Countdown to Kickoff 2023: St. Patrick Fighting Irish

BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) - On the heels of one of the best football seasons in program history with a 6-2 record, the St. Patrick Fighting Irish are hoping to keep that momentum rolling in 2023 as they return to region play.

The Irish are also welcoming in new head coach Oscar Glasscock — or as they say, “Coach OG” —out of Cullman, Alabama.

He says the key to keeping that success rolling starts with the little things.

“We’re going to be focused on us and not concerned with doing too much of this or that or this other opponent or whatever, we’re going to focus on what our job is and focus on us improving each day,” said Glasscock. “We’ve got a new way of doing things and we constantly evaluate, it’s a daily evaluation.”

Coach OG says that success on the field should also translate off the field and vice versa.

“Whether we’re training these guys to be good character people and be excellent in all the different things they’re involved in,” he said. “Be it their relationships with their peers, their studies, being good teammates and how hard they work.”

With a number of returners on the defensive side of the ball and plenty of new faces, senior lineman Jayden Cecil says the “Do Your Job” mentality has helped bring the team together and has them more focused coming into the season.

“He’s taught new core values about hustle and doing your job, it’s a chant we have every time we break the huddle,” said Cecil. “It’s really setting a mindset to do your job, you know? Get in, put in the work, and you’ll get great things out of it.”

As upperclassmen, the leadership role is amplified, and for senior wide receiver Julius Hicks he says he’s hoping to lead by example for the underclassmen.

“We had a good group of seniors last year that really helped push us to work harder and that’s what I wanted to help with this year was pushing guys to work harder,” said Hicks. “I just wanted to leave a good example of working hard and helping bring each other up.”

As the new era for St. Patrick football starts, the seniors on the team hope the foundation they’re starting to lay will continue on for many years to come.

“I want to leave a positive message for the underclassmen to not just look up to pass it forward to the peers down the road to show that hard work and effort really do pay off,” said Cecil.

The Irish will open up the season on the road taking on Sacred Heart.

Click here to subscribe to WLOX News on YouTube: Keep up with South Mississippi news, sports, and local events on our YouTube channel!

Copyright 2023 WLOX. All rights reserved.