Mocs Fitzgerald Gets Sixth Year of Eligibility

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football coach Russ Huesman announced that senior running back Bryan Fitzgerald has been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA today.  Fitzgerald played in four games this season before suffering a season-ending foot injury on Oct. 10 at Samford. 

“We are excited that Bryan has a chance to come back and play one more year,” stated Huesman.  “He was having a great season and was a big part of our success when he went down last year.  We look for him to continue to be a major piece of our offense and running game again next year.”

Fitzgerald was also sidelined the entire 2008 season due to a knee injury he suffered prior to the start of that season.  He sat out the first game of 2009 against Glenville State, also with nagging injuries from training camp.  Over the next four games, he had 65 carries for 342 yards and two touchdowns. 

Going into the Samford game, Fitzgerald was leading the Southern Conference and No. 8 in the FCS with 109.3 rushing yards per game.  His 181 yards on the ground at Presbyterian set a career-high and earned him SoCon Offensive Player of the Week honors.

“I feel very fortunate to be able to come back for a sixth year and finish my career on a positive note,” added Fitzgerald.  “It is an exciting time for Chattanooga football and I am just glad that I have one more year to contribute to the success of the program.”

A Memphis, Tenn., native, Fitzgerald has played in 15 career games and has 1,140 career rushing yards.  He is majoring in Sports Management.