Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Coordinators Meet With Media Following Fall Practice
August 09, 2022 | Cowboy Football
STILLWATER – No. 11 Oklahoma State continued its fall camp on Tuesday as the Cowboys suited up in full pads for the first time ahead of the 2022 football season. Following a two-hour practice inside the Sherman E. Smith Training Center, both OSU coordinators and select players met with members of the media. Here is some of what they had to say:
Offensive Coordinator Kasey Dunn
On the offense as a whole at this point in fall camp:
"Good. I think we got some pieces in place. We're young, you know, and we're young again. I think I lose one receiver over the next three years or something like that. They'll all build along. They got a ton of action last year. We'll be better this year."
On the challenge of starting true freshmen at wideout in 2021:
"It was fun. It was fun because they're talented. When you're working with a group of guys like that, that have a great skill set and it's just a matter of trying to get them caught up with the speed of the game, it's fun. It's challenging, of course, but it's exciting. I look out there at the Big 12 Championship game and there's a bunch of true freshmen standing out there that are in our skill positions. That says one, they're good enough to be there and here we are in the Big 12 Championship, and two, that we've got them for a long time. It was a win-win for us."
On the potential for an offense that has a solid, consistent offensive line:
"We've had to put this guy here and that guy there; it's been musical chairs for what feels like two or three years now. Finally, we're lining up and playing the same five guys at practice every day and it's kind of nice. It's hard to say until we get there, you know, game one when we actually line up. For these guys, for guys like Caleb [Etienne], it'll be his first real opportunity to get out there and show what he can do. Once it becomes live for him, I'll have a better idea. As of right now, we have more depth. The kids are playing hard. I just feel like we're in a better position."
On whether he calls a game differently depending on who's playing quarterback:
"Well, I've been calling the game different for a couple years because if you lost Spencer [Sanders], and even though Shane [Illingworth] was an accomplished guy, what we practiced all week long wasn't built for Shane. The plays that are in for Spencer were different than the ones that were in for Shane. It's definitely different in the beginning of the year. We want to make sure you can line up your quarterback and play ball and get through a season. You can open up and do a few more things towards the end; that's what we did this year. I do think he's a guy that's got to make plays for us. We need to keep the ball in his hands as much as we can. He knows to spread it out and move the football. To answer your question: yeah, we want to try to keep the pressure off him."
On the development of the running backs during fall camp:
"I thought they looked good today. I really do. They ran downhill. I was pleasantly surprised. We want those guys to be physical runners like you saw last year with Jaylen Warren. We want to get our guys downhill and we want to push the ball. It's not a finesse offense at all. You know, everybody always goes, 'It's an air raid offense. It's this and that.' Not really. I think people would tell you we run the ball harder and more downhill than any air raid team; we led the conference last year in rushing in Big 12 play, that's not an air raid team. We're going to play physical, and those guys ran downhill today."
On an ideal number of carries per game for Dominic Richardson:
"You know that's a tough question. If the run game's rolling, you'd like him to get 30 carries if we're really going after it and running the football. If the defense presents more of a pass opportunity, then his numbers may diminish; it may be 10 carries on the game. I don't know. If he can get 15 per game, we can supplement the rest of the run game with the other guys. I'm not saying his job is locked up. We might have somebody step forward and take the reigns there. We're all out there trying to compete and put our best foot forward."
Defensive Coordinator Derek Mason
On the defensive unit:
"I like the unit right now. We're just working hard every day to get better. Everybody in the country starts at the same spot. You know, you all get x number of summer practices, and you get x number of fall practices, and everybody goes into fall camp probably about the same. It's really about, you know, over those 26 or 27 practices that you get, trying to get 1% better so the guys are chasing it right now. You know, we're going to make mistakes. Football is not a mistake-free game. The thing we want from our group, as best we can, is chasing new mistakes."
On the confidence of the team:
"This group is confident. It's hard to replace some of the production from a year ago but it's sort of like Moneyball, right? It's not replacing [Malcolm] Rodriguez, it's the idea of replacing the production. You do it with numbers so all of those inside guys, they're doing a good job of playing their game. We've tried to make it a little simpler so we can speed it up and they're doing really well. The defense is where it should be this early in camp."
On replacing last year's production:
"Football is the ultimate team game. The groups that have to take on the greatest amount of pressure really starts up front. It's a line of scrimmage game. Our most experienced guys are up front. When you look at the safeties on the back end, they've got a lot of experience, so our corners have played a lot."
On the team's experience:
"College football is a junior/senior sport, right? So, when you look at it, guys who have played special teams and guys that have been at the end of ball games, they're ready for their time. You got to be ready when your time comes and I think, you know, for a lot of these guys, this is their time. I mean, they see it, they know it. I see it in the meeting rooms, I see it when guys put in extra work outside of the meeting room, you know, I'm getting texts late night. I'm getting, you know, third and fourth year questions late at night about football and that's a good thing. I'm not getting much sleep right now, just due to the fact that these guys want the information so that's good."
On Jason Taylor:
"We've got experienced guys back there. I mean, Jason [Taylor] has been that guy. His personality is starting to take over a little bit. He knows it's his time but I'm challenging him every day. Hammer [Dan Hammerschmidt] is challenging him every day. In order to do things you've never done, you got to do things you've never done. In order to go places you've never been, you got to do things you've never done. Right now, he's challenging himself to play better, to communicate better, but really lead better and I think those challenges have been supported by the coaching staff. Sometimes guys don't feel comfortable doing things. He feels comfortable doing it, we just need to make sure at the end of the day, like for him, his confidence is there and it doesn't take away from his game."
Offensive Lineman Preston Wilson
On the flexibility of the offensive line:
"Being on the same page, having the same five guys it makes a whole big difference, you know. You want five guys that are interchangeable. We got guys that can move around to guard, center, and tackle, so that's a huge plus. We also have some good guys that just as easily could step in. Big Joe (Michalski) could step in very easily at guard or center, so that's a good thing to know that hey, we've got five, we've got six, we've got guys that are ready to go no matter what. Thank God we've been injury free this camp and we pray that we're going to continue to do that and have a great, successful season."
On personal and team improvement:
"I think I've been able to improve my game a little bit over the course of camp, and (I was) able to work on small things like steps and hand placement. I feel we've more importantly improved as a unit together. So, that's been great to see everybody step up in certain, little ways. Like in meetings, we have a thing that coach likes to do, he likes to ask, 'what's the one thing that you're going to work on today to get 1% better, to help the team?' Because that 1% is huge. So, everybody's got different goals and we kind of watch to help each other out on goals each day and motivate each other with little reminders. Before we go out, like, 'hey, remember your goal' and kind of give each other tips and tricks. So, it's been good to see us improve as a unit this week."
Defensive Tackle Sione Asi
On the importance of depth on the defensive line:
"I'm like, 300 plus pounds, so I'm going to get tired. We got a lot of guys that are going to be ready to step up to the plate when it's time, so it's pretty special. We can catch our breath rather than, you know, being on the sidelines trying to catch our breath being scared, playing timid when we go out there, but we'll be ready. You know, just like the last couple of years, we have great depth. A lot of guys came ready to practice and play, so it's huge for us, especially up front."
On returning defensive linemen:
"We got a lot of guys coming back, so we're not going to lose a step. I'm excited for the guys who are coming back because we need them. So, we're going to be solid. We just have to work on the little things, and we'll have a better year than last year."
Offensive Coordinator Kasey Dunn
On the offense as a whole at this point in fall camp:
"Good. I think we got some pieces in place. We're young, you know, and we're young again. I think I lose one receiver over the next three years or something like that. They'll all build along. They got a ton of action last year. We'll be better this year."
On the challenge of starting true freshmen at wideout in 2021:
"It was fun. It was fun because they're talented. When you're working with a group of guys like that, that have a great skill set and it's just a matter of trying to get them caught up with the speed of the game, it's fun. It's challenging, of course, but it's exciting. I look out there at the Big 12 Championship game and there's a bunch of true freshmen standing out there that are in our skill positions. That says one, they're good enough to be there and here we are in the Big 12 Championship, and two, that we've got them for a long time. It was a win-win for us."
On the potential for an offense that has a solid, consistent offensive line:
"We've had to put this guy here and that guy there; it's been musical chairs for what feels like two or three years now. Finally, we're lining up and playing the same five guys at practice every day and it's kind of nice. It's hard to say until we get there, you know, game one when we actually line up. For these guys, for guys like Caleb [Etienne], it'll be his first real opportunity to get out there and show what he can do. Once it becomes live for him, I'll have a better idea. As of right now, we have more depth. The kids are playing hard. I just feel like we're in a better position."
On whether he calls a game differently depending on who's playing quarterback:
"Well, I've been calling the game different for a couple years because if you lost Spencer [Sanders], and even though Shane [Illingworth] was an accomplished guy, what we practiced all week long wasn't built for Shane. The plays that are in for Spencer were different than the ones that were in for Shane. It's definitely different in the beginning of the year. We want to make sure you can line up your quarterback and play ball and get through a season. You can open up and do a few more things towards the end; that's what we did this year. I do think he's a guy that's got to make plays for us. We need to keep the ball in his hands as much as we can. He knows to spread it out and move the football. To answer your question: yeah, we want to try to keep the pressure off him."
On the development of the running backs during fall camp:
"I thought they looked good today. I really do. They ran downhill. I was pleasantly surprised. We want those guys to be physical runners like you saw last year with Jaylen Warren. We want to get our guys downhill and we want to push the ball. It's not a finesse offense at all. You know, everybody always goes, 'It's an air raid offense. It's this and that.' Not really. I think people would tell you we run the ball harder and more downhill than any air raid team; we led the conference last year in rushing in Big 12 play, that's not an air raid team. We're going to play physical, and those guys ran downhill today."
On an ideal number of carries per game for Dominic Richardson:
"You know that's a tough question. If the run game's rolling, you'd like him to get 30 carries if we're really going after it and running the football. If the defense presents more of a pass opportunity, then his numbers may diminish; it may be 10 carries on the game. I don't know. If he can get 15 per game, we can supplement the rest of the run game with the other guys. I'm not saying his job is locked up. We might have somebody step forward and take the reigns there. We're all out there trying to compete and put our best foot forward."
Defensive Coordinator Derek Mason
On the defensive unit:
"I like the unit right now. We're just working hard every day to get better. Everybody in the country starts at the same spot. You know, you all get x number of summer practices, and you get x number of fall practices, and everybody goes into fall camp probably about the same. It's really about, you know, over those 26 or 27 practices that you get, trying to get 1% better so the guys are chasing it right now. You know, we're going to make mistakes. Football is not a mistake-free game. The thing we want from our group, as best we can, is chasing new mistakes."
On the confidence of the team:
"This group is confident. It's hard to replace some of the production from a year ago but it's sort of like Moneyball, right? It's not replacing [Malcolm] Rodriguez, it's the idea of replacing the production. You do it with numbers so all of those inside guys, they're doing a good job of playing their game. We've tried to make it a little simpler so we can speed it up and they're doing really well. The defense is where it should be this early in camp."
On replacing last year's production:
"Football is the ultimate team game. The groups that have to take on the greatest amount of pressure really starts up front. It's a line of scrimmage game. Our most experienced guys are up front. When you look at the safeties on the back end, they've got a lot of experience, so our corners have played a lot."
On the team's experience:
"College football is a junior/senior sport, right? So, when you look at it, guys who have played special teams and guys that have been at the end of ball games, they're ready for their time. You got to be ready when your time comes and I think, you know, for a lot of these guys, this is their time. I mean, they see it, they know it. I see it in the meeting rooms, I see it when guys put in extra work outside of the meeting room, you know, I'm getting texts late night. I'm getting, you know, third and fourth year questions late at night about football and that's a good thing. I'm not getting much sleep right now, just due to the fact that these guys want the information so that's good."
On Jason Taylor:
"We've got experienced guys back there. I mean, Jason [Taylor] has been that guy. His personality is starting to take over a little bit. He knows it's his time but I'm challenging him every day. Hammer [Dan Hammerschmidt] is challenging him every day. In order to do things you've never done, you got to do things you've never done. In order to go places you've never been, you got to do things you've never done. Right now, he's challenging himself to play better, to communicate better, but really lead better and I think those challenges have been supported by the coaching staff. Sometimes guys don't feel comfortable doing things. He feels comfortable doing it, we just need to make sure at the end of the day, like for him, his confidence is there and it doesn't take away from his game."
Offensive Lineman Preston Wilson
On the flexibility of the offensive line:
"Being on the same page, having the same five guys it makes a whole big difference, you know. You want five guys that are interchangeable. We got guys that can move around to guard, center, and tackle, so that's a huge plus. We also have some good guys that just as easily could step in. Big Joe (Michalski) could step in very easily at guard or center, so that's a good thing to know that hey, we've got five, we've got six, we've got guys that are ready to go no matter what. Thank God we've been injury free this camp and we pray that we're going to continue to do that and have a great, successful season."
On personal and team improvement:
"I think I've been able to improve my game a little bit over the course of camp, and (I was) able to work on small things like steps and hand placement. I feel we've more importantly improved as a unit together. So, that's been great to see everybody step up in certain, little ways. Like in meetings, we have a thing that coach likes to do, he likes to ask, 'what's the one thing that you're going to work on today to get 1% better, to help the team?' Because that 1% is huge. So, everybody's got different goals and we kind of watch to help each other out on goals each day and motivate each other with little reminders. Before we go out, like, 'hey, remember your goal' and kind of give each other tips and tricks. So, it's been good to see us improve as a unit this week."
Defensive Tackle Sione Asi
On the importance of depth on the defensive line:
"I'm like, 300 plus pounds, so I'm going to get tired. We got a lot of guys that are going to be ready to step up to the plate when it's time, so it's pretty special. We can catch our breath rather than, you know, being on the sidelines trying to catch our breath being scared, playing timid when we go out there, but we'll be ready. You know, just like the last couple of years, we have great depth. A lot of guys came ready to practice and play, so it's huge for us, especially up front."
On returning defensive linemen:
"We got a lot of guys coming back, so we're not going to lose a step. I'm excited for the guys who are coming back because we need them. So, we're going to be solid. We just have to work on the little things, and we'll have a better year than last year."
Players Mentioned
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