On Gemon Green's start to the year

He's off to a really good start. A really good player. Great to see him get challenged and step up and make really good plays. He'll continue to do so.

On Iowa's defense

It really goes back to the early 80s with Norm Parker coaching Michigan State, defensive coordinator there. Defensive coordinator for 30-some years. That's where this defense originates. He happened to coach a defensive back by the name of Phil Parker at Michigan State. In 1999, Kirk Ferentz went to Iowa, hired Norm Parker as a defensive coordinator as Phil Parker as a secondary coach. That system has been in place since 1999. Phil Parker was the secondary coach there for 13 years. Then took over as the defensive coordinator ever since. It's a system, it's a way of playing. It's the Parker way. It's really good. Everybody knows what to do, everybody plays the proper leverage, the proper technique, the proper fundamentals at all times. Opportunistic. The challenges it presents are—if you're inaccurate with a throw, overthrow, underthrow, tipped ball. It's highly likely that it's going to result in a turnover if you're not as sound as you can possibly be. You're in for a rough one. It's a scheme that's flawless. Everybody is where they're supposed to be, when they're supposed to be there, playing the technique when you're supposed to be there. The challenge makes you on offense be really tight. Not the time to lighten up, it's the time to tighten up in every aspect. Our offense is techniques and fundamentals, alignments and assignments. It's been 48 hours of looking at that and looking at every possible way that we can improve ourselves.

On what makes Blake Corum a great back

There's an old saying in football, a running back who can miss somebody by the narrowest of margins is an unbelievable talent. Blake can get so close to a defender, a would-be tackler, within inches, and then make a slight move where somebody that close doesn't even touch him. Some backs will make the cut a yard away or two yards away. Blake Corum gets to the point where he can smell their breath and then make the slight six-inch cut, missing by the narrowest of margins. It's incredible. The vision, the low center of gravity. Players talk about having a hard time finding him. The real key to success is just how close he can get to a defender and miss by the narrowest of margins.

On Donovan Edwards' status

We'll see. We'll see as the week transpires.

On whether he has an update on Erick All

No.

On whether Corum's ability is innate to him

I think the really good running backs, great running backs, a running back like Blake has that kind of—I think they crawl out of the crib with it.

On Kinnick Stadium being a difficult place to play

As they say, top-five teams go to die. The biggest thing is just how good the team is. You turn on the offensive tape, it's a Kirk Ferentz-coached offense. Everything is detailed, everything is precise. Same fundamentals. They just get so good at what they're doing, they beat you with the execution. It's wide zone, tight zone, play action off the boots and nakeds. They out-fundamental you, out-technique you and they out-execute you. Same thing. You can't have blown coverages. You've got to have the right technique, you've got to be in the right gap. Gotta be just as good, you have to match that execution. Great environment that they have at Kinnick Stadium. I think it's more of the team that's on the field and they produce one that's really good every single year.

On Cade McNamara's status and whether Trevor Keegan will be available

Yeah, they're progressing. It's not for me to stand up here on a Monday and update everybody's physical condition. You're welcome to ask them yourself. I don't have a crystal ball to whether they'll play on Saturday to answer that question.

On how he prepares J.J. McCarthy for his first road environment as a starter

Same way at all the positions, really. Looking for fundamental football, going through the progressions, going through the drops. The ballhandling. Making sure that we're as detailed and as fundamentally sound as we can be going into this game.

On studying Iowa's lineage on defense helps him understand the defense better

Been aware of it for a long time. I've studied it.

On how well-equipped this offense is to handling Iowa's defense

We'll see. A lot of things—it was good that we won the game but there's a lot of things to coach from our last game. We'll see how our players respond to that coaching. See how all the areas that we can fix. How well we do that. I'll have a better feel for that as the week goes on. I predict that we can. I think fixable things. Just going to require taking the coaching and continuing to go practice it and being able to, once you've practiced, being able to do that in a game day environment in a hostile stadium, loud stadium. Going to take some work. Want to get better at something, you just have to work a little bit harder at it. Definitely, things for us to narrow in and focus in on this week.

On how Jesse Minter is preparing for this part of the schedule where teams have seen the framework of the defense

There's ways to make things look like something and then you're actually doing something else. Jesse is prepared for that and has been implementing that.

On what the pass rush needs to do to take the next step

There's an area of focus there. Things that we'll be coaching this week as we talk to the players. Not going to go through every single one of them position-by-position. That'd be an area of emphasis.

On the consistency on special teams

The recipe has been the players with a great desire to train themselves for the positions they are in. They take tremendous pride. It's really important to us here as a football team. A lot of credit to Jay Harbaugh, to the special teams staff. Brad Banta, JB, a lot of time. A lot of man hours. A great pride that's taken by the players. It's been really good. Going back to years now. A lot of times on task. In some ways, very similar to the Iowa defense or the Iowa offense. Been a consistency in the coaching, there's been a consistency in the mindset and the pride that our players take. Getting really good on special teams. Seen a lot of our players that have gone on to make NFL rosters because of how they've played on special teams and their special teams readiness and preparedness. So many examples that our players have for that. If one man can do it, in many cases many of them have observed. They watched and now their goal is to surpass what they've already seen. There's a real standard. All those things.

On what Dametrius Walker has meant to the program

It was just an instant bond there. Instant click with our team. A love that he gives out. You feel that and you want to give that back. Our players, they've got big hearts. It's a very spiritual team that we have. In a lot of ways—the most spiritual place maybe in this town or in this community, campus, is right here in Schembechler Hall in terms of how many players are just so rock solid in their faith. I also want to honor Robby Emory, our team chaplain. Specifically, with Meechie, our team, they have an open heart for others. They don't just care about themselves, they really care about others. It's been somebody that you meet, he exudes a spirit, a spirituality, a love that you're drawn to. It's just instant. It was that instant click with all of us on our team. We want him around. We want him to get the treatment to give his life more longevity. If we can help make that quality of life better, we want to do that. That's just how our team felt.

On Eyabi Okie

He keeps progressing. He didn't get here until the middle of August. There's learning the defense, there are calls, there are subtleties. Already talked about a defense that's been in place for 25 years, a long time. Eyabi is that talented that he can come in—he's that smart. He's picked up most of the defense. Every week there are more and more calls that he knows and we can play him. It's just down to just a few really, that's he's still mastering. I do believe (he can contribute more). Players love him, we love him and you're going to see him more and more because of the time on task. Understanding his position, his 1/11th in the system.

On whether it's similar for Derrick Moore

Yeah. Same ask.