Mocs Coach Rusty Wright Earns One Year Contract Extension

January 30, 2020

Rick Nyman,

(gomocs.com) UTC Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Mark Wharton announced a one-year contract extension for head football coach Rusty Wright today. Wright posted a 6-6 record and third-place finish in the Southern Conference at 5-3 in 2019; his first season leading the Mocs.

Six overall wins and five SoCon victories for a first-year coach stacks up well with other Mocs coaches during the SoCon era (since 1977). It tied Buddy Nix (6-5, 5-1 in 1984) and Bill Oliver (8-3, 5-2) for most league wins in a debut season. It also tied Nix and Russ Huesman (6-5, 4-4 in 2009) for second-most overall victories in a UTC debut over the last 40 years.

In the classroom, Chattanooga posted record team grade-point-averages in both semesters under Wright. UTC football had a 2.79 in the spring of 2019 and a 2.83 in the fall. The fall term also saw the football team set program marks with 37 student-athletes on the Dean’s List and 50 on the A.D. Honor Roll.

“It is clear by the product on the field and the performance in the classroom, that Coach Wright has our football program headed in the right direction,” stated Wharton. “He has established a culture of success and accountability that is having a positive impact on our student-athletes.”

Wright’s extension puts him under contract at UTC through the 2024 season. He was hired as head coach on Dec. 21, 2018.

A 23-year veteran of the collegiate coaching ranks, Wright is a 1996 graduate of UTC with a degree in Sports Administration. He was a four-year letter winner and had two previous stints as an assistant coach at his alma mater.

“I would like to thank UTC Chancellor Steve Angle and Mark Wharton for their continued faith in our vision and the foundation we are setting,” stated Wright. “I am grateful that the young men in our program have bought into what we are trying to build here at UTC, and our success is due to their effort and dedication.

“I am also lucky to have the best group of assistant coaches in the country. We have great support here, and I am excited about the future of Chattanooga Football.”