On Davis Warren's interceptions and the QB position moving forward
Just can't have 'em. Put the ball in harm's way too many times. So, made the change and we'll continue practicing and go from there.
On whether Alex Orji will be getting more looks moving forward
That what we practice. We'll figure it out when we practice.
On whether he was surprised by some of the turnovers
Yeah. Just not great stuff to put on film. Yeah, I was surprised. That's football, though, so that stuff is going to happen and we had to make a change.
On offensive line improvement
I think the biggest thing we talked about and stressed is running the football. We had 44 attempts for 301 yards, so I'd say that's pretty successful. 6.8 yards per carry. That was an emphasis we put on the team, on the players, running backs, O-line, so that was good. We just knew we gotta stay balance and do the things we need to in order to make sure we were balanced in all phases. Gotta take care of the football, number one, and be able to run the football like we have been. That made me happy. Not even just the run game but everything perspective, we've got to eliminate the penalties. Talk about the penalties, saw the penalties. You could say they were this or they were that, you can't have them. For us, got to clean them up and be more disciplined. I gotta do a better job with the team making sure we're disciplined from this day forward and continue to do that.
On Colston Loveland, Myles Hinton and Rayshaun Benny's status
We'll see. That's why we've got doctors, we'll see what the doctors say. Colston left, Myles just cramped up and same thing with Rayshaun so we'll see what the doctors say with further eval.
On weighing the interceptions in terms of the quarterback play
Some of it was protection but, at the end of the day, we've just got to take care of the football. Can't have those turnovers. We take a lot of pride in making sure we don't do that. Usually when we take care of the football, we win, so that's what we'll try to do.
On Kalel Mullings
I watched him last year and I think he averaged 6 yards per carry last year, it doesn't surprise me that he's running the way he is. He just needs all the opportunities but when you have Blake Corum, it's a little different. He's handled it very well. He's even had less carries, had 153 yards and averaged 10 yards a carry. The guy is just a workhorse but Donovan is no slouch, he works hard, he's physical. Kalel just made some big plays when it was there. Proud of both of those guys, for sure.
On what goes into the decision when playing Dom Giudice and Greg Crippen
Competition. Always talk about competition. All those guys definitely know that, it goes back to the last three years when I was coaching the O-line and it was always practices the best is going to play and just right now, those two guys are just practicing at the same level and practicing pretty good. You gotta still give them the opportunity. Greg got the opportunity and so did Dom so we'll see how the film looks.
On Davis Warren's reaction to the interceptions and the decision to bench him
He's as disappointed as you think he would be. His attitude and the way he carried himself with the other guys was outstanding. He knew he couldn't do that and put the ball in harm's way. He was as positive as could be.
On why the team is not as disciplined as last year
It's a different team and we've gotta be better at it. It's plain and simple, it's not really an excuse for having those issues. We gotta be better at it and it's my job to make sure we are and that's what we're going to continue to do.
On the quarterback 'issues' week four
I wouldn't call them an issue, we're just gonna go to work. We'll get better like we did with the running game last week and we'll get better in the passing game and we'll continue to drive forward.
On Alex Orji
He played well. Had the overthrow but wanted him to just let it rip and get some confidence out there. Did a good job of managing it and taking care of the football which is the number one thing I want our program to do. We'll see where we go from there.
On whether Jack Tuttle is available next week
We'll see. Not a doctor so we'll let the doctors figure that one out.
On whether Warren's arm get hit on the second interception
Yeah, it did. It did get hit.
On evaluating interceptions
I've never played quarterback but I can probably assume if you did get it, it's going to affect your throw. I think that's part of it, I think that's why he stayed in the game. Last one was just an errant throw so had to make a change.
On Marlin Klein and Fred Moore
It was huge. We've always had a lot of confidence in Marlin and still do. I think he's going to be a really good player and he's going to continue to show that in the run and the pass. Confident in him. Fred has been doing it since the spring so it's good for him to get into the game and get confidence going and add to the depth in the room. The other guy we've really been high on and had a touchdown was Hogan Hansen. This guy has all camp has made plays and we're like, well, when it's his time, he'll be ready. He stepped in there and he made a good play. I'm happy for him, too.
On the depth on the defense
When you look at the whole game and you look at the ones and twos, the ones and twos went in there, besides the first drive, they didn't have a lot of football plays and they didn't have a lot of successful plays. We went in more, we had the threes and we had the fours in. Those guys didn't finish to the depth of those first two groups. I addressed it in the locker room, we know we gotta finish as a team. I think the first two did an outstanding job and played our type of football.
On what he liked about the defense
I just thought they all did their job. They did exactly what they were coached to do. They weren't trying to press to make plays, they just made them. Coverage was sticky, run lanes were shut down, everything was gapped out. They made a couple of plays here and there but they really did a really good job and they played our style of ball. It was really good to see and watch those guys rally. Some guys stepped up, some guys like Ike Iwunnah, he really stepped up and he's really taken the next steps to be the guy. Rayshaun Benny is another guy behind that's already played but has stepped up. Trey Pierce is another guy inside. Jimmy Rolder is a guy. So we're adding that depth. Aamir Hall made a big play in the redzone, batted the ball down, so you're seeing guys take the next step on defense. It's great to see. We love the competition, everybody loves the competition. We need the depth on defense.
On whether Colston Loveland coming out of the game was precautionary or there's something more serious
Whenever they say that someone is down, I listen. I'm not going to make a decision medically so it was their decision. Went with the next guy.
On Wink Martindale
I think he's done a great job, especially today. Made some adjustments to things we did. Some coverage adjustments and play adjustments, even the style and the way he did it. I thought he did a great job of handling it and making plays. A lot of the breakdowns with the threes and fours was guys not doing their jobs. It's a whole collective deal. It's not one person. I think we've got to do a better job coaching, I think we've got to do a better job playing. I thought he's done an outstanding job, I thought today was really, really good and we'll see watching film.
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