Last year Southern had the best team in years on paper. A rash of injuries to linebackers and quarterbacks almost gave coach Pete Richardson his first losing season at Southern. Coach Richardson will have to pull out all the stops keep from having a repeat season. 

The first noticeable thing is the schedule. Allen and Lincoln are two teams that will be automatic wins during the season. Bye weeks are placed well to allow for injured people to heal. This is very smart, but the attendance might take hit during the “fluff” games.

The difference this year that the team seems to be gelling during off-season workouts and the leadership is getting better. Now that the team will heart, will the team have a passing game? Southern always starts out the season slow and picks it during the season when the offense becomes more balanced.  

This year the running game will be the best feature for the Jags. Running back Kenneth Peoples returns with league leading 780* yards a game.  The asterisk is for the number of games played. Peoples only played in 10 games last year, and only five as a starter.  Peoples is a double edge sword. He must remain healthy in order for the Jags to have shot at the SWAC title. 

The defense will be a question mark this year as former defense line coach Cliff Lewis takes over as the defensive coordinator. 

Predictions: 10-2
Losses: MVSU, Alabama A&M