The University of Mississippi Athletics
Matt Mott Weekly Press Conference
9/27/2021 | Soccer
Ole Miss Head Soccer Coach Recaps LSU and Arkansas, Previews Florida
Ole Miss Soccer Head Coachย Matt Mottย met with members of the media on Monday as part of his weekly press conference. Coach Mott recapped this past week's matches against No. 5 LSU and No. 16 Arkansasย before previewing this week's match at Florida
Opening Statementโฆ
"We had kind of a strange week, really. We beat the No. 5 team in the country, LSU, in front of a great Ole Miss crowd. Rebel Nation was awesome. Some of the fraternities were out and the atmosphere was first class and what we've really come to expect from our crowd in big conference games. We won 2-0 and handled the game really, really well. Had to go to Fayetteville yesterday. Arkansas is rolling. They'd won seven in a row before they got to us. We came out and played really well in the first half. We got a lead, probably a tumultuous lead at best and then Arkansas came out in the second half and just kind of ran us over. Full credit to them, they scored some really good goals and we ended up losing that match. Now, we're headed down to Gainesville to play Florida next Sunday on national tv. I'm really happy with the team, where they are and the way they are competing. 2-1 in league play is a good start for us but plenty of work to do and a ton of games left."
On the importance of not playing a midweek game this weekโฆ
ย "It's huge. I think it caught up to us yesterday, quite honestly. I thought our legs in the second half, we just didn't have it. We couldn't keep up with the relentless attack that Arkansas has. If you're going to go toe-to-toe with Arkansas, you have to have the legs. We just didn't have them yesterday. In the second half, Ramsey Davis, one of our fastest players, ran by me yesterday and you could just see it in her legs that she didn't have it. That happens in soccer. We've had six straight weeks of two games, which is really hard. I think it caught us yesterday so the idea that we're not playing until Sunday is massive."
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On balancing getting players rest and preparing for Floridaโฆย
"We're off today and tomorrow, which we haven't had two days off this season. I think that's big. We're doing a ton of work in the training room with regeneration. Our periodization has been really good. I was worried going into that game because we put so much into Thursdays game against LSU and then had to travel. I think that all kind of caught up to us. We've got to get freshened up and ready to roll for a good Florida team."
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss Soccer on Twitter atย @OleMissSoccer, on Facebook atย Facebook.com/OleMissSoccer, and on Instagram atย Instagram.com/officialolemisssoccer. Also follow head coachย Matt Mottย on Twitter atย @CoachMattMott.
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