New Mercer football coach aims for ‘super physical, super disciplined’ team

New Mercer football coach Mike Jacobs addressed the local media during his first weekly news conference at the Ruth Drake Fieldhouse on Monday, laying out a strong and disciplined approach as the team prepares for the 2024 season.

MACON, Georgia – (41NBC/WMGT) – New Mercer football coach Mike Jacobs addressed the local media during his first weekly news conference at the Ruth Drake Fieldhouse on Monday, laying out a strong and disciplined approach as the team prepares for the 2024 season.

Jacobs, alongside his offensive coordinator Anthony Soto and defensive coordinator Jahmal Brown, spoke about what they are seeing on the field in Fall Camp and what they expect out of their players this season.

The Bears not only have new coaches, but will also have an offense much different than last season. Jacobs knows the transition the Bears have to make with a shift into the new culture and personality of the team, but he’s keeping it simple for his personal expectations.

“Win,” he said. “Whether it’s by one or 100. That’s the goal for all, and I don’t mean to be a smart aleck , but that’s it. In all three phases, what we want to do is be super physical, we want to be super disciplined. We want to eliminate pre-snap penalties in all phases. If you are playing hard, playing aggressive, playing physical—you’re going to have penalties occasionally, but we want to eliminate the stupid stuff that we can control at the pre-snap. We want to play with some tempo and we want to protect the football, and we want to score a bunch offensively.”

Mercer opens its season at home against Presbyterian on Thursday, August 29 at 7 p.m.