The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
10.28.2014 | Football
Assistant head coach for offense/QB coach Shawn Watson and players met with the media
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Following Tuesday's practice assistant head coach for offense/quarterbacks coach Shawn Watson, junior running back Johnathan Gray, senior defensive end Cedric Reed and senior wide receiver Jaxon Shipley met with the media. Below are quotes from the availability.
Assistant head coach for Offense/Quarterbacks Shawn Watson
On when player personnel is decided on: The personnel is always put on the game plans. You know who is in the game.
On if the play calling is overhyped: Really, I haven't heard anything about it. We're going to coach our style and do our business. Charlie [Strong] does a great job with the staff in terms of making sure everybody understands the plan for rotating guys in games, getting guys touches and playing people. We made a commitment to play the younger receivers. We've made a commitment to play some of the younger DBs. It's just part of the process you do to go about and develop a team. But then, we've picked the roles that they can play in now, so we're not going to put them out there in a situation at the end of a game unless they have to go out there. You pick places where you can play and develop younger guys, and then you use guys to their abilities, their special abilities that they can bring to the game.
On Tyrone Swoopes watching the rush: I think that would be true in this last game. Up until this last game, he wasn't that guy. He's got to keep his eyes down field on the safety. He's been really good at it, and he got a little out of kilter this last game. He started seeing the rush because they were running a lot of twist games on him and a couple of guys broke free. He's just got to re-center himself. The number one thing he has got to do in his development is learn how to protect himself with his feet. That begins by throwing on time and making decisive decisions. Our decision game is really easy. We basically make one guy wrong, and he's got to trust that. He's got to center himself and get back in his place when those things happen. Saturday it was a chore getting him back in it. He's got to keep his eyes key through the safety and let the safety take him to his work.
On working with Tyrone to throw the ball away: That's part of the process of a younger player. I remember doing it with Teddy [Bridgewater]. All of the things I'm going through with [Tyrone], I went through with Teddy. It's the same thing I've gone through with Joe Ganz, with Joel Klatt, I've been through it with all of these kids. It's just part of their development. You've got to know when to burn the football and live to see another day. I think the one throw against Iowa State, that's what you call an impulse decision. He made that, and it was a bad decision on his part. I think he'll learn from that one because it's so big and so obvious. The decisions you're talking about in the pocket, learning how to utilize his check down. I use Teddy as my example because he was the poster child of it, he was a first round draft choice. He learned how to utilize his offense and use all of the tools in his offense. [Tyrone] is in the process of developing that, and he's got to get better at it, absolutely. I do know this, I know that I've got to get his attention, I've got to keep coaching him, that's my job. We keep putting him in those situations, we're doing some things even in practice this week to make sure that we keep bringing him along with that development because we had to do the same thing with Teddy. It's just part of the process to learn how to use everything, use everything available to you, and learn how to protect yourself with your feet. It's also using the check down. Those are things he's got to continue to develop and gain confidence in.
On if he has perceived this season as a rebuilding season: You never do that as a coach, we just knew we were in a process – that's the best way that I would explain it. The process of teaching a culture, the process of teaching an offense and a defense. Then you go through some adversity and you've got to find your way through it. You've got to find your way through it like a champion because if you don't adhere to what you believe in and you stand for nothing then pretty soon it's going to be pretty evident to the team that you're false. We've stood the ground on what we believe in, both on and off the field. You just have to keep fighting the process and keep developing. I don't think anybody ever looked at it on our end that way. I don't think any coach ever does because our job is to win. We do know we're in a process and that part of that process, most importantly, is staying true to what you believe in.
On where the offense is right now: We've just got to keep working. We're still a work in progress, we're still having to deal with the hand that's been dealt us. We're still working. It's still a process, and it's going to be for a while.
On inexperience within the team: Especially on our side of the ball, we're an inexperienced group of guys, and now they're getting a feel. Usually what a player goes through is one, they've got to learn to trust themselves, and once they learn to trust themselves, become a player and have success, then you see that leadership begin to take place. The chemistry and attitude between the team begin to build. I think everybody would tell you that's involved in this line of work, that's called the process. We've got guys who are inexperienced players who have gained a lot of experience by playing. Taylor Doyle has done a really remarkable job – his transition between spring and today is totally different than where he's at right now. He's playing with confidence and has become a solid piece of our offense. He's taken more of a leadership role with the offensive line. He's a guy you point to that's had success in the process. It wasn't all roses for him when he started either. He's had to grow into that.
On sophomore offensive lineman Kent Perkins: He worked a little bit today. It's a day-to-day deal right now, but we're hopeful that he'll be good for game time. We'll see how the rest of the week transpires.
On junior wide receiver Daje Johnson: We keep upping the ante on him. Today, he got quite a bit of work, so hopefully that will look good for Saturday.
On the mindset of making a bowl game: It's on everybody's mind. That's become the focus for everybody throughout the team. Charlie has put that up in front of the team and our staff, and everybody has the same focus. That's our goal.
On offensive line problems against Kansas State and if they are correctible: It's all correctible. All of those things that are associated with their issues are all things that are tied to their fundamentals and techniques, basically. That gets back to, as a player, the fundamental process of becoming a player -learning what Joe [Wickline] is trying to teach in those pickups and how to manage those pickups because there's not one guy involved. Most of the time, there's a minimum of two, if not, three. That's something I know Joe is spending a lot of time working on. One of the things as a younger player, it's one of the things for a younger, inexperienced player to learn how to manage.
Junior RB Johnathan Gray
On the focus of the team being to get bowl eligible: That's our main focus is get bowl-eligible, but to do that, we've got to take one game at a time and right now that's [Texas] Tech. We've got to get prepared for those guys and make sure we have a great week of practice and go in there with our heads straight and go out there and execute plays.
On where the offense is: We're good. We just got to learn to finish. That's our biggest downfall right now and we just have to learn when we get down and get drives going, we have to be able to execute and finish. That's what we have to keep executing in practice and keep a repetition and being detailed in our work and get jobs done.
On how special this game is considering what his dad did at Texas Tech: It's real special. My dad did great things at Tech and he wants me to know you have to be your own man and go out there and play every game like it's your last. He was a great player and he wants me to be my own man and go out there and be a great player.
On getting a 100-yard rushing game: Yeah we need it bad. One of us needs it bad. Like I said, we've got to keep repetition and keep going hard in practice and do what we're supposed do and be detailed in our work.
On what they see out of D'Onta Foreman: He's going to be a great back for us. He's one of those kids that loves the game, and when he knows it's his time to go in, he wants to do his best and execute plays and he does just that in practice and we're trying to find him to get in the game more often.
Senior DE Cedric Reed
On how important is it for the team to make a bowl: I think it's not only important for the seniors, but I think it's important for just this team in all. I think that there's a lot of guys on this team that need to experience a bowl game. I think that it would do some good for the program. I wasn't here for the 5-7 year when we missed a bowl game, but I heard it wasn't great. So I don't think we need that around here.
On how his role is different in the schemes compared to previous years: I'd say it's a lot different. We're playing a lot of all-out defense. I'm to the field a lot more than I was last year. It's different. Last year, me and [Jackson] Jeffcoat, we predominately played left and right. Sometimes I was mostly to the boundaries and stuff like that, but it's a lot different, but still the same scheme.
On what makes Lubbock a difficult to place to play in: Lubbock's always a difficult place to play. I think it's a Halloween game, actually, so it'll be a lot more intimidating. They throw tortillas at you. They do a lot of different stuff, man. It's just a very loud crowd. They've got a lot of students in the stadium. There's not much out in Lubbock but football, so you know everybody's packing in that little stadium.
Senior WR Jaxon Shipley
On how tough it is to play in Lubbock: A lot of them are pretty difficult, but yeah, the fans there, they're all in, all the time. You just got to tune those guys out. And they're not playing; it's the guys on the field who are playing, so ultimately, that doesn't matter. I think some guys, maybe sometimes, get caught up in the whole everything that's going on. When it comes down to it, it's just Texas and Texas Tech playing, and none of those other people even matter, so it really shouldn't affect us.
On what the coaching staff is building for the future: Obviously the season hasn't necessarily gone the way we've wanted it to be, but when it comes down to it, I think that we are learning discipline, and guys will learn to do the little things right and I think that will ultimately affect the future years here. I think you'll get guys being bought in and stuff. Right now, we're not focused about any of that. We're just focused on this game right now, but as far as that goes, I would say definitely discipline.
On the senior class: We want to go to a bowl game, that's the thing. Ultimately, we'd love to win out. We want to go a bowl game, for sure. That's something, that if you don't go to a bowl game here, that's not the standard at all. We feel like each and every week, from now on, is a step towards that. It's one of those things where you can never get too down on yourself, no matter what's happened. It hasn't been the best season, as far as the record goes, but when it comes down to it, you've all got to pull together and put games like last week, you've got to put it behind you and you got to look forward to the future.
On how they can improve: I think the thing is, you've got to be focused. That's one of the things we've really got to work on this week is being focused and not letting any of the negativity from the outside creep into the team and stuff that some of the fans may be saying. You can't focus on any of that. You've got to focus on the task at hand and just prepare each and every week. I think, ultimately, if we can just do a great job to prepare and know our assignments and stuff before we go into the game, I think that will help us out.
