West Virginia University
Assistant Coaches and Players Media Session
September 6, 2016
LINK: http://wvusports.co/2bVAKLk
Youngstown State Game Week
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (August 30, 2016) - The West Virginia University football coaching staff and members of the WVU football team met with the media on Tuesday, September 6, 2016, at the Milan Puskar Center Team Room.
Assistant Coach (Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers) Tony Gibson
On Youngstown State senior tailback Jody Webb
He’s a good player. I think he’s probably one of the fastest backs we’ll play all year long. You know he got hit on the knee, leg or ankle. I don’t know exactly what it was, but it looked pretty nasty on film. They say he’s okay, but we don’t know. The other back’s just as good, (YSU senior tailback Martin) Ruiz. He’s a good player too. Their best players, I feel, are on offense are their running backs.
On Youngstown State’s throwing and running
They had 600 yards of offense. They ran for 394, and I think they threw for 216.
On expectations for Youngstown State running the ball this week
I think what they are going to do is use multiple tight ends, backs and try to run it, try to hit us with play action and get us to bite up a little bit. I think they want to control the clock, I would think and limit our offensive possessions.
On slowing down the other team’s offense
I think you just want to limit and slow down the other team’s offense, obviously, at this level, so I think that’s what they’re trying to do. Some people, Liberty last year, did a good job of that and kept us off balance, and they were good enough to throw it and catch it and had some big plays. I expect this is the same kind of plan that Youngstown will come in with.
Assistant Coach (Defense/Special Teams) Mark Scott
On sophomore wide receiver Gary Jennings
There are certain situations where he needs to understand how much help he has or doesn’t have and make a good decision off of that, but at the same time, I don’t want to take away or have him relax at all. I like that he’s fearless, I like that he goes after the ball. By understanding the situation, he can help himself out and protect himself a little bit, but we really need to do a better job up front and on the outside slowing guys down and giving him a chance.
On sophomore wide receiver Gary Jennings being dependable
The more shots he takes the scarier it gets, but again it’s not only on him it’s on the other 10 guys on the field. They’ve got to give him a chance. Then, certain situations whether it’s if we’re going after a punt, he’s got to understand and know the call and know how much help he does or doesn’t have.
On everything else overall
The hands team was a bit disappointing obviously. You know we had two guys that were untouched and regardless of whether we’re winning by two scores or whether the game is on the line, we’ve got to have the same sense of urgency every time we put that unit out there, going after the ball and getting our alignments. It’s just reaction and sense of urgency, which should never be an issue with that unit, but that’s something we’re going to continue to stress, continue to emphasize and really work on.
Assistant Coach (Safeties) Matt Caponi
On his takeaways after viewing the game film from the Missouri game
I was very pleased. I thought our guys played hard. They were flying around. For playing a hundred-something snaps, I don’t think we loafed as much as I thought we did. I thought we were able to play and tackle really well in space. Missouri did some things to try to spread us out, which we had an idea they were going to try to do. We might have struggled a little bit sometimes in space, but we were pretty solid at tackling in space and just running to the ball in general.
On what he wants the group to improve
Just some alignment stuff, some technique stuff to put us in better positions. We have to understand every situation we’re in, especially when teams go fast. I think we can get caught up in the moment and not realize its third and three or third and six. Get our alignments where they need to be to put us in position to be successful in those critical down situations to be able to get off the field
Assistant Coach (Offensive Coordinator/Fullbacks-Tight Ends) Joe Wickline
On the lack of success of scoring in the red zone
It was a combination of things. It was our first game. We saw some things that we need to do a better job, to look at some things on what they were doing, but then we had some matchups that weren’t the best. I think, overall, it was something that we can learn from, build on and continue to move forward. We had the right plan, it is just a matter of getting better.
On working on specific things before the next game and throughout the season
Basically just our fits, steps, covering people up and again adjusting to some things. We saw a couple of things that were new, it happens every game, but that’s not really the issue. From an assignment standpoint we are going to be sound.We just need to keep getting more reps, get corrections and keep moving forward.
On Youngstown State’s defense
They have some really talented guys, they really are. They’ve done a nice job in recruiting. They’ve gathered up some nice players and the biggest thing is, they have great feet. They run, they’re quick, they’re fast guys and they’re disruptive. I know that their two ends are top-notch players, and they’re going to be a challenge for us. I think as a group they understand their defense and they’re well coached. The head coach is a renowned defensive guy. All of the coaches on the staff do a nice job. It’s going to be a challenge for our guys because they are not out of place, they’re sound, they do the right stuff and they play hard.
On preparing the offense to do more running due to senior quarterback Skyler Howard’s pain from the last game
That hasn’t been discussed. We haven’t talked a lot about any of the player’s injuries to any kind of detail. I think we’re moving forward with what we’re doing, and we’ll see how he feels and how any of the quarterbacks feel when we get there.
Assistant Coach (Running Backs) Ja’Juan Seider
On if he is trying to work freshman running back Kennedy McKoy more into the rotation
Yeah, we were trying to get him playing this past week. I knew early we wanted to get seven (Rushel Shell III) and 25 (Justin Crawford) in early, trying to go two backs, and the next time we were going to try to get Kennedy (McKoy) in there. We did, and he had one of those freshman mistakes where he forgot which way he was going on the play. It’s hard for me, with the game flow, to wait for a kid to come back when you have another two guys ready and waiting to roll like we did. I’m looking forward to getting him out there this week and watching him play some. We need him to come along and keep playing. I still feel the same way I felt about him before we played the game. I think that kid has a bright future here, and I’m looking forward to getting him out there and seeing him make some plays this week.
On if senior quarterback Skyler Howard’s injury made him feel that the running backs need to carry the offense
I think you go into every game feeling like you want to carry the load, so I don’t think that hinders us, or changes us, in anything we do. I think we got better with the intermediate throws, the 10-and-ins, which is something we worked hard on this offseason to improve on. We know we can take shots. They (Missouri) dared us to throw underneath and we did a good job of that. To me that’s no different than getting a hand off. Skyler did a great job managing the game. We don’t really know until we get out there and turn loose. Knowing that kid, how tough he is, I don’t think he’ll have any issue going out there and playing on Saturday. I don’t think it’s going to change anything we do. We’re always going to try to be balanced 50-50 if we can. If one is ahead of the other at that point in the game, so be it. If we run the ball like that towards the end of the game, it’s probably a good day for us.
On if he wanted to get junior running back Justin Crawford more involved in the pass game
He had five catches, I don’t know how much more involved we can get him. You wish some of those catches had been able to break out of a couple tackles, but those guys are touching the ball. We touched the ball more this game than we probably did last year. I think explosive plays are going to continue to come.
Assistant Coach (Receivers) Tyron Carrier
On how they played overall
I think we did pretty well. The only thing I had a problem with was when my guys got tired, they kind of went back into old habits. In order to be a really good receiving corps we can’t do that. It was everyone too. It wasn’t anyone in particular. It was every last one of us.
On how they did on blocking during the run plays
They’re better. Still have some things to improve on, but I think they were light years better than they were last year. They understand that they need to block in order to help themselves out and help the backside. I feel like they’re improving there a lot.
On Daikiel Shorts Jr.’s career game and confidence after the game
Well, if his confidence went up, I probably broke it back down a little bit. He was the guy that got a lot of the balls that game. They kind of helped us out on that because he was able to maneuver his way and do what he does best, maneuvering the inside and finding those holes to sit in. The only problem is he got tired and went back to his old ways. He understands what I want from him, but yes, he had a career day.
Senior Quarterback Skyler Howard
On how he is feeling
After any game you are going to be sore for the next couple of days, so it’s nothing that I haven’t dealt with throughout last season and really throughout any football season that I have played in. Yeah, I am sore. That’s part of playing ball.
On if his injury was non-contact or because of a hit
I re-watched the game on TV a little bit and it did look that way in slow motion but the strain happened long before the slide. How often do I slide? Something was obviously wrong when I decided to go down. I’m always going to fight for those extra yards, which may be smart sometimes and it may not be. If it’s going to put our team in a position to win, I am all about it. Right there it was non-contact, which I thought was really weird because if you think about all of the hits that I do take, like down by the goal line when my legs went into the air, those kind of hits and this happens non-contact, it’s a little freak accident, but I’m alright.
On preserving his health by not running as much
If that’s what the defense is giving us that week, if I’m not needed in the run game or if I can get the ball in the other guys’ hands then I am all about it. I’m a quarterback, not a running back. I will run when needed. Going into my senior season with the backup situation and all of that I feel like that was an emphasis but then again, I have to go out there and play ball and sometimes I am going to do what I do and run around. It’s his (coach Dana Holgorsen’s) call ultimately, but again, I am going to play ball.
On what he learned from watching the Missouri game film
Last year, there was a big emphasis put on routine plays, the intermediate throws. I feel like we made strides with that. Obviously, that and our run game is why we won the football game. I believe that we can get back to our shots. They weren’t giving up anything really, that’s why they were a top-five passing defense last year in the country. Putting the ball in play underneath. I missed a few throws in the red zone, I need to make those, no doubt. As far as the putting the ball in play I feel like I really improved, 66% is higher than what it was last year. Completions were my main concern this year. I’m getting that up and we will improve. The offensive line really stepped it up and the run game really stepped it up.
Junior Offensive Lineman Kyle Bosch
On if there is a different feel for him this year
Yeah, a little bit. You know the system better, you just have to apply yourself and I feel like I could work on that better coming out. I didn’t play the first half as well as I wanted. Second half I came out and played the way I’m used to playing.
On what happened in the first half that he didn’t like
I felt like I was playing flat. I think the rest of the team was playing really well, but I felt like I was playing flat. The second half, refocusing was my biggest challenge. I wasn’t playing aggressive like I normally do. I kind of pride myself on that, I wasn’t playing as aggressive as I wanted to, but second half I kind of came back and started playing the way I wanted to.
On how he, redshirt senior offensive lineman Tony Matteo, and redshirt senior offensive lineman Tyler Orlosky play together
Schematically we did great I didn’t think I was playing as aggressively as I wanted to in the first half, but we all did our jobs, and I did my job as well as I could. I like to play with a little bit more of an edge. I felt like I didn’t play the first two quarters as aggressively as I could have.
Sophomore Wide Receiver Gary Jennings
On the value of catching punts as opposed to letting them bounce
It sure saves a lot of yards, and I try to do my best to save those yards.
On if he will fair catch punts this year
Oh yeah, definitely, I will. It’s just about wanting to make a play and being smart about it.
On if he looked at the tape and thought he should have fair caught any punts
There were quite a few actually.
On if it was hard to get used to the speed of punt returns in the game as opposed to practice
In practice, guys are running past you. It’s not like a full contact thing, so there’s sort of a difference. As far as the speed goes, it’s fairly the same.
Redshirt Senior Linebacker Justin Arndt
On what he thinks on the running attack for this week
It’s a little bit different, triple option. We have some of the Georgia Southern stuff from last year that pops up; it’s kind of similar. From what I’ve seen it’s a lot of run and they have two good running backs and a quarterback that can run it too.
On how it was playing as a starter
It was definitely a lot of adrenaline, a lot of emotions going into it. After that first play everything just settled and you’re right back to playing football like you’re used to.
On how he feels he played
Of course you can always make some improvements, but for the most part I played pretty well especially for the first time being out there. Now it’s just building off of that and keep having more success and building off of what we’ve done.
On what he thinks he can improve on
Just alignment and schemes, stuff like that. I mean, they were tempo, so it was definitely hard to get lined up sometimes. We were all flustered a little bit, but just getting used to the tempo like that. Missouri was moving fast, and I don’t know if we’ll see anyone like that, but getting used to that for the most part.
Redshirt Senior Defensive Lineman Christian Brown
On Coach Dana Holgorsen saying this is the best game of his career
I was just trying to help my team out, doing whatever I needed to do to come out with the win. I wanted to play with a whole lot of effort and execute.
On if he knew he was having a good game
I wasn’t worrying about that I was just worrying about the situation of the game. To just come out with the win, really.
On what stuck out when he watched the Missouri game film
I was just running to the ball. I was just steady running to the ball, so I knew I was going to have a good game.
On how you carry the momentum from last game
You just have to keep the attention up. (Assistant Coach (Defensive Line) Coach (Bruce) Tall does a great job with our drills and stuff. We run to the ball mostly every practice so it’s just something that’s a habit.
On if it is difficult to stay focused when playing an FCS team
It’s the same thing every week. That’s just how our mentality is right now. You just have to bring it every week.
Redshirt Junior Kicker Mike Molina
On the specialists being West Virginians
We always talk about being the West Virginia boys. Since all of our positions kind of link together as one unit, it makes it even better. Our relationship is great too. Even after the game, all of our families actually came together and went to tailgate over at Nick Meadows’ camper.
On the reaction from people from home after his first game
A lot of people were texting me and calling me, saying that they were proud and stuff. It’s awesome hearing from all of the people back home.
On how he felt during the kicks
I really didn’t think about it that much. Since they were all really kind of short, they seemed like extra points to me. After that first kickoff I felt good. The nerves kind of went away after that.
On how it feels to be where he’s is now
It’s awesome. I’ve worked from the bottom of my position. I’m just a walk-on kid from the state. When I came in there were five walk-on kickers that came in at the same time, and I’m the only one that’s left, so that’s something right there. Little by little I’ve been getting into the games, and just to get my first start, it’s incredible.
Redshirt Sophomore Kicker/Punter Billy Kinney
On what it means to play at West Virginia
It’s a dream come true. It’s really an awesome opportunity for me. Growing up watching the games and now being able to be out there playing it is pretty cool.
On what he felt on his first punt
It was pretty nerve wracking, but it wasn’t too bad. I’ve been thinking it over, I have had almost all summer and last winter to really try to get myself ready for it. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, but it was still a little nerve wracking.
On how he became a kicker
When I got into high school I mostly played soccer and baseball. Going into sophomore year, my dad was like ‘go out and play something this fall,’ because I didn’t want to play soccer anymore, he said ‘you should play something this fall to stay in shape for baseball season.’ I went out and tried to kick for the football team and got good at it. Then I started going to a few camps and built on that. Then, I stopped playing baseball and mainly focused on football, and got an opportunity to come here.
Assistant Coaches and Players Media Session
September 6, 2016
LINK: http://wvusports.co/2bVAKLk
Youngstown State Game Week
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (August 30, 2016) - The West Virginia University football coaching staff and members of the WVU football team met with the media on Tuesday, September 6, 2016, at the Milan Puskar Center Team Room.
Assistant Coach (Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers) Tony Gibson
On Youngstown State senior tailback Jody Webb
He’s a good player. I think he’s probably one of the fastest backs we’ll play all year long. You know he got hit on the knee, leg or ankle. I don’t know exactly what it was, but it looked pretty nasty on film. They say he’s okay, but we don’t know. The other back’s just as good, (YSU senior tailback Martin) Ruiz. He’s a good player too. Their best players, I feel, are on offense are their running backs.
On Youngstown State’s throwing and running
They had 600 yards of offense. They ran for 394, and I think they threw for 216.
On expectations for Youngstown State running the ball this week
I think what they are going to do is use multiple tight ends, backs and try to run it, try to hit us with play action and get us to bite up a little bit. I think they want to control the clock, I would think and limit our offensive possessions.
On slowing down the other team’s offense
I think you just want to limit and slow down the other team’s offense, obviously, at this level, so I think that’s what they’re trying to do. Some people, Liberty last year, did a good job of that and kept us off balance, and they were good enough to throw it and catch it and had some big plays. I expect this is the same kind of plan that Youngstown will come in with.
Assistant Coach (Defense/Special Teams) Mark Scott
On sophomore wide receiver Gary Jennings
There are certain situations where he needs to understand how much help he has or doesn’t have and make a good decision off of that, but at the same time, I don’t want to take away or have him relax at all. I like that he’s fearless, I like that he goes after the ball. By understanding the situation, he can help himself out and protect himself a little bit, but we really need to do a better job up front and on the outside slowing guys down and giving him a chance.
On sophomore wide receiver Gary Jennings being dependable
The more shots he takes the scarier it gets, but again it’s not only on him it’s on the other 10 guys on the field. They’ve got to give him a chance. Then, certain situations whether it’s if we’re going after a punt, he’s got to understand and know the call and know how much help he does or doesn’t have.
On everything else overall
The hands team was a bit disappointing obviously. You know we had two guys that were untouched and regardless of whether we’re winning by two scores or whether the game is on the line, we’ve got to have the same sense of urgency every time we put that unit out there, going after the ball and getting our alignments. It’s just reaction and sense of urgency, which should never be an issue with that unit, but that’s something we’re going to continue to stress, continue to emphasize and really work on.
Assistant Coach (Safeties) Matt Caponi
On his takeaways after viewing the game film from the Missouri game
I was very pleased. I thought our guys played hard. They were flying around. For playing a hundred-something snaps, I don’t think we loafed as much as I thought we did. I thought we were able to play and tackle really well in space. Missouri did some things to try to spread us out, which we had an idea they were going to try to do. We might have struggled a little bit sometimes in space, but we were pretty solid at tackling in space and just running to the ball in general.
On what he wants the group to improve
Just some alignment stuff, some technique stuff to put us in better positions. We have to understand every situation we’re in, especially when teams go fast. I think we can get caught up in the moment and not realize its third and three or third and six. Get our alignments where they need to be to put us in position to be successful in those critical down situations to be able to get off the field
Assistant Coach (Offensive Coordinator/Fullbacks-Tight Ends) Joe Wickline
On the lack of success of scoring in the red zone
It was a combination of things. It was our first game. We saw some things that we need to do a better job, to look at some things on what they were doing, but then we had some matchups that weren’t the best. I think, overall, it was something that we can learn from, build on and continue to move forward. We had the right plan, it is just a matter of getting better.
On working on specific things before the next game and throughout the season
Basically just our fits, steps, covering people up and again adjusting to some things. We saw a couple of things that were new, it happens every game, but that’s not really the issue. From an assignment standpoint we are going to be sound.We just need to keep getting more reps, get corrections and keep moving forward.
On Youngstown State’s defense
They have some really talented guys, they really are. They’ve done a nice job in recruiting. They’ve gathered up some nice players and the biggest thing is, they have great feet. They run, they’re quick, they’re fast guys and they’re disruptive. I know that their two ends are top-notch players, and they’re going to be a challenge for us. I think as a group they understand their defense and they’re well coached. The head coach is a renowned defensive guy. All of the coaches on the staff do a nice job. It’s going to be a challenge for our guys because they are not out of place, they’re sound, they do the right stuff and they play hard.
On preparing the offense to do more running due to senior quarterback Skyler Howard’s pain from the last game
That hasn’t been discussed. We haven’t talked a lot about any of the player’s injuries to any kind of detail. I think we’re moving forward with what we’re doing, and we’ll see how he feels and how any of the quarterbacks feel when we get there.
Assistant Coach (Running Backs) Ja’Juan Seider
On if he is trying to work freshman running back Kennedy McKoy more into the rotation
Yeah, we were trying to get him playing this past week. I knew early we wanted to get seven (Rushel Shell III) and 25 (Justin Crawford) in early, trying to go two backs, and the next time we were going to try to get Kennedy (McKoy) in there. We did, and he had one of those freshman mistakes where he forgot which way he was going on the play. It’s hard for me, with the game flow, to wait for a kid to come back when you have another two guys ready and waiting to roll like we did. I’m looking forward to getting him out there this week and watching him play some. We need him to come along and keep playing. I still feel the same way I felt about him before we played the game. I think that kid has a bright future here, and I’m looking forward to getting him out there and seeing him make some plays this week.
On if senior quarterback Skyler Howard’s injury made him feel that the running backs need to carry the offense
I think you go into every game feeling like you want to carry the load, so I don’t think that hinders us, or changes us, in anything we do. I think we got better with the intermediate throws, the 10-and-ins, which is something we worked hard on this offseason to improve on. We know we can take shots. They (Missouri) dared us to throw underneath and we did a good job of that. To me that’s no different than getting a hand off. Skyler did a great job managing the game. We don’t really know until we get out there and turn loose. Knowing that kid, how tough he is, I don’t think he’ll have any issue going out there and playing on Saturday. I don’t think it’s going to change anything we do. We’re always going to try to be balanced 50-50 if we can. If one is ahead of the other at that point in the game, so be it. If we run the ball like that towards the end of the game, it’s probably a good day for us.
On if he wanted to get junior running back Justin Crawford more involved in the pass game
He had five catches, I don’t know how much more involved we can get him. You wish some of those catches had been able to break out of a couple tackles, but those guys are touching the ball. We touched the ball more this game than we probably did last year. I think explosive plays are going to continue to come.
Assistant Coach (Receivers) Tyron Carrier
On how they played overall
I think we did pretty well. The only thing I had a problem with was when my guys got tired, they kind of went back into old habits. In order to be a really good receiving corps we can’t do that. It was everyone too. It wasn’t anyone in particular. It was every last one of us.
On how they did on blocking during the run plays
They’re better. Still have some things to improve on, but I think they were light years better than they were last year. They understand that they need to block in order to help themselves out and help the backside. I feel like they’re improving there a lot.
On Daikiel Shorts Jr.’s career game and confidence after the game
Well, if his confidence went up, I probably broke it back down a little bit. He was the guy that got a lot of the balls that game. They kind of helped us out on that because he was able to maneuver his way and do what he does best, maneuvering the inside and finding those holes to sit in. The only problem is he got tired and went back to his old ways. He understands what I want from him, but yes, he had a career day.
Senior Quarterback Skyler Howard
On how he is feeling
After any game you are going to be sore for the next couple of days, so it’s nothing that I haven’t dealt with throughout last season and really throughout any football season that I have played in. Yeah, I am sore. That’s part of playing ball.
On if his injury was non-contact or because of a hit
I re-watched the game on TV a little bit and it did look that way in slow motion but the strain happened long before the slide. How often do I slide? Something was obviously wrong when I decided to go down. I’m always going to fight for those extra yards, which may be smart sometimes and it may not be. If it’s going to put our team in a position to win, I am all about it. Right there it was non-contact, which I thought was really weird because if you think about all of the hits that I do take, like down by the goal line when my legs went into the air, those kind of hits and this happens non-contact, it’s a little freak accident, but I’m alright.
On preserving his health by not running as much
If that’s what the defense is giving us that week, if I’m not needed in the run game or if I can get the ball in the other guys’ hands then I am all about it. I’m a quarterback, not a running back. I will run when needed. Going into my senior season with the backup situation and all of that I feel like that was an emphasis but then again, I have to go out there and play ball and sometimes I am going to do what I do and run around. It’s his (coach Dana Holgorsen’s) call ultimately, but again, I am going to play ball.
On what he learned from watching the Missouri game film
Last year, there was a big emphasis put on routine plays, the intermediate throws. I feel like we made strides with that. Obviously, that and our run game is why we won the football game. I believe that we can get back to our shots. They weren’t giving up anything really, that’s why they were a top-five passing defense last year in the country. Putting the ball in play underneath. I missed a few throws in the red zone, I need to make those, no doubt. As far as the putting the ball in play I feel like I really improved, 66% is higher than what it was last year. Completions were my main concern this year. I’m getting that up and we will improve. The offensive line really stepped it up and the run game really stepped it up.
Junior Offensive Lineman Kyle Bosch
On if there is a different feel for him this year
Yeah, a little bit. You know the system better, you just have to apply yourself and I feel like I could work on that better coming out. I didn’t play the first half as well as I wanted. Second half I came out and played the way I’m used to playing.
On what happened in the first half that he didn’t like
I felt like I was playing flat. I think the rest of the team was playing really well, but I felt like I was playing flat. The second half, refocusing was my biggest challenge. I wasn’t playing aggressive like I normally do. I kind of pride myself on that, I wasn’t playing as aggressive as I wanted to, but second half I kind of came back and started playing the way I wanted to.
On how he, redshirt senior offensive lineman Tony Matteo, and redshirt senior offensive lineman Tyler Orlosky play together
Schematically we did great I didn’t think I was playing as aggressively as I wanted to in the first half, but we all did our jobs, and I did my job as well as I could. I like to play with a little bit more of an edge. I felt like I didn’t play the first two quarters as aggressively as I could have.
Sophomore Wide Receiver Gary Jennings
On the value of catching punts as opposed to letting them bounce
It sure saves a lot of yards, and I try to do my best to save those yards.
On if he will fair catch punts this year
Oh yeah, definitely, I will. It’s just about wanting to make a play and being smart about it.
On if he looked at the tape and thought he should have fair caught any punts
There were quite a few actually.
On if it was hard to get used to the speed of punt returns in the game as opposed to practice
In practice, guys are running past you. It’s not like a full contact thing, so there’s sort of a difference. As far as the speed goes, it’s fairly the same.
Redshirt Senior Linebacker Justin Arndt
On what he thinks on the running attack for this week
It’s a little bit different, triple option. We have some of the Georgia Southern stuff from last year that pops up; it’s kind of similar. From what I’ve seen it’s a lot of run and they have two good running backs and a quarterback that can run it too.
On how it was playing as a starter
It was definitely a lot of adrenaline, a lot of emotions going into it. After that first play everything just settled and you’re right back to playing football like you’re used to.
On how he feels he played
Of course you can always make some improvements, but for the most part I played pretty well especially for the first time being out there. Now it’s just building off of that and keep having more success and building off of what we’ve done.
On what he thinks he can improve on
Just alignment and schemes, stuff like that. I mean, they were tempo, so it was definitely hard to get lined up sometimes. We were all flustered a little bit, but just getting used to the tempo like that. Missouri was moving fast, and I don’t know if we’ll see anyone like that, but getting used to that for the most part.
Redshirt Senior Defensive Lineman Christian Brown
On Coach Dana Holgorsen saying this is the best game of his career
I was just trying to help my team out, doing whatever I needed to do to come out with the win. I wanted to play with a whole lot of effort and execute.
On if he knew he was having a good game
I wasn’t worrying about that I was just worrying about the situation of the game. To just come out with the win, really.
On what stuck out when he watched the Missouri game film
I was just running to the ball. I was just steady running to the ball, so I knew I was going to have a good game.
On how you carry the momentum from last game
You just have to keep the attention up. (Assistant Coach (Defensive Line) Coach (Bruce) Tall does a great job with our drills and stuff. We run to the ball mostly every practice so it’s just something that’s a habit.
On if it is difficult to stay focused when playing an FCS team
It’s the same thing every week. That’s just how our mentality is right now. You just have to bring it every week.
Redshirt Junior Kicker Mike Molina
On the specialists being West Virginians
We always talk about being the West Virginia boys. Since all of our positions kind of link together as one unit, it makes it even better. Our relationship is great too. Even after the game, all of our families actually came together and went to tailgate over at Nick Meadows’ camper.
On the reaction from people from home after his first game
A lot of people were texting me and calling me, saying that they were proud and stuff. It’s awesome hearing from all of the people back home.
On how he felt during the kicks
I really didn’t think about it that much. Since they were all really kind of short, they seemed like extra points to me. After that first kickoff I felt good. The nerves kind of went away after that.
On how it feels to be where he’s is now
It’s awesome. I’ve worked from the bottom of my position. I’m just a walk-on kid from the state. When I came in there were five walk-on kickers that came in at the same time, and I’m the only one that’s left, so that’s something right there. Little by little I’ve been getting into the games, and just to get my first start, it’s incredible.
Redshirt Sophomore Kicker/Punter Billy Kinney
On what it means to play at West Virginia
It’s a dream come true. It’s really an awesome opportunity for me. Growing up watching the games and now being able to be out there playing it is pretty cool.
On what he felt on his first punt
It was pretty nerve wracking, but it wasn’t too bad. I’ve been thinking it over, I have had almost all summer and last winter to really try to get myself ready for it. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, but it was still a little nerve wracking.
On how he became a kicker
When I got into high school I mostly played soccer and baseball. Going into sophomore year, my dad was like ‘go out and play something this fall,’ because I didn’t want to play soccer anymore, he said ‘you should play something this fall to stay in shape for baseball season.’ I went out and tried to kick for the football team and got good at it. Then I started going to a few camps and built on that. Then, I stopped playing baseball and mainly focused on football, and got an opportunity to come here.
