Jags Hit Practice In Pads For First Time This Preseason
Offensive lineman running position drills in 2012 preseason camp.
The South Alabama Jaguars completed their first day practice in full pads on Tuesday.
Even though the Jags are in full pads, they are not yet tackling, but more contact was allowed on the field during the practice session. Along with putting on more pads comes more heat and making sure that the players are staying hydrated.
Coach Jones observed that the defense, under first year defensive coordinator Kevin Sherrer, is increasing the complexity of their coverages and expanding their packages. The defensive front was strong all season despite a number of injuries throughout the season. The secondary had problems in coverage and allowed a number of big plays.
The team opened with 15 minutes of team drills which saw the offense running first and second down plays with three groups of players combining for 30 snaps. During the team period, they focused on third-down situations with a full 10 minute period being focused on first and second team units combined to run about 16 plays.
The final 50 minutes of practice saw team and group sessions with the offense and defense facing off against each other. About 20 snaps focused on inside reps. Two groups combined for about 30 snaps in a session of 7-on-7 skeleton passing drills.
Special teams work had two sessions, one early in practice and one late in practice. The first session covered punts and punt coverage while the later session focused on kickoff returns.
Head coach Joey Jones was quoted in his post-practice remarks saying, “”I think that we’ve got to get better on offense as far as knowing our assignments. There were some busts out there that we can fix, and that’s something that we can do something about. You can’t do anything about your athletic ability, but you can do something about what you’re supposed to do and that’s one thing we’ve got to get cleaned up on offense.”
After practice, head coach Joey Jones and a couple players visited children at USA Children’s and Women’s Hospital. They visited a number of children, including a former Murphy High School football player.
Wednesday will be the first two-a-day practice of preseason camp. They will hit the practice field at 7:15am for the first session then again at 4:30pm for a second session. This afternoon could see rain and thunderstorms.