Southern Miss coach Scott Berry addressed his retirement announcement after the Golden Eagles’ 4-0 win against Louisiana on Thursday night.
According to Berry, it’s a decision that he made back in August.
“I made the decision last August to do that,” said Berry after the game. “I didn’t come out with it. I didn’t want to come out with it, but I knew this would be my last one. I said at that time this year will go quick and on Tuesday morning when I woke up the first thing, I thought of was that this has gone quick. It’s been a great quick and been a great career.
“To be here for 23 years at this school, the people I have been associated with, the people I met, the support, it’s like second to none. It’s like a dream come true.”
Berry didn’t release any specific information on the future of the program but also said he the school has a plan.
“We have a plan in place,” Berry said. “I’m very excited about the future of this program. It’s in a great position moving forward. I’ve been blessed to work with a lot of great people. Like I said in the statement, nobody does it by themselves.
“Moving forward this program is in a position with where it needs to be. I’m proud of that. I’ve proud of everybody that’s been with me to get it here.”
For Berry it’s been an expected emotion week for him as he has been flooded with numerous messages and phone calls, especially after the team meeting his team held on Tuesday.
“I did all the talking,” Berry said. “I didn’t want to get emotional but certainly I did. It was like a weather forecast of scattered showers. That’s kind of what it became for me. It was from the heart. I love them and I wanted them to know that.
“It’s a been a really emotional week for me with this, but it was like a weight lifted off my back when I met with the team and explained my situation with it. I’ve been so blessed in my career for the relationships. One thing I have been able to really appreciate these last two days is all the text messages, phone calls and people from 39 years of relationships.”
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