Alabama NewsCenter 2022 football preview: Samford University
Samford Bulldogs coach Chris Hatcher is expecting a big year from wide receiver Chandler Smith. (Samford University Athletics)
Chris Hatcher didn’t need a crystal ball to predict the first question he would field about his 2022 Samford football team. He knew everyone wanted to know how the Bulldogs would go on after record-setting quarterback Liam Welch graduated.
“I knew this would be the first question you asked, which it should be,” the coach said. He noted how people had the same question when former all-star quarterback Devlin Hodges had left “and the sky is falling in. Welch comes in, has a little bit of rough patch there early, (then) plays at a high level. We’ve got some guys in that room that are very capable of being the guy; in a few years you’re asking me, how are you going to replace those guys?
“That’s why you have backups and that’s why you recruit, because nobody could be here forever,” Hatcher said. “Right now, we’ve got a great quarterback room. Michael Hiers and Nik Scalzo are right now battling. They’re the (No.) 1 and 2 guys that are battling for the position. I’m very confident that whichever one wins the job … if they both have to play, that’s fine. But both of them have shown that they’re very capable of running this offense at a very high level.”
Alabama NewsCenter is taking a look at the upcoming college football season. Today the focus is on Samford.
Samford coach Chris Hatcher previews the 2022 season, including those other Bulldogs from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
Alabama NewsCenter: What are the prospects for this season?
Chris Hatcher: Our goal is to be the best team we can be and that’s your goal each and every year. No two teams are the same. Last season we were in some close battles that we had an opportunity to win and we didn’t finish. We didn’t finish very well at the end of the day. We’ve got to do a better job of finishing in situational work toward the end of the game. But we’re excited. Expectations are high and we’re looking to have a great season.
ANC: What is the strength of this year’s team?
Hatcher: It’s really too early to tell. We’re breaking in a new quarterback this season. We’ve got a new defensive staff. There’s a lot of questions with a few weeks left at camp. But I hope we’re gonna be a little bit more balanced than we’ve been in the past. I’ve been really pleased with our defense throughout the first part of camp. I think we’re much improved athletically over there. I hope that we’ll have all three phases clicking come Game One.
ANC: Who are your team’s standouts?
Hatcher: First of all, offensively, right now we have Nik Scalzo and Michael Hiers. Both of those guys are battling to be the quarterback since Liam Welch left. … One of those two’s got to be ready to go on offense to lead us. Defensively, we’ve got Nathan East coming back who’s been a really good player, an all-conference selection for us. We’re expecting him to have a good year. Those, No. 1, would be the guys that are gonna have to play well in order for us to be successful. We need Chandler Smith; we expect him to have a big year. Defensively, Seth Simmer and Tay Berry, our two defensive interior linemen, they’re going to have to have a big year for us to be good.
ANC: What game(s) do your fans have circled on your schedule?
Hatcher: I think … for the fan part of it, the University of Georgia. They get excited about that. But, really, we’re gonna come right out of the gates and play Kennesaw State, which is a perennial Top 10 FCS team. We need to have a good showing for that game. I think those first two right now I would think our fans would be the most excited about.
ANC: What is your lingering question?
Hatcher: I think, No. 1, who’s our quarterback? We had All-American Liam Welch the past two years and then we got two new guys we’re breaking in. Both of them are very capable of playing well. I think that’s going to be the No. 1 question.
Alabama NewsCenter is posting season previews for all 16 college football programs in Alabama. Read previews for Jacksonville State University, the University of North Alabama, Alabama State University and Birmingham-Southern College, and look for a new preview each weekday.
