Fuel to the Mississippi State fire?
South Alabama hosts Mississippi State on Saturday and there has never been as much buzz about a home game since the very first game back in 2009.
But it’s different now, the Jags are not taking the field for the first time. Untested and facing unknown. This time the Jaguars are hosting a team from the Southeastern Conference for the first time, but the team is familiar to them. They played during the 2012 season, which seems like so long ago.
Jaguar fans, players and coaches would love for nothing more than to shock the nation with an upset win over the Bulldogs. They almost earned that signature win over Tennessee last season but it slipped away in the waning moments. And what better setup than to lure the Bulldogs away from the friendly confines of Davis Wade Stadium and the clattering of cowbells that ring sweet in their ears but is the bane of any visiting team.
Throw on top of that that Bleacher Report tried to guess where ESPN College Gameday was going on September 13th and picked Mobile. It charged the Jaguar faithful again only to be disappointed but further intent on showing the nation that South Alabama > North Dakota State, where they chose for their location this week.
But then ESPN goes and throws yet more fuel to the fire with a post on the ESPN’s SEC blog titled “What we learned in the SEC: Week 2”.
If there ever was a stage set for the perfect, monumental upset this would be it for the Jaguars. Let’s show them what Jaguar football is all about. Let’s be loud without having to use a cowbell. Let’s show them how nice we can be outside the stadium but once we step foot inside, it’s all business…. and business is GOOD!
Go Jags!
South Alabama vs Georgia Southern Kickoff Time Announced
The Sun Belt Conference office announced on Monday that South Alabama’s football game against Georgia Southern on Saturday, September 20 will kick off at 6:30pm.
The Jaguars will host the Eagles in the second game of a two game home stand. It will be the first Conference game for Georgia Southern who joined the Sun Belt over the summer. Additionally, it will be the first of eight consecutive conference games for the Jaguars this season.
The game between the Eagles and Jaguars broadcast can be seen on ESPN3 or Lite Mix 99.9FM and iHeartRadio.
South Alabama opens 2014 with 23-13 win over Kent State
South Alabama used an early lead and a late touchdown to hold off Kent State for a 23-13 win on Saturday.
After building a 16-0 advantage midway through the second quarter, the Jags offense went cold while the Kent State offense found a way to move the ball and put points on the board. But most of all, the Jags found a way to finish the game.
The scoring began when Kent State quarterback Colin Reardon was flagged for intentional grounding in the end zone resulting in a safety. Then after a good return of the free kick, the Jaguar offense, aided with good field position on their own 46 yard line, got into gear and drove down to the KSU 4 yard line but would back up to the 9 on a penalty. Then Brandon Bridge’s pass would be deflected and seemingly intercepted by Nate Holley in the end zone, but pass interference would be called placing the ball at the 2 yard line with a fresh set of downs. Two plays later Bridge would connect with Shavarez Smith for a one-yard touchdown to take a 9-0 advantage.
Approaching midway through the second quarter, Bridge would hook up with Marvin Shinn for a 58-yard pass down the left sideline and called down at the 1 yard line. Jay Jones would punch it in on the next play to give the Jags a 16-0 lead.
Kent State would get on the board a minute-and-a-half before halftime on a 13 play, 69 yard drive capped off by an eight yard touchdown pass from Reardon to Nick Holley in the left flat. The two-point conversion would fail leaving the Golden Flashes trailing 16-6 at halftime.
The third quarter would be scoreless, but towards the end Kent State was starting to move the ball. Then on the first play of the fourth quarter, Reardon connects with Casey Pierce for a 44-yard catch and run for a touchdown to draw within three points, 16-13.
Midway through the final quarter, Kent State’s drive stalls at the Jaguar 15 so they set up for a game-tying field goal attempt from 32 yards out. Lining up on the left hash, Anthony Melchiori’s attempt would stay left giving the Jaguars defense a big sigh of relief and a resurgence of energy which helped them to stop the final two Kent State drives of the game.
After taking over from the missed field goal and aided by an unsportsmanlike conduct call after the try, the Jags started at their own 35 yard line with just over four minutes left in the game.
A steady dose of Jay Jones would help to bleed the clock with a pair of first downs. Then, facing third-and-six on the KSU 23 yard line, the senior would break a 23 yard touchdown run all but sealing the game.
On the ensuing possession, to take any chance of a comeback away, Montell Garner would pick off Reardon’s pass and allowing Bridge to simply kneel on the ball to run out the clock.
The Jaguar defense held Kent State to 277 yards on 68 plays. In the last four games dating back to the end of the 2013 season the Jaguar defense has not allowed an opponent to gain over 300 yards during that stretch.
Davin Hawkins, in his first start, led the defense with nine stops and two passes broken up. Roman Buchanan, Maleki Harris, Akeem Lewis and Theo Rich all had four stops each. Terrell Brigham had three passes broken up and a forced fumble. Jimmie Gipson III had two tackles for loss and three quarterback hurries.
Jay Jones rushed for over 100-yards for the third consecutive time dating back to the 2013 season. He led all rushers with 102 yards on 21 carries. Kendall Houston added 46 yards on 13 carries and Bridge added 41 as the Jags finished with 186 yards on the ground.
Bridge went 15-of-25 for 161 yards and a touchdown in his first start behind center. Jereme Jones, Shavarez Smith and Danny Woodson all caught three passes each to lead the receivers. Shinn led with the most yards with 58 on his one reception.
Brandon McKee got the start at punter with a school-record 10 punts in the game and a 42.9 yard average. He also had two kicks downed inside the 20-yard line.
“This is a big win for us on the road,” head coach Joey Jones stated. “We came up here last time and didn’t play well, but we came out and really played well early in the game. The thing I am most proud of is we finished the game. In our first game last year we let someone drive and score, and now look at the difference, just that mentality of we’re not going to get beat late in the game. I’m so proud of the defense for stopping them, and proud of the offense for driving down and scoring late in the game.”
“My hat’s off to our players who have really bought in to what we’re doing,” Jones continued. “We have some things we can work on, and that’s the thing about football, you always have things you can work on.”
The Jaguars will return to practice on Sunday as they prepare to host Mississippi State on Saturday for their home opener at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3pm and will be televised on ESPNews nationally.
Know Your Stadiums: Dix Stadium – Kent, Ohio
Kent State’s Dix Stadium exterior with the Golden Flash logo on the sign. | Photo: tailgatershandbook.com
Dix Stadium is a 25,319 seat stadium primarily used for football on the campus of Kent State University. It is named in honor of Robert C. Dix, former publisher of the Record-Courier and member of Kent State’s Board of Trustees for more than three decades in 1973.
The Stadium is the centerpiece of what has become an athletic complex on the eastern end of the campus. It opened on September 13, 1969 with an initial capacity of 30,520. Dix Stadium was regarded as an “Expansion and relocation” of the old Memorial Stadium rather than a new stadium.
A new grandstand on the west side of the stadium, which had seating for over 12,000 people with locker room and press facilities, were constructed on the new (current) site just over a mile east of campus. Approximately 17,000 seats from the original Memorial Stadium were dismantled and moved to the new site and became the end zone seats in the new stadium while the auxiliary bleacher sections were used for the east stands.
The first game in Dix Stadium was on September 13, 1969 with a win over the Dayton Flyers in front of 8,172 spectators. Due to delays, the new west stands including the home and visitor locker rooms, press box, and most of the seating were not completed until after the 1969 football season which limited the capacity to 18.200. During that first season the teams dressed in locker rooms at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center and were then bused to the stadium. For halftime, the teams met in separate public restroom facilities.
In 1973 the stadium was renamed in honor of Robert C. Dix, its initial capacity was listed at 28,748 before later being revised to 30,520 which stood through the 2001 season.
In the early 1990s the first major changed to Dix Stadium were undertaken with the addition of an elevator to reach the press box and suites. In 1996 permanent lighting was installed after night games had been played since 1990 but with temporary lighting. In 1997 a new scoreboard and artificial turf were installed, which allowed the field hockey team to begin play at the stadium, which they also occupied through the 2004 season.
The east side bleachers were condemned and demolished in 2001 and the area remained open for the entire 2002 season. Prior to the 2003 season, a new section of bleacher seating was built as the student section which brought the seating capacity to 29,287.
Starting in 2007 a two-phase renovation of the stadium began. Phase one included the contruction of a large canopy over the press box, new entrance gates and a ticket office which were completed prior to the 2007 season opener. Phase two had the demolition of the south end zone seats and the former press box above the north end zone. It also included a new high definition scoreboard, concession area and a plaza in the south end zone area. The removal of about 5,000 seats in the south end zone reduced the stadium’s seating to 25,319.
The west side stands, referred to as the home stands, seat over 12,000 with both bleacher and chair back seating. The east stands, built to replace the original wooden bleachers, are the smallest section with bleacher seating for about 4.000 and are primarily the student section. The north end zone, which is the original grandstand of the old Memorial Stadium, is entirely bleacher seating. In the south end zone is a large plaza, concession area and the scoreboard.
Original plans were to have the old wooden stands removed by 1973 and replaced with permanent seating. It was to have 18 rows and eventually be expanded to duplicate the west stands, increasing capacity to 35,000. The final phase of the original plan was to add a second deck on both sides but none of this came to fruition for 31 years when the east side bleachers were condemned and demolished.
The first official game listed as a sell-out occurred on October 9, 2010 when 24,221 fans watched Kent State defeat arch-rival Akron 28-17 in the Battle for the Wagon Wheel. It ranks as the third largest crowd at Dix Stadium with the largest being their November 10, 1973 game against Miami with 27,363.
In 2013, the university began a $60 million “Building Champions” campaign to upgrade the facilities for all of Kent State’s athletic teams and also raise additional scholarship money.
The first project was an expansion of the Field House with new locker rooms for indoor track and field, women’s soccer, field hockey, and softball. The plans also include Dix Stadium with will expand the chair back seating in the west stands, upgrade suites, new building for coaches’ offices on the north side of the stadium, and improvements to the locker room and other player facilities including a new lounge. On the east side, two new covered seating areas for students will be built adjacent to the existing student seating.
South Alabama and Kent State will finish their 2-for-1 series on Saturday in Kent, Ohio as the series is tied 1-1. Kickoff scheduled for 1pm and the game can be seen on ESPN3.
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- Photo: csnbbs.com
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- Aerial view of Dix Stadium. | Photo: kent.sidearmsports.com
No Cowbells Please – Noisemakers Not Allowed At USA Home Games
C.J. Bennett reads the defense while head coach Joey Jones looks on from the sidelines in Starkville Mississippi on September 22, 2012. The Bulldogs would win the game 30-10.
In case you haven’t heard the news, it’s looks like the Jaguars game against Mississippi State on September 13 at Ladd-Peebles is going to be a sellout. But one of the things that Mississippi State fans are known for will not be allowed into the stadium as South Alabama officials have declared that no artificial noisemakers will be allowed at South Alabama home games this season. That includes the cowbells that Bulldog fans so covet ringing.
USA officials have already contacted their counterparts at MSU to inform them of the policy in hopes that the message will be received by the Bulldog faithful prior to their travels to Mobile for the game.
Despite there being a “ban” on artificial noisemakers already in place in the SEC, Bulldog fans can let their cowbell inhibitions go wild during designated periods in Starkville. When the Jaguars played in Starkville two years ago, the Jags kept the cowbells silenced early, but as the Bulldogs gained momentum the rang loud. I can attest that it is one of the more annoying things in college football too. Personally, I think if you’re crowd has to rely on a cowbell to make noise then you’re doing it wrong as all of the other teams are able to make plenty of noise without a cowbell to encourage their team and cause communication problems. But I digress.
USA Athletics Director Joel Erdmann does not anticipate any problems with the enforcement of artificial noisemaker policy as all bags are subject to search just like any other game. “If anyone entering the stadium is found to have an artificial noisemaker, they will have to leave it at the gate or return it to their car,” Erdmann elaborated. Furthermore, if an artificial noisemaker is used during the game it is possible it will be confiscated and/or the person using it could be escorted out of the stadium.
South Alabama and Mississippi State will kickoff at 3pm on Saturday, September 13th with radio coverage on 99.9FM locally and online through iHeartRadio. It can also be seen on ESPNews nationally.
TV And Radio Schedules Announced For Joey Jones Show
The University of South Alabama announced the schedules for the Joey Jones radio and television show for the 2014 season.
The Joey Jones TV Show will begin on Sunday at 6:30pm on UTV 44. Pat Greenwood, the Jaguar Sports Properties Director of Multi-Media will host the show along with Coach Jones. They will have post-game interviews and highlights with Jones and student-athletes and will feature members of the program.
The Joey Jones Radio Show will air on Monday’s at 6pm on WNTM 710AM starting on September 1 from Baumhower’s Wings Sports Grille. JSP Director of Broadcasting J.D. Byars will be the host along with Coach Jones. The hour long program will be available on the iHeartRadio app world wide.
Defense Plays Well In Last Practice Prior To Final Preseason Scrimmage
Head coach Joey Jones observes the Jaguars scrimmage on Saturday, August 15 2014 at St. Paul’s Episcopal School.
Wednesday’s practice lasted just over an hour-and-a-half in shells at the practice fields as their final week of camp dwindles down and they approach game week preparations.
Head coach Joey Jones was again pleased by the defense by saying that they are really coming together and playing with confidence. “They are bringing a lot of emotion to practice every day,” Jones said. “Offensively I think we executed some things pretty well, Brandon threw the ball really well today and our receivers were catching the ball. It was a good day.”
“As a coach you never feel like you’re completely ready, it’s a natural thing for a coach to go through because you want perfection and perfection is not possible,” Jones explained about how he feels about the team’s overall progress this month. “There are always things to worry about, but I know that our coaches have done a great job of preparing these guys to put them in the places they need to be. My philosophy is coaches get them ready for the game but when you get to the game players have to take over, so we’ll see how they perform next Saturday.”
With the Jaguars opening the season a week later than most other college football teams, Coach Jones talked about what it will be like for them this weekend. “I’ll probably watch a lot of football laying on the couch,” Jones explained. “I’m going to try and give everybody a day off on Saturday, even the coaches, because we’ve gone through a long, hard camp and we’ve already got our game plan in for Kent State. We’ll come in and work all day Sunday and be on our normal game week [schedule], but it will be nice to have one day with my wife and kids.”
Offensive player of the day went to tight end DeMarrion Buford-Hughes. “He’s a guy that has really been coming along and pushing for playing time at the tight end position,” offensive coordinator Robert Matthews explained. “He’s worked extremely hard this offseason and is starting to grasp the offense — the more he practices, the better he gets. He had some catches in drills today, and is a guy who is going to make that position deeper.”
Defensive player of the game went to senior cornerback Qudarius Ford. “It’s the same old story with ‘Q,’ he consistently does everything he is supposed to do every day,” defensive coordinator Travis Pearson explains. “He shows up consistently the same way he did in all 12 games he played last season. He’s a quiet leader, he does it on and off the field.”
The play of the day went to Jerome McClain for breaking through and sacking quarterback Brandon Bridge on third down in the red zone at the end of the team session. McClain contributed to a sack near midfield during the first part of the team session as well.
There was only one team session on Wednesday which focused on normal down-and-distance from around midfield and third down situations in the red zone.
Ford broke up a pass on the first play of the team period when he dove in front of a Jag receiver. Later, Bridge completed three third-down passes in the red zone. He found Tony Ray Parnell and Braedon Bowman both for first downs, then later he found Cameron Broadnax for a 14-yard touchdown.
After practice, the Jaguar offense was addressed by Chan Gailey, who formerly coached in Troy, Samford, Georgia Tech in college and professionally in Dallas and Buffalo. He worked with USA assistant coach Robby Brown at Georgia Tech. He also spent time with the offensive staff Tuesday afternoon and evening.
Thursday, the Jags will hold their third and final scrimmage prior to the beginning of their season. It will be a situational scrimmage on campus. The team will then have two days off before returning on Sunday to pick up with normal game-week operations.
Jags Practice Begins Preparation For First Opponent
Head coach Joey Jones speaks to his team after their first scrimmage of preseason camp at St. Paul’s Episcopal School on Saturday, August 15, 2014.
South Alabama hit the practice fields in full pads on Tuesday for a practice that lasted over two hours. During this practice, they began preparing for their first opponent Kent State on September 6.
Head coach Joey Jones was pleased with the defense as he commented that they continue to get better and know their assignments. Offensively he noted that they executed better than they did in Monday’s practice. But he thought the team was coming together well.
“It was our first day to work on our first opponent, so most of the practice was geared toward that,” Jones said after practice concerning how much practice time was focused on their first game. “But you always have to work on fundamentals, you’ve can’t ever forget that aspect of the game.”
Offensive player of the day went to Jereme Jones. “Jeremé has had every rep this camp,” offensive coordinator Robert Matthews explained. “He has not missed a practice. He comes in, prepares and really takes care of his body. He is really working hard and is in great shape, and that allows him to be productive on the field.”
Defensively the Player of the day went to the entire defensive unit. “These kids are starting to grow up, and there are some leaders starting to develop,” defensive coordinator Travis Pearson explained. “It showed today. I thought we came out a little slow. We had two or three guys take over and call the defense out, and practice immediately sped up. That’s really exciting for me to see, because I don’t play on Saturdays. I want them to embrace this defense and know that this is their defense, and I’m just along for the ride. I know they are excited to play and I’m excited to watch them play, but we still have to put that hay in the barn.”
Practice only had one team period which lasted about 10 minutes, but during that stretch, Davin Hawkins came away with the play of the day when he made a diving pass deflection on a pass that was intended for Jones.
Special teams focused on kickoff and punt coverage during their sessions. Kickoffs were early in the practice and punt coverage closed out practice. The only takeaway on the day went to Margo Reed who picked off a pass down the right sideline during the team period.
After 7-on-7 drills, the offense and defense worked on seperate fields against the scout team to begin their preparation for Kent State. That session lasted around 20 minutes.
Jaguars Return To Practice After Second Scrimmage; Beginning To Shape Depth Chart
USA practiced for nearly two hours on Monday in shells. Head coach Joey Jones noted that the defense played well and played with emotion. Conversely, the offense did not have a particularly good day.
“The offense didn’t execute very well,” Jones explained. “We didn’t have the attitude we needed to have, but that’s one of the few bad days we have had offensively. There’s always tomorrow, and we will see how they respond.”
Offensive player of the day was senior offensive lineman Drew Dearman. “Drew brings a lot of experience and consistency to the offensive line,” offensive coordinator Robert Matthews said. “He is a tough guy, and we know that we can count on him.”
Defensive player of the day went to junior defensive end/outside linebacker Jimmie Gipson III. Defensive coordinator Travis Pearson said that Gipson brings speed and power to the defense.
Play of the day went to defensive back Margo Reed who intercepted Matt Floyd with an over-the-shoulder catch in the corner of the end zone during 7-on-7 drills.
Another highlighted play was when Floyd connected with freshman tight end Jarrius Hackworth for a 30+ yard gain during team drills.
Phase one of season prep finished with the scrimmage on Saturday. Now the Jaguars coaching staff are going into phase two, which involves solidifying the starters and the back-up roles. Once those are determined, the majority of reps during practice will go to the first and second team players with occasional work going to those beyond the two’s.
While most of the starting positions have been determined after the second scrimmage, head coach Joey Jones said that there are still many back-up roles that are still up for grabs. Though coach Jones hopes to have everything determined by the end of the week. But equally important is to give the players who are working hard to earn a back-up role as much of an opportunity as possible to win those jobs.
Since the Jaguars do not play the first week of the season, their preseason camp began a week later than all of the other teams. But they have the same amount of time to make those depth chart decisions as the other teams.
Call it an advantage or not, most of college football will begin play this week with one of the earliest is Abilene Christian playing at Sun Belt Conference foe Georgia State in the Georgia Done on Wednesday. But this will give the Jaguars the chance to get a look at some of their upcoming opponents, including their first test, Kent State, who will be hosting Ohio University.
The coaches will have to go beyond the one’s and two’s since they start the season on the road. They will have to determine a 70-man travelling roster, which is about 20+/- players beyond the one’s and two’s including special teams.
Meanwhile, the players have already looked at film on the Golden Flashes and they will begin preparation for them on the field beginning Tuesday. By Sunday, the team will be in their normal game-week preparation schedule.
Coach Jones and his staff are pleased with the overall progress of the team so far and they feel good about the starting lineup. Their concern, which is a concern every season, is finding quality depth behind the starters. They need players who can step in and give the starters relief and maintain a high level of production and play-making ability. Experienced players go a long way towards that goal.
USA has 30 student-athletes in their senior class this season, which is the most so far in the Jags short time playing football. They have been around a few seasons and have achieved a comfort level with the program that they can help teach the younger players about how to handle practice and games.
The Jags will practice again on Tuesday with their first game of the season kicking off on Saturday, September 6 at 1pm in Kent, Ohio against Kent State.
Jags Make Progress In Second Preseason Scrimmage
Head coach Joey Jones observes the Jaguars scrimmage on Saturday, August 15 2014 at St. Paul’s Episcopal School.
The Jaguars held their second scrimmage of preseason camp on Saturday at Fairhope Municipal Stadium as they continue to prepare for the season opener on September 6 at Kent State.
After the scrimmage the previous Saturday, head coach Joey Jones said there were a lot of areas that needed improvement and he saw some of those improvements in the second scrimmage. Some of the focus of the second scrimmage after execution was substitutions and organization. And by what he saw on Saturday, he thought the team was getting close to being game ready in those categories.
“I think the thing we challenged them with yesterday (Friday) coming out here today was to be mentally ready and I think they were,” Jones said. “I told them when they were warming up I could tell that their minds were on the task at hand and they treated it like a game. You’ve got to be ready to play.”
They also devoted a lot of time to situational work such as two-minute drills, goal-line situations and special teams play. Several times situational work was interrupted to send out the field goal unit or the punt team in order to practice those moves in a near game-like simulation.
On offense, the team really focused on substitutions, especially rotating offensive lineman. Defensively the team played much more solid after allowing some big plays in the first scrimmage.
Quarterback Brandon Bridge went 15-of-21 for 177 yards and two touchdowns. Braedon Bowman caught one of Bridge’s touchdowns, a two yarder. The other touchdown went to Shavarez Smith for 20-yards. Hunter Vaughn went 2-of-5 for 47 yards and Matt Floyd went 1-of-7 for 8 yards.
Jay Jones was the top running back with three carries for 73 yards and two touchdowns, one of 48-yards and the other was 17-yards during red zone drills. Terrance Timmons carried the ball six times for 36 yards. Kendall Houston got four touches for 15 yards while Montavious Stewart carried seven times for 12 yards.
Smith narrowly led the wide receivers with two catches for 36 yards and a touchdown. Cameron Broadnax had two catches for 36 yards. Jereme Jones caught three passes for 32 yards. Marvin Shinn caught two for 31 yards and Claude Garrett also caught two passes for 25 yards.
Defensively Antonio Carter led the way with five stops. Tre Alford, Akeen Lewis, Jerome McClain, Jeremy Reaves and Ridge James all recorded a sack. Terrell Brigham picked off a pass. Alford T’Quan Robinson, Demarius Rancifer and Roman Buchanan all added three stops.
In special teams work, Aleem Sunanon went 5-of-6 in field goal tries with a long of 47. Grant McLaurin went a perfect 3-for-3 with a long of 50 yards. Freshman Corlis Waitman wow’ed those in attendance when he ended practice by making his one and only field goal attempt of practice from 55-yards out with room to spare.
Waitman had one punt for 37 yards and Brandon McKee punted once for 46 yards.
Now Jones and his staff will review film and decide on a depth chart and travel roster for the Jaguars first game. This decision will determine what players get the majority of repetitions in practice over the next two weeks leading up to game on September 6.
Jones said that they will begin working on Kent State on Tuesday. He also said that with a travel squad of 70 players, it’s up to the players to figure out a way to get on the travel team by either being a starter, a backup or a special teams player. Ultimately it’s real life but it does not make the decision any less difficult. The reality is that they will have to leave some good players at home because of the travel limitation. “You have to fight for what you get,” Jones said.