MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama football coach Joey Jones said Tuesday that his defense matched up well with Hargrave Military Academy despite giving up size along the line of scrimmage in the first game in Jaguars history.
Jones reviewed Saturday’s game at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on the Joey Jones Show with host Lee Shirvanian. He said the Jaguars were smaller than Hargrave up front but held up well, and that the defense stopped the run except on a few plays. Hargrave’s lone big pass play went for a touchdown.
Crain Pleased With Defense
Assistant coach Crain joined the program and said he was pleased with how the defense played. He said the unit played well enough to win but was not perfect, which is the standard the staff strives for.
Crain said South Alabama has players who want to play hard and give their best effort. He said he believes in running high-pressure practices, explaining that a team that makes practice harder than the game puts itself in position to be very successful.
Crowd and Recruits
Several callers said they enjoyed attending Saturday’s game. Jones thanked fans for creating a strong environment for the players and said he took off his headset a couple of times during the game to listen to the crowd’s reaction.
Jones said several top recruits attended the game and that the staff planned to call them to gauge their reaction.
One caller noted that the Jaguars were called for four penalties for about 25 yards in their first game.
Scoreboard and Formations
Asked about upgrading the scoreboards at Ladd-Peebles Stadium to show replays, Jones said he believed the GMAC Bowl and the Senior Bowl bring in portable video screens for their games, but he did not know of any plans to install one at the stadium.
Jones also said the Jaguars do not use a Wildcat-style formation. He said teams generally use it when they lack a quarterback who runs well, and that South Alabama has several mobile quarterbacks, including true freshman starter Myles Gibbon.
South Alabama is playing its inaugural season under Jones, who was hired to build the program.
