University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Golden Eagle Football Spring Work Starts Thursday
3/19/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Golden Eagle Football Spring Work Starts Thursday
HATTIESBURG, Miss. ? Coming off a fourth Conference USA championship, a10th-straight winning season and a sixth bowl invitation in seven seasons, Southern Miss opens 2004 spring football workouts Thursday, March 25, at 3:30 p.m., with the first of 15 NCAA-allowed practices.
"I'm looking forward to getting spring practice started," Southern Miss Head Coach Jeff Bower, the 2003 Conference USA Coach of the Year said. "This always is an important time of the year because it gives us an opportunity to work on fundamentals and do a lot of teaching. It also gives us a good look at all the players from a personnel standpoint and see how the players we redshirted have progressed and where they fit into the overall scheme.
"Our biggest concerns during the spring are to replace the seven defensive starters we lost from a personnel standpoint, get people plugged into those spots and to build depth on that side of the ball. Offensively, we made a lot of improvement last season but we have to be more consistent. The bowl game set us back some, but we have to work hard, improve even more and keep getting better, especially in our running game."
Head Coach Jeff Bower?s squad is scheduled to work three times next week and then four times each week for the following two weeks and then four times during the April 12-17 week, including the April 17, Black & Gold Spring Game that will count as the 15th workout.
Tentative times set for spring workouts include Tuesday, Thursday and Friday sessions starting at 3:30 p.m., and Saturday?s at 1:30 p.m. The times are subject to change.
Bower and his staff will greet nine offensive starters, four defensive starters and all four starters on special teams. Fifty-two lettermen return from last year?s 9-4 Conference USA Championship season.
Key returning players include All-American Michael Boley (linebacker), All-Conference USA performers John Eubanks (kickoff returner), Jeremy Parquet (offensive line), Eric Scott (defensive line), Chris White (offensive line) and Marvin Young (wide receiver/punt returner), Freshman All-American Darren McCaleb (kicker) and C-USA all-freshman honorees Greg Casnave (defensive line) and Travis Cooley (offensive line).
Since last season, the coaching staff has undergone a few changes. Former tight ends coach Jay Johnson is now coaching the running backs, defensive graduate assistant Derrick Nix is now the tight ends coach and newcomer Ron McCrone, a coaching veteran of many years, becomes the secondary coach.
Of the 15 spring practice days, the NCAA mandates three with no equipment, other than helmets. Twelve of the 15 days may involve contact, but only eight can involve tackling and no more than three can be full contact scrimmaging.
The complete spring practice schedule follows:
March 25 (Thu.), 26 (Fri.), 27 (Sat.), 30 (Tue.)
April 1 (Thu.), 2 (Fri.), 3 (Sat.), 6 (Tue.), 8 (Thu.), 9 (Fri.), 10 (Sat.), 13 (Sun.), 15 (Thu.), 16 (Fri.)
Spring Game - April 17 (Sat.), 1 p.m. - M. M. Roberts Stadium
