Coach Fulmer's Tuesday Media Day Comments

???I???ll probably get asked about this, so I am going to address it on the front end. I do think it was to our advantage to play a team like Cal in the opener, particularly with the schedule that we have coming. It doesn???t take away the sick feeling in your stomach, and being really mad yesterday and Sunday. Getting back to practice was probably the best medicine that you could possibly have, and getting back around the team and seeing them make the corrections and starting to work on the next opponent and to improve in the areas we need to improve in. But I think in the long run, it will pay dividends for us through the season.

???The first area we addressed yesterday was the kicking game. I told the football team for two weeks leading to Cal that we would win the game or lose the game as a team, and that the kicking game would be a very, very important part of that. We did not play as well as we would have liked to, starting with the kicks. We stayed after practice and worked diligently yesterday and we???ll continue to on the kickoffs. I don???t think we would be having this problem at all if Britton (Colquitt) was healthy and out there, because he certainly can kick it where you want it and as deep as you need it. It starts with the kicks, but even with that, our kickoff coverage was not good. We addressed that yesterday and we???ll make those corrections.

???It was a great run by an outstanding football player, but on the punt return we missed three tackles, lost contain and they got away with a couple of blocks in the back. The result of it was 77 yards and a score that we really didn???t make them earn. I guess that???s the best way to put it. Other than that, the returner did an excellent job.

???Our kickoff return, we had a positive start, and we certainly hope to be able to build on that. I was really pleased with Daniel (Lincoln) and his extra point and field goal efforts. That should give him confidence, and lets us build on that. We will be better in the kicking game as we go along.

???For our football team in general, there are lots of improvements to be made. The most obvious to everybody would be our tackling, and our focus was on that starting yesterday, not just tackling but being in the right position to make the plays. Our front played reasonably well. Our linebackers played reasonably well, but we missed too many tackles in the secondary and a few at linebacker. We???re looking to make significant progress this week on that. We also felt like, going into the game, that it was very important that we win the time of possession and keep Cal???s offense off the field, whether it be by running or passing. We were able to win the time of possession, but I do feel like??and I know Coach Cutcliffe feels the same way??that we want to work to be more balanced as an offensive football team. Playing behind had a little bit of an affect on that, but also Cal played very soft coverage. We blistered them pretty good last year, and they were not going to give up a big play. Consequently, getting the ball down the field any more than we did was a little bit more of a challenge. We hope to be able to build on that. We did take our shots a few times, connected on some, and would like to be able to connect on all of those.

???Another area that is certain. We have to stop the run better. That gets back again to the tackling, but also getting off blocks up front; not just controlling the gap, but putting ourselves in a position to make plays.?? That is certainly something that we are going to continue to address.

???It was a good start for us as far as penalty discipline in a hostile environment. That will pay dividends for us if we can stay on that track. Particularly, I was interested in the no-huddle and being able to manage the clock and manage the communications with a reasonably loud crowd. It is certainly not like what we will face as we go down the road.

???Execution on offense was a positive for the most part. Those last couple of drives we certainly would have liked to put ourselves in a position to win the game, and we failed and didn???t do that. We???re still looking for those guys that can create more big plays for us from the standpoint of getting chunks of yards. We threw several screen passes that we had opportunities to make, and even down-the-field throws. We want to get better there.

???Eric Berry is a special football player. He will start at safety for us opposite of Jon Hefney. He did even start the game, as we started in our nickel package expecting them to come out and throw the football to try to soften us up. I???m looking forward to big things from Eric. I do want to make it clear; Jarod Parish did not lose the game by any stretch of the imagination. We???ll need him down the road, his work ethic and his attitude. His ability to play safety will be important to us as we go along.

???I know everybody was concerned about Xavier Mitchell. He???s going to be fine. We???re very thankful that he is going to be OK. I???m very grateful to our medical staff as to how they handled all of that to make sure that he was going to be OK.
???After every game, whether we win or lose, we do a really good job of critiquing ourselves. I talked about some of the things already. The area of being able to get some other dynamics on our football team with (Kenny) O???Neal and (Lennon) Creer and (Brent) Vinson and Gerald Jones, we???re still going to work like heck at that.

???Having LaMarcus Coker back will certainly be a big help for us. He has requested not to talk to the media, and I will respect those wishes. He is working hard to take care of his business from an academic standpoint, socially, and certainly athletically. We???ll continue to work with him, but as he clearly understands, there are no more chances.

???Southern Miss is a darn good football team, defending conference champions last year. They are a very challenging defensive football team. Their front, linebackers, secondary have all played together for a long time as they have 10 returning starters on their defense. They make you work at it, which is kind of the norm this day and age.

???Offensively, we???ve studied them all summer and been very impressed with their tailback. Somebody asked me who he reminds me of. He???s not quite as big, but he is the same kind of runner as Arian Foster. He is able to break tackles and make people miss and find creases and bounce plays. He???s a real challenge for our defense, especially coming off an effort where we didn???t tackle very well.

???The quarterback is impressive. He???s a good player, a good athlete. The tight end is impressive. He could start in the Southeastern Conference. The wide receivers do a great job and the offensive line is big and physical, so there is balance there.

???They do a great job in the kicking game. The punter averaged 46.6 yards per punt in the first game. The kicker is very good and the snapper is very good. They do a good job with coverage.

???I reminded the team that in the last 10 years, Southern Miss has beaten Alabama twice, Auburn, Nebraska, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech. So they know that we are facing another really fine football team, and that we???ll have to play well to win the ballgame.???