Mercer looking to rebound from another close loss
Bobby Lamb isn’t worried about his Mercer players or how they deal with yet another close Southern Conference loss.
The Bears, who finished 1-6 in conference play last year with four losses by single digits, opened this year’s conference play with a 34-33 overtime loss to Wofford on Saturday. That adds up to five of Mercer’s conference losses being decided by a combined 18 points.
The Bears hope to stop that trend Saturday when they travel to Western Carolina. The Catamounts beat the Bears 35-21 last season.
“When you’re dealing with the quality of student-athlete that we have here, they have the big picture in mind, certainly getting a degree and playing football and understanding what’s important,” Lamb said. “They have their heads on their shoulders very well. The bottom line is, I know it’s wearing on them a little bit, but they just stand up and fight again. That’s a credit to the coaching staff, too. Our coaches do a really good job.
“In football, unlike any other sport, you’d like to get back on the field ASAP, but that’s not the way it works. You’ve really got to flush it out of your system the best you can and get ready for the next game.”
The Bears (2-2) would like to flush the injuries out of their system after suffering a few new ones against Wofford. Starting guard Wilson Heres, a senior, is probably out for the season. Heres suffered a broken foot and will have surgery Friday. Tight end Grant Radakovich and linebacker Kyle Trammell both suffered knee injuries. Lamb said Radakovich is out for two weeks, while Trammell is out for two to four weeks.
The Bears are hoping for good news on running back Alex Lakes and wide receiver Chandler Curtis. Lamb said Lakes was scheduled to get a checkup on his punctured lung Tuesday and could play Saturday, while Curtis practiced Tuesday with his high ankle sprain, although he’s not likely to play Saturday.
This story was originally published October 6, 2015 at 3:24 PM with the headline "Mercer looking to rebound from another close loss ."