Coach Joey Jones Show Recap 2009-03-11
 |
| From South Alabama’s Football First Spring Practice |
(Photo gallery coming soon, until then the above link will have to suffice)
Brien Straw is in the studio with Coach Jones at Wing’s Sports Grill on Airport Blvd. in Mobile. Lee Shirvanian is traveling back with the basketball team who lost last night in the SBC Title game to Western Kentucky. I would like to add that The Joey Jones Show was only renewed through the end of March, so if you like the show and our recaps of the show, please support them and the other sponsors. Go to Wings and order the “Joey Jones Special” or if you don’t like the Black & White Chicken at least let the manager know why you are there and that you enjoy the show each week.
Coach Jones is now two practices into his first real ‘season’ as Head Coach for South Alabama. He said everyone has been ready to get out on the field and are glad that the time has finally arrived. While they are ready to hit and have fun, the NCAA requires them to have 2 or 3 days in shorts before suiting up in pads. When asked about soreness of the players, Coach Jones said that they are getting a bit sore just from getting back to working on the field and moving in new ways or moving in ways they haven’t moved in a while. But its nothing like they will be soon when they are hitting with pads. Currently they have 105 players out there, then they have about 30 coming into the team in August. They will have to cut some of them to make room under the NCAA rules which is that they can start with 105.
Each coach has a list so to speak. For instance at receiver they have eight scholarship positions and will also have to fill six more for that position for a total of about 14 receivers. Each position has some number of slots for players so at receivers they will have to whittle down nine people to make room for the incoming freshmen.
Coach Jones wants to make sure and keep numbers fairly even because they have to be able to practice. But they could keep an extra receiver if they don’t particularly look too good at defensive back and they think keeping an extra receiver may be more valuable at the time. Coach Jones is the one most concerned about keeping even classes. They don’t want to be like other programs, mentioned was South Florida and Florida Atlantic, who over sign to basically get numbers but then they graduate 40 seniors and the team really falls off for a year or two. So USA has signed a good number of Junior College players that will graduate in two years and incoming freshmen that will be graduating in 4 years. Coach Jones said next year they are going to be much more picky and may only sign about 25 players or less.
In addition to South Florida, Coach Jones also looks to Florida Atlantic and their head coach Howard Schnellenberger for insights at starting up South Alabama’s football program. Coach Jones took two assistants to meet with Coach Schnellenberger at Florida Atlantic. He is very well known coach from his time at University of Miami and as offensive coordinator at the University of Alabama in the 60’s under Coach Bear Bryant and has started (or restarted) a couple programs over the years. They mainly met with assistants because he was very busy, as expected, but they did get an hour with Coach Schnellenberger which was great he said.
Brien asked about the economic affect on football. Coach Jones said that the budget will be cut back some of course, but the initial outlay was there so its not going to be too bad. Its not like they are going to have to buy all new equipment again. The money was already there for the practice fields and the field house. But it was mentioned that the economic problems might, in some ways, be good for South Alabama Football. That maybe people will reconsider and think they cannot afford season tickets to UA or AU plus the fuel and lodging but yet South Alabama season tickets are quite affordable without the long drive to Tuscaloosa or Auburn with lodging and food costs associated with travel.
Brien mentioned a Mobile Press-Register story saying that Coach Jones is going to be emphasizing the passing game over the running game during these practices. Coach Jones said that whenever you are in shorts, and not pads, you can’t really get into a team formation and run with full blocking and such. But they still have to install the run. The players can get out during the summer and throw the ball 7 on 7 but the players are not going to get out there and work on the running game. Now the coaches can’t get out there help, but the players can work on it on their own.
Defensively they are installing a lot of blitz packages. Since they are not lining up in the base 3-4 and trying to stop the run because they are in shorts and have to limit the hitting. What they are doing is working on the blitz’s first. Coach Jones philosophy is to throw a lot at them and then come back after some amount of time and break those things down. So what they are doing is using blitz’s to teach the defense while the offensive lineman are trying to figure out how to block it. So what they are seeing is that the players are asking more questions and when they come back to break it down and give them information sometime in the future, they have already been through it and seen the play before so they understand why they are doing what they are doing now.
Brien then asked about special teams. Specifically, how much time is spent on special teams? Coach Jones said that when you break a game down you tend to see that about 1 out of 6 plays is special teams. So that breaks down to about 10 minutes every 60 minutes. So they spend about 20 minutes a practice on special teams. They have been working on the punt team over the last two days because nothing can get your team beat quicker than problems in the punt team. However, tomorrow (Thursday) they are going to start working on field goals. Which Coach Jones said they have two kickers on scholarship already so they basically have those positions covered for now.
When asked if he uses scripted plays or trick plays Coach Jones said yes, he has plays that he calls get it in his hands plays (roughly that’s what it was called). He has plays that are meant to get the ball into players hands that can make a difference in the game.
Go Jags and don’t forget to visit Wings Sports Grill and the other sponsors to help keep this show going (as well as these recaps on Thunderjags.com).
Coach Joey Jones Show Recap 2009-03-04
In the studio today at Wing’s Sports Grill on the Beltine near I-65 just off of Airport Blvd is Head Coach Joey Jones, Lee Shirvanian and Travis Toth.
One of the first questions was how close is the schedule to being finalized? Coach Jones said that they are waiting on one last contract to come through and they should be ready to release the 2009 football schedule. Lee Shirvanian followed that question up with his next one, why does it take so long? When getting game contracts together, lawyers get involved so they have to read through the contract to make sure that it benefits their school. Another thing has been trying to find teams that have open dates that match up with ours.
Putting together the schedule is like trying to put a huge puzzle together, all the pieces have to analyzed and fit together to make an overall picture. But for the 2009 season they are looking at possibly 8 games.Which by all indications all seven or eight games will be home games. While it was not stated the most likely reason that schools would want to travel to Mobile is that its a larger stadium than most they will be playing their first season in Division-I football.
Also, spring practice will be starting on Monday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium and the coaching staff has changed their minds once again for the publics benefit. All practices, including the first week, will be open to the public. Practices will be held from 2:30-4:45pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays with the occasional Wensday thrown in there as well. Coach Jones said there will be right at 100 players out there for practice with roughly 16* of them having scholarships. (* NOTE: This number may or may not be accurate.)
When asked what they will be doing at practice Coach Jones said that they have to evaluate all of the kids and give them a chance. In addition to evaluating them, they also have to teach fundamentals. The coaching staff are not going to be too fast in getting into scrimmages, they will be having scrimmages but they have to start with the fundamentals first.
Joe Gottfried visited the show and was talking about scheduling. Again Lee Shirvanian asked why is it so hard to put together a schedule? Gottfried’s response was that since we are an unclassified school it’s hard to find other unclassified schools or find schools who want to schedule you. Plus getting them to travel to Mobile is sometimes difficult. They are working on teams for 2012-2016 and spending a lot of time to work those schedules out so they will benefit our team the best we can. They do not want to schedule another big game the next week after playing Tennesse for instance.
Lee made light about how quick the USA program is going from nothing to Division-I football. Gottfried said that South Florida took 3-4 years to do what we are on track to do in 1 or 2 years. The staff and administration have gotten on board and without them it could not be possible to do it. Joe Gottfried also let it out that in 4-5 years from now we just might be on the schedule to play Notre Dame. Joe is close to some people up there and they have said we are still on the list of potential opponents for Notre Dame. What is really exciting about the possibility of USA playing Notre Dame is that they have a long standing contract with NBC to have their games nationally broadcast. So that would be you would be able to see USA taking on Notre Dame national television like NBC within the first could seasons of being in Division-I football.
Joe Gottfried also talked about how the topic comes up regularly about the possibility of building an on-campus football stadium. He said that that decision is definitely further down the road. But if that were to come true it would just all to all of the current construction on the USA Campus that is generating large amounts of excitment. If you go by the intramural fields and see the football field house being constructed along with the practice fields and all that goes along with that, you will be amazed and cannot help but to get excited about USA. Also the new student recreation center being built at the corner of Old Shell Road and Stadium Drive right beside of Stanky Field. It is such a great time to be a Jaguar.
One caller asked if we would be playing in the Sun Belt conference when we begin this fall. Coach Jones response was that in 2012 we will have our first full Sun Belt schedule. However, until that time we will be playing as an independent school.
Coach Jones, when asked if they are still looking for players, said that the coaching staff is still looking to bring in at least one more quarterback. Just like with their other quarterback recruits that will be coming in he will have to be of the runner/thrower model to fit in with their offense.
Coach Joey Jones Show Recap 2009-02-25
Brian is in the studio with Coach Jones and Justin Schwin. Lee Shirvanian is with the baseball team getting ready to broadcast when they take on Southern Miss. Broadcasting live from Wings Sports Grill on Airport Boulevard in Mobile, Alabama.
With spring practice beginning in one week from Monday on March 9th they were talking about the workouts and the time being put into strength and conditioning since Justin Schwin was among the radio panel this week. Each coach has a certain area in the weight room to cover while the Strength and Conditioning coach Justin Schwin is moving around checking everything out and making sure everything is going correctly.
They can work with the players eight hours a week up until spring practice begin. At that time they can then work with them 20 hours a week. The breakdown of the workout under the current eight hours a week schedule is that they are in the weight room five days a week. During spring practice they will be in the weight room two days a week but the rest of the time the workouts will be on the field for the 20 hour a week maximum.
Coach Jones said he wants the athletes made into athletes not muscle bound blocks that cannot move on the field. They are not just building strength and bulk like sometimes was done in the old days or is portrayed in movies but he wants athletic players that can move and have speed. They can and will modify players’ workouts for whatever Coach Jones wants to see the player work on.
You have to train for everything from strength and agility to hip speed and changing direction you cannot focus too much on one and neglect the other. Weight training has to be done very carefully else you will injure kids. It has to be done in progression from getting the right form and technique up to the point they are finally working out and getting stronger. Also you cannot work out at 100% capacity every time because that does not improve the players and it also leaves them open to injury.
When talking about supplements, protein shakes and the such Coach Jones said that if you eat correctly then you don’t really need all the supplements on the side. They may have an added benefit but proper nutrition will work and may even work better than supplements. What he says to the players is that if it’s a quick fix then it’s probably not that good. With any sports players and just like with these players, if they eat junk and play football then they will play like junk.
Coach Jones clarified about where practices will be held. It was initially decided to use Ladd-Peebles Stadium for the workouts and practice until the time that the fieldhouse is completed for summer/fall workouts and due to students class schedules and transportation to and from the Stadium. However after looking at possibly building or using something as a locker room and shower facility, they determined that it was not economically feasible to do such and it was worked out that Ladd-Peebles would again be where spring practice would be held.
The first three practices will be closed to the public, but the workout times have been set for 2:30-4:45pm. Three possible scrimmages have been scheduled for March 27th, April 3rd and April 10th which will be open to the public at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
A caller asked about a possible television coach’s show. The caller has seen schools like Troy, and others around the country, who have a televised coaches shows and he posed that it would be an invaluable recruiting tool for Coach Jones and USA to have a televised coaches show. Additionally he asked if WNSP (who broadcasts the Joey Jones Show) was going to be the flagship radio station for USA sports whereby everything USA would come first before other things (shows etc.). Coach Jones said that USA has signed a contract with IMG and they will have a lot of input into what is done. Joe Gottfried has been talking about many potential things but nothing has been thrown out as a concrete option or idea yet.
Coach Joey Jones Show Recap 2009-02-18
 |
| Artists rendering of what Ladd-Peebles Stadium could look like in the fall. |
Brian sitting in for Lee Shirvanian who is heading to Tennessee with the basketball team for a matchup with MTSU. In the studio at Wings Sports Grill is Coach Joey Jones and the new Offensive Coordinator for the South Alabama Jaguars, Coach Greg Gregory.
Coach Jones was the Grand Marshal of the Mardi Gras parade Wednesday night. At the end of last week, Coach Jones announced Greg Gregory as the new Offensive Coordinator for the Jaguars. Coach Jones said he tried to stay patient in the light of how important the position was on the staff. He wanted to fill it as soon as possible so the players can start to get to know him, his philosophy and start getting stuff together. But he also did not want to rush to fill the position with just anyone. Coach Jones wanted to get a good coach with the philosophy that he wanted that fit the players and the staff he already has in place.
Coach Jones and Coach Gregory have very similar philosophies. Both feel that a balanced offense is a necessity to keep the defenses from targeting the run or the pass. Coach Jones did not want a coach that was of the fun-n-gun mentality who throws every down and has only a handful of running plays. But he did not want a coach that ran the wishbone either. Probably above all, Coach Gregory wanted to be at USA. He wanted to be part of a new start-up program. Obviously he has been around that with his time at South Florida, which is to date the fastest program from inception to playing Division I-A football in the history of the NCAA.
Coach Gregory said that he and Coach Jones talked about a month ago and some things happened at USF as well. He said it was not negative but from what I have gathered online he may have talked with Urban Meyer at Florida about the open OC position there and Coach Leavitt stripped him of the Offensive Coordinator name and/or duties. Coach Gregory also said that it has been a goal of his to be at a program that is starting its football program. He wants to be a part of starting a quality program and be there when the history is made and when the traditions are started.
Brian asked the question that everyone wants to know obviously, what the offense going to resemble when we see the Jaguars take the field this fall. Coach Gregory said they want to be pretty balanced. Last season at South Florida they ran the ball a little over 500 times and threw the ball somewhere in the 400’s which is pretty balanced. The passing game yielded a little more yardage than the running game but was still pretty close. But his goal for the offense is to be able to do whatever they want, whenever they want, wherever they want on the field. Being able to run the ball or throw the ball in any given situation really gives the offense a huge advantage over the defense and allows them to dictate the pace and tempo of the game. They also want to have the tough, hard-nosed element as well as the exciting element of the game. This translates into them having the ability to run through or over someone for those tough yards but also having the spark for an 80 yard run or pass reception for a touchdown.
During Coach Spurrier’s time at Florida their offense was seen as a passing offense however if you look back at the play breakdown, they probably passed about 60% of the time and ran about 40% of the time. Plus if you look at the yardage breakdown it would roughly be about the same. However their offense was perceived at a passing offense. The coach can craft the image of the offense to be what he wants it to be and Spurrier wanted it to be perceived that way. Their philosophy was to throw early and run late so they would throw the ball to open up the running game. So they were still a pretty balanced offense but not in the conventional manner.
But really what it boils down to is doing what it takes to win game. If it takes throwing the ball to win games, you want to be able to throw the ball well. If it takes running the ball and grinding out yards then you want to be able to do that well also. Additionally it’s a team sport, so the offense cannot just do what it wants to do at the expense of the offense. An offense cannot pass and throw interceptions all game long and expect the defense to bail them out every time. But in a similar way the defense cannot blitz every down and give up quick touchdowns and expect the offense to bail them out as well.
A listener called in asking about how important is it for USA to get a stadium on campus. Obviously, if it were not for Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile we still may not have college football at USA and Coach Jones also acknowledged this. He went on to say that there are possible plans for a stadium on campus but nothing solid and also nothing in the near future. Teams who have gone with on campus stadiums tend to have larger student turnout for the games. Currently, they (the staff and players) are only focused on playing at Ladd-Peebles. South Florida play in Raymond-James Stadium which is the Tampa Bay Bucs stadium which is obviously off campus so Coach Gregory is familiar with this type of setup.
In the Sunday edition of the Mobile Press-Register, there was an article about a group of people from the C.P. Newdome Foundation that that wants to build an extensive network of sports facilities in the county for a price that could reach $1 Billion. Included in their plan was a 50,000 seat stadium. When brought up by Brian, Coach Jones said he had not heard of it which was not surprising since he has been working diligently on the recruiting class announced recently. Most small Division I-A schools average about 25,000 per game Coach Jones said. With USA playing at Ladd-Peebles, which seats 40,646 (but is said to have a maximum of capacity of 50,000), it will be very good if every game is a sell-out.
While the size would be great, he acknowledged he does not know anything about it. However my thoughts about it is, yes it sounds nice if it comes to fruition, however the place they have been talking about building it is less than ideal to say the least. Their idea is for more than 1,000 acres near Interstate 10 and McDonald Road which is, at the shortest distance, is at least 15 miles from both campus and downtown Mobile and is roughly a 40 minute commute from campus. If a location that is large enough could be found that is closer to the campus or downtown Mobile, then I think it would be a more realistic dream but at the moment I think this is still a dream in this groups mind.
Brian said that he has gone on record before saying that Ladd-Peebles stadium is not the nicest facility in North America but it is located in a good place. It is close to what is happening downtown as well as the nice hotels like the Battlehouse which is where they put recruits when they visited Mobile. However, campus is where everyone wants to build a stadium but, as he was saying, $20-30 Million dollars could be invested in Ladd-Peebles to make it a much nicer facility and it would satisfy South Alabama’s needs for several years to come.
Coach Jones said he likes where it is and the tradition behind the stadium as well. He had several recruits make their official visit to USA over Senior Bowl weekend and while he could not give them tickets to the game, he did get to let them on the sidelines at one point and he credited that as a great recruiting tool for them. He does not have any negatives about Ladd-Peebles Stadium however it will be the President’s choice ultimately about future stadium possibilities.
Coach Gregory said he does not believe that the stadium being off campus (or being Ladd-Peebles Stadium) makes that much difference in where they choose to go play. It is about the coaches, the environment and the school.
Coach Gregory was asked about the offense again and he was talking about his previous experience how his team went from like a regular I formation offense to a wishbone offense from one year to the next. But they had experience with the offense and college ball. At USA with a new program it’s a bit different. Coach Gregory said he has to keep in mind how much can they put it, play wise, for the offense. That will depend on how well the players internalize the offense and the plays as to how much he can get installed before the fall.
Most teams by now at least have some idea of who is going to start under center at quarterback or as running back and so forth. But in USA’s case, these are all unknowns. Coach Gregory hardly knows their names right now much less who is going to start where. But all the players will have a chance and the good ones will come to top.
Coach Jones Adds Two To Coaching Staff
South Alabama head football coach Joey Jones has put the finishing touches on his coaching staff by hiring two assistants. On Thursday he announced the additions of Greg Gregory as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach and Tommy Perry as running backs coach and special teams coordinator.
Coach Gregory has been a head coach for two years. He has also been an offensive coordinator at four schools with 15 years experience at that position. His last two years were at South Florida guiding them to 17-9 over the last two seasons, including a win in the inaugural St. Petersburg Bowl last season.
Those who are familiar with college football know the name Matt Grothe, the quarterback for USF. He was among the top 30 in the nation in total offense over the last two seasons while Mike Ford and Ben Williams combined for a total of 18 touchdowns in 2007. Also, the Bulls produced record numbers in total offensive yard with 5,383, yards per game with 414.1 and 34.7 points per game in 2007. His previous two seasons at USF, he coached the tight ends helping to lead them to the Meineke Car Care Bowl and the Papajohns.com Bowl.
Coach Jones stated, “Greg wants to be a part of something new, and he brings a wealth of experience. He’s an excellent football coach that I’m excited to bring to USA,”. He further commented about the USA and USF programs, “South Florida has built their football program from scratch and we are modeling a lot of the things we do based on what they have done.”
Prior to USF, Coach Gregory was an OC at Ohio from 2001-2003, previous to that he was OC at Richmond where the Spiders won the Atlantic 10 championship with a 7-1 record and 10-3 record overall. He was head coach at Missouri Southern in 1998 and 1999. He took over a team that forfeited all of its victories the prior year. At Army in 1982 he worked with the receivers then in 1984 he moved to coach the tight ends and was the junior varsity coach. In 1985 and 1986 he coach the teams running backs. Then in 1987 he shifted to quarterbacks coach and finally in 1989 he became offensive coordinator. In 1991 he was promoted to associate head coach in addition to his OC duties.
In total he spent 16 seasons with Army where they won 93 games and advanced to four bowl games which are the only ones in the program’s 109 year history. They also won 10 of 16 games against Navy during his time there. Ron McAda was one of his quarterbacks during his time there which was the only Army QB to be selected in the NFL draft. Coach Gregory was honored as being a commissioned officer with the rank of captain from 1982-1985 as well.
Coach Gregory was quoted about joining the USA staff, “It’s always been a goal of mine to be part of a program that is starting from scratch. This is a great opportunity — USA is in a hotbed of football from a recruiting standpoint and the athletic director is fully behind the program.”
Coach Tommy Perry has spent the last three seasons in various roles on staff at Alabama under both Nick Saban and Mike Shula. His first two seasons saw Alabama go 7-6 one year under Shula then the next under Saban. Then in 2008 he saw the tide go 12-0 in the regular season then two consecutive loses in the SEC championship game and the Sugar Bowl to finish 12-2 and finish 6th in the nation.
Perry began his coaching career at Texas in 2004 as assistant strength and conditioning coach as well as being an academic advisor. Later that year be became a linebacker and strength coach at Texas A&M-Commerce then moved to running backs and kickoff return duties in 2005. Three of his running back earned all-Lone Star Conference honors that year. Including a player who ran for more than 1,000 yards in 10 games to be selected first-team honors. Also part of his duties at A&M-Commerce as to assist recruiting in Northeast Texas and Northern California.
Perry also has experience in the NFL’s Europe’s Amsterdam Admirals in 2006 as a special teams assistant and head strength coach. His team competed in the World Bowl and posted a 7-3 mark.
Perry graduated in 2003 from Texas A&M and played two seasons, lettering in 2003 for the Aggies at fullback, inside linebacker and defensive end while participating on various special teams units. He was one of four players on the team who served as the program’s 12th man as a senior. He came to TAMU from Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas as an inside linebacker.
Coach Perry was quoted saying, “There’s a lot of energy here in Mobile, everyone I have talked to knows about the program and is excited about it.” He continued, “The Mobile area and the Florida Panhandle have a lot of talented players, and there is a lot of momentum behind the program. I’m excited to be a part of this process.”
Coach Jones remarked about Perry, “I think Tommy gained valuable experience working under Nick Saban. We expect that he will be able to contribute a lot of things to USA football based on the knowledge that he has gained and things he has seen working at Alabama.”
The Jags will start their first-ever spring practice on Monday, March 9th.
Coach Joey Jones Show Recap 2009-02-11
Coach Jones is in the studio with Lee Shirvanian at Wings Sports Grill. The Joey Jones show has been extended through March thanks to Bo and Gene Bishop and others. Thus as a thanks to the Bishop’s and Wings Sports Grill I wanted to pass along their Valentines Day special which is kids eat free for those who cannot get babysitters. They have a special Mardi Gras in Mobile menu that has some really great dishes to choose from. So go visit Wings and thank them for extending the Joey Jones Show and encourage them to keep it going beyond March. Plus if you don’t order from the Mardi Gras menu, then order “The Joey Jones Special” and if they don’t know what that is remind them that its the Black and White Chicken, a dinner fit for USA Football.
Four more signees have been added to the Football program. Keairon Wilson from Davidson High School here in Mobile was being recruited by several schools and decided to go with USA late. He is a 6’ 180 pound defensive back but he can play Safety, Linebacker or something in the nickel package. He was selected first-team all-region as a senior after posting 90 tackles and five interceptions.
Darious McMullen, 6’2” 280 pound, is ranked as the 33rd top defensive lineman in the nation by Scouts.com and ranked as the 21st best player in Alabama and 5th best in the state at his position in the state. He was being recruited by Florida but something happened there, he then committed to Vanderbilt and they eventually backed out late and took another lineman. Coach Clark was in the area and found out about him, talked to him and invited him down. He liked it and wanted to think about it another week and eventually decided to come to USA.
Mardavian Martin is a 5’11” 185 pound player out of Millbrook. He was a first-team all-county and all-metro choice as a senior. Coach Jones said he could be a cover corner or receiver type. He was being recruited by Georgia Tech but his grades are a little questionable so they are going to work with him on that.
Mytez Madden is a 6’1” 195 pound true inside linebacker from Anniston. He earned honorable mention all-state and first-team all-county honors. Coach Jones said he is very physical and runs the field very well.
USA also possibly has a kicker from Davidson HS that will be a walk-on for USA. They also have another kicker that will be coming in who went to Florida then transferred to Alabama. They also have a long snapper who is a transfer from Alabama who was not able to get on the field and play.
With all of these incoming freshmen, how many of them would you want to redshirt and have around in 2013 for Division I football? Coach Jones said that this is a very difficult question to answer. They cannot answer that right now and it will be a difficult thing to do. They will know more after spring and summer workouts. They have to have the players to play in the fall but if they have pretty good depth at positions they will look to see who they can redshirt.
They will definitely have some practices open to the public but the first week will probably be closed for the first week of practice. They will have some workouts at Ladd-Peebles but since many of the students get out of class at 2pm and have class again at 6pm they cannot take a bus, dress out, work out, shower and get back for their classes so they will be having practices on campus so they can dress out, work out, go back to their dorms to shower then go to class. While it is not that bad of a situation, it is not ideal by any means. This will only be a temporary thing until the field house is complete in late May.
Coach Jones then went through the signing class that was announced on Wednesday in the Mitchell Center but could not be named at the time of the Joey Jones Show last week.
Don’t forget to visit Wings Sports Grill and thank them for extending the Joey Jone Show and order “The Joey Jones Special” which is the Black and White Chicken, you won’t regret it.
GO JAGS!
Jags Add A Total of 43 Players In First Ever Recruiting Class
Here are the numbers: 31 players signed National Letter of Intents, 22 of those players helped lead their teams to the state playoffs. Six players would win state championships. 19 players came from the state of Alabama, 3 of those came from Mobile itself. 3 sets of teammates signed with USA from the state of Alabama. Plus, one player signed from Montreal, Canada.
Another 12 mid-year newcomers round out the total of 43 that Coach Jones and his staff signed this year for the first recruiting class for the University of South Alabama.
Coach Jones said, “We were interested in bringing individuals with good character who are good students so that they can come to South Alabama and earn their degree.”
Also, nothing breeds success better than those with experience with success. Thus, the USA staff looked to find players from winning programs.
Since the Jaguars will begin playing football for the first time come September 5th, 2009, Coach Jones and his staff had to be very disciplined about signing players for the positions they help with. They had to be very careful not to pick up an extra player at a position that was covered while they still had need in other places.
They did an excellent job at signing good multi-position players. The highlight video compiled for the event in the Mitchell Center yesterday seemed to show several players that could play positions on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball. Not just your typical defensive back that can sub as a receiver, but a linebacker that can sub as a running back or receiver.
Probably the most surprising signee was Myles Gibbon from Montreal Canada. Coach Jones relayed the story of his father driving 27 hours to come to the official visit at USA then turn around and drive 27 hours back to Canada when it was over with.
The event at the Mitchell Center was very good, it was covered by all three local television stations. President Moulton spoke about the football program and showed a short video recapping the beginnings of football on campus, the board of trustees voting on football, and the hiring of Coach Jones for the head coaching position. He then turned it over to Joe Gottfried who also spoke about the process of football and hiring of Coach Jones. Then Coach Jones spoke about the overall recruiting class and their process of evaluating potential recruits. They let us all know that they probably reviewed film on over 800 players in order to whittle down to these 43 signees.
Since Les Koenning left the program earlier this year, Coach Jones introduced the quarterbacks. He then let the position coaches come to the podium and talk about the recruits by position.
Once it was finished, they presented another film with highlights of each of the signees from the previous season. The coaches then assembed in the lobby of the Mitchell Center and signed autographs for the attendees.
Below are the players who signed and comprise USA’s first ever recruiting class:
Name (Ht., Wt., Class, Pos., Hometown, Previous School)
Matt Autry (6-4, 210, Fr., DL, Norcross, Ga., Norcross HS)
Logan Bennett (6-0, 205, Fr., LB, Cairo, Ga., Cairo HS)
Corey Besteda (6-2, 175, Fr., WR, Jackson, Ala., Jackson HS)
Zach Brownell (6-1, 190, Fr., DB, Prattville, Ala., Prattville HS)
Randon Carnathan (6-2, 265, Fr., DL, Leeds, Ala., Leeds HS)
Clifton Crews (6-3, 200, Fr., LB, Atlanta, Ga., Jonesboro HS)
Marquise Diamond (5-11, 190, Fr., DB, Piedmont, Ala., Piedmont HS)
Myles Gibbon (6-2, 190, Fr., QB, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Vanier College)
Dalvin Harris (6-0, 185, Fr., LB, New Orleans, La., John Ehret HS)
Ellis Hill (5-9, 190, Fr., RB, Tuscaloosa, Ala., Hillcrest HS)
Greg Hollinger (6-4, 205, Fr., WR, Frisco City, Ala., Excel HS)
Bryson James (6-3, 200, Fr., LB, New Orleans, La., East St. John HS)
Jereme Jones (5-9, 170, Fr., WR, Mobile, Ala., McGill-Toolen HS)
Romelle Jones (6-2, 270, Fr., DL, New Orleans, La., East St. John HS)
Sean Kennedy (6-4, 300, Fr., OL, Mobile, Ala., Theodore HS)
Bryant Lavender (5-11, 180, Fr., WR, Gulfport, Miss., Gulfport HS)
Gabriel Mass (6-4, 255, Fr., DL, Jackson, Ala., Jackson HS)
Alex Page (6-2, 240, Fr., DL, Prattville, Ala., Prattville HS)
Jared Palmer (6-2, 170, Fr., WR , Tuscaloosa, Ala., Northridge HS)
Alex Phifer (5-10, 180, Fr., DB, Greenville, Ala., Greenville HS)
Devondrick Richardson (6-3, 210, Fr., LB, Clayton, Ala., Barbour County HS)
Vernon Saffold (6-3, 250, Jr., DL, Clarksdale, Miss., Coahoma [Miss.] CC)
Kyle Stewart (6-3, 225, Fr., QB, Tallahassee, Fla., Florida HS)
Josh Terry (6-3, 280, Fr., OL, Fort Payne, Ala., Fort Payne HS)
Will Thompson (6-5, 235, Fr., DL, Huntsville, Ala., Buckhorn HS)
Tony Threatt (6-3, 180, Fr., DB, Leeds, Ala., Leeds HS)
Tyler Tisdale (6-3, 265, Fr., OL, Petal, Miss., Petal HS)
Corey Waldon (5-10, 165, Fr., WR, Tuscaloosa, Ala., Central Tuscaloosa HS)
Enrique Williams (6-1, 210, Fr., LB, Mobile, Ala., Blount HS)
Montavious Williams (6-2, 270, Fr., DL, Cairo, Ga., Cairo HS)
Tyrone Williams (6-1, 200, Fr., LB, Thomasville, Ala., Thomasville HS)
Below are mid-year transfer students who enrolled in school for the spring semester:
*Heath Blount (6-6, 290, Jr., OL, Cleveland, Miss., Northeast Mississippi CC)
*Levi Slaydon (6-3, 270, Jr., OL, Picayune, Miss., Pearl River [Miss.] CC)
*Corey Pittman (6-5, 300, Jr., OL, Chickasaw, Ala., Mississippi Gulf Coast CC)
*Chris Payne (6-3, 320, Jr., OL, Vicksburg, Miss., Copiah-Lincoln [Miss.] CC)
*Steven Pease (5-11, 175, Fr., DB, Williamstown, N.J., Millford [N.Y.] Academy)
*Early James (6-2, 190, Jr., QB, Killona, La., Jones County [Miss.] JC)
*Jon Griffin (6-2, 280, Jr., OL, Ventura, Calif., Ventura [Calif.] JC)
*Chris Brunson (6-3, 300, Jr., OL, Tyler, Texas, Tyler [Texas] JC)
*Kevin Helms (6-3, 235, Jr., TE, Gulfport, Miss., Mississippi Gulf Coast CC)
*Brian Krauskopf (6-3, 285, Jr., OL, Santa Fe, Texas, Blinn [Texas] JC)
*Jordan Means (6-1, 180, Fr., PK, Hoover, Ala., Alabama)
*Limbric Windham (6-3, 175, Fr., WR, Mobile, Ala., Alma Bryant HS)
Coach Joey Jones Show Recap 2009-02-04
The entire coaching staff is at Wings Sports Grill for the Joey Jones Show. Coach Jones begins the show talking about the Signing Day Event at the Mitchell Center to present the players to everyone who is in attendance. As previously reported it will also be streamed online.
Great news as well is that the Joey Jones show will continue for a few more weeks and hopefully throughout spring practice.
At show time they have signed 27 to this point with a couple pending this afternoon but cannot name names. Coach Jones feels great about the ones they have signed and a couple have popped up late and could be great additions to the class some of them will be worked on this afternoon. Majority of recruits are from Alabama but several are from out of state. Rough numbers are about 5 GA, 2 or 3 from MS, 3 LA or so. They signed more defensive players than offensive players so probably 2/3rds are defensive players.
Did not go head-to-head against Alabama or Auburn, once they offered a scholarship USA would back off but would sometimes keep contact to make sure that everything continued to be okay. Its hard to get a kid if they think they might be able to go to Auburn or Alabama.
Coach Clark (Defensive Coordinator) speaking first on the show. They were looking for runners and hitters and stressed character, they were even looking for Defesive Lineman who can run. Emphasized speed over size, not just 40 yard dash speed but also speed in changing directions, hip speed etc. Multiple 3-4 defense so your defensive backs could be linebackers and linebackers could be defensive backs.
Kurt Crane (Linebackers) talked about the situation where if you wanted to sign about 9 linebackers you have to recruit about 65 linebackers. He praised the USA staff at doing a great job at targeting linebackers to get and actually landing them. He also cautioned the offenses that they will be playing to make sure and wear their gear and mouthpieces because these guys are going to hit and they are going to hit hard.
Brian Turner (recruiting coordinator and defensive coach) said that defensive line is going to sign 8 guys, about 4 inside and 4 outside. Some from will come from Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and Louisiana I think since he was speaking pretty fast.
Duwan Walker (defensive backs coach) has ties to south Georgia area. He has been looking at speed starting with hips and then foot speed. Have been looking far and wide from New York to California for Defensive Backs.
John Turner (Offensive Line, Guards and Centers) said the they have signed about three Offensive Linemen and he is really excited about them. He also said they could turn out to be some big strong top Offensive Lineman.
Mitch Rodrigue (Offensive Line, Tackles and Tight Ends) has ties to south Mississippi and Louisiana area and Coach Jones said these areas will be a key area for USA especially with Mitch’s ties to the area so look in the future for possible big signees from these areas. He was hired in July and was a bit behind on recruiting but he has already gotten on top of recruiting for next year. They have picked up some good tight ends with good hands and can block as well.
Dameyune Craig (Wide Receivers) is known around the area and also recruits this area. He won some championships in high school and was quarterback at Auburn. He is really excited about the guys coming in. Some big guys who can run as well as smaller guys who can make you miss. There are receivers in this class he thinks can play on the next level. He thinks in two years USA will be ready to compete against the other Division I schools.
Some names will be released at press conference at 3pm but all names will be released at 4pm at the Mitchell center.
Also when asked about the Offensive Coordinator position, Coach Jones said that Tony Franklin will not be his Offensive Coordinator (unlike what was said on the WNSP morning show in speculation). He will not reveal who it is going to be but he did not rule out naming him at the Mitchell Center event this afternoon.
2009 Verbal Commitments to USA
Here is a list of verbal commitments to the University of South Alabama. While they have not currently officially signed their Scholarships they have verbally committed to the Jaguars however until they have signed their National Letter of Intent they can change their mind.
Randon Carnathan from Leeds HS, Leeds Alabama. He is a 6’0″ 250lb 2 star recruit playing Defensive end. Carnathan recorded 119 tackles, 30 for a loss and 18.5 sacks. He caused four fumbles recovering two of them and an interception. He also rushed 88 times for 793 yards and 13 touchdowns during his schools undefeated championship season. ASWA All-State DL and Lineman of the year for 3A.
Keiron Wilson from W.P. Davidson HS in Mobile. He is a 6’0″ 195lb 2 star recruit playing Safety. Keiron had 88 tackles and three sacks during his junior season, no stats were available for his senior season.
Limebric Windham from Alma Bryant HS in Irvington Alabama. He is a 6’1″ 195lb 2 star recruit playing Wide Receiver. Windham broke his schools record for receptions during his junior season with 58 catches for 759 yards and four touchdown. He averaged 14.3 yards per catch.
Corey Waldon from Central HS in Tuscaloosa Alabama. He is a 5’8″ 161lb 2 star recruit who is listed at having 4.66 speed in the 40yrd dash at Wide Receiver. Waldon had 38 catches for 858 yards and 10 touchdowns in his senior season and racked up over 1,500 yards of total offense. He was named to Tuscaloosa News Super 11, selected West Alabama All-Star 5A Player of the Year. In 2007 he had 36 receptions for 896 yards and eight touchdowns. He also returned 12 punts for 400 yards and two touchdowns and eight kickoff returns for 205 yards. In addition to his 4.66 40-yard dash he also had a 31.5″ vertical jump.
Alex Phifer from Greenville HS in Greenville Alabama. He is a 5’10” 185lb 1 star quarterback.
Ellis Hill from Hillcrest HS in Tuscaloosa Alabama. He is 5’8″ 190lb 1 star recruit at running back and is listed as having 4.50 speed in the 40yrd dash. Ellis had 255 carries for 1,421 yards and 20 touchdowns in his senior season and was named to the Tuscaloosa News Super 11. He ends his HS career with 3,795 yards and 56 touchdowns. He started for his school since 10th grade and has a 3.58 GPA. In 2007 he had 134 carries for 941 yards and 12 touchdowns, 12 receptions for 147 yards and a touchdown, 22 kickoff returns for 682 yards and 1,777 All-Purpose yards.
Tony Threatt from Leeds HS in Leeds Alabama. He is a 6’4″ 190lb 1 star recruit who plays strong side linebacker. He recorded 74 tackles and five interceptions during an undefeated championship season in the 3A division and was selected all-state first team DB. In 2007, he made 67 tackles, three sacks and four forced fumbles with two fumble recoveries as well as 24 receptions for 34 yards and four touchdowns on offense.
South Alabama Signing Day To Be Broadcast Online
Fans and supporters of South Alabama Football who cannot be at the Mitchell Center Wednesday will be able to watch a live stream online. The USA Athletic Department announced on Tuesday that the schools first ever recruiting class will be broadcast live on USAJaguars.com starting at 4pm.
In order to view the stream you will be required to have Windows Media Player.
The stream can be accessed through the schedule for live audio/video events on the multimedia page of the site. It will be underneath the ‘Countdown to Kickoff’ on the righthand side of the website.
If you are in Mobile and want to be a part of history, this event is free to the public in the Mitchell Center. Afterwards you can stay for the USA Women’s Basketball team hosting North Texas with tip-off scheduled for 7:05pm.
GO Jags!