Porky’s Open Continues to be Important Fundraiser For Mocs Athletics

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) College athletic budgets have exploded in recent years with stadium up-grades and mega coaching contracts.
It has even spilled down to Chattanooga on the FCS level.
That’s why the annual Porky’s Open golf tournament at Council Fire Golf Club continues to be an important fundraiser for UTC athletics.

According to Mocs athletic director Mark Wharton the Porky’s Open will raise $75,000 towards UTC’s athletic budget, which is now over $18-million.
Said Wharton:”We do a lot of peer reviews at our level. Where we need to be. I want to be in the top three of our league, and then our aspirational peers is James Madison and North Dakota State, and that’s why we are playing them. That’s where we need to be to be able to be elite.”
Said football coach Rusty Wright:”But that’s the cost of doing business right now in this day and age. It is an arms race to a certain degree. You have to do that, and thankfully we have people in administration and the chancellor understands that it’s important.”
Said basketball coach Lamont Paris:”Recruiting is the most important thing you can do as a coach. Bar none. And so in order to attract some of these recruits, it has become an arms race. We live in a world particularly now with so many kids transferring at the drop of a dime, and it’s so easy because they think the grass is greener on the other side, so your’re grass better be pretty green.’
Said Wharton:”Our number one priority is our 300 student athletes, but 1-A right close to it is the fan experience.”
And the Mocs are working on their fan experience. Last season we saw a new major video board and lighting at McKenzie Arena.
Said Wharton:”I felt like this first year that the video boards. People would come to the game or the first couple of games. They’re not talking about what’s on the floor. They’re talking about the environment and the atmosphere. We sent our staff down to an Atlanta Hawks game to watch outside the lines what they are doing and the fan experience. The Predators games.”
One of the big future projects is the Wolford Athletics Center, which will house the new football offices and locker room.
Said Wharton:”I think our fundraising continues to increase. We are going to have a record year this year. Looking at facilities. It’s a cycle. It’s ground hog day.”