Head Coach Jack Crowe Weekly Press Conference
Austin Peay Week (10/27/08)
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ON THE UT MARTIN GAME:
“We went to Martin and played a competitive game, a close score that was decided in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. I thought we had moments on offense but we had inconsistencies. We haven't arrived at the point where we can have 25 or 30 plays and not have a missed assignment. I think it has gotten better, but it went backwards a little bit last week. I thought we had some great individual performances. I thought all of our receivers made some exceptional plays. I thought Ryan (Perrilloux) and
Daniel Jackson made some exceptional plays and
Eric Johns made a great play to score. Defensively, I cannot remember us ever playing that poorly in recent years. It was not a lack of effort but lack of focus. We've beat ourselves up and talked about it so many ways as a staff. I think we have to let it go, because there is nothing we can really put our finger on. It may be a combination of things, but it was different than it was on defense. I thought we had our moments in the kicking game, but I felt the kicking game provided the margin of victory, in term of points.”
ON JSU:
“The thing on defense that I go back to, is that it was the mixture of some of the newer players and some the older players. We gave up so many big plays and most of them were things that haven't happened before. Being focused is a matter of preparation. It is a process that starts today. When we go through the process and we have the right things in our minds and we go to play, we can get focused because there is no resistence from the players. We have been focused well enough this season before, that we know we can do it. I think sometimes, there are somethings that are just hard to explain in a football season. I call them anomalies. Maybe in a different context -- How you can watch Georgia play LSU the way they did and see them down 31-0 against Alabama? Where did that come from? You just have to give it what it is and that is the reason it is a great game. It is a state of mind and yet you don't control it. But, we do program it and when it is programmed right, it does the right thing. I think the one thing we need to do, is have a true focus on one game. I know we talked about it was a one game playoff and one game elimination and all that. I don't know that we really have come to a one game focus since we played Eastern Illinois. For me right now, it is all about doing the right things with our practice schedule and our organization for this game to get that focus.”
ON AUSTIN PEAY:
“We are playing a good football team. If you look at the scores against the one-loss teams in the league, they are less than a touchdown. This is a very competitive league. There have been surprising scores every week. We have got to realize that when you play in the league, you better bring your best. It's comforting to know this game is at home. I think there is going to be excitement in our team and I hope our fans can respond to that excitement. We don't feel a drudgery going to do this. We are going to be excited to play. If our fans can share that excitement, they can help get what we need out of this game, which is a win. Everybody that has some aspirations and expectations needs a win this time of year. Austin Peay won last week, won in another close game. They are an eight-man front basically. They try to have one more man in there than you can block and they do a lot of maneuvers to keep you from blocking some folks. If you are not really playing with some anticipation, they will have somebody standing in the hole with your ball carrier that is unblocked. We have got to have a good plan and we have got to practice the right way. We have to practice with that anticipation and urgency. Offensively, they have gotten a lot out of their passing game. They are a running football team that has been very effective getting points in the passing game. Adrian Mines and Darryl Miller have both stood out almost exclusively in alternating games. They maximum protect to make sure they can get these guys down the field. I said last year that I voted for Rick Christophel for Coach of the Year, because I thought he got the most out of his players. They are a very well coached team that understands what they are trying to accomplish. Their players have bought into the system and they all do what they are supposed to do. Our coaches and players have a challenge. I think we certainly owe it to ourselves and what we trying to accomplish to try and make this game physical and as play it as fast as we can, which is always part of a process.”
ON THE AUSTIN PEAY DEFENSE:
“The players that have stuck out in my mind are Tremayne Townsend and Jason Vanatta. On the eight-man front they are what you call the overlap players. It is hard to get a hat on them and they are really good with their eyes. They have a really good middle linebacker in Daniel Becker, who gets around the ball and makes a lot of plays. Part of their mechanism is to twist and knock you off where you can't get to Becker. All three are good players. Kevis Buckley has returned two interceptions for touchdowns and had a bunch more. He is not afraid to get around you when the ball is thrown.”
ON THE AUSTIN PEAY OFFENSE:
“They are a running football team and Theo Townsend is a guy that just finds the daylight. He is a perfect zone runner and when they do run down hill, he will hammer it. They alternate their quarterbacks. Both of them have major effectiveness, at times. I really don't know understand the difference or the rotation. It may be that they are both sophomores and they are just trying to disperse the responsibility. Their offensive line is very effective. They are zone blockers primarily. I know they ran for some yards on us last year. I think Rick is probably more of an offensive line kind of person. I don't think they quite have the numbers they had running the ball last year, but they are effective. Terrence Holt, is a fine kickoff and punt returner and he will be an enormous challenge. We will have a plan that is specifically designed to neutralize his impact on the game.”