Jaguars Prepare For Saturday Scrimmage
The Jaguar football team held their final workout prior to its second scrimmage of preseason camp as they will be participating in off the field team building exercises on Friday.
Practice opened with individual and positional drills. This was followed by kickoff coverage for the early special teams work. Next, the Jags returned to positional drills before the offense came together to work as a team prior to a breather for the players.
After the break, they worked on 7-on-7 drills prior to group work with the offense and defense working against each other for over half-an-hour. They ended practice with special teams work on punts and punt returns.
The Jags go into the season with their largest and deepest offensive line unit ever in the teams short history. Shaun Artz, Drew Dearman, Chris May and Ucambre Williams are all returning letterwinners with Matt Calcagnini who also saw some action during the 2012 campaign. Melvin Meggs will miss the 2013 season due to injury, but just a year ago that news could have been devastating.
Including the loss of Meggs, the Jaguar offense will be without stallwart starter Trey Clark who started every single game for his four seasons at South Alabama at center. Clark graduated last year and now Coach Joey Jones and coach Robert Matthews will have to fill that position with another player.
Last season, Ucambre Williams was injured but by then they had developed some depth and Chris May was able to step in and fill his shoes. May was even selected to the Sun Belt Conference All-Freshman Team by beat writers.
Daniel Aust, Steven Foster, Clay Machen and Joseph Scelfo will all look to get playing time this season as they all sat out redshirting. Each of them were ranked with multiple stars by recruiting services across the nation.
Along with experience and depth, they also bring size with them. Among the linemen mentioned, Daniel Aust is the lightest weighing 280-pounds. May, Calcagnini, Scelfo, Shane Doty and Williams all weigh in at 290 with Dearman and Machen both weighing 310 with Darius McKeller topping the scales at 325.
While sheer size is not the only requirement for the offensive line. With more athletic defensive linemen and linebackers playing the game, the Jags are looking for leaner, quicker big guys for the offensive line.
With the offensive line solidifying, they only need to continue to improve their play and stay healthy for the season. Matthews’ spread attack will require them to move and move quickly. The coaches want to run the offense at a higher tempo than they did last season. In less than two weeks we will get to see if they are able to do just that.
The scrimmage will be held at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on Saturday from 9-11am and it is open to the public.
Jags Return To Practice After Day Off
Head Coach Joey Jones observes the Jags first scrimmage of preseason camp on Saturday, August 10, 2013.
The University of South Alabama is facing a key week of practice. They are over a week into fall camp, players are tired, sore and banged up from returning to hitting after a few months off. But this is where many games are won and lost, they have to fight through it to keep sharpening their skills and mastery of the playbook as the season is rapidly approaching.
The Jags hit the practice field and began with individual and position drills. Then the offensive unit came together to work on run plays while the defense worked on pass pursuit.
Later in the practice the offensive and defensive units came together to work on inside running plays and 7-on-7 skeleton passing drills. They then worked on full-team drills with third-down situations to begin that portion of practice.
In the team portion that spanning around 40 minutes, the offense ran nearly 75 plays.
The coaching staff reviewed the video from Saturday’s scrimmage and had defined goals to work on to correct things they saw in the scrimmage.
During the scrimmage on Saturday, the center position had a few mishaps with snaps going too high or ever over Brandon Bridge’s head. While head coach Joey Jones told AL.com that they have not settled on a definite starter, they definitely want to get one solidified but they also want to develop some depth as well.
Joseph Scelfo is a freshman and doing well at center, while Shaun Artz is moving back to guard and could be third in line for center.
The morning session lasted about an hour-and-a-half as they were coming back out for two-a-day practice. They were going to place emphasis on special teams in the afternoon practice period.
Defense Stands Out In First Scrimmage
Terrance Timmons running the ball during the Jaguars first preseason scrimmage of 2013.
The University of South Alabama held their first scrimmage of preseason camp Saturday morning at the Jaguar Practice Facility on campus. The defense was the clear winner after it was all said and done.
The most attention this spring is being focused on the quarterback position with returning starter Ross Metheny and Alcorn State tranfer Brandon Bridge both vying for the starting position. Trey Fetner showed some enthusiasm and character by moving the Jaguar offense down the field for the first score of the scrimmage.
Jones could not say who stood out more in the scrimmage, but he acknowledged that both are good quarterbacks and that the offensive line needs work to give them both time to throw the ball.
Jones pointed to Bridge’s athletic ability to pull down the ball and run with it, while also praising Metheny’s smarts and knowledge of the offense. The most encouraging remark was that he was comformtable with whomever is in the game taking snaps.
In the scrimmage, Bridge threw for 67 yards and also broke a 27 yard run. Metheny passed for 29 yards in the scrimmage. Fetner completed 7-of-10 attempts for 51 yards while rushing for another 19 yards. Trey was used as a short yardage and goal-line situations.
Some have asked if Jones might use the two-quarterback system again, similar to last season. However Jones would only say, “that all remains to be seen.”
While the starting job is between Metheny and Bridge with Fetner the solid third, redshirt freshman Grant Powell and true freshman Brett Sheehan are also on the roster and trying to earn playing time as well.
C.J. Bennett transferred to Murray State after last season and Kolt Peavey tranferred to Rhode Island recently.
Beyond the quarterback race, Alex Page and Maleki Harris led the defense with six tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss by Page. Desmond LaVelle was credited with five tackles. Antonio Carter, Clifton Crews, E.J. May and Pat Moore all were credited with four tackles each. Steffon Fuller had the only takeaway in the game with an interception late in the scrimmage on a deflected pass.
Aleem Sunanon had a rough day with three field goal attempts blocked. Romelle Jones, Pat Moore and Byron Sneed were all credited with blocks. They also collectively broke up six passes and had two quarterback hurries.
Zac Henry connected on field goals of 28 and 30 as well as a few extra points. Garber continues to be fairly reliable as the punter, but he may have some competition for the first time during his career at USA.
The Jaguar offense ran 97 plays and gained 405 yard total. They gained 225 yards rushing and 180 yards passing. Terrance Timmons led the running backs with 66 yards on five carries, most of it on a 53 yard touchdown run to cap off a three play, 65 yard possession.
Jay Jones scored a touchdown from two yards out for the running back corps. Kendall Houston scored on a three yard run, he would end the scrimmage with 38 yards on 10 attempts. Julien Valentin would add eight carries for 35 yards. Powell would run for a 13 yard touchdown.
Jereme Jones, T.J. Glover and Kyle Sappington all caught three passes to lead the Jags receiving corps. Jones would gain 26 yards, Glover would gain 23 and Sappington would gain 21. Danny Woodson would haul in the longest catch of the day with a 29 yard reception. Four other Jaguars would haul in multiple passes.
Metheny indicated that the offense had things to fix. They had players banged up which hurt their pass protection. Metheny said this next week will be big for the team.
Coach Jones told AL.com that they were rotating guys in because they were banged up. But that they have to keep working to solidify their starting five offensive linemen, get them back to full speed and get ready for the season. He also mentioned that the reason for the scrimmage was to get a look at a lot of players.
The offense did run up-tempo a few times and were much more organized and did well.
The Jags first game is less than three weeks away so they will solidify the starting lineup over the next week before reserving the majority of the reps for the first and second teams.
Jags Open Second Week Of Practice
Offensive Coordinator Robert Matthews calling plays during a 2012 spring scrimmage.
The Jaguar football hit the practice field to begin their second week of practice with a two-and-a-half session on a hot and muggy afternoon.
They worked on individual position skills before changing it up to work on kickoff returns prior to coming together for group work. The defense worked on tackling while the offense worked on inside run plays and skeleton passing drills.
Both sides of the ball came together for a team period that lasted around 25 minutes.
First year defensive coordinator Kevin Sherrer is pleased with the progress made as they begin their second week of practice. “The guys have responded really well. There is a lot of retention from the spring from the older guys. The younger guys are obviously a little behind, but they have caught on really quick as we have thrown a lot at them. But I have seen a lot of guys step up. They are starting to understand the way we want them to practice, the tempo that we want them to practice at. But it is really encouraging to see them start to mold and actually know what is going on now whereas in the spring they were trying to learn everything.”
Second year offensive coordinator Robert Matthews is also pleased with the progress made by his squad as well as position battles. “I see guys battling for positions and that’s good. We stress competition at all positions, and that is going on. This was our eighth practice and we obviously have to sort some things out on the depth chart, but it has been a good process so far.”
One of the most anticipated and most watched position battles is the one for the starting quarterback position. Returning starter Ross Metheny and transfer Brandon Bridge are battling it out. Additionally, there are several new running backs looking to get playing time while the offensive line has places to shore up over the next couple of weeks.
Coach Matthews welcomes the competition. “Anytime you have more players to choose from it’s better because you want to make competition. Anytime you have more guys pushing each other, that’s what needs to happen.”
Coach Sherrer mentioned the defensive front and the secondary as locations where newcomers could make a presence. “We’ve got a couple of guys who are junior college transfers who have a chance to play a lot and we’ve got a high school defensive lineman to come in and do well. In the secondary Steffon and Steven Fuller have done a really, really good job. Montel Garner was here in the spring but he was injured and he’s out there, and Anthony Harris also. We’ve got a lot of new faces out there and we look a lot different.”
The Jags will practice on Friday before holding their first scrimmage on Saturday.
Sherrer is looking forward to seeing the players fight through because they are going to get tired and winded, but how they respond to those factors is what he wants to see. How will the respond if the offense gets a big play. Will they be able to come back and continue to execute their assignments?
Offensively, Matthews has one word as to what he wants to see in Saturday’s scrimmage: Execution. He wants to see the offense line up and play fast. He wants to see the execution and see that they players know what to do and make things happen. Speed was an issue last year as the players were continuing to learn the system and they could not go at the speed that the coaching staff wanted.
Two running backs suffered injuries recently, both true freshmen. Xavier Johnson hit his head on the artificial surface and was transported to a local hospital after practice for further examination. The training staff was concerned about possible head or neck injuries and wanted to be cautious.
Kaleb Blanchard had a laceration to his right leg recently and will be held out of practice until it heals.
New Video Board And Turf At Ladd-Peebles Stadium For 2013 Season
Ladd-Peebles Stadium for the 2011 Senior Bowl. Their rented video replay board is visible in the corner of the endzone. A similar setup is expected for the 2013 South Alabama football season. | Photo credit AL.com John David Mercer
The University of South Alabama Director of Athletics Dr. Joel Erdmann confirmed that Ladd-Peebles Stadium will have a video replay board for the 2013 season. The University will be renting it for the season and it will be set up in the Northeast corner similar to the setup for the GoDaddy.com Bowl.
The Jags will play half of their schedule at Ladd-Peebles this season which totals six games. They will open the season when they host Southern Utah on Thursday, August 29.
Erdmann told AL.com that the absence of a video replay board is abnormal for FBS schools and the University thought it was best to invest in renting one to enhance the fan experience at games.
Both the GoDaddy.com Bowl and the Senior Bowl both make use of a portable videoboard. But something unique for this situation is that both of those bowl games are televised. But since some of the Jaguars games will not be broadcast, they will be self-producing everything seen on the screen. Erdmann said that they will have four or five HD cameras for each game.
He continued by explaining that they will be providing HD camera systems, replay directors and graphic packages. Some of the Jaguars games will be broadcast or could be broadcast on CSS, ESPN3 or ESPNU and in those cases they will try to take the feed of that broadcast, if allowed, and display that feel on the videoboard.
According to Erdmann, the cost per game to produce the content and operate the cameras will be approximately $24,000 per game. An intern with the University has created all of the graphics, player headshots, lead-ins, replay and video content that will be used. We just have to wait three weeks before we can see it on the screen.
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.
Day One Of Practice In The Books
The first day of practice for the South Alabama football team is in the books as they begin their four week march towards their first game against Southern Utah on August 29.
A thunderstorm pushed through prior to the beginning of practice to cool it off for the players first day on the practice fields. Most notably about the practice is that they came out ready to play mentally and physically. Quarterbacks and receivers appeared to be on the same page.
Ross Metheny spoke to AL.com saying, “Everyone was kind of itching to get back out there after all the workouts we had over the summer and the 7-on-7 sessions and that sort of thing. We were eager to get coached. You can only do so much when you are coaching yourselves and policing yourselves and that kind of thing. I thought today we brought a lot of good energy. The challenge is going to be keeping that energy level where it was the rest of camp and not taper off. I think we’ll do a good job of that.”
“I think offensively we played with good tempo today and there’s a lot of excitement,” he continued. “Some guys had some mental errors and things like that but we’ll go back and watch the film tomorrow and fix it and learn from it and get better and get back after it again tomorrow.”
Head coach Joey Jones said that the offensive execution was very good for a first day of practice. He noted that normally early practices are marked with lots of dropped balls and fumbles. However, Jones noted that until they don their full pads it really doesn’t mean that much. Though the players are ready to put on their full compliment of padding to being proving themselves and hit someone.
Transfer Danny Woodson Jr. is participating with the team in preseason drills while they wait on word from the NCAA on their petition for early eligibility. He was among a handful of players that Coach Jones mentioned as standouts.
Possibly the best early word is that Coach Jones believes that there is more leadership this season from players who have been around the program for years now and know what they are in for this season. The struggles they went through last season is still fresh on their minds and will work hard to better themselves.
The Jags will hit the practice fields on Friday and Saturday at 6:30pm, however they are closed to the public.
Jags Open Preseason Football Camp Today
Head Coach Joey Jones speaks to his team after the conclusion of the Jaguars first practice of 2012 preseason camp.
South Alabama football student-athletes reported on Wednesday and will begin preseason camp this evening at the South Alabama practice facility on campus exactly four week prior to the kickoff of the 2013 season.
A first for the program this season is that they will be full FBS members and will be eligible for a conference championship and a bowl berth.
Another first in the programs’ short history is that the practices are now closed to the public and will only be open to select media for 30 minutes.
The competition will go to a new level this preseason as they have graduated their first “full” senior class and the roster has a new look to it. In previous seasons there was some competition for starting jobs, but as their recruiting continues to ramp up and they continue to bring is great talent then the competition continues to ramp up as well.
Last year the Jags finally started to see some dept at certain position, but this season Coach Jones sees guys who offer quality depth at each position while pressing the starters to work hard to keep their job.
Currently the only Jaguar that is known to be out as practice begins this evening is Melvin Meggs. Meggs, a three year starter at left tackle, will miss the entire season with a torn ACL sufferred in summer workouts.
Like previous fall practices, Coach Jones will spend the first two weeks of practice figuring out who will be playing in the first game by establishing their depth chart. The coaches want to spend those first 14 days figuring out roles so the next 14 days will be spent getting the most reps to those who will be seeing the most time on the field.
They will also be determining the final location for a few players. They have some that could play two or three positions so they will be evaluating them to see if they will play safety, linebacker or defensive end. The earlier they can get those decisions made, the more likely they can help the team in the first game.
As they take the field, 105 Jaguars will be suiting up. That number is the most allowed by the NCAA. Once classes begin, then 130 players will be able to take part in practices.
There are a few positions battles that will draw extra scruitny this preseason.
Quarterback, the most asked about and watched position on the field, will be a good battle this preseason. Ross Metheny is the returning starter from last season as C.J. Bennett has transferred, the only other Jaguar quarterback to start last season. But Metheny will be challenged by Brandon Bridge. Bridge is a tall, fast quarterback with a huge arm. He could become a big playmaker for the Jaguars, especially if his accuracy has improved. Bridge’s speed and arm could really make coach Matthews’ spread offense rack up yards and, more importantly, put points on the scoreboard.
Going hand-in-hand with quarterback is the offensive pace that coach Jones and coach Matthews want to play at. Last season they never really ramped the speed up to what they wanted to play at, but after a year of experience, the coaches will expect the players to pick up the tempo. They want to be able to take advantage of mismatches, confusion and tempo. But this will take every offensive player being on the same page and knowing their roles. It will take the sideline staff getting the plays into the team as quickly as possible and the quarterback executing. But the receivers must catch passes thrown their way as well. Last season there were several drops at key moments.
Kicking will see a new face as Michel Chapuseaux has graduated. Two redshirt freshmen will be vying for the positon in Aleem Sunanon and Logan Gunn. But freshman Brandon McKee could challenge as well. Punter Scott Garber returns for his fifth season but may be challenged by Sunanon and McKee as well. McKee averaged over 45 yards per punt as a senior in high school.
The defensive secondary will be something to watch as well. They allowed several big plays last season that hurt the Jags but in the offseason they recruited in adding depth adn talent to that area. Tyrell Pearson, Charles Watson adn Darrius Morrow all return as well as Qudarius Ford will return from his knee injury last season. They will be joined by Steffon Fuller, Anthony Harris and Montell Garner as well as others. This is probably the one area the defense needs to improve the most at.
The defensive front wants to get more pressure on the quarterback this season. They want more quarterback pressures, more sacks and more tackles for loss. The Jags may have the most returning depth at defensive line with Alex Page, Romelle Jones, Jesse Kelley, Montavious Williams and Randon Carnathan and they have all shown that they can get pressure on quarterbacks in previous seasons.
Who will step up and fill the large shoes left by Jake Johnson? Enrique Williams and Bryson James return and will be joined by Desmond LaVelle and redshirt freshmen Josh Carroll and Michael Adcock. Clifton Crews returns at outside linebacker with Maleki Harris and David Hawkins listed at outside linebackers and safeties. As the Jags will be facing other spread no-huddle offenses, these guys will be key to be able to fill either of those roles.
In 28 days we will have a much better idea of what to expect out of the 2013 Jaguars. That seems like a long time from now, but if you ask the coaches that seems like tomorrow.
Jags Games Against Troy, ULM Now Have Kickoff Times
The Sun Belt Network has added some conference games to it’s lineup, including games involving the Jags.
The Jaguars game at Troy’s Veterans Memorial Stadium on October 5 is set for a noon kickoff on the Sun Belt Network. They also added the Jags home game against Louisiana-Monroe on November 23 and set a 6:30pm kickoff.
Kickoff times for three other games have already been announced. The Jags season opener against Southern Utah is set for 6:30pm on August 29, Jags and Tulane will kick off at 2:30pm in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans on September 7 and the Jaguars conference opener against Western Kentucky at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on September 14 is set to kickoff at 6:30pm as well.
Jags Apply For Immediate Eligibilty Waiver For Transfer Danny Woodson Jr.
Danny Woodson Jr. catching a pass in practice in preparation for the Crimson Tide’s National Championship game. Photo credit: C. W. Griffin | Miami Herald
Head coach Joey Jones and the South Alabama football staff is seeking early eligibility for University of Alabama transfer Danny Woodson Jr. Currently, Daniel McCarthy, assistant director of athletics for compliance and student services at South Alabama, told AL.com that they have not received any information about their request on his eligibility status for this season.
Woodson is a former standout at LeFlore High School and transferred to South Alabama recently. USA, on his behalf, made a request to the NCAA for immediate eligibility for him. The NCAA allows schools to apply for a waiver of the rule that forces a player who transfers from one FBS school to another to sit out a season before being eligibile to play for that school. USA did not disclose the circumstances under which the application was made for Woodson, but apparently the Jaguar program believes that Woodson’s reason for transfer has just cause to waive the rule.
There is no timetable for a decision to the rendered by the NCAA, but the program hopes to get word prior to the Jaguars opening day of preseason camp on August 1. The NCAA could also require additional information about the waiver request, which would delay the decision further.