Mercer 'upbeat' after win over East Tennessee State

Bobby Lamb saw a difference in his Mercer team during the Bears' first two practices of the week.

That's understandable after the Bears cruised to a 52-0 win over East Tennessee State to snap a three-game losing streak. Mercer (3-3, 0-2 Southern Conference) returns to conference play Saturday when it hosts VMI (1-6, 0-3).

"They are upbeat," Lamb said of his players. "Our Sunday practice was way more upbeat because you got a win. People are bouncing around and feeling really good about themselves. (Tuesday) morning, we had a really good solid practice in preparing for VMI. Each week is a challenge, and this is a different challenge, but I think the mindset is there.

"It's just a matter of us going out and having a great week of practice."

Mercer played against ETSU without freshman cornerback Stephen Houzah, but Lamb said Houzah will play this week. Wide receiver Chandler Curtis hasn't played since the season opener as he works through an ankle injury and is day to day, along with linebacker Kyle Trammell and tight end Grand Radakovich.

Running back Alex Lakes has played the past couple of games with three small cracks in his ribs.

"He's tough. He's just playing through it," Lamb said of Lakes. "He's not anywhere near his usual self, but he keeps playing through it."

The Bears played their way through their three-game skid with Saturday's strong performance. They have five more games this season, all in the Southern Conference and three at home.

"We wanted to put that three-game losing streak behind us, and now we think we're going to start a six-game winning streak to close out the season and use this as a stepping stone," tight end Robert Brown said after the win Saturday.

Mercer's lone conference win last year came at VMI. The Keydets have lost five straight games entering Saturday's contest. Mercer's two conference losses have come by a combined four points, while VMI lost by six to Chattanooga and three to Furman.

"It does give you confidence, but you also have to know it's a new year and a new team," quarterback John Russ said of last year's Mercer-VMI game. "Anything can happen; you can have an 0-10 team come up and beat you. It's football, so you have to come out and be ready for every Saturday. Last year, really doesn't matter.

"They're just like us, losing close games, so we have to come out and finish in the fourth quarter."

This story was originally published October 20, 2015 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Mercer 'upbeat' after win over East Tennessee State ."