University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Golden Eagles' First Two-a-Day Practice In The Books
8/14/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Golden Eagles' First Two-a-Day Practice In The Books HATTIESBURG, Miss.
The team will follow the 2-1-2 practice rules implemented by the NCAA last season, until classes begin Aug. 23. Saturday?s practices saw the Golden Eagles do some light hitting and scrimmaging, and each individual unit worked separate from each other.
Head Football Coach Jeff Bower continues to be pleased with what he sees from the Golden Eagles, but says the team still has plenty of progress to make.
"We?ve still got a long way to go," Bower said. "We?re still installing a lot of our offense and defense, and working on the kicking game. We?re also trying to find out more about our newcomers.
"But, I really feel good," Bower continued. "I think we?ve worked hard. We?re getting ourselves ready to go."
Bower said one area of concern in the early practices has been taking care of the football.
"I saw the ball on the ground a little bit too much, and we?re going to have to keep harping on that," Bower said. "We?ve got to take care of the football, but I think the defense did a good job of stripping the ball and forcing turnovers."
In the afternoon practice, the team went through a controlled scrimmage that featured more than 50 plays and a goal-line period. The offense scored two touchdowns in the session, one on a Dustin Almond-to-DaRon Lawrence 21-yard pass and the other when Jeremy Parquet recovered a fumble in the end zone.
Offensively, four of the team's running backs gained more than 25 yards, led by Larry Thomas' 40 yards on five carries. Sherron Moore added 39 yards on six carries, including a 33-yard rush, while Cody Hull and C.J. Barrows added 31 and 28 yards, respectively.
Almond paced all quarterbacks with 65 yards and a 21-yard touchdown pass on 3-of-5 passing, while Damion Carter, Travis Clark and Mitch Craft each added one completion, combining for 37 yards. Lawrence led all receivers with three catches for 65 yards, while Pedi Causey chipped in with one catch for 18. Ivory Bradshaw and Thomas Jackson each added a reception, gaining 13 and six yards, respectively.
On defense, Michael Boley came up with four tackles and a half-sack, while Kenneth Boley and Eric Elijah each had three tackles.
Darren McCaleb was 2-of-2 in extra point tries, while Britt Barefoot missed a 41-yard field goal attempt.
Bower was pleased with the effort in the afternoon scrimmage, but maintains that there is still some work to do.
"We saw some good things out there, but we still have to evaluate the tape," Bower said. "I do know that we have to be more physical."
After attending the Hattiesburg Fanfare in the Payne Center Saturday night, the team will return to the practice field Sunday afternoon.
Southern Miss opens its season, Sept. 11, at Nebraska, in an 11 a.m., nationally televised game on ABC, before opening its home schedule, Sept. 16, against California in a 6:30 p.m., ESPN game.
