Moorhead Previews Florida Matchup In Weekly Press Conference
September 24, 2018 | Football
by Brandon Langlois, Associate Director/Communications
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead met with members of the media on Monday afternoon to preview the 19th-ranked Bulldogs' upcoming SEC battle with Florida this Saturday.
Kickoff between the Bulldogs (3-1, 0-1 SEC) and Gators (3-1, 1-1 SEC) is set for 5 p.m. CT at Davis Wade Stadium and the contest will be televised nationally by ESPN. For complete gameday and stadium information, visit HailState.com/gameday.
Head coach Joe Moorhead – Press Conference
September 24, 2018
Opening statement…
"First and foremost, reviewing the Kentucky game. I'm very disappointed in our performance as a coaching staff and as a team. It was below our standard. To play below your standard against a very good team is usually not a very good recipe. Even with all that being said - with eight minutes left in the game, it was still 14-7. I thought the defense did a good job of keeping us in it. Offensively, we just weren't able to mount a scoring drive or put anything together. Ultimately, I'm going to point a thumb at myself first and not make any excuses. I'm accountable for every facet of this football program and assume full responsibility for a loss, and that's on me. We're going to get it right.
Some disappointing aspects to the game, obviously, as everybody saw. The penalties … sixteen total - nine on offense, six on defense and two on special teams, which included a bunch of false starts. We did work on crowd noise the entire week and our silent count. I think as No. 41 started to get a pass rush and our guys started to get a little anxious, we started to get out of our stance a little but early there. Certainly, the unsportsmanlike conduct penalties – which are unacceptable. I think we went into that game and played with a tremendous amount of emotion, but became too emotional. I think we turned it into a bunch of individual battles as opposed to playing as a team and concentrating on our assignment, our fundamentals and technique. Discussing it with the team and the staff yesterday, we're going to put an end to these unsportsmanlike penalties. Got it cleaned up from Game 2 to Game 3 and had a slip up here. Any unsportsmanlike conduct penalty now, I'm going to pull the guy out of the game. He'll stand next to me, and he'll go back in when I tell him to go back in. One way to catch their attention is to take away their playing time, so we're going to get that right as well.
The run game – 229 yards to 56 is not up to our standard. From a physicality standpoint and certainly with the sacks and the pressures that No. 41, rated the No. 1 ranked outside linebacker in the upcoming draft for a reason, so he did a very good job there. We weren't able to neutralize him. The two biggest determining factors in the outcome of the game: turnover margin and explosive plays. We were one-to-one on turnovers. Brian Cole had an excellent interception, but unfortunately, we turned one back over that led to a score for them. Then explosive plays, this was probably the most disappointing aspect for me from an offensive standpoint. After three successful weeks of having 20 or more, or right in that range, we were limited to three – two passes and one run. We gave up 10 explosive plays by our parameters on defense – eight runs and two passes. I think we showed flashes. I don't think we were nearly consistent enough. We were behind the sticks a lot offensively because of penalties. As a play-caller, it's hard to get into the flow of the game in that regard, and certainly credit to coach (Mark) Stoops and his staff for an overall game plan and defensive game plan.
As myself and our coaches, our job is to make sure during the week that with our game plan and with our play calls, that we're putting the kids in a position to be successful. As the players, their responsibility is to make sure they're practicing that plan and when we make the right calls, they're executing them. We're all in it together. We win as a team. We lose as a team. Ultimately, those two things combined – the coaches putting a plan together and making good calls and, when given the opportunity, the players executing it - that's what we need to do moving forward.
Putting closure to the game, as we said to the team yesterday, we were going to watch the film. We were going to learn from the film, and we were going to forget about the film. We're going to turn the page and move on to Florida. Need to be able to, as we mentioned throughout camp and throughout the beginning of the season, we need to be able to handle prosperity, which we've done very well in our three wins, and we need to handle adversity, which we're now force to confront with this one loss. We can't let the same game beat us twice, so we can't let the ramifications or collateral damage of this Kentucky game affect us in the Florida game or moving forward. As I told the team, all the goals we want to accomplish for this season are still in front of us. I mentioned to them that my first year at Penn State in 2016 where we started off the season 1-2. We beat Kent to open the season. Lost to Pitt at Pitt on a last-second interception, 42-39, very heartbreaking loss against a rival, and then proceeded to go up to Ann Arbor and get shellacked by Michigan, 49-10. It was kind of a very humbling experience. We kind of rallied everything together and came back in the next game to beat Minnesota in overtime and continued to run the table and win a Big 10 Championship and play in the Rose Bowl.
Certainly, everything we want to accomplish is in front of us. To have the type of success we need moving forward is not without precedent. Ultimately, the best way for us to predict our future is to create it. We believe in that. Last thing as it pertains to this game, that ultimately I'm single-handedly responsible for elevating the expectation level amongst our players, amongst our program and amongst our fans by using the term 'Championship Standard,' and I'm fine with that. I'm not going to apologize. I'm not going to backtrack, and I'm not going to waffle for one second or one minute. I know, realistically, it wasn't going to happen overnight. Our coaching staff didn't become dumb overnight, and our players didn't become bad overnight. This is the same team that won its first three games and went on the road to beat a Kansas State team in a Power 5 non-conference game that hadn't happened in over 30 years. One loss won't define this season. One loss won't define this team. I promise you this, we are working tirelessly, and we are going to get this freaking thing right. Hopefully everyone understands that the standard is the standard. We're not going to change anything in our approach. One game is not going to define this damn team, and we're going to get this thing right.
There are no players of the week, scouts of the week or helmet stickers when we lose a game. Student-athletes of the week are Jesse Jackson and Fletcher Adams. Injuries this week: Justin Johnson has a lower body, and he's day-to-day. Jamal Peters has a lower body, and he's still out indefinitely. Sh'mar Kilby-Lane has an upper body, and he's day-to-day. Tyler Williams has a lower body, and he's day-to-day. Marquiss Spencer has kind of had a nagging upper-body injury, and we decided to go on ahead and get surgery on that. He's going to miss the rest of the season with that, so Marquiss is going to be out with that. Those are our injuries.
Moving forward to Florida, obviously, a lot of this probably does not need a review. The head coach is Dan Mullen, has had a tremendous amount of success as a coordinator at Bowling Green, Utah and Florida. Obviously, a tremendous stint as the head coach here at Mississippi State. Florida is 3-1 this year, coming off a great win against Tennessee where they created six turnovers and scored over 40 points.
Going to the offense, Billy Gonzales and coach (John) Hevesy are the co-coordinators. They are a spread team. They run an 11 to 12 personnel inside-zone counter. They try to stretch the field horizontally and vertically, averaging 41 a game. They're showing great balance in 200 rushing and 200 passing per game. Feleipe Franks is off to a good start. He's thrown for 12 touchdowns so far this year. The wide receivers, Van Jefferson and Freddie Swain are kind of their go-to guys. Jordan Scarlett, the running back, is elusive, breaks tackles and has a very good burst.
Defensively, the coordinator is coach Todd Grantham. They play a multiple three-down front and get into some four-down and three-down looks. They play some match and quarters coverage and do a real good job on the back end. When they get you into third down, they have a very exotic and extensive blitz package. They are No. 1 nationally in takeaways with 14, as we mentioned, they had six in the last game. They are ninth in the country with pass defense and 12th in red-zone defense. Their top players are No. 92 Jabari Zuniga. He's a very aggressive playmaker off the edge with five tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Chauncey Gardner's an All-SEC player and very good blitzer. CJ Henderson, the corner, No. 5, physical with two forced fumbles, two tackles for loss and a sack.
Special teams-wise, coordinator is coach (Greg) Knox. A very fast, physical and highly productive unit. No. 1 in the SEC in kickoff coverage and punt return. They've blocked two punts and had one punt return for a touchdown. So certainly, in that hidden yardage battle, they do a very good job there. Freddy Swain, the receiver, is a punt returner, averaging 24 on returns with a touchdown. The punter, Tommy Townsend, net of 41 yards, six inside the 20, 60 percent fair catches and a very accurate punter.
Our keys to victory for this week is that our approach is going to remain consistent. It is going to be through our preparation, our effort and our execution. Our ability to successfully eliminate distractions and play a full 60 minutes, one rep at a time at a championship standard. Understanding that there will be a certain emotional component attached to this game, and for our kids to understand that that's going to be part of it, but still not allow that, as I mentioned, to distract them. Make sure we have a great week of preparation."
On providing help for the offensive tackles after Kentucky's Josh Allen's performance…
"We had a plan to chip him with the running backs and utilize more – the thing moving forward is utilize quick game, utilize screens and utilize draws, which were all in the game plan. You can't double team the boundary end when they're bringing overload pressure to the field. That becomes an issue when you're trying to get an extra hat on him and they're bringing in eight, and like I said, they did a good job with the scheme trying to find a way to get him singled up. Looking at the film, we made some corrections that we will have to address that moving forward. You hear the term don't let the game-wreckers wreck the game, and the kid to his credit played a great game. We have to do better. I have to do better."
On balancing playing with emotions…
"Showing emotions without being emotional. I think you can compete hard. I think you can exert maximum effort and do the things that are necessary to be successful on every play without losing your head and being hot-tempered. There's a difference between playing hard and picking up the ball and throwing it at somebody, or playing hard and pushing somebody after the snap. That's not toughness. That isn't. That's extra. It's unnecessary and unacceptable. You're not going to see that moving forward."
On attacking the need to not play too emotional this week…
"We've talked about it a little in our meeting yesterday and after practice.
Ultimately, the emotional component is going to be attached this game as relative to Coach Mullen and his staff being with these guys for an extended period of time, but ultimately at the end of the day, I'm not going to be on the field taking any snaps and neither is any of our assistants and neither are any of their coaches. They're not going to play the game. The game is going to be played on the field between the white lines between 11 Mississippi State players and 11 Florida players. That's how it's going to be. I don't think you can discount the emotional part of it, but you have to manage that. People use different things for motivation, and that's not for me to tell them what to use for their individual motivation. I know it's not going to have a bearing or factor in the outcome of the game once the ball gets kicked off."
On how facing an opposing coach familiar with personnel changes game planning…
"I think that's definitely part of it. Hopefully we know as much about our personnel, as they know about our personnel. Like anything, maximize the strengths and minimize the weaknesses. Obviously, them being around these guys for some four years, some three years, two years, one year – they'll have a very specific knowledge of what our players can do and can't do."
On the false starts at Kentucky…
"I don't think it was as much communication because we were going off a silent count and a clap, so we were going off of an audible count so to speak. I think more than anything, it was those guys leaning and anticipating the rush and wanting to make sure they weren't getting beat around the edge. I think it was more of that. It wasn't that they couldn't hear. I just think they were getting a bit antsy in their stance."
On checks to the play calling…
"I don't think necessarily checks as much as the decision of whether the ball gets handed off or thrown based on what the look is. There are some plays that we have we just call it and hand the ball off, but, unfortunately, you don't want to do that when there's more people at the line of scrimmage than you can block. That's kind of part of the thing of running a read offense. I think as much as Kentucky's ability to stop the run and be successful doing that was based on scheme. A lot of it was we were out of rhythm and behind the sticks. When you're second-and-long and third-and-long and trying to get that back to a manageable down and distance, they're doing a good job stopping the run. It throws you off a rhythm a little bit. I think it's probably a combination of both things. But to answer your question, yes, there are plays in our play book where you call the run and hand it off without the read."
On Osirus Mitchell's emergence…
"A lot of size, a lot of speed and a lot of athleticism. He did a great job catching the ball and getting some yards after the catch. I think he provides a good horizontal threat. He can blow the top off a coverage, and he does a good job in the intermediate stuff as well. His emergence, Stephen Guidry and the slot guys are playing well. We need to continue to have our receiving core developed to help us in the stretch run in the SEC."
On the new redshirt rule in college football…
"I think everyone's aware that Jamal Couch decided to transfer. I think that's been discussed already. That's just part of the landscape now. You create a rule, and it's positive on one end that it allows some of your true freshmen to gain game experience without exhausting a year of eligibility, but it opens up another window where returning players, who may or may not have used their redshirt, have redshirts or eligibility remaining after four games where they're not happy with their role on the team. In terms of it being a trend, I'm not sure what it is across the national landscape. That's one thing, probably after a year or so that we will look back and see if there's a better way we could have done this rule."
On response of new accountability level for unsportsmanlike conduct penalties…
"To be honest with you, Jeffery (Simmons) and Gerri Green called a players-only meeting with just the team to address those two things before we had a chance as a coaching staff. I thought that was great. It's not like we have an ostrich defense here, and we're sticking our head in the sand and saying it doesn't exist. I think that's a fine line with a very competitive and emotional team of striking the balance between competitiveness between the whistles and unnecessary stuff after it. You can get them up. You can make them run and you can do all of those things, but thing that I found was most effective is taking away playing time. They're going to do it. They are going to be held accountable, and they'll stand on the sideline. Hopefully, first and foremost, we don't see any more of it. If we do, they'll have a view of the game from the sideline."
On if he saw any behavioral changes in the players this week…
"Honestly, we were a little bit sullen in the team meeting. To me, that's anticipated. It's different than what we had the first three weeks. I don't want us to ride an emotional rollercoaster and be high or too low, but I certainly don't want us in there doing backflips after a loss. After we watched the film and made corrections on the field, we moved ahead to the Florida stuff. I think the kids were very focused, and I think they are excited for this opportunity."
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead met with members of the media on Monday afternoon to preview the 19th-ranked Bulldogs' upcoming SEC battle with Florida this Saturday.
Kickoff between the Bulldogs (3-1, 0-1 SEC) and Gators (3-1, 1-1 SEC) is set for 5 p.m. CT at Davis Wade Stadium and the contest will be televised nationally by ESPN. For complete gameday and stadium information, visit HailState.com/gameday.
Head coach Joe Moorhead – Press Conference
September 24, 2018
Opening statement…
"First and foremost, reviewing the Kentucky game. I'm very disappointed in our performance as a coaching staff and as a team. It was below our standard. To play below your standard against a very good team is usually not a very good recipe. Even with all that being said - with eight minutes left in the game, it was still 14-7. I thought the defense did a good job of keeping us in it. Offensively, we just weren't able to mount a scoring drive or put anything together. Ultimately, I'm going to point a thumb at myself first and not make any excuses. I'm accountable for every facet of this football program and assume full responsibility for a loss, and that's on me. We're going to get it right.
Some disappointing aspects to the game, obviously, as everybody saw. The penalties … sixteen total - nine on offense, six on defense and two on special teams, which included a bunch of false starts. We did work on crowd noise the entire week and our silent count. I think as No. 41 started to get a pass rush and our guys started to get a little anxious, we started to get out of our stance a little but early there. Certainly, the unsportsmanlike conduct penalties – which are unacceptable. I think we went into that game and played with a tremendous amount of emotion, but became too emotional. I think we turned it into a bunch of individual battles as opposed to playing as a team and concentrating on our assignment, our fundamentals and technique. Discussing it with the team and the staff yesterday, we're going to put an end to these unsportsmanlike penalties. Got it cleaned up from Game 2 to Game 3 and had a slip up here. Any unsportsmanlike conduct penalty now, I'm going to pull the guy out of the game. He'll stand next to me, and he'll go back in when I tell him to go back in. One way to catch their attention is to take away their playing time, so we're going to get that right as well.
The run game – 229 yards to 56 is not up to our standard. From a physicality standpoint and certainly with the sacks and the pressures that No. 41, rated the No. 1 ranked outside linebacker in the upcoming draft for a reason, so he did a very good job there. We weren't able to neutralize him. The two biggest determining factors in the outcome of the game: turnover margin and explosive plays. We were one-to-one on turnovers. Brian Cole had an excellent interception, but unfortunately, we turned one back over that led to a score for them. Then explosive plays, this was probably the most disappointing aspect for me from an offensive standpoint. After three successful weeks of having 20 or more, or right in that range, we were limited to three – two passes and one run. We gave up 10 explosive plays by our parameters on defense – eight runs and two passes. I think we showed flashes. I don't think we were nearly consistent enough. We were behind the sticks a lot offensively because of penalties. As a play-caller, it's hard to get into the flow of the game in that regard, and certainly credit to coach (Mark) Stoops and his staff for an overall game plan and defensive game plan.
As myself and our coaches, our job is to make sure during the week that with our game plan and with our play calls, that we're putting the kids in a position to be successful. As the players, their responsibility is to make sure they're practicing that plan and when we make the right calls, they're executing them. We're all in it together. We win as a team. We lose as a team. Ultimately, those two things combined – the coaches putting a plan together and making good calls and, when given the opportunity, the players executing it - that's what we need to do moving forward.
Putting closure to the game, as we said to the team yesterday, we were going to watch the film. We were going to learn from the film, and we were going to forget about the film. We're going to turn the page and move on to Florida. Need to be able to, as we mentioned throughout camp and throughout the beginning of the season, we need to be able to handle prosperity, which we've done very well in our three wins, and we need to handle adversity, which we're now force to confront with this one loss. We can't let the same game beat us twice, so we can't let the ramifications or collateral damage of this Kentucky game affect us in the Florida game or moving forward. As I told the team, all the goals we want to accomplish for this season are still in front of us. I mentioned to them that my first year at Penn State in 2016 where we started off the season 1-2. We beat Kent to open the season. Lost to Pitt at Pitt on a last-second interception, 42-39, very heartbreaking loss against a rival, and then proceeded to go up to Ann Arbor and get shellacked by Michigan, 49-10. It was kind of a very humbling experience. We kind of rallied everything together and came back in the next game to beat Minnesota in overtime and continued to run the table and win a Big 10 Championship and play in the Rose Bowl.
Certainly, everything we want to accomplish is in front of us. To have the type of success we need moving forward is not without precedent. Ultimately, the best way for us to predict our future is to create it. We believe in that. Last thing as it pertains to this game, that ultimately I'm single-handedly responsible for elevating the expectation level amongst our players, amongst our program and amongst our fans by using the term 'Championship Standard,' and I'm fine with that. I'm not going to apologize. I'm not going to backtrack, and I'm not going to waffle for one second or one minute. I know, realistically, it wasn't going to happen overnight. Our coaching staff didn't become dumb overnight, and our players didn't become bad overnight. This is the same team that won its first three games and went on the road to beat a Kansas State team in a Power 5 non-conference game that hadn't happened in over 30 years. One loss won't define this season. One loss won't define this team. I promise you this, we are working tirelessly, and we are going to get this freaking thing right. Hopefully everyone understands that the standard is the standard. We're not going to change anything in our approach. One game is not going to define this damn team, and we're going to get this thing right.
There are no players of the week, scouts of the week or helmet stickers when we lose a game. Student-athletes of the week are Jesse Jackson and Fletcher Adams. Injuries this week: Justin Johnson has a lower body, and he's day-to-day. Jamal Peters has a lower body, and he's still out indefinitely. Sh'mar Kilby-Lane has an upper body, and he's day-to-day. Tyler Williams has a lower body, and he's day-to-day. Marquiss Spencer has kind of had a nagging upper-body injury, and we decided to go on ahead and get surgery on that. He's going to miss the rest of the season with that, so Marquiss is going to be out with that. Those are our injuries.
Moving forward to Florida, obviously, a lot of this probably does not need a review. The head coach is Dan Mullen, has had a tremendous amount of success as a coordinator at Bowling Green, Utah and Florida. Obviously, a tremendous stint as the head coach here at Mississippi State. Florida is 3-1 this year, coming off a great win against Tennessee where they created six turnovers and scored over 40 points.
Going to the offense, Billy Gonzales and coach (John) Hevesy are the co-coordinators. They are a spread team. They run an 11 to 12 personnel inside-zone counter. They try to stretch the field horizontally and vertically, averaging 41 a game. They're showing great balance in 200 rushing and 200 passing per game. Feleipe Franks is off to a good start. He's thrown for 12 touchdowns so far this year. The wide receivers, Van Jefferson and Freddie Swain are kind of their go-to guys. Jordan Scarlett, the running back, is elusive, breaks tackles and has a very good burst.
Defensively, the coordinator is coach Todd Grantham. They play a multiple three-down front and get into some four-down and three-down looks. They play some match and quarters coverage and do a real good job on the back end. When they get you into third down, they have a very exotic and extensive blitz package. They are No. 1 nationally in takeaways with 14, as we mentioned, they had six in the last game. They are ninth in the country with pass defense and 12th in red-zone defense. Their top players are No. 92 Jabari Zuniga. He's a very aggressive playmaker off the edge with five tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Chauncey Gardner's an All-SEC player and very good blitzer. CJ Henderson, the corner, No. 5, physical with two forced fumbles, two tackles for loss and a sack.
Special teams-wise, coordinator is coach (Greg) Knox. A very fast, physical and highly productive unit. No. 1 in the SEC in kickoff coverage and punt return. They've blocked two punts and had one punt return for a touchdown. So certainly, in that hidden yardage battle, they do a very good job there. Freddy Swain, the receiver, is a punt returner, averaging 24 on returns with a touchdown. The punter, Tommy Townsend, net of 41 yards, six inside the 20, 60 percent fair catches and a very accurate punter.
Our keys to victory for this week is that our approach is going to remain consistent. It is going to be through our preparation, our effort and our execution. Our ability to successfully eliminate distractions and play a full 60 minutes, one rep at a time at a championship standard. Understanding that there will be a certain emotional component attached to this game, and for our kids to understand that that's going to be part of it, but still not allow that, as I mentioned, to distract them. Make sure we have a great week of preparation."
On providing help for the offensive tackles after Kentucky's Josh Allen's performance…
"We had a plan to chip him with the running backs and utilize more – the thing moving forward is utilize quick game, utilize screens and utilize draws, which were all in the game plan. You can't double team the boundary end when they're bringing overload pressure to the field. That becomes an issue when you're trying to get an extra hat on him and they're bringing in eight, and like I said, they did a good job with the scheme trying to find a way to get him singled up. Looking at the film, we made some corrections that we will have to address that moving forward. You hear the term don't let the game-wreckers wreck the game, and the kid to his credit played a great game. We have to do better. I have to do better."
On balancing playing with emotions…
"Showing emotions without being emotional. I think you can compete hard. I think you can exert maximum effort and do the things that are necessary to be successful on every play without losing your head and being hot-tempered. There's a difference between playing hard and picking up the ball and throwing it at somebody, or playing hard and pushing somebody after the snap. That's not toughness. That isn't. That's extra. It's unnecessary and unacceptable. You're not going to see that moving forward."
On attacking the need to not play too emotional this week…
"We've talked about it a little in our meeting yesterday and after practice.
Ultimately, the emotional component is going to be attached this game as relative to Coach Mullen and his staff being with these guys for an extended period of time, but ultimately at the end of the day, I'm not going to be on the field taking any snaps and neither is any of our assistants and neither are any of their coaches. They're not going to play the game. The game is going to be played on the field between the white lines between 11 Mississippi State players and 11 Florida players. That's how it's going to be. I don't think you can discount the emotional part of it, but you have to manage that. People use different things for motivation, and that's not for me to tell them what to use for their individual motivation. I know it's not going to have a bearing or factor in the outcome of the game once the ball gets kicked off."
On how facing an opposing coach familiar with personnel changes game planning…
"I think that's definitely part of it. Hopefully we know as much about our personnel, as they know about our personnel. Like anything, maximize the strengths and minimize the weaknesses. Obviously, them being around these guys for some four years, some three years, two years, one year – they'll have a very specific knowledge of what our players can do and can't do."
On the false starts at Kentucky…
"I don't think it was as much communication because we were going off a silent count and a clap, so we were going off of an audible count so to speak. I think more than anything, it was those guys leaning and anticipating the rush and wanting to make sure they weren't getting beat around the edge. I think it was more of that. It wasn't that they couldn't hear. I just think they were getting a bit antsy in their stance."
On checks to the play calling…
"I don't think necessarily checks as much as the decision of whether the ball gets handed off or thrown based on what the look is. There are some plays that we have we just call it and hand the ball off, but, unfortunately, you don't want to do that when there's more people at the line of scrimmage than you can block. That's kind of part of the thing of running a read offense. I think as much as Kentucky's ability to stop the run and be successful doing that was based on scheme. A lot of it was we were out of rhythm and behind the sticks. When you're second-and-long and third-and-long and trying to get that back to a manageable down and distance, they're doing a good job stopping the run. It throws you off a rhythm a little bit. I think it's probably a combination of both things. But to answer your question, yes, there are plays in our play book where you call the run and hand it off without the read."
On Osirus Mitchell's emergence…
"A lot of size, a lot of speed and a lot of athleticism. He did a great job catching the ball and getting some yards after the catch. I think he provides a good horizontal threat. He can blow the top off a coverage, and he does a good job in the intermediate stuff as well. His emergence, Stephen Guidry and the slot guys are playing well. We need to continue to have our receiving core developed to help us in the stretch run in the SEC."
On the new redshirt rule in college football…
"I think everyone's aware that Jamal Couch decided to transfer. I think that's been discussed already. That's just part of the landscape now. You create a rule, and it's positive on one end that it allows some of your true freshmen to gain game experience without exhausting a year of eligibility, but it opens up another window where returning players, who may or may not have used their redshirt, have redshirts or eligibility remaining after four games where they're not happy with their role on the team. In terms of it being a trend, I'm not sure what it is across the national landscape. That's one thing, probably after a year or so that we will look back and see if there's a better way we could have done this rule."
On response of new accountability level for unsportsmanlike conduct penalties…
"To be honest with you, Jeffery (Simmons) and Gerri Green called a players-only meeting with just the team to address those two things before we had a chance as a coaching staff. I thought that was great. It's not like we have an ostrich defense here, and we're sticking our head in the sand and saying it doesn't exist. I think that's a fine line with a very competitive and emotional team of striking the balance between competitiveness between the whistles and unnecessary stuff after it. You can get them up. You can make them run and you can do all of those things, but thing that I found was most effective is taking away playing time. They're going to do it. They are going to be held accountable, and they'll stand on the sideline. Hopefully, first and foremost, we don't see any more of it. If we do, they'll have a view of the game from the sideline."
On if he saw any behavioral changes in the players this week…
"Honestly, we were a little bit sullen in the team meeting. To me, that's anticipated. It's different than what we had the first three weeks. I don't want us to ride an emotional rollercoaster and be high or too low, but I certainly don't want us in there doing backflips after a loss. After we watched the film and made corrections on the field, we moved ahead to the Florida stuff. I think the kids were very focused, and I think they are excited for this opportunity."
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