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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Preseason Report 08.24: Scout Teams Do Their Part
8/24/2012 | Football
Aug. 24, 2012
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss football team's preparations for the 2012 season are homing in on Central Arkansas with just over a week left before the season opener.
Head coach Hugh Freeze praised the work of the Rebel scout teams after Friday's two-hour practice, which began at 6 p.m. to simulate the game time conditions of next Saturday's 6 p.m. opener. The team will also conduct a dress-rehearsal scrimmage at 6 p.m. this Saturday, closed to the media and public.
"The scout teams have been phenomenal - as good as anywhere I've ever seen and been," Freeze said. "They've given great effort. Both (offense and defense) are going to help us prepare for our opponents."
Freeze also talked about using players on the scout teams that he expects to be part of the gameplan.
"It's a rite of passage," Freeze said. "That's part of what everyone should go through. Being able to say that, `I'm no more important than the guy that's on scout team.' I've always done that, with freshmen especially."
With the first game a single digit number of days away, the coaching staff is making practice a little less physically intense than earlier in camp.
"Not a bad week at all. It's time for us to get them fresh," Freeze said. "We've pushed them hard for three weeks now. Tomorrow night we'll get through every possible scenario we can. We'll go without shoulder pads tomorrow night."
The quarterback battle between junior Barry Brunetti and sophomore Bo Wallace was yet again a focal point of practice this week.
"They had a good week," Freeze said. "There are still some inconsistencies with just bad reads. I've got to do a better job; Dan (Werner) has got to do a better job of making sure that doesn't happen. But there's no doubt they've improved. We've just got to keep coaching them. I'm anxious to see how they do when the live bullets start next Saturday."
Freeze said he would love to see the quarterbacks complete 70 percent of their passes, which his quarterbacks accomplished last year at Arkansas State.
The Rebels kick off the 2012 season in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium against Central Arkansas on Sept. 1 at 6 p.m. For Ole Miss gameday information or to buy season tickets, visit the Rebels' gameday site, OleMissFB.com, or call 888-REB-TKTS (732-8587).
