Ed Orgeron Weekly Press Conference

OPENING COMMENTS

We’re excited to start the season. We’re going to crank it up during game week and have an extra practice. Today’s going to be a full padded practice; it’s usually a shorts practice. We’re going over the previous game. Saturday we had a mock scrimmage. It was a good mock scrimmage. Obviously we had a few more mistakes than I’d like, so we have to simplify what we’re doing for the game plan against Memphis.

I want to go over my depth chart offensive and defensive. I know that you guys may have some questions. On defense obviously you guys have heard me talk about John Thompson. I’m excited about what he’s doing on defense. I’m excited about the chemistry in our defensive staff room and what John brings. He brings a different style than what I have, and I think it’s been fantastic. He’s also helped me do my head coaching duties a lot better. On the defensive line I think we are very strong with Marcus Tillman and Peria Jerry. Peria suffered minor injuries now and then throughout camp, but we expect him to be full-go against Memphis. At nose tackle it will be Daverin Geralds or Jerrell Powe. Jerrell came in, and he has not been cleared yet, but if he does get cleared he will be in the mix there. I don’t think he is the condition to go through a full game, but he is getting there. He has worked very hard. So Daverin is probably going to start the game off at nose tackle.  At Leo will be Greg Hardy. Greg is going to play both ways for us. The young man has had an outstanding camp and is an outstanding athlete so I think we are very strong there. A guy you are probably going to see on the defensive line will be Chris Strong. Obviously when he first got here we had him at Mike linebacker. When we got into spread offensives, we put him in the nickel rough situations and he did very well there. We think that right now he will play defensive line against Memphis. Not to say that he can’t play linebacker, but for right now that’s where we’re going to put him. At the linebacker position we moved Jonathan Cornell back to Mike linebacker. We feel that that’s our best shot at replacing Patrick with Jonathan. He is very experienced, very quick, and he can do the things we need for a Mike linebacker. We moved Tony Fein out to a Will linebacker spot and we are trying him out there not necessarily to say he is going to start there. We’ve got three days this week to see if he can handle that new job. At Sam linebacker will be Ashlee Palmer. Ashlee has had a very good camp for us. Ashlee is a strong safety/outside linebacker type that is very quick, can move out to a slot and can play very well in a spread offensive with his feet, so we’re excited about him.  Defensive backs are going to be Dustin Mouzon at corner, Terrell Jackson at the other corner, Jamarca Sanford and Kendrick Lewis. I think that we have some young men that can go in and spell for us so we can have a rotation. One of our young defensive backs that I’m awfully excited about is Johnny Brown. You’ll see him in the game. You’ll see him on special teams and in nickel situations.

On offense, I can’t say enough about Michael Oher. I think Michael has had one of the best camps of an offensive lineman that I can remember. He is going every snap. He’s down to a trim 315. He has an unusual work ethic. I think that he is really, really making progress. He is the type of lineman we expect him to be.  Reid Neely at left guard is questionable right now. He’ll go out to practice, but he is a little gimpy. If he isn’t at left guard Thomas Eckers will be. If Reid is in there, Thomas Eckers is also our backup center who I think has made a lot of improvement in camp. John Jerry is our right guard. Mo Miller has had a good camp at right tackle. I’m excited about the type of camp that Robert Lane has had and also Robert Hough. I think that we are very strong at tight end and we plan on using our tight ends a lot. At wide receiver Marshay Green and Dexter McCluster are by far our two best receivers, along with Mike Wallace. As you know we are very strong at running back with BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Bruce Hall and Cordera Eason. Jason Cook has done an outstanding job for us at fullback.

On special teams Joshua Shene is our kicker. He’s also going to be our kickoff guy. He had a shady day on Saturday, but I think he’s going to come through for us on this Saturday. If not, you will see Christian Albarracin at kickoff. Now, our punting job is still open with Justin Sparks, Bryan Powers and Rob Park. We’re going to go throughout this week and see who the best guy is. Obviously Rob has the experience and that may win out in the long run.

Looking at Memphis, offensively they’ve done a very good job, especially last year, against us. They ran the ball, their offensive line used a lot of cut blocks, had a lot of schemes to spread us out, and I thought they had a game plan the worked against our defense really well. We’ve got our work cut out for us. They averaged 23 points a game, 336 total yards, so we have to be ready for what I think is a really good offense with Hankins at quarterback, Doss at running back and a young man that’s really, really exciting on film in Duke Calhoun. I think that he is an excellent receiver. They use him in certain situations to make some big plays. We recruited Duke so we know all about him. The have some tall receivers, so especially inside the 20 where they can throw some fades and slants, we have our work cut out for us. On defense we know they have Rick Kravitz coming back for a new defensive coordinator spot. He was at South Florida. We studied a lot of South Florida film. We don’t know exactly if they are going to do Rick Travis’ stuff or if they are going to do Tommy West’s stuff, so we’re preparing for them both, but I think we’re going to be ready. A thing that is impressive about Memphis’ team is their turnover ratio. They were plus three last year and that’s pretty good for the season. So we’re going to get ready for them. They played us well the last two years. We won the game, but it’s been a tight battle and we expect another tight battle.  I want to challenge all our fans to fill up the Liberty Bowl and go out there. We’re really looking forward to kicking off the season. It’s going to be a busy month of September. It’s going to start rolling very fast. My job is to keep this team healthy to have them ready to play on Saturday, so we’re looking forward to it.

Q: On the difference in Coach West and Coach Kravitz’s style of defense...

A: There is a little difference in the way they play. Not much, though.

Q: On moving Tony Fein to WILL linebacker and Cornell back to MIKE...

A: They (Memphis) spread you out. If you’re in the wrong gap, he might have to cover the tight end sometimes. He’s able to handle all the adjustments that he has to make and really his coverage. Our MIKE linebackers drop in the middle on our coverage. We need some speed there.

Q: On Chris Strong playing defensive line and linebacker...

A: I don’t think we will use him in both places. You will probably see him inside at tackle because Peria Jerry is not completely healthy. But Chris Strong could take his place.

Q: On Jerrell Powe’s conditioning level...

A: Better. He’s going through all the practices now. It’s a lot better, but it’s obviously nowhere near where it needs to be.

Q: On why Terrell Jackson has moved to the top of the depth chart at cornerback...

A: Consistency. Being in the right spot, tackling, athletic ability. Cassius is still young, but he’ll play. He just has some maturing to go.

Q: On what he expects from Seth Adams in the first game...

A: Being able to move the ball down the field with our style of offense, complete the short ball, make some good decisions at the line of scrimmage, just be steady back there.

Q: On how Adams is handling the pressure...

A: I think he has been fine. I was a little worried at our open scrimmage. I think he was a little nervous there, and he might do that Saturday. I’m not sure how he is going to react. I know he has game experience, but we are going to be patient with him and we are going to do some things that are fairly simple that we think he can handle.

Q: On the position coaches working with new positions this year...

A: David (Corrao) is a very bright, young coach. He’s very valuable. He is a guy that is a computer reporter. He knows the offenses in and out. He has a great memory. He knows exactly where our guys line up at all positions. He can coach our defense. I think he is excellent. He’s been in the fire with me for two years. He has an outstanding work ethic. I think he’s doing fantastic along with Brad Villavaso. Brad was a graduate assistant coach and was a high school coach that played linebacker that knows the fundamentals and style of techniques that we need to teach our linebackers. Tony Hughes is a great recruiter. He’s doing a good job coaching the tight ends. Hugh Freeze is doing his specialty with wide receivers. He understands the passing game. I think we have a great mix.

Q: On what has been so special about Michael Oher’s fall camp...

A: First of all is conditioning. Second of all is maturity and want to and desire. He exhibits that everyday. He goes hard. He has not taken one play off the whole camp. That’s a tribute to his condition and work ethic. I think his pass protection is excellent. He has always been a good run blocker. I think he’s studying the game, and I attribute that to hard work and Art Kehoe. I think he has done a tremendous job with him.

Q: On Dexter McCluster’s physical condition...

A: He took a big hit from Ashlee (Palmer) one day. I think he is ready to go. I’m always a little nervous about Dexter. He goes 100 miles an hour all over the field in crossing routes and all that stuff, so he’s going to get hit. He’s going to get hit in special teams. So we’ve got to get ready for it, but I think he’s ready.

Q: On how McCluster will be used in the offense...

A: We need to move him around, get him the ball as many times as we can. You are going to see him in a lot of different spots and some great spots for him to make some big plays. He is also going to help us on special teams. He gives us some speed on our team.

Q: On the importance in recruiting of going to Memphis...

A: Very important. Memphis is a big area as far as recruiting. Coach Freeze has done great up there. A lot of our guys are from Memphis, so they are excited to go there. There are some players on the Memphis team that we tried to recruit that decided to go to Memphis. I think there is going to be a little competition there. It’s always nice to go play in Memphis. I know a lot of recruits will probably be at the game to see the Ole Miss Rebels, and I think it will be fun.

Q: On the importance of starting off strong...

A: It’s very important. The month of September is very important to our schedule and to our team. As far as the past, the last two years we have won the first game. We haven’t played very well the next couple of games. So we have identified some things that could be a problem and tried to stamp those things out. We’ll see, though. Memphis is going to be a tough opponent and so is Missouri.

Q: On Seth Adams earning the starting QB job...

A: He’s been very consistent over camp. I think that we trust that. He has demonstrated day in and day out that he’s there on a consistent basis. He can make some checks on the line of scrimmage that we need. He can run the offense. He doesn’t have the strongest arm of all the quarterbacks, but he’s the most consistent.

Q: On other quarterbacks...

A: We’ll play the best guy to help us win games. Michael Herrick has made a big push toward the end, and last Saturday he kind of faded off a little bit. That just shows us he wasn’t ready quite yet. That doesn’t mean he won’t play this year. He gained 20 something pounds. He’s a very smart quarterback, and he could be a quarterback here that could have a lot of success.

Q: On Brent Schaeffer possibly moving back to wide receiver...

A: No, not yet. He has only been practicing quarterback. He has not moved back to receiver since he has moved back to quarterback. We could throw in a little trick play, though.

Q: On Greg Hardy playing offense...

A: You will see him all over the field. You will see him on first, second and third down. You may see him the first series. You may not. It just all depends on what is happening and who is on the field first, but he is going to play offense maybe 50 percent of the time.

Q: On the impact of Jerrell Powe being cleared or not...

A: I think it will be a big boost. I think that everybody is kind of assuming that he is going to be eligible. I think that is kind of the feeling of the team that he has been around them so much that’s they’ve kind of accepted that he is here. We know that the ruling has not come out yet, but we are thinking positive the glass is half full and we are moving forward. I think it will be a little let-down if he is not eligible. We would have to deal with that as it comes.

Q: On who else could see action at WILL linebacker...

A: We have Jamie Phillips who has done a very good job for us. He’s working hard, and also Brandon (Thomas). Brandon has done a good job for us. Those two guys know their assignments. When you play a spread offense, you can get exposed with athletic ability out there. They’re going to come on the edge and they’re going to cut us. Memphis is primarily an outside running team. So we have to put the best guys available that can take cut blocks and make tackles in open spaces.

Q: On Ted Laurent and Rishaw Johnson...

A: They’re still with us. They’re going to school. We see them sparingly. They look rested. They haven’t been practicing, but that’s about it. That’s all we do is see them and encourage them, and hopefully something comes up soon about those guys. We need them on our team.

Q: On who besides McCluster and Green could see return action...

A: Mike Wallace a little bit, and Lionel Breaux has done a little bit of it, but we are going to go with our experienced guys. We think we are very strong in that area.

Q: On the optimism toward the guys waiting for eligibility...

A: I feel good about all our guys. I really do. I think they’ve done all the work. I think it should be a no-brainer that they should be cleared.

Q: On who will take up the defensive slack after the departure of Patrick Willis and Rory Johnson...

A: I think we are a lot better of the defensive front, especially with Peria Jerry healthy and Greg Hardy and Marcus Tillman. I think those guys are going to have to pick up the slack. I think we are nowhere near as talented as we were last year at linebacker. Now those guys are good players, but I think with a better defensive front, you know they made all those tackles last year and we had some ends play at tackle. I think we should be better up front this year. And Jamarca Sanford. I think we are going to have to use him closer to the line of scrimmage as much as possible.

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