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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Transcript of Head Coach David Cutcliffe's Monday Press Conference
11/13/2000 | Football
Opening Remarks
It was a very disappointing loss. We did not take advantage of our opportunities. We didn't make the plays that we had a chance to make or needed to make on either side of ball. LSU did. They had big stops on defense and had some big plays on offense. We had a few injuries, and some people are going to be doubtful this week. We are going to have to see what Kenny Wood's situation is. He hurt his knee during the game and missed a good portion of the game. Robert Williams is another with a knee injury. We are just going to have to see how he responds and what the situation is going to be. Charlie Anderson is out with an ankle and looks doubtful. Syniker Taylor has a back problem and it just worsened as they game went on. His back is something he has been battling. We are going to have to see how he responds. I think he may be a little bit more probable than the others. There are others with significant bumps and bruises, but I don't think we'll miss much time this week in practice or have anyone threatened for the game. I also want to mention that Deuce McAllister had a death in his family. His brother passed away and he will not be here today for sure and possibly tomorrow. Last thing, we are very aware we are challenged this week playing an outstanding Georgia team. They are outstanding on offense and on defense. They are a really fine football team and going to Athens is a challenge. I expect our team to be excited about it and look forward to a great challenge and a great opportunity.
Q. Talk about Anthony Sims.
A. Anthony Sims played Saturday and it was the first time he's played in quite sometime. Hopefully he will keep getting stronger. I don't think he's at 100 percent, but hopefully, this week he will continue to get better and we will see more of the old Anthony Sims.
Q. What is the biggest challenge in getting your team back up?
A. I think anytime you have a disappointing loss, certainly you are going to be aware of that. I don't expect our team to be any different than it is on any other Monday. It is something that we will address and talk about. We have no choice, but to move forward.
Q. Talk about Ben Claxton
A. Ben Claxton got a little worse as the game went on. He's still not well, and is not ready to play a whole game.
Q. Talk about Matt Koon playing center.
A. Matt continues to make progress and continues to play better. You will when you get more and more snaps under your belt. Playing center is a little different than playing guard or tackle. It's been one of those years as far as injuries and it is really unusual with what has happened with us at center. I commend (Offensive Line) Coach (John) Latina and Matt because that was kind of an emergency move and they both did a great job handling that.
Q. Talk about Georgia quarterback Quincy Carter.
A. Quincy Carter is a great athlete, great player and a great competitor. He is a big strong, fast guy with a great arm. I've watched him since he was in high school. There is no substitute for experience at quarterback and he is certainly one of the finest quarterbacks in the country. You have to contend with him in many different ways. He brings a lot to the table.
Q. How do you think Deuce McAllister has handled his season?
A. Deuce is a great competitor and I think he's been super about it. He has more injuries than one player deserves in one year. He has been the competitor you would think he is in every aspect. He is a fighter for our team and goes out and competes at his position, everything doesn't always work out exactly like you want it. He is a great football player.
Q. Where do you think Deuce McAllister came up short in Saturday's game against LSU?
A. We couldn't get Deuce loose where he had a chance to get running. They did a good job trying to contain him. He ran hard for some tough yards. He had some catches. They did a good job of covering and doing all the things it takes. You would probably credit LSU for that.
Q. Talk about Ole Miss' offensive line versus Georgia's defensive front.
A. Well their defensive front is outstanding and it begins with two seniors, Richard Seymour and Marcus Stroud. They are really big powerful athletes that can run. Our players certainly have great respect for their defensive front. It is probably one of the best defensive fronts in the country. They do a great job against the run and they do a great job of pressuring the quarterback. It will be a test for our offensive line.
Q. What is the biggest difference between last year's Georgia defense and this year's?
A. They have a lot of the same people back, so returning starters always helps. They are very physical. They are just a solid, fundamental and well-coached technique defensive football team.
Q. Talk about Syniker Taylor.
A. If there is a safety playing better then I have not seen that him. He is a great competitor at practice. He had to push himself through this last game as he was injured early in the game. He is the complete package. He is an outstanding tackler, a very physical player that can defend the pass equally as well.
Q. Talk about Syniker Taylor's back injury.
A. It is muscular. It is pretty sever pain for him right now and we are going to have to see how he responds.
Q. Talk about Romaro Miller.
A. He has thrown the ball consistently most of the year. The other night, he would probably tell you it wasn't his best performance as far as just throwing the football, but Romaro does a lot of things extremely well. He had some big plays in the game, where he had to make decisions and he did an outstanding job. I've been pleased with his performance, attitude and work ethic all season long.
Q. Talk about the Romaro Miller's passing during the LSU game.
A. Sometimes you just don't throw it like you want to. It just didn't come out for him. Having the same rhythm and same timing, just didn't come out as good as he would haved liked. I've seen it happen at every level and to every type of player. You can't pinpoint why.
Q. When that happens, do you ever think about putting someone else in for a series?
A. It is always something you think about. You never know what is going to happen. There are times you think about that at every position, but I think we did the right thing by staying with him during that particular game.
Q. With two games left what do you look for?
A. I think you appeal to the pride you have in your program. You focus on one game at a time. You focus on the pride of continuing to improve our team. The season is far from over. We have a very evident challenge ahead of us and we don't have to tell people that. Our focus has to be on being the best we can be. If you have the right people, which I believe we do, and the right kind of staff then everybody here will be totally focused. We played with great intensity. I expect to see more of that.
Q. Has Eli Manning developed where you want him to be?
A. I think anytime you have a young quarterback practice he improves. He makes practice very important to him, realizing he has to prepare hard in practice. He's not getting the snaps you would like to see on Saturday, and that is unfortunate. But for the amount of snaps he's had, you would like to see him get more game snaps. If for some reason something were to happen and Romaro had to come out of the game, I would feel good about starting Eli at quarterback anytime.
