Southern head coach Terrence Graves coaches during practice, Tuesday, August 6, 2024, at A.W. Mumford Stadium on the campus of Southern University in Baton Rouge, La.
Southern coach Terrence Graves has seen all four of his quarterbacks through two-plus weeks of preseason camp, but he’s still not ready to name a starter for the Aug. 31 season opener at McNeese State. The Jaguars went through a 90-play scrimmage over the weekend, but Graves said Tuesday that he wants to give his offensive brain trust — led by coordinator Mark Frederick — a couple of more days to finalize the decision.
“They gave me an idea and told me they’d tell me on Thursday. Tune in,” Graves said with a laugh. “I believe the race is that close, from what they tell me.
I work for them. I’m just the head coach. “All four quarterbacks did a good job (in the scrimmage).
They executed the offense well and made plays. We threw one interception, and it was a great play by the defensive back. They executed the offense and moved the ball down the field.
" Junior Noah Bodden still appears to have the edge as a junior with five college starts, including last year’s Bayou Classic victory against Grambling. Bodden also was receiving the first reps in individual and team drills at practice Tuesday. Bodden threw for a touchdown and ran for another in Saturday’s scrimmage.
Redshirt freshman Czavian Teasett also had a TD rushing and passing, and Jalen Woods threw a TD pass. Transfer Angelo Izzard is also competing for the job. “(Bodden) has improved since I’ve coached him in two places,” Graves said.
“He’s grown and matured, getting better and better. He has to stay focused, and as I tell him be the best you that you can be. "He’s taken the right steps to be better.
He’s the leader because of his experience, but the other three have leadership qualities and push each other.” With Southern classes beginning Monday and players in school, Graves said the focus begins in earnest on McNeese this week. Practices have been switched from night to afternoons, and Graves said the offense started camp slow but has caught up.
“The prep for McNeese has already started,” he said. “We’ll focus in the next two weeks and will do some McNeese stuff (Tuesday) in practice. "The offense and defense go at it every day.
That’s what you want. You don’t want one side of the ball to dominate. If it does, that means you’re going to have a long, long season and not in a good way.
" Southern has had a 25% bump in season-ticket sales over last season, senior associate athletic director Rodney Kirschner said. The Jaguars saw about 6,000 sold last year compared with about 7,500 for 2024. The first home game is set for Sept.
7 against Savannah State. Kirschner also said single-game tickets are available for the five home games..
