University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Morning Practice Completed, Eagles Take Weekend Off
8/22/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
Morning Practice Completed, Eagles Take Weekend Off
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - After working through an early morning practice, the Southern Miss football team will get a well-deserved break.
The Golden Eagles practiced from 5:30 to 7 a.m., and will not get back to the field until Monday.
"It was good for a 5:30 practice," Southern Miss Head Coach Jeff Bower said of the team's effort. "I thought they looked better than the coaches did."
Bower and company will put the finishing touches on a game plan this weekend, ready to begin game-week preparations on Monday.
"We will settle in on a game plan and work that next week," Bower said. "But, we have to continue to improve. We are going to play a good football team in the first game, and we have to make some improvements and make some decisions on some positions."
Some of the positions that are still up for grabs include kickers, punters and snappers. Bower expects to have those decisions made by the middle of the week.
Another battle that has been pretty close this season is the one for the quarterback slot. Currently, redshirt-junior Micky D'Angelo sits on top, but redshirt-sophomore Dustin Almond is not far behind.
"(Micky's) No. 1, but it's still pretty close," Bower said. "Dustin has performed well, but he just needs to be mentally more consistent. We are going to play Micky and go with the flow and see what happens. If we play two (quarterbacks), we play two. But right now, Micky is no doubt our No. 1."
Bower also has been pleased with the work of the offense through the preseason, which is adjusting to a new scheme under offensive coordinator Rip Scherer.
"We have to keep coming out every day and working," Bower said. "As long as we do that, we will be fine. I think our players have a good grasp of what we are doing, we just have to work more at it."
