Kane Wommack Officially Named Head Coach At South Alabama
The University of South Alabama officially announced that Kane Wommack will be only the third head football coach in South Alabama history on Saturday.
Welcome 🏠 @KaneWommack!
— South Alabama Jaguar Athletics (@WeAreSouth_JAGS) December 12, 2020
Full release ▶️ https://t.co/GAvFBg4X8K#Something2Prove pic.twitter.com/NaorcalwWz
Coach Wommack, 33, will be the youngest head coach in the FBS ranks.
Wommack is in his third season as linebackers coach and his second season as the defensive coordinator at Indiana and is a candidate for the Broyles Award after helping the Hoosiers to a #8 ranking in this weeks AP poll.
Our previous post had an extensive rundown of his accomplishments at Indiana.
In his first year at Indiana as the youngest Power 5 defensive coordinator his squad finished in the top-50 nationally in scoring, total, rush, and pass defense.
Prior to Indiana, Wommack was the defensive coordinator at South Alabama under head coach Joey Jones from 2016-2017. He was also the youngest defensive coordinator in FBS at the time. His defense ranked in the top-10 nationally in pass defense (174.6 yards per game). They also allowed 10 fewer points per game over the previous season which ranked them the 5th best improved defense in FBS. In 2017, the Jags were ranked in the top-15 nationally in both red zone defense and fumble recoveries.
Jeremy Reaves, currently with the Washington Football Team in the NFL, was a two-time first-team all-SBC selection and the the school’s first-ever Defensive Player of the Year in 2017. Randy Allen, Bull Barge, Roman Buchanan, Kalen Jackson, and Darrell Songy all earned all-league honors during Wommack’s two years at USA.
Prior to USA he served as defensive coordinator and safeties coach at Eastern Illinois where they finished in the top 25 of the final national poll in 2015 after a first-round appearance in the NCAA Division I FCS playoffs.
Previously he was at Ole Miss from 2012-2013, Jacksonville State 2011, and Tennessee-Martin in 2010.
He began his playing career at Arkansas where he was a fullback in 2005-06 as the Razorbacks won the SEC West in his second season. After transferring to Southern Miss, he helped the Golden Eagles to three straight bowl appearances before earning his degree in 2009 and became a volunteer assistant at the school.
Kane and his wife Melissa have three sons named Asher (6), Tatum (4), and Jones (1).
Wommack had support from various former players, including Reaves.
Mood!!!!!!!!!!!! Proud to be a Jag today ❤️ Welcome home @KaneWommack @MCWommack pic.twitter.com/p4QjUQLjw1
— Jeremy Reaves (@JR1ERA) December 12, 2020
@KaneWommack GOOD TO HAVE YA BACK COACH!!!!
— Nick Mobley (@lone29wolf) December 12, 2020
Welcome back to Mobile and Jag Nation.
South Alabama Announces Campbell Will Not Return
It’s was previously reported that it was expected that South Alabama would be making a change at head coach. It has not been confirmed with an official announcement by Director of Athletics Joel Erdmann and the University.
He informed the team at a 2pm team meeting.
University of South Alabama Director of Athletics Joel Erdmann announced Sunday that Steve Campbell will not return as head coach of the Jaguar football program.https://t.co/9Zn1NOiaYp pic.twitter.com/ibhOpFm2gQ
— South Alabama Football (@WeAreSouth_FB) December 6, 2020
In three seasons at South Alabama, Campbell compiled a 9-26 record overall as the head coach. He had one year left on his 4 year contract that was signed in December 2017. Reportedly his $350,000 buyout was paid by a program booster.
It had looked like Campbell had secured his job for one more season after notching the programs first-ever win in Jonesboro, Arkansas against Arkansas State on November 28. However an embarrassing 29-0 shutout at home to in-state rival Troy for the first-ever meeting between the two in brand new, $80 million Hancock Whitney Stadium was too much to overcome. The Jaguars had never been shutout at home and finished the 2020 season 4-7.
The 2019 season his team finished 2-10 with their only FBS win came on a season ending upset of Arkansas State behind a stellar five catch, 144 yard and four touchdown performance by Jalen Tolbert.
Campbell came to South Alabama after a four-year stint at Central Arkansas where he went 33-15 and going 24-3 in the Southland Conference. In each of his last two seasons his teams went to the playoffs but were knocked out in the second round each time.
Prior to UCA, Campbell led Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College to an 87-22 record and the 2007 National Junior College Athletic Association national champion during his 10 seasons as the helm.
During his three season stint at Delta State from 1999-2001, his teams posted a 27-8 record including a 14-1 record and the NCAA Division II National Championship in 2000.
Until his time at South Alabama Campbell had never finished with a losing record, however his Jaguar teams were continually plagued by poor performing offensive lines, an offense that struggled to score, and a porous defense that slowly improved through his tenure along with longtime defensive coordinator Greg Stewart.
We would like to also thank coach Campbell and his staff for their hard work for the student-athletes, administration, and the University. We wish them and their families the best.
Campbell became only the second head coach in South Alabama football history after Joey Jones’ contract was not renewed after the 2017 season.
The University will look to fill the position quickly with the early signing period begins on December 16.
Dan Parker of the Parker Search Firm is leading the search for the replacement.
Early names being floated or who have expressed interest are Indiana DC and former USA DC Kane Wommack, Tennessee WR coach Tee Martin, Ole Miss OC Jeff Lebby, Alabama RB coach Charles Huff, Alabama DB coach Karl Scott, Notre Dame RB coach/Run Game Coordinator Lance Taylor, and Wofford head coach Josh Conklin.
No Tailgating For Remainder Of Season
In an email from the South Alabama Athletics they announced that they were extending the ban on tailgating for the remainder of the season.
The email stated:
The Jaguars have played two of their scheduled six home games this season and half way through their four-game home stand after the Jags rivalry game with Troy was rescheduled to December 12 after positive Covid-19 tests among the team.
The Jags will host Texas State this Saturday, October 17 followed by Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday, October 24th.
They will then play three consecutive road games before returning home in November 21 against Georgia State. After a road game against Arkansas State on November 28, they will then return home to complete their regular season slate with the rescheduled matchup against Troy on December 12.
USA Board Of Trustees Approve Phase II Of On-Campus Stadium Construction
The University of South Alabama Board of Trustees approved going forward with Phase II of the new on-campus stadium in a Saturday morning meeting.
In a rare Saturday morning Board of Trustees meeting on the campus of South Alabama, the board approved “Phase II” of the school’s on-campus football stadium construction. The bids that comprise this phase total $24.5 million of the $74 million total price tag of the finished product.
Phase II consists of the concrete cast-in-place lower bowl for seating and the shells for the press tower, athletic administration building, and underground utility work. Construction work for Phase II is expected to begin in January or February and keeps the timeline in place for opening for the 2020 season.
The location work has continued from Phase I on the location of the stadium which is adjacent to the football field house and practice facilities nestled in the northwest corner of campus.
Ever since the football program was founded the Jags have played their home games at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which has also been home for the Dollar General bowl and its previous incarnations under different sponsors as well as the Senior Bowl. Both of which are expected to move to the new stadium.
Ladd-Peebles opened in 1948 and seats around 40,000. South Alabama has only sold out the stadium once when SEC opponent Mississippi State visited in 2014. Unfortunately the game was marred for fans as the concession vendors, typically local high school booster clubs and the like, were unable to keep up with the demand of a sold-out crowd on a hot and humid day. Additionally, the availability of water was a huge issue and led to changes for games where fans could bring up to two bottles of water per person to home games.
Phase I was approved back in May which included infrastructure work on the proposed site and preparatory ground work which included relocation of the former intramural fields, water and sewer installation.
The school’s attempt to get the entire projected green-lit hit a huge snag when it went to the Mobile City Council seeking $10 million over 20 years toward the stadium project with a lump sum reimbursal to the city once the stadium received it certification of occupancy. The hitch in the plan was when those involved in putting forth the resolution tied the new stadium to the demolition of Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which may be protected under the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act of 2017 which shields “architecturally significant” buildings over 40 years old.
There was community backlash to the commissioners on both the mentioned demolition of Ladd-Peebles and giving money to the school when city infrastructure had been neglected for many years. After forcing the council’s hand by threatening to withdraw the proposal, they finally receiving a failing vote. The school announced its “Get On Campus” initiative in August to allow the public to donate to the stadium fund directly. Since August, the initiative has only received around $348,000 in pledges. But it received a big shot in the arm when the Mobile County Commission approved $2.5 million towards the project in exchange for naming rights for the stadium’s academic center.
On Saturday, the Board of Trustees affirmed that the full stadium plan will be executed despite the lack of funding support from the city. However they will have control over the timeline and approve each phase as funding dictates.
The stadium master plan includes a large screen video board and sound system, an end-zone terrace, 16-seat suites, a club level with 800 seats, 1,500 parking spaces which Director of Athletics Joel Erdmann says is similar to what is available at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, green spaces for tailgating, and an access road from the stadium to Old Shell Road to ease traffic congestion on gameday.
Erdmann says the on-campus stadium with “change who we are.” “There is a public perception on what is considered a traditional college game day,” Erdmann said. “The majority of those traditional college game days are on college campuses. The campus comes alive and uses its geography and its buildings and green spaces. As opposed to 25,000 people going off-campus, they’re coming onto campus.” He continued by talking about the long-range impact on traditions, “People will go to the same places (on game day), and then their children will come with them and their grandchildren will come with them. The ultimately impact on this is generational.”
Below is a video that was shown at halftime of the Jaguars game against Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday as part of the announcement.
A School-Record Receive SBC Academic Honors
In addition to earning the Vic Bubas Cup in May for being the Sun Belt Conference’s top member in competition, which included four programs that won league championships (Soccer, Men’s Cross Country, Baseball and Women’s Tennis) the Jaguars capped off the previous academic and sports year with success in the classroom.
The Sun Belt Conference office announced on Wednesday that the University of South Alabama had a school record-breaking total of 162 student-athletes receive Conference academic recognition for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Those 162 were part of the 2014-2015 SBC Commissioner’s List and Academic Honor Roll, which put USA sixth in the conference. This is an increase of seven from the previous academic record of 155.
USA tied for second in the conference with 88 student-athletes on the Commissioner’s List which goes to those with a GPA of 3.5 or higher during the previous two semesters. Another 74 Jags were recognized in the Academic Honor Roll which honors students with a 3.0-3.49 GPA over the previous two semesters.
Football, Women’s Cross Country/Track and Field and Men’s Cross Country/Track and Field each featured more than 20 student-athletes on the list with 28, 25, 21 respectively. Baseball had 15, soccer had 13 and softball had 12 individuals on the list as well with other programs contributing the remainder of the individuals.
Pete Tolbert Night of Champions Honors Jaguar Student-Athletes
Photo credit Press-Register/Victor Calhoun
South Alabama honored student-athletes Monday at the sixth annual Pete Tolbert Night of Champions at the Mitchell Center. The event recognizes the achievements, both in competition and academically, of the nearly 400 individuals who comprise the University of South Alabama athletics program.
Kaitlyn Griffith (Softball from Centre, AL) and Daniel Leitner (Men’s Tennis from Neiderfischbach, Germany) were named the Jaguar Female and Male Student-Athlete of the Year respectively, honoring the most outstanding Jaguars based on scholarship, athletic ability and citizenship.
Griffith, a senior shortstop for the softball team is hitting .296 with a team-high 11 home runs, with 38 RBI, 25 runs scored and helping the team to a 33-9 record thus far and a top-25 national ranking throughout the 2015 season. She is a three-time National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-America Scholar Athlete and is set to receiver her degree in May in exercise science. She has a 3.82 cumulative GPA.
Leitner, a senior, is the reigning two-time Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year in men’s tennis. He earned the award this spring after amassing a 28-5 overall record in singles play and a 22-6 record in doubles play. He was named to the first-team All-SBC in both singles and doubles, and as the highest-rated individual in the conference, will earn a berth to the NCAA Singles Championships in May. He will graduate with a 3.89 GPA in exercise science in May.
A pair of Griffith’s teammates on the Softball team also earned awards.
Farish Beard was chosen at the school’s NCAA Woman of the Year Nominee with Blair Johnson earning the Jimmy Taylor Scholarship.
Beard, who currently has a 3.39 GPA, was selected as the nominee for that goes to a varsity letterwinner completing her intercollegiate eligibility by the end of spring sports season, who has excelled in academics, athletics, service and leadership with a minimum of a cumulative 2.5 GPA. She is also a finalist for both the Senior CLASS and 2014 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year awards. This season she is 9-3 with a 2.37 ERA with 87 strikeouts in 71 innings.
Johnson earned the award going to a student-athlete who holds a minimum of a 2.5 GPA, has completed their NCAA eligibility and with the assistance of the fund will graduate from USA within two consecutive semesters. She has earned All-SBC honors twice during her career and this year she is batting .254 with 12 extra-base hits, 25 RBI, and 14 walks to only eight strikeouts.
Sophie Haywood from Hull, England, earned the Auralia Crowell Freshman Scholar Athlete Awards given to the most outstanding freshman based on excellence in academics and athletics. She was named First-Team All-Conference after posting 19 points on seven goals and five assists in helping the Jaguar soccer team tow in the conference title and advance to the NCAA Tournament. She has a 4.0 GPA as an exercise science major.
Adam Ballew of the baseball team was awarded the Denny-Gottfried Scholarship Award that is presented to the student-athlete who has exhausted their eligibilty, maintained an outstanding GPA and achieved athletic accomplishment. In his final season at USA, he has helped the Jaguar baseball team to a 29-16 record thus far while batting .275 with five extra-base hits, 26 RBI and eight stolen bases. He is an exercise science major with a 3.38 GPA.
Derek Westbrook from Diamondhead, MS, received a pair of awards. He arned the Shirley Holt Scholarship Award as well as the Male Jaguar Athletic Fund Award. The former is given to a student-athlete who exemplifies outstanding “Team Spirit” and who has shown great character and concern for his or her fellow student-athletes. The latter recognizes overall support of Jaguar Athletics. Both awards exemplifies Derek’s contributions to South Alabama Athletics and also marks the second-consecutive year that he has garnered the JAG Award honors.
Caroline Beebe earned the Female Jaguar Athletic Fund Award. Which marks the second consecutive year that both she has earned the JAF Award as well.
Hunter Colemani was awarded the Tom and Barbara Corcoran Scholar-Athlete Endowed Scholarship Award which is given to a USA Junior who most excels in sports while maintaining at least a 3.0 GPA. The right handed pitcher has a 4.0 GPA in biomedical sciences in the classroom while on the diamond he has a 1-0 record with a 0.59 ERA with 14 strikeouts and 15.1 innings of work.
Jimmie Gipson III was awarded the Wilson Durgin Memorial Scholarship Award which goes to a minority student-athlete who has excelled in both the classroom and competition. Nikki Gittens was awarded the Female Perseverance Award after she suffered a stress fracture in her tibia that forced her to redshirt in 2013, she then returned and ranked third on the volleyball team with 243 kills and led the team with a .250 attack percentage and 83 total blocks while helping the Jags qualify for the SBC tournament despite tendinitis in her knee and hitting shoulder.
Ucambre Williams earned the Male Perseverance Award after undergoing three separate surgical procedures and requiring over six months of rehabilitation. After surgery on his right knee in September he returned in just 15 days and would go on to start 11 consecutive games while posting a team-best 90 percent overall grade and being named to the second-team All-SBC and helped the Jaguars play in its first-ever postseason bowl game.
Brandon Bridge was awarded the Mayer Mitchell Quarterback Endowment Fund Award as the Jaguars starter last fall. Matt Bolger earned the Clifton Inge Endowed Baseball Award. David Knapp earned the Forrest W. and Beverly B. Crowder Endwoed Scholarship for baseball. Mark Watts earned the McKinney Family Endowed Scholarship Fund for Track and Field. Emily Newton earned the George Smith Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund for Track and Field as well.
Assistant Athletic Director for Ticket Operations Greg Keel was selected for the Matt Smith Award which goes to a member of the athletics staff who consistenly goes the extra mile, has the spirit of commitment, a strong work ethic, and a deep sense of pride in their job. The award is named in memory of former USA Sports Information Director Matt Smith who passed away in December of 2004.
Each sport program also presented awards at the event. The winners of those honors were:
- Eddie Stanky Award (baseball), Bolger
- Goldie Ungar Heart of Gold Award (men’s basketball), Dionte Ferguson
- Jaguar Women’s Basketball NCAA Award (women’s basketball), Breanna Hall
- Female Distance Award (women’s cross country), Nicole Durham
- Male Distance Award (men’s cross country), Christoph Graf
- Jim Yance Heart of a Jaguar Award (football), Jesse Kelley
- Heath Slocum Award (men’s golf), Tyler Klava
- Beth Barry Award (women’s golf), Ingrid Hagen
- Lindsay Rogers Award (soccer), Alyssa Mayer
- Extra Mile Award (softball), Stephanie Pilkington
- Lubel Family Award (men’s tennis), Leitner
- Marilyn Lubel Award (women’s tennis), Laura Matuskova
- Most Outstanding Women’s Track & Field Student-Athlete Award (women’s track and field), Kaitlyn Beans
- Most Outstanding Men’s Track & Field Student-Athlete Award (men’s track and field), Jan-Louw Kotze
- Jaguar Volleyball Award (volleyball), Gittens
Prior to the naming of the Jaguar Student-Athletes of the Year, 46 current and former student-athletes who will graduate at the conclusion of the semester received gifts from the department.
Congratulations to all the award winners as well as all of the student-athletes who will earn their degrees. Thank you for representing the University in each of your respective sports with honor and character. Once a Jaguar, always a Jaguar.
A Record Number of Jaguars Earn SBC Academic Recognition
South Alabama had a record 155 student-athletes to earn Sun Belt Conference Academic Recognition for 2013-2014 by being on the SBC Commissioner’s List or Academic Honor Roll as announced by the conference office on Thursday.
The Jags had 84 individuals named to the Commissioner’s List which recognizes student athletes with a GPA of 3.5 or better during the previous two semesters and 71 on the Academic Honor Roll which includes student-athletes with a 3.0-3.49 GPA during that same time span.
Ten of USA’s 17 sports had double-figure totals. Women’s Cross Country/Track and Field team led the way with 27 followed closely by Football with 26. Men’s Cross Country/Track and Field and Soccer both had 19, Softball had 14, and baseball had 13.
The Jags finished second in the final standings for the Vic Bubas Cup which is presented to the top overall program in the Sun Belt Conference.
Here is a link to the 2013-2014 South Alabama Sun Belt Conference Academic Honorees. Congratulations Jaguar Student-Athletes!
USA Has Four Teams Earn SBC Team Academic Awards
South Alabama had four teams earn 2014-2015 Sun Belt Conference Academic Awards on Thursday. That number is twice as many as any other conference member.
USA teams that earned awards were the Jaguar softball team, the men’s and women’s cross country teams and the men’s track and field team.
The conference office recognizes one team from each of the league’s 16 sports for for the award, which is calculated by totaling the student-athlete GPA’s for the team and dividing by the total number of student-athletes on the team. The team with the highest average GPA is named the Team Academic Award winner for that year. The GPA’s are based off of the previous school year and include the total GPA for the year, not the average of semesters.
In all, South Alabama Athletics had a record 100 student-athletes to make the Dean’s list, 189 individuals with a 3.0 GPA or higher, in the spring semester. Additionally, 10 sports programs carried a team GPA of 3.0 or higher.
South Alabama finished second in the Bubas Cup standings for the 2013-2014 academic year. The Bubas Cup recognizes the conference’s top overall program in competition. It was the school’s best finish in more than 10 years.
AD Erdmann Addresses #JagNation Concerning Policy Changes At Ladd-Peebles
South Alabama athletic director Joel Erdmann releases letter to Jaguar fans concerning the water availability situation at Ladd-Peebles Stadium during the Jags sold-out game against Mississippi State on Saturday, September 13, 2013. Photo Credit: Matt Weaver | Special to Thunderjags
South Alabama Athletics Director Joel Erdmann release an open letter to fans on Wednesday addressing the water situation at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. In the letter he outlines the changes that USA and Ladd-Peebles will implement in future games to try to prevent the same situation from happening again.
Here is a link to a PDF of the letter.
September 17, 2014
Jaguar Fans and Customers;
The September 13th football game versus Mississippi State University will be remembered as one of the remarkable moments in South Alabama history. Beginning with the crowded Pep Rally Friday evening in downtown Mobile and carrying through to the tailgating and the game itself, tens of thousands of Jaguar fans experienced a tangible swell of pride and unity.
Please note that the 3:00 p.m. game time was established to allow for a nationally televised game on ESPNews. We anticipate and hope that similar opportunities present themselves in the future. The festive atmosphere of Saturday’s game combined with the sheer numbers of a sell-out crowd and the heat of a mid-September afternoon in Mobile, Alabama, exposed selected operational areas which will be addressed as follows.
1. Water – customers experienced access to warm bottled water at selected areas within the stadium. Moving forward:
• Spectators will be allowed to bring into the stadium two bottles of water per person. Small to medium-sized soft-sided coolers are now allowed and are subject to search. Please be sure such items are sized appropriately to fit within the designated seating area and does not intrude on adjacent fans.
• There will be roving vendors with beverages in both the West and East grandstands.
• Refrigerated trucks will be located in designated ground-level areas of the stadium. These locations will serve as points of sale with cold bottles of water assured. Due to various logistical and safety restrictions, water from these areas cannot be distributed to the concourses – thus a short walk to the areas will be required.
• All efforts will be made to continue to provide cold water in the concourses.2. Shuttles – Customers have access to ride the Wave Transit System from the Bel Air Mall parking lot (Near JC Penney) to Ladd-Peebles and return. The shuttles run non-stop from four hours prior to a game to two hours after. The cost for a round trip is $2.50. At peak times prior to Saturday’s game there were in excess of 30 buses in rotation. Moving forward:
• We will increase the number of buses in the rotation at peak-use times and balance those numbers with the desire to keep the cost of the shuttle at $2.50 per round trip.As our football program continues to grow, we have been provided a tremendous opportunity to call Ladd-Peebles Stadium our home. We view this opportunity as a true partnership between the Stadium and Jaguar Athletics. When issues which negatively impact the experience of our fans occur, we will be diligent in working together as a team to find reasonable solutions.
We deeply appreciate your support. Go Jags!!
Joel
Jaguar Student-Athletes Honored At 5th Annual Pete Tolbert Night Of Champions
Several student-athletes were honored during the Fifth Annual Pete Tolbert Night of Champions, the athletic department’s event to honor the achievements of nearly 400 individuals on Thursday evening.
Junior pitcher Farish Beard of Fairhope, Alabama and senior quarterback Ross Metheny of Stephens City, Virginia were name the female and male Student-Athletes of the Year. This honors the most outstanding individuals based on scholarship, athletic ability and citizenship.
Along with Beard, Hannah Campbell and Kaitlyn Griffith were also honored from the softball team. Metheny was joined by teammates Trey Fetner, Bryson James and Alex Page from the football team. Noelle Jones, Garrett Schumacher and Derek Westbrook were honored from the Track and Field teams.
Several others were honored including just to name a few: Caroline Beebe, Mechell Daniel, Nini Rabsatt-Smith, Sharmyn Wall, Matt Bolger, Brandon Bridge, Robby Campbell, Michelena D’Alonzo and Kristin Parry.
Beard has recorded better than a 3.2 GPA in two-plus years at USA. This season she has a 18-5 record, a 0.99 ERA, 174 strikeouts in 127.1 innings and ranks in the top 20 nationally in four statistical categories.
Metheny has a 4.0 GPA and is working on his master’s degree in educational leadership. Last season he led the Sun Belt Conferecne in total offense per game with 269 yards, ranked in the top 10 in the conference in three other categories and finished in the top 50 nationally in total offense, pass efficiency rating, and passing yards. He was also selected to the second-team All-SBC team.
A full rundown off all the awards and their recipients can be found here.
Also, 56 current and former student-athletes were recognized as they will graduate at the end of the semester.
Congratulations Jaguars!