MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama football team will return to the field for the first time since the program’s spring game on April 10 when it begins preseason practice Tuesday at 7 a.m.
The Jaguars will actually begin work at 6:30 a.m. in preparation for the session, which will take place on the practice fields behind the school’s new fieldhouse. Practice is slated to run approximately two hours.
“You can feel a heightened excitement within the program when you have a game to look forward to. Spring practice is great, we worked hard and got better, but there was not that extra buzz that we were getting ready to tee it up against somebody else,” stated Jag head coach Joey Jones. “Let’s face it, that’s why you play football. Who wants to just practice all the time? These guys want to play games in front of a crowd, with their families and girlfriends watching in the stands.
“That’s what’s exciting about returning to the field. Knowing there’s a game coming up raises the bar at this time of year.”
USA will have more than four weeks to get ready to face Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy on Saturday, Sept. 5, in the program’s first-ever game, with the contest slated to begin at 4 p.m. at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
For the first five days of preseason camp, the Jags will work out at 7 a.m. with meetings in the afternoons and evenings. The first two-a-day practice session is slated for Tuesday, Aug. 11, while the first scrimmage is set for the morning of Saturday, Aug. 15, before the program takes part in a “Fan Day.” Classes start on Monday, Aug. 17.
Jones cited a trio of reasons for running practices prior to the first day of classes in the morning. “First, it’s less likely to rain in Mobile in the morning as opposed to the afternoon — if we get rained out in the morning we can still make it up in the afternoon. Even though we’re having a mild period right now, there is less of an issue with heat in the mornings. And we also think the players will get to bed earlier if they know they have to get up and practice first thing in the morning.”
According to Jones, the early portion of preseason camp will focus on teaching. Jones and his staff will employ what he describes as the whole-part-whole method of installing the Jags’ game plane — that means the players will have a lot to learn beginning with the first day of workouts.
“They’re going to be running around like a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off, and that’s fine,” commented Jones. “I think that after the first week it will all sink in.
“One thing that we are going to demand is a high-intensity practice. We’ve got to make evaluations quickly,” he added. “The guys are going to make mistakes — they’re going to run the wrong way, throw to the wrong guy, line up in the wrong position. I’m fine with that.
“They will understand that once two weeks go by evaluations will not be over.”
Jones and the staff will continue to evaluate players throughout the course of the season with the Jaguars having several open weekends without a game scheduled. “This is such a unique year for us with four off weeks, so we will have more time to work the kids and find out about them.”
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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