The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Getting defensive
08.25.2006 | Football
Gene Chizik
On who is contributing to the depth in the secondary: I think it is all of them. You see Erick Jackson show up, you see Brandon Foster show up, Ryan Palmer has really done a nice job. Then you see the young guys show up, an interception by Ishie [Oduegwu] and an interception by Robert Joseph (in last Saturday's scrimmage). I think there is some depth coming at that position, some from the brand new guys and some from the guys who have been here for a while. I think that the reps are building up right now and that is why you are able to see some of those guys make those plays.
On which freshman might not redshirt this year: We don't really know that yet. We are still in the evaluation process and for us to say who might or might not red shirt right now wouldn't be fair and probably wouldn't be very accurate right now. We are just trying to bring them on and let them continue to develop.
On who else has come on as a second-team linebacker: We are making progress in that regard. One guy who stands out as one of the new guys is Jared Norton; he has done a nice job for us. We have really been trying to give him a lot of reps, especially this week to see if he can contribute this year. He is a big physical body and he showed up some in the scrimmage. It really is pretty much status quo there, we have our guys that played a lot last year, and they are continuing to progress, and we have some of the younger guys coming on, but in that position we are trying to cross-train everybody.
On Roddrick Muckelroy: Right now we are trying to play him at two positions because in the spring he played middle linebacker, and now we're trying to cross-train him at strongside and weakside because we feel like he has that position down. He is really coming along; his head is swimming just a little bit right now because the process of cross-training him has just started. He is coming on really well and we are looking forward to seeing what he does during the year.
On Muckelroy's game as a middle linebacker: Well, I thought he had some instinct in there. I think that at the middle linebacker position, you have to have a lot of instincts, things that we would like to think that we coach, but we don't. I think that is one thing that Rashad (Bobino) has because he has knack for playing in there and he has that. Roddrick has a knack for playing in there and has vision. I think he is starting to become a physical player in there. Obviously if you are not a physical player, then you can't play there. That is what I have seen in the last couple of weeks.
On Roy Miller's first step: It's a lot faster than mine. He has really come on in terms of being an aggressive player, he has a great first step that's very powerful. Again, he is a young guy that is still in the learning process. He didn't play a lot last year, but the times that he did play really carry over to experience. Even though it was a little, it still carries over to experience. He played in the Rose Bowl and the Championship game and I think you can see that. He needs to keep coming on and progressing where we would like him to go. I think that he can really help our defense.
On how the defensive line stacks up: We had a really good defensive line last year, and we lost a lot of good players, and I think that our goal is make sure that this defensive line is as good, if not better. They are talented and they have a chance to be really good. We have a long way to go in terms of getting there, but they all know that, and we know that.
On Tim Crowder and Brian Robison: We have been practicing for two weeks and you don't see them slow down in steps. You can tell that weight is not an issue. I think they trained very hard over the summer, they have trimmed down their body fat and hopefully that will let them get stronger during the season. I think that happens when you are not overweight.
On Derek Lokey: He is very powerful and has a very quick first step. He is a lot like Roy Miller. Obviously, he has more experience, but he brings the same thing to the table -- just a lot of explosion and being able to eat two or three blocks in there. The experience he has is really huge. Those two bring a lot to the table and that's why we feel like we ought to be good down there.
On how Frank Okam is freed up from the three technique because of others playing nose: Frank has played both, so he has played three tech and he has played nose in a lot of big games and it frees him up to be a guy who can play three tech and get a lot of one-on-one blocks out there without so many double teams, although he will see some just because he is so big and people know about him. It's really good when players can interchange positions like that because you can never really know where they are going to be.
On the Griffin brothers: Back in the early '80s I had two twins, in fact I coached four brothers. There was an older one, two twins and a younger one. We have been through that drill before, but they are both really playing well. It has been nice to see Marcus emerge and kind of be his own player back there. Get used to the name, Marcus Griffin is going to be an outstanding defensive back for us in the next couple of years. Michael has obviously had much more opportunity and has taken advantage of it. I think that Marcus has really stepped out of that shadow and is playing with a lot of confidence and it is a great story and it is nice to see.
On if he sees them on the same page as players: I think that they have been together so long, work together well and communicate well with each other. I think that Marcus has a tremendous football I.Q. and he is a very quick study. That is what you are going to see -- is how quickly he plays. He may not be as fast as a lot of the other guys we have had, but he is going to play as quick as all of the defensive backs we have had here. He and Michael are both very physical football players and it's nice, and I think that people will know who #26 and #27 are after the game.
On if he has seen an increase in intensity and competition in players this week: I think that after that last scrimmage very much so. This is probably the deepest secondary I have had since I've been here. Last year, there were a very gifted five guys, and we all knew what the depth chart was and how they all fell into line. This year, I have some very tough decisions that I have to make. We are at the point now where we are taking some very tough looks. I have had to make some real individual cut-ups, because I think being a parent also, I know how important this is, not only for our football team that we get the right people out there, but also for the players themselves. They have all invested a lot of time and effort, and I just need to make sure I am making the right decision. Not just for the football team, but for the players themselves.
On if he saw Michael Huff's interception last week: I didn't see the pick, but we had the chance to talk to both of those guys after Minnesota played Oakland, and that was really nice to see. It is really nice that the players in that room still follow Michael and I know that (Nathan) Vasher and (Quentin) Jammer played against each other. It is a neat (position) room to be part of, there have been a lot of great players there and the cool part is that they root for one another while they are here and also when they leave. It is really a nice football family, and I am really proud to be part of it.
