Opening Statement…
"We are really focused on ourselves this week. We are doing what we traditionally do, and working on a lot of areas that we feel like we can get better. Going through all the special team's phases, offense, and defense. Getting a lot of quality work. Working on some future opponents that we have coming down the line. The kids have had a good attitude, at least for the first two days. We are going to find out today, how much better we can get."
On being ranked number one…
"We don't address it, as far as ranking. What we address are our strengths and weaknesses. We are very technical in our approach of why. Why have we had success? Why have we struggled in some areas? What can we do about those? I think the more interaction you have among the team, they tell you why. You know where their pulse is and whether they actually understand. There has not been a lot of conversation about the ranking. I think our guys realize it doesn't matter. It's just a number. What does matter is what we do well and what we do poorly."
On building a sustainable program…
"I think infrastructure, in terms of personnel, is key. Meaning you have staff members that buy-in, not just the on-field coaches. It's everybody. That's the recruiting organization, the player development organization, and the training staff. It takes a village. We've been pretty sustainable in terms of keeping guys, and our administration has helped us do that. That's number one. Number two is recruiting good players but demanding excellence out of them. I think a lot of teams across the country can recruit good players, but demanding excellence from them and holding them to a standard is important. I think discipline within our program is important. When you lose discipline, you see mistakes. You see errors. You see inconsistencies in performance. I just think discipline is the key to that. We really try to hone in on that with our players. It's the little things that you do right, week-to-week that hold people accountable to do what they are supposed to do on the field."
On what he likes most about the team…
"The joy of which they come to practice. The fun we have coaching them, and the buy-in we get from them, in response. The fact that they are well connected. We feel that we as a coaching staff are connected to them. It makes it fun to coach them. You keep the culture positive."
On team leadership…
"They have done a good job to set the standard of what the expectation is in practice and how we work. They have done a good job so far we just have to continue that."
On JT Daniels…
"Yeah, he took more reps with the groups yesterday than he has in the past. I think he did a good job with those reps. I mean the first day there is going to be a little rust there from not having taken as many 11-on-11 reps or good-on-good reps. We will see how he responds today and see if there is any soreness and what his pitch count will be and how many reps he will get."
On preparing for two QBs…
"To be honest with you we have not even started preparation for Florida. We watch all of our opponents coming up in the future in the morning and we have been really focused on trying to get better at the things we can get better at. We will start heading in that direction this afternoon and tomorrow. I don't control who starts and they have some similarities and obviously, you have seen both of those guys…I recruited Anthony Richardson and I know a lot about all those guys that have played there. Emory Jones is from our state, so we have seen him play. They have got a really good football team and I have a lot of respect for both of those quarterbacks. We will have to plan for both."
On recruiting being back to normal…
"Yeah, I think so it is. As normal as normal can be. Some of the high schools were affected by COVID in cancellations which in turn can affect us with where we go or who we go see. There is not a lot you can do this weekend because no one is coming to our campus with the game being off. We can go out to others and watch and evaluate and see guys play, we will do that."
Warren McClendon, Redshirt Sophomore, Offensive Lineman
On the offensive coaches keeping players engaged…
"Giving us objectives of what we need to get better at before meetings, then we will go over it in the meetings. It shows where we messed up and how we can fix it and going out and executing it at practice."
On the relationship with coach Tray Scott…
"He is a good coach. You know I could go and talk to him whenever I want if I ever have to. Today I was talking to him on the way to the meeting and just having that connection with him that we built, all the way back at recruiting, when I was being recruited. Having that connection really helped me."
On the Kentucky game and looking forward to Florida…
"It definitely met our expectations, going into it we knew it was going to be a physical game. Every year is a physical game and last year it was physical, the year before that it was physical, and we knew it was going to be physical. It met my expectations, and we were just glad to come out with the victory. And Florida, being a rivalry, we expect that to be physical too."
Quay Walker, Senior, Inside Linebacker
On Stetson Bennett...
"I'll start by saying... knowing his role this year - I think he pretty much understood that last year, as well. This year, after practice and whatnot, after games, leading up to practice, I'll see Stetson still there. Probably by the time I get done, he's still in there. He probably goes in there way before me because he'll be in there watching film. it's just a whole lot of execution that he has took from watching guys that came before, that were here probably his freshman year. He's had a big jump from last year to this year, and I'm really, really proud of Stetson."
On the defense's speed and preparation...
"The way that we prepare is like no other - leading up into the game, right before the game, to be honest with you, with walkthroughs and everything. Wan'Dale is a good player. I just think the way we play and fight to the ball; it's something that we pride ourselves upon. That's what we try to do each and every Saturday."
On what the defense can improve on...
"There's a lot of things we can improve on. There isn't anything that we can't improve on, there are a whole lot of things. For us, communicating, starting with me and the linebackers, as well, myself, Nakobe Dean, and Channing Tindall or whoever it is out there. Communicating to the defensive line and getting that to the safeties so that the safeties can get the communication to the DBs, as well. It's a whole lot of things we need to work on and get better at."
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