Postgame Quotes: Tennessee State at Mississippi State
November 20, 2021 | Football
Mississippi State Head Coach Mike Leach |  Mississippi State Student-Athletes
Tennessee State Head Coach Eddie George
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Mississippi State Head Coach Mike Leach
Q: What are your thoughts on Will Rogers' performance?
ML: I think he's gotten better and better. He's had the ability to do it well in practice, he's just got to settle down and do it and today he did.
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Q: You were able to play some of the backups today. How important was that in a short week?
ML: It's hard to say, but it was good to get some of those young guys in. We've got to work on communication with some of those young guys. We did some good things and explosive things, but we've got to get better at communicating. That being said, any kind of experience you can get them is beneficial.
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Q: Will broke the MSU single-season records in passing yards and touchdowns today. What has he been doing to take that next step this year?
ML: I think he works incredibly hard and has become more consistent. Where the line is between himself and the improvement of the backs, linemen, and receivers is hard to define. They have become more used to his personality, and they have also become more consistent which allows him to execute better.
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Q: Are you surprised with the jump Will has been able to make throughout this season and the last five to six games especially?
ML: I'm pleased, but I'm not really surprised. We're out there every day in practice, watching film and seeing these guys improve. We're a very young team, so the more reps we get the quicker we improve. I think he's done a really good job staying focused and our guys have done a good job staying focused and on task.
Q: Malik Heath seems to be playing his most consistent football right now. Do you think he's finally hit his stride?
ML: I hope so. We have been able to put together two very good weeks in a row. The other thing is that he practices very hard. He's been up and down but has gotten to a good pace these last couple of weeks. He just needs to get in a rhythm and realize how good he can be, and he seems to finally be getting there.
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Q: Will is not with you on the sidelines very often, but what is he like when he's like the second quarterback watching Chance out there?
ML: Well, he unselfishly wanted to keep playing if that makes sense. He wasn't happy coming off the field but was happy to see Chance come on the field. They're pretty tight, so he was confused about which of the two he wanted to happen. He's a good teammate and was cheering everybody on from the sidelines. He got into each play almost like he was coaching a bit.
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Q: Is it hard to have a takeaway when you beat a team with such a large margin like this? If not, what is the takeaway from this game?
ML: I don't think there's a huge takeaway from this one. I think it was a tough time to play us and not such a bad time to play them. I have an immense amount of respect for their team. Coach George went out to get his business degree and then all of the sudden he gets dragged into coaching too. I really admire what he gives to that team to do that. The biggest takeaway is that we wanted to have a consistent effort on all four sides of the ball. We knew it wasn't going to be perfect, but I did feel like we had a good effort and consistency on all four sides of the ball.
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Q: Your defense had twelve tackles for loss and four sacks. How much do you think that set the tone for today?
ML: That was a definitely lot of it. Any time you affect the backfield like our defensive front did, it's going to be tough to get the game going on offense.
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Q: What makes you guys a different team now in comparison to the beginning of the season?
ML: We're experienced and work hard for it too. The combination of hard work, experience and consistency is what makes the big difference.
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Q: What does your team have to change and what are the next couple of days going to look like for you as you gear up for a short week like this one?
ML: I'm going to be back at the office in a couple of hours. We just have to get the game plan back and condense it. With a week like this, you have to try and be as precise as you can with the film since you may have to cut some reps here and there.
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Q: Having coached in some amazing rivalries over the years, what does rivalry week mean to you?
ML: If you're fully invested and doing the best you can, it's another opportunity to play a great, exciting game where you have an opportunity to improve. I think that's what we need to do.
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Mississippi State Student-Athletes
Q: What's been the improvements from the offensive line this season?
CC:Â I feel like we're playing well. We're playing as one unit, and we're being consistent. It's always good when you're playing offensive line.
Q: What's it like watching the younger players get reps in a game like this?
CC:Â It's always great to see the young guys play. I enjoy seeing them play and cheering them on, and watching them get the experience that I had.
Q: What were you guys trying to accomplish in this game and do you think you guys were able to accomplish it today?
CC:Â Every week, my goal is to go 1-0. We accomplished that goal this week, and it's a good feeling to go 1-0.
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Q: How do you guys feel like you improved [this week]?
JJ:Â Yeah for sure, I actually heard something this week, 'Play the game, not the opponent', whether that's the No. 1 team in the nation or the last team in the nation. Coach Leach says 'Respect everybody, fear nobody', and I think we did a good job of that.
Q: How important was it for you guys to fill the gaps?
JJ:Â Yeah, they had a couple good players. Coach [Zach] Arnett challenged us this week and last week to get downhill, to be aggressive and to be physical.
Q: Do you think the struggles last week kind of fed into this game?
JJ:Â We made the corrections from last week because we didn't play up to our standards by any means. We wanted to correct that and build upon the good stuff that we did do.
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Q: What's it like for you to be able to watch the younger guys get their reps?
JM:Â I got to see JJ [Jernighan] get some carries, so I was really hyped up for him. And of course, the offensive line did their thing, so I was excited on both sides of the ball.
Q: How different is your blocking this year compared to last year?
JM: It's different. We worked on that a lot during the off-season and sometimes in practice. But our defense – I think we got the pass rushing down better, and that's what really made a difference.
Q: One of the philosophies of this team is 'play the next play.' What does it take to transition into that mindset?
JM: You have to keep your mind clear. If you make a bad play, you don't want to go into the next play and then make another bad play. It'll be difficult, but you have to get over it, come back and make the next play. And we've definitely progressed from that since the first week.
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Q: Did you feel like the defense set the tone for the day?
NP: Oh yeah, that is definitely how I felt. It is Tennessee State [who is] not a very good team. We knew we would play our style of football [going in]. We got that done.
Q: What does the Egg Bowl mean to you?
NP: It is a different type of atmosphere. For it to be in Starkville, is just a different level of atmosphere. I'm definitely ready for it. I'm ready for the environment and to see how we play.
Q: What are you most proud of after this game?
NP: I'm most proud that we took the little details into the plays that were called. We lined up and did the little things right. That was one of the main things we tried to focus on this week, and I feel like we did that. We were more dialed into the smaller details of this game.
Q: What makes Will Rogers so good?
NP: Honestly, it's just him. He is an alright, All-American dawg. He is a great leader for this team, and we all look up to him. Even at practice, he knows what has to be done and expects everyone to do their job. That is what makes him a great football player.
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Q: How good does it feel knowing that you came here to catch a lot of balls and that is what you have done?Â
MP: It feels good. It is a big accomplishment, and I cannot wait to do more.
Q: How important is the depth of the receiver [position] when Will Rogers is having these big games?Â
MP: When he has a good game, it helps everyone else out.
Q: Could you tell that Rogers did not want to come out during that third quarter? That he wanted to stay out there?Â
MP: It just goes to show the dog in him. He wants to be on the field and put points on the board.
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Q: Will, you passed Dak [Prescott] today for single season passing yards and touchdowns. What does that mean for you as a kid growing up in Mississippi, watching Mississippi State some and watching Dak?Â
WR: I mean it is tremendous. Anytime to have your name in the same company as Dak Prescott, it's pretty incredible. I never really imagined that would happen honestly, you know like you said, I have been watching Dak since I was in fifth, sixth, seventh grad. The things that he did here were amazing, taking the team to No. 1 and all that, so just to have my name in the same company as Dak is truly incredible.
Q: Will, you grew up on the other side of the Egg Bowl rivalry, grew up an Ole Miss fan. What's that going to be like? I know you have played them last year. How big is that Thursday?
WR: It's huge. It's the biggest game of the year every year. Like you said, I kind of grew up an Ole Miss fan with my dad going there, my sister went there, so yeah, tables have turned a little bit.
Q: How different is this scenario compared to last year where you guys had like 45 to 46 guys healthy to even play in that game, staring at a three- or four-win season. How different are the stakes?
WR: Â Probably the biggest Egg Bowl since, I mean I told my roommates, I don't know the exact date or the exact year, but it has got to be the first time that two Egg Bowl teams are ranked in a really long time. I mean it is a huge game because it's Ole Miss versus Mississippi State, it's a huge game because you know what's at stake, and things like that, so we need to be ready to play Thursday.
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Q: You had three touchdowns on your first three catches today. What was that like?Â
AW: It felt awesome. It just worked out that way today that I had a couple of opportunities. Will threw some good balls, and it was great to see that happen.
Q:Â How far has Will Rogers grown through your eyes?
AW: He has grown a ton – leaps and bounds. He has matured [both] on and off the field. He commands the offense and the locker room, and respects everybody. He is awesome. All of his hard work is starting to pay off for him, and I love that.
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Tennessee State Head Coach Eddie George
EG: Not really. Rodell [Rahmaan] with an injury, we lost our left tackle, a few other guys have knicks and bruises, and we have a kid that went down with a possible shoulder injury. We got beat up across the board. We got a few injuries, but we have the rest of the off-season to heal up.
Q: Were you surprised by the challenge against an FBS opponent?
EG: No, not at all. They jump off the screen when you watch them on film. We knew the challenge coming in here; it was going to be a difficult task. All I asked of our players was to fight and grind, to not give up or quit, and to not lay down. And they did just that up until the last play of the game. We come out of halftime down 35-0 and I said, 'Let's just win the second half', whatever that looks like, and we almost accomplished that. When you play games like this, you have to check yourself on the barometer, and continue to build towards your identity in terms of what you want to be and who you want to become. It doesn't stop your attitude in terms of who we are and what we want to be. Effort or focus doesn't deter us from that, we just have to continue to keep our eye on the prize and understand that there will be better days.
Q: When you took the job, you said one of your goals was for the team to play strong at the end of the season, do you feel like their effort was a win in that department?
EG:Â Yes, and I'll take that. I think that's the blessing in it. [There were] some good surprises, some guys that got opportunities. Mike Mitchell came in and played really hard. We had some guys on the defensive side play really hard. Again, we understood that coming in here, kind of short-handed and minus [Geremy] Hickbottom, it was going to be a really difficult task offensively for us to produce points like we needed to. I told the boys that it's not often that we have an opportunity to play in a historic venue against a top-25 team in the FBS. This is one that you'll remember forever, and we're going to do it together. I think they appreciated the experience.
Q: How tough is it to come out and keep playing hard after halftime when the odds are stacked so tall against you?
EG: I've been on the end of this. It's nothing foreign. It's difficult. It's hard to swallow. We were ranked top-25 one year at Ohio State, [maybe] top-15. We went up to number 2 Penn State and got destroyed 63-10 – it was 42-0 at halftime. That was actually the game that we as a team figured out that we had to stop playing individually and start playing more like a team. The following year, I won the Heisman and we ripped off 11 or 12 straight games. So, there's a blessing in it all. As bad as it feels now, yes it was embarrassing on the scoreboard, but I saw some things today that we can build on going into the offseason. That's what we want to do. The thing now is to get healthy, develop these kids we have now, bring in some young talent and bring in some graduate players that have some experience at key positions to go into next season, and that's what I intend on doing.
Q: Do you consider this first year a success?
EG: Successful in the fact that we became a team, yes. It didn't show in our win/loss columns, but what I wanted to do was create an identity and a culture, and I think that's being established and still has to continue. The fact that we won five ball games – technically we're a .500 team excluding today – is moving in the right direction. It's not what I intended on, in terms of not winning a championship, but we did get better in the win/loss column, and we became a team. So, I consider it very successful.
Q: How happy are you with your decision to take on a head coaching position?
EG: All that stuff that I had been doing prior [to this job] had prepared me for this – everything. I don't feel wiped out. Yes, it has been a long seven months for me, personally speaking – losing my parents, and taking on this new opportunity. I didn't know exactly what I was getting into. I didn't know if I would in fact enjoy it, but I've learned that I do enjoy it. It's nothing that I dread. I was talking to [Mississippi State head coach] Mike Leach earlier and I told him my journey about how I got to this point. It just appeared to me from [Tennessee State] President Glover that she wanted me to be the head coach. I thought it was a crazy idea until I really focused on the opportunity, what it meant not just for me, but for these young men downstairs. Am I making a difference in their lives? This is nothing more than life skills taught through football. That's all I'm doing is teaching them how to be winners, how to be better husbands, how to be fathers, how to be a leader, how to overcome adversity, how to take on tough opponents and how do you handle yourself when you lose? You lose with grace and dignity, and you look to learn. They're doing that. It's been fulfilling in that regard.
Q: What did Mike Leach say to you about your journey?
EG: He just thought it was a great thing. He said he's excited about our future. He feels like I bring a lot to the coaching profession. He's excited about what we're going to do and he kind of just told me 'Come down on my boat and come spend some time with me'. I said 'Hey, I might just do that. You can shoot some of the players you don't need my way'. So, it was a really good conversation.
