Media Day Press Conference: Assistant Coaches Transcript

Media Day Press Conference: Assistant Coaches Transcript

August 10, 2019 | Football

Associate Head Coach Tony Hughes

Opening Statement
TH: First thing I would like to say is that I'm extremely excited to be back at Mississippi State with Coach [Joe] Moorhead giving me the opportunity to come and to coach tight ends. We're excited about the upcoming season and looking forward to working with Coach Moorhead's offense. He has given me an opportunity to coach on the offensive side of the ball, which I haven't done for several years. But at the same time, it's exciting. We're looking forward to coaching the young men on that side of the ball, and also being able to help Coach Moorhead in any other capacity for the program."

We're looking forward to doing some great things. I'm excited about being back and being a part of the Mississippi State football family after being away for three years. [I'm excited about] Getting back into the SEC which is a very tough and demanding league and taking the experiences I have had in the past as a head coach – bringing those things back and being able to assist Coach Moorhead in any role that he sees fit besides coaching the tight ends and working on the offensive side of the ball.

Q: Coach Moorhead is the third head coach that you have worked under at Mississippi State, how is he different than the other coaches?
TH: Every head coach has their own personality and their own system or style of coaching if you will. Not that one is right or that one is wrong, it's the effectiveness. I think the most important thing as a coach, not just as a head coach, is being who you are. Coach Moorhead is as genuine a person and coach as anybody that you would be around. His uniqueness, his relationship with the players and his style of doing things is totally different. As an assistant coach, you have to be able to adjust to the different styles of coaching. Some coaches may coach a certain way, and you just have to adapt. We call it in the coaching profession 'adapt and to move on'.

Q: I know you worked with the tight ends during the spring. Now that you have had a few months to see them, how impressed have you been with the group?
TH: I love the position group. First thing is you have two older guys with Farrod [Green] and Dontea [Jones]. Then, you have a guy like Powers [Warren] who is a little older and who has been here for a couple of years. Then, you have the two young kids in [Brad] Cumbest and [Geor'quarius] Spivey who are very, very talented as well. We have a good mixture of older and younger guys. We have different sizes, some who are a little taller. The thing that is unique about all of them is that they all have wide receiver experience coming out of high school which I'm really excited about. That shows their adaptability to playing the position because they are very athletic.

Q: It's been a while since you have coached the tight end position. How has your coaching style changed especially with the way the offenses have changed?
TH: I'm a football coach. I pride myself on when I first started coaching over 34 years ago that I've coached every level from seventh grade to high school to junior college to Louisiana Tech to the SEC. I have coached every skill group on offense and every skill group on defense. That's something I pride myself with that I'm a teacher of the game of football. I can adapt and learn from any position on either side of the ball. I take a lot of pride that when I go in there to meet with Coach Moorhead that I want to teach it exactly like he wants it done. Wherever he wants them to line up, I want to teach them to line up that way. Whatever he wants them to do structurally within the offense, I want them to do what he tells me that he wants them to do. Part of that is humility and being able to survive in a tough profession for 34 years.

Q: Coach Moorhead expects a bigger receiving role for the tight ends this year, how much does that expedite the process of working those guys into the passing game?
TH: Within the offense itself, Coach Moorhead has had great tight ends. Part of his offensive system is utilizing the talented tight ends that he's had in the past whether that be at Fordham or at Penn State.

Q: Do you feel like you have a tight end in that group that could be a 40-50 reception player if the offense goes the right way?
TH: Well, I can't predict that because you just never know once you get into the season what type of personality that would develop from that. I will say this again – in his [Coach Moorhead's] past history, the tight end has been a position that has been utilized very frequently.

Q: How has Brad Cumbest been able to retain what you've wanted him to with him being involved in baseball in the spring? Have you seen a nice transition coming from the redshirt year to this year?
TH: First thing is that he is a great young man. He is very coachable, very humble and very talented. The first thing he did when they [the baseball team] got back from Omaha was that he was in the weight room that Monday morning ready to go with the team. He has not missed a beat since then. You know it has to be tough from the run that the baseball team had to Omaha then going through spring ball and balancing the two sports at the same time. I know at some point for him, personally, it comes to a point where you may wear down a little bit, but he has shown no signs of wearing down. [As a] matter of fact, I think he's getting better each and every day that he's out there.

Q: Having been a head coach for a while, how does that help you be a better assistant coach for this opportunity?
TH: Well, one thing that I've learned more than anything else was that as a head coach, you want good assistants. I have always tried to be a good assistant for the 30-plus years, or however long I was an assistant and to carry out the wishes of the head coach. Now, I understand even more the thing that a head coach needs is that he needs people that support him, that have his back and that will be there for him no matter what he asks them to do. No matter how menial a task or how great a task. That's one thing that I try to serve Coach Moorhead as, coming back as a former head coach. I would like to be the type of assistant coach that I would have wanted for myself.

Defensive Coordinator Bob Shoop

Opening Statement
BS: I hope everybody had a great summer. It was fun watching the [Mississippi State baseball team] head to Omaha and now we're recovering and looking forward to a great 2019-20 academic and athletic year here at State. We've now gone through seven practices. We're certainly excited about the players on our roster. We're certainly excited about our style of play. The guys have practiced really well. We're looking forward to tonight, going to Davis Wade and having our first scrimmage. As I said to them, it's an opportunity for them to validate the hard work through these first seven days and go out and have a little bit of fun. As Coach Moorhead says, no lifeguard on duty, there's no coach standing behind them telling them what's going on [at tonight's scrimmage]. It's time for them to go out and play and execute. I've really enjoyed working with this team from January and the winter program, through March and spring ball, through what we've accomplished in the summer time. There's a standard of play when you're at Mississippi State with regards to defense. It was here long before I was here. We hope to continue that standard of play. The names and the faces may get a little different, but the standard remains the same.

Q: You graduated pretty much the entire three-deep at defensive tackle. How did you approach that this year? In the future, how do you manage that a little bit better from personnel standpoints?
BS: The guys that are gone, we certainly wish them well. Braxton [Hoyett] had a couple of tackles last night for the [Tennessee] Titans. We're looking forward to working with this group here and I really like the way they've worked. First of all, their coach, Deke Adams, has done an outstanding job. He's been a great addition to the staff. Obviously, he's a Mississippi native from Meridian. He's come in and had experience in the SEC and I think really fits the identity of this program, the blue-collar mentality and no job is too small mindset. We have a good group up front. The names may have changed, but Lee Autry's played a lot of football for us and we're excited. We have James Jackson back on the defensive side, who had trained with us my first spring here and part of the first season and then made the transition to the offensive side. One of the things we're trying to acquire is a little bit more experience and now this transfer portal thing, we're trying to exhaust all options there, and when that didn't happen, James became our graduate transfer and he's done a good job in the first seven practices. Then you have all of the young bucks. You have Fabien Lovett, who's had a really good camp and a pretty high recruited player and has a chance to be pretty good. I think Jaden Crumedy has had a good camp, again, has done good job and has a chance to be pretty good. Then you have [Cameron] Young, Devon Robinson and then we did get a transfer, Allen Love. We're still in the process of understanding what his eligibility will be this year, but he's a great addition to the room. I don't think I have ever been in a situation where you've graduated so many players like that. Coach Moorhead and Mike Villagrana and our recruiting people do such a good job with our personnel. You have a certain amount of players, you get an [a set] amount of scholarships and you allot them to different positions. I think you have to be disciplined and fit the framework of that. You don't over-recruit a class at a particular position. You don't pass up on a really good player at a position, but you can't just replace six seniors with six [more guys] or you just regurgitate the same problem again. It's just building that thing up. One of the things that's unique in the state of Mississippi is certainly the junior college system in that you can get guys in here who have a little more experience, who have a little more maturity and are country strong guys. I did forget one [of our young] defensive tackles, Nathan Pickering, who is a true freshman from Seminary. A highly recruited player and he is learning what college football is all about and taking his lumps. He's had some good snaps and had some bad snaps, but I'm just excited about watching him out there [at the scrimmage] tonight as anybody.

Q: It's been several years since State has had the defensive coordinator two years in a row. In your experience, how does a defense gel in a system from year one to year two?
BS: I'll give you two perspectives. I think that from the coaching perspective, I look at each team as a different unit. It's a different identity. I never talk about scheme; I talk about style of play. Our style of play is non-negotiable, but each year we try to tailor our system to the talent that we have. One year it might me the strength on the defensive line, one year it might be linebackers. One year you might be a good really good blitz team, one year you might not be. Rather than recruiting players that fit into a scheme or a style, you tailor your scheme to what your players are capable of doing. There's a comfort level in having the same coach for the first time, having the same terminology and things along those lines. This team, there is no reason it can't be successful, but it will be a little bit different than last year's team. The strength may be in different positions, so that's exciting. Each team has its own identity. In our style of play, the one thing that is non-negotiable is we'll always be relentless in our pursuit of the football. We always talk about relentless pursuit and never-ending pressure, being dominant and disruptive up front and challenging all routes in the back end. Those are things that we'll continue to do, just the strengths of the unit and strengths of the group might be a bit different than they were last year. From a player perspective, I think there's a comfort level because it's the first time the safeties have had the same position coach in five years. I'm the same coordinator for the first time since prior to, I think, Manny [Diaz] being here. The linebackers still have had a different coach each year for the last five years. The defensive line is transitioning to Deke [Adams], and those guys have done an outstanding job buying in to the culture that coach has created and the culture that we have here at Mississippi State.

Q: You mentioned that Nathan Pickering was still trying to figure out what college football was all about. Along those same lines with De'Monte Russell and Jack Harris, just your initial impressions of those two guys.
BS: Not just those two, but I think everybody in this 2019 recruiting class, I think it's a really good group. You talk about the inside guys, that's why I talked about Nathan. Jack's a really good athlete. He put up incredible numbers in the weight room this summer. He's really a hard worker, a grinder, a blue-collar type guy that fits our culture, fits what we're trying to accomplish. De'Monte has really made a really good first impression. He probably needs to get a little bit stronger, but at the same time he's a dynamic pass rusher. It's funny, they gave him No. 9, I thought that was kind of funny because of Montez [Sweat]. He's a guy who, I think, during the course of his career, could be one of those elite pass rushers, and maybe even, with our situation here, maybe have a role on this team this year. The other guys are good, too. We have a lot of guys in the secondary, and I think everybody's really excited about all of those guys. Jarrian Jones is a local guy who has had a great camp to date. Martin Emerson, I can make the case that he's been a standout at times. He's done a really good job. Dylan Lawrence, from George County. At the safety position, I'm really excited about J.P. Purvis and Collin Duncan. Collin really caught everybody's eye with regards to special teams, and any and every one of those guys could have a role. Obviously, with the new rules, starting last year, where you play these guys four games, it gives us an opportunity to maybe, early in the season and the non-conference schedule, to fit those guys in at special teams, get their feet wet, get them comfortable with college football and move on from there.

Q: Do you feel like this is a unit that can create turnovers for you?
BS: I hope so. It's been a point of emphasis. I don't know that you can ever create enough [turnovers]. I always think turnovers or takeaways are the great equalizer. Takeaways are on defense, turnovers are on offense, so we call them takeaways, and we want to take the ball away. Our mantra on everything we give to the players is HTB, hunt the ball. We studied techniques this offseason to do a better job stripping the football. We've done a good job trying to work on ball skills and things along those lines. The reason I say it's a great equalizer is the takeaway game can turn a bad defense to good and a good one to great and a great one to become a championship one. I think that's an area for growth with our guys, we acknowledge that. We were fifth in the conference last year in takeaways. I think the offensive players, when you visit with them, will tell you it's been a point of emphasis through these first few days of practice. They're icing their forearms and wrists because we're hammering at that ball pretty good and doing a pretty good job of getting after it.

Q: You lose a couple of starters within your group, [Johnathan] Abram and [Mark] McLaurin, but you're returning guys with starting experience, how would you assess where your first string stands right now?
BS: Like I always say, opportunity is the key to life and someone's missed opportunity is another person's opportunity. We returned Brian Cole, who was a starter through the first four games - he was injured against Florida, and I put him in the category of one of those guys who has to step it up - not that he hasn't stepped it up. He's a name that you may not be familiar with, but by the middle of the season, if he plays up to his capabilities, may be on a lot of peoples' radar. He's very, very talented, he can cover like a [cornerback], he can blitz like a linebacker, he's tough, he's physical. He's got all the great assets for a defensive player for the Nickel in our scheme. When he went down, then [Jaquarius Landrews] stepped up and all you need to do is put on the Texas A&M game from last year to see that [Landrews] is a solid player. He's like a "steady Eddie"; he's never out of position, he does exactly what you ask him to do, he's got a quiet leadership style. He does a great job, he's a steady influence, he's the ying to my yang a little bit, because sometimes I get on him pretty good, but he's done a great job through this camp. Then obviously, at the free safety position right now, is C.J. Morgan. When [Landrews] got hurt, then C.J. stepped in for the Alabama, Arkansas, Ole Miss and the bowl game and C.J. got a lot of confidence. Last year at this time, C.J. was fighting off some people on that second and third string line. In the middle of the season when we had the injuries, we tried to figure out who to put in there and interestingly enough, we included [Johnathan Abram] in that conversation and he said 'C.J.'s got this, I'll get him right'. C.J. played really, really well in those last four games and I think the confidence grew in [Landrews] and the confidence grew in C.J. where, although they may be first time starters, at the beginning of the year, they have experience in big games, and you can see it out there with them. The challenge is developing a little bit of depth behind those guys and that's where there's competition and that's where a night like tonight, in the stadium, where the coaches are out there providing instruction behind them, we'll be good. You have a guy like Marcus Murphy, Landon Guidry's been a standout during camp so far, I'm really pleased and impressed by him. Londyn Craft, he's played a lot...Craft is in the mix, Shawn Preston's in the mix and then the two freshmen, J.P. Purvis and Collin Duncan. There's pretty good competition for the twos and threes at the safety position and nickel position. At the nickel, then is Fred Peters. You talk about the junior college system, he was able to come in this spring and learn the system and, using the baseball analogy, he's a utility guy. He can play 2nd [base], 3rd [base] or [shortstop]. You can put him out in left field if you have to - he can do it all. I really like his game and he takes hard coaching; he loves football and he's almost a 4.0 [GPA] student. He embodies everything that is part of Coach Moorhead and our culture here.

Q: Would you put Marcus Murphy in the spot to play multiple positions?
BS: Absolutely, Marcus trains at the nickel, the free safety, and can probably play corner in a pinch. He's also, obviously involved in the special teams, the return game and things along those lines. Marcus is a very unique athlete.

Q: You had the reputation of being a blitz-happy coordinator last season. How do you anticipate your different personnel affecting that?
BS: It's probably still a work in progress and still to be determined. Each team has its own identity and this one is still forming, and it will be determined between now and the [season opener]. The focus is really on tonight's scrimmage and teaching fundamentals and techniques, but also our style of play, which is in your face in every aspect. I just believe that's how you play defense now. I guess the analogy that I use, a lot of people, defensive coordinators, when they stand up, they say, 'this is how we adjust to this formation' or 'this is how we adjust to that formation.' When we hear offensive coordinators talk, I never hear them say, 'this is how we adjust to that coverage,' they say, 'this is how we attack that coverage.' So, I say why aren't defensive coordinators thinking like this? So, I say this is how we attack this formation, this is how we attack this protection. When we're in the staff room trying to find a way to attack, we're trying to find a way to make the offensive coordinator, offensive play caller and the quarterback as incredibly uncomfortable as they can possibly be for those three hours on Saturday. It's probably not going to change. Who the blitzers are and the blitzes we run may be different than they were a year ago, but I think that style of play will remain very similar.

Special Teams Coordinator Joey Jones

Opening Statement
JJ: First of all, we're excited about this football season special teams wise. As you know, I think we started two freshmen and a sophomore last year in the specialists department, so all of those guys are coming back. I'm really excited about where they are right now. There is always a lot of improvement from your freshman year to your sophomore year. We're looking for a lot of improvement in those guys.

The last thing I'll say before I take questions is just the player depth. Going through the spring even right now – we're looking at the depth chart, and I have a big smile on my face because there is a lot of new depth there. Last year, we had some really good players up front, but they were also started on defense. So, we had to rest them. The depth wasn't quite as good.

Q: Tucker Day finished on a strong note last year. He mentioned about a change in his routine in punting, what would you say made the difference in his improvement late last year?
JJ: I think the biggest thing is experience. I think he got out there and the first year really to go out and kick. I think he only had one game the year before field goal kicking. Just having a full year out there, he just kept getting better. If you look at the [2019 Outback Bowl], he had a tremendous game. He flipped the field a lot in that ball game. The Ole Miss game, he had a good game. The Alabama game, he had a good game. Towards the end of the year, he just started – you can say its technique and things like that, but I really think a lot of it was in his head the experience part of it.

Q: How have you seen Marcus Murphy grow on special teams from year one to year two?
JJ: Well Marcus, number one, there are not many freshmen that come in and play like he did. He was one of my best couple guys on the kickoff unit. Coming off the edge, he made a lot of tackles. You don't [always] see that. So, is he going to improve this year? Yeah, I think so because just that experience factor. He's just more confident in himself right now. A little wide-eyed and a little bit early in year last year, but again way ahead of most freshmen I've ever seen, talent-wise and mentality-wise.

Q: You sign Corliss Waitman as an opportunity to improve competition in your room. Now that his availability is somewhat in question, how do you adjust for that?
JJ: Right now, we've got the three other guys that are fighting for it in Tucker [Day], Reed [Bowman], and Kody [Schexnayder]. What we've told them is the guys that chart the best are going to be the guys that kick. It isn't [going to be] because I like their mother or father or anything else. It's going to be because they're kicking well in practice. I think that Tucker is obviously a returning starter, so those other two guys [Bowman and Schexnayder] are going to have to do well to beat him out. It's going to be a great competition. We have much more talent and props from one through three than we've had from last year.

Q: Isaiah Zuber played special teams at Kansas State. Can you talk about where fits in the mix in the return game? Who are some of your main candidates on punt return and kickoff return?
JJ: I've seen a little bit of his film, obviously, we played those guys last year and kicking off to him [required us] to try and have a plan for that. He's a good one. We've got Brian Cole, who I think is as good as anybody. We were really good early in the year. When he got hurt, we kind of lost a little bit there. Having him [Brian Cole] and Isaiah [Zuber], I'm assuming those guys are going to be in the mix obviously. We've got Marcus Murphy who can return kicks. We've got Malik Dear who I thought came in last year and did a great job. He's got great hands, and he's a sure-handed guy. We've got the three really on each side – the kickoff return game and the punt return game. I think quality players, which is a good bit different from last year.

Q: The loss of Brian Cole, what did that do to your return game? Where do you feel like you are not with him and the return of him?
JJ: I think number one, he is a quality [player]. He's a top SEC returner, and he is one of the guys in my opinion who will be in the top four or five guys in the conference. That's what kind of talent he has. It's a shame that he got hurt … When we lost him, obviously it was a drop off, but I think now we've got more depth. We've got guys that are coming in with [Isaiah] Zuber, as well as Marcus Murphy being a year older. You don't want your guy to return every kick because he has to start at safety. I understand the whole "team" concept deal. We've got some real decent returners. We've got to get some guys in there and get them refreshed. He may be tired from driving right before that, but we have some depth so that the biggest thing I've seen. We have more depth now.

Q: You're one of a number of guys on this staff who has head coaching experience, how much do you think that has been able to help Coach Moorhead? When you were a head coach, did you have guys with head coaching experience on your staff and how did that help you?
JJ: Yeah, that's a good question. First of all, I think Coach Moorhead doesn't need a ton of help. He's a great football coach. But from time to time, I'll go into his office to talk to him about things. He asks, he's not too big of an ego guy where he can't ask questions.

As far as my career when I was getting into it, I had some guys but not many head coaches that I hired early. Les Koenning [current Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach at Kansas], who coached here for years was a guy I kind of leaned on in the first six months before we even had a season. Then, Mississippi State took him away from me. He was very knowledgeable and really helped me in my early years.

Q: Jace Christmann has been the primary place kicker the last couple years, but how close is that competition going on in camp right now?
JJ: Even, I mean dead even. I think that Jordan [Lawless] has always been a very capable kicker. I wasn't here the first year when Jace [Christmann] kicked, and he had a great year. Last year, we looked at the numbers. They were about the exact same, so we went with Jace since he had been our guy before. This year, I don't see much difference. Coach Moorhead will of course make that call as head coach. Both of those guys are very talented. We need to get both of them a chance and get them on the field.

Q: You don't normally ask the special teams coach about replacing the kickoff coverage guy, but Chris Rayford made more plays on special teams than almost anyone I've ever seen. Do you have a guy that can fill that roll?
JJ: Yeah, and Chris [Rayford] was a great one. He was an excellent gunner on the punt [coverage team] and great on kickoff [coverage]. We look at our gunner-depth chart. It's literally five deep on each side. We have 10 guys we feel like can go cover kicks and punt position. We feel great about that – that we have more guys who can cover on kickoff. I mentioned earlier the whole depth of every unit; I feel really good about it. Going into last season, we knew that if so-and-so and so-and-so got hurt, or if they got tired, it was a drop off from one to two. There is not near as much drop off at all right now. We do have a lot of guys in cover, but he [Rayford] was a good one – a guy that made a lot of plays.