Simmons keeps Rattlers focused on Texas Southern
Photo by St. Clair Murraine
By St. Clair Murraine
Outlook Staff Writer
If coach Willie Simmons needed a visual to show his players why Texas Southern should be their only focus he got plenty over the weekend.
Four HBCU teams that were favored to win ended up with losses to the underdogs. It was enough for Simmons to bring to the attention of his team.
As it turned out, Alabama A&M (4-3, 2-2) defeated Grambling 45-24; Alabama State beat JSU 24-19; Texas Southern (2-4, 1-2) beat Bethune-Cookman 34-31, and Edward Waters beat Tuskegee 41-38.
“A lot of teams this past weekend were more talented than the team that beat them,” Simmons said. “I hope that message resonates with this group because it’s football. In football, anything can happen if you don’t prepare to win.
“Hopefully those things are warnings to our team that, you better focus on who you’re playing this week.”
Texas Southern is on a two game winning streak going into its game against FAMU on Saturday. FAMU (5-1, 4-0) is the only SWAC team without a loss in conference play.
They have a comfortable first-place grip in the East Division, with five regular season games remaining. Running the table will make the Rattlers a lock for the conference championship game.
However, Simmons forbids his players from looking at such scenarios.
“We know what’s at stake and we know what we are capable of achieving, but our number one goal this weekend is to be 1-0,” Simmons said. “It a conference game and even though it’s not divisional, it still matters. I try to be conscious not to look ahead to December, understanding there is a huge opportunity for us this coming Saturday.”
It comes after a bye week for the Rattlers. Some players used the time to work on fundamentals. Others got caught up on class work and some got to heal a little. Simmons and some of his assistants even got in some recruiting.
“This time allowed us to recharge a little bit; get away from the banging a little bit (and) allow our bodies to heal and recover,” Simmons said.
This weekend’s matchup puts the Rattlers back on the road for their third straight game away. They will return to playing on Ken Riley Field at Bragg Stadium in their homecoming game Oct. 28 against Prairie View.
The Panthers lead the West Division with a 3-4 overall record and 3-1 in conference play. That and all of the glitter that comes with homecoming don’t matter right now to Simmons, though.
Texas Southern presents “a great opportunity for this football team,” he said. “We are looking forward to it.”
