutout at home twice in the last 131 games since 2010.
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The Lions own a 65-45-2 record against opponents from the state of Tennessee, including 19 against UT Martin, 13 against Austin Peay and two against Tennessee Tech — all of whom appear on this season's schedule.
- Furthermore, the Lions are 11-9-2 against current SoCon members with six wins over Samford and five wins over ETSU. The first win in program history came in 1949 over Samford — a 28-7 victory in Florence.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
