TIGERS’ TURNAROUND ON TAP?
TSU COACH HAYWOOD NOT UNFAMILIAR WITH MAKING BIG STRIDES IN YEAR TWO
Jay Christophe was 5-of-8 for 112 yards and a touchdown in the 2016 opener against Prairie View A&M before Texas Southern was left wondering what could have been.
The now-senior quarterback lost the season to an ACL injury in that game.
“He is big, strong, he has speed,” TSU coach Michael Haywood said of Christophe before the start of fall camp.
“He’s got a strong arm. He can make any throw you want to make on the field. He’s a tough guy mentally and he’s a tough guy physically.
“He just hasn’t played enough football yet for him to be comfortable. I think the players realize he’s a leader but I don’t know if he realizes he’s that leader.”
Christophe’s return and health could be the key to a jump up the Southwestern Athletic Conference standings.
At least that’s what Haywood’s group hopes in his second season after 2016’s 4-7 campaign. TSU finished fourth in the West division but the head coach is no stranger to second-year turnarounds. At Miami (Ohio), Haywood took the RedHawks from 1-11 in 2009 to 9-4 and a Mid-American Conference title in 2010.
Christophe’s return alone is reason for optimism, although Haywood said he’s still hoping to create some competition at that position during camp.
But Haywood is excited about his offensive line, the center of his scheme.
Running back Brad Woodard returns for his junior season after leading the team in rushing with 515 yards.
Tracy Johnson and Malik Webb are the top two returning receivers.
Time to finish
Having all those familiar faces back means nothing if TSU can’t finish again this year. That wasn’t lost on Haywood’s mind this offseason.
“We lost a lot of games in the fourth quarter,” Haywood said.
The exact math adds up to four of the seven losses by a combined 19 points and in each of those games, a crucial fourth-quarter touchdown was scored by the opponent.
So the focus this offseason has been conditioning, which strength coach Alex Watkins has handled.
Speed and endurance was the focus and Haywood believes it will make a difference.
“If they walked in here today you’d say ‘Wow they look different’” Haywood said. “They’re an impressive bunch when you look at them because they’re looking a lot better and coach Watkins has done a tremendous job with them.”
Defensively, defensive back Archie Rice and linebacker Sean Jones lead the way. Rice led the team with 84 tackles.
TSU defensive coordinator Tom Anthony counts the defense’s athleticism as most encouraging. The Tigers have searched the recruiting trail for players who excel in the open field and it’s starting to show.
The downside is the number of players who actually have ingame snaps in tow. There aren’t enough on the roster and those fresh faces will be the ones counted on when TSU opens at Florida A&M on Aug. 26.
“There’s a lot of spots for us,” Anthony said. “We kind of got a feel for a few kids in spring ball but there’s a significant amount of kids that start (in fall camp). “We’re really going to have to evaluate those kids over that first week because a lot of those kids are going to have to step on the field first game and help us.”