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(11/25/15 8:05am)
This week is a special Thanksgiving edition of Inside the Den. Hayes and Justin discuss the holiday and give their family traditions. The guys are joined by former Mercer baseball player and founder of MUBeardown fan forum Shawn Arnold. Arnold discusses the ins and outs of Mercer athletics and tells a story on why Mercer is so special to him and his family. Then in the second segment Zach Jackson the starting safety for the Mercer football team joins the desk to discuss his season of clutch plays as well as his recent win in a cupcake baking contest on campus.
We have broken this episode up into two segments, each will be posted on the sound cloud and here for you to listen.
https://soundcloud.com/inside-the-den/inside-the-den-thanksgiving-edition
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/inside-the-den/inside-the-den-thanksgiving-edition-part-2[/embed]
(11/12/15 6:00am)
Just over a year removed from its Cinderella run in the 2014 NCAA Tournament, the Mercer men’s basketball team is squarely focused on reaching that pedestal again.
Coming off a rebuilding season after losing seven key players from the 2013-2014 squad, the men’s team registered a record of 19-16 last year and ended its season with a 71-69 loss to Louisiana-Monroe in the quarterfinals of the CBI Tournament.
Coach Bob Hoffman and his players will be looking for their lost slipper again this year.
At Mercer Madness Friday, Oct. 16, Hoffman told the crowd he wanted to reconvene in Hawkins Arena 149 days later on March 13 — “Selection Sunday” — for the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
“Let’s go dancing in 2016,” Hoffman said, shouting to the crowd.
But if the Bears want to dance like they did at the Mercer Madness event, they’ll be faced with the task of replacing seniors T.J. Hallice — who just signed to play for Dinamo Bucuresti in Romania — and Darious Moten, who was second on the team in scoring last year with 11.4 points per game.
And he was only second to Ike Nwamu, who led the Bears with 15.1 points per game before he transferred to UNLV in the spring.
But Hoffman has moved on from the shooting guard who put on a show in 2014’s Mercer Madness.
“We’re not worried about him being gone,” Hoffman said. “We’re happy for him, but that was a long time ago. That was in the spring. We’ve had nine months.”
Senior guard Jibri Bryan, who is the team’s second-leading returning scorer at 7.8 points per game, said replacing the lost starters could reap positive benefits.
“It’s going to make us closer, honestly — make us stronger,” he said. “Because we want to prove people wrong. It’s going to make us go harder.”
Replacing starters will not be unfamiliar for Hoffman. The Bears had an entirely new starting five last year.
“It’s just like the other years,” Hoffman said. “We were two or three possessions away from winning the league [last year]. That’s the kind of program we have.”
And despite the new faces, Mercer finished third in the conference during the regular season before losing to 10th-seeded Furman in the Southern Conference tournament.
Senior guard Phillip Leonard said the loss has motivated the team even more this year.
“Every workout, we think about losing in the SoCon tournament,” he said. “We have to work each day to make sure that doesn’t happen next year, and we’re a lot more ready and prepared.”
Third place is exactly where the SoCon preseason poll tabbed the Bears this year, as Mercer gained one first-place vote behind Chattanooga and Wofford.
No Mercerians earned any conference preseason accolades, but Hofford isn’t concerned. No players earned the recognition last year, either.
“I know we’ll have some players that will end up having some kind of accolades based on what our team performance is because of how they give themselves to each other and are excited about each other’s success,” Hoffman said. “I think this year’s team will be no different than a lot of the years we have been here.”
But neither Leonard, who is the team’s leading returning scorer from last year at 8.1 points per game, nor Bryan, believe they have to fill the gap left by Nwamu. Both want to improve as leaders, and while they will play important roles for the team, they said others will step up to replace Hallice, Moten and Nwamu.
“We have a lot of guys that’s going to step up and play fine for us — a lot of guys that probably didn’t play as much last year that you probably didn’t get to see,” Leonard said. “But they’re really good players, and we’re counting on everyone to contribute.”
Some of those contributors might be newcomers, as five new faces will take the court this year for the Bears: freshmen Ethan Stair, Cory Kilby and Jaylen Stowe, as well as transfers Desmond Ringer and Andrew Fishler.
Ringer — a redshirt sophomore who transferred from South Carolina — and Fishler — a 7’1” redshirt junior from Gulf Coast Community College — will “be a force in every game that we play,” Hoffman said, as they play a similar position but in opposite ways.
But it will be a team effort for the Bears if they want to play Cinderella again.
“Every day you walk out to practice, you’re trying to figure out a way to put yourself in a position to get better each night, each day that you practice and every game that you play,” Hoffman said. “Eventually, you hope winning is a byproduct of doing things right throughout the season, and you find a way to win three in a row in March to get to go to the [NCAA Tournament].”
(11/11/15 2:25am)
Hayes and Justin sit down with the head coach of both the men's and women's basketball teams. Coach Bob Hoffman discusses his dancing skills and how the team is shaping up. Coach Susie Gardner tells about her young but talented squad and how they are prepping for the season opener. All of this and more to get you ready for tip off on Friday night at Hawkins arena. Also, your hosts tackle other hot topics around Mercer athletics including soccer, volleyball and football. Get ready to step Inside the Den.
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/mercer-cluster/inside-the-den-basketball-special[/embed]
(11/04/15 8:00am)
This week controversial topics and rants fill the den. Hayes and Justin weigh in on hot topics from around the world of sports. Should Mercer head coach Bobby Lamb's job be at risk with recent football struggles? Find out what the guys think as they debate the issue. The Mercer men's soccer team is heading into their Southern Conference tournament this week; hear from our two special guests, Ian Antley and Will Bagrou, as they give their take on what to expect for the tournament. Hear all that and more as you step inside the den for a loaded episode this week.
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/mercer-podcast/inside-the-den-ep-8[/embed]
(10/29/15 5:17am)
The game of golf has been with freshman Mary Augusta Janiga from the moment she entered the world. She shares her namesake with the course that takes breathes away — The Augusta National.
The National, host of one of golf’s four majors — The Masters Tournament — resides in Augusta, Georgia, and mystifies viewers because of its magnificent beauty featuring rolling hills, blooming azaleas, and pristine green shades of light and dark grasses.
And because of her play on the links in only her first semester on the Mercer Women’s Golf team, Janiga has put forth her best efforts in trying to live up to her middle name. After leading the team with strong performances in the first two tournaments of the fall season, Janiga’s successes culminated at the Fighting Camel Classic in Buies Creek, North Carolina, on October 20 when she captured her first collegiate victory in record-breaking fashion.
After rounds of 72, 73 and 70, the Wellington, Florida, native became only the second player in the tournament’s 21-year history to finish under par as she won by three shots over Campbell’s Nadine White, the 62nd-ranked player in the country according to Golfweek.
[pullquote speaker="Mary Janiga" photo="" align="right" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]Going into spring season, (I) just hope for the best, play my game, keep everything level-headed.[/pullquote]
“I just wanted to end the season with a good tournament,” Janiga said.
Janiga became the first Mercer women's golfer to earn medalist honors since Katy Harris won the 2014 Forest Oaks Fall Classic. Prior to the tournament, in which the team placed fourth, the freshman said she had played “God awful” in the team’s qualifying rounds. It didn’t get much better once the team arrived in North Carolina.
“Then, we got to the course, and I was hitting it just as bad,” Janiga said. “I was duck-hooking shots. I was like, ‘Coach, I don’t know what’s happening.’ “
But once she reached the first tee in round one, something clicked. She said she hit it “flawlessly” in the first two rounds. And then round three came. The duck-hooks followed, as she hit three on the first five holes.
“I hit three solid drives that entire day,” Janiga said.
But she made up for her struggles off the tee with strong iron play and 26 putts on the day. Her final-round 70 tied for the tournament’s single-round low score; only three players, including Nadine, finished within 10 shots of Janiga after the three-day tournament.
But her impressive performance in the team’s final tournament of the fall season did not come out of nowhere. Janiga finished with the lowest score in each of the team’s first two tournaments, the Golfweek Program Challenge in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and the Johnie Imes Invitational in Columbia, Missouri.
Rounds of 75, 70 and 72 earned her a seventh-place finish in Myrtle Beach as the team finished sixth in its first tournament of the year. In Missouri, Janiga finished in fifth place after rounds of 71, 69, and 71 as the team placed 13th. For the fall season, she registered a scoring average of 71.4 over nine rounds and currently ranks as the 243rd-best player in the country.
But Janiga isn’t the first of her family to experience the world of college golf. Her father, Tim, played at Southern Connecticut State University and passed on his love of golf to Mary.
Janiga said she started playing golf at the age of five years old and tournaments at seven, but she did not become serious until she was 10 or 11. She fiddled with the game even before kindergarten. She first held and swung a golf club at two years old.
“I have a picture of it,” Janiga said.
By eight, she was already breaking world records. With her mom as a witness, Janiga became the youngest female to register a hole-in-one. She recalled the event with a smile on her face.
“It was like the 5th hole at Boca Raton Municipal,” she said. “I hit a 7-8 iron. I hit it, and the wind kind of blew it in, and my mom… we’re looking everywhere for it. We’re looking short, we’re looking in the bunkers, we’re looking over the green. My mom was like, ‘Did you check the hole?’ I went and it was, like, right there.”
But even though Mary’s father loved golf, she said her mother was not the most knowledgeable about the sport.
“My mom was like, ‘Does that even count?’” Janiga said.
It counted, so much so that Janiga received a certificate from Guinness World Records. That is, until six months later, someone broke her record.
“Then a five-year-old beat me,” Janiga said. “Can’t win.”
Once she became serious about playing tournaments, it augmented her interest in playing college golf — just like her father. In sixth grade, Janiga attended a golf camp hosted by the University of Florida.
“I had so much fun,” Janiga said. “We got to meet some of the girls and the guys on the team. They showed us the facilities and the locker rooms. It was awesome.”
And for some time after her entrancement, she wanted to become a Gator herself — until she reached high school and decided a small school would be a better fit.
“Within the last four years, I was like, small school,” Janiga said. “I can’t do a big school at all. It’s too overwhelming.”
Enter: Mercer University. On the junior golf stage, Janiga said she did not reach her peak until the summer before her senior year. She received many emails from smaller schools and strongly considered Jacksonville State in Alabama. But after going back-and-forth for a year with the program, she decided it wasn’t the place for her.
“I was like, ‘If I haven’t said anything, it’s probably not the right choice for me,’ “ Janiga said.
After winning the Florida Girls’ Junior Championship, Janiga placed top-16 at the USGA Girls’ Junior Championship in the summer of 2014, beating two University of Southern California commits during the process.
So the Florida native started talking to Terese Romeo, also a current freshman on the team, who went to high school in Tampa. After speaking with Gary Guyer, Mercer’s coach at the time, Janiga made a visit.
“The second I stepped on campus, I just knew,” Janiga said. “I played in a golf tournament that weekend, I drove back home, stayed at home for a day, drove back up to Georgia, visited Mercer, came back down and a month later I committed.”
Only weeks before she arrived on campus, Janiga added another victory to her resume, winning the Optimist Junior Championship at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Her stellar play translated to her first three tournaments, and now, Janiga said she hopes to use a near four-month off-season to make changes to her game for the spring.
“I’m gonna make some swing changes over winter break that I’ve been wanting to make the past couple of years. It’s a long break — a long offseason,” she said. “Going into spring season, (I) just hope for the best, play my game, keep everything level-headed.”
(10/29/15 4:46am)
The 2015-16 Mercer Men’s Basketball team will feature five new faces donning orange and black this season as three freshman and two transfers join the squad.
Andrew Fishler, Center
A big man epitomizing the phrase at 7-foot-1, Andrew Fishler transferred from Gulf Coast State College in Panama City, Florida, last year after playing two years at the community college.
Since it’s only a two-year school, Fishler decided to play the remainder of his two years of eligibility at Mercer because of the overall fit.
“It’s small; (I) feel at home,” Fishler said. “It’s a beautiful campus. Felt like I’d fit in better.”
Before redshirting in 2014, the Cumming native averaged 5.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks per game as a sophomore for the Commodores. In high school, Fishler utilized his height to register state records in single-game (18), season (212), and career (308) blocks.
While off the court, Fishler said he enjoys spending time with his family, especially on the water at Lake Lanier. On the court this season, he said he wants to “get a championship ring.
“Just to do the best that I can do — not be selfish with it.”
Desmond Ringer, Forward
The Mercer connection goes back to eighth grade for Desmond Ringer. The 6-foot-9 forward was first recruited by head coach Bob Hoffman before he reached Eagles Landing High School in McDonough, and even though the path to becoming a Bear wasn’t a direct route, Ringer now dons orange and black.
Ranked the seventh best prospect in Georgia and a three-star prospect by Rivals in the 2013 class, Ringer left the state for the University of South Carolina. But after a freshman year in which Ringer averaged 2.1 points and 2.0 rebounds in 10.4 minutes played per game, he transferred to Mercer.
Along with his relationship with Hoffman, Ringer said he chose Mercer “to be closer to home.
“I just felt like it was an overall good look for me to come back home and play for Mercer,” he said.
Now, after being forced to sit last year because of transfer rules, Ringer will look to make noise on the court -- just like does on the drums.
“After the Mercer Madness, I got on the drum set and killed the drums for a little bit,” Ringer said.
Even though he transfers with a high pedigree, Ringer said he just wants to help the team win.
“Just to help the team in any way I can, whether it be scoring rebounding, playing defense,” he said. “I just want to contribute and add onto the team we had last year.”
Cory Kilby, Forward
The 6-foot-7 forward, who can play the three or four position, joins the Bears out of Ada, Oklahoma, after averaging 21 points and 11 rebounds per game as a senior at Ada High School.
He said his biggest draw to Mercer was the comradery of the team.
“When I came on my visit, I really liked the guys,” Kilby said. “Really connected. It felt like a tight-knit group, and I really liked that.”
Kilby also called the coaches “really awesome” and noted them as another reason for his choosing to become a Bear. But, talking about himself, Kilby said he prefers a smaller, less formidable animal.
“My favorite animals [are] turtles,” he said. “Every time I see one in the middle of the road, I save it. I pull over and help it across the road.”
But turtles will not be the only thing Kilby will attempt to help this year.
“Coming in as a freshman, it’s kind of hard to come in straight as a leader, but I’d like to lead our team to a conference championship and regular season champions, as well,” Kilby said. “That’s what I’m focused on for this season.”
Ethan Stair, Guard
The 6-foot-5 guard out of Hazel Green, Alabama, joins the Bears after averaging 22.4 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game as a senior at Hazel Green High School.
Just as Kilby, Stair chose Mercer because of the team atmosphere.
“When I came on my official visit, just hanging out with the guys, they made me feel like I was at home,” Stair said. “They accepted me right away.”
Along with starring on the basketball court in high school, Stair also excelled in swimming, where he holds the school record for the 50 Free. At Mercer, he wants to keep the winning tradition alive.
“Just to win as many games as possible and try to get some championships going,” Stair said.
Jaylen Stowe, Guard
The Mercer Bears have good memories in North Carolina. So this year, they tapped into the Tar Heel state’s basketball talent with Stowe, a 6-foot-2 guard out of Harrisburg, North Carolina, a town only two-and-a-half hours away from Raleigh, where the Bears knocked off Duke in the 2014 NCAA Tournament.
Stowe comes to Macon after averaging 22 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists per game as a senior at Hickory Ridge High School. He noted one of the reasons he chose Mercer was its “past success they’ve had the past couple years.
“Coach Hoffman, Coach (Eaker), everybody that just really wanted to bring me in,” Stowe said. “I felt like I could become a better person and better basketball player.”
Off the court, he doesn’t stray far from the sport: He said he likes to play the video game NBA 2K, a favorite among the squad.
This season, he plans to “just continue to get better every day.
“I feel like these guys are really pushing me, and it has come a long way since the summer time,” Stowe said. “I know if I keep working hard, the sky's the limit.”
(10/29/15 3:11am)
Inside the Den is back this week with a brand new episode. We have some very special guests this week including SoCon player of the month Maggie Cropp, goalkeeper for the women's soccer team and cross country SoCon tournament preview with runner Evan Park. Hayes and Justin talk about the keys to the Mercer football game against The Citadel. Check out this latest episode for all your sports need.
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/mercer-podcast/inside-the-den-podcast-episode-7[/embed]
(10/21/15 2:23am)
Homecoming is here, Justin Baxley and Hayes Rule are here getting you ready for all the festivities. With special guests president of the mercer maniacs Thomas Norton, starting quarterback John Russ and SGA rep/football player Tony Perella. Each guest offer their inside take on homecoming from three different perspectives as the Bears prepare for VMI on Saturday. The guys also jump into hot topics from around the SoCon and debate which animal could throw a football the best. You do not want to miss this very special edition of Inside the Den.
Photo credits on the podcast:Quadworks.
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/justinbaxley/inside-the-den-ep-6[/embed]
(10/15/15 6:49am)
They said he was too small.
Standing at 5-foot-9 and 168 pounds, Stephen Houzah played every game as a Panther at Lakeside High School in Evans, Georgia, as either a cornerback, wide receiver, or return specialist.
His impact on the gridiron led to an influx of awards as a senior. The Atlanta Journal Constitution named him a first-team all-state honoree, he won 2014 Defensive Player of the Year in GHSA Region 2-AAAAA and he was tabbed county defensive player of the year, as well.
But instead of recognizing Houzah, who — according to Mercer head coach Bobby Lamb — was the most valuable player on his team, college scouts turned their heads to fellow defensive back Rashad Roundtree. He wasn’t too small.
At 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, Roundtree had the tantalizing size college coaches at the FBS level search for in recruits. Ranked as the 33rd overall player and third best safety in the 2015 class by Rivals.com, Roundtree, a five-star recruit, chose the University of Georgia on signing day.
But despite Roundtree’s accolades and hype, high school coaches in the area said Houzah was the more impressive overall player, Lamb said.
“Roundtree was more of a bigger-bodied kid,” Lamb said. “But at the end of the day, every high school coach we talked to in the Augusta area felt like Stephen Houzah was the best player on the team overall because of all the things he brought to the table at returner, receiver and corner.”
He was just too small. Such height and weight concerns allowed Mercer to nab Houzah, Lamb said. Programs such as Appalachian State, Marshall, Chattanooga and Jacksonville State recruited him, but Houzah eventually signed with Mercer because of the academic prowess and his relationship with defensive line coach Kenny Baker.
“[Education] was big for me and my family,” Houzah said. “A degree from Mercer can take you a long way. I was thinking about, not football, but after football. That’s why I decided where I wanted to come.”
But, as Lamb put it, the Bears also had “an in” because of Baker. The second-year coach served as the defensive coordinator at Lakeside while Houzah was a Panther. After Baker left Augusta, he joined the staff at Berry College as co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach for a year before coming to Mercer.
“Coach Baker didn’t only know Stephen; he knew the entire family,” Lamb said.
Houzah said he first heard about Mercer through Baker and, as the saying goes, “the rest was history.”
But Houzah’s timestamp in history began in Atlanta. The freshman was born in Austell, a city in the Atlanta metropolitan area, and started his football journey in his backyard. He tried his hand at flag football at the age of 6, but once he reached tackle football, a light switched.
“I got to tackle football, and it was something I knew I wanted to do when I got older,” Houzah said.
He started playing football as a running back until he progressively moved to wide receiver, then defensive back as a sophomore in high school. And then the flip switched for a second time.
“That’s when I found out that this football could take me a long way as far as education,” Houzah said.
That realization came to fruition, and even though Houzah said he was “maybe underrated a little bit,” he was not resentful toward Roundtree.
“I wouldn’t say I was better than him,” Houzah said of his former teammate. “We worked out together; we trained together, so we were just feeding off each other.”
Houzah said he found the right fit in Mercer.
“Everything happened for a reason,” he said.
For Lamb and the coaching staff, Houzah was an exciting acquisition for the third-year program entering its second year in the competitive Southern Conference. Not only has Houzah brought a playmaking ability to the secondary and the return game, Lamb said, but he also offered depth to a thin secondary.
In 2014, the Bears used Alex Avant and — before suffering an injury — Jeremy James primarily at cornerback.
“They played every snap because we didn’t feel good about our backup corners,” Lamb said. “Now, Stephen comes in, and he helps us out a little bit with a rotation now.”
Defensive backs coach Mitch Doolittle also spoke of how Houzah has created a sense of competition on the field.
“It has helped our whole team, our whole defensive backfield, by having him just because he’s so competitive and a good football player,” Doolittle said. “It makes those around him better, as well.”
Houzah has played a role in every game this season, both at cornerback and as a kick returner. His breakout game was the team’s home-opener against Stetson, in which the freshman snatched two interceptions and returned the opening kickoff 40 yards.
The two interceptions were the most by any Mercer player in a game since the program was re-established in 2013. Houzah’s hands and shifty feet are conducive to playmaking ability, both Lamb and Doolittle agreed.
“You look for guys that are explosive out of their break and can really cut really quick — as we call it, ‘cutting on a dime,’” Lamb said. “And he can do that. He’s really quick out of his break. He’s quick to break on the ball.”
But those playmaking characteristics can be a downfall as a player transitions from high school to college. Cleaning up the little techniques in his game will be key for Houzah, Doolittle said.
“In college, everybody is good,” he said. “He’s having to learn, ‘OK, I can’t just rely on my athletic ability. I need skills. I need techniques. I need good discipline with my eyes, with my techniques.’”
One of those techniques Houzah and Doolittle have focused on so far has been eye discipline.
“This isn’t high school where you can just watch the quarterback and follow the ball and make plays,” Doolittle said. “These offenses are too good — quarterbacks are too good, receivers are too good — for us to be staring in the backfield because you’ll get run by.”
Around Mercer, there’s no talk of Houzah being too small. Rather, it’s how big of an impact he can make as he develops.
“He has a tremendous amount of ability given to him by God, however, he will be able to develop that ability even more in the off-season,” Lamb said. “I think the sky is the limit for this young man.”
And even though Houzah has made an early impact during his short time at Mercer, he’s not complacent. He hopes for big things — like a SoCon championship and a shot at the NFL.
The script hasn’t ended yet.
“I’m still writing my story,” he said.
(10/14/15 8:10pm)
Mercer Madness is this Friday night. Hayes Rule and Justin Baxley get you ready for that event and review the last week in Mercer sports. Including, soccer's recent string of wins, volleyball's home dominance, and Mercer footballs late game woes. This week two very special guest join the show as Kahlia Lawrence of the women's basketball team and Jestin Lewis of the men's basketball team offer insight on all things basketball, like who is the best dancer. Check out the latest episode here at the award winning Mercer Cluster website.
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/inside-the-den-podcast/inside-the-den-podcast-mercer-madness-ep-5[/embed]
(10/07/15 10:20pm)
Inside the Den is back this week reviewing all things Mercer and SoCon sports. Hayes and Justin get you ready for the week ahead with some previews of this weeks biggest match ups in the football. This episode features two very special guests: President of the Mercer Maniacs, Thomas Norton and Freshman Cross Country runner Ahmed Jama. Norton discusses some of the sports that the Maniacs are out cheering on. Jama describes life as a freshman student athlete.
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/inside-the-den-podcast/inside-the-den-podcast-episode-4[/embed]
(10/02/15 4:14am)
Check out the latest addition of the Inside the Den podcast.
Justin and Hayes are back this week with a complete makeover for the Cluster Sports Podcast. With a new name and a new focus on Mercer sports, the guys will get you ready for the sports week ahead. This week a special guest joined the podcast as Mercer head football coach Bobby Lamb. Coach Lamb discusses the upcoming Wofford game and some other things going on with Mercer football. Hayes and Justin also give a rundown of some of the games of the week in FCS,FBS,and NFL football.
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/inside-the-den-podcast/inside-the-den#t=0:01[/embed]
(09/29/15 3:09am)
An air of confidence is often viewed as beneficial for any athlete, and the Mercer men’s cross country team holds such a mindset as it prepares for its third race of the season, the “Julius Johnson Invitational,” held in Macon at the Georgia Industrial Children’s Home Sept. 25.
“I’d be surprised if they don’t win,” said Head Coach Ryan Bailey after fourth and tenth finishes in the team’s first two races.
Bailey, who is also the head coach for the women’s team, said he thought the girls had a “fair chance of winning” in a meet featuring Division I opponents Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Jacksonville State, and Savannah State. Division II squads Fort Valley State, Georgia Military College, and Central Georgia Technical College will also make an appearance.
“It’s not as big of a race as we raced [September 12] in Furman, so we’re going to possibly be running as a pack,” said freshman Ahmed Jama. “So, really, it’s just going to be place as many guys at the top of the race as we can.”
And because of the easier field, the Bears’ biggest challenge may be the course itself. Bailey laid out, or mapped, the course almost 20 years ago and called it a “true cross country course,” rather than a golf course like the team ran on in its last meet at Furman.
“It’s not an easy course,” Bailey said. “But it’s all on natural surfaces–grass and dirt–which is good.”
Few flat spots can be found on the course as it boasts rolling hills throughout the majority of the 8K track. While Furman’s course was hilly, both Jama and Bailey said it does not match up to the challenge the team will face in its home race.
“It’s a tough course, probably one of the tougher courses we’ll run all year,” Jama said.
So in order to prepare for the course’s challenges, the practice regimen has been simple: run more hills and spend time on the course itself. And with this race, Bailey said the team is transitioning into phase two of the season, when the team will practice more on hills.
“Up until this point in time, we haven’t done a tremendous amount of hill work,” Bailey said. “For the rest of the season, we’re in the next phase of training after the preseason.”
But other than an increase in hill work, Bailey said he will prepare the team no differently for this race than any other.
“We scope out the course, we try to develop a race planned based on the course’s set-up, where the hills are, where the finish line is in relation to the hills or any sharp turns,” he said. “You formulate how you get your race started, and you formulate how your plan of attack in the final third part of the race [will be]. We tend to attack pretty hard at that point.”
Bailey may expect a win now, but before the season, he wasn’t as confident in his men’s squad. While the women’s team returned every runner from last year, the men lost their entire starting five and returned only four from 2014.
“It was a little nerve racking,” Bailey said. “But we’ve had some pleasant surprises with the freshman class that came in.”
In the team’s first race, the “Strut’s Season Opener” at Jacksonville State, Jama broke the school’s 5K record with a time of 15:31.9, which was previously held by Sony Prosper. Jama’s time was approximately six or seven seconds faster than Prosper’s record, Bailey said.
The record-setting time placed Jama 15th overall in the race as he finished with the second best time of freshmen in the field. At Furman, an 8K race, the Woodstock, Georgia native led the team again with a 26:19.34 time and 41st overall finish.
“Ahmed Jama has really met expectations,” Bailey said. “He’s running very, very well. I knew he would, but I didn’t know to what extent. I thought he would be No. 2 on the team.”
Another freshman, Evan Park, has exceeded Bailey’s expectations after running times of 16:40 – third best for the team – and 27:47.30 – fifth best for the team. Bailey called him a “pleasant surprise.” And while fellow freshmen Abraham Balawi, McHenry Power, and Justin Hanson haven’t registered such finishes yet, Bailey has been happy with their progress, as well.
“This is, in terms of a freshman class, is probably my highest quality freshman class I’ve had maybe ever,” Bailey said.
With the new talent on the roster—including transfer sophomore Cameron Gatt from Australia—and the improvement from sophomores Mark Brannen and Nicholas Ashmead, Bailey said he sees a “tremendous amount of potential” on the men’s roster.
For the women, Bailey is not as confident in their prospects for the team’s home race because of some injury concerns. Senior Kami Orrender suffered what Bailey called a “pretty significant injury” but still competed in the first two events; Bailey said she has not yet fully recovered. She finished second on the team in each of the first two races with times of 15:17.05 in the season-opening 4K and 22:58.43 in Furman’s 6K meet.
Fellow senior Jenna Gipperich has taken the reins as the team’s top runner after 13th (14:55.73) and 38th (22:48.11) place finishes. Bailey failed to mention who in particular was struggling with some of the minor injuries on the team, but they are being monitored in order to prevent any setbacks.
“Even though it’s not a severe problem now, if you don’t take care of it, it will become a bad problem,” Bailey said. “We’re just being a little conservative.”
With both teams returning home with an opportunity to run away with a victory, Bailey is asking for some home-crowd support.
“I hear people say, ‘Well, cross country just isn’t a spectator sport,’ ” he said. “But go to any cross country race or road race or even a track meet … and there’s a ton of spectators. People tell me that all the time, and I think they’re talking through their hat because maybe they haven’t been to one. It’s fun to watch. I think, anyway.”
(09/26/15 3:57am)
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/user-773111892/cluster-sports-podcast-week-2[/embed]
This is the second episode of the Cluster Sports Podcast.
Hayes and Justin prepare you for the NFL and College football week ahead. With updates on injuries and thoughts on hot topics from around the football world. Also they offer up their picks for the key games of the week.
(09/18/15 3:49am)
After an inaugural year in which the Mercer Bears finished seventh in the Southern Conference with a 1-6 record, the third-year program has not yet earned the respect of its peers. The Bears were ranked sixth out of eight teams in the Southern Conference’s annual preseason poll.
The Bears eked out The Citadel by two points while VMI — who also registered only one victory in the conference last year as it finished eighth — remained at the bottom of the barrel according to the league’s coaches. For the Bears’ head coach, Bobby Lamb, the rankings don’t shock him since they’re largely based off last year.
“When you look at last year, that’s about right,” he said. “But hopefully our young men are looking at that and saying, ‘we want to move up a lot higher than that.’ I think there’s a lot of parity in this league, and I think we were so close in a lot of games last year, we can move up the ladder this year with some big wins.”
Offensive coordinator Casey Vogt shared the same sentiment as Lamb; the ranking is indicative of last year’s performance.
“You hate to say it. We only won one conference game last year, so expectations from the conference aren’t very strong, honestly,” he said. “As a coach, we look at how close we were in several of the games we did lose, and we look at it as we have a very bright future.”
The conference’s champion last year, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, found themselves at the top with seven first-place votes. Samford earned the only other first-place ranking, as it finished second. Western Carolina, Wofford, and Furman rounded out the top five.
But the Bears are hungry for more. The low ranking motivates both coaches and players to prove they belong, but the looming concern over the program this past off-season has been the urge to close games in the fourth quarter. After losing five conference games by seven or less points in 2014, the word “finish” permeates the atmosphere surrounding the Homer and Ruth Drake Field House.
“With the close losses last year, we’ve been selling to our team the entire off-season about finishing the drill, finishing the drive, finishing everything we do, that last rep in the weight room,” Lamb said. “The word ‘finish’ has been used a lot, and hopefully in the fourth quarter we can finish some of these games and get a W.”
Ranking low and losing close games, which go hand-in-hand, motivates Lamb, Vogt and starting running back Alex Lakes to prove the Bears can not only compete but win at a high level.
“I think any time you’re ranked low there’s a certain motivation that our coaches have, a certain motivation our team has, to move up that ladder,” Lamb said.
But Lakes knows the Bears are better than their record indicates; he’s driven to make amends for last year’s late-game struggles.
“When you lose a lot of close games, that motivates you in the off-season to come back,” Lakes said. “You know that you’re better than those teams, so we’re going to try to prove it this year on the scoreboard.”
Lakes was one of two Mercer players to earn preseason 1st Team All-Conference after rushing for 1,107 yards and 17 touchdowns on five and a half yards per carry as a freshman. Fellow sophomore Chandler Curtis received the honor as a return specialist and was the second of only three sophomores who earned the recognition.
“It just shows all the hard work that I did,” Lakes said. “The offensive line did a great job last year, offense as a whole did a great job blocking and setting up ways to run the ball so well last year.”
Four other Bears — defensive lineman Austin Barrett, linebacker Tyler Ward, defensive back Alex Avant and punter Matt Shiel — earned recognition on the 2nd Team All-Conference.
The young talent level on the team only bodes well for Mercer approaching this season and into the future. But first, the Bears are aiming to earn the respect of their peers. Even though Lamb believes Mercer is now “on the radar” of other Southern Conference teams, Lakes said respect only comes by winning.
“I feel like teams respect us more now because of what we did and how we played them last year and how close, but we just have to go out and win those games just to earn their respect,” he said. “That will be the only way you get it, just playing hard, and earning it and getting victories.”
(09/16/15 3:31am)
[embed]https://soundcloud.com/user-773111892/cluster-sports-podcast-episode-1[/embed]
Justin Baxley and Hayes Rule discuss some things going on in the football world.
Follow the hosts on Twitter for updates on the podcasts and sports.
Hayes Rule- @rule0021
Justin Baxley- @JbClusterSports
Special thank you to Adam Ragusea for helping with production and providing us with equipment for the podcast.
(09/12/15 4:40pm)
After an inaugural year in which the Mercer Bears finished seventh in the Southern Conference with a 1-6 record, the third-year program has not yet earned the respect of its peers. The Bears were ranked sixth out of eight teams in the Southern Conference’s annual preseason poll.
The Bears eked out The Citadel by two points while VMI — who also registered only one victory in the conference last year as it finished eighth — remained at the bottom of the barrel according to the league’s coaches. For the Bears’ head coach, Bobby Lamb, the rankings don’t shock him since they’re largely based off last year.
“When you look at last year, that’s about right,” he said. “But hopefully our young men are looking at that and saying, ‘we want to move up a lot higher than that.’ I think there’s a lot of parity in this league, and I think we were so close in a lot of games last year, we can move up the ladder this year with some big wins.”
Offensive coordinator Casey Vogt shared the same sentiment as Lamb; the ranking is indicative of last year’s performance.
“You hate to say it. We only won one conference game last year, so expectations from the conference aren’t very strong, honestly,” he said. “As a coach, we look at how close we were in several of the games we did lose, and we look at it as we have a very bright future.”
The conference’s champion last year, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, found themselves at the top with seven first-place votes. Samford earned the only other first-place ranking, as it finished second. Western Carolina, Wofford, and Furman rounded out the top five.
But the Bears are hungry for more. The low ranking motivates both coaches and players to prove they belong, but the looming concern over the program this past off-season has been the urge to close games in the fourth quarter. After losing five conference games by seven or less points in 2014, the word “finish” permeates the atmosphere surrounding the Homer and Ruth Drake Field House.
“With the close losses last year, we’ve been selling to our team the entire off-season about finishing the drill, finishing the drive, finishing everything we do, that last rep in the weight room,” Lamb said. “The word ‘finish’ has been used a lot, and hopefully in the fourth quarter we can finish some of these games and get a W.”
Ranking low and losing close games, which go hand-in-hand, motivates Lamb, Vogt and starting running back Alex Lakes to prove the Bears can not only compete but win at a high level.
“I think any time you’re ranked low there’s a certain motivation that our coaches have, a certain motivation our team has, to move up that ladder,” Lamb said.
But Lakes knows the Bears are better than their record indicates; he’s driven to make amends for last year’s late-game struggles.
“When you lose a lot of close games, that motivates you in the off-season to come back,” Lakes said. “You know that you’re better than those teams, so we’re going to try to prove it this year on the scoreboard.”
Lakes was one of two Mercer players to earn preseason 1st Team All-Conference after rushing for 1,107 yards and 17 touchdowns on five and a half yards per carry as a freshman. Fellow sophomore Chandler Curtis received the honor as a return specialist and was the second of only three sophomores who earned the recognition.
“It just shows all the hard work that I did,” Lakes said. “The offensive line did a great job last year, offense as a whole did a great job blocking and setting up ways to run the ball so well last year.”
Four other Bears — defensive lineman Austin Barrett, linebacker Tyler Ward, defensive back Alex Avant and punter Matt Shiel — earned recognition on the 2nd Team All-Conference.
The young talent level on the team only bodes well for Mercer approaching this season and into the future. But first, the Bears are aiming to earn the respect of their peers. Even though Lamb believes Mercer is now “on the radar” of other Southern Conference teams, Lakes said respect only comes by winning.
“I feel like teams respect us more now because of what we did and how we played them last year and how close, but we just have to go out and win those games just to earn their respect,” he said. “That will be the only way you get it, just playing hard, and earning it and getting victories.”