Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Football Hosts Annual Media Day
August 05, 2006 | Cowboy Football
Head Coach Mike Gundy
On getting back to practice
“Our staff is very pleased with the effort. We think our guys are in good condition. Coach (Rob) Glass has done a great job. He gets a lot of accolades and publicity about what he does. He has been super. Our players are moving around well and it is good to get back out there.”
On the team's improvement
“Continuity with the staff and players, everybody is back and there is a better understanding of the terminology on both sides of the football. I think our staff has a better feel for who we are as an offense and defense and what our strengths and weaknesses are. The players are understanding better and getting from one place to the next a lot faster.”
On expectations
“I expect our team to be in a bowl this year. I think we are a better football team but we have to go out and play to prove it. We have to continue to work on taking care of the football and tackle better in space on defense but we are a better football team now then we were at the end of the season last year. We cannot make a lot of bold statements however because we have to prove it on Saturdays. Me standing up here and saying that does not mean anything but I feel that way. I see things in practice that make me feel that way. I see leadership and I see guys that are better players than they were last year. All that is just talk though You have to go out there on Saturdays this fall and show that we are a better football team.“
On transfer Adarius Bowman
“We have a lot in our play book. We do a lot of things but Bowman gives you another weapon. He is a big guy and when he catches the ball he is hard to bring down. One thing he brings is valuable experience. He played in a lot of games at North Carolina. We did not have a lot of that on offense last year.”
On Bobby Reid
“Bobby (Reid) is our guy. I think we have made that very clear and we want him to understand that. We expect for him to play well because he has done a great job in the off season. He handled the negative publicity of not performing as well as a highly recruited quarterback. He understands those things so mentally he has matured in a lot of areas. We really expect him to play well. We are going to stick with him. He is our guy.”
Quarterback Bobby Reid
On the confidence the coaching staff has in him
“I'm a lot further along than I was last season and I think the coaches have enough confidence in me that if I'm struggling to let me get out there and get myself out of a bind.”
On the improvement of the offense
“We've got more players (this season), especially at wide out, that can spread it out for us. We've got a couple guys that can run it and a couple of guys that can block for us. Tight ends can block and run for us and everybody is understanding that we've been here for a year now and everything is a lot easier for us.”
“We're at the point now that whatever the defense gives us, we're going to take it. If we need to run it we're going to run it, if we need to pass it we're going to pass it. “
On being picked to finish in the bottom of the division
“Coming up my mother always taught me that it's not where you start, it's where you end.”
On injuries the past two seasons
“Coming in I was 18 years old and I didn't think I could be harmed by anything. I had to realize it's real-life situations now and I'm going to go through some things, and the faster I overcome is what's going to make me a better person. Now that I'm in the position that I am now, things seem to be going on the upper slope for me.”
Linebacker Rodrick Johnson
On losing senior linebackers
“Once we lost those guys, all eyes turned on me, is he going to be able to fill the shoes of Paul Duren and Lawrence Pinson. I feel that after learning from those guys I'm like a spitting image. I'm going to be sure to do the job and I'm going to get the job done. I have all these guys depending on me and I refuse to let my teammates down.”
On having an experienced defensive line
“That experience up front is going to hold those offensive guards and offensive tackles off my linebackers, giving them time to roam free and make plays. The checks are coming from the safeties and they're communicating with the linebackers. As a whole group, we're learning to mesh together, something we didn't have last year because of all the injuries”
On the linebacker position
“We have so much talent at the linebacker position. People talk about how young they are, but when I look at the guys I see the intensity in their eyes, I see them wanting to make plays and going out there and making plays. Even when they don't know the defensive completely, they're still out there making plays just trying to get to the ball.”
Running Back Mike Hamilton
On the improvement of the offense
“I'm a lot more comfortable. Last year everything was new for us and this year everything is just old news. We are used to it now. (Reid) is a lot more comfortable now. He's just having fun out there and not worrying about what he's got to do.”
On expectations for the season
“My goal is 1,500 (yards) this year. You look at last year and I had a bunch of fumbles. When you fumble that takes away your yardage, so if I just hold onto the ball I think I will be very successful.”
“We think we can end up No. 1 (conference). That's what every team thinks they can, but we know we can and that's what we're shooting for, that's going to be our goal for this year.
On choosing not to cut a mohawk like some of his teammates
“I'm not really into mohawks, I don't know why they're doing it. I guess they're trying to have some excitement for two-a-days because it's going to be long, so everybody needs something to laugh at.”
Defensive Tackle Xavier Lawson-Kennedy
On the upcoming season
“I want to go out on a bowl game. I don't want my last game to be here against OU. I feel like I let down the seniors last year because we didn't get to do that. That's why we push ourselves so much in the summer.”
On defensive coordinator Vance Bedford
“He's cool. You're going to work and everything, but he's not the average college coach. He's used to dealing with grown, 35-year-old men, so he's laid back and he lets you just grow. If you mess up you're going to know because he's going to pull you off the field, but he's not going to scream at you and cuss you off the field. He's still going to laugh with you and love you, but he's used to coaching grown men and that's what I like about him, because I think I'm in a state in my life where I'm not a kid anymore.
Defensive Coordinator Vance Bedford
On Cowboy heavyweight wrestler Steve Mocco
“He's a champion already and he knows what it takes to be a winner. That in itself brings leadership to something that we didn't have last season. You can never win consistently unless you have guys that understand that.”
On Rodrick Johnson
“Right now he's done a great job so far. We've only had two days of practice but he's done a tremendous job of being a leader. He was here this summer working out, getting the linebackers together going over the basic things we have to do to be successful. Right now I'm very pleased with his progress. He has to keep going in that direction and bring the young guys along with him.”
Wide Receiver D'Juan Woods
On preseason practice
“It's going great so far. The offense is molding and jelling together. The defense is stepping up and making plays We're coming along, there's a lot of competition out there and just anxious to keep it going.”
On expectations for the season
“(This year) we're the underdogs, we're fighting our way up. Other people are picking it. Everyone has their opinions on what you should be ranked. It's all irrelevant to me. We won't know until the end of the season after all the games are played.”
Offensive Coordinator Larry Fedora
On D'Juan Woods
“I expect D'Juan to play at the next level, I don't think there is any doubt about that. He's physical and aggressive. When the ball is in the air D'Juan has a knack for being able to use his body and position himself where he's always going to get his hands on the ball and that's something that a lot of guys don't have. He believes that when the ball is in the air, it's his ball.
