University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Photo by: Joe Harper/bgnphoto.com
Coach Will Hall Media Availability – LendingTree Bowl Edition
12/6/2022 12:32:00 PM | Football
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Southern Miss head football coach Will Hall met with members of the media Tuesday morning following practice to discuss the team's LendingTree Bowl contest against Rice.
The Golden Eagles first postseason game since the 2019 season takes place Saturday, Dec. 17, at 4:45 p.m. CT at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala. The game can be seen on ESPN as well as heard on an affiliate of the Southern Miss Sports Network by Learfield.
Here is some of what Hall said to the media on Tuesday:
Opening Statement…
"Beautiful weather today, thank the Good Lord for that. Had a Wednesday-type practice getting ready for Rice, a really good opponent. They've played a lot of really close games and do a great job of controlling the clock and not giving up big plays defensively, really trying to slow the game down. They play extremely hard and physical. We played a hard-fought game against them last year and they got us. I have great respect with how they've built their program back to respectability. We're in the middle of recruiting right now and preparing for a bowl game, which is great and something this program has got to get back to getting used to. We're going to do that every year from here on out. We're excited to be in the bowl season getting our program back where its supposed to be. We've got to continue to prepare the right way where we can put our best foot forward and try and win a bowl game—something that's not happened here in a long, long time."
On Challenges of Recruiting During Bowl Preparations…
"You don't sleep a whole lot. Besides that, it's our job. We get paid a lot of money to do our job so you've got to accept that responsibility and go with it. That's just this time of year. We're used to it at this point, all of us coaches. You've got to put the work in, the same work you put in to prepare for football games. The advantage is that you do have a little stretched out time, and you don't want to peak too early. We are in the middle of what's become the most intense part of the recruiting season. It's a part of the season we've done really well since we've been here. We think we'll do well on it again, because how we built this program, really because of our players—our history and tradition and our players, it just sells itself. Our players do a great job of selling how we treat them and the type of culture that we've built and how they're taken care of so it's kind of a snowball effect and I'm really proud of that."
Thoughts on Playing Former C-USA Opponent…
"Initially, I'm just proud to be in the bowl season. This has been a tough build here. It's not been easy with what we've inherited and the stuff we've been through to get it back, but now we have laid a great foundation. We feel like it's a really good foundation we can build a really great program off of. Then once we found out we were playing Rice —anytime you're in the bowl season you know you're going to play a good team. Rice has played a really good schedule. They played Louisiana from our league and beat them earlier in the year. They've played a lot of quality opponents and played them close. They're a lot like us, a bounce or two here or there they could've had a much better season, they could've had a much worse season. We know they're extremely physical. Their coach [Mike Bloomgren] has been there a long time and is established and we're excited to be there and excited to play."
On Making the Short Trip to Mobile…
"That's great for our fans. It's another advantage to being in the Sun Belt, the bowl tie-ins. It's an advantage of having a historically great fan base. I've said a lot of times since I've been here, 'We have the best fan base in the group of five.' When the bowl selection came out and the fact that we were so highly sought after, it proves that."
On Chance to Rectify Loss in Southern Miss Debut at Hancock Whitney Stadium…
"I'll never get over that. That was a pitiful loss. I don't know if Vince Lombardi could've done any better that night. It is what it is. It was my head coaching debut here, but I had been a head coach before, so it is what it is. All losses hurt me bad, I don't know if I ever get over any of them. Like I said, this has been a tough build here. We believe in what we're doing. We've never wavered in how we do what we do and we've got us back to the point where we're a lot better football program than we were then and we'll continue to be a lot better football program as we move forward."
On Transfer Portal Strategy…
"What we're looking for is our footprint, we really just attack our footprint and we've done that since we've been here. We don't necessarily give preference to a high school player or a portal player or a juco player, we just really want to make sure if a kid is from our area, that we give him preferential treatment and we've done that since we've been here. There are some areas where we need some older guys so we have to address that as it comes. Last year we needed older D-lineman. This year we're losing a few older linebackers, a few older DBs, so we'll need to get some older guys in those areas. We're just looking for really good players that are really good kids in our area. Usually, it works out to where it's about a 60-40 mix, one way or the other, with high school kids and transfer kids. It'll be that way every year as long as we're here with the way college football is moving now."
On Potential Number of Signees in the Early Signing Class…
"I can't answer that because I don't know how many people are staying, everything is fluid. Used to in college football, I could give you an exact number right now. Right now, I would have to give you a fluctuating number with a plus/minus differential of seven. You have to project who you think is going to stay and who you think is going to leave and it's too early to tell that right now. We're always hoping for the best but preparing for the worst if you will. We've got a big board in there and as our roster fluctuates we'll be ready to attack it as it comes."
On Benefits of Extra Practices for Younger Players…
"So last week that's really all we did. We did a lot of fundamentals, a lot of good hitting with our young guys, it was young guy emphasis. We've got a lot of really good young players. We've signed a great high school class. We've got some young kids in this program, Kenyon Clay, Cameron Knox, Kamron Barnes, Kyron Barnes, Wil Saxton, Klabron Pollard, Jordan Martin, those guys are going to be really good football players. It allowed them to practice some more. It also allows you to keep your team together and stay in a structured organized environment because if we're not in a bowl game, last week we couldn't even lift and run with them. Now that we're in a bowl game, not only can we practice, but we can lift and run. We can do it again this week. It allows us to stay structured, which I think is always better. I'm 42 and I do better with structure. I think it's positive all the way around."
On Rice's Starting Quarterback's Injury Status…
"I don't know that. They've been running their offense for a long time. Coach Bloomgren is a really good coach, I know him from back in our DII days when he was at Delta State for a while. He was at Stanford with Coach [Jim] Harbaugh and they've implemented that system at Rice, so they're going to be who they are. Each skillset of the quarterback is different and we're preparing for Rice's offense."
On Standout Play from Linebackers this Season…
"So Coach [Mark] Criner coaches outside backers and Coach [Austin] Armstrong coaches inside backers and they both do a great job. Averie Habas has been a sensational player all year long, we call him 'The Machine' because he brings it everyday. Jalil Clemons has really come on and become a really good football player, he has a chance to be dominant as his career progresses and he's really happy right now after Starkville won that state title. Domonic Quewon has come on as a pass rusher and really brought a lot of explosive plays to us in pass situations. And then on the inside, after losing Swayze [Bozeman] and Hayes Maples, that could decimate a lot of programs. Through recruiting we've been able to build a lot of depth at a lot of positions, some we're still deficient, but at linebacker we've got it and Daylen Gill has had a sensational year. He's also a guy fired up after Louisville won their state title. Santrell Latham has had a great senior year, I can't say enough about him. T.Q. Newsome has really come on. We've got six guys that play a lot right there and they're all doing good things and representing Southern Miss the right way. We've been able to overcome some key injuries and it'll be good to get Swayze and Hayes back next year. Proud of the kids that have played well and obviously love our two coaches that really brought a lot to the table with them."
On Dominic Quewon Being Left Off the All-Sun Belt Teams…
"Man, I don't get into that. Everybody's got their opinion and votes for who they want to vote for. I tell our kids all the time that you should never let the opinion of somebody you don't know or wouldn't take advice from affect you. If I wouldn't take advice from somebody, I dang sure wouldn't take criticism from them. It is what it is, we love Dom, we're glad he's a Golden Eagle. I'm proud of him. He's a graduate. He's come a long way in his life from a guy that moved to the United States to Minnesota. He's got a wonderful mother with a beautiful smile and she's so proud of him and he's got a bright future outside of football as well."
On If Hayes Maples and Swayze Bozeman Return Next Year…
"I think so, yeah."
The Golden Eagles first postseason game since the 2019 season takes place Saturday, Dec. 17, at 4:45 p.m. CT at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala. The game can be seen on ESPN as well as heard on an affiliate of the Southern Miss Sports Network by Learfield.
Here is some of what Hall said to the media on Tuesday:
Opening Statement…
"Beautiful weather today, thank the Good Lord for that. Had a Wednesday-type practice getting ready for Rice, a really good opponent. They've played a lot of really close games and do a great job of controlling the clock and not giving up big plays defensively, really trying to slow the game down. They play extremely hard and physical. We played a hard-fought game against them last year and they got us. I have great respect with how they've built their program back to respectability. We're in the middle of recruiting right now and preparing for a bowl game, which is great and something this program has got to get back to getting used to. We're going to do that every year from here on out. We're excited to be in the bowl season getting our program back where its supposed to be. We've got to continue to prepare the right way where we can put our best foot forward and try and win a bowl game—something that's not happened here in a long, long time."
On Challenges of Recruiting During Bowl Preparations…
"You don't sleep a whole lot. Besides that, it's our job. We get paid a lot of money to do our job so you've got to accept that responsibility and go with it. That's just this time of year. We're used to it at this point, all of us coaches. You've got to put the work in, the same work you put in to prepare for football games. The advantage is that you do have a little stretched out time, and you don't want to peak too early. We are in the middle of what's become the most intense part of the recruiting season. It's a part of the season we've done really well since we've been here. We think we'll do well on it again, because how we built this program, really because of our players—our history and tradition and our players, it just sells itself. Our players do a great job of selling how we treat them and the type of culture that we've built and how they're taken care of so it's kind of a snowball effect and I'm really proud of that."
Thoughts on Playing Former C-USA Opponent…
"Initially, I'm just proud to be in the bowl season. This has been a tough build here. It's not been easy with what we've inherited and the stuff we've been through to get it back, but now we have laid a great foundation. We feel like it's a really good foundation we can build a really great program off of. Then once we found out we were playing Rice —anytime you're in the bowl season you know you're going to play a good team. Rice has played a really good schedule. They played Louisiana from our league and beat them earlier in the year. They've played a lot of quality opponents and played them close. They're a lot like us, a bounce or two here or there they could've had a much better season, they could've had a much worse season. We know they're extremely physical. Their coach [Mike Bloomgren] has been there a long time and is established and we're excited to be there and excited to play."
On Making the Short Trip to Mobile…
"That's great for our fans. It's another advantage to being in the Sun Belt, the bowl tie-ins. It's an advantage of having a historically great fan base. I've said a lot of times since I've been here, 'We have the best fan base in the group of five.' When the bowl selection came out and the fact that we were so highly sought after, it proves that."
On Chance to Rectify Loss in Southern Miss Debut at Hancock Whitney Stadium…
"I'll never get over that. That was a pitiful loss. I don't know if Vince Lombardi could've done any better that night. It is what it is. It was my head coaching debut here, but I had been a head coach before, so it is what it is. All losses hurt me bad, I don't know if I ever get over any of them. Like I said, this has been a tough build here. We believe in what we're doing. We've never wavered in how we do what we do and we've got us back to the point where we're a lot better football program than we were then and we'll continue to be a lot better football program as we move forward."
On Transfer Portal Strategy…
"What we're looking for is our footprint, we really just attack our footprint and we've done that since we've been here. We don't necessarily give preference to a high school player or a portal player or a juco player, we just really want to make sure if a kid is from our area, that we give him preferential treatment and we've done that since we've been here. There are some areas where we need some older guys so we have to address that as it comes. Last year we needed older D-lineman. This year we're losing a few older linebackers, a few older DBs, so we'll need to get some older guys in those areas. We're just looking for really good players that are really good kids in our area. Usually, it works out to where it's about a 60-40 mix, one way or the other, with high school kids and transfer kids. It'll be that way every year as long as we're here with the way college football is moving now."
On Potential Number of Signees in the Early Signing Class…
"I can't answer that because I don't know how many people are staying, everything is fluid. Used to in college football, I could give you an exact number right now. Right now, I would have to give you a fluctuating number with a plus/minus differential of seven. You have to project who you think is going to stay and who you think is going to leave and it's too early to tell that right now. We're always hoping for the best but preparing for the worst if you will. We've got a big board in there and as our roster fluctuates we'll be ready to attack it as it comes."
On Benefits of Extra Practices for Younger Players…
"So last week that's really all we did. We did a lot of fundamentals, a lot of good hitting with our young guys, it was young guy emphasis. We've got a lot of really good young players. We've signed a great high school class. We've got some young kids in this program, Kenyon Clay, Cameron Knox, Kamron Barnes, Kyron Barnes, Wil Saxton, Klabron Pollard, Jordan Martin, those guys are going to be really good football players. It allowed them to practice some more. It also allows you to keep your team together and stay in a structured organized environment because if we're not in a bowl game, last week we couldn't even lift and run with them. Now that we're in a bowl game, not only can we practice, but we can lift and run. We can do it again this week. It allows us to stay structured, which I think is always better. I'm 42 and I do better with structure. I think it's positive all the way around."
On Rice's Starting Quarterback's Injury Status…
"I don't know that. They've been running their offense for a long time. Coach Bloomgren is a really good coach, I know him from back in our DII days when he was at Delta State for a while. He was at Stanford with Coach [Jim] Harbaugh and they've implemented that system at Rice, so they're going to be who they are. Each skillset of the quarterback is different and we're preparing for Rice's offense."
On Standout Play from Linebackers this Season…
"So Coach [Mark] Criner coaches outside backers and Coach [Austin] Armstrong coaches inside backers and they both do a great job. Averie Habas has been a sensational player all year long, we call him 'The Machine' because he brings it everyday. Jalil Clemons has really come on and become a really good football player, he has a chance to be dominant as his career progresses and he's really happy right now after Starkville won that state title. Domonic Quewon has come on as a pass rusher and really brought a lot of explosive plays to us in pass situations. And then on the inside, after losing Swayze [Bozeman] and Hayes Maples, that could decimate a lot of programs. Through recruiting we've been able to build a lot of depth at a lot of positions, some we're still deficient, but at linebacker we've got it and Daylen Gill has had a sensational year. He's also a guy fired up after Louisville won their state title. Santrell Latham has had a great senior year, I can't say enough about him. T.Q. Newsome has really come on. We've got six guys that play a lot right there and they're all doing good things and representing Southern Miss the right way. We've been able to overcome some key injuries and it'll be good to get Swayze and Hayes back next year. Proud of the kids that have played well and obviously love our two coaches that really brought a lot to the table with them."
On Dominic Quewon Being Left Off the All-Sun Belt Teams…
"Man, I don't get into that. Everybody's got their opinion and votes for who they want to vote for. I tell our kids all the time that you should never let the opinion of somebody you don't know or wouldn't take advice from affect you. If I wouldn't take advice from somebody, I dang sure wouldn't take criticism from them. It is what it is, we love Dom, we're glad he's a Golden Eagle. I'm proud of him. He's a graduate. He's come a long way in his life from a guy that moved to the United States to Minnesota. He's got a wonderful mother with a beautiful smile and she's so proud of him and he's got a bright future outside of football as well."
On If Hayes Maples and Swayze Bozeman Return Next Year…
"I think so, yeah."
Players Mentioned
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