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OGDEN — Weber State was just 2-10 when Jay Hill took the job as head coach.
Three years later, the former Utah assistant has led the Wildcats to the FCS playoffs, and they’ll kick off their fifth postseason appearance in program history Saturday at 12 p.m. MT at Chattanooga.
The turnaround is amazing, but Weber State wants more than just “getting there.”
“We were 2-10, so to be in the playoffs now is a blessing,” said senior Tre’Von Johnson, an all-Big Sky linebacker who prepped at Hunter High. “I’m just excited to get down to Chattanooga.”
Johnson ranked second in the conference with 8.0 tackles per game, and he also has 10.5 tackles for loss. A team captain who earned second-team all-Big Sky honors as a junior, Johnson has led a defense that can keep up with a resurgent Wildcat offense.
“It’s an amazing transformation that this team has made and the program as a whole,” said Weber State quarterback Jadrian Clark. “Coach Hill has come in and put a lot of systems into place and has everyone believing.”
When Hill arrived in Ogden in December 2013 after spending 13 years as an assistant coach at Utah, he immediately began talking about the postseason. The Wildcats hadn’t been there since 2009, but Hill knew right where he wanted to be.
“The playoffs were one of our first goals that we had,” Hill said. “We’ve done that, and now we move on to our other goals: win a playoff game and continue to build the team into what it can become.”
No single player has experienced a playoff game. But Hill said playing in the Big Sky has prepared them for what lies ahead, on the road against the 8-3 Mocs.
The Wildcats have confidence that they can compete with the best in the nation.
“We’ve played a lot of talented teams, with guys at all positions that can compete at any level,” Clark said. “Chattanooga is a very strong and talented team and we respect them greatly. But we think that we match up well against them.”
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Weber State to make first FCS playoff bid since 2009 with trip to Chattanooga
Weber State earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I FCS playoffs Sunday, and will play Chattanooga in the first round Nov. 26 in the Wildcats’ first bid in seven years.Weber State (7-4) have had eight games decided by a touchdown or less.
“We’ve been in close games, but now we know how to win those close games,” Johnson said. “That’s the difference in this team: we believed we can win and now we are doing it.”
His head coach agreed.
“We’ve yet to have a full, complete game,” Hill said. “But that’s exciting to me. If we can pull that off in the playoffs, I really believe that we can beat anybody.”
