Sept. 20, 2010
Selected quotes from Coach Sherman and the players will be available soon. Audio clips are available in MP3 format to the right.
HEAD COACH Mike Sherman
On the change of punters... "Well, the 9-yard punt wasn't totally (Ryan Epperson's) fault. I asked him to punt the ball out of bounds. Not quite at that range, but he did what I asked him to do. Certainly if I had to do it over again I wouldn't ask him to do that. I thought he punted well after that. Before that we were efficient but not effective in my mind. We went into the game with the thought we might change if wasn't going well, so we went with Epperson. We asked him to punt it out of bounds so we wouldn't get a return on it."
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On his message to the team at the half ... "I told them to keep the faith. I thought the defense was playing well. The special teams needed to make more plays. I told the offense we've got to get it going. Our identity has been as a good offense and we weren't playing well at that point. I felt that we could fix some of the problems we had in the first half at the half. I told them to keep the faith and keep plugging. It wasn't a yelling and screaming session necessarily, although I probably wanted to do that. I kind of held back. There wasn't a lack of effort or trying. It wasn't taking anyone lightly. They were causing us some protection problems. They had a couple of nuances that we didn't handle well in the first half. I thought we handled it better in the second half."
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On the team's mentality late... "I thought when the game was on the line in the fourth quarter the guys responded. No one tanked or felt sorry for themselves. There was a lot of enthusiasm on the sidelines. The energy was fine the entire game. It was frustrating particularly on offense. I don't think anyone lost focus, which was good. In the past, in situations like that, I don't know that I'd be as confident in that. They were very determined at the half. Unfortunately the third quarter wasn't a stellar quarter but proud they able to win 4th qtr 21-0.
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On whether he considered replacing Jerrod Johnson... "No, not really, although I have a lot of confidence in Ryan Tannehill. I thought Jerrod deserved the right to try and pull himself out. I told him, `We will win the game with you and you have to do this for us'. I told him that after his last interception. He made some key throws, that 3rd-and-12 to Jeff Fuller being one of them. He responded well and played well when we needed him. I'm not a big guy for pulling a person at that position. I thought Jerrod, in this ballgame, deserved respect for what he's capable of doing and I think in the fourth quarter he showed that."
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On running the football when down 20-6... "I was bound and determined to make that work at that point in the game. I felt like we had to settle down and do something. We put it in our backs' and offensive line's hands and I thought they responded well. Our receivers blocked extremely well in this ballgame, the best since I've been here. They were competing at a high level in both the pass and run game."
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On the bye week schedule... "We will have a game plan set early this week. We'll practice tomorrow, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. We'll give them Saturday off and start game week Sunday."
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On whether he'd had an A&M crowd affect a game like Saturday... "The Houston game in 1989, when we played Andre Ware, was probably the most prolific (I've heard Kyle Field), That game was probably the most I've ever felt a crowd influenced an outcome. And they had reasons to cheer in that game. But I must say, the game the other day, we were down. Our players never had any despair, which is a credit to them. But from a fan perspective, you're saying, `Whoa, this isn't going too well'. And for them to be as loud and as engaged in the process as they were, no. I've never been in a situation like that where we were behind and they were still so into it and motivating. They were a factor in the ballgame. I take my hat off to them."
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On the offensive line... "Matt Allen and Pat Lewis played pretty well. Our tackles will play better. They are both talented enough to play much better than they played. Evan (Eike) was steady. That group has to be measured collectively. And it wasn't good enough from what we expect from them. They did a great job and rallied in the fourth quarter when we needed them. It wasn't all them. We had some plays called where there was stunting and it caused them some problems. So it's not all them."
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On the punt return situation... "Kenric's (McNeal) shoulder is still an issue. He wasn't ready. I didn't feel 100 percent confident he could take a hit on that shoulder. I think with the bye week he can be in a better position to possibly be available. Dustin (Harris) did okay. We dropped that one, which is not acceptable. But he gives you a chance every time he touches the ball to take it the distance. I think we're doing a pretty good job on punt return blocking. I would like to see us be better and get more yardage in the return game. We have the potential to be pretty good back there."
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On Randy Bullock's field goals and kickoffs... "Randy kicks the heck out of the ball in practice and I thought he kicked well in the game. It's a lot like hitting a golf ball, you are what you are that day. He hasn't missed the long ones, it's the short ones he's had trouble with. He left the game feeling pretty confident I think. I was pleased with every kickoff except one, and that's the one we were trying to hit dead spot, a blooper. I would have liked a little more air time on that so we could cover it. Â Overall though I thought he had a good game."
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ASST HEAD COACH/DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR Tim DeRuyter
On the defense's performance... "Well, I was pleased with the way our guys handled sudden change situations. Anytime you're faced with short field situations, it's tough on a defense but a good challenge. The coaches on the sidelines did a great job rallying guys when they went out. With the exception of the first turnover of the third quarter, we went out with a good attitude and attacked the offense. For the most part we got off the field an did good things Saturday."
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On Von Miller's leadership role... "In leadership he's definitely really grown up this year. He's really embraced it. He's a natural leader. He has a very magnetic personality. Guys tend to gravitate to him. He really did a great job Saturday in rallying the defense."
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On the timing of the bye week... "We're continuing to practice just like we would any other week. We will get good practice in and we get extra time to get ready for an excellent Oklahoma State offense. Getting the extra time will not hurt us one bit while looking at them. I want us to work on being more consistent. We are not disguising our coverages and executing out of those disguises as well as I would like. We still have busted coverages. We've just got to get more disciplined so we aren't getting fooled on some things."
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On the 12th Man Saturday... "I was amazed at how our fans hung in there. I don't know that if I was at a game, and we played the way we did, if I would have been hanging around. But they did. It's a great testament to our  fans. You talk about an inspiration for our defense...they rallied behind our defense and our guys played up to that. It was neat to see. Absolutely that was the embodiment of the 12th Man."
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On the health of Steven Campbell... "He will supposedly be working with trainers today. If everything looks positive we may have him at practice tomorrow."
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Rate the play of the cornerbacks... "Coryell Judie really has stepped up. I'm very impressed with him. He has made leaps and bounds. (Assistant coach) Chuck (McMillian) really has done a great job with him from a mental standpoint of his game and putting him in positions where he can have success. Terrence Frederick came in with a lot of confidence and he has stepped up and done well. It's nice too having guys like Lionel Smith and Dustin Harris behind them. It's a really good situation for us at the corner position. This week it's a little bit different. This is a for real offense. We'll really be challenged."
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On the game-ending 4th-down stop... "We were just in our base red zone pressure, and they picked it up decent. They got the ball to who they wanted to. We dropped Eddie (Brown) in coverage and Garrick (Williams) made a great play in space. I think our kids had a lot of confidence in that situation. We didn't lose faith and the kids didn't lose faith. I don't know if it was scheme so much as it was guys having the confidence and knowing they'd make a play."
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On the defensive line... "I thought we'd be pretty good. Having multiple guys to get in and keep fresh helps. (Assistant coach) Terrell (Williams) coaches those guys better than anyone I've ever been around. They are playing with a lot of confidence. They are doing a nice job of disrupting things. That changes this week though. We'll see how we handle that."
SENIOR QB Jerrod Johnson
On FIU and his struggles... "They had a good scheme for us. They matched up to our routes well, but at the same time you've got to take what they give you. Some things I thought were there obv werent. Def good tape for us to learn from and we have to get lot better. Thing may have looked too deeply into their teape. May have done some overthinking out there of their stuff that wasn't as complicated as I thought it would be.
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On 4th-quarter adjustments... "We simplified things a little bit. We diagnosed some of their stuff fairly well and we made some adjustments. I'm glad we made some adjustments, even though it was late, and it worked out well."
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On the interceptions and the mindset afterwards... "I pride myself on not throwing interceptions. I feel they are personal challenge (to me) against the defense. I want to throw the ball again. That's my mentality. I'm not gun-shy at all, I will never be gun-shy. On a couple of the interceptions I probably shouldn't have thrown the ball. On some of them I should have throw them but needed to put them in a better place. When you get in those moments or funks, you have to realize you're in one and you have to try to figure out how to fix it."
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On the timing of the bye week... "It couldn't have come at a better time for me personally, with the struggles I had. I will take the week to readjust some things. And going into a game on Thursday, usually the downside is you have a short week. But we don't really have that. That works out in our favor. This week you just try to rejuvenate yourself, get your legs back underneath you and take the bye week as an extra week of camp so to speak."
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On what was learned from Saturday... "I learned a lot. The fans were with us the whole time. We've been here in years past where things would go badly and we'd hear some hisses and a few boos, but they stayed with us and had faith in us as a team. That also rejuvenated us. When you see the linemen work hard and the backs run they way they did and the big catches we had, that shows our team is strong-minded. We are a tough team. We are all in this together and we have great chemistry. That showed, and the connection with fans showed. I was excited about that."
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On the defense keeping the team in the game... "I talked to Coach DeRuyter after the game and the one thing that helped me most is understanding that I will get the ball back. The worst time after a turnover is when you're on the sideline. I kept getting the opportunity to get back out there and that helped me out a lot. As a quarterback, you want another opportunity, then another. That definitely helped me out a lot."
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JUNIOR RB Cyrus Gray
On the comeback helping the team... "Yes, I think it will help us later on in the season. This is a game that shows our destiny I think. It's a game we will learn from and get better from."
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On his game-winning touchdown... "Throughout the game we had been attacking them with outside runs. Later on, we had more success running up the middle. I was impatient and ready to get in the game. I was fresh, and Coach Jordan gave me the chance to run the ball. I made a good cut off a block from Jeff Fuller and ended up scoring."
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On what FIU's defense was doing to cause problems... "I'd say maybe the stunts they were doing. They had great linebackers and their coaches had a great scheme for us. We had to switch it up and make changes in the second half and run the ball up the middle."
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On the timing of the bye week... "It was great for us. A few players have a few dings and nicks on them. This will help us get healthy and really get a chance to study our opponent and get better."
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SENIOR WR Terrence McCoy
On his touchdown catch... "We were actually supposed to run outs, but they were in cover-2. (When that happens) the route converts to a fade. I really don't pop open like I did on that play. (The decision to throw to me) was Jerrod just pre-snap seeing who looks best, or who the defensive back is off coverage. I got off the ball and saw the safety coming down. Whenever he comes down, Jerrod usually throws it to us in practice. Once I saw that, I picked up my speed, turned around and saw the ball. The safety jumped up and I lost track of the ball for a little bit, but it was a perfect throw. I hit it with my hand and it landed there. Jerrod made a perfect throw."
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On what Coach Sherman said at halftime... "He told us we need to pick it up. We were making a lot of mistakes on offense. The defense just needed to keep up what they were doing. They had been playing well all game."
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On the FIU game... "The game was a wake-up call for us. You've got to give credit to the defense. They kept us in the game and kept the 12th Man in the game. They pretty much won it for us, we just made a couple of plays in the fourth quarter. I think our heads were getting big a bit. Everyone was getting a little comfortable. I'm glad it happened, because I didn't want to go into conference play with big heads. We have to stay hungry and keep on fighting."
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On the play of special teams... "So far, we've had some real good big plays but we let a couple of bad plays slip up. We are playing a lot better than last year. Everyone is giving great effort on special teams, and that's what Coach Sherman wanted us to do from the beginning of camp. Everyone's giving great effort. We're so close to being really good on special teams. We are this close to winning games because of special teams."
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JUNIOR DB Trent Hunter
On the defense carrying the day against FIU... "I guess you can open up the newspaper and see `the defense saves the day' as opposed to last year. I feel like all the criticism we got last year, we're putting that behind us and trying to move up to the next step. The offense will come around, we saw the potential they had last year. They just have to get things clicking. But both sides have a lot of improvement to make."
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On the bye week... "Bye weeks are always good for any football team. They give you a chance to go out fix the mistakes you made. Also it's an extra week of preparation for a good Oklahoma State team. It's a double win for us. We can fix all the mistakes and prepare for a really good football team."
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On the fourth-down stop being scheme or attitude... "A little of both. Coach (DeRuyter) made a really good call and we executed. We got the crowd into it. The 12th Man was there in full force. They were hyped, we were hyped and we were ready to roll."
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On the crowd... "We gave them something to cheer about and they gave us something to play for. It got louder than anytime I've ever heard Kyle Field. It was to the point that it was hard for us to make the checks. Hats off to the 12th Man. They came out for us, and we came back and made a heck of a stop."
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JUNIOR LB Garrick Williams
On the final play of the game... "Really it just happened so fast. I knew I was on No. 3. Once he came in I knew he was my guy. It was the fourth quarter, fourth down and one minute left in the game. The defense had to show up. The whole game we were trailing since the second quarter but not one time did I think we would lose the game."
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On the defense leading the win... "The defense had to win that game. Last year the defense had some bad games and the offense got us out of it. We have to do that for each other. If the offense is not on, the defense has to step up, and vice versa."