University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Perfect Fall Afternoon is Backdrop for Wednesday Football Practice
10/15/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
The Golden Eagles, donned in shoulder pads and shorts, went through a two and a half hour session as the squad continues to get ready for Conference USA foe, North Texas, in Denton on Saturday.
One of the things the team has worked on this week is trying to make the Mean Green one dimensional on offense.
"The bottom line is no matter what you are doing, we want to make them one dimensional," said second-year Southern Miss coach Todd Monken. "We have to stop them from running the football...When you have inconsistency at quarterback, the last thing you want to do is allow them to run it. That takes the pressure off of him to make plays. The whole idea this week is how do we start fast, stop them from running it, and put the pressure on inexperienced quarterbacks to try to make plays. That is really what we have to do."
The Golden Eagles (2-4 overall, 0-2 Conference USA) enjoyed their first of two open dates last week and it was incredibly important for Monken that his team not waste those practice opportunities. The practice also help younger players advance in their development as the season progresses.
"We can't waste practice opportunities," said Monken. "There are a lot of young guys who did advance and continue to get better (during the off week). Individually, there are still some young guys who have a way to go. Every day they continue to get better with reps and competitive reps."
The Golden Eagles will move their Thursday practice up from the afternoon to late morning as the school is in the midst of its fall break, before traveling to Texas on Friday.
Game time is set for 6 p.m., at Apogee Stadium on the NT campus and can be seen on the American Sports Network, as well as be heard on one of the affiliates of the Southern Miss IMG Sports Network.
