MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama held its final practice Friday before traveling to Starkville, Miss., to face Mississippi State, with the coaching staff continuing to emphasize improvement on third-down conversions.
The Jaguars practiced for about two hours, working on both sides of the ball against the Bulldogs’ personnel and on the team’s mindset heading into Saturday’s game.
Jones on Preparation
“We had good preparation I thought,” head coach Joey Jones said. “The coaches came out and did a good job. The players came out and had a good day and they were concentrating on what they were doing. We’ve got a great task at hand and they understand that. So I think they’re focused on what they were doing.”
Jones said the program’s youth makes consistency a priority.
“We’re a young football program, so the biggest thing we’ve got to do is stay the course,” he said. “We can’t get frustrated when things go wrong and we have to become a better team each week. We know where we are, we’re young and we’re trying to prove ourselves, and the biggest thing I want to do is gain respect from our opponents in how we play.”
He said gaining respect is one of his main goals each week, “and that’s not different when we’re playing a team like Mississippi State.”
Romelle Jones Sidelined
Defensive lineman Romelle Jones will not play Saturday, according to the Press-Register. An MRI on Tuesday showed a partial dislocation of his shoulder, and he is expected to miss two to three weeks. Earlier in the week, Jones had been listed with a knee injury that was not expected to end his season.
Jones, a 6-foot-2, 275-pound junior from New Orleans, had played in all three of South Alabama’s games this season and made his first start of the season against NC State.
Jesse Kelley is expected to start in his place against Mississippi State.
Third Down a Focus
South Alabama’s offense struggled on third down in its loss to NC State, and the coaching staff made third-down situations a point of emphasis throughout the week. Saturday’s game is the Jaguars’ first against an SEC opponent this season.
