Golden Eagles Geared Up For Friday' Bowl Game
12/25/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Golden Eagles Geared Up For Friday?s Bowl Game
Houston, Texas ? The Southern Miss football team practiced for 90 minutes outside today at The University of Houston?s Practice Facility in preparation for Friday?s Houston Bowl against Oklahoma State at Reliant Stadium at Noon, televised by ESPN.
The players worked hard and showed a lot of emotion in their preparation as today?s practice marked the final full practice of the season. The team will go through a short walk-through on Thursday and have meetings in order to get mentally prepared for the game.
?The team worked hard and prepared hard,? Southern Miss Head Football Coach Jeff Bower said. ?We did a lot more contact than we have in other years, getting ready for this bowl game as compared to the other bowls, and I believe the players responded well. We were off Monday and came back and had a physical practice on Tuesday. We geared it back today, and I think it has been good.?
Micky was limited once again in practice today as he seemed to have problems throwing at times and his status for Friday will be a game-time decision by the coaching staff.
?He (Micky) had a hard time putting any velocity on his passes so we held him out the last half of practice,? Southern Miss Head Football Coach Jeff Bower said. ?We didn?t let him do any throwing. We are just hoping by game time that he will be ready to go. Maybe the extra day will make a difference but he was favoring it. We?ll have to check him out in pregame and see how well he is throwing it and make the decision from there.?
Derrick Nix joined the team last night and was at practice today. The team seemed to respond well and practice hard as his presence seemed to inspire the team.
?He?s (Derrick) an inspiration.? Bower said. ?When you understand what he has been through and how well he played considering what he was playing with this year, we all have a lot of respect for that and for him doing what he?s done. He?s one of our team captains and being on the sideline will be good not only for the backs but the entire team. They enjoy having him on the sideline.?
The team will be together for a Christmas dinner tonight at the hotel and enjoy some light time with their teammates and family members.
?We?ll have some fun and give out some gifts tonight for the players,? Bower said. ?We have a video of some the players imitating some of the coaches, so we are going to have some fun.?
Nix was asked about joining the team in Houston and what it meant to him to be here with his teammates at the bowl.
?It was something I felt I needed at this time, just being around them.? Nix said ?I?m around these guys 11 months out of the year, and it was just good to come back and see them all.?
He also commented on how tough it has been over the past couple of weeks, dealing with the kidney ailment once again and the unknown.
?The toughest part was I guess, dealing with the unknown.? Nix said. ?But after they told me what has to happen and what I have to do, I?m the type of person that says, hey, let?s roll with it and let?s do it.?
When talking about his reactions to the news, he said. ?It?s just kind of a mixed feeling. I don?t think it?s hit me yet that I?m not playing football anymore. I think next fall, when everyone else is getting ready, and I?m sitting around doing something else, it will kind of hit me. But in another way, I was kind of relieved, you know, because again I can try to find some sort of solution to make me feel better.?