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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Football Weekly Press Conference
10/28/2002 | Football
Oct. 28, 2002
Head Coach David Cutcliffe
Opening Comments
When you have a ballgame like the last one, there is a lot of work, tape watching and discussing to be done. There is certainly a need for a lot of investigating, and we're doing that. We made changes prior to the Arkansas game, and we will continue to make changes where they need to be made. We're evaluating, and it needs to be a constant evaluation of the team - whether you are winning or losing. Obviously losing magnifies that. We're going to have a constant evaluation of what we're getting done, how we're doing things and what we're doing. We're going to find ways to get better.
We actually did some things better in the Arkansas game than the week before against Alabama. Then, it seemed we had a whole set of new problems that jump out. All we can do is evaluate, make adjustments and put ourselves in positions to be successful. We have to evaluate all phases and play good team football to be successful down the stretch.
Q: You have a few players beat up. Are you trying to get through that the best you can?
A: We try to get through it the best we can. It seems like we lose players each time we play. From the Arkansas game, Tremaine Turner and Justin Sawyer won't be able to practice today. Whether there is any chance to get them back or not (for Saturday's game) remains to be seen. Bo Hartsfield and Bill Flowers will get limited work today. Robert Williams may get in a little work today, but nothing at full speed. We'll get a look at Yahrek Johnson and get him a little work today, but we won't know anything until we get him on the field (Saturday). Matt Grier is going to be OK.
Q: Are you surprised that the running game has struggled with the absence of Robert Williams?
A: Our running game is not near as good as I had hoped it would be. The reasons are numerous. We certainly have not blocked like we can. We haven't been as good as we need to be or as consistent as we need to be running the football. A combination of those things, along with the types of teams we play against, doesn't give you a good chance to be successful. There are a few teams in our league that run the ball well, and when you do that, it adds another dimension to what you can do. Our woes (in the running game) have come from a combination of things.
Q: Talk about the tailback competition in the preseason.
A: I'm not blaming any one person or one thing. I thought the competition we had at running back would make us better. Coming out of preseason, I said that Robert (Williams) had separated himself from the others, and he was playing like had hoped he would before suffering his two injuries. We have to address all the things we are doing. Getting Toward (Sanford) back in the mix will help us. A number of different things have added to our woes. We have to find different ways to run the football.
Q: What's your plan for the position this week?
A: We're going to go in with an open mind. Vashon (Pearson) and Ronald (McClendon) are the first two you turn to, but we just have to look and see which direction we will go.
Q: Are you concerned with the way you lost these last two games? Are the players reacting the way you would want them to when you fall behind?
A: We have fought hard. We haven't let up or quit, and that's one of the positives. That's part of our constant evaluation as well - to make sure people are committed to what we're doing. In this past game, we fought hard to get back, but things ballooned so fast. It got to 41-14 so quickly that you start to look around and make sure the players are still focused because that is difficult to go through. Our players are where you expect them to be - it's hard to take, hard to understand. They are look looking for answers as well. They are not accepting losing. None of that is happening whatsoever. They have stayed together and are focused. We don't have any problems from that standpoint at all.
Q: What the concentration level of the players in the game when you get that far behind?
A: Focus is always critical, especially when you are on the road. The more you play, the more experience you get, the more you understand the need to focus. It's my job to make sure they understand how critical each and every snap is. You don't know what snap is going to dictate the game going one way or the other. You have to play every snap with the utmost focus. Hopefully, we understand that, but there are times when it seems focus has left them. But I'm not going to say that is the only thing. There are combinations of things happening.
Q: Did you say that Robert Williams is or is not returning to practice today?
A: He may be out there on a limited basis. He doesn't look like he will be full speed.
Q: Can you comment on Auburn on what you have seen from film?
A: They are an outstanding football team. They have a lot of talent, and are a very balanced team. I thought they played almost flawless on offense against LSU. Jason Campbell has the ability to run the ball effectively. I thought he played extremely well last Saturday. Their defense is as talented as any we will play this year. There are a lot of positive things I see about their team.
Q: What problems does Karlos Dansby cause with his speed from the edge?
A: He is just a phenomenal athlete. He is a rare breed being a guy that big and rangy and can run like he can. He can rush the passer and can play pass defense. He seems to be around every tackle. He's never out of a play and never gets knocked off his feet. I don't know what more you can say about him. He's a great player.
Q: Is this game important than others or is every game important from here on?
A: I think every game you play you feel that way. This is "down-the-stretch" time. This is SEC football. This game doesn't take on any more importance than the others. Every football game we play we have that same feeling. That's part of competing in the SEC. There's not any more added pressure on this game than the others.
Q: Is the team looking forward to playing at home again?
A: I glad to be home. I like being the home team. I'm looking forward to our fans being out there and being loud. A full stadium will sure make a big difference. I'm looking for a great atmosphere on Saturday.
Q: Can you remember another team that you have worked with that has struggled so much running the ball?
A: I've been around teams that have throw the ball better than run it, but not as much as we're struggling (running the ball) this year. That's just from memory, and not going by statistics.
Q: Talk about Bill Flowers' development at Ole Miss.
A: Bill is a ferocious worker and a fierce competitor. He has great work ethic on the practice field, and he's tougher than you could ever imagine. For example, he hurt his shoulder in the first half against Arkansas and never missed a play in the second half. That's just Bill. Bill comes to work every single day. It will bother Bill to be somewhat limited in practice today. I can't remember when Bill was limited in anything.
Q: Was Bill even younger looking when you first recruited him?
A: I can't really say. He was a great athlete in high school. But, I can't recall how young he looked then.
Q: Despite what has gone on the past two weeks, you still have a lot to play for in these next four games.
A: There is no question we have a lot to play for. We still have an opportunity to control our own destiny. We have a lot of things to play for. There will be no quit in this team. They will be focused and ready to get on the field to practice. That's one thing this team does - they want to get better. We have that same intensity level and that's not going to change. I expect that this afternoon and the rest of this week. On Saturday, we will be ready to play.
Q: Do you still use that as motivation?
A: Yes, you use that to some extent. But, when it comes down to it, you are playing the games one at a time. Our focus is on trying to play the best game we can against Auburn. Everyone has visions of what they want to accomplish, and I don't think you ever lose sight of that. But, your focus is always on that next step.
Q: Is it possible the kids are putting too much pressure on themselves?
A: I've got to watch that. We put a lot of pressure on them on the practice field. They feel pressure, certainly. In this arena, you feel pressure from every direction. They're not immune to that. They're not immune to outside pressure, and you've got to take that into consideration. You don't perform under pressure-you perform applying pressure, so to speak. They just need that reminder. We've got to look at ourselves and look in the mirror and see what we've got to do better. We can't start pressing. We have to respond in the right way.
Q: Did it look to you like they were pressing Saturday?
A: I have a hard time defining that. Obviously, there were a lot of mistakes that occurred that I don't ever see out on the practice field. I'm looking at that, thinking about that, trying to assess the whole thing. As I said, the evaluation process is always ongoing, off-season and in season. We can't do the same things we did three years ago because times change. We're constantly changing this or changing that, and I'm looking at everything we're doing, trying to make sure we're doing the right things to give ourselves the best chance to be successful. Playing "under the gun" or playing with too much pressure is the wrong thing.
Q: What's causing some of the big plays given up by defense?
A: We're playing against people that will burn you when you're not in the right place. We have to be in the right place doing the right thing. That might sound simple, and people say, "Why don't you?" You have to change what you're doing. You don't just line up one way. We've got a lot of different calls, a lot of different things, a lot of adjustments. If somebody comes up in a certain formation, you have to make adjustments and calls. That's one of the tougher challenges - to be multiple - which we need to be. We're not just going line up and say, "We're going whip you." We're not that kind of a team. We've got to be multiple. We've got to find ourselves in the right places. It may be one player a step off here, or a wrong direction on the snap here, or a slant the wrong way. And when that seems to happen to us, it seems that they're hitting the spot that we just vacated or we're not there to make the play, and it burns us in the worst way. I don't know if that describes it, but that's the best I can tell you.
Q: Talk about some of Auburn's individual players.
A: They're great athletes. We've seen (Mark) Brown up close and personal. I knew how good a football player he was as a young player. He's a very talented player. (Jason) Campbell, as I said earlier, played almost flawlessly against LSU. He's got a tremendous arm and great feet and size. He has everything you want in a quarterback.
Q: How is Eli dealing with throwing the ball like he did on Saturday?
A: He deals with it phenomenally well. I thought he played phenomenally. When you're throwing it and they know you're throwing it, he did some tremendous things. He had some decisions he'd like to get back, but out of 56 throws he may have had three that weren't the best decisions he could've made. If you complete 75 percent of your passes and do the things he's doing, stay in there. He's a tough competitor, and he stays focused and plays the game because he enjoys competing. He's a great leader for us. I can't say enough positive things about what he's doing.
Q: Is it tempting to go one back and four-receivers and throw it more often?
A: This past ballgame we threw it 56 times, and we were in that mode a good bit of the time. The good part of it is we have a lot of personnel groupings to throw from. We're going to throw it, no question about that. But you can also run it from all those personnel groupings, and find a way to mix it a little bit for Eli and help him, but we're certainly going to throw the football.
Q: Have you thought about playing redshirt freshman tight end Lawrence Lilly?
A: I do my best not to. Lawrence would be the first to tell you he's not quite ready. He's going to be a really fine player, but he has a lot to learn about the game. I doubt we would do anything, but we're reaching a pretty serious mode. It may change the way we do some other things on the field, but we're going to try not to play him.
Eli Manning
Q: What is the spirit of the team?
A: We're going have to get everybody out to practice to see how everybody comes out there. It's my job to make sure everybody's head is focused and everybody is committed to winning games. We're still in this. We've got four games left and four big ones. We've got to go out there and practice hard and try to win those games.
Q: How are you personally holding up?
A: Personally, I feel fine. You get a little sore, but it's part of playing the game. I feel fine. Mentally, it's frustrating losing these games, but you've just got to forget about it and bounce back and keep preparing each week. We have to keep going out to practice with a good mind-set and keep trying to play hard and win games.
Q: Have your goals changed at all?
A: We still have the same goals - try to play our best and win games. Obviously we've still got a shot at winning the (SEC) West. You never know what's going to happen. A lot could happen in these next four games. We've got to play our best and worry about Ole Miss and what we can do, and that starts this week with Auburn. It's a home game for us, so that'll be nice. We've got to try to get a win and see if we can bounce back and play good football.
Q: What is the problem with your running game right now?
A: The running backs aren't having a whole lot of room to run. Sometimes when there are holes, they're just not making guys miss and breaking that big tackle to make it turn into a long run. They (opposing defenses) are having a lot of guys in the box and they're doing some stuff, so it's just not working well.
Q: What have you tried to do to make a difference in the huddle and on the sidelines?
A: Just keep my composure. If it's third and long or a fourth down situation, just knowing what I have to do. My job is to keep my focus and keep preparing each week and know what the defense is planning, so I can try to get us in the best formations.
Q: Are defenses treating Ole Miss differently now that you're struggling to run the football?
A: They're doing some things differently. Obviously they're stopping the run easier, so they're not playing as much single safety or man-to-man. We're seeing some more zones and dropping a lot of people back into coverage. They're only rushing three at times, and those guys aren't even rushing all the time. They're playing some different stuff, but we can still execute and do our game. We've just to go back and just try to get better in all fundamentals of the game.
Q: Has the rollout pass become more of a problem for you guys?
A: We've been trying to do a lot of rollout, but these teams have been getting a lot of pressure, which makes it hard to do. We try to do some of it by moving the pocket. I thought this week the line did a good job. We didn't do a whole lot of rollout stuff, we just sat in the pocket and guys weren't getting to us. We were running the ball out of the four-wide and doing some screens and stuff, which helps keep their defensive linemen from rushing as hard.
Q: At times like this, do you turn to Peyton for advice?
A: I talk to Peyton. He knows what I'm going through. He's had frustration before with not winning games and his team not playing as well as he thought they could. But I'm not looking for advice. He's just someone to talk to.
Q: Talk about your quarterback sneak for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
A: We were running a lot of four-wide stuff and we kept the same personnel in the game. They didn't have a whole lot of guys in the box and we were just trying to hurry up. It's easy to do that quarterback sneak and get a little push to get that half-yard or whatever. We've done it every once in a while. The way the game was going, it was a good play to go four-wide to spread them out and then sneak it.
Q: Could you talk about Bill Flowers and his emergence this year?
A: Bill has worked hard through last spring and this summer. He always wants to stay after (practice) throwing and go out on days we're not throwing so he can catch balls. He wanted to be the starter, and he's definitely earned it. He's playing great. I know he got hurt and stayed in the Arkansas game. He's a playmaker. He gets open and he catches the ball well and does a good job of finding the holes and making plays when we need one.
Q: Does this game have any extra meaning to the players because of Tommy Tuberville?
A: I don't think so. That whole thing with (Coach) Tuberville happened before I was here. I think Auburn is a big game just because it is an SEC game. We're going to go out there and try to win because we need a win. Obviously some of the players were here for the Tuberville episode, but I think it's died down since the first couple of years.
Q: Does playing in front of a home crowd take some pressure off?
A: I hope so. Our team is excited about being home, and I know I'm excited about being here and playing in front of the home crowd. We've been playing pretty well here, so hopefully that'll help us get off to a fast start and we can play good football.
Q: Does the team feel differently when they're on the road?
A: From what I'm seeing, we've been warming up fine. Our mind-set is good. We just haven't gone out there and played well. I don't know if it's playing on the road, or if it's that we've played some good teams, and things have kind of bounced the wrong way for us. I haven't noticed a difference myself, but we've just got to play good football wherever we're playing.
Q: Do you take any pride in the 414 passing yards you had?
A: No. It's just kind of the way the game went. It wasn't the plan, and it wasn't my goal to throw this many yards. The way things were going, we just threw the ball a bunch of times. I thought I played a smart game. I had a couple of decisions I'd like to take back, but when you throw the ball 56 times, that's going to happen every once in a while. I've just have to not turn the ball over. I'll go back and watch the film and learn from it and try to get better this week and try to play the game we're supposed to play. If you have to throw it 50 times, that's great. If you only have to throw it 15 times, that's even better because it means you're running the ball better. You've just got to do whatever the game directs you to.
Q: Do you like those games where you throw 56 times or is that more than you like to throw in a game?
A: Usually when you throw that many times, it's because you're down and you're trying to get back in the game. From that standpoint, I don't like doing it. If that's the way the game is going and we're successful doing it, then I don't mind throwing that many times. Sometimes it gets tough. Teams are dropping eight people and it's hard to find some lanes. The running game helps with that.
