With a 1-4 record entering a lame duck season of play in the Southern Conference, one would not think that the Elon University football team would have much motivation for the final seven games.

But this squad is unique.

Head coach Jason Swepson’s team will play solely SoCon games for the rest of the season, the Phoenix’s last season in the league before moving to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) in 2014. Elon is already 0-1 in the league after a 31-21 defeat at the hands of Appalachian State University Sept. 21.

After a dismal second half performance in a 53-28 loss to Coastal Carolina on Sept. 28, Swepson and his staff are moving past the three non-conference shortcomings.

“We’re just 0-1 in the conference, that’s what it really is,” Swepson said. “That’s how we’re going to approach it, assuming we’ve had one of the strongest non-conference schedules out there. It’s made us stronger as a team.”

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Elon’s lone triumph in nonleague play was a 49-7 rout of West Virginia Wesleyan College on Sept. 7, the team’s home opener. The Phoenix were manhandled, 70-0 at Georgia Tech on Aug. 31 and lost 23-10 at North Carolina A&T State University on Sept. 14. The combined record of Elon’s nonconference opponents is 12-4.

“I feel like the other teams prepare us for what we have the rest of the season,” said sophomore defensive back Julius Moore. “We played Georgia Tech, a big option team, and we have three more option teams left on the schedule. Those other games prepare us for the future. We know what’s going to happen.”

It’s an odd year in the Southern Conference, with perennial powers Appalachian State and Georgia Southern University ineligible for the league title and FCS playoffs due to their progression to the Division I-A FBS level next season in the Sun Belt Conference. Elon is still eligible for the conference crown, but after the Phoenix leaves, just six current members remain.

As the Phoenix prepares for a trip to Furman University Saturday Oct. 5, it leaves an interesting situation for the team: What App State and Georgia Southern are doing is almost meaningless. And really, who cares about any of it? Elon is leaving in the spring anyway.

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But those thoughts are not present in the minds of the players.

“Just because (Appalachian State and Georgia Southern) aren’t in it for the title, you still have to play like you’re in it to win it,” said redshirt freshman linebacker Corey Mitchell. “Game by game, we have to plan on coming out on top in the SoCon.”

And that the Phoenix does. Elon was picked to finish eighth in the SoCon by both the Preseason Coaches and Media Polls, but the players have faith that they can win the league title.

“That’s our main goal right now,” Moore said of winning the conference.

If the Phoenix is to win the SoCon, there’s lots of room for improvement.

Elon is currently last in the SoCon in total defense, something shown against Coastal Carolina in allowing record-high numbers of yardage. Swepson said the Chanticleers were “bigger, faster, and stronger than our defense.” Coastal is now up to No. 6 nationally after its win against Elon and may be the only team on the Phoenix’s schedule poised to make a run at the national championship, but this still may be cause for concern.

That concern isn’t hindering the mindset of the team. Three of the next four games for the team are on the road and are critical in shaping how this season will end. Elon travels to Furman and Wofford College and hosts the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga before traveling to Western Carolina University to end the month of October. If the Phoenix can find a way to win three of four in this stretch, the SoCon title talks will get a little more serious.

“We’re a good team,” said junior wide receiver Kierre Brown. “We have good players, a good scheme, and good coaching. We just have to finish strong.”

Elon couldn’t finish strong against Coastal Carolina. But if they can finish strong in SoCon play, winning the conference title would be the perfect way to close out the Phoenix’s tenure in the conference.