Nov. 13 (Saturday)	Series	TV/Digital	Time
Samford at Florida	Florida leads 2-0	SEC Network+/ESPN+	12 p.m.
Wofford at The Citadel*	The Citadel leads 43-30-1	ESPN+	2 p.m.
#20/21 VMI at Furman*	Furman leads 28-10	ESPN+	2 p.m.
#12/11 ETSU at Western Carolina*	Western Carolina leads 25-24-1	ESPN3	2 p.m.
#19/22 Chattanooga at #RV/RV Mercer	Chattanooga leads 20-10-1	ESPN+	3 p.m.

Notes
• A pair of first-place teams square off in Southern Conference play Saturday, as No. 19/22 Chattanooga visits Mercer, with one guaranteed to move to 6-1 and retain at least a share of the top spot in the league standings and the other assured of falling a game back of first.

• No. 12/11 ETSU, which also shares the top spot in the league standings, visits streaking Western Carolina, which has won three straight after opening 0-6.

• Elsewhere, Furman hosts No. 20/21 VMI, Wofford visits The Citadel and Samford steps out of conference to play at FBS Florida.

• One week after returning to the AFCA FCS Coaches’ Top 25, Chattanooga re-entered the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 this week at No. 22. The Mocs, who have won four straight, jumped six spots to No. 19 in the AFCA poll this week.

• Since a 37-34 overtime loss to VMI on Oct. 9, Chattanooga has allowed just 10.5 points per game in wins over then-No. 10 ETSU, Samford, Furman and Wofford. The Mocs rank 12th in the FCS in scoring defense (17.1), third in interceptions (14), 11th in passing yards allowed (170.4), 16th in rushing defense (105.7), ninth in total defense (276.1), 10th in tackles for loss (3.89) and second in turnover margin (1.11).

• Chattanooga defensive lineman Devonnsha Maxwell was added to the Buchanan Award watch list Wednesday. Maxwell ranks fourth in the FCS with 1.22 sacks per game and 11th in tackles for loss per game (1.6).

• Mercer, which is in the running for its first SoCon title, is going for its sixth league win of the season, which it has never accomplished since joining the league in 2014.

• Running backs Quay Holmes of ETSU and Fred Davis of Mercer were named to the midseason watch list for the College Football Performance Awards FCS National Performer of the Year Trophy on Monday.

• Western Carolina overtook Samford for the SoCon lead in passing offense with its 387 yards through the air against Furman on Nov. 6. The Catamounts rank 10th in the FCS with 301.3 yards per game.

• Defending SoCon champion VMI dropped its second league game last week, falling 27-20 to ETSU in a battle of top-25 teams. The Keydets fell into an early 21-0 hole before pulling within a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

• Furman running back Dominic Roberto ran for a career-high 196 yards and four TDs in the Paladins’ 43-42 loss to Western Carolina last week.

• Since 1980, the Paladins have gone 26-2 against VMI.

• Samford will attempt to make it two in a row for the SoCon in The Swamp. The last time a SoCon team visited Gainesville, Florida, Georgia Southern stunned the Gators 26-20 in its final game as an FCS squad on Nov. 23, 2013. 

• Samford scored in all three phases of the game in last week’s 35-14 win over The Citadel, getting two rushing TDs from DeMarcus Ware and one from Jay Stanton in addition to a 68-yard punt return for a score from Montrell Washington and a 94-yard fumble return for a touchdown from Midnight Steward.

• Wofford has played the 11th-toughest schedule in the FCS, with its past opponents boasting a .577 winning percentage, while The Citadel ranks 23rd, with its opponents winning at a .549 clip. The Terriers have won 20 of the last 23 in the series against the Bulldogs.

• The SoCon also boasts five of the top 20 rushing offenses in the FCS, with The Citadel ranking third (253.0), Mercer seventh (234.4), ETSU 11th (224.1), Chattanooga 13th (213.1) and Wofford 19th (202.2).

SoCon Points of Pride
• The 2021 season is the 100th of Southern Conference football. The SoCon is the fifth-oldest NCAA Division I college athletic association.

• Since it began competing in FCS, the SoCon has amassed the second-most national championships with eight. Also boasting another eight national championship runner-up finishes, the league has 16 title-game appearances, the most among FCS conferences.

• The SoCon prides itself on quality and depth.
    • Eight of the nine current SoCon football members have participated in the FCS Playoffs with seven different schools receiving bids since 2016.
    • Overall, current SoCon football members have combined for 46 total FCS playoffs appearances.
    • Six of the nine SoCon teams appeared in an FCS top-25 national poll in the 2020-21 season.

• The SoCon has had seven Walter Payton Award winners, two Buck Buchanan Award winners and five Eddie Robinson Award winners. VMI Coach Scott Wachenheim won the Eddie Robinson Award (FCS National Coach of the Year) in 2020.

• Sixty-one former SoCon players and coaches have been enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.

• The SoCon had 12 FCS All-America selections in 2020-21.

• The SoCon broadcasts all of its home games on ESPN+ and has an over-the-air television network that will air eight games in five southern states in 2021.

• Sixteen former SoCon players were on active NFL rosters last season and five more were on practice squads. Former Citadel wide receiver Andre Roberts, former Samford defensive back James Bradberry and former Georgia Southern kicker Younghoe Koo, who played in the SoCon as a freshman, were Pro Bowlers. Thirteen former SoCon players are on NFL rosters this season, with seven more on practice squads.

• The SoCon has been playing Division I FCS football since the 1982 season. The NCAA created two subdivisions for Division I football beginning in 1978 with the creation of I-A (now FBS) and I-AA (now FCS). The SoCon was shifted from I-A to I-AA along with the Ivy League and Southland Conference following the 1981 season, joining the Mid-Continent, Big Sky, MEAC, SWAC, OVC, and Yankee conferences, along with a number of independents, as I-AA participants.

• The SoCon is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2021. The league contested the first-ever collegiate conference basketball tournament in 1921, tackled freshman eligibility in 1922, became the first conference to adopt the 3-point field goal in basketball in 1980 and developed women’s championships in 1984.

Recent news
SoCon Goes Pro: NFL Week 9 (11/11)
UTC's Maxwell added to Buchanan Award watch list (11/10)
SoCon names football players of the week (11/8)
Saturday's football roundup (11/6)
Keeler's Corner: In-season update (11/5)