Ole Miss Media Day Press Conference Transcript

Aug. 7, 2002

Ole Miss Media Day Press Conference Transcript in PDF Format
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Ole Miss Media Day Notes

Head Coach David Cutcliffe
Opening Comments Good afternoon to all. I'm going to make this a little longer than an opening statement and cover a few items that you may be interested in. First, we had everybody show up on time and ready to go. I was pleased that everybody passed the conditioning test. I don't know when I can remember 100 percent of our team passing this test, so that tells me the squad is fit and excited about beginning practice tomorrow morning.

We do have a few health issues that I will cover. Bryant Thomas, who was injured in the spring, is still not ready for practice. He had knee surgery and is out at this time. Rob Robertson had an injury lifting weights this summer, and is out and will not be participating in practice. Justin Wade recently injured his foot and will not be able to start practice with us tomorrow. Bo Hartsfield will be somewhat limited. He had shoulder surgery after spring ball, but I expect him to come around rather quickly. He is going to be limited in the contact drills early. Outside of those, we have a few muscle strains here and there, but we're going to have everybody else full speed. Lanier Goethie and L.P. Spence - both of whom did not participate in spring practice - will be ready to go tomorrow morning. I'm anxious to see the full squad out on the practice field tomorrow. That covers who's here and what's going on.

I hope to see a very hungry football team to start practice. The players had an outstanding winter. They also had an outstanding spring, and I was pleased with their work habits. From listening to the players talk the past few days, they are really excited about what they accomplished this summer. From the numbers they produced in the weight room and the conditioning level that they feel they are in right now, you can tell they are proud of what they accomplished during the summer. That gives us the opportunity to go right to work.

Going through all three phases of the ball and beginning with special teams, I'm excited about all facets of our special teams and the opportunity we have there. We have the best return man in the United States, and I wouldn't trade Jason Armstead as a punt and kick returner for anybody else out there. He's an exciting football player. What excites me also is that we have more athletes and more competition to play in the special teams area. We're going to be more athletic in our coverages and in our blocking and protection. I'm anxious to see how our second-year place-kicker (Jonathan Nichols) and punter (Cody Ridgeway) begin their work. There is going to be some competition in that area, but both are talented young men. We have other talented players, so that is going to create competition.

Defensively, all I have been asked all spring and summer is, "Can we stop the run?" We won't know until we line up and play, but there is no question that we are a better football team defensively right now than at any time a year ago. I feel positive about our strength. We're going to have a strong front, and we're going to have some players that can run. We have some veteran players with a nice blend of youthful talent. We redshirted 23 players a year ago, and many of those guys can make a difference on both sides of the ball. But, most of those will make a difference on defense.

On offense, we certainly return some veteran performers and playmakers. The one thing I'm going to tell them is that they need to be playmakers again, and we need to be able to count on them. We also have some young talent on offense, and I'm anxious to see how some of those will compete when we start two-a-days. We should have a good offensive football team. We have to stay solid up front and continue to improve there.

Overall, we have more depth and more competition for playing time and that is always a positive. I'm anxious to see the areas where we haven't settled who is going to be the starter. Running back is a wide-open position, and I'm ready to see what our rotation is going to be at wide receiver. The players will dictate that themselves by the way they practice. I'm anxious to see what unfolds in the secondary, and there is going to be some competition there. There are also a lot of questions. Is our defensive front going to be consistent like I think it can in controlling the line of scrimmage? A lot of questions need to be answered.

People ask me, "How are we going to do?" I'm going out to practice and see where we start this two-a-day camp, what kind of frame of mind we have and how much we're able to get done in the next week-and-a-half. I'm anxious to see these next three practice days in shorts, and how well we start on Monday with our contact work.

Q: Usually when you bring in a new coordinator, you are still talking about putting the system in place at this time. However, you haven't mentioned anything to that point. Are you satisfied with how the defense was installed during the spring?

A: There's no question about it. We got our system in place in the spring, and we're not re-learning or learning something new. We're going to be working on what we have in place. We certainly haven't mastered everything at this point, but we got the entire system in during the spring. I thought our staff did a great job. I'm a big believer about the whole and the parts. That's how I've always installed the offense, and I think the same thing is true defensively. We did that, and it has worked.

Q: Has the change in defense forced the cornerbacks to play more man coverage and how do you feel about that?

A: There's a lot of ways we can go. We have combination zones with man coverage within those zones, and we have straight zones. A lot of that will be dictated on how well we play in camp. The beauty of this defense is there are a lot of zone blitzes and a lot of other things we can do to put movement in the defense and place pressure on the offense, yet still help the secondary. Obviously, everybody would like to lock down in man-to-man and cut loose everything up front, but that's not the total style of this defense.

Q: Talk about how the leaders of this team have matured this past year.

A: That is significant, and I probably should have said something about that in my opening comments. We have more leaders than we have had at any time since we've been here. I had breakfast this morning with our senior class, and they are looking to lead as a class. Our captains are outstanding young men and have played a lot of snaps in their careers. I see leadership in every area, every position and every class of our football team. We have some freshmen that are leaders. They lead by example in they way they work and the way they approach the weight room and practice. We also have leaders in the sophomore and junior classes, in addition to a fine group of seniors.

Q: Talk about this redshirt freshman class that will be seeing its first action this season.

A: At this point, you would have to say they are exceptional. They haven't played any games yet, and it's always interesting to see how they will respond. But, based on their work habits and what they accomplished on the practice field, I'm excited about what they are going to bring to this team. Someone mentioned that we only had 15 newcomers, but the flip side of that is we have 90 veterans returning. That's always a positive.

Q: Talk about Ben Claxton.

A: You can't get more veteran than Ben unless you apply for a sixth or seventh year of eligibility. He is a four-year starter. He's a tough guy. He goes to work everyday in practice like you expect a guy to go to work. He's a leader both on and off the field, and I'm extremely proud of Ben. The center starts every play on offense, and it's a great feeling to have a guy with his experience and talent at that position.

Q: Do any of the players' weights surprise you?

A: We've got a few 300-pounders, maybe more so than what we've had. We're big enough, and we're strong enough. The things I look at more closely are the percentage of body fat, all their test results and all the things they've accomplished over the summer. Those numbers aren't surprising because I know how hard they've worked, but I am pleased. If a guy can pass the conditioning test at 310 or 320, then I'm assuming they're in good enough shape to play at that weight.

Q: Talk about the guys behind Doug Zeigler at tight end.

A: I think the tight end position can be a positive for us, because we've got three people that have played. Doug Zeigler is obviously an All-American candidate and, I think, a great football player. Eric Rice and Bo Hartsfield are battling for playing time behind him, and they will play. There will be a lot of sets where they're all going to be in the game or at least two of them. They're very talented players, and all a little different. Bo is a little bit more of a physical player, and Eric was a wide receiver for the most part in high school. They have really great work habits. They're tough guys, and I think real positives. We've got a youngster who's joined that group, and he's got a good group to learn from. Lawrence Lilly is a very talented young man who's been here with our newcomers. We also have a youngster named Slate Amos who was with us in spring practice as a walk-on. He really has a chance to be a good football player.

Q: What are the expectations of the players for the upcoming season?

A: I'm hope they're extremely high. First and foremost, they have to believe what they're able to accomplish. It's a tough league and a tough schedule. We have no choice but to raise our expectations, or you have no chance with this type of schedule. I think the thing that has probably raised the bar is the natural competition that is occurring amongst them for playing time. They realize to play on this football team, you're going to have to practice at a high level, and play at a high level. Those are the type of expectations you want to start happening in your program, and I think we're reaching those levels.

Q: Talk about Eddie Strong and Eli Manning.

A: Those are two very veteran football players. I'm sure to our opponents, it seems like he's been here forever. He's made a lot of great plays for us, and brought a lot of excitement to it. Football means a lot to Eddie. Ole Miss means a lot to Eddie. He realizes it's his senior year. I think he's matured a great deal. I look for him to have an outstanding season. For Eli Manning, I can say the same thing. Football means a great deal to him. Ole Miss means a great deal to him. He's a great teammate. He's a great worker. He sets a great example for the rest of our squad. They realize the time he puts in the weight room and the time he's willing to throw on his own and work on his own. There is no substitute for those types of leaders in your program. They not only talk the talk, they walk the walk. I think every player in this program knows that.

Q: What makes Jason Armstead so effective as a return man?

A: He's one of the quickest football players I've ever been around. Besides being quick, he's fast. Sometimes we see quick guys that aren't quite as fast as they need to be, or sometimes fast guys aren't as quick as they need to be. But he can stop, cut and change direction on a dime. Once he breaks into the clear, he's got breakaway speed. He's really a tough guy to be as small as he is. He'll bring everything he's got. He has a great mentality. He's always energetic and upbeat. When he goes on the field to return a kick, I believe he believes he's going to run every one of them back. That mentality means a great deal at that position.

Q: What about Jason's vision?

A: I don't know how anybody can see as fast as he's going, but he obviously can see. He has a feel for blocks and setting up blocks. When you're in kicking situations, you're playing the whole field, and particularly on kickoff returns, he has a knack for finding a crease. That is natural and good vision.

Q: How does the offense benefit from the friendship between Eli Manning and Doug Zeigler?

A: I'm sure they do a lot of talking. I'm sure Doug does a whole lot of talking about where is and how open he is. That's always great when a quarterback and a pass catcher have that kind of relationship. Fortunately, I think Eli has it with all of them. He's really close to all those young men. They work very hard together. Doug is a special guy, and a guy Eli knows he can count on. With Doug being a senior and a guy that has made plenty of big catches in the past, I'm sure that's a good feeling for Eli to know that's my roommate. I'm sure it will always be a special relationship between the two.

Q: What did losing Doug at the end of last season do to the offense?

A: Anytime you lose a player like Doug Zeigler, that's a loss to the entire team. We're in the business though of one player not setting you back. The team has to be bigger than that. People rally around each other, and somebody will step up and get the job done. I never really linger too much on talking about injuries. I'd love to have every player healthy and available every game and every play, but it's not going to ever work out that way.

Q: How do the young receivers play into the mix on offense?

A: There is a lot of competition at that position. There is a great blend of speed, and I've seen some real circus catches from those guys. It makes those upperclassman know there's great talent below them. That's one of the areas where I'm anxious to see what they bring. If they earn the playing time, they're going to play. I'm anxious to see who is going to consistently catch the ball, make the big catch, make the third down catch, and put themselves in a position to be successful. One of the things that happened to us a year ago was we had injuries that slowed some guys and depleted our numbers a little bit at receiver. I thought we didn't separate from coverage as well as we need to and give Eli the chances he might have been getting earlier in the year. I'm anxious to see who's going to consistently do the best job of separating from coverage. Most of those guys know pretty much what to do. Now it's just who's going to do it best. What they do bring is competition and ability. I'm anxious to see how it all unfolds.

Q: Are there any position changes?

A: There is not anything drastic right now. You always keep a couple of them in the back of your mind, but I haven't talked to any players about that. We're going to visit early a little about that as a staff. But really I think we had people in the right places in spring practice. We're going to be able to start people in those areas. Really I hope it works out that they stay where they are, then that means everything is working hopefully according to plan.

Q: Talk about Lanier Goethie wearing number 38.

A: Lanier is excited about wearing 38. It's obviously a great honor. It's a great responsibility. He has earned that honor, and I know he can handle the responsibility. He is a warrior, wearing what I consider a warrior's number. He will help carry that tradition on another year. There is no question in my mind Lanier Goethie is one of the finest battlers and fighters we've got on this football team.

Q: What is the plan for Bryan Brown?

A: It's obviously early. I visited with him, because he's so versatile and can do so many things athleticly. We came to the conclusion we're going to find out if he has a chance to play this year, and we put him in the secondary. He's playing corner. He's getting a lot of intensified work. He's the only player Coach (Mike) MacIntyre was working with over these last two days. He may have gotten more work that he bargained for. We're going to keep him there and intensify the work that he's getting. There's going to be a lot of studying and a lot of mental catching up. But he is a very gifted athlete physically, and we'll just have to see how it plays itself out.

Q: Talk about the practice fields.

A: We are on the intramural fields practicing. We've got lots of room. That's been a real positive with the freshmen practicing. We have a great partnership with Bill Kingery over in the Campus Recreation Department, and it's really worked out great for both of us. We were able to put some funding and some time into developing those fields. The fields are just fabulous. They were kind enough to let us work down there. We're going to work down there right up until Meet the Rebels Day. At that point in time, we'll come back to the practice fields on the first day of class, Aug. 19, which gives up a period of time to rest the fields. Our players have been working on their own on those fields all summer. I think they'll be in the best shape they've ever been that late into the start of practice sessions. We're going to gain the benefit of that, and I really appreciate Bill Kingery and his staff working with us.

Q: Talk about the new stadium.

A: I don't know which is more exciting: standing there looking at the stadium empty or thinking about 43,000 people buying season tickets. Both cases those are great thoughts. The $25 million addition certainly changes the look of the stadium. I went up and looked at every view from that endzone. It's got great seats. That's really how football coaches watch football. Most of my time is spent watching endzone shots. Whether I'm coaching a quarterback or an offensive guard or a linebacker or a safety, that's how the game is played. That's the view the player gets. Often times, we teach from that press box shot, and I talk to our coaches about this, that doesn't look anything like the game to the player. The player views it all from the endzone, from his eyes. Those folks in the south zone are going to get what I call a players' eye view, not a birds' eye view. It's going to be a great addition, and a lot of fun to see it filled up.

Q: Do you think you have more high-caliber players than you've had in the past?

A: Yes. We've got more people that can compete in the Southeastern Conference than we've had since we've been here. That's probably by a large number now that we've added our redshirts as potential people eligible to play this year. That jumped the number way up. That's the difference. Spring practice is very valuable to us, and enabled us to get a good look at what they're doing. But it's still not fall camp. I'm still interested to see how all this is going to play out from the competition. I really don't know in certain areas what's going to happen until we see how these guys respond in summer camp.

OLE MISS PLAYERS
Eli Manning (Jr., QB)
(On knowing the offensive system)
I knew the offense pretty well last year. Obviously we put some new stuff in and added to it, but I've got a good grasp of it. As you get more comfortable, you check off at the line more. You know what plays you like and what plays work against certain defenses. It's all just about learning the offense, and learning the defenses by watching film to see what plays work against them.

(On the pressures of running the offense)
I'm comfortable out there. I know what's going on. It's just getting the play in quicker and getting to the line so you have time to check. Really it kind of depends on the play clock and whether you have time to check a play or time to see the defense. I know the offense. It's just a matter of continuing to get better at it.

(On the emotions of playing college football)
I'm not the kind of guy that gets real nervous in the first place. Sometimes you get excited before a game and you get butterflies, and that's what keeps it fun. If you've lost that and if you don't get excited before a big game, then something's wrong with you. I think that's just part of playing.

Doug Zeigler (Sr., TE)
(On the responsibilities of being a tight end)
The tight ends have a couple of different jobs. Tight ends are blockers first of all, but also pass catchers. I think we're going to get the tight ends a little more involved this year. When you start throwing to the tight end, it opens it up for the running backs and the wide receivers. It spreads the field out more. Hopefully the offense will build off that.

(On the Vaught-Hemingway Stadium expansion)
We're really excited. It just shows that we're building here, and that we're a top SEC team. We're building for the future and the new stadium expansion is going to bring in the crowds and bring a little more excitement to the season.

(On his broken forearm last season)
My arm is doing great. I haven't had any problems. I went through a complete spring with no problems. It feels great in the weight room. I don't think it'll be a problem.

Ben Claxton (Sr., C)
(On the returning starters on offense) As a unit, I think the expectations are through the roof. I can't imagine what all is going to happen this year. I really feel very good about the people we have coming back. I think the depth is probably better than it's ever been. Some of these guys are going to be tremendous standouts in years to come. At the quarterback position, what else do I have to say? We have one of the greatest. At receiver, I think we're about as full as you can get. At tight end, we have Doug Ziegler coming back, and he's a tremendous weapon. The sky is the limit for this offense, and it's just a matter of coming together as a unit. The biggest thing is just being able to execute and make adjustments on the run.

(On the strength and conditioning program)
I'm weighing about 300 or 305 right now, and that's the most that I've weighed since I've been here. We had a conditioning test the other day, and it was the best I've run since I've been here. As far as my strength goes, everything has gone up. Power cling, bench press, squat, everything has gone up. That's a great testament to the weight program. Coach Mendoza has been really good about getting on everybody. He runs a very hands-on program. You can definitely see the progress of all the other players at every position.

(On his shaved head)
It was something Doug Ziegler and I came up with. When we were sitting home for Christmas, we were upset that we weren't playing in a bowl game. And he said, "Let's shave our heads this summer." I said I'd do it because I thought it was just talk. When summertime finally came, I said, "Doug, you want to do it?" He said, "Yeah, let's do it." Then when we showed up for the first summer school term, Doug Buckles had shaved his head and Cliff Woodruff shaved his soon after. I shaved it down with clippers, I didn't take the straight razor to it for a couple of weeks. And it's a motivation thing too. Every morning in the summer, you wake up and look in the mirror and your hair is not there, and it reminds you why you're here in the summer.

Lanier Goethie (Sr., LB)
(On the upcoming season)
It's going to be exciting. We've really worked hard this summer. The strength staff really came to work everyday, and they raised the bar for us. We accepted the challenge each and every day. We're just ready to get rolling now.

(On the new defensive system)
As a team, we've got to show up and play. It's not a matter of individual roles. All of us on defense have to be ready to play, because even the backups are just one snap away from being a starter.

(On wearing number 38)
It's a very prestigious award, and I'm really excited about having it. I'm going to wear it proudly, not only on the field but in the classroom too. I've just got to keep doing what got me here.

Eddie Strong
(On the new defensive system)
We're pretty comfortable with it, because we've worked hard on it on our own. Over the summer we've gotten better, and everybody knows what they're doing so everybody's prepared. We've worked hard all summer, and now we're ready to go to two-a-days.

(On last year's defensive problems)
We should have no busts this year, because we're running a simple defense. Everybody should know where they're supposed to be on every play. This is an easier defense for me, because it's a downhill type defense that lets me get into the backfield and make something happen.

(On being a captain)
I'm a captain this year for the defense, and I've got to be a leader and a role model for the young guys coming in. I have to work hard every time I do something, so they can follow me. We've got young guys coming in, and I know they're going to be watching the captains, so I have to lead by example. And when they're not doing something right, I have to pick them up and set them straight.

Matt Grier (Sr., DB)
(On the defense)
We have a lot of talent in the secondary. We're inexperienced in some areas and experience in other areas. We have to be ready to play each and every Saturday.

(Defense similar to what he played in junior college)
I played a defense like this in junior college, and I know a lot about it. With a new scheme and new coach, there are going to be some differences.

(Goals for the season)
I would like to get to the SEC Championship game. I would also like to make it to a bowl game. As for personal goals, I want to do the best I can for the team.

Von Hutchins (Jr., DB)
(On receiving national attention)
It's good we're receiving the attention. Our job is to get on the field, play as hard as we can and get people to look at us.

(On the new defensive system)
We feel the new defensive system fits our personnel. Our defense has a lot of speed and athleticism in the secondary, so this new defense plays to our advantage.

(Goals for the season)
We want to win as many games as we can and make it to the SEC Championship game and a bowl game. I really haven't set any personal goals other than I want to be the best player I can be each Saturday.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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