Golden Eagles Begin Sole Focus on Washington Friday
12/18/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - With just eight days away from its first bowl game in four seasons, the Southern Miss football team began setting its sights solely on its Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl opponent next Saturday, Washington, Friday afternoon during practice at the Joe P. Park Practice Facility.
Despite some cooler temperatures, that did not phase the Golden Eagles, who practiced in shoulder pads and shorts for 2 hours, 15 minutes.
Leading up to the game, much of the talk prior to the game has been about Washington's strong defense. Third-year Southern Miss coach Todd Monken, though, stressed Friday that the Huskies, despite being a little young with freshmen at quarterback and as well as their top running back, having gotten steadily better on offense as the year progressed.
"They have just gotten better (as the season has moved along)," said Monken. "Their offensive line has gotten better, doing a better job of protecting and also running the football. They have good skill (people) around them. Whenever you have a freshman quarterback, it just takes a while to gel and they have just gotten better and better behind him. You can see that (from their tapes) later in the year."
Husky quarterback Jake Browning collected 2,671 yards passing during the regular season with 16 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions, who fellow frosh, running back Myles Gaskin, tallied 1,121 yards on 201 carries with 10 touchdowns in pacing the Washington attack.
For Monken, the Huskies offense is similar to that of C-USA foe, WKU.
"They are a lot like Western Kentucky," said Monken. "This is in terms of shifts, motions, runs, play action, taking shots down the field, formations and trick plays. It is very similar to (what WKU runs)."
Monken also said that the Huskies, under second-year coach Chris Petersen who faced the Golden Eagles four times when he was the head coach at Boise State, also have the same characteristics as his old team.
"It is a lot of the same coaches, defensively and offensively," said Monken. "I wouldn't say everything is the same, but it is the same philosophy."
The Golden Eagles look to enjoy two more practices in Hattiesburg, on Saturday and Sunday, before heading to Dallas Monday morning for bowl week.
The Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl takes place Saturday, Dec. 26, at 1:20 p.m. (CT), at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Tickets for the game can be purchased online at SouthernMissTickets.com, over the phone at 1-800-844-TICK (8425) or in person at the Pat Ferlise Ticket Office weekdays from 8 a.m., until 5 p.m.