College Station, TX - Texas A&M head football coach Mike Sherman and members of the 16th-ranked Texas A&M football team met with members of the media today to talk about the upcoming game against Missouri.
Quotes from the coaches and players are available below. Audio in MP3 format and video of today's press conference are available to the right.
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HEAD COACH MIKE SHERMAN
Any lingering memory of Missouri last season and it being the low point of last year?
"With low points come high points. It also propelled us to a six-game run. I think we learned from the mistakes of the Missouri game and got better after that. It definitely was a low point but you can learn a lot about yourself and what you need to do from those low points if you look at yourself objectively. Just like today, after the Iowa State game...today will be a tough day for these guys because we'll come at them hard about the things we need to get better at. You always analyze yourself and we'll do it today the same way we'd do it after a loss. At that time of year (last year) we were trying to find our identity and were struggling in a lot of areas. So we learned lot of things we had to get better at. Does it linger? It does for me, because we should have played better. But take nothing away from them. They had a phenomenal quarterback who played a great game that day. They played tenacious defense and gave us everything we could handle."
How big a shot in arm was Lionel Smith on Saturday?
"That didn't surprise me. Lionel is a pretty good player, he just needed the opportunity to show what he can do. One thing we stressed last week defensively as a whole was to make more plays on the ball, and they responded. They did it in practice and they did it in the game. Lionel was part of that."
Is Spencer Nealy the same off the field as he is on the field?
"He's so enthusiastic, I have a 10-yard restraining order against him. He's not supposed to be within 10 yards of me (laughter). He just brings a lot of energy, not just to our defense, but to our team. You need those guys that have that type of energy and passion. He's not the best athlete on the field on Saturday but he gives you everything he has on every single play. He can be better at this or better at that. But he comes ready to practice and play every single day. I'd take 11 of those guys and go beat anybody because you know what you're getting. They'll give you everything they've got."
Were you impressed with your team's resiliency with all the injuries they dealt with last week?
"You can't use injuries as an excuse, the next guy has to step up. But I think they responded well. We don't make a big deal about injuries, I kind of treat it like in the NFL. The next guy has to be ready to play and you hope he is. When you're putting new guys out there it's a little bit of a trial test, but I was pleased with the guys who were asked to step up and respond to the challenge."
Give us an injury report...
"We will run Coryell Judie today to see where he's at. I think we have to be very careful with him that we don't have a recurring injury. Garrick Williams, we will we work him today. Tony Jerod-Eddie, the same thing. Offensively we're fine."
Compare this Missouri team to the one you saw last year...
"This team is leading the Big 12 in rushing, and (quarterback) James Franklin is a big part of that because of the read option. They lean a little more to the run game this year than maybe last year. But it's a great scheme. They spread you out, they are all over the place and it comes down to one-on-one open-field tackling a lot of times. They're different from that standpoint. They still have the ability to throw obviously, this young man is growing into his position and he's a good quarterback. They're probably more balanced that way this year."
How nice is it to have the kicker you do to rely on for points?Â
"It takes the pressure off us a lot of times. If we'd have missed a couple of those along the way in the last few ballgames things would have been much tighter. He's really carried us and I give him a lot of credit. I take my hat off to Randy and his contribution to the offense this year. It's been huge. He's kicking like he's on a mission. He does it in practice and in games. If there's a better kicker in the country right now I don't know where he is."
Talk about your philosophy of who you start at running back...
"We just kind of go with the hot hand at different times of the game. We have two starters at that position. They don't look at it as 'starter' or 'non-starter'. We really don't put a whole lot of stock into who's starting and who's not. In the context of game we go with who's got the hot hand."
You had two running backs over 100 yards for the first time this season...is that something you can realistically expect each week?
"A lot of it is dictated on the score. I like to have balance in the offense. But if you're ahead, you'll probably run more, and if you're behind, you'll probably throw more. I think it's possible to have it but I wouldn't think it would happen every week that way."
Have you ever had a back that finishes runs like Christine Michael?
"Ahman Green was a pretty good runner in Green Bay. They are both very physical runners, they take it right to the defense, no ifs, ands or buts. They're about the same size and have the same power. So there are some similarities there."
Iowa State got to Ryan Tannehill more than anyone else...was that on the offensive line?
"Actually I think one or two of them were coverage-related. I don't know if there was a play where we really let a guy free, it was more coverage related than anything. I know they have to take it as the offensive line does, but I wouldn't pin those on them."
Talk about your fourth-down decision to go for it in the second half...
"I said to someone on the headphones that we were going to take two downs and get it. We didn't get much on the first one, and I should have kicked a field goal. It would have made it a three-possession game. In a perfect world, you kick that field goal and if it comes up again you go for it. I probably let the emotion of the sideline get to me there, that and my mindset of getting two yards on two downs. We haven't been a great fourth-down team and that's something we will work on this week."
ASST. HEAD COACH/DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR TIM DeRUYTER
How do you feel your defensive unit did especially with a few starters out?
"I thought we played decent but we didn't play great. We gave up six explosive plays. There was a 30-yard throw and a 29-yard throw where we didn't cover things well, and we missed tackles on top of that. But I was proud of our effort. The guys who stepped in stepped up and did a good job. Overall I was pleased but we still have a ways to go."
Does Missouri run the same formations they did last year?
"They've always been a spread team. I've known Coach Pinkel and that staff for a long time. They've always been a run-based offense and play-action passing after it. With (QB) Franklin now, he's much more of a run threat than Gabbert was a year ago. They're taking advantage of what he's very strong at. They're a different style of spread team than a lot of the teams in our league. They're spreading you out to run it, they're the number one run team in the Big 12. It definitely stresses your defense because you have to defend both (run and pass)."
Are you a little extra fired up for this game after what Missouri did last year?
"I think, the competitor in you, anytime you don't play or coach as well as you would have liked to, you'd like to have a second chance to redeem yourself and I think that's definitely a sentiment this week. But we have to go out and do it. We have to go out and execute during the week so we can execute on Saturday."
Do you think Terrence Frederick is underrated nationally?
"I don't know that he's underrated, but I like him. I think he's one of the better corners in the league. We do a lot of different things with him. He's done a nice job in man coverage. I think he's one of our best defensive players."
Talk about the energy and enthusiasm Spencer Nealy brings to your defense...
"I think part of the reason we have played better the last few weeks is because Spencer played more. Not to speak ill of Jonathan (Mathis). Spencer brings a lot of energy and enthusiasm to the table and does a great job of lifting the guys around him. He's a little bit like Chris Farley at times, 'fat guy in a little coat' syndrome. He's a fun guy to be around and that's infectious to our defense."
How much stress does Missouri's offense put on your inside linebackers?
"A ton. I'm impressed with their scheme. (Offensive Coordinator) David Yost does a great job putting stress on the defense. Our guys will have to work their tails off to understand what they're doing out of different situations and where their eyes need to be."
Have you ever seen a fumbles recovered stat before like the one you guys have (12 opponent fumbles, one lost)?
"No I haven't. We've knocked balls loose and they've been on the ground it seems like for ages, and we can't seem to get on it. We haven't had population where that ball has been and we have to do a better job of that."
Does the balance Missouri shows compare to any previous opponents?
"Maybe a little like Baylor. The passing game is a little different but Baylor was committed to running the football. It's probably the closest as far as a team committed to doing both. These guys are closer to 50/50 yardage (run/pass)."
There have been struggles guarding slot receivers this season. How can you correct this against a dangerous Missouri attack?
"It's not so much the slot person, it's where they fit in coverage. We've had breakdowns in our coverage. T.J. Moe, I look at him and I think he's a lot like Ryan Swope. He's an explosive player and a big-time playmaker for them. He's a real shifty guy that does a lot of good things after the catch. What you have to do is make sure people realize where he's at, because he's a go-to guy for them. But these guys have a ton of weapons. You can't just double him all the time, that's the problem with this kind of offense. They're not very predictable. They get into third and long situations and will run the ball quite a bit...and make first downs. It's an offense that makes you work at it and limit the big plays, and you have to realize that they will make some."
LB JONATHAN STEWART (Jr., Shreveport, La.)
Talk about the defensive approach last week...
"Well, this past week was kind of the same game plan we had against Baylor. There were not too many blitzes and a base, vanilla defense. We knew they'd have two quarterbacks and whenever they changed quarterbacks it didn't really change our scheme. They were both athletic and could make plays on the run. We had to be prepared for both."
Are you having more fun playing on a defense that is stringing good games together?
"Of course. It's a lot more fun when you're holding quarterbacks to 180 yards (passing). It's always a lot more fun to be able to go out there and get stops when you need to."
That was the team's fifth straight road victory. What does that do for your confidence knowing you have two big road games ahead?
"When we play on the road we realize any energy or anything we have has to come from us. When we played at Iowa State we didn't even have the band there. We knew in order to win we had to feed off ourselves. We couldn't let the momentum go their way and let them feed off their fans and stadium. On the road we realize we can't take anything for granted. That's just our mentality. This week we had shirts that said 'Road Warriors', and that's just our mentality on the road."
After several emotional games in a row, was it tough to get up for Iowa State?
"It's not tough to get up for any game in the Big 12. They're all big games. We already have one conference loss so we can't afford to go in and say we will win by default. We can't take any opponent lightly."
How do you prepare for a Missouri team that came in here last year and got a big win?
"We just have to prepare like we have been every week this year. Even when we lost two games we still didn't prepare differently. We stuck to our principles and that's what we'll do this week. The key to winning this game this week is going to be stopping the run."
Is there anyone on the defense that has more energy than Spencer Nealy?
"I don't think anyone on the entire team does. No one in the city of College Station has more than Spencer Nealy. It's crazy. It's always good he does that, you always need someone in there like that. He gets the job done and gets that positive vibe going. He's someone we definitely need on this defense."
QB RYAN TANNEHILL (Sr., Big Spring, Texas)
Did you circle this game against Missouri and look forward to it this past offseason?
"I can't say I really had it circled. I just take it one week at time, every week. I put my full focus into who we're playing, and this week it's Missouri. Last year we didn't play well and they put it on us pretty good. They are a good football team, an aggressive defense that will throw a lot of things at you. They're not afraid to bring a lot of pressure. We have to have a good game plan and play well and execute."
Talk about the first-quarter slow start and the adjustments y'all made...
"(Iowa State) came out showing a little bit different defense than they'd showed previously. We took a couple of drives to adjust to that, but I felt that what it came down to was we weren't making plays. We had a couple of drops, some bad throws by me. They are things we can fix and plays that should have been made. I felt like as the game goes on we got a lot better at that."
Talk about the day Cyrus Gray and Christine Michael had...
"They had a great day. When you have them in the backfield it makes my job a lot easier. Those guys are dangerous with the ball. They can make guys miss in the hole and have the speed to get outside if they need it. I'll take them nine times out of 10 in a one-on-one matchup with a tackler. It's definitely a luxury to have those guys in our backfield and we try to get them the ball as much as we can."
Is Jeff Fuller each week starting to get healthier and get things rolling?
"He's still progressing. We're looking forward to what Jeff can do. Each week he's got to get better and we have to get better as a team. He's getting close to the point where he's 100 percent and hopefully we can start getting him the ball more."
Talk about going to the tight ends more the last few weeks...
"Those guys are good receivers. They practice well for us. They are catching the ball well, they're good with their assignments and they're right on target every time. It's just a consistency I feel comfortable with. For the most part they're checkdowns and flat routes and stuff like that. They're definitely a luxury to have, a big body and big target where you can just put it in their area and they'll catch it."
How have the running backs handled their roles in the passing game?
"They're great. They've done a good job this year of getting their assignments down, focusing on protection first and then getting out. That's huge for the passing game. They've been catching the ball great and stepping up in pass protection. We all know what they can do with ball in their hands once they get it."
Will you work on anything this week in practice to improve the red zone offense?
"I don't think it's anything in particular, we just have to execute. We didn't execute some plays on Saturday. We're not going to change the plays a whole lot but the execution of plays when we're down there. We really have to be crisp down there to get six points."
WR RYAN SWOPE (Jr., Austin, Texas)
Talk about the play of Cyrus Gray and Christine Michael Saturday...
"Those two do a great job for us. They ran real tough and they were physical for us Saturday and they really showed it. The offensive line gave them holes to run through and they did the rest. They are very unselfish running backs. You could tell they had a lot of passion Saturday."
What will the offense have to do to beat Missouri on Saturday?
"We have to have a good week of practice. Preparation is huge for us. We have to take a look at the film and make the corrections from the game. If we have good tempo and execution I think we can do good things on Saturday. The biggest key for us is just executing and working on our tempo at practice."
Do you think a lot about last year's loss to Missouri?
"No. I take it one game at a time. This is a completely new season and a completely new team. We don't look back at last year. I'm really looking forward to Saturday."
Was it disappointing that y'all weren't able to score a touchdown after the interception?
"I think we were real excited, the defense gave us a lot of energy, and we went down and kicked a field goal. Iowa State had a good defense, but we just have to come out with a little more spark and get in the end zone. It was great to see our defense get that early interception."
Is there anything you can do as a wide receiver corps to be more consistent from game to game?
"For sure. Me personally, I didn't come out and play my best game. There were some dropped passes, me in particular and a couple of other guys, things that got away from us. That's uncharacteristic of us and I can tell you we'll work hard this week at practice and make sure that doesn't happen."
Can the offense maintain its 500 yards per game average?
"That's a good goal for us, to have as many total yards as possible. If we do things in practice and take a look at the film and just focus on fundamentals, everything contributes to Saturday and how we execute and how we play. If we keep doing the little things I feel we can do that."
Did Iowa State do anything Saturday to limit your touches?
"No, not in particular. In our game plan we spread the ball out and went with running the ball, the backs had a good day and the offensive line was really setting the tempo up there. We stuck with that and spread the ball around pretty well."
DB TRENT HUNTER (Sr., Katy, Texas)
Talk about the interception...
"It was a good way to start the game. It gave us a little momentum right there at the beginning."
Did y'all do a better job this week swarming to the ball and forcing turnovers?
"Yeah, I think we're a little more consistent than we have been. There were a couple of times where the ball was on the ground and we could have gotten to it. We did better but we have lot of room for improvement."
Do you think a lot about last year's loss?
"I think it's in the back of my mind right now. They came out last year and that one of those losses where we just didn't know what to do to stop them. I'm pretty fired up for this week, if that answers your question."
What kind of problems does a guy like Michael Egnew present?
"He's a big guy and mobile. You can't put a corner on him because he's big, if you put a safety on him he can run by you and catch the ball. He's one of those guys you'll see play on Sundays because he's such a versatile threat."
Do you feel like the defense is gaining conference?
"Without a doubt. It helps, but the coaches are doing a great job keeping us focused from week to week and not letting us getting too big a head."
How important is it for you guys to continue to be good at stopping the run?
"I think they're leading the conference right now in rushing. You have to stop the run to stop the pass. We've done a good job so far this year stopping the run so if we can continue that it'll be good for us this week."
Talk about Spencer Nealy's energy both on and off the field...
"He's a character. He brings energy to the defense like Christine (Michael) does to the offense. Those guys are so passionate about what they do and how they play. Spencer is all over the field and that's the kind of energy you need on a football team to be successful."
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