We had the energy. It was there. And then they stopped the punt and it deflated everything. |
We have a wonderful facility and part of our philosophy is 'just for you' events, giving members of the community an opportunity to come and be here and experience what God has done through our facilities. |
We kind of were struggling heading into all-star break as a team, every position. Our coaches said let's see who's going to run with it . . . Right now Mike Smith has the nod and he's getting the nod and it's deserved. |
We were a little thin back there last weekend. |
We were in need of a little change because we were struggling a bit. It wasn't easy to send them down at the beginning of the season, but it's a business, as I've told them. I just said, 'Be ready when you get called.' They were ready and haven't been back since. |
We're going to use this opportunity to make the strongest case we can. We've done the paperwork, but this an important opportunity for all four contenders. |
We're just getting a ton of reps. Sometimes if you get caught without a backup you just keep going and going and going. He's really telling us if we can fight through that and play hard and still play fast, when we get in the game when it's slower paced we should do great in the fourth quarter, because that's when a lot of games in the Pac-10 are won. |
What we went through the past few years, it was kind of like kids being passed from foster home to foster home. You never really get comfortable. Now we are comfortable. We understand that these coaches are going to be here for the long haul and guys are buying into what the coaches are talking about. Buying into the philosophy of this team. So I think we are way ahead of where we were last year. |
When the second season rolls around, you throw the records out. If you have too many preconceived notions about your opponent, you can get your butt kicked real quick. |
When you see him on TV like when he was at Notre Dame, you think of him being a real straight-forward dude, real black and white, not too much flavor. But when you get to know him, see him around here on a day-to-day basis, he's real fun to be around. |
With the injury to the quarterback, he becomes even more important. I'm anticipating them to come out -- especially with the success they had last year with the two 100-yard backs on us -- to focus on getting him the ball early. |