Charlotte 49ers ready for fresh start under new head coach

CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte 49ers are ready for a fresh start.

The team will enter the football season with a new head coach in Biff Poggi and it will be their first season in the American Athletic Conference. Poggi laid out his expectations for this season at Charlotte’s media day on Tuesday.

There will be plenty of new faces, including quarterback Jalon Jones. He played for Poggi in high school and is ready for a second go-around.

“He didn’t really have to pitch me anything,” Jones said. “He just said I’ve got an opportunity to come in a beautiful city in Charlotte and a chance to make some good change.”

The 49ers were picked last in the American preseason poll, but they hope to use it as fuel.

“We’ve got a whole lot of outsiders thinking we’re going to be a 2-5 season, or a 2-10 season and it’s like, that’s a good chip to have on our shoulder,” linebacker Prince Bemah said.

Poggi says his team has blinders on.

“They’ve got these blinders on about we are not going to give our critics the satisfaction of being right,” Poggi said.

Charlotte will open the season at home against South Carolina State on Sept. 2.

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