Reggie Benson, Huntsville Times
Alabama A&M coach Anthony Jones says his team reminds him a lot of the one he had in 2004.
That year, Jones started a number of younger players for the first time in the season opener against Tennessee State and the Tigers whipped the Bulldogs 42-7. Two years later, that group helped A&M win the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship.
"In 2004, we went up there and played a lot of freshmen ... a lot of new guys," Jones recalled. "I'm just hoping (the game) doesn't end up the same way."
TSU running back Charles Anthony shredded A&M's defense for more than 200 yards that night.
A&M will play approximately 20 newcomers Saturday night in Nashville against the Tigers.
"This is definitely a youth movement," Jones said. "We're going to play a lot of new guys for the first time. They're going to get their first taste of action against a very good football team in a high-profile setting.
"That's the similarity for me. We'll just have to look at it and see."
Scrimmage shorter: A&M was forced to shorten its final mock scrimmage Saturday night because of heavy rain, thunder and lightning. As a result, Jones said he wouldn't put much stock in it.
"It was too short to make a fair assessment," he said. "I'm not going to put much on it, but there are some things we're going to work on from that."
Even had the scrimmage gone well, Jones said, his team still wouldn't have been ready to play.
"We're not going to be ready to play until we step on that field," he said. "Everything has its place, and we're trying to put everything in place."
Furthermore: A&M will have today off before resuming game-week preparations Tuesday afternoon. ... The A&M ticket office has tickets for the Tennessee State game. ... Fullback Kevin McCants is from Nashville, and offensive lineman Phillip Thomas is from nearby Murfreesboro.
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