Postgame Quotes: Head Coach Joe Moorhead (Sept. 7)
September 07, 2019 | Football
Head Coach Joe Moorhead Quotes
vs. Southern Miss
September 7, 2019
Opening Statement
JM: "First and foremost, I want to thank our fans who came out and braved the elements. To have a show like that on opening day with the heat, humidity, and whatnot, it was a great environment for our guys, and you can see why it's one of the best in college football, if not the best. As I mentioned to the team inside, I want to give credit to our training staff, strength and conditioning staff, and our sports nutrition department. All week we talked about hydration, nutrition, and what we needed to do to come out in this type of environment for the guys flourish and not get dehydrated or warn out. I think they did a really good job with that. In terms of the game, I think we didn't flinch in the face of adversity. There were a lot of opportunities here where a guy went down on offense, a guy went down on defense, or maybe a play didn't go the way we wanted to, I think that's indicative of this team. I've said it all along, we have great leadership and great chemistry. We're taking in 12 one-week seasons. We've got to be like our mascot; we got to be a dang bulldog. We have to bow our neck, bow our back and just find a way to win every single week. We had a true-freshman quarterback play a majority of the game, a true-freshman tailback scored a touchdown, and a true-freshman cornerback intercept the ball. Offensively, we're looking to strike balance. I don't think they had given up 30 points in a game over the last 12 games. I don't think they'd given up a 100-yard rusher in 15 [games]. We were able to do both of those things and it's credit to [Southern Miss head coach Jay Hopson and [Southern Miss defensive coordinator] Tim Billings and their staff. That's a good football team who is going to win a lot of games. I was pleased with our balance and our productivity on offense. We left some things on the field, but I think as we continue to progress, we will be able to clean those up. Defensively, [we need to] continue to create turnovers. I think we took a positive step from last week in terms of our tackling and our assignments. Obviously, there will be a few things to clean up there, but I was pleased with our progress. [We had] a bunch of guys playing in different spots. Then, special teams, outside of the one missed field goal, I felt like Scott [Goodman] kicked the ball better and we covered better. I think Tucker [Day] is continuing to improve like we had anticipated coming off of last season. It was a great team win, so I'm happy to be 1-0 this week."
Q: Do you have an update on Tommy Stevens?
JM: "It is upper body, but he will get looked at by the medical staff now, and we can give a more thorough update tomorrow when we come for medical checking."
Q: Depending on Stevens status, is Garrett Shrader your starting quarterback next Saturday?
JM: "I can't answer that right now. Hopefully we will see if Tommy is alright, and we will go in and grade film tomorrow, and talk about personnel, like we do on Sundays. I wish I had an answer right now, but I don't."
Q: Do you have any other injury updates?
JM: "Cameron Dantzler has a little lower-body [injury], and I think he was fine and could have gone back in. [Head athletic trainer] Thomas [Callans] and his staff are looking at all the guys now, and we will meet tomorrow at 3:00 and go over an injury after the kids report for treatment. The status as of right now is up in the air. We will know a little better tomorrow."
Q: What were your thoughts on Shrader and how the other true-freshman handled themselves during the game?
JM: "That's one thing; we've been recruiting Garrett for a long time, and his decision to come to Mississippi State and enroll as a mid-year. I think that is one of the benefits for a quarterback, to come and get that extra semester of preparation. Since I've known him, a situation has never been too big for him. When Tommy [Stevens] was down, we said, "you're in," and he didn't have those big deer in a headlight eyes. He just got in there. We got in at halftime and talked about a couple of plays he wasn't necessarily comfortable with, because he didn't get a ton of reps during the week. For a true-freshman to come in and operate the way he did, I believe he was 7-for-11. He ran the ball pretty well, and I was happy about how he was able to step in there."
Q: You threw the ball well early, what did you see that made you think you could go over the top against them?
JM: "I think Tommy started off 9-for-10 and he had a real nice streak going there. I don't know if it was what we were seeing or what we game planned for. I was preaching last year, about what we wanted to see heading into the season, we want to be a team that is balanced, and can run and pass with people [and have] effectiveness. Hopefully the last two games you've seen kind of a snapshot of what we want to be. If teams take the run away, we are able to throw it, and if teams take a throw away, we are able to run it. We had it rolling pretty good there. We were just calling the plays we had game-planned, and the kids went out and executed it and did a great job."
Q: How early in the week was James Jackson moved back to offense, and how do you think he did?
JM: "I think it was Tuesday. I usually don't see the guys who are in [on] the offensive line, because Marcus [Johnson] does a great job rotating them. I will have to see from the film, but I didn't see anything egregious that jumped out. For not practicing at center since spring ball and going into the game and being able to function. I think that is a credit to James [Jackson], and his selflessness and just being a team guy, and also Marcus' ability to get him ready in a short amount of time."
Q: How much confidence does Kylin Hill give Garrett Shrader?
JM: "You don't necessarily want to have a true-freshman in there and start throwing the ball around the yard. But, to have a guy like Kylin, and Nick [Gibson] ran the ball well, and Lee [Witherspoon], as well, as you are weening a new guy in there and getting him accustomed to the speed of the game with his first experience, that you lean back on a strong run game like we have. I think Kylin ran for 125 [yards] today. He is one of the best backs in the conference, and one of the best backs in the country. To have that luxury is good for any quarterback, particularly a young one."
Players Mentioned
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