Oklahoma State University Athletics
OSU Football Coach & Player Media Luncheon Comments
April 08, 2003 | Cowboy Football
On bouncing back from the Colorado loss "That first half was tough. How do you rebound? Obviously, we've got to point to the second half in terms of how we played and our ability to play better defense. The first half, we did not execute the way we wanted to. In the second half, we came out with more execution. Offensively, the positive part is that we put some points on the board. That's how we have to approach it. But we've got to be a football team that plays two consistent halves."
On why the defense played better in the second half "We adjusted a little bit in the second half and played a bit more combination of zone and 'two-man,' as we call it. In the first half, we really did not make plays, so to speak, in terms of assignments. And that's what it really came down to. We really gave up too many big plays in the first half. Guys were hustling around -- I don't think that was the problem. It's just a standpoint of being in the right place and make the plays at your position."
On Terrence Robinson's halftime pep talk "Coaches can go in at halftime and give a great speech, yell and scream. But when you're not playing well, some kids can start to tune you out, and you want to be very positive. When I went in at halftime, I said, 'What's this all about?' And obviously, Terrence got up and said, 'Here's what we've got to do. Coach can say this, and Coach can say that. But it's about us going out, executing and making plays.' And he said it in a way that got everyone's attention, which I thought was very appropriate. And I thought in the second half, he played better, but the entire defense played better."
On the play of Aso Pogi "I think Aso would tell you himself that although his performance was good, the fact that we didn't win is what he's about, and so am I. But I think it speaks to what kind of quarterback he will continue to be. He'll be a good quarterback for this program, but the bottom line for this football team is really trying to find that 'W.' He got hit quite a bit in that ballgame, but his elbow -- not his throwing elbow -- is a little bit swollen. But as of today in speaking with our trainer, he's fine."
On Texas A&M's revamped offense "A&M's a different ballclub. You don't read about them that much this year, but they have steadily improved on both sides of the ball. They're a lot more diverse offensively than they have been in the past. It's been three yards and a cloud of dust, putting it on their defense, but with Mark Farris and Ferguson, a big-play receiver, they give you a lot more formations. Their defense is still very sound, very steady. And so that has made things a lot more complicated when you play them."
On the improvement of Ja'Mar Toombs "The whole team is improving. They came out and lost early to Notre Dame, and then Colorado went down there and beat them. But after that, they've played consistent. Their defense has gotten better. Toombs has been a factor, and at 275, he'll be a hard guy to bring down. It's going to take more than one tackler."
On the Texas A&M receivers, particularly Robert Ferguson "They've really got more speed at the receiver position, and yes, Ferguson is something special. He's a young man that we all tried to recruit coming out of high school. Texas A&M signed him, put him in junior college, and he is fantastic. He's probably one of the better receivers in this conference."
On OSU's defense in the past few weeks "What we've tried to do back there is improve. When you try to do the things that you'd done in the past, and now you're trying to do them with young guys that have not actually played a lot, it's a challenge. I think those guys are going to improve eventually, but right now, we really don't have the personnel in terms of guys that we've had in the past, playing the demand positions. Our guys will be good, but right now, we're struggling a little bit. What we've got to do is to continue to coach them and try to get better."
On how he's coping with the losing streak "As I've said before, I want what everyone else wants. And when you don't win, that's a part of the job in terms of the criticism that comes with it. But as I've discussed in the last year, where my faith is and where my strength is is where I've got to lean. But at the same time, I still want to try to bring my focus into trying to make this team better. Those things are not happening right now, but I can't hold my head. As I've said, I've got to continue to be positive, and that's the direction I'm going to go."
On Pogi's progression "I thought he was better. He made some good decisions, and he made some poor decisions. But for the most part, he got us into the right plays. I think he has to make a little bit better throwing decision; sometimes he got locked in. But I think that's freshman mistakes; that's just a learning process. But he's going to be a good player."
On the Cowboys' special teams "Our field-goal kicking right now is a bit inconsistent, and it started out being pretty good. On our punt returns, we have not averaged what we wanted to, but as I've said before, we have increased blocking kicks more. Last week, we went to more of a punt-safe situation, only because Colorado is a team that fakes a lot of kicks. I thought our kickoff returns averaged over 30 yards. But in the past, everybody looked at our return teams, and we had guys like Terance Richardson and R.W. McQuarters. Right now, we're more of a block team and haven't had the opportunity to bring then back."
On whether the team's spirit is down "I hope not. That's really part of my responsibility; it's part of our coaches' responsibility. We're a team that continues to talk in terms of how to get better. Obviously, you ask your football team to buy into it because those are the guys that are going to go out and play. Yeah, our kids are disappointed now, but there are reasons for that. What you've got to do now is to find reasons to win. You only win if you do those things that help you win."
OSU player Terrence Robinson
On the team attitude "It is hard to say. We have lost five consecutive games. We still try to remain positive and keep our heads up. We still think we can win the rest of our games in the season. It is just really hard to say right now."
On the difference between the first half and the second half "The biggest difference was in our intensity. We just came out in the second half more pumped up than in the first half. Throughout the pregame we just did not show any fire in us. I figured everybody was just holding it in until the game started. We just never got started until the second half."
On his halftime speech "We did not wrap up, and we just did not execute on defense. It was just a lack of effort. The team came out and we just were not pumped up. And I felt we just needed somebody to step up and say something to get everybody fired up so we could all be on the same page."
On what his motivation is "For my motivation I use team pride. Going out and playing for the team helps me. It helps me to want to be a better player and to help this team to be successful."
On why his halftime talk was needed "There is a lack of leadership, and I just felt someone needed to step up and say something. We need to get it out in the open. I felt when I spoke up I surprised everyone. I am an outgoing person on this team, but I have never commented on this team in that way. I think it surprised everyone that I would speak up being a leader on this team. I thought it would change everyone's aspect of the game."
On his thoughts about playing a team from Texas "I was also recruited by Texas A&M. I have a friend, Nicky Jones, he was the quarterback at the high school I played at and he plays for Texas A&M. It is just like the game when we played Texas. It is something I am very proud of, because I want to go out and beat this team from Texas as well as the other teams. It is kind of like a rivalry between Oklahoma State and Oklahoma."
On the Texas A&M offense "We play a lot of man, but I feel we still have some things we can improve on as well as running and passing. If we open up the defense, dropping back linebackers and blitzing a lot, we can stop what they are doing."
On watching A&M on television "I really have not gotten an opportunity to see them. I have been quite busy lately, playing football up here and practicing and getting ready for the games."
OSU Player Terrance Davis-Bryant
On the morale of the team "The morale of the team is still high. We just have to work hard this week and get ready for Texas A&M."
On the second half "In the first half, we came out flat-footed, but in the second half, we were moving the ball like we should. We were moving the ball in the first half, but by then it was too late in the second half."
On the offense coming around "We have been getting more confident throwing the ball. We are putting more confidence in Aso, because he has been calling the right plays and getting blitzed. He has been doing a good job with that."
On the difference between the first half and the second half "I do not think we had enough fire to begin the game. When we were in the huddle, nobody seemed excited about the game. Last week was exciting because we were moving the ball and having a lot of fun. In the first half, we were not having fun. In the second half, we came out with fire. We were moving the ball up and down the field, playing how we were supposed to play."
On why there was no fire to begin the game "I do not know why it was not there. I had fire, but it just seemed quiet on the sidelines."
On whether that fire will be there next game "We have to practice hard, and we have to pump this week up. We know Texas A&M wants to beat us, and we want to beat them, so we just have to practice hard and hope that on Saturday that we come out with that fire that we had in the second half."
On what a victory over A&M would do for this team "Any win right now would get us motivated. Since I have been here, I do not think we have beaten Texas A&M, and I really want to beat them."
On getting excited after losing five in a row "You just have to look within yourself, and if you are really a player, then you will rise up to the occasion."
On the importance to getting off to a good start "If we come out in the first half like we did in the second half in the Colorado game, then we will be all right."
On Pogi's progression "Aso has been doing great. He has been getting in and studying the defense. He knows what plays to call and when to call them when the defense is blitzing. He has been doing a great job with that."
