Tommy Tuberville's Weekly Press Conference

September 15, 1998

Opening Comments

Last week's game was a major disappointment. The fact was we didn't get the job done and that begins with me. I don't think I did a good enough job preparing our team for what they were going to face. We tried to talk about the positives that came out of our first game, but we didn't do a good enough job talking about how Auburn was going to come out after their season opening loss. I take the blame for that.

There were problems with our offense in several areas. We just got whipped on our offensive line. We improved a little bit as the game went on, but we never got any continuity. Auburn's defense is very good. We didn't underestimate them. We knew they would be good. We just didn't get the job done offensively. We could have done a few things to protect the quarterback a little more, but again, hindsight is 20-20.

Defensively, we made too many mistakes in the first quarter. We gave up to many third down conversions and gave up 14 points. We put ourselves in a hole and just couldn't get out of it.

We played a better team last Saturday. Hopefully, we improved last weekend. We are just disappointed overall. We are also a little disappointed in the reaction of the fans. I have been trying to tell the fans this all year. We are not a great football team. We are a team that has to live day-to-day. We've got to get better every day. We will have our ups and downs. We have to be positive with this young team because they are going to get better and better. The negative things you see on the Internet, that the players see, or the talk shows, I can understand some, but you have to understand that we didn't get there by being negative. The last three years, everyone has been behind us. Now is not the time to panic.

I'm proud of the way the team came back and practiced on Sunday after the loss. They understand the situation and now our backs are against the wall like Auburn's were. We have got to come out and play harder and get better. We have to take care of what each person is suppose to do so we can come closer to the team. Sometimes you learn more from a loss than you do from a win. We learned quite a bit from this set back.

I am looking forward to this game. It will be a very tough game. They are probably one of the best-coached teams in the league. Woody Widenhofer has brought in a defensive scheme that's really taken the conference by storm, so to speak. He does a great job with his athletes. Offensively he's been searching for a scheme. They have struggled a little offensively, but it takes time to run the one back and throw the football. We learned that here at Ole Miss.

It is our first road game. It is the first time some of our kids had ever played in another stadium. We will find out how they react. It will be an interesting game. We look forward to getting back on the field and playing one. Hopefully, we will get off to a good start.

Tuberville Q&A:

Q: What kind of motivation do you give your players after a loss?

A: We really try to teach this team that no matter, win or lose, we try to improve the next week on the things we do, right or wrong. Everybody knows that we didn't do a lot of things right last week. We might have to spend more time practicing this week. They understand the situation. They understand there will not be a lot of yelling and screaming. We just take it in stride. Hopefully, we will improve this week, win or lose, and compete better. The things we didn't do Saturday was our defensive backs and linebackers didn't adjust to what they saw on the first two drives. It took us till halftime to calm down defensively to where we thought we were solid on the things we were doing. It will be the same approach as we have taken the last four years. We'll never panic because these guys really enjoy playing football. There is nobody hurting any worse than these kids on this football team. Their self-esteem was high, and it just got shot to the floor. It takes that sometimes for the team to improve.

Q: Do you look at Vanderbilt as a team who believes this is the Saturday for them to beat somebody good.

A: Yes. You have to put yourself in their shoes. They have lost two games to two very tough conference teams. They are playing a team in their conference that is short on scholarships. We are not a great football team right now, and this would be an opportunity for them to get back on the winning trail. This is also their first game at home. It is always a battle when we play Vanderbilt. They always play well. For us, we have been fortunate the past couple years to get out on top and hold a lead on them. I look for both teams to bounce back and have a heck of a football game this Saturday.

Q: What was the difference between your offensive lines two performances and what can you do differently to protect Romaro?

A: We could block better. We could also do a better job communicating on the offensive line about what the front was. Auburn did a good job mixing things up and physically we just got man-handled. It was one of those things where if we had played the next day things could have been the other way around. I think we got caught a little by surprise by how good Auburn's defense was. We tried to tell our players it was going to be one of the best defenses that we would face all year, and sometimes after you have a big win that doesn't soak through. I think that now our guys have learned that we have to be physically and mentally ready to play. We will make some changes this week. Keydrick Vincent has an ankle injury and probable won't practice today, which is Tuesday. He will practice tomorrow. Shane will probable start at the right guard position. He did an excellent job and really competed when he went into the game last Saturday. He was one of the players we singled who came ready to play even though he didn't start. We are also looking at other possible changes on the offensive line. We just have to do a better job at playing technique football and not let the other team dictate to us what kind of football we are going to play.

Q: What is the team's injury status?

A: We just have bumps and bruises. Morris Scott played last week, but didn't practice most of the week. He has bruised ribs. Ronnie Heard's ankle still continues to bother him but he will still play. Walt Hill and Ryan Huskey will have knee operations this week. Huskey was hurt the first day of two-a-days. He plays wide receiver.

Q: Vandy could only score a touchdown in one quarter this season. Are they going to make any changes and try to give you different looks?

A: They are running a multiple offense with a lot of formations and a lot of movement. They use three different quarterbacks, and they have done a lot to try and improve their offense. They looked better against Alabama. They improved between their first and second game. They have some good wide receivers. They won't try to get away from what they are doing. They have just been inconsistent. They have moved the ball very well, but they just haven't put any points on the scoreboard. I am sure they are coming into the game hoping to execute better just as we do. It all comes down to execution on offense. Right now I think they are on the road to improvement. They have a lot of young kids. We (Ole Miss and Vanderbilt) are probable the two youngest teams in the conference.

Q: What did you see in films about Vanderbilt that stood out to you?

A: They lost a lot of players last year on their defense that went on to the NFL. They were three-year starters. They have a lot of young kids behind those players who are less experienced. I read a quote from Coach Widenhofer in which he said that this is the fastest defense that they have had. They have a lot of speed they just don't have the experience. They are making a lot of mistakes as most young teams do. They are playing hard, but it is just going to take a lot of time for the team to come together. I think the team that executes best will be the team that wins the game.

Q: Both you and Vanderbillt are similar.

A: Yes, both teams are young. Both teams know what they want to do on offense and defense. Neither team will panic because we know the future is bright for both teams. We just have to take our lumps as you go along and learn. That is the only way you can get the experience.

Q: How have the Heard brothers impacted the team?

A: The competition between them use to be a little more intense when Ronnie was a defensive back and he had to cover Grant, a wide receiver. They are very close. They have been great for Ole Miss. They came here when times were tough for us and when they could have gone to some schools in Texas. We are just glad to have them because of their enthusiasm and desire to play the game and get better every week. Both have made tremendous improvement, and we have won a lot of games because of the Grant brothers.

Q: Why wasn't the running game used more last week?

A: We were hoping to run the ball more last week. The thing is we got away from it a little too soon when we got down 14-0. We would have like to run the ball a little more, and we started doing that once we realized that was all we could do. We have to hang our hat more on the running game. We have to be more physical. Your players have to believe in the running game. They do believe in the running game but we were just in a situation where it was not called for running the football because we were so successful throwing the ball against Memphis and we got behind against Auburn. Hopefully this week we can truly find out where our running game is.

A: How is the kicking game?

Q: It isn't very good. Don Juneau will kick today. Because of his hip-flexor, he has not been able to kick. Ross Barkley, we are going to work with him some today. We have to find not only a field goal kicker, but also a guy who can kickoff. Our only kickoff went to the 15-yard line. You can't do that in this league. You have to be able to get the ball at least inside the five. We have a lot of work to do in that area. Punting is taken care of itself. Reagan King has done an excellent job. We have to be more consistent in our protection for our field goal. We had a lot of penetration last week, plus an extra point kicker has got to step to the front and show he can do it, whoever that is.

A: What has been the difference this year for King?

Q: His leg has gotten stronger. The main thing that he does for his distance is his height. His leg gets such great extension that he can get a lot of distance. He gets better and better every week. We have worked with him on getting the ball off quicker. That has helped him this year. Instead of taking his time to get it off, we have increased his tempo in practice to where it is in a game. What happened to us last year is that he would get in practice and not use the same tempo as he would in games. We tried to be consistent with him in both practice and game.

A: Were you disappointed in your timeout management last week or did you expect it?

Q: We expected it against Memphis. The problem we had this week had to do with the receiver or running back who enters the game and calls the formations and the formation dictates personnel. So the whole team has to listen, and we miscommunicated a couple of times so we didn't have the right number of people on the field. We have been able to avoid that most of the time over the last three years. For some reason, it happened Saturday, and we will work quite a bit on it this week.

Q:With out many seniors for leadership, who do you rely on to lead the team?

A: That is one thing we talked to our players about as we returned from Auburn. We had some players trying to lead on the sideline, but we saw a definite difference in leadership this year as opposed to last year. We still need guys to step up. I don't think last Saturday was the time for them to step up because most of the players were trying to figure out what they were suppose to do. They are young, and they are trying to take care of their positions. We don't have the upperclassmen to step up. Hopefully in the future we will have guys step up in difficult times because we really need leadership in that first half.

Q: How much of the negative comments from the fans can be attributed to the success from last year and the success from the first game?

A: I think it has a lot to do from last year. Before the season, everybody had such high expectations, as we coaches and players do. I tried to warn the players and fans of what we were facing this year. We have talented team, but a young team which could possible play one, two, three, four, five, or even six bad games. We had one. It showed up and people just need to stay with us and understand that this team is going to be around for a long time. We are going to get better and better. We want the expectations to be high. We want people to think we are going to win every game. We want the players to believe they will win every game, but when things don't go well, we don't need people to start second guessing. Noel Mazzoni has taken a pounding from the so called Internet shows for a few days, and he is the same guy who called the two-point play against Mississippi State. He is same guy who called the offensive plays at Marshall last year. He is the same guy who called the plays at LSU last year, one of the biggest victories of any college team last season. He has not changed any. What has changed is execution. We are going to continue to do the same things we are doing to get better. We need people to stay with us and understand that we are going to get there. It might not be right around the corner. It might be a month from now. It might be this time next year. Just hang with us because we believe in what we are doing. We just need the fans to believe in it also. I don't think we were overconfident last week. We just lined up and got beat by a better team. A team that came in with their backs against the wall and they were not going to be denied. We could have been in the game if we didn't make mistakes, but we did.

Q: How do you feel about playing on artificial turf?

A: I don't mind playing on the turf. Some players do. There are different types of shoes that you have to wear. We won't talk about it much. A lot of our guys have never played on it. It will be an experience. We will go up and work out on the turf Friday and try to get past that and then tee it off on Saturday.

Q: Coach, if things don't go well offensively on Saturday, are you going to replace Miller?

A: No. The only time you will see David Morris is if we are way behind or far ahead or injury. Romaro is our quarterback. He is going to be a great one. I got all the confidence in the world in Romaro Miller. He came to Ole Miss when we needed him and now he needs us and we need to stay behind him. Remember that.

Q: Have you had a chance to scout Vanderbilt quarterback?

A: After looking at him on film, He reminds us a lot of our quarterbacks the last couple of years. He is starting with a new offense. It is different from what they have been doing in the past. They have run some option and been more of a power team. Now they are more of a finesse team, and he's having to learn along with nine or ten other guys who are out on the field at the same time. It is like night and day trying run this one back scheme where you have motion, spread the field and it's really tough because there are so many checks and reads that he has to go through before the ball is even snapped. It is not like he takes a snap and throws the ball to someone running a curl route. He will get better and better. He surprised me with his arm. He threw the ball well. The thing that we have seen is that they have tried to be consistent with him. We noticed what they have been doing is relatively simple. They are just giving him a chance in different formations and sets. He is going to be a good quarterback. He has a good arm.

Q: What was the best thing about Saturday?

A: The best thing about Saturday was we had close to 50,000 people in the stands. I want to thank the fans for coming out. It was a totally different atmosphere. You could here our players talking about the noise and the surroundings. You can feel that the fans notice the difference by their attitudes as they come in the stadium. Now we have a big-time college football stadium to be proud of. It will be better and better. Now all we need is the first 50,000 attended game.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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