ON THE OFFENSIVE CHOICE
Every week is an evaluation based on what we can run and what they can run. They certainly had not prepared for an elite running QB, prepared for more of a Temple style offense with Lucas and had all their checks and blitzes prepared, was a combo of what they run in the past and some of that was dictated by who were playing and not putting the offensively in bad situations from a pass pro situation. We handled ourselves pretty well across the board and we had a play for all three. It was always based on the flow of the game, was happy with a lot with what we did, 4.7 yards per play and had some runners over 50 yards and had some explosive numbers and good stuff to build on. It is a work in progress, it was the defending national champs at their place in the first game of the year in our first game in history.
ON THE QB ROTATION BEING SCRIPTED
I think a little of both, it is game to game deal, ultimately you’d like to have one guy do everything, we are not at that point yet, Tobias was amazing running the ball and james came in and ran some nice plays. If we got into a throwing situation Lucas would come in, it will be week-to-week and great coaching is taking the pieces you take what you have and put them in the best places to win against your opponent.
ON FAMILIARITY ON USF ON D
Not a whole lot different, very athletic and multiple front team and will give you a bunch of different looks and play nose-to-nose and play man. We are a lot different and that will be the chess match on Saturday. Guys run hard and are in the right gap. They can run you down. They did a good job of running with Wisconsin, they laid on them and ran the ball.
ON JORDAN MASON RUNNING WELL
He was fanstastic and his ability to break tackles against really good players, big guy with good quickness and sees the play well. Tashard Choice does a great job with the scheme and where the ball should be run. You have to break tackles and you don’t want the first guy to make the tackle, there is a lot to build upon, there is a combination to do a lot in the run game and to catch the ball.
ON TOBIAS LEFT AND RIGHT LAST YEAR AT USF
Our OL running the football was really good and we were moving Clemson’s front in the run game and cuts who were used to cutting guys. Cooper did a good job handling inside movement and Clemson are not in the same look play to play, they blitz the will and mike and them come with 3 down and 5 down and our guys moved them and I was very encouraged with how we ran it. We want the RB to get a few yards and let JP Mason break it. When we got off track and didn’t execute that is when we struggled and we have to stay in front of the sticks, Stay in third and short, numbers of third downs won’t be good if you aren’t. When we stayed ahead of the chains we did a good job.
ON LEARNING ABOUT THE PERSONNEL IN THE GAME
During the game, aftering doing for it for 28 years it comes down to feel, how is our tempo, the guys in the pressbox keep a running tab on what we are doing well, let’s say a certain week we are not running outside zone well and do this instead, that is a feel thing and as long as I’ve been doing. When you watch the tape you get a true understanding. Even when we scrimmage we don’t get a ton of reps and you aren’t banging your guys a lot and trying to get the starters healthy you won’t get a ton of reps. You want to see how guys get off the ball. JP broke some tackles and that was impressive, Ahmarean ran right by their safety with the lights on. It is different from practice to a big group of people, that was the first time they’ve run a pro-style attack in a number of years and build on the good things we’ve done. Every week in the season is a series of one week’s. You want to be 1-0, it is a building block each week and then there is another test. You can’t worry about getting a 60 on the last test, you have to worry about this test, that is what we are in the process of doing right now.
ON YOUNG GUYS GETTING THEIR FIRST PLAYING TIME
I didn’t see any big eyes, that is the great thing about our approach, Coach Collins does a great job getting our guys ready physically and emotionally to play. I thought it was a pretty cool place and our guys played well. Mike Minihan was his first real time and he played tremendous not only with our young guys, but other guys getting significant PT, thing I was most impressed with, we played hard and there was no finger pointing or saying this doesn’t work. On offense it is about execution and you play fast and hard you have a chance to win. You have to win one v one.
ON SNAPS
I don’t think it was a major issue, there was nothing air mailed or a two-hopper. We did a great job hearing and being used to the crowd noise, we had one procedure penalty against a really loud stadium in a hostile environment, it is a continual thing, center snap.
ON MISHANDLED MESH ON THE TRIPLE OPTION
The first two years I coached were in triple option in 1991, that is what we were 1991 US Coast Guard Academy we ran then Springfield College ran it and still run, deep background early in my career in the option, zone-read is an option play and we run some triple, Jamious jumbled the ball, if we pull it would be a great play, we don’t have the expertise running it like coach Johnson, but their familiarity with it is something we should maximize, we are really good at it. The TD we scored was on a speed option, that will be.
ON TOBIAS AND JAMES
Tobias had an idea passing game wise, the one pick he threw as a little late and the TE drifting and the LB undercutting it. James was the same way we missed some rollovers in the flats, that is an easy throw for us. James throwing it down the field uncorked it, he has a punchers mentality and if he has that first read he will let if sling, I knew when they lined up they were going to AB, on the TD throw, he isn’t shy. HE brings the ability to throw it downfield. It is a good group and there were some things today in practice we saw, they are still really trying to understand the complexities of a pro-passing game.
Every week is an evaluation based on what we can run and what they can run. They certainly had not prepared for an elite running QB, prepared for more of a Temple style offense with Lucas and had all their checks and blitzes prepared, was a combo of what they run in the past and some of that was dictated by who were playing and not putting the offensively in bad situations from a pass pro situation. We handled ourselves pretty well across the board and we had a play for all three. It was always based on the flow of the game, was happy with a lot with what we did, 4.7 yards per play and had some runners over 50 yards and had some explosive numbers and good stuff to build on. It is a work in progress, it was the defending national champs at their place in the first game of the year in our first game in history.
ON THE QB ROTATION BEING SCRIPTED
I think a little of both, it is game to game deal, ultimately you’d like to have one guy do everything, we are not at that point yet, Tobias was amazing running the ball and james came in and ran some nice plays. If we got into a throwing situation Lucas would come in, it will be week-to-week and great coaching is taking the pieces you take what you have and put them in the best places to win against your opponent.
ON FAMILIARITY ON USF ON D
Not a whole lot different, very athletic and multiple front team and will give you a bunch of different looks and play nose-to-nose and play man. We are a lot different and that will be the chess match on Saturday. Guys run hard and are in the right gap. They can run you down. They did a good job of running with Wisconsin, they laid on them and ran the ball.
ON JORDAN MASON RUNNING WELL
He was fanstastic and his ability to break tackles against really good players, big guy with good quickness and sees the play well. Tashard Choice does a great job with the scheme and where the ball should be run. You have to break tackles and you don’t want the first guy to make the tackle, there is a lot to build upon, there is a combination to do a lot in the run game and to catch the ball.
ON TOBIAS LEFT AND RIGHT LAST YEAR AT USF
Our OL running the football was really good and we were moving Clemson’s front in the run game and cuts who were used to cutting guys. Cooper did a good job handling inside movement and Clemson are not in the same look play to play, they blitz the will and mike and them come with 3 down and 5 down and our guys moved them and I was very encouraged with how we ran it. We want the RB to get a few yards and let JP Mason break it. When we got off track and didn’t execute that is when we struggled and we have to stay in front of the sticks, Stay in third and short, numbers of third downs won’t be good if you aren’t. When we stayed ahead of the chains we did a good job.
ON LEARNING ABOUT THE PERSONNEL IN THE GAME
During the game, aftering doing for it for 28 years it comes down to feel, how is our tempo, the guys in the pressbox keep a running tab on what we are doing well, let’s say a certain week we are not running outside zone well and do this instead, that is a feel thing and as long as I’ve been doing. When you watch the tape you get a true understanding. Even when we scrimmage we don’t get a ton of reps and you aren’t banging your guys a lot and trying to get the starters healthy you won’t get a ton of reps. You want to see how guys get off the ball. JP broke some tackles and that was impressive, Ahmarean ran right by their safety with the lights on. It is different from practice to a big group of people, that was the first time they’ve run a pro-style attack in a number of years and build on the good things we’ve done. Every week in the season is a series of one week’s. You want to be 1-0, it is a building block each week and then there is another test. You can’t worry about getting a 60 on the last test, you have to worry about this test, that is what we are in the process of doing right now.
ON YOUNG GUYS GETTING THEIR FIRST PLAYING TIME
I didn’t see any big eyes, that is the great thing about our approach, Coach Collins does a great job getting our guys ready physically and emotionally to play. I thought it was a pretty cool place and our guys played well. Mike Minihan was his first real time and he played tremendous not only with our young guys, but other guys getting significant PT, thing I was most impressed with, we played hard and there was no finger pointing or saying this doesn’t work. On offense it is about execution and you play fast and hard you have a chance to win. You have to win one v one.
ON SNAPS
I don’t think it was a major issue, there was nothing air mailed or a two-hopper. We did a great job hearing and being used to the crowd noise, we had one procedure penalty against a really loud stadium in a hostile environment, it is a continual thing, center snap.
ON MISHANDLED MESH ON THE TRIPLE OPTION
The first two years I coached were in triple option in 1991, that is what we were 1991 US Coast Guard Academy we ran then Springfield College ran it and still run, deep background early in my career in the option, zone-read is an option play and we run some triple, Jamious jumbled the ball, if we pull it would be a great play, we don’t have the expertise running it like coach Johnson, but their familiarity with it is something we should maximize, we are really good at it. The TD we scored was on a speed option, that will be.
ON TOBIAS AND JAMES
Tobias had an idea passing game wise, the one pick he threw as a little late and the TE drifting and the LB undercutting it. James was the same way we missed some rollovers in the flats, that is an easy throw for us. James throwing it down the field uncorked it, he has a punchers mentality and if he has that first read he will let if sling, I knew when they lined up they were going to AB, on the TD throw, he isn’t shy. HE brings the ability to throw it downfield. It is a good group and there were some things today in practice we saw, they are still really trying to understand the complexities of a pro-passing game.
