The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
08.25.2014 | Football
Head coach Charlie Strong and players met with the media to preview Saturday's game vs. North Texas
Head coach Charlie Strong
Opening Statement: I never thought this week would come, and really excited about the game this weekend. We're really excited about just our football team and see how we're going to take the field on Saturday and how we go play. I just told them, it's all about just having fun. It's all about playing with energy, about playing with emotion and just being a total football team where we play well on offense, play well on defense, and also in the special teams. But I'm just so excited for our seniors, as a group they have shown no resentment at all. They have also provided leadership, which I'm really excited about with this group of guys because when you take over a program so rich in tradition, so much pride that sometimes so many guys don't want to do what you ask them to do. But this group has not even shown, has not even turned down this road, which has been really great, and it's been really good for our coaches. I tell them all the time, it's about us putting a 'T' back into Texas. It's still about just toughness, it's about trust, it's about just being a total team, and if we can get that accomplished this week, then we're going to have us a good week. We still have this week to finish up, continue with our focus, continue our preparation, and just lead on into Saturday. But we're just excited, and I know this week of practice is going to be so much excitement for our players because I think for themselves, they want to get back out on the field just show what it's all about. January [when I was hired] just seemed like a long ways away, but now it's finally arrived for us.
On his feelings about his time here and what it has been like since January until now: Well, I just remember that day. There was so much press when I walked in that door, my daughter Hailee hit me, 'Oh my God, Dad, look at all these cameras.' That's what it's all about. But you're right, just sitting there in January and now to finally get to this time, it is a lot of emotion. But you try to set it aside because you still have to go get a football team prepared and ready to go play, and it's going to be great not only for me but also for the players.
On wide receiver Jaxon Shipley's availability for the North Texas game: Well, Ship is still day-by-day, and it will come down to a game day decision, but he's working. I think on Saturday was the first time that we really had a chance to put him in some drills. He didn't go the whole practice because we still have to be very careful about his injury.
On his biggest concerns for the team and where he has seen improvement: I don't know if we're much better, but just looking at this football team, we know we're nowhere near where we should be. We had a lot of work in three weeks, and we want to get better each and every day. There have been a couple of days where I didn't really feel very happy with the way we practiced, but other than that, they have came out and competed well. What's great is when you can put the ball down and you don't even stretch half the time, you go right to goal line. You can just see what type of football team you have, and so I've done that two or three times, just put the ball down, tell them we don't need to stretch today, just put the ball down, let's go right to goal line, then they go to individual and just go off to practice. You're just trying to set the tone for practice. When I look at this team and you just think about leadership, and that's what it's all about with this group of seniors. It's a really good senior class when you talk about [Dominic] Espinosa, [Jordan] Hicks, Ced [Cedric] Reed, Malcolm Brown, Ship [Jaxon Shipley], [David] Ash, who's been here four years. And you have a really good secondary group with Mykkele Thompson and with [Quandre] Diggs, guys that have been here. I told that group of seniors, I know when you guys signed on it was all about just re-establishing a foundation here in this program—now you have a chance to get that done your senior year.
On the identity of the team and what the team will be known for after Saturday: Well, you have to be prepared to be multiple on offense, and you've got to be able to mix the run and the pass. At the end of the day, you want to be able to run the football. You have two good backs in Malcolm Brown and J [Johnathan] Gray, and you have an unbelievable quarterback who's had an unbelievable preseason camp with [David] Ash where you can play action pass, get the ball down the field. The thing we're probably missing right now is just a receiver that can really go get it. I always talk about when I talk about wide receivers, just so a guy hits you out there, but just see if he can make a guy miss and take the ball 30 or 40 yards. If we can get those things established, then we should be pretty good on offense. Then defensively, we need to be aggressive. We need to tackle well, but we also need to cover pressure and guys need to be able to cover and get off blocks.
On how close his defense is to where he wants it to be: Well, the experience is what helps this defense. When you look up front, you have three guys that are returning with Ced [Cedric Reed], Malcom [Brown] and Tank [Desmond] Jackson, and the backers with [Dalton] Santos, [Steve] Edmond, and then you have a chance to get Hicks [Jordan] back. Then you look in the secondary with [Quandre] Diggs, Mykkele [Thompson] and Duke [Thomas]. You have some veterans, guys who have played, guys that have been in the line of battle when you get out there on that football field. So you expect the defense to be ahead of the offense, just because of the leadership you have, but also with the experience. This group has been fun because now we can add more with this group because they can handle more. That's the way it is with an installation: when you install and a guy can just piece it together and you can just each and every day add more and more, then you can see what type of defense because you have a veteran set of guys.
On if he would like to play two quarterbacks on Saturday: If they go the way we expected, we'd like to get them both [David Ash and Tyrone Swoopes] in the game, but we're going to go with Ash; he's our starter. Like I said, he's had an unbelievable camp and then we'd like to get the other one in if we can.
On the plan for the offensive line and safety for the North Texas game: Well, we still need to continue to work through. Probably about midweek we will know exactly where we are with our offensive line and our secondary, but we're still piecing it together. We have the guys there now, it's just all about us as coaches making sure that the right ones are there and we can get what we need out of the offensive line and out of the secondary.
On what has made David Ash so good during preseason camp: Well, it's all about when you get a quarterback in there, you have a new offense, it's just how much he can press that offense and how much he's willing to learn and study. That's what he's been able to do, just learn the offense and study. The thing you like with your quarterback position, because you always tell him this, I don't need a great player, I just need you to manage and do what we ask you to do. And you don't like to see the ball turned over, but he's been able to make the throws at practice, been able to get us in the right checks, just get us in the right place.
On if he thinks Saturday night is more about how Texas performs rather than the opponent: Well, it's all about what we do. That's what I tell our players. It's never about the opponent, it's about us and it's about how well we go out and compete, how well we go play and how well we play together as a team. If we get those things established, it doesn't matter who you line up against because it's all about you and making sure that you're giving your best effort and just playing with relentless effort from four to six seconds. But it has to be about our football team and us where we know that each and every week we have to go get better and better.
On if he feels as if there is any pressure on him going into Saturday: No, I've been doing this a long time. I feel no pressure at all. You know what happens when you prepare and when you have pressure placed on you, when you have a prepared football team, you place them out there, and you let them go to work, your work will speak. I tell them, 'Hey, your work is going to speak for yourselves by how well you go out and go play,' but I don't feel any pressure. You liked that, didn't you?
On how will the offensive plays be called: We have two coordinators [Joe Wickline and Shawn Watson], so they'll be split up. The thing about it, when you have two coordinators, they're on the same page. They're in a meeting right now so it's not one of those I want this play or that play. They're professionals, they've been in this business a long time, so they'll be able to manage it.
On North Texas head coach Dan McCarney: Well, me and Mac go back to our days at Florida. He's sitting there telling a joke, he ordered a coke and twizzlers, that's all he would eat. Then he'd have those small snicker bars that he ate all the time. We always laughed at him because he'd eat lunch and then he'd go right to that coke. But he was just wired, always had a lot of energy, and I know his team will be well coached because he did a great job when he was at Iowa State. Also, and looking at the job he's done there at North Texas, nine wins, beating UNLV in a bowl game, but that team will be well coached. The thing about it are his coaches, they'll be very prepared for us.
On playing a run dominated style like North Texas and if people are overlooking the pro-style offense with teams like Michigan State and Stanford, and what it can do: Well, right, when you just study change and you look across the country and you just look at teams that win, you have to go run the football. What that does is just shows what type of team you are. You look at Alabama, what they've won, even Auburn last year. Auburn was able to run the ball. They could spread you out, but they would run the football at the end of the day. So that's what you have to do. Like you said, you mentioned Stanford, how they were able to run the ball, but you have to have very balanced, also. It's got to be a combination. Now, people don't go in the box and stop the run and you got to be able to stand back, protect and throw the ball down the field. It's all about defensively, when you look at it, we want to make a team one dimensional, and how you make a team one dimensional: you have to go stop the run, then you force them to throw the ball because if they throw that ball, you've got a chance to go get a sack, you've got a chance to tip the ball, you've got a chance to go get interceptions. There's a lot that comes into play when you're back there. But when you can hand it off, and you have two good backs like Malcolm Brown and Johnathan Gray and the offensive line can move people out of the way, just all things you can do just to get in a guy's way and just fill him up, hope the backs can make the cut, go run the ball, and go run behind their backs.
On if he has allowed himself a moment to prepare himself for the moment he runs out of the tunnel as the head coach: Well, we were out there on Saturday, and I told the team, I said, 'You think about it, guys, a week from now there's going to be a seat everywhere in this whole stadium and it's going to be packed in and it's going to be watching us all.' But you kind of stand, you look around, you just look at the history, you look at all those names out there and just what has happened within the tradition and the pride that's been built within this program. Now I have a chance to go lead this football program. It's going to be fun and exciting, but still, I had to take a step back, too, and just realize we need to go win this football game. We've got to go play well, too, or I may not be enjoying that moment for very long [laughing].
On if he'd like to see David Ash throw 25 passes or less a game: Well, that's going to depend on the defense you play against, the style we play against, and who we're playing. It always depends on the type of game, also, so you can never put a number on it. Because you may have to go into some games and you may have to throw the ball over 30 times, who knows. But just whatever a defense is willing to give us, we've got to take it on offensively.
On how many true freshmen he would like to play on Saturday and if he has any specifically he wants to put in: Well, I just think in the secondary, Jason Hall will be a freshman that we'll end up playing. And then at wide receiver, you may see a [Armanti] Foreman go out, Lorenzo Joe, but those wide receivers all have a chance to go play on Saturday, just not knowing just exactly the number. We have some freshmen that have done very well that have had a good fall camp, so they're going to get an opportunity for us
On if he wants to play like the other Big 12 teams, or does he want to play his own style: Well, it's going to depend when we get into those games what teams are giving us and if we can go slow them down on defense. That's going to be a big measuring stick for us; if we can go out and defend the track meets.
On if he knows that the mindset of the team has changed and it is where he wants it to be: Well, as the game gets closer, you'd like for it to build up. We had a team meeting this morning and I said, 'Hey, it's game week, we have a lot of time to get ready for that game on Saturday, and each and every day you guys will be given chips where we break it down day by day what we're trying to focus on or what we're trying to get accomplished." But the game is Saturday. We can't play today, we can't play tomorrow, but by game time we will have the team ready to go play.
On how the much the defense is focused on stopping the offense on first down: Well, see, what we're able to do is we go first down mix like it is built in our script in the practice. It's good on good [No. 1 offense vs. No. 1 defense] where we just explain, where the offense gets their six and the defense gets theirs. You want to stop a team on first down because on second down you'd like for them to be behind the chains. One of the toughest things of second down is to get a team where it's 4 to 6 because you're in that window there where it could be run or pass and you're kind of playing a guessing game on defense. You'd like for those situations to be second and long, then you kind of have a better feel for the offense because they're going to. If you get into 2nd and long, they're going to try to get it managed where they can get it back to third-and-2, third-and-3, but second and 4 to 6, they have a chance to get a first down to keep the chain moving. So we've done very well. That's why it's always about first down mix at practice because the 1st down is a very critical down.
On the length of suspensions for Desmond Harrison, Daje Johnson and Josh Turner: I haven't, and those guys have had an unbelievable camp. They've done everything we asked, but they would not play in this first game. I just haven't set the number of how many they're going to miss.
On the toughness and how he likes his trenches on both sides of the line: If we're ever going to win, we have to win up front, and it starts with the offensive line and defensive line. You like how much we have a chance for those guys to go compete because you just see the circle drill and then you see three on three and then goal line. Goal line is a good measuring stick, too. The thing I like about goal line is it's such a close defined area that it's hard for a guy to get hurt. It is a pound, just come off the ball, and not just make it fourth-and-1 so the offense can go score, but that's the way it's going to be won. That's the way it's got to be built up front, because I always say, little guys, they're just going to talk and they just do all the chatter, but the game is going to be won with big guys getting off blocks at the defensive line, offensive line reestablishing the line of scrimmage, knocking people back.
On teaching or instilling a mindset of winning: Well, it's a buildup. What has to happen is it's got to start in January, and that's why you go through the offseason programs and you go through spring practice, then you come back with summer conditioning. It's a mindset, and the thing that they have to realize is why go through all this hard work, do the things you do and be as talented as you are and not want to go win a football game and go play at your best. It's all about them playing at their top level. If you can get them to go compete at the ability they've been blessed with, then you have a chance to go win some games. But it is, it's a mindset, and it's something that has to be just talked about over and over. Some days they don't want to go out and practice hard, okay, they just lost a football game. But with the mindset we've got to go compete each and every day and it starts at practice and continues not only at practice but in the meeting rooms, just how you go approach the meeting, how your focus is in the meeting room, are you willing to learn. If you're willing to learn and then you can take the learning from the classroom to the practice field, then you have a chance to go out and compete. The mindset with winning is, now all of a sudden you're sitting there, when you feel confident and you have confidence within yourself, then the winning is going to take care of it.
On if the team was mentally broken when he got here: I don't know if it was mentally broken, but what you made a point that they come from really good programs. They are used to winning state championships and they're playing for state championships. Then when you get this class that came in, and this was kind of the class that said, 'Hey, we're going to reestablish a foundation, put the pride and the tradition back into this program.' Then it didn't go so well when you look at the last three years. The thing about it is they have a chance now to really put a stamp on this program and leave their mark, which is great, because you have a season to get it done. That's why I'm really excited, just to see how well this senior class is going to come together and watch it happen.
On with everything on his plate, was offseason as challenging as he thought it would be: Yeah, I don't know if it was so much challenging because you just look at all offseason and you want to make sure that they all go to work and have the right mindset when they go to work. What's been great is that there's been no resentment. I know I've had to discipline some players, but still, though, just the majority, 90 percent came to work each and every day, and they wanted to get better, and they wanted to for them themselves. They wanted to make sure that, you know what, it's all about me developing as a person and as a player.
On how much he learns about his staff this week and other guys he's brought in from different programs: Well, what we try to do on Saturday is just make sure that it was more of a mock where we got guys and where we just did different situations. Now, on Thursday, I can put the headsets on because there's a lot of guys in there that have never been on a headset, never heard the communication back and forth and what's being said. This week we need to just really get where guys really know, because like you said, a lot of guys have never worked together on the staff, so with their mindset it'll be good to see this week, how it happens and how it unfolds, because we get to go out today and practice. When I delivered the message this morning to the team, it's about their focus and preparation, not only theirs but also the coaches and making sure we stay on point and making sure each and every day we give them a chip to make them better. How can this make you a better player and how can we get ready, how can this be game ready for us, also?
On what his level of comfort is with special teams at the moment: Special teams is so critical. We always talk about offense, we talk about defense, and we talk about special teams, but we just kind of brush over it. With Will Russ, he's done an unbelievable job of just punting the ball, and it's been really good because he's one of those guys that he's got a strong leg. Now, he may boom one 60 but the next one may go 20. He's got to develop more consistency. With [Nick] Rose, with his field goal, his accuracy has been great for us, but we have to play better on special teams. We have to win on special teams because this was a team last year that led the country in the blocked kicks. I think they blocked five punts last year. You have to be able to protect, and that could change the game. If you watch teams that lose games, a lot of times something happened in the special teams where it's a blocked punt or a kickoff return or a punt return where guys are just jogging down the field. Our whole mission has been that we're going to put starters on special teams. You'll see starters out on special teams, and then I tell them this: Listen, if you can't play on special teams, you can't play on offense or defense, so don't come asking me why I'm not in any of the games because someone said to you, well, we had you on special teams and you couldn't get it done, so don't tell me you can go play another position when you can't play on special teams. Special teams are very crucial.
On what is was about Dylan Haines and Ty Templin and all walk-ons in general that made him give them a chance: Well, just how hard they worked; I've always felt like this. He's not on scholarship because of his ability, but if he comes into this program and he works, then he can earn that scholarship. If you look at what [Dylan] Haines has done, what Ty [Templin] has done, and even a [Nate] Boyer, our deep snapper, you have some guys that are walk-ons that have really contributed to this program. They're going to get a chance to go play because why hold them back? There's no reason to hold them back because they're a walk-on. If they're good enough, they're going to play.
On what his biggest concern is right now: Just our preparation. How we just go through this week, and then just see the team and just see what their mindset is going to be each and every day. Still, we get these next few days where we don't have any school, but when school gets in session on Wednesday, you see guys kind of change because now they're running from class and there's a lot on their mind and there's a lot going on with them. As I said, if we can continue to stay focused in those hours that we do get them, because I want them to enjoy it when they're not around the building, the facility, I want them to just enjoy being a college student, also, but when it's time for us to lock in and get focused, we need their time and we need their mindset.
On his emotions from his first game in 2010 as a head coach at Louisville and how they compare to his feelings now: Well, that was such a different feeling for me because that was my first time as a head football coach, and that was a really good Kentucky team. At that time, we were just trying to just piece it together there at Louisville and just put a team out there. You watch the first half, I mean, we didn't play well at all. I kind of tease Marcus Smith, who was a first round pick to the Eagles. Marcus was on the field and they lined up in what they called a wildcat formation, and [Randall] Cobb was back there, and the quarterback had snapped the ball to him. He goes down the sideline 53 yards, Marcus just kind of stood there and looked at him, and he come off, and he said, 'Coach, I didn't know he had the ball.' I said, '[laughing] well, he just scored a touchdown; somebody had the ball. Then Preston Brown was in that group, but we had some guys in that game that ended up being really good players for us. This one is different now that I've been through it and I've seen it a lot for the first time. It's going to be a first just in the stadium, and there's going to be a lot of emotion on Saturday, I know that. Just running through the tunnel is going to be something special. But it's just the excitement, and I'm just so excited seeing the team. I want to watch this football team go play, and I think they're tired of hitting one another and they're ready to hit someone else, and I think that's what's going to be exciting for me.
On things he has taken away, like decals on the helmets, and if he has given those things back yet: Well, we talked about it, you'll get the players up here in a second, and I told them on Saturday I think they've earned the right to get the decal back on their helmet. I think they've earned the right to raise the Hook'em Horns. But it was so simple when I said it after practice, they all just started screaming, 'we can do that, we finally can do that.' But no, it's something they've worked for now and they've earned that right just because of their hard work. They deserve it, but in the locker room, the only time I would ever remove the rope from around it is on gameday because when we stand on gameday, that's what we're playing for, we're playing for one another. It's the pride in what it means, and that's why I'm going to remove it only on gameday. They can go raise the Horns now and they can have it on their helmet, the decal, but other than that, in the locker room it stays the same.
On the release of this week's depth chart: Midweek I'm going to release the depth chart. What I said earlier is that in the secondary we're still trying to make sure we have the guys in the right spot, even with our offensive line, and the wide receivers with the guys that we do have suspended. I just want to make sure when we release it that it's the final depth chart. This is where they are and where they're going to play on Saturday.
On what positions does he feel good about and what positions does he feel weary about in terms of depth: Well, you start with the defensive line, you have some guys there because you know you have your first three, and then [Hassan] Ridgeway has had an unbelievable camp, [Alex] Norman has done great, [Caleb] Bluiett, and then [Bryce] Cottrell, so you have some guys there. Then, even at linebacker because you still have [Dalton] Santos in there, and him and Steve Edmond are two really key guys in the middle for us. Then on the outside, you have Naashon Hughes that had a great camp and he's playing behind [Peter] Jinkens right now, and then with [Demarco] Cobbs and [Timothy] Cole at the other backers, so the defense there with the front seven, you feel pretty solid with your depth. At wide receivers, it's just a good collection. It's a lot of guys there, but the only thing that concerns you is just the experience because you're talking about a bunch of freshmen that have not played at all. Then, you look at the running back—you know, I love our one and two. There's not one or two, they're both ones. When you look at Malcolm [Brown] and J [Johnathan] Gray, you think about that bunch right there and with J Gray coming back from that Achilles, how hard he's working there. With Malcolm, you get a guy who can run behind his pads and run downhill then you can hand the ball off to J Gray. He's a guy that can make somebody miss and has enough speed and quickness to get on, but the quarterback has had an unbelievable camp. When you look at the offensive line, we're still just trying to just build it where we get seven or eight guys there at the offensive line position. We're still working on that, but Coach [Joe] Wickline has done a great job there. So we're just really solid with our defense up front and our linebackers, collection of wide receivers, but the linebackers are the one and two punch.
On what has been the toughest thing for him taking over this team: Just the total mindset, building their confidence and just getting it built back up because it's where it all starts. When the guys start really believing in themselves and start feeling good about themselves, then you're going to see really good results. That's what we're trying to build. I tell our guys all the time we don't need to disrespect players, we don't need to talk down to them, let's just build them up and make them feel good, so that when it's time for them to do anything, whether it be in a classroom on the field, off the field, wherever it may be, they have enough confidence and enough belief in themselves that they can go get it done.
Junior QB David Ash
On his emotions coming back to the starting quarterback position: I'm just blessed to have another opportunity to go play some football, so it's going to be a lot of fun.
On his performance at camp: I think it always comes down to, as a quarterback, just do your job. You don't do too much. You understand your role as a distributor of the football. You get the ball in playmaker's hands. You get your team in the right place. You understand situational football, and you make the correct decisions that don't hurt your team. It's all been the result of great coaching. Coach Watson has been teaching me about situational football and teaching me how to be one of the best situational quarterbacks in the country, and I've just learned so much from him, and so it's really been just coaching and my teammates. Any time you have good quarterback play, there are 10 other guys on the field that's making that possible because playing quarterback is really hard to do unless the other 10 guys are doing their jobs. So, we've been just working hard as a unit and becoming a better ball club.
On feeling anxious before the season opener: I wouldn't say anxious. I would say I'm just really excited to get back out and play. It's going to be fun. Like the first question, there's going to be a lot of emotions just to be out there again, and I'm just really excited and looking forward to taking the field with my teammates again.
On coming back from his injuries: I don't know, I think I've gained some perspective in the last three or four years, perspective being how to get rid of all the fluff of football and just look at it as what it is, 11-on-11, 50 yards wide, 100 yards long and how to play football and just get it down to the details and simplify it. I think throughout this last year I've learned a lot of trust. You can't control everything. You have to put your faith in God, I believe, and I believe he can control -- he holds my future, and I'm trusting in that, and that's why I'm moving forward. That's why I'm not anxious. That's why I'm looking forward to it, and I'm excited about Saturday.
On having two offensive coordinators: My job is to execute the play called, and that's not a big deal. I think the offensive coaching staff is really, really working together well in the offense that they've come up with is really, really sound, really efficient, and really hard to [defend], so I think it's going to benefit us.
On wide Receivers Armanti Foreman and Lorenzo Joe: Well, they've come in and they've showed a tremendous amount of dedication, and that dedication shows through improvement they've made over the last three weeks of camp. It was a hard camp. It was a grind, and those guys came out every day and they improved each and every day. They learned more and more, and what they showed was just beyond the shadow of a doubt they have the capability and the ability to play football at this level, and it won't be long before they're a huge part of what we do.
On if he ever thought about giving up football: No. I mean, that's just the quick answer. No, not really. I knew I wanted to keep playing, so I am.
On the difference in camp this year: I think this team has worked really, really hard, and I think they've invested so much of themselves into this team and this year that when you work that hard and you invest that much, you should get the dividends. I think that's the difference.
On if he would consider this a rebuild year: Well, as far as I'm concerned, we're undefeated. The two games or whatever we lost in a row last year don't matter anymore because it's a new season, all things are new. We're going to take it one game at a time, and we're going to keep building and we're going to keep getting better each and every week. We'll see where we wind up at the end of the year.
Senior RB Malcolm Brown
On how ready the team is: We're ready. It's been a long, grueling camp, so I mean, we're ready to go out and hit another team. We're going to be fine.
On how much entering the season with a two-game losing streak fires him up: Oh, yeah, definitely a thought in the back of our minds. We're just ready to put that behind us and start the season off right with North Texas.
On what it is going to be like being out there with a new head coach and potentially make history: Yeah, it's going to be a great moment. Like you said, it's not often that you get to play for a different head coach. It's going to be a special moment and definitely something that's going down in history as something special to be a part of.
On if he thinks fans are going to be surprised by this offensive line and what they're going to do Saturday: Yeah, for sure, this offensive line, they've been working real hard, have been out there in that hot sun every day, and they're getting better every day. [Offensive coordinator/offensive line] Coach [Joe] Wickline, he's going to have those big boys ready, and like I said, we had a lot of guys that came in with not a whole bunch of experience, but they got real smooth towards the middle and towards the end of fall camp. It's going to be real good for us.
On what expectations he puts on himself and what he wants to accomplish this year: I just want to be more of a leader this year. I want to be more of a vocal leader and do what I can to take control and be a leader in tough times when we're down a little bit during games. Also to go out there and just perform at my best ability at all times during the game.
On how good he and Johnathan Gray can be: We can be great. I try to work my hardest every single day, and I know J Gray does the same thing. Then we have that offensive line that's really just going to make our job a whole lot easier, really. Then they're the guys that are going to set the tempo, and they're the guys that are going to let us have those big runs, and I feel like this, like you said, one-one punch can be a great thing for us.
On Donald Catalon and what he expects him to contribute: I feel like he's going to do great. He probably will play. Coach [Tommie] Robinson, our running backs coach, he's a guy that he wants everybody to play. He wants everybody to get in the game and get some experience, so I believe y'all probably will see him out on the field and I feel like he'll surprise a couple people.
On the North Texas defense: We haven't gotten too, too much into their film just yet, so I can't determine a whole lot, but they overall, from what I heard, have a great team. They had a nine-win season, I believe, and they won their bowl game and everything, so they're going to have some confidence coming into the season. We're not going to take them lightly at all.
On what he thinks the offense will do to surprise people the most and how they will pull their weight: We want to just go out and establish a run game. That's what gets a whole lot of things going and that's what a lot of successful teams have done. A lot of teams out there winning national championships, they establish that run, and that's something we're going to focus on and something that our coaching staff has explained to us, so that's something that we want to go out and execute for sure.
Junior DT Malcom Brown
On what he wants to get behind him the most with this first game: Basically toughness. I mean, two-a-days, you're up here all day and you're hitting every day, so your body gets tired, and you get tired mentally. You're still hearing the same stuff over and over and they still want you to hit harder and harder even though your body is not the same when you first started. You just want to go out there and have fun Saturday and just let loose, all this work that we've been putting in ever since the spring.
On the defense's performance in the preseason: Basically how physical everybody is, all the coaching, and they're out there just playing, and everybody has been hitting. Like I said, we've been hitting a lot. Just how everybody is -- they've just changed, and they're real focused on what they need to do, and we've been learning everybody else's position and even the offense, so everybody is learning more and more instead of learning their positions, they'll know what they're doing in the defense and why they're doing it and everything. That's what's very impressive.
On head coach Charlie Strong's philosophy to make practice so hard that the game seems easy: I feel like it is. When you've been doing it so much, and you've just been out there in the heat, 4:00 every day you're out there running around in the heat and everybody is still hitting hard, it just breaks your body down, so then they've got to build you back up before the game. I feel like it's going to be very easy to play the game after what we've been through during camp.
On how much the coaching staff has stressed goal-line situations: It's different because sometimes you come out and you're really stressed and he blows the whistle, goal line, and that just takes practice to another level because when you're competing, you try to stop the offense, there's three yards between you and the goal line, you're trying to stop the offense and the offense is trying to score. The coaches get into it just as much as we do and everybody is jumping around. I guess the way to get the they want to do it is to put so much into it before practice that when we get inside a game, you already know what to do. We've been doing it since day one. Even during the spring before practice we would do it. I don't feel like goal line will be harder during the game.
On leadership within the defense: Just basically I consider myself a leader because -- well, it's me, Jordan [Hicks], Quandre [Diggs], just people you know are going to do their job. I feel like the leaders on defense, they start leading by example and they become more vocal because that's what the coaches wanted us to be was more vocal, so whenever something is wrong we all speak up about it and we always back up each other. You have players that can follow what you do, always come up to you and ask you when they don't know what to do, that's when you become a leader because they respect you enough they know you know what you're talking about. So they're always going to you and ask you. When you get to that, I mean, you can't do anything wrong because if you mess up, the younger ones are going to follow you so that takes you to a higher standard than everybody else when everybody is following you and asking you what to do.
On freshman DB Jason Hall: He gets in, he'll learn, he'll listen to everybody else. He's not one of those guys who will be like, 'I'm good enough, I can do whatever I want. You can talk to me but I'm not going to listen to you.' He actually talked to Quandre and all the rest of the safeties and other DBs and he learned, because of Coach Vaughn, he's been getting in and watching film and stuff, and he'll talk to us about what he has to do and just make sure he knows everything. When you have a player like that that's willing to learn everything, that's real good out there on the field because he can fit in good.
Senior CB Quandre Diggs
On the biggest changes since Charlie Strong has arrived: I think we're just having more fun. You know, a lot of guys being themselves, just going out and competing each and every day. When you make plays at practice, you can celebrate, you can talk trash, you can do all that. That's important for a team just to be able to be themselves, loosen up all the time, just go run around, have fun and play football because that's how you grew up playing the game. That's something that I look forward to when I go to practice. If I make a play during practice, I can run the ball over to Coach Strong and hand it to him like it's something special. But it's competing at practice, and that's just fun.
On the biggest lesson he has learned from defensive coordinator Vance Bedford talking trash: You know, just to constantly do it—that's what he does. He constantly talks trash, but he claims he keeps to himself. It's always fun to be around him, and I'm usually standing by him during practice just picking his brain trying to see what I should do on this play, what I'll do on this play, because it's his defense and he knows exactly how he wants it. Every day I'm striving for perfection, and that's just what it is now being a senior, being able to see so much. I know all my assignments; I just want to do them perfectly in each and every way that he wants them. That's always fun just standing by him and just cracking jokes and doing things like that. That's entertainment for practice. It gets guys going, also.
On how the game is going to feel after going through the offseason: It's going to be fun. Camp was grueling, camp was tough. It was waking up each and every morning and knowing you're going in for a grind each and every day when you wake up. Putting your body through that and knowing your body could react to those type of things, it shows you that going into a game, the game is, what, three hours, and when you're up here for most of the day, you know what your body can take. So now, you can go out and you can just give that for six seconds every play. Like I say, it's going to be fun. We had some moments in camp where we'd go out and compete and interact as a team and be a whole. I think, I don't think, I know it'll be fun on Saturday, and I'm just ready to go out there and compete.
On the process of getting everybody on the same page: Coach Strong, he's made the changes that he thought was best for the team. As a team leader, as a group, I think we all can agree with that, that that was important for him to do, because when he's installing something, he has to go and he has to do it his way, and that's his way of doing things. I think that we have the right group of guys, and if you went through this camp and went through the days that we went through, I really feel that you would have to love football. You would have to love being around this team as a whole, and to be able to do those things and go out and go through this camp that we went through, because I can tell you— it was grueling. It was different. Pushing our bodies to the limit is something we haven't done necessarily. We went out and we grinded each and every day, and that was one of the mottos.
On the public saying the defense played soft and what the defense is going to to differently to shed that label that it's had the last few years: The way I go about this situation is I wouldn't talk about it, I'd just go out and show on Saturday what's different about this defense. Like I said, we have five days until the game, and I'd rather just let the talking and all that happen on Saturday about that situation. I'm like Tank; I don't like it being said, so we've just got to go show it.
On freshman DB Jason Hall: He's a guy that will come up and hit you. He's rangy, he's like 6-foot-2, 6-foot-3, and he's smart, he's instinctive. He's a freshman, and he came in and worked his tail off. I can remember him coming in and sitting with me watching film in the summer. He's always had a hunger for the game, and we've got to continue to let him grow. He's going to have his bumps in the road, just like any freshman. It's going to be different when Saturday comes on, so we've just got to try to keep him relaxed and let him go and just help him be successful.
On sophomore DB Dylan Haines: He makes plays; that's where he got his attention. He made plays in practice each and every day during the spring, and it went on through the summer and seven-on-seven. He's still learning the game as a safety. He plays tough, he plays hard, and he really wants to be good. We've just got to continue to push those guys. Like I said, it's great to be able to compete, and those guys are competing against each other, Jason, Dylan and Adrian Colbert, those guys are competing with each other, so you continue to compete and you see who the best man wins.
Senior C Dominic Espinosa
On David Ash's success in the off-season [regard to coming off injury] and what makes him different now: The injury and being out for pretty much the whole season, I think, really hurt him. I think the questions he gets asked about how he's feeling, how is he doing, makes him really want to prove everyone wrong. He wants to take control of this team and lead us to victory, so I think that's big for him. He's one of those guys, a competitor, and he wants to win ballgames. He didn't like taking that back seat last year after the injury, so he's excited to get back. You can see that when he's practicing and at the facility, that he's a guy that's eager to get out there.
On who will stand out in game one from the offensive line: Right now, Sed Flowers is a guy who's had experience playing before with us, but he's a guy that's always been barely out of the starting lineup the past couple years. He's one of those guys who finally has a starting role, and he's going to have a chance to go out there and show everybody what he's about. Especially with him, we're doing a lot of pulling stuff with Sed. He's a fast guy and he plays low, so I think it's going to be exciting to see him. I've said for a while, I think Kent Perkins is going to be a guy I'm excited to see because he's such a big dude out there. It's been great having him next to me because he helps a lot with combos and picking up protections, so those are two guys inside that the fans can really look forward to seeing.
On Coach Strong talking about having to shuffle the O-line around and still trying to piece things together [regard to whether it is a good thing going into this week]: Yeah, I think it has been. I think it's one of those deals where those guys get to learn each position no matter where it is. If anything ever arises injury-wise or we need to move someone around, then all these guys have played different positions, not just one. I wish I could have been moved around throughout practice because it would help me know the offense a little more. I think for these young guys that don't have a lot of experience, it's key for them to get the reps all over the O-line because now they have a big picture of how everything works, how it comes together, and now they're going to use that to their advantage in their positions.
On what he has seen from Taylor Doyle and Jake Raulerson: I think those are just guys who are working at getting double reps. When I say double reps, they're guys who are getting reps themselves with the twos, but when they're not in, they're standing back there and really watching hard. They're guys getting mental reps throughout practice and they're really using those reps to see what's going on with the defense, how the guys in front of them are doing it, and how they can do it better. Those are guys who are really working hard to get starting positions, and they're guys that we'll probably be able to use this year throughout the year.
On if the offense is going to be as physical this year: Oh, yeah, I think just going against that great defense all camp long, we have no choice but to be physical now. Hopefully the games will be much easier when it's time to go out there and let loose and have some fun. Going against that front four we've been going against has been tough on us, but it's been a great learning experience. We've had to be tough every practice no matter what drill it is, three-on-three or circle drill, we've had to have guys step out of their comfort zone and be physical. It's going to be exciting to go and do it against someone else, not just our own teammates.
On the differences of the program during practice at the goal line: It's one of those deals where if you think anyone is acting a little slow during stretching or warm-up, you might just get a whistle and you might have to hurry up and go down there and do fourt-and-1 on the goal line. It's one of those things where you have to be ready for whatever, and you can't afford to have a slow day because someone is going to be across from you and go harder than you and you might get embarrassed. You have to come out there ready to go no matter what time practice is, no matter what day it is. That's been fun an exciting for us. It gets everyone going and has helped out with practices because we have much more productive practices now.
On if the opener needs to be a statement, set-the-tone type of game: Any time you have your first game, especially under a new staff and a lot of new faces, you want to make a good statement out there. I think that's regardless of what game we're playing - we want to make a statement every time. We're just looking forward to playing someone else and really showing everyone what we're about and what we're trying to be this year, but we have plenty of statement games we're going to be able to have this season. It's a matter of taking each game one at a time and making the most of it.
On getting the traditions back of Hook 'em, Horns and the logo, decal: Those are things that make you realize what we were working for and how you're going to get them back. It was just great finally to put the horns back up again and have them on our helmets. It's been a long process to get to this point, and we're ready for Saturday, and we're going to wear those Longhorns proud.
Junior RB Johnathan Gray
On if he is curious to see this team on the field: Yeah, I'm definitely ready to see what we have in store. We had a great camp. Guys that have been injured are returning, and it's great to have David Ash back with us. I think we're going to have a great team in store, and I'm just ready to see where we are.
On if it matters to him on who starts: It really doesn't matter. In the running back room, we're all rooting for each and every one of us. We know when we go in, it's our time to do our job and execute the situation. We know as backs we have to get the job done; it doesn't matter who's in.
On if he thinks the coaches will hold him back a little bit: No, they'll put me into the fire. I told them I'm ready. I'm ready to go out and do whatever I'm supposed to do, and they said, "Okay, we'll let you have it." They just pushed me out there, and I feel great, feel fine, and I'm just ready to get back on the field.
On David Ash's biggest step since coming back from his injury: David took a step of just being more vocal, being more of a leader, knowing how to execute the offense and putting people in the right position to make plays. He's doing that very well, and like I said, I'm glad to see him back and see him do as well as he's doing now.
On playing with two backs instead of three: Like I said, when one back is in, we know what we have to get done. It doesn't matter who's in. And now that Joe is no longer with us, it's just me and Mal and those two freshmen, we have to execute the plays and we know what we have to do to get the job done.
On what we should expect to see from the two freshmen: They're looking good right now. They're still adjusting to college life and still getting accustomed to the play book, but for the most part they're doing well. I'm surprised to see how well they're doing, and they're tough kids.
On the logo coming off and how the older guys reacted: We knew about taking the decals off the helmet, everybody does that across the country, and they don't put the logos on during fall camp. We took it to heart when we couldn't throw up the Horns and we knew we had to earn it back. The older guys were like, okay, now it's time to step up our game and know what we have to do to get the job done and come out here and be a better team than we have in the past. We did a great job of doing that. People have been more focused, more ready to go out there, do their job and execute. Earning the Horns back is a thing we take to heart.
On if he has a bigger appreciation coming back to play after being injured last season: Oh, yeah, most definitely. Being out, being injured, you know, took a toll on me for a little bit because I never wanted to be injured, and I always wanted to be on the field to help my teammates out. I had to sit back for a little bit and be more of a leader on the bench and talk to people, see what we see on the field. It kind of hurt a little bit, but knowing that I helped the team out just by being a leader on the bench, and now that I am coming back off of injury, it feels great, and I'm just glad to be back on the field and know what we have in store for this team this year.
On the pressure on him and Malcolm with having Jaxon Shipley out: We always take it to heart and say it always starts with the running backs. We go out there and set the tone on offense, and losing a guy like Jaxon for the moment, those younger guys have to step up and they're doing so, and they're looking pretty good right now. Like I said, this team is motivated, has guys who can step up and take older guys' positions when they get injured. Our team is looking pretty good right now.
On how he thinks Coach Strong will react on Saturday and if he will be excited or scared to death: No, looking at Coach Strong, I think he's far from being scared, but he's going to be excited. He's ready to go out there and show what The University of Texas has in store, and he's just ready for football to start. Knowing that he has a good team, a great team that can control games, he's ready to go out there and just coach us and see us play to our best ability.
On what he is sensing about the team and if a championship contender is in store: I'm sensing all that. I'm sensing winning games, I'm sensing championships. I'm sensing guys who want to go out there and play for a coach that's just motivated and just ready to go out there and show the world that we have in store right now.
Senior LB Jordan Hicks
On being ready to start the season: I'm so ready. I think everybody on the team is. We've been working really, really hard this off-season, and we're ready to start putting all that hard work on the field into somebody else instead of ourselves.
On being anxious to be back on the field: Definitely, definitely. It's a hard concept to grasp that I've been out for so many games over the past two years, and a lot of emotions go into this first game, whether you missed a lot of games or not. It's the first game of the season, a lot of emotions go into that, and knowing my past and my history - it's been an up-and-down type of career. I'm anxious, I'm nervous, I'm excited, I'm ready to go. It's my senior year. I'm just ready to get out there and leave it all out on the field.
On the process of coming off of injury: Mentally it's tough. It's a long process. It took about seven and a half months for me to actually start running and getting my feet back under me. We took our time. There was a lot of time between when it happened and actual summer workouts when I could get my feet back under me and actually heal. I was just following the directions that the trainers gave me, and they did a great job. They took their time. We all took our time, but we also pushed it hard. It's always tough to come back from something like that, but when you've got people looking out for you the way we do here - the best facilities, the best trainers - you know, they make it a lot easier.
On seeing the coaching staff enter the field for the first game: I'm excited to see that. I've been excited to see our coaching staff [during the first game] because they're a bunch of fun -they're a lot of fun. They enjoy talking and they enjoy the emotion of practice, so I'm excited to see what it's going to be like on game day.
On what will surprise people the most about the linebacking corps this season: The way we're running around and hitting. The whole thing has been toughness, and we've hit a lot this camp. It's been one of the main focuses of Coach Strong and the whole defensive staff - to make sure that we're going to come and hit you and we're going to attack. I think it's going to show on the field.
On having a specific moment buying into Coach Strong's program: I don't think so. I think from day one you've just got to buy in. What else can you do? You have to deal with the hands that you're dealt. If you don't buy in, there's no success that's going to come. I think everybody did a great job of buying in and making sure that we're all on the same page. As [the coaches] grow and teach and as [the players] get more comfortable, that's when everything starts to mesh and starts to gel.
On if he has seen Coach Strong's program come together: Oh, yeah, definitely. Coach Strong has a reason for everything that he does, and I think everybody believes his plan works.
On the statement the team needs to make Saturday: I don't necessarily think we're going out there to prove something to everybody else. I think we're going out there to prove stuff to ourselves and play together. We want to have fun. The coaching staff wants us to go out there and have fun. They've put us through one of the toughest camps that I've been through here, and we're ready to go out there and just play, just let loose and play. We've worked really, really hard for this moment for these past 12 weekends. I don't think there's a specific statement that needs to be made.
Senior DE Cedric Reed
On how different preseason camp has been: It's been very different. I think we went 18 days straight in full pads, or 21 days, something like that, 18 days full pads, and that right there, man, that's very different because when I first got here, it was shells or just shoulder pads or pants running around trying to keep us fresh, but his [head coach Charlie Strong] whole philosophy was to break us down right now and then build us back up. It's definitely been different.
On the coaches using game film to improve the defensive line: As a D-line I don't think they showed us any clips, but I think that's personal. As individuals he'd come up to our room, he showed us like maybe 10, 15 clips of just poor plays that we had. It's almost embarrassing because nobody wants to see their worst plays, but he found those and he showed all the D-line and the whole defense pretty much and just explained to us, y'all can do so much better than this. I think that everybody kind of seen that and then ran with it and said that they can do better than that.
On how the team will perform Saturday: We're going to put on a good show for y'all, man. We're definitely going to make it a game worth coming to see. The defense, yeah, we're going to come out and we're going to play great defense. We're going to excite some people, man. We're going to let other people know that we're back on the radar.
On how he has grown as a player in the past few months: What surprised me the most? You know, your freshman year you're just young, you're just on the team, you're just one of the guys on the team. You dream of senior year. My leadership role, I think when we were at workouts, I said something, and I turned around and these little freshmen had these little puppy faces, and they were just looking at me like, what do we do next. It just surprises you how much your leadership -- like when you become a senior, it just grows. It just naturally grows. I think one thing that I picked up on was [assistant head coach for defense/defensive line] Coach [Chris] Rumph, he got after me a little bit when he first got here because I was all quiet and it just wasn't me, it wasn't in me. But now, he's talked to me, given me a lot of pointers on how to do it, it really came out of me, and I think I really surprised myself with some of the leadership roles I've put on for him.
On if preseason award watch lists affect his performance: No, I just look at them as watch lists. When I win the award, I'll be really excited. I never really won a national award, but I just keep on that stuff on the outside and I just play ball.
On North Texas' strong offensive line and if that motivates him: Oh, yeah, definitely, it makes you watch film just that much harder, knowing that those guys are good enough to be on a watch list. It lets you know that they're the real deal, and their strength is definitely in their defensive line. They've got some great players. I think their guard, he started 35 straight games, and that's amazing right there, especially at offensive line. They've got a great tackle, No. 71. I don't know his exact name, but he's a good guy. Like I said, their offensive line is great and they've got some great tight ends blocking and stuff for them, too.
