sunday Q&A w/meyer
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2007 7:28 am
Florida head coach Urban Meyer made the following comments during a Sunday teleconference following Florida's 45-37 win over Kentucky:
Is there any update on the injuries to Major Parker or Tim Tebow?
"They come in later today, so I'll know more then. Major Wright is very questionable – he might have to have surgery on his thumb. Tim has a shoulder contusion and he'll just be no contact all week but he'll be fine from what they're telling me. (Carlton) Medder has an issue with his heel and I'll know more about that later today."
Was the defensive line rotation planned or did it come about because of the injury to Clint McMillan?
"We had a pretty decent two weeks' work with some of those young players and we had to get 'em in there – we've said that all year and there comes a point where you have to do it. McMillan's injury forced us to get some quality playing time for some young guys. Although we're nowhere near what we expect for this defense, it's great to get some experience and actually some guys made some plays."
Why does Andre Caldwell make such a difference in this offense?
"His speed element, his leadership element and obviously he's a playmaker. We went several weeks with Percy (Harvin) being banged up, with Bubba out and Riley Cooper out and that obviously limits us. I thought Jarred Fayson, he didn't have the statistics but he had two excellent weeks of practice and was very involved in the game, played a little more than he ever played. Bubba Caldwell adds that element and he's a very good player. He's still not playing great yet – he would have been by this time if he didn't have that injury. We've just got to get him back in the flow. He started slow but he finished real strong in this game.
"The ideal offense is where you have a playmaker at quarterback, a playmaker at tailback and one on each side of the formation, so they can't roll the coverage one way or the other and take away your best player. That's every offense's goal, and with Bubba healthy at X, Percy at H and also Louis Murphy, who played a great game, CI (Cornelius Ingram) and Jarred Fayson, you have some quality players. But Bubba certainly adds the speed element we're looking for. That's the first time since Troy Bubba was back in the flow and a very active part of the offense."
Is this shoulder thing what you feared with Tebow, starting as way back as the Ole Miss game?
"It's a contusion on his shoulder and we go into this kind of thing every week. A lot of 'em aren't designed quarterback runs, he just pulls it down. I just finished watching the film where he pulled it down on a sprint out or power pass and he could have flipped it to (Aaron) Hernandez for some positive yardage and he went on his own and got plus yardage. We've got to be careful, continue to coach him up and if it's there, just manage the game. If you can flip it for a 5-yard gain or him take it for a 5-, 6-, 7-yard gain, it's his persona to just take it. So that is a concern."
Going back to the defensive line, there were six sacks in the game, were you pleased with the pass rush?
"We had six sacks so we had some guys make some plays but when you have a quarterback throw for as many yards as (Andre' Woodson) did – I don't want to take anything away from Kentucky because that is a very good offense, our coaches and myself said coming into the game it might be the best offense we've seen this year. And it's not might, that is the best offense we've seen this year. But we're not getting the continuous pressure that you expect, that we need to have. There was some progress though. Any time you see Javy (Estopinan) make a sack, and (Jermaine) Cunningham comes on and (Derrick) Harvey and I even saw Torrey Davis, the true freshman get in the backfield several times, so there is progress being made."
Can you talk about the SEC East race and how wide open it is, with every team having at least two losses.
"We kind of felt that going into the year, there was no real one team that stood out, there were a bunch of quality football teams. Vanderbilt, if they hold on to the ball at the end of the Georgia game . . . from top to bottom, the East has what, five of the six teams ranked in the Top 25? Most conferences have two, maybe three, so it tells you the balance, the quality of personnel and the quality of coaching in this league."
We all know Florida is playing so many young players, but is there a point where they're not freshmen and first-year starters anymore and you expect them to be playing more like veterans?
"At some point, and I've got to quit saying it, it is what it is, it's the seventh game of the season, the second half, and I get very disappointed when I still see some players act like they're not quite sure how to react in big-time college atmospheres. It's officially done, I don't want to hear about it any more, that's the way it is. It doesn't mean you quit improving and making emphasis (in certain areas), because there's a lot of improvement being made, but it's officially now. Let's act like we've been there before and go play hard for four to six seconds. That's our motto, it's what we do. If you can't do that, freshman or not, you're not playing."
For two straight games, the defense has not been successful on fourth down. What has to happen to rectify that?
"Whether it's high school, college or NFL, on fourth down it comes down to someone making a play. The running back at LSU was hit in the backfield and our linebacker didn't get him down and he got the first down. That young person made a play and our guy didn't. There've been other times where we have made plays on fourth down. I think guys have been in position to make plays. You look at the touchdown pass they had on fourth-and-6 or fourth-and-7, we should have made that play and that was a veteran player out there, too. It comes down to someone making a play to get the defense off the field."
How much of a weapon is Brandon James, not only when they kick it to him, but he alters the game, strategy-wise, just be being out there on returns?
"They shanked a punt, actually two of 'em and one got a good bounce. The kickoff return right before halftime was the play of the game. If you watch the play, if he goes to his left, he gets tackled, he kind of stuck to his left, went to his right and got in a footrace and gave us an opportunity to go play. Another huge play was the end of the game where we take over on the 43-yard line and came out aggressive. If you're on your own 20 or own 18, you're not going to do that, we'll just try and finish the game. Those are two game-changing performances and Brandon and his kickoff return team are a weapon for us."
You mention being unhappy with the blocking up front, yet the team still rushed for a healthy total. Are you still concerned with the running game?
"It is. Our traditional run game is. Tim Tebow and the receivers are getting all the yards for us. At LSU, we did block 'em and K-Mo (Kestahn Moore) ran hard, but I didn't feel that way (yesterday). I don't think we played particularly well up front this week."
You talked a little about changing Tim's instincts, how do you do that without taking away his edge?
"That comes with maturity. We don't let him lose his edge, number one. Number two it comes with maturity and confidence in the personnel around him. You can see him changing. A year ago he would have had many more carries because that's kind of who he is. Now he's getting a lot of confidence in distributing the ball. It just comes with experience."
Is there a certain number you'd like to see him not exceed on rushes?
"Our direct runs, which are called, you don't want more than 10 a game. He's getting about 20 carries a game but a lot of those are all of a sudden, him making a play. If you take that away from Tim Tebow, not that he's a normal quarterback, but he's not what Tim Tebow is to our offense. But what we've all got to understand is we can't get him hurt."
Is there any update on the injuries to Major Parker or Tim Tebow?
"They come in later today, so I'll know more then. Major Wright is very questionable – he might have to have surgery on his thumb. Tim has a shoulder contusion and he'll just be no contact all week but he'll be fine from what they're telling me. (Carlton) Medder has an issue with his heel and I'll know more about that later today."
Was the defensive line rotation planned or did it come about because of the injury to Clint McMillan?
"We had a pretty decent two weeks' work with some of those young players and we had to get 'em in there – we've said that all year and there comes a point where you have to do it. McMillan's injury forced us to get some quality playing time for some young guys. Although we're nowhere near what we expect for this defense, it's great to get some experience and actually some guys made some plays."
Why does Andre Caldwell make such a difference in this offense?
"His speed element, his leadership element and obviously he's a playmaker. We went several weeks with Percy (Harvin) being banged up, with Bubba out and Riley Cooper out and that obviously limits us. I thought Jarred Fayson, he didn't have the statistics but he had two excellent weeks of practice and was very involved in the game, played a little more than he ever played. Bubba Caldwell adds that element and he's a very good player. He's still not playing great yet – he would have been by this time if he didn't have that injury. We've just got to get him back in the flow. He started slow but he finished real strong in this game.
"The ideal offense is where you have a playmaker at quarterback, a playmaker at tailback and one on each side of the formation, so they can't roll the coverage one way or the other and take away your best player. That's every offense's goal, and with Bubba healthy at X, Percy at H and also Louis Murphy, who played a great game, CI (Cornelius Ingram) and Jarred Fayson, you have some quality players. But Bubba certainly adds the speed element we're looking for. That's the first time since Troy Bubba was back in the flow and a very active part of the offense."
Is this shoulder thing what you feared with Tebow, starting as way back as the Ole Miss game?
"It's a contusion on his shoulder and we go into this kind of thing every week. A lot of 'em aren't designed quarterback runs, he just pulls it down. I just finished watching the film where he pulled it down on a sprint out or power pass and he could have flipped it to (Aaron) Hernandez for some positive yardage and he went on his own and got plus yardage. We've got to be careful, continue to coach him up and if it's there, just manage the game. If you can flip it for a 5-yard gain or him take it for a 5-, 6-, 7-yard gain, it's his persona to just take it. So that is a concern."
Going back to the defensive line, there were six sacks in the game, were you pleased with the pass rush?
"We had six sacks so we had some guys make some plays but when you have a quarterback throw for as many yards as (Andre' Woodson) did – I don't want to take anything away from Kentucky because that is a very good offense, our coaches and myself said coming into the game it might be the best offense we've seen this year. And it's not might, that is the best offense we've seen this year. But we're not getting the continuous pressure that you expect, that we need to have. There was some progress though. Any time you see Javy (Estopinan) make a sack, and (Jermaine) Cunningham comes on and (Derrick) Harvey and I even saw Torrey Davis, the true freshman get in the backfield several times, so there is progress being made."
Can you talk about the SEC East race and how wide open it is, with every team having at least two losses.
"We kind of felt that going into the year, there was no real one team that stood out, there were a bunch of quality football teams. Vanderbilt, if they hold on to the ball at the end of the Georgia game . . . from top to bottom, the East has what, five of the six teams ranked in the Top 25? Most conferences have two, maybe three, so it tells you the balance, the quality of personnel and the quality of coaching in this league."
We all know Florida is playing so many young players, but is there a point where they're not freshmen and first-year starters anymore and you expect them to be playing more like veterans?
"At some point, and I've got to quit saying it, it is what it is, it's the seventh game of the season, the second half, and I get very disappointed when I still see some players act like they're not quite sure how to react in big-time college atmospheres. It's officially done, I don't want to hear about it any more, that's the way it is. It doesn't mean you quit improving and making emphasis (in certain areas), because there's a lot of improvement being made, but it's officially now. Let's act like we've been there before and go play hard for four to six seconds. That's our motto, it's what we do. If you can't do that, freshman or not, you're not playing."
For two straight games, the defense has not been successful on fourth down. What has to happen to rectify that?
"Whether it's high school, college or NFL, on fourth down it comes down to someone making a play. The running back at LSU was hit in the backfield and our linebacker didn't get him down and he got the first down. That young person made a play and our guy didn't. There've been other times where we have made plays on fourth down. I think guys have been in position to make plays. You look at the touchdown pass they had on fourth-and-6 or fourth-and-7, we should have made that play and that was a veteran player out there, too. It comes down to someone making a play to get the defense off the field."
How much of a weapon is Brandon James, not only when they kick it to him, but he alters the game, strategy-wise, just be being out there on returns?
"They shanked a punt, actually two of 'em and one got a good bounce. The kickoff return right before halftime was the play of the game. If you watch the play, if he goes to his left, he gets tackled, he kind of stuck to his left, went to his right and got in a footrace and gave us an opportunity to go play. Another huge play was the end of the game where we take over on the 43-yard line and came out aggressive. If you're on your own 20 or own 18, you're not going to do that, we'll just try and finish the game. Those are two game-changing performances and Brandon and his kickoff return team are a weapon for us."
You mention being unhappy with the blocking up front, yet the team still rushed for a healthy total. Are you still concerned with the running game?
"It is. Our traditional run game is. Tim Tebow and the receivers are getting all the yards for us. At LSU, we did block 'em and K-Mo (Kestahn Moore) ran hard, but I didn't feel that way (yesterday). I don't think we played particularly well up front this week."
You talked a little about changing Tim's instincts, how do you do that without taking away his edge?
"That comes with maturity. We don't let him lose his edge, number one. Number two it comes with maturity and confidence in the personnel around him. You can see him changing. A year ago he would have had many more carries because that's kind of who he is. Now he's getting a lot of confidence in distributing the ball. It just comes with experience."
Is there a certain number you'd like to see him not exceed on rushes?
"Our direct runs, which are called, you don't want more than 10 a game. He's getting about 20 carries a game but a lot of those are all of a sudden, him making a play. If you take that away from Tim Tebow, not that he's a normal quarterback, but he's not what Tim Tebow is to our offense. But what we've all got to understand is we can't get him hurt."