{"id":26839,"date":"2015-08-31T16:57:13","date_gmt":"2015-08-31T21:57:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/?p=26839"},"modified":"2015-10-01T14:53:07","modified_gmt":"2015-10-01T19:53:07","slug":"ole-miss-football-press-conference-recap-august-31-2015-by-alex-thiel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/ole-miss-football-press-conference-recap-august-31-2015-by-alex-thiel\/","title":{"rendered":"Ole Miss Football Press Conference Recap: August 31, 2015 (by Alex Thiel)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Th\"HughFreeze\"<\/a>e 2015 football season kicked off in earnest today at the first weekly press conference, featuring comments from both Coach Hugh Freeze<\/strong> and Athletics Director Ross Bjork<\/strong>. Both noted the upward trajectory of the football program and the athletics department as a whole.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you look at the momentum around Ole Miss right now, [there\u2019s] probably never been a better time to be an Ole Miss Rebel,\u201d said Bjork in an opening statement. \u201cWe all feel it every day, with traffic and parking and packed restaurants.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a dump truck or a cement truck or a hard hat crew on every corner right now, and that\u2019s a good thing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"VaughtArtistRendering\"<\/a>Among the improvements to which Bjork alluded Monday morning were the ongoing renovations to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium<\/strong> and the new Pavilion<\/strong> at Ole Miss<\/strong>. All told, $175 million in athletic improvements are already underway and slated for completion by 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some of the biggest news was that this football season will be the last with artificial turf at Vaught-Hemingway, with natural grass to be installed during spring of 2016. This means that there will be no public Grove Bowl<\/strong> in the stadium in 2016. However, Bjork did also announce a Letter Winner\u2019s Walk<\/strong> addition to the new plaza that is set to link the Walk of Champions to the stadium\u2019s renovated north end zone. This will feature columns bearing the name of every letter-winner in Ole Miss history, numbering some 7,000 student-athletes.<\/span><\/p>\n

A number of new scoreboard video screens were also announced, most notably one in The Pavilion that will be \u201cthe largest in college basketball.\u201d Consisting of four screens, each 12 feet tall and 22 feet wide, Bjork announced the video board alongside brand new boards for baseball, softball, soccer (their first video board ever), and eventually, three for football.<\/span><\/p>\n

Other notes from Bjork included the confirmation of the widely-rumored on-campus Steak & Shake and Raising Cane\u2019s locations in the Pavilion\u2019s food court area, as well as plans for a \u201ctechnology hub\u201d in the Pavilion that is still in development.<\/span><\/p>\n

He also mentioned that the Athletics Department has extended its contract with Nike for another twelve years, and over double the previous $1.9m of product annually.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hugh Freeze\u2019s time at the podium was largely defined by his lingering reluctance to name a starting quarterback for the season. He did, however, divulge that transfer Chad Kelly<\/strong> will take the first snaps against UT-Martin<\/strong>, seemingly naming Kelly as the favorite to win long-term job in the process.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Treadwell1\"<\/a>\u201cHe has a slight edge on the other two,\u201d said Freeze. \u201cAll three competed extremely well last week. The one that I had the gut feeling about didn\u2019t have a terrible week, but he didn\u2019t have the best week. Unless something changes this week, I\u2019m not ready [to name a permanent starter].\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In terms of the week\u2019s opponent, Freeze was very complimentary of the Skyhawks<\/strong>, citing a balanced offensive attack and returning experience on defense and special teams.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe respect every opponent that we play,\u201d said Freeze. He noted that they \u201cmoved the ball very effectively,\u201d against their two SEC opponents in 2014, Kentucky<\/strong> and Mississippi State<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

He also expressed readiness to see star receiver Laquon Treadwell<\/strong> return to the field in a live game situation: \u201cTo see him go through the recovery process and to battle back is quite rewarding\u2026 [I] guess, in a strange kind of way, I look forward to seeing him get tackled.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe he won\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0 \"The<\/a>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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