HATTIESBURG, Miss.- There is just something refreshing about walking back inside The Rock and seeing football being played again. We know Saturday's scrimmage was just that-only a scrimmage-and that there was no opponent standing on the opposite sideline. There was no scoreboard that mattered, and nobody left M.M. Roberts Stadium Saturday morning with a win or a loss attached to their record. But still, it felt different.
For the first time this fall, we got an extended look at Southern Miss in a setting that looked and felt a little more like football. From the opening drive until the final whistle, there was plenty to watch and take note of during the Golden Eagles ' first scrimmage.
Avery Sledge (#33) with Coach Joe Bolden going over last-minute adjustments before the scrimmage at The Rock. | Josh House
The defense made plays and let everybody know about it. The offense answered with some of its own. Guys were flying around. New faces continued to emerge. Position battles we've talked about since the beginning of August finally had the opportunity to play out over an extended number of snaps.
And they did all of it on a turf that head coach Blake Anderson said reached126 degreesat one point. Welcome to August football in South Mississippi .
"I love the way everybody came out to play in general," Anderson said. "As hot as it is, and as sore and as tired as they are, the fact that they showed up and we got the energy that we wanted, I think that's probably the biggest takeaway."
That was my biggest takeaway, too. This team still has plenty to figure out. Coach A would probably be the first person to tell you that. But Saturday gave us our best opportunity yet to see what this group could eventually become.
With one week of fall camp remaining, here are the five things that stood out the most from Southern Miss ' first scrimmage inside The Rock.
Southern Miss going through key drills at The Rock. | Josh House
Forget the depth chart for a second. Forget who won the quarterback battle Saturday. Forget who caught the most passes, who had the most tackles, or which side of the ball technically "won" the day.
I woke up Saturday morning wanting to see how this team responded when the coaches backed away a bit and let them play football. Personally, I thought we got that answer pretty quickly.
There was an energy on both sides of the ball that carried throughout the morning. It did not feel like a group simply trying to survive another Saturday practice in the middle of August.
That is important because Coach A has spent much of fall camp talking about toughness, accountability, and finding out who will continue fighting when things get uncomfortable.
Without a doubt, 126 degrees on the turf is pretty uncomfortable. "Our goals were pretty simple: come ready to go today," Anderson said. "I thought they did." Anderson said he knew the conditions would be difficult. In fact, he wanted them to be. "It was really hot," Anderson said. "Knew it was going to be hot, needed it to be hot. At one point, it was 126 on the turf, and I really felt like for the day, they tried to play hard."
Was it perfect? Not even close. Anderson knows there will be some ugly moments when the coaching staff turns on the film. There were missed tackles. There were balls on the ground. There were sacks that probably could have been avoided.
But here is what did not happen. Nobody quit. "Nobody griped, nobody complained," Anderson said. "Thought guys tried to give us what we wanted." For the first of two scrimmages scheduled during fall camp, that tells us more about this football team right now than any unofficial score ever could.
Ethan Hampton (#5) at Southern Miss Fall Camp at The Rock. | Josh House
There's one thing that everyone wants to know: Who is QB1? If you were hoping Saturday would finally answer that question, you will have to wait a little longer. Landry Lyddy and John White both had opportunities to run the offense Saturday, and neither did anything that seemed to surprise Coach Anderson. "They kind of did what I expect," Anderson said.
There are some things he wants cleaned up. Coach A mentioned sacks that could have been avoided and times when the quarterbacks held onto the football too long. There was also a late interception that Anderson credited the defense for making a good play on.
John White (#12) at Southern Miss' Fall Camp. | Josh House
"Some sacks we could've avoided," Anderson said. "Thought we had the ball a little bit too long at times. The interception was late, and a good play by the defense." But Saturday was supposed to give us another piece of this quarterback puzzle.
Ethan Hampton just never got much of an opportunity to provide it. Hampton injured his throwing hand on the opening drive after catching a helmet during an RPO. The good news is that X-rays showed no structural damage. "Just a good, solid contusion," Anderson said. "He'll be okay."
That might have been one of the better pieces of news to come out of Saturday because Anderson made it clear this was supposed to be an important day for Hampton. "Hate that Ethan missed a day," Anderson said. "We really needed to give him a good solid day. This was going to be a big day for him to get to show us what he's capable of, but we'll just have to get that this week."
And there it is: This week. The quarterback competition is heading into the final week of fall camp without the answer everyone is waiting for, but that makes the next several practices and the final scrimmage awfully important.
Mario Sanders (#1), MJ Brown (#3), and Kanden Saunders (7) | Josh House
One thing that kept standing out Saturday was just how many different receivers were getting involved, and that may be one of the more interesting developments on this offense. Southern Miss does not appear to be looking for one receiver to becomethe guy. There may be enough options in that room for Coach A not to approach it that way at all.
Anderson said the Golden Eagles could have seven, eight, or maybe even nine receivers capable of contributing when everybody is healthy. Read that again. Potentially nine.
"We're playing a lot of guys," Anderson said. "I think there's probably seven, eight, maybe even as nine guys when everybody's healthy that can contribute."
Jaylen Himes was one of the guys who flashed Saturday . Anderson also mentioned AJ Little, Eelijah Singleton, and Davis Dalton when talking about the room and specifically pointed toward the camp Davis has put together. "Davis has had a really, really good camp," Anderson said. "I think there's a bunch of guys that can add value in that room and really be impactful."
Now comes the fun part. Who separates? We have spent much of fall camp asking that question at several positions, and wide receiver is quickly becoming one of the more interesting ones.
Anderson believes some guys are beginning to move toward the front of the line. "I do feel like there's some guys that are starting to rise to the top," Anderson said. "Definitely it's going to be some guys are going to be the first to go."
But what happens if nobody completely separates? Apparently, Coach A is fine with that too. "If not, we'll play all of them, and just have really fresh legs," Anderson said. "Not a bad problem to have."
No, Coach. It is not.
If Southern Miss can consistently rotate that many receivers without a major drop-off, suddenly that crowded room becomes a weapon. Fresh legs matter late in games, and having multiple guys who can make plays gives this offense options that could become extremely valuable once the season gets rolling.
Southern Miss Defense running through drills at Fall Camp. | Josh House
It did not take long for Jameer Lewis to get his opportunity Saturday and find his way into the backfield for a sack. For a guy who had only recently returned to Southern Miss after receiving another year of eligibility , it was a pretty good way to announce that he was back.
When Coach Blake Anderson was asked afterward about Lewis making an impact that quickly, his response was simple. "No surprise."
Two words. But that tells you quite a bit about what this coaching staff already knows about Lewis. "I've been really pleased with just how well they've acclimated so quickly considering that this all happened fast, and they didn't get a lot of time to prepare," Anderson said.
Then came the part Southern Miss fans should probably pay attention to. "He loves to rush the passer, and he shows up really quickly." You had me at rush the passer. Lewis finished last season with three sacks for Southern Miss, and now the Golden Eagles unexpectedly get him back for another year.
That could become a pretty important piece for Joe Bolden's defense. Southern Miss needs guys along the defensive front who can get into the backfield and make quarterbacks uncomfortable. Lewis has already shown he can do that at this level, and Saturday showed he did not need much time to start doing it again.
There is still plenty to figure out with this defensive front before Alcorn State comes to The Rock. But Jameer Lewis is back, and on Saturday, he made sure everyone took notice.
Kelby Hampton (#28) at Southern Miss Fall Camp at The Rock. | Josh House
This was arguably the biggest takeaway I had after leaving The Rock on Saturday. We still do not know exactly what Southern Miss will look like when the Golden Eagles line up in Week 1. Neither does Coach A, and that is okay.
This roster has so many new faces and so many competitions still happening that Anderson admitted Saturday the staff has not really established a true two-deep yet. "We haven't really put together a two-deep, man," Anderson said. "It's daily competition, which is one of the best things that we have going for us."
There's nothing wrong with that. Nobody needs to be handed anything in the middle of August. Go win it. Saturday gave us glimpses of what some of those battles could eventually produce. The defense created turnovers. The offense began to find more success on the ground as the scrimmage continued.
Jyaire Brown (#3) at Fall Camp. | Josh House
"I thought we ran the ball better as the day went on," Anderson said. "Little by little, those runs started to be more and more effective. And we're okay with that if we'll just be patient and keep hammering it."
The receivers showed depth. New additions flashed, and after a physical morning with a ton of snaps in brutally hot conditions, Southern Miss walked away without suffering a significant new injury.
That last part matters. "For that many plays, that's my biggest key," Anderson said, "is to get a good work day without losing anybody."
There are also things that absolutely have to get better. Coach A was not pleased with the number of missed tackles defensively. Southern Miss had opportunities to get the offense off the field after putting them behind the chains and did not always finish the job.
"Too many missed tackles," Anderson said. "Had them behind the chains a couple times, let them off the hook. Can't happen. It happened last year. It hurt us."
That is the balance of a scrimmage like this. There was enough good to get excited about. There was enough bad to keep everybody from getting comfortable. Then finally, there is one more week to do something about it.
This Coming Week
Welcome To The Rock | Josh House
Saturday gave Coach Blake Anderson and his staff something they have been waiting for: a full scrimmage inside The Rock and a lot of film to go through. The next step is figuring out what to do with it.
Anderson said Southern Miss intentionally kept things relatively simple Saturday and will move into more situational football during the final week. "We're going to work situational ball all next week," Anderson said.
That means this week should begin answering a lot of the questions we have been asking since fall camp started. Who begins separating at quarterback? Which receivers work their way toward the top of that crowded room? Who earns their way into the two-deep? Which new faces can Coach A and this staff trust when the games actually count?
Saturday did not answer all of those questions. And honestly, that's okay. What it did was give us our best look yet at a Southern Miss football team that is slowly beginning to take shape.
Blake Anderson at The Rock | Josh House
Now there is one week left to start putting the names next to the roles.
The Golden Eagles will return to The Rock next Saturday forFan Fest from 11 AM to 1 PM, giving Southern Miss fansan opportunity to see this team as fall camp wraps up and attention turns toward Week 1 against Alcorn State.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/southernmiss as How Saturday's Scrimmage Changed The Conversation Around Southern Miss Fall Camp .
