MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama spent much of Wednesday’s practice refining its game plan for Saturday’s matchup with Troy, the Jaguars’ first Sun Belt Conference game in program history.
Head coach Joey Jones said he was pleased with the plan his staff has put together, though work remains to narrow it down before kickoff at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. South Alabama enters the game 1-3.
Narrowing the Plan
“We were kind of finalizing the gameplan,” Jones told the Press-Register on Wednesday. “What we’ve got to do as a staff is we’ve got to go narrow some things down to exactly what we want to do in the game. I think we’re getting there.”
Jones said he liked what he had seen from the offense, defense and special teams during the week. “The kids have fought hard,” he said. “They’re a little tired this morning but the bottom line is they came out and worked and that’s what we want.”
Jones on Troy’s Defense
Troy’s high-scoring offense has drawn most of the attention this season, but Jones said the Trojans’ defense deserves notice as well.
“The offense gets the glitz and the glamor because they’ve been doing extremely well with what they’ve done,” Jones said. “But Troy has always been known for defense. They know how to play defense, they play hard-nosed defense. They run to the football, they tackle and they play defense the way it’s supposed to be played.”
Jones said the Trojans look as strong on defense as on offense when he studies them on film. “I think in the media people tend to look at the offense because they put up so many points and so many numbers,” he said. “But they are very good on defense.”
Jaguars’ Defense
Jones also credited his own defense for its play through the first four games.
“We’ve played extremely well,” Jones said. “The staff has done a great job and the players have done a great job defensively. You win ballgames most of the time because you play good defense. We’ve got to continue to do that.”
He added that the offense is still developing. “Once we get it rolling offensively we’re going to be pretty good,” Jones said.
In-State Matchup
Troy, located in southeast Alabama, is the first conference opponent for South Alabama, which begins Sun Belt Conference football play this season. The game will be played Saturday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
