For most members of the South Alabama football team — including the coaches — traveling to a venue such as Nebraska’s Memorial Stadium on Aug. 31 will be a new experience.
But cornerback Jalen Thompson and defensive end Tyree Turner have been there before — literally. The two fifth-year seniors were true freshmen in 2015, and both played in the Jaguars’ last game against the Cornhuskers, a 48-9 loss in Lincoln in Week 2 of that season.
“I remember it being a lot of people,” Thompson said. “They were tailgating, people everywhere. The atmosphere is something you want to play in. There’s going to be about 90,000 people. I just remember a lot of red.”
Memorial Stadium lists an official capacity of 90,000, though the Cornhuskers occasionally pack in more than that. Nebraska has sold out 368 consecutive home games, a streak that dates to 1962.
South Alabama has traveled to venues such as Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Oklahoma State in recent years, but none of those will likely compare to the decibel level they will face from Nebraska’s famed “Sea of Red.” The Jaguars have focused on using hand signals to communicate in practice, and have been piping in artificial crowd noise via stereo speakers on the back of a golf cart positioned just behind the offensive and defensive huddles.
“That was my first college (road) game,” Turner said of the last trip to Nebraska. “It was loud, loudest I’ve ever heard. It was kind of overwhelming, being a freshman.
“We know it’s going to be loud. Once we get past that, I think we’ll settle in.”
Thompson started the 2015 Nebraska game at cornerback, and ended the day with five tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. Nevertheless, the Jaguars fell behind 24-0 at halftime and were out of the game early.
Thompson sat out the 2017 season for academic reasons, taking a redshirt year. That means he’s back as a fifth-year senior this fall, and enters the season with 18 career starts and eight interceptions.
“My freshman year, I just wanted to go up there and play ball, get the nerves out,” Thompson said. “But this year, my senior year, I know what to expect. I know how to slow the game down for myself. … I’ve been reminding myself that I’ve been here before, and I can do it again.”
South Alabama defensive lineman Tyree Turner (12) sacks Louisiana Tech quarterback J'Mar Smith (8) in the first half of a NCAA football game Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018, at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala. (Mike Kittrell/AL.com)
Turner totaled two tackles while rotating in on the defensive line against Nebraska in 2015. He suffered a season-ending knee injury two weeks later, and took a medical redshirt.
The 6-foot-1, 305-pound Turner has been a stalwart on the South Alabama defensive line the last three-plus seasons, starting 30 games and collecting more than 125 tackles. He was a second-team All-Sun Belt Conference pick a year ago, when he totaled 51 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and four sacks.
“I’m really focused on the game plan, reading my keys and getting off the ball,” Turner said. “We’ve got a good game plan and I’m just focused on trying to get tendencies down and things of that nature.”
Nebraska’s 4-8 record last season wasn’t much better than South Alabama’s 3-9, but the Cornhuskers are a chic pick to break out this season under second-year coach Scott Frost. Nebraska is ranked No. 24 in the preseason Associated Press poll and is a 36-point favorite against the Jaguars, according to Vegas Insider.
Leading the way for the Cornhuskers is sophomore quarterback Adrian Martinez, who is considered a potential NFL draft pick down the road. Martinez passed for 2,617 yards and 17 touchdowns as a freshman last season, while adding 629 yards and eight scores rushing.
“They’ve got a great quarterback,” Thompson said. “Martinez, he’s a great player. I feel like we’ve got the right game plan, we just have to execute and play fast.”
South Alabama practiced Thursday afternoon, then will work out Friday before taking Saturday off. The Jaguars then hit the field for game week workouts starting Sunday evening.
