The 2014 Southern Conference football season was the 93rd season of college football for the Southern Conference (SoCon) and formed a part of the 2014 NCAA Division I FCS football season.
It was the first season for two newcomers: the Mercer Bears, who previously played in the Pioneer Football League, and the VMI Keydets, who had an 80-year stint in the SoCon before joining the Big South Conference in 2003. The additions of Mercer and VMI, along with East Tennessee State, who is bringing back football in 2015, replaced the departure of Georgia Southern and Appalachian State who joined the Sun Belt Conference, as well as Elon who left for the Colonial Athletic Association.
Previous season In 2013, both Appalachian State and Georgia Southern were ineligible for postseason play due to their transition to the FBS in 2014. Both schools had down years, each going 4–4 in conference play, with Georgia Southern posting a 7–4 overall mark to Appalachian State's 4–8. At the top of the conference was a three-way tie between Chattanooga, Samford, and Furman, who all posted 6–2 conference records. The three schools were declared co-champions, though only Samford and Furman were selected to participate in the FCS tournament.
Samford, who finished ranked #18 in the coaches poll, was defeated in the second round of the playoffs by Jacksonville State on the road, 55–14. Furman, ranked #22, beat South Carolina State in their opening round game in Orangeburg by a score of 30–20. They were knocked out the following week by North Dakota State, who went on to win their third straight national title.
Newcomer Mercer finished their tenure in the Pioneer League on a high note, going 10–2 and 6–2 in conference play, narrowly missing out on the playoffs. VMI was 2–10 in 2013, including a 1–4 mark in Big South play, beating Gardner–Webb.
Head coaches
Russ Huesman, Chattanooga – 6th year Mike Houston, The Citadel – 1st year Bruce Fowler, Furman – 4th year Pat Sullivan, Samford – 7th year
Bobby Lamb, Mercer – 2nd year Sparky Woods, VMI – 7th year Mark Speir, Western Carolina – 3rd year Mike Ayers, Wofford – 27th year
Preseason poll results First place votes in parentheses MediaCoachesPlaceSchoolPointsPlaceSchoolPoints1Chattanooga (29)2351Chattanooga (6)482Furman (1)2032Furman (1)403Samford174Samford (1)404Wofford1554Wofford305Western Carolina1055Western Carolina246The Citadel1036The Citadel227Mercer677Mercer108VMI38VMI10
Rankings + Legend Increase in ranking Decrease in ranking Not ranked previous week
Pre Wk1 Wk2 Wk3 Wk4 Wk5 Wk6 Wk7 Wk8 Wk9 Wk10 Wk11 Wk12 Wk13 FinalChattanooga TSN 14 13 14 15 14 14 13 17 15 14 13 9 9 8 8C 16 15 17 14 15 14 12 15 14 12 11 9 9 9 8The Citadel TSN - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -C - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Furman TSN 18 17 12 21 RV RV RV RV RV - - - - - -C 21 19 12 21 RV - - - - - - - - - -Mercer TSN - - - RV - - - - - - - - - - -C - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Samford TSN RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RVC RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV - - - - - -VMI TSN - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -C - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Western Carolina TSN - - RV RV RV RV - - RV RV RV RV RV - -C - - - - - RV RV - RV RV - - - - -Wofford TSN RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV - - - -C RV RV RV RV - - - - RV - - - - - -
Regular season Index to colors and formattingSoCon member wonSoCon member lostSoCon teams in bold All times Eastern time.
Rankings reflect that of the Sports Network poll for that week.
Week One Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceAugust 28 7:00 PM Chattanooga Central Michigan Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI ESPN3 L 16–20 15,793 August 28 7:00 PM Reinhardt Mercer Moye Complex • Macon, GA ESPN3 W 45–42 10,027 August 30 7:00 PM Samford TCU Amon G. Carter Stadium • Fort Worth, TX L 14–48 40,094 August 30 12:30 PM Wofford Georgia Tech Bobby Dodd Stadium • Atlanta, GA ESPN3 L 19–38 45,403 August 30 6:00 PM VMI Bucknell Christy Mathewson–Memorial Stadium • Lewisburg, PA L 38–42 3,124 August 30 7:00 PM Western Carolina South Florida Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL ESPN3 L 31–36 31,642 August 30 7:00 PM Gardner–Webb Furman Paladin Stadium • Greenville, SC W 13–3 7,533 August 30 6:00 PM Coastal Carolina The Citadel Johnson Hagood Stadium • Charleston, SC L 16–31 10,828
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Troy Mitchell Western Carolina Gary Wilkins Furman Al Cobb VMI David Marvin WoffordReference: Weekly Release
Week Two Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceSeptember 6 3:30 PM VMI Bowling Green Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH ESPN3 L 7–48 18,311 September 6 3:30 PM Western Carolina E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC W 45–21 8,929 September 6 6:00 PM Jacksonville State Chattanooga Finley Stadium • Chattanooga, TN L 23–26OT 14,285 September 6 6:00 PM Furman Mercer Moye Complex • Macon, GA ESPN3 FUR 25–20 12,227 September 6 7:30 PM The Citadel Florida State Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, FL RSN L 12–37 81,294
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player TeamDarius RamseyWestern CarolinaGary WilkinsFurmanJohn Croft HollingsworthFurmanLucas WebbChattanoogaReference: Weekly Release
Week Three Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceSeptember 11 7:30 PM Samford Seibert Stadium • Homewood, AL W 52–0 4,968 September 13 1:30 PM Davidson VMI Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA W 52–24 4,479 September 13 3:30 PM Western Carolina E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC W 35–17 10,511 September 13 5:00 PM Chattanooga Austin Peay Governors Stadium • Clarksville, TN W 42–6 6,883 September 13 6:00 PM Mercer Stetson Spec Martin Stadium • DeLand, FL W 49–0 3,660 September 13 7:00 PM Furman Presbyterian Bailey Memorial Stadium • Clinton, SC WMYA-TV L 7–10 2,321 September 13 7:00 PM North Greenville Wofford Gibbs Stadium • Spartanburg, SC W 42–27 7,392
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Aaron Sanders VMI Daniel Riddle Western Carolina Alex Lakes Mercer Tommy Hudson ChattanoogaReference: Weekly Release
Week Four Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceSeptember 20 3:00 PM VMI Samford Seibert Stadium • Homewood, AL ESPN3 SAM 63–21 4,618 September 20 6:00 PM The Citadel Charleston Southern Buccaneer Field • North Charleston, SC L 18–20 7,954 September 20 6:00 PM Furman South Carolina State Oliver C. Dawson Stadium • Orangeburg, SC L 7–17 9,613 September 20 6:00 PM Mercer Moye Complex • Macon, GA ESPN3 W 42–21 10,173 September 20 6:00 PM Wofford Gardner–Webb Spangler Stadium • Boiling Springs, NC L 36–43 6,450
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Denzel Williams Samford Josh Kimberlin Samford Krondis Larry Samford Chandler Curtis MercerReference: Weekly Release
Week Five Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceSeptember 27 1:30 PM Mercer VMI Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA MER 27–24 4,490 September 27 3:00 PM Western Carolina Furman Paladin Stadium • Greenville, SC WCU 35–17 9,789 September 27 6:00 PM Gardner–Webb The Citadel Johnson Hagood Stadium • Charleston, SC W 37–14 8,573 September 27 7:00 PM UVA–Wise Wofford Gibbs Stadium • Spartanburg, SC W 49–15 7,108 September 27 7:00 PM Samford Chattanooga Finley Stadium • Chattanooga, TN UTC 38–24 8,872
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Spearman Robinson Western Carolina Davis Tull Chattanooga Chandler Curtis Mercer Tommy Hudson ChattanoogaReference: Weekly Release
Week Six Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceOctober 4 1:30 PM The Citadel Wofford Gibbs Stadium • Spartanburg, SC ESPN3 WOF 17–13 9,259 October 4 2:00 PM Western Carolina Presbyterian Bailey Memorial Stadium • Clinton, SC L 14–19 4,007 October 4 3:00 PM Mercer Samford Seibert Stadium • Homewood, AL SAM 21–18 8,713 October 4 4:00 PM VMI Chattanooga Finley Stadium • Chattanooga, TN UTC 55–7 8,848 October 4 7:00 PM Coastal Carolina Furman Paladin Stadium • Greenville, SC ESPN3 L 31–372OT 7,347
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Jacob Huesman Chattanooga Mitchell Jeter The Citadel P. J. Blazejowski Furman Chandler Curtis MercerReference: Weekly Release
Week Seven Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceOctober 11 2:00 PM Charlotte The Citadel Johnson Hagood Stadium • Charleston, SC W 63–562OT 10,467 October 11 3:30 PM VMI Navy Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD CBSSN L 14–51 33,812 October 11 3:30 PM Wofford Western Carolina E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC ESPN3 WCU 26–14 7,343 October 11 4:00 PM Austin Peay Mercer Moye Complex • Macon, GA ESPN3 W 49–21 8,027 October 11 4:00 PM Chattanooga Tennessee Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN SECN L 10–45 93,097
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Aaron Miller The Citadel Christon Gill Western Carolina Cam Jackson The Citadel Detrez Newsome Western CarolinaReference: Weekly Release
Week Eight Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceOctober 18 12:00 PM Furman South Carolina Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, SC SECN L 10–41 78,101 October 18 12:00 PM Chattanooga The Citadel Johnson Hagood Stadium • Charleston, SC UTC 34–14 8,037 October 18 1:30 PM Gardner–Webb VMI Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA L 41–472OT 6,624 October 18 3:00 PM Wofford Samford Seibert Stadium • Homewood, AL WOF 24–20 4,157 October 18 4:00 PM Western Carolina Mercer Moye Complex • Macon, GA ESPN3 WCU 35–21 9,277
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Spearman Robinson Western Carolina Jaleel Lorquet Western Carolina Al Cobb VMI Henrique Ribiero ChattanoogaReference: Weekly Release
Week Nine Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceOctober 25 12:00 PM Mercer Chattanooga Finley Stadium • Chattanooga, TN ASN UTC 38–31 10,763 October 25 1:30 PM VMI Wofford Gibbs Stadium • Spartanburg, SC WOF 38–3 8,010 October 25 1:30 PM Samford Furman Paladin Stadium • Greenville, SC ESPN3 SAM 45–0 8,047 October 25 2:00 PM The Citadel Western Carolina E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC WCU 29–15 13,323
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Jacob Huesman Chattanooga Trey Morgan Western Carolina Detrez Newsome Western Carolina Deion Pierre SamfordReference: Weekly Release
Week Ten Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance ReferenceNovember 1 1:30 PM Furman VMI Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA ESPN3 VMI 31–15 3,624 November 1 2:00 PM Chattanooga Western Carolina E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC UTC 51–0 8,705 November 1 3:00 PM Concordia Samford Seibert Stadium • Homewood, AL SAM 55–0 4,871 November 1 4:00 PM The Citadel Mercer Moye Complex • Macon, GA ESPN3 CIT 28–26 10,271
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Freshman Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Keon Williams Chattanooga DeVonta Delaney The Citadel Al Cobb VMI Henrique Ribeiro ChattanoogaReference: Weekly Release
Week Eleven