MOBILE, Ala. ? The University of South Alabama’s football program ran through its third and final practice in just helmets Thursday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, and despite not going through a complete workout with contact head coach Joey Jones is pleased with where the team is following its first-ever week on the field.
According to Jones, most of the credit for that goes to his assistants. “I thought our staff did a great job of installation,” he stated. “We did a lot this week on both offense and defense, I mean a lot. For the most part, the kids did what they were supposed to. They might not have understood the technique, but they knew where they were going.
“Because of the good job that the staff did preparing the players, we’re farther along mentally than I thought we would be. We still have a ways to go with fundamentals and technique.”
“I think the first week went well,” said junior linebacker Justin Dunn. “We accomplished the goals that the coaches set for us in terms of knowledge of our schemes. They gave us a small portion of the package, and I think we conquered that pretty well. But there’s still a lot more to learn, so we need to come back and get the rest of it done.”
The first hour of Thursday’s workout was again devoted to drills involving technique, usually by position. Midway through that time linebackers and defensive backs worked on pass defense, while the offense was going over various running plays.
A little over an hour into practice the Jaguars went to work on punt coverage ? it’s the third time this week USA has focused on that aspect of special teams play ? before returning to passing drills. Wide receivers worked against cornerbacks on one end of the field, while running backs and tight ends were covered by linebackers on the other end. After 10 minutes the passing drill was expanded to quarterbacks having four and sometimes five receivers as options, with both linebackers and defensive backs responsible for coverage.
Once again, while the focus was on passing skeleton drills the offensive and defensive lines faced off in one-on-one battles with the former trying to protect the passer from the latter.
For the second time in as many practices, that was followed by 11-on-11 drills that focused mainly on the pass although a couple of running plays including a reverse were mixed in.
“I thought we were much improved today, you could tell that the kids were a lot more confident on both sides of the ball,” said Jones. “Certainly it wasn’t anything close to where we need to be, but I feel that it was a much better practice than I anticipated the last day before Spring Break.”
With the school’s Spring Break starting Friday after classes, the Jags will be off for the next 10 days. USA returns to the field with a 2:30 p.m. practice Tuesday, March 21 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which will be the first time this spring that they will don pads for a workout.
“What concerns about the break next week is our players’ ability to retain what they learned,” Jones commented. “I’m worried that they will forget some assignments we taught these first three practices, but I think they are so excited about getting into pads that they will come out here ready to go.”
The ability to accomplish more in full pads during practice is important to Jones and the staff. With pads on, they will be able to concentrate on the running game, and the offensive and defensive lines will be able to engage in more drills, but there’s another reason they are looking forward to workouts after the break.
“We can’t evaluate players like this,” said Jones. “You might be able to tell if receivers can play or not, and you can see skills at other positions, but if someone can’t take a hit they can’t play. If they can’t block, they can’t play. If they can’t make tackles, they can’t play. That’s football.
“A lot of people look better out here than they will after the break, but we’re searching for guys who will look better in pads.”
Of course, the players are excited about putting pads on too. “That’s what it’s all about, when you really start playing football,” Dunn said. “We’re all excited about it and ready to see who is going to win, offense or defense.”
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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