University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Southern Miss Football Holds First Spring Practice
3/19/2019 8:11:00 PM | Football
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The Southern Miss football team began its quest to the 2019 season on Tuesday afternoon with the first official spring practice. The Golden Eagles took the field under sunny skies and a brisk breeze.Â
Southern Miss head coach Jay Hopson enters his fourth season guiding the Golden Eagles after finishing 2018 with a 6-5 record. New Southern Miss offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner, along with several other coaches, took the field for the first time wearing the black and gold.Â
The Golden Eagles will host their annual spring game at The Rock on April 13.They will host Alcorn State on August 31 to open the 2019 season. Southern Miss will then hit the road for games at Mississippi State, Troy and Alabama.Â
Quotable from Jay Hopson
On the first dayÂ
"I thought we had great effort and our offense played fast. It's the first day of spring practice and there's things you have to create, but our intensity was pretty darn good. I love the intensity and our guys were really flying around, so we have to continue that work ethic. I like the tough edge I'm seeing."Â
On Coach Buster FaulknerÂ
"I thought we had a good day today offensively. It's still the first day of spring and there's a lot of work to do, but I really felt like the guys were playing low and playing fast. I think every position on the board is open. That's one thing we talked about yesterday -- nobody has a job, it's just coming in and competing. We have some talented young guys fighting for jobs and they're in the mix. It's going to be fun to watch the competition offensively and it's going to be fun defensively. We want to see 11 guys that are playing hard and playing together."
On Offensive Line
"It's good to see those bodies out there. I think Ryan [Stanchek] is doing a good job right there. They're playing with good levels and are coming off the ball fast. The bottomline is that I was pleased with their intensity today. We're going to find the best five. There's competition at every position upfront. It's not just at the o-line spots, there's competition throughout the field. Again, we're going to find the best five."
