<span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Bower's staff in for big changes</span>

Golden Eagles still must fill two coaching vacancies while recruiting

By Tim Doherty
tdoherty@clarionledger.com

HATTIESBURG — Southern Miss football coach Jeff Bower and his staff have their hands full with the final leg of the recruiting season revving up.

Bower also will be doing some other recruiting of sorts.

USM still has to fill two coaching slots on his staff, one on each side of the ball.

Bower has left the initial stages of interviewing in the hands of his new coordinators, Jay Johnson (offense) and Jay Hopson (defense).

"They did some of that at the (national coaches') convention, and we'll obviously do more here now," Bower said. "It's just tough, with recruiting going on."

USM's staff could look quite different come spring practice, even with six of last year's nine assistants returning.

Bower dismissed offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Rip Scherer and receivers coach Dave Warner following USM's 7-5 season.

Defensive coordinator/middle linebackers coach Tyrone Nix left USM to become co-coordinator at South Carolina.

The only current staff positions slotted so far have been where the coordinators will coach.

<a href='http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050116/SPORTS030104/501160400' target='_blank'>CLARION-LEDGER: Bower's staff in for big changes</a>

I read that yesterday in the CL. I think the mostt important position to fill is a QB coach. I think that if we can find a guy to help develop our QB's then we will be back to playing USM football.

When our QB's struggle our team struggles.

eagleriffic Wrote:I read that yesterday in the CL. I think the mostt important position to fill is a QB coach. I think that if we can find a guy to help develop our QB's then we will be back to playing USM football.

When our QB's struggle our team struggles.

Quote:Johnson will move from running backs to coach the quarterbacks. Hopson will take over the defensive backfield, the position he coached at USM for three seasons (2001-03) before heading up the secondary at Ole Miss in 2004.

Thanks for pointing that out. Not sure how I overlooked that.

:bang: