The Chris Hatcher Show: Sept. 29, 2022

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Each week during the 2022 season, we will release The Chris Hatcher Show. The show, hosted by Kevin Blackwell and featuring head football coach Chris Hatcher, will look back at the previous week's football game and look forward to the upcoming contest.

The Samford Bulldogs walloped the Western Carolina Catamounts by a score of 35-12 in front of an eclectic sold-out crowd at Seibert Stadium on Family Weekend to open Southern Conference play and it did not go unnoticed by the head Bulldog himself.

"I was extremely ecstatic about the way that Saturday went. First of all, the atmosphere on the quad for family weekend carried over to our Dog Walk and then just to see the crowd and the support the Samford community, the Homewood community, gave us on Saturday was phenomenal," Hatcher said. "Then fortunately for us, our players put on a good show. We had a big win; all wins are big wins. To get that first conference win, especially with a crowd like that, was extra special. It was just a good day all the way around"

Samford's defense grabbed the headlines in the conference opener by holding Western Carolina out of the end zone. The Catamount attack entered the game averaging over 40 points a game. Reigning SoCon Defensive Player of the Week Isaiah Richardson place the Bulldogs with eight tackles and a tone-setting end zone interception in the first quarter.

"Tremendous defensive effort by our young men, especially when we get down in the red zone. We bowed our necks. We were giving them field goals and we were scoring touchdowns. That's a recipe for success. More importantly, we had some really big turnovers" Hatcher said. "Ty Hardimon had a pick in the end zone, Isaiah Richardson had an interception in the end zone, Kourtlan Marsh made a great stop on fourth down on the goal line. We are just playing really good team defense."

Michael Hiers won his second SoCon Offensive Player of the Week award of the season after going 24-of-30 for 292 yards and tossing four touchdowns to four different Bulldog receivers. Despite scoring a season-best 35 points, Hatcher believes there is still room to improve on the offensive side of the ball.

"We just lack consistency; it is very frustrating. We had chances offensively to put the game out of reach earlier with the way our defense was playing. We have gone to big chunk plays and there is nothing wrong with that. It has been a winning formula for us so far," Hatcher said. "If that is the way we're going to play, then so be it, as long as we get the result we want. We got to get more consistent on that side."

For the third time in four weeks, Samford hits the road as the Bulldogs head to Furman for the first SoCon road test of the season. The Paladins of Furman enter Saturday with a 3-1 overall record and 1-0 record in SoCon play.

"Nothing has really changed with those guys. They are very similar to us; their defeat came to Clemson while ours came to Georgia. They have a massive offensive line, very impressive. They have done a very good job at rushing the ball and then they throw it a little better than they the last couple of years," Hatcher said. "It'll be a very big challenge for us there. Defensively, they do a phenomenal job. They throw a lot of fronts, they blitz you, they always seem like they just one step ahead of you on that side of the ball."

The SoCon showdown is slated for 1 p.m. CT in Greenville, S.C. and can be streamed on ESPN+ with Bob Mihalic and Faxon Childress on the call.

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Players Mentioned

#1 Kourtlan Marsh: CB; 5' 11"; Junior

#10 Michael Hiers: QB; 6' 1"; Junior

#21 Isaiah Richardson: DB; 6' 1"; Senior

#4 Ty Hardimon: S; 6' 0"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#1 Kourtlan Marsh
: 5' 11"; Junior
: CB

#10 Michael Hiers
: 6' 1"; Junior
: QB

#21 Isaiah Richardson
: 6' 1"; Senior
: DB

#4 Ty Hardimon
: 6' 0"; Senior
: S

Samford University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Players Mentioned