Soccer Practice Report: Sept. 12

OXFORD, Miss. – For months the Ole Miss soccer team has trained and prepared for its 2020 season with much uncertainty. The Rebels now have clarity with the SEC fall schedule announcement earlier in the week. Ole Miss opens the campaign on its home ground, hosting Texas A&M on Sept. 19.

Earlier this week, head coach Matt Mott, senior striker Channing Foster and junior winger Lonnie Mulligan sat down with our own Seth Austin to chat about the team's progress through fall practice.

EIGHT DAYS AWAY
On Wednesday, the 2020 fall schedule was released by the SEC. Players and coaches finally found out who their first opponent would be, with the Rebels set to open the season on Sept. 19, hosting Texas A&M. Emotions ran high as the news broke, and as we move ever closer to game week, there is excitement building all around the team.

"We, along with every other sports team, are itching to play," said Mulligan. "Obviously, soccer is our life, and not having the opportunity to play for a while is just a driving force. We are so excited. I can't' even put it into words how excited we are to play an opponent and show them what Ole Miss soccer is all about."

Foster is another Rebel who is eager to kick off her senior campaign after a long-awaited return to collegiate sports.

"I get really hyped up," said Foster. "I don't always sleep the best the night before a game, not necessarily from being nervous, more just being super excited. This whole next week, I'll be super excited the whole time. As it's leading up, I can't wait."

NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT
While the SEC TV schedule for the 2020 season has yet to be announced, one of the great benefits of playing in the Southeastern Conference is the knowledge that fans around the world will have the opportunity to tune in week after week thanks to the ESPN family of networks, the SEC Network and the SECN+ digital platform.

"It adds a little more juice to the game for sure," said Mott. "It's a huge recruiting tool…All over the country, we have fans in California or families spread out throughout the country. The idea that if they can't make it here, they're able to watch. We are so fortunate to be playing, and then to add on top of it, we get to have multiple games on national tv. It's such a blessing to be a part of the SEC and what they've done to support women's soccer is just awesome."

ELECTRIC OFFENSE
Among the returning attackers for the Rebels this season is the SEC's active leading scorer in Foster, who ranked third in the league with 10 goals scored in 2019. The Murray, Kentucky, native has established herself as one of the nation's elite scoring threats over the past three seasons and used this offseason and extended fall camp to make her game even more lethal.

"I was really focusing on my right foot in the offseason, just developing it and getting more comfortable," said Foster. "Over the break, I didn't have people to play against, so I was working on it but at the same time you never really know how much improvement you've seen until you finally get to play against people."

Coach Mott has also had high praise for Foster, the leader of one of the top scoring offenses in the SEC.

"She's got some great attributes," said Mott. "A great left foot, but she's also just as deadly with her right foot. But what makes her special is her work rate. She's all over the field and is able to press the backline almost all by herself… She's a player that works just as hard as anyone on the pitch. When the game comes on and the lights shine, she's flying."

Also returning for the Rebels is junior, Lonnie Mulligan. The Mississippi native brings more explosiveness to an already potent Ole Miss scoring attack. Mulligan's lone goal in 2019 was an important one, but the speedy winger has big expectations for 2020.

"[Fans can expect] lots of crosses in the box and lots of goals," said Mulligan. "I'm really excited to be more a part of the attack this year and take more responsibility to score more goals. I'm really excited to put more numbers on the board for us and get us ahead so we can win."

LEADING THE WAY
With an abundance of experience returning for the Rebels, the upperclassmen have looked to mentor the younger players. Among those leading the way entering her senior year is Foster.

"A lot of the older players have taken younger players under our wing and have learned from each other," said Foster. "Obviously, our senior class is pretty close, so being able to rely on each other to pick each other up or if I don't know how to go about something, being able to turn to Pez or Molly and say, 'can you help me out with this?' They've definitely been good people to rely on."

"[Channing] leads that group," said Mott. "They do look to her and see her work rate. How she approaches practice and those kinds of things. How she never takes a rep off. It's hard to coach that, that's just in her."

MISSISSIPPI MADE
In recent years, the sport of soccer has grown in popularity throughout the state of Mississippi. Mott has noticed this increase and is building the future of his program in his own backyard.

"We are recruiting a ton in state," said Mott. "We've got some great Mississippians, which is awesome. It's our goal to always get the best players in the state…We want them to represent their state."

Key players such as Mulligan, Jillian Rhian, Elle Muirhead, Lucy Green, Price Loposer and Oxford's own Mo O'Connor are becoming role models for youth soccer players throughout the Magnolia State and impacting the game off the field.

"Being younger, I can't imagine how different it is to be able to see people like me, Jill, Lucy, Mo, Elle and a couple of others," said Mulligan. "I bet it's just so motivating to see someone from your state and from a place where soccer isn't that big to be at an amazing school like Ole Miss. I wish when I was younger it was like this, but I'm really happy to be a part of the growth of soccer in Mississippi."

PREPPING FOR THE AGGIES
With game week just on the horizon, Ole Miss is facing a challenge that many schools around the country are dealing with: scouting. This year there are no non-conference games and in an eight-game season, there is little film to watch on opponents.

"Scouting is null and void," said Mott. "We don't know anything about them other than who left and the recruits they have. Knowing how they're going to play and what they're going to do, just like they don't know that about us. Typically, by this point, we'd have 10 games on them and would be able to do a good hard scout on them, but we can't do that."

Instead of focusing on what they can't do, the Rebels are honing in on the details and making sure that they know what they need to do to be successful.

"We have to focus on ourselves, making sure we have all the minor details ready," said Mott. "Everything from set-pieces, how we are going to play, and how we are going to attack, how we are going to defend. I've got a ton of respect for [Texas A&M], I think they are a really good team, but right now we are still pretty focused on us and what we're going to need to do in the game. It's certainly very exciting to know we have a schedule and we know who our opponent is."

Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss Soccer on Twitter at @OleMissSoccer, on Facebook at Facebook.com/OleMissSoccer, and on Instagram at Instagram.com/officialolemisssoccer. Also, follow head coach Matt Mott on Twitter at @CoachMattMott.

RebelsCalendar

Players Mentioned

Channing Foster

Lucy Green

Price Loposer

Elle Muirhead

Lonnie Mulligan

Mo O'Connor

Jillian Rhian

The University of Mississippi Athletics