The Georgia Southern football team will have a packed to-do list for the next few weeks.
The Eagles are under a new head coach for the third time in as many seasons, and for the second straight year, they’ll use the NCAA-allotted 15 spring workouts to install an entirely new system, get acquainted with a different staff and sort out the depth chart. Spring practice officially begins today — the Eagles will workout for about two hours beginning around 3:20 p.m. — and will culminate with the annual Blue-White game April 21 at 1 p.m.
“We are very excited and, of course, very busy,” said first-year GSU coach Chris Hatcher, who was hired in mid-January. “We’ve got a lot of stuff to do, and we are looking forward to getting out there and seeing what these boys can do.”
The Eagles were a school-worst 3-8 last year under first-year coach Brian VanGorder, who resigned two months after GSU concluded its season with five straight losses. Southern returns 45 letterwinners and 17 starters (eight on offense, seven on defense and two specialists) from 2006, the first season the Eagles veered away from their signature triple-option offense.
This year Georgia Southern will switch offenses again, moving from 2006’s traditional, pro-style set to the Hatch Attack, a spread approach perfected by Hatcher at Valdosta State where he was 76-12 in six years.
One of GSU’s top priorities will be finding a starting quarterback, a role that will likely go to last year’s starter, junior Travis Clark, or sophomore Chris Griffin, who rejoins the Eagles after missing 2006 for academic reasons. Griffin earned the starting job during the spring last year, but Clark transferred from Southern Mississippi in the summer and took over after Griffin became ineligible.
Redshirt freshmen Jeremiah Enloe and Kyle Collins will also contend for time at the helm. Sophomore Chris Rogers, who competed at quarterback but was redshirted last year, has moved to defensive back.
Senior playmaker Jayson Foster, the starting quarterback in 2005, will vie for a job at receiver and running back. Foster told Hatcher he wasn’t interested in trying out for QB when the coach asked each Eagle which position they’d like to play. Junior Chris Covington, who rushed for a team-high 824 yards and eight touchdowns last year, has switched to defensive back.
The Eagles should be deep at running back where they return senior Florida State transfer Lamar Lewis (782 yards, seven TDs) and welcome junior Oklahoma State transfer Mike Hamilton, the 2005 Big 12 offensive newcomer of the year.
Today will mark their first time on the football field, but the Eagles have been hard at work in the weight room and with agility drills.
“We’ve seen how their work ethic is, but as far as their football skills go, we won’t know that until we start practicing,” Hatcher said. “They’ve really worked hard and tried to do things the way we want them done. Those things don’t happen overnight, but so far, I think everything seems to be falling into place.”
Georgia Southern opens its season Sept. 8, hosting West Georgia for a 6 p.m. game.
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 489-9413.
The Eagles are under a new head coach for the third time in as many seasons, and for the second straight year, they’ll use the NCAA-allotted 15 spring workouts to install an entirely new system, get acquainted with a different staff and sort out the depth chart. Spring practice officially begins today — the Eagles will workout for about two hours beginning around 3:20 p.m. — and will culminate with the annual Blue-White game April 21 at 1 p.m.
“We are very excited and, of course, very busy,” said first-year GSU coach Chris Hatcher, who was hired in mid-January. “We’ve got a lot of stuff to do, and we are looking forward to getting out there and seeing what these boys can do.”
The Eagles were a school-worst 3-8 last year under first-year coach Brian VanGorder, who resigned two months after GSU concluded its season with five straight losses. Southern returns 45 letterwinners and 17 starters (eight on offense, seven on defense and two specialists) from 2006, the first season the Eagles veered away from their signature triple-option offense.
This year Georgia Southern will switch offenses again, moving from 2006’s traditional, pro-style set to the Hatch Attack, a spread approach perfected by Hatcher at Valdosta State where he was 76-12 in six years.
One of GSU’s top priorities will be finding a starting quarterback, a role that will likely go to last year’s starter, junior Travis Clark, or sophomore Chris Griffin, who rejoins the Eagles after missing 2006 for academic reasons. Griffin earned the starting job during the spring last year, but Clark transferred from Southern Mississippi in the summer and took over after Griffin became ineligible.
Redshirt freshmen Jeremiah Enloe and Kyle Collins will also contend for time at the helm. Sophomore Chris Rogers, who competed at quarterback but was redshirted last year, has moved to defensive back.
Senior playmaker Jayson Foster, the starting quarterback in 2005, will vie for a job at receiver and running back. Foster told Hatcher he wasn’t interested in trying out for QB when the coach asked each Eagle which position they’d like to play. Junior Chris Covington, who rushed for a team-high 824 yards and eight touchdowns last year, has switched to defensive back.
The Eagles should be deep at running back where they return senior Florida State transfer Lamar Lewis (782 yards, seven TDs) and welcome junior Oklahoma State transfer Mike Hamilton, the 2005 Big 12 offensive newcomer of the year.
Today will mark their first time on the football field, but the Eagles have been hard at work in the weight room and with agility drills.
“We’ve seen how their work ethic is, but as far as their football skills go, we won’t know that until we start practicing,” Hatcher said. “They’ve really worked hard and tried to do things the way we want them done. Those things don’t happen overnight, but so far, I think everything seems to be falling into place.”
Georgia Southern opens its season Sept. 8, hosting West Georgia for a 6 p.m. game.
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 489-9413.
