October 04, 2005
Audio from Tuesday's football media luncheon is available through the links to the right. Files can be downloaded and are in MP3 format.
A transcript of Coach Dennis Franchione's press conference on Tuesday at the Bright Football Complex will be posted soon.
The Aggies return to the field Saturday at Colorado. Kickoff at Folsom Field in Boulder is set for 6 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports Net.
Coach Fran Media Luncheon Transcript
The offensive line, you've talked a lot about that. Jami (Hightower) got a start against Baylor, can you talk about how he got the start and where you see the position?
"Jami has improved. As two-a-days wore on, he lost some weight. He deserved to have an opportunity to be a starter. Whether he will be this week or not, we'll just kind of see how the competition goes. He got caught in a couple things at guard that he probably hadn't had enough reps to handle it as well as I'd like him to, and as he'd like to. We've got to kind of wait and see whether it's best to leave him there this week or not, we'll have to see."
What are the ramifications of him playing?
"For Jami and for us, he gives us a pretty good mass of blocking ability up there. He can get some push and help us create some things on the inside. Maybe in some regards playing inside, pass-protection wise, could be a benefit for him, though he always seems to do a good job on the edge. I think he's most comfortable still on the edge because he's played there most of his life."
When you measure the progress of your team and the program in your three years, are you comfortable with the progress, or in the last couple of weeks has it maybe taken a step back?
"I don't know for sure. I think we're still finding out about ourselves. We're certainly not where we want to be yet. I think were a lot like several teams in the league right now. We're a continual work in progress. We've got some inexperience in spots that shows up from time to time. We've got some inconsistency in spots that shows up from time to time. When we get going on all cylinders, or on most of them, we can be formidable. We're capable of making some big plays on offense. We've driven the ball at times. I think were improved in the kicking game. Defensively, we got a little bit better last week, but we're not where we want to be yet by any means."
Despite everything else, you're 3-1. But what do you say to those who follow the Aggies and college football that expect that A&M is supposed to beat Baylor and Texas State by wide margins and aren't satisfied with just a win?
"I don't know if there is anything I can say to satisfy them. You have to understand, in college football today, a win is a win--and if the style points aren't good enough then they aren't good enough. Our goal is one more point and to find a way and at the end of the game to have a 'W'. Guys, we'd like to run away and have a nice 4th quarter, where we sub a lot of guys, but there's not much difference in teams today, and there's not much difference in anybody in the Big 12. There may be one or two teams that are playing awfully well right now obviously, but I look at a lot of the teams in our conference right now and there's a pretty fine line that separates all of us. We haven't separated ourselves from them, and I don't know that anybody else has separated themselves. Injuries, experience, who you play, where you play them-all are critical. Just like this week going to Colorado, there's nothing easy about this game. It's a tough challenge. Homecoming, great kickers and punters, a great setting, it's going to be much like going to Clemson to play. It won't be anything but a tough football game. It's going to be a hard-fought game to have a chance to win."
We've been talking about the option a lot today. Is it labeled as a high-risk, high-reward type of play?
"I don't think so. If I thought that way I don't think I would have it that involved in our offense. We've got a screen or two that I call high-risk, high-reward. We call it 'feast or famine,' because it's either really good or it's 2nd-and-10 after you run it. Our option plays, I know if I brought the stats in here, the efficiency of them would be pretty good. I don't remember a turnover we've had due to that aspect of our game this year. It's not always going to be 15 or 20 yards every snap, but over the haul it's been pretty solid for us."
Having the talent of a guy like Reggie (McNeal) back there must be a large part of running it.
"It is. You want the ball in Reggie's hands and this is a way that Reggie, in addition to throwing it and the other things he does, it's another way you're relying on his decision making and his ability to make things happen. Another reason why we want to do this is because Reggie's a guy that's a catalyst in this offense. He'd be that no matter what we're doing. We're just making sure he has the ability to have the ball to make plays for us."
How important is it to have a guy like Courtney (Lewis) catching those pitches?
"It's darn important. You don't want the ball on the ground. I've told our guys many times the only way they can disappoint me is to turn it over. Sometimes a defense is going to play the option very well. They're going to defend every aspect of it and maybe be in an over-shifted defense to play it better. And sometimes, we've had the advantage, and if we execute it, it's been good. You can't do this if you don't have a guy you depend on to catch the pitch. There are no categories 'pitches attempted' and 'pitches completed'. It's called 'fumbles'."
Baylor seemed to play it pretty well...
"Baylor played well. I thought their defense played an outstanding game. We made some yards on it at times. Our first score was set up by a nice option down in the end zone there, but they played well. They played well in every aspect of defense. That was a defensive struggle."
How would you describe your offense right now? It looks a little different than what we saw last year.
"It is different. We've adopted more of the Utah or Florida concept of their spread into our spread offense. We've added some wrinkles that are unique to us. We're still throwing the ball at the rate we were, and we're throwing it fairly well. We're still I think relying on pretty much most of the same concepts that we had before, with some additions here and there."
Is this a more complex option than in the past?
"I think that's safe to say. We've done more with that than we have done."
How much more time have you spent on it than in the past?
"In the past we didn't spend a large portion of time on it. Some of these things we didn't have in our offense like we do now. Obviously we had to commit practice time to it, but that's not our basis for our offense. Our offense is built around the multiplicity of the passing game--no backs in the backfield, zone, zone read, and some option in there. I think we're multiple enough where hopefully if this component is not being productive that day, than we can hopefully go to another area that's productive and keep hunting around to find the direction we want to go."
How much does it say about your faith in Reggie to not only execute but to take in a lot of different information?
"My faith in Reggie is very deep. Anything we've added or done has been based on Reggie's abilities and what our strengths are. We don't try to fit square pegs into round holes. We try to do what this group of youngsters can do the best. Reggie's got certain talents. I think with what we're doing with him, it's the best way to utilize his abilities. Each year is a different challenge in different ways. When other players make plays, like with Chad Schroeder, you keep manipulating formations around to use Chad Schroeder. That's what this offensive staff has always been about trying to find the guys that can make plays and get them in position to make plays."
You've had unfortunate injuries at wide receiver. DeQawn (Mobley) hasn't been catching balls. Does that surprise you? Do you need him to be more of a playmaker?
"It's just kind of been the way things have been going. He had some opportunities early in the Clemson game and he didn't make as many plays in situations there that he would have hoped and we would have hoped. We're not disappointed with DeQawn. He's still capable of it. Sometimes DeQawn being covered has helped Chad (Schroeder). The thing that we do is we feel confident about our guys, and so we work to integrate them all into the offense. Obviously right now, Jason (Carter) and Chad are the major recipients of what's happened, but it's not because of any lack of confidence in DeQawn. It just hasn't happened in these four games."
Todd Pegram has been accurate at about 40 yards and in. At what point do you get in a situation where you have Layne (Neumann) come on and Todd come off?
"It kind of varies from game to game, with the weather and wind circumstances. Coach Tommerdahl will generally let me know before kickoff what he feels Todd's range is and when we'd need to think about Layne at a point in time."
When you take in the success Colorado's had and their record this year, would a win over Colorado answer a lot of the questions about this team, or maybe see it being a springboard? Is it more important than just the next game on the schedule?
"You know, I can't say that. I think next week against Oklahoma State is going to be a challenge. To go to Manhattan the next week is going to be a challenge. Iowa State coming in the next week is going to be a challenge. I hope there is a game that's a momentum builder for us. All these teams are so close together. There's not a lot that separates them. I personally, in my own mind, felt that Colorado would defend their (Big 12) North championship this year. I thought they had most returnees, a senior quarterback, an outstanding kicker, an outstanding punter. So I think we're playing a very good football team. Each team's got their issues right now, much like us. Each team has strengths. The line that separates winning and losing in the Big 12 is pretty thin."
At Alabama, you got several really good SEC road wins. What do you remember about what made a team be able to go into those kinds of environments and do well?
"The first criteria is to take good players. The second is to take them and coach them well. Then I think the big thing is are you prepared to handle the environment that you have to play in? You need to maintain your focus, play as a team, support each other, play with enthusiasm together and not let the external things that you don't have in your support on the road affect you. I think we did a marvelous job of that at Clemson. We didn't quite come up with the 'W' but our guys never gave in to the circumstances of playing in a tough environment. They stayed focused, believed, and fought hard all the way to end. They did all the things except make one more play that they needed to do to be in that position, and it's going to have to be that way week in and week out."
When you take in the success Colorado's had and their record this year, would a win over Colorado answer a lot of the questions about this team, or maybe see it being a springboard? Is it more important than just the next game on the schedule?
"I'd always rather play at home. I hope what you're saying is correct. I haven't given a lot of thought to that yet. Again, I think this team knows that one of their challenges to having a good season is going to be being able to manage this road schedule with some wins. This is the second opportunity, and we've got three more tough ones after this. There aren't any of them that's going to be easy. This has just as much challenge to it as the other ones. Hopefully the fact we played on the road at Clemson and then came home and played three has given us the ability to go and meet the challenge that this one is going to require."
Is this as tough a road schedule you've had as a head coach?
"Well, my second year at Alabama, we went to LSU and won, went to Tennessee and won, and went to Arkansas and won. It seems like there was one more tough one that we won on the road, but I would say this was probably as tough a road schedule as you could ask for."
How well did Johnny Jolly play?
"Johnny Jolly played very well. It was his best game of the year. He was really outstanding, made lots of plays, he got pressure on the quarterback, he was an active force during the game. I don't think Johnny's first three games were A-plus performances for him. This one was much closer to being that."
The linebackers, particularly in this game, how key are they?
"I think that since the Clemson game, this is the next big test for those guys. We've been more in the spread type stuff the last few weeks and this is going to be a little bit different than that I think. It'll be a much more physical challenge and a game where the linebackers are going to have to step up and make big plays, and the defensive line is going to have a big impact too."
Given the history of the linebacker position at this school, has it been difficult to recruit linebackers? Are you comfortable with the guys you brought in and the ones waiting in the wings?
"I think it has been difficult to recruit at that position for us since I've been here, just a little bit. Justin Warren's certainly done well. I'm not trying to be negative about any of our guys, I don't mean that. But I think for years and years, the predominant offense in texas high school football was the wing-T. If there was one thing you could always find in this great state, it was linebackers and tailbacks. Now, the predominant offense in this state is the spread. Now, you can find receivers and quarterbacks very well. I don't know if we've turned out as many great tailbacks as we used to back in those days. I think linebacker is a position that maybe some of those guys that would have been linebackers have ended up defensive ends to rush the passer, or safeties maybe. It just seems like it's been an unusual trend I think in that regard."
I know you've moved some DBs and safeties. Could you even think about moving defensive linemen back if you need the depth?
"You could think about it, but generally that's not the way the movement goes. You don't usually back farther way from the ball, you usually get closer to the ball in today's football."
Can it affect your offensive play-calling when you're starting a kicker who doesn't have range outside 40 or so yards, in terms of going for it or punting?
"It can. I think there was circumstance in the Clemson game maybe that we went for it on fourth down. You get into an area probably somewhere around the 35-yard line where it's like, Do you kick? Do you punt? Or do you go for it? Each has a little bit of feel. If you punt and it goes in the end zone, you really haven't gained that much. If you miss the field goal, you've given them a little better field position. If you go for it and you don't make it, you still give them field position. It's a little bit about the flow of the game--how things are going, how the offense is moving the ball and how we feel about getting three points out of this situation."