The Alabama State football team had its final full practice late Thursday morning as the Hornets get set for their home opener Saturday vs. Mississippi Valley State.
 
It's the Blackout game, as fans are encouraged to wear all black for the 6 p.m. kickoff at Cramton Bowl. The contest can be heard on WVAS 90.7 FM and will be video streamed live free of charge on bamastatesports.com.
 
“Practice was good; we had good energy and that's one of the things we talked about as coaches was making sure we had good energy and focus at the start,” head coach Reggie Barlow said. “The first 20-25 minutes was strictly special teams and we wanted the guys dialed in. That was important.”
 
Among the points of emphasis this week has been generating more production from the special teams units. The Hornets averaged only 17.0 yards on seven kickoff returns and just one punt return yard on the only return last Sunday vs. Bethune-Cookman.
 
“We want to make sure we have our best weapons out there,” Barlow said. “Return-wise, we think Jarrett Neely and Carnell Boyd - a pair of guys we brought here for that purpose – can be effective for us.”
 
Barlow is looking forward to playing the first home game of the season this week at Cramton Bowl, where the Hornets have posted an 8-3 record over the past two seasons.
 
“This game should be fun,” Barlow said. “I know our home fans are excited about our 2012 season. We want them to come out in all black for the blackout and give us great support as they always do. We're excited about playing at home and look forward to them providing a great atmosphere Saturday night.”
 

GO HORNETS