After evaluating the game Saturday, the game was a very physical game, a very hard-fought game. They played very well. They have a good football team. Give them all the credit. It was a game in which we didn't capitalize on opportunities which we had in the game and could have done it in all three phases. Didn't make the plays in which we needed to. And again, we have to put our guys, make sure we're getting them in the right position. We've got to coach them and make sure they understand everything, and then we've got to relax and just make plays.
We could have had some interceptions early in the game that could have really changed things. Had a fumble in the red zone and gave up a drive. Those type of things are big momentum swings. Had a great opportunity to come back right before the half, miss a block, thought we'd have a chance for a touchdown, if not have a chance for a field goal. Then come out and have a great drive and dropped one that could have been a touchdown. But listen, those guys are out there playing hard, working hard. Just have to relax and make the plays when we have the chance. And then we have a blocked field goal...it goes on. We had opportunities in all three phases to make plays and do the things we need to do and we have to get better. You have to keep making them, put our guys in position, reinforce the things we're doing well, make sure we're giving them the confidence to do the things they have to do and let them play. At the end of the day it's what it gets down to and you've got to do it.
Got a great opportunity this weekend, now. Put that game behind us and get ready for the No. 1 team in the country, Alabama. They're an outstanding team. Of course Nick's a tremendous coach. He's got great players, they're coached well, playing well, doing everything there, and got to go on the road and play again. So like I said, you've got to move on. You can't let one become two and and let that progress. We've got to work this week and make the adjustments and make the corrections and get better.
Week 6 Press Conference Quotables:
- On whether the offense looks comfortable in practice but that not translating to game situations: "Sometimes when you're young and you've got young guys in critical positions, sometimes they just want to try too hard. We talk to them every day, give them confidence. We do it in practice every day and just have got to relax and play."
- On whether everyone who has worked under Nick Saban has taken something from him into their own program: "You do, from everybody you coach under. I've taken it from everybody I've coached under. I've been under Bobby Bowden, Terry Bowden, Nick Saban, Les Miles. You learn from everybody. There's a lot of things you do and you pick up, from organizational transitions to knowledge of the game, or how defenses are, how to attack offenses, how to practice schedule...everybody has their own way and you learn from everybody. I learned from all the coaches I had. All of them were highly successful. All are national championship coaches. I've been very fortunate to be under Les, Bobby, Nick, all won national championships. And Terry Bowden, we won 20 in a row in his first 20 games at Auburn after going to the national playoffs and national semifinals there. So I've been around some successful people. You learn a lot of things. And Nick's a tremendous coach. Arguably, people say he's one of the best ever or the best ever. That could very well be. No doubt there's a huge argument for that. But you pick up things you learn, from organization, to structure, offense, to defense, and those things stick with you off and on. There's multiple things you learn from all of them. I learned a lot from Nick. A whole lot from Nick. He's a very, very good football coach."
- On if the offensive line took a step forward this week: "What I'm gonna say is we ran the football very well. You go back and watch, we ran the football very well. We opened the first drive, eight, seven, three, 13, four. Next drive, had great runs, a big 20-yard run right off the bat. And then we had 13, eight and 13 when we fumbled. That was in the first three drives. We were averaging almost nine yards per carry, on the first three series of the game running the football. And we had two pick ups inside that we come off a twist where they didn't come on pass pro, and that's where the sacks come from. But running the football, I thought we were excellent. And for the most part, most I mean, we had a couple of screw ups in there on the twist game...but they did progress. And I think we're running the ball very well. We're getting better on pass pro. I think those guys did a good job on the edges."
- On his optimism that the execution on gameday is coming: "Because I know the guys in practice. I see them practicing, I see them do it. They've just got to take it to the field. I've been in the business long enough to have young players and have had teams that done this before. You've just got to keep coaching them. Because I know their ability is there, their want to is there, their habits, their work habits, all the things are there. They're tremendous kids. And we have to do a good job of coaching them and put them there. And just my time being in here, and knowledge of doing it and having done it for many years. And I believe in our players 100 percent."
- On drawing from last year's experience with Alabama in a similar situation, coming off a loss to Mississippi State: "You live off your experiences, but at the time, we went out the next week and had tremendous practices and prepared well and went and played well. Those are the things I keep going back to right now. You've got to go prepare well in practice. To have an opportunity to go play a team like Alabama, to have a chance to play well against them, you have to practice well. We've done that before, but hopefully we'll do it again this week. And I think the want to of our players and everything else is there. Great attitude, we just have to go practice well."
- On how Haynes King has handled the last few weeks: "He's been excellent. He stepped right in the middle of a drive and took us down. And him and Max work hand in hand every day. They sit together, go over plays, go over concepts, talk about ideas. Very active in the meetings, very open in the meetings, helping Max, 'hey, I see this', coming off the field. He has been a tremendous, tremendous human being, handling the situation as well as any human can ever be expected to, and actually was a benefit and a help to Max on the information and things that are going on."
