MOBILE, Ala. — Quarterback Brandon Bridge, a transfer from Alcorn State, will not be eligible to play for South Alabama this season after the NCAA declined to grant him a waiver, head coach Joey Jones said Thursday night. Jones spoke with reporters before the DEX Imaging L’Arche Football Preview at the Mitchell Center.
Transfer Updates
Jones said the Jaguars are still awaiting a decision on offensive lineman James Elliot, a transfer from Kentucky who has applied for immediate eligibility.
Jones also said nearly all members of the incoming signing class have enrolled for the summer, with the exception of “about two or three” players.
Building Strength for Division I
Jones said the offseason strength and conditioning program serves two purposes: preventing injuries and developing athletes. He noted that South Alabama’s opponents have been Division I programs for many years, while this season will be the Jaguars’ first as a Division I program, and this is their first Division I signing class.
“If they’re 260 pounds, they need to be 285. We’ve got to have them at 285,” Jones said. “It’s vital if we’re going to have a chance to compete.”
Senior Bowl and Sun Belt Changes
Asked whether he would promote senior linebacker Jake Johnson to Senior Bowl executive director Phil Savage, with whom he was scheduled to speak that evening, Jones said, “No doubt. I certainly don’t make those decisions, but we’re excited about the possibilities of our players having a chance to play in the Senior Bowl.”
Jones also addressed conference realignment. FIU and North Texas are leaving the Sun Belt Conference for Conference USA, and the league is adding Georgia State and Texas State.
“There’s a lot of shake up out there and everybody is trying to grab and pick, and conferences are grabbing and picking teams here and there,” Jones said. “We’ve gotten Georgia State and Texas State with Dennis Franchione and Bill Curry. With those guys, they’re going to be good football programs. And with the Atlanta market you would think Georgia State’s going to be a threat down the road and with Franchione out there at Texas State they’ll get going as well. So it’s good to have both of them.”
Summer Priorities
Jones said the staff would take about a week off after incoming players arrived for summer school Tuesday and were settled into classes and introduced to the strength staff. Summer camps follow, and Jones said the goal is to bring as many prospects to campus as possible to evaluate them and get to know them and their families.
“It’s also a chance for them to see our facilities and see our university and the city of Mobile,” Jones said. “We feel like if they come here to Mobile we’ve got a chance to get them. Even though our name is getting out there to households — we went down to Miami and people know us — we’ve still got to get kids on campus and let them see South Alabama. Once they see that, they see that we’re for real and we have a much better shot.”
Jones explained why he favors having signees enroll in the summer before their first season. He said it helps players adjust to campus and academics, get acclimated to football, build friendships and find mentors among teammates, and stay on track to graduate on time or early, which can allow them to begin work on a master’s degree before leaving.
Support for a Four-Team Playoff
Jones said he supports a four-team playoff to determine the national champion.
“That’s something I think they needed. It’s something, a four-team playoff, that I always thought would be perfect,” he said. “Having a semifinal-type situation and later a national championship game a week later, I always thought it would be a great thing for college football and I think that’s going to happen.”
Asked whether semifinal games should be played on campuses or at neutral sites, Jones said he prefers campus sites. “Crowd-wise, that’s going to create a much more electric atmosphere,” he said. “If you go to a neutral site, sometimes that doesn’t work.”
The 2012 season will be South Alabama’s fourth season of football and the second year of its two-year transition to full Football Bowl Subdivision membership.
