He played a very, very good ball game (Saturday night). (He gave) great effort and great intensity, ... And we saw that out of him early this year, but he did not have a quality spring. He was distracted by some things off the field. |
He says he feels a lot better. We'll see. There will be no contact at all with him. |
He threw the ball better than I thought he would. Their tight ends and receivers didn't miss balls. |
He'll use everything he has, |
He's a lot more comfortable, even on the sidelines. |
His work ethic is tremendous, ... He comes to practice every day to compete. He enjoys it. He has fun at what he's doing. And as a coach, you really like to see that in a player. |
How much he plays is still in question. |
I am sure the players that were part of that streak are going to be constantly reminded of it. It also puts them in a position where they want to get another streak started and we are first up so we have to do our part to make sure that does not happen. |
I couldn't help myself, |
I didn't think they played with as much class as Alabama teams usually do, |
I don't want a Mississippi State player to play four years for us and not be capable of supporting his family. Twenty years from now, they won't remember the scores. But they'll have kids, they'll have mortgages, they'll have car payments. If they're capable of dealing with that because of what we went through during this time, then it's all worthwhile. |
I expect us to get more opportunities offensively this year because our defense is going to give us the football. They do a great job of forcing turnovers. And we practice those things. |
I had several scouts say to me at the Senior Bowl (in Mobile, Ala.) that the way he practiced is far above some of the other guys. That's what made him a good football player, and that's what is going to make him a good pro. |
I have a great deal of respect for people who stay in a program without the benefit of a scholarship and go through the grind every day, just hoping for that one time when they are able to put a uniform on and play in the college game. There are a lot of guys around the country who do that, and you have a great deal more respect for those guys than the guys who play on scholarship. |
I looked out there in the fourth quarter and there wasn't a single player on the field who had ever played in a college football game before. I'm sure they made some mistakes, but overall they performed well. |