MOBILE, Ala. – South Alabama football head coach Kane Wommack, offensive coordinator Major Applewhite, defensive coordinator Corey Batoon, along with student-athletes Carter Bradley and Darrell Luter Jr. met with the media Monday for the program's weekly press conference.

Below are highlights from the session.

Head Coach Kane Wommack
- Opening Statement:
"Obviously, it was good for us to take advantage of a bye-week opportunity. I told the guys this morning that recovery [is important], which is what some of our guys needed especially when you play as physically as we do over the first five games. Some guys had some bangs and bruises that needed recovery, while other guys needed to be pushed just to add the depth that we need offensively, defensively and on special teams. There may be a young guy that we're going to get four games out of on special teams before he takes his redshirt. All those things in recovery are an opportunity to take advantage of, but if you don't take advantage of recovery, it can be a liability. Those are things we have to be very mindful of this week. 
"As our guys came into the building [this morning] I saw a football team that was very energetic, very hungry and had the mentality that we want to start the week with, and that was really encouraging to see. 
"We're excited to be at home. Homecoming is a special opportunity for a university to reflect on some of the things you've done in the past and honor those that have come before you. Yet at the same time, it's an opportunity to look ahead at what our future shows. It's a special time, but ultimately at the end of the day our process continues. If we'll continue to stay at that, I feel we're going to be excited about the outcome."

- On the importance of the two games in a six-day span coming up beginning with ULM on Saturday and Troy the following Thursday:
 "You talk about those two games in a six-game span and I'm glad we get that opportunity. You talk about [the last home game] Louisiana Tech and we were able to show that we were able to answer the bell after a very tough loss on the road after two really tough road games back-to-back. I think to say [coming off the win at Louisiana] was an emotional victory where we were able to win at the end, and because of what that game has meant to this program. We were able to execute in an intense situation and coming off a bye week, I think gives us another opportunity to respond. We didn't play our best football against Louisiana, and I think our guys are very aware of that. There's something to be gained from responding after an emotional win and recognizing that we need to get better at our process, and make sure that we show up with more consistency than what we did particularly in the first half against Louisiana.
"We're going to walk in here every single week and if we continue to take care of business, we're going to say that these next games are important, because they are. When you start winning at a high level, every game becomes vitally important because the standard has been set. Behind closed doors, those expectations are very high when everyone's head hits the pillow. We're not going to talk about those things publicly in the building and in the program, but I'm certainly aware of the implication of what every win will mean moving forward. 
"I'm glad to be able to do this at home; I feel it's a huge advantage for us as we geared up for this next 10-day stretch."

- On the ULM game last season and the corrections made:
 "You look at the ULM game a year ago, and we built that game out to be so much, because of the fact that I had gone there before as the defensive coordinator here and I thought we played a very flat game. We did a lot to try to get ourselves in position to execute at a high level and go out and respond. Their place can be a tough place to play sometimes for a number of different reasons and we just didn't handle it well. We let them take the momentum. I thought it was our worst game of the season from an execution and adjustment standpoint, particularly on defense. I thought [ULM] had a really good plan, and I don't think we adjusted very well to that plan. 
"When you look at those things in the offseason, you take quite a bit of time addressing how we are going to deal with what we've put on film and how we got exposed in that game. I feel we've addressed some of those things and we've shown some of the ways we might continue to deal with a certain style of offense. They have changed a little bit of their personality from where they were a year ago, but they also present some other challenges that we have to be aware of. I feel really good about the versatility of our defense. I feel like we're in a position where if you want to spread it out and go fast, we have answers for that. If you want to load the box and try to establish the run and the play-action game, we've got some good answers for that as well. Ultimately, those things come down to execution and I certainly feel that we are trending in the right direction when you look at what we've done over the last few weeks."

- On what makes ULM head coach Terry Bowden tough to game-plan against:
 "One, Terry hires good coaches. He's got experienced coaches on both sides of the ball and had the same thing a year ago as well. They had coordinator changes [in the offseason] but you can tell that he's gotten guys who've been in big moments and know how to adjust and execute. We have a very similar recipe [with our staff]. You look at the successes and adversities that [offensive coordinator] Major Applewhite and [defensive coordinator] Korey Batoon have worked through, that's a big deal. Coaches who know how to adjust and who have been in those moments and that experience is a big advantage that both staffs have to fall back on. 
"On the other side, you also recognize what you do well as a program and you take advantage of the things you do well and you try to play that style of game that is going to feature the aspects that you want to feature within your offense, defense or special teams. You can tell that [ULM] is very well aware of that, and at the same time with them being an experienced staff, they are also aware of what the opponent does well.
"We ask ourselves the question every week 'What is this team going to do to beat us?  How do they win this football game against us?' We look at those things and address those needs accordingly. It's also important to create that vision for your players as well. Here's what we do. We stay focused on our standard, but how does this team come in here and beat us? We have to be mindful of that."

- On self-evaluation as a staff:
 "One of the advantages to a bye week, particularly on the front half of the season or not quite at the half-way point is what we're able to do in terms of self-scouting reports. There are going to be certain tendencies that we've shown, whether it is formation, down-and-distance, field zone, what we do with certain personnel packages on the field that we have to be aware of and have shown through the first five games. We have to make sure we break up some of those tendencies a little bit. It's nice to have a bye week and can help in terms of what you have to do moving forward. Inevitably, teams coming off a bye week will have some wrinkles that your next opponent is going to have to deal with, so that's a positive for us. 
"As we reflect on what we've been doing, I feel that we have a lot of good answers. If a team does 'x', we do 'y' and/or 'z'. I feel that we've answered pretty well throughout games based on what we're seeing from other teams. Frankly, the only other thing you look at is how are you starting the game? Is the game plan that you had one that works well? I think we're answering those questions with consistency. From a standpoint of how we're calling the game and how we're preparing, and how we are using analytics to be as aggressive as we are in certain areas, we feel like those are moving in the right direction."

Offensive Coordinator Major Applewhite
- On the bye week:
"The bye week was good for us from a standpoint of healing some guys up who had some bumps and bruises, but also just the chance to go back and focus on some of the things that we think we need to improve. There are some things that we're doing well, but there's some things that we need to improve and that's what we focused on in the off week. It was good to get some of those guys healed up, but it was also good to get extra work on things we want to improve."

- On the importance of good offensive line play:
"It's a big man's game. All the skill players get a lot of attention, but if you can control the line of scrimmage offensively or defensively you have a very good chance of winning the football game. For us against ULM's front, they have a lot of experience and size. They cut up the front quite a bit, meaning a lot of twists and movements – things to confuse you. More times than not they're successful with it. There's going to be times where they're successful with it, and there's going to be times where we're successful with it. We just have to use the old cliché 'Keep sawing wood' and our chunk will come. It's going to be that kind of a game. They're a good front."

Defensive Coordinator Corey Batoon
- On ULM: 
"They have a lot of the same personnel from a year ago. I think the quarterback is playing really well, he makes that whole thing go. His athleticism, his ability to extend plays in the drop back game, his ability to run the ball, I think he's getting a better feel for their offense. They've got a new offensive coordinator, it's a new system, and I think they are really starting to gel, the last two games in particular. The second half of the previous game against Arkansas State, I thought they did some good things, even if the score doesn't indicate that. I thought they executed pretty well, especially in the second half against Coastal Carolina, and a lot of that was due to [ULM quarterback] Chandler Rodgers. I think he's playing really well. Obviously, the receivers did a nice job of catching the ball in traffic. The ball got out of his hands, he knew where to go with the ball, and they did a good job executing the offense. I like both their backs; they are both really good players. We saw all these guys a year ago. They gave us all that we wanted last year. Our guys are anxious for this game." 

- On his evaluation of the defense through the first five games: 
"From an improvement standpoint, I would like to see us create more negative plays. I think we are doing a good job on third down. I think we are doing an okay job in the red zone, there's more we can do execution wise. If we get ourselves off the field in a couple of those fourth downs, you're taking points off the board. Those are critical plays where we have a chance to execute and help ourselves and I think we can improve in that regard. From a positive standpoint, we haven't given up many explosive plays. We've made people earn everything they got. Going to the bye week, it felt like we were doing a pretty good job with the guys understanding where we need to be. We don't have any similar busts like we had last year in the first year in the system. There's obviously a ton of room to improve."

Quarterback Carter Bradley
- On taking advantage of the bye week:
"It was good. A lot of guys got their bodies back. Guys were in the training room getting extra work in, working with the strength coaches doing stretching and stuff like that. It was helpful for us."

- On what he saw in himself the first few games and what he wants to work on:
"Me, as a quarterback, I was just a little fast with my reads. I need to slow down on a few things. I'm excited, I was excited to play some ball, but looking back I think I was going too fast through my reads because I knew my answers and some things popped open that I wasn't expecting. Footwork can always use work and staying in the pocket and being calm. Watching myself and some other guys definitely helped me on this off week to see what I need to do better."

- On what jumps out about ULM:
"They're a big zone team. They're physical up front and will do a lot of things in the box. I need to get my eyes on the back end of things, and it's going to be a good game."

- On the team's ineffectiveness to run last week and how it affected his throwing:
"It was just one of those games where it was all over the place. You couldn't really get in a rhythm at the start. I've never really had a game like that in my career. But I got to be better. I was excited to go at it the next week, but we had the bye week. This one has been sitting in my system for a little bit. We got this one coming up, and I'm excited."

Cornerback Darrell Luter Jr.
- On the importance of the bye week: 
"It was much needed. Some of the guys needed time for their bodies to recover that were banged up from the previous games. I feel like we really needed that."

- On what he sees from ULM: 
"We are just starting to get into what they do and their tendencies and whatnot. I think, defensively, if we start strong up front with the defensive line and protect the perimeter, we will be fine."

- On facing ULM and the dangers of an athletic quarterback:
"He is very athletic, so we have to watch out for that. We need to contain him. It's kind of difficult. We have to watch our eyes. Whether you are blitzing or what have you, he will scramble. He is fast, so you have to take good angles on him as well."

- On how long it took him to get over his dropped pick-6 against Louisiana: 
"It took me a couple days to get over it. I was thinking about it a lot throughout that game. I caught it and all I could see was the endzone. I had my blockers and I thought it was the perfect moment. I even had it in my dominant hand, my left hand. I still to this day do not know how it fell out, and I hope for that to never happen again."

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