Watch Tuesday's Football Press Conference in the All-Access Archives
Oct. 17, 2006
Get the inside scoop on the Hurricanes as they prepare for the upcoming football game at Georgia Tech this Saturday.
Click here to watch the press conference on Canes All-Access
October 24, 2006
Coach Larry Coker
Opening statement…
“It’s good to be back on the practice field today. We had regular Sunday practice two days ago. We had a lot of preparation yesterday. We are going to Atlanta to play a very talented Georgia Tech team, a very talented football team. Obviously, they lost a very tough game last week. The game was closer than the score indicated. It was 17-7 going into the fourth quarter. They lost to a very good Clemson team, obviously. We have a challenge set out for us. They have a great wide receiver. I think the quarterback is very special. I think Reggie Ball is a special player. I think Clemson did a good job and put pressure on Reggie, but I think that’s something that we’ve got to do. We’ve got to make sure. We will certainly take control of him and contain him because he is the key to their offense. Calvin Johnson. The other Johnson had a good night against Clemson. Defensively they have a lot of starters back. Their defensive front and their offensive front are veteran players. I feel like their linebackers are some of the best in the league. It is definitely going to be a challenge for us.”
Who will defend Calvin Johnson…
“We will have a plan, but we’re trying not to isolate too many guys one on one with him. He’s such a mismatch physically. I know there’s a lot said about not getting the ball to him last week. They are going to try and rectify that this week, but we will have to have some combinations. Some times we will be singled up and sometimes Glenn (Sharpe)’s size can help us out. Also, if you leave Kenny Philips out there that there is a possibility that his size can make a difference as well. We have to make sure that we have different plans for him.”
What did Clemson do to shut down Calvin Johnson…
“They played a lot of two-deep. I think that was one thing. They put a lot of pressure on the quarterback which I’d say was the second thing. There were times as you look at the tape in the comfort of the air conditioning that you could say `Well, he’s open here. I think I could hit him here.’ Sometimes with all these things going on it doesn’t happen. I think the thing too is like any offense sometimes it’s hard to get the ball to any one player. They tried to do some things, but it wasn’t as productive for them as they’d like.”
Can a wide receiver beat you…
“Well, I hope not. That’s the key. We can’t let a wide receiver beat us. The quarterback touches the ball every time. If you snap it seventy times, he touches it seventy times. A great wide receiver has at most ten catches a game. That’s a pretty good day. I think it’s pretty hard. Football is such a team game, it would be hard for one player to beat you; maybe more a running back then a wide receiver. Sometimes Barry Sanders could go out and beat you. Sometimes that is difficult for a wide receiver.”
What can Kenny Philips bring to GT game…
“I think Kenny Philips is going to be a great player. He’s smart, competitive, has great skills, and he’s just a playmaker. He was one of the ACC Players of the Week. He is a terrific football player. He’s the total package, like some of the guys we’ve had. He’s like a Sean Taylor or an Ed Reed. Like I said before the season, he’s kind of a combination of Reed and Taylor. He’s got more Taylor-type ability and smart play like Reed.”
What did Georgia Tech do last year…
“People will tell you when they blitz you, you’ve got to make them pay. Their blitz mentality is different. With a zone blitz you’ve got the blitz packages but there is still a three deep secondary playing coverage. It’s not like this guy is isolated out there and you are going to go on and hit home runs. First of all, you’ve got to take advantage and run the ball. You’ve also got to be able to protect and hit the seams of the defense because they do allow seams in their defense to allow you to make some plays. They don’t really allow you many home run type opportunities.”
On Javarris James as a starter RB…
“He was having trouble running because he was getting nailed in the backfield. There is nothing wrong with him. There is not a health issue. He didn’t get a lot of opportunities.He will be the starter.”
On Sam Shields coming along…
“He’s a true freshman and I didn’t think you would see him emerge right away and I think you’re starting to see that now. He still hasn’t played a complete game. Sam got tired and lost his mettle. He dropped a pass when we were trying to run the clock out. We were trying to make a first down and he dropped the pass. He’s a freshman. You get these guys in the National Football League and they talk about these rookies and they’re great players, but after about eight games they are ready for a month off and the bowl game. They still have eight more games left and they only played eight games, not including the four preseason games. Sometimes I think mentally you sort of hit the wall. That’s not the case with Sam, but he’s a work in progress.”
On importance of this game…
“We have our opportunities. When you have those opportunities you have to go and seize it. This is Year Three that we’ve played in this league. Year One, we played for the ACC Championship. Year Two, we lost to Georgia Tech or we would’ve played for the ACC Championship. It’s not like we’ve been out of sight, out of mind. Bottom line is we weren’t there. How disappointing is it? Very disappointing. Where we are at right now, we are five and two. You look around the country at all the 5-2 teams and there are some pretty good football programs. The point of that is we are still in position to be where we want to be. Now we’ve got to take advantage of that. You go to Atlanta and I’m sure Chan (Gailey) is telling his guys `Look where we are.’ I like this position. I like where we are. Now we have something to play for. Our players know that and they will be ready to play on Saturday.”
Ryan Moore’s return…
“Ryan Moore will practice today. We will make the decision whether he’ll be back and if I will reinstate him for Saturday, but he definitely will practice today.”
“Yes he is in good enough shape to possibly play against Georgia Tech. He has not been working out with us, but he has been working out.”
“According to what I’ve read, Darnell Jenkins has had twelve surgeries on that knee. Honestly, he’s had one and he just had it. He will be out for a few weeks and we’ll see how that progresses.”
“I mentioned Sunday to Rashaun that I am really please him with the practice last week. He’s one of those guys that I’ve talked about in these type of meetings before. When you watch guys they excite you. He excites you. He catches. He runs. He’s kind of a free spirit. He just wants to play. I’m really glad to see him get that opportunity.”
Brandon Meriweather at CB…
“I think we still need to use him in both areas. We have so many defensive backs, but I think he definitely will be able to play corner for us.”
“Fantastic. Lance Leggett has reinvented himself, not that maybe he needed to. Lance, by his own admission, was not pleased with the way he played last season. He’s a different player now. He’s a very aggressive player. What I mean by that is the way he attacks the football, blocks, and those type of things. Even the play where he got the foolish penalty where he spiked the ball, it wasn’t a celebratory play. He was frustrated with himself for running out of bounds. He is a different player and he’s very special.”
On what Georgia Tech did last year…
“When you look back at it, they didn’t bring anything that we didn’t know that they were going to bring. There wasn’t anything unexpected. It wasn’t anything that we couldn’t have picked up. It was similar blitzes to what we’ve seen all year. Last year we didn’t do a very good job of exploiting the open zones when teams do that. I think this year we will be a lot more prepared, a lot more ready to handle it.”
On his comfort level this year…
“A lot more. I’m a lot more comfortable in recognizing a blitz and knowing where I have to throw the football in situations like that. I’m a lot more comfortable as opposed to last year.”
On GT game from two years ago…
“That was the first meaningful playing time I had gotten. Last year, things didn’t go in our favor. This year it’s a big game. It’s really kind of make or break time for both teams. There is a lot riding on this game. We will be ready come Saturday.”
On Kyle’s stats…
“We have two losses so to me that’s what everybody should rate their performance on. If we were 7-0 and everything was running smooth, we’d all probably have a lot better stats. We have two losses, but now it’s a case of what are we going to do about it. There are so many things that are being stacked against us right now and we are the only ones that can get ourselves out of it by going out and winning the rest of our games. To me, those are the only stats that matter.”
On running the shotgun for the Duke game…
“It was something that was a little new and a little different. We felt like that would give us the best chance to do some things against Duke. We wanted a quick game. We wanted to get the ball to our playmakers, and involve a new one with Rashaun Jones. I like it. It’s easier to see. You also have to be balanced in the fact that once you’re in shotgun you can’t run the ball every time.”
On what Rashaun Jones brings to the game…
“I think he’s bringing the element of yards after the catch, which I don’t think has been as prevalent over the past couple of weeks. He’s the type of guy who can take a little bubble screen and get some good yardage after it. Sam (Shields) did the same thing last week. That makes my job easier and they make me look good. Throw those little swing passes and they get fifteen yards.”
On Ryan Moore’s return…
“From the standpoint of him being able to practice again. First of all, it’s just good to see him back out there in the room again. I think it’s going to really beneficial having a wide receiver with a lot of game experience, someone who knows the game. It will really help those young guys out. We have Rashaun, Sam, and Ryan Hill all those guys who don’t have a lot of meaningful playing time. To have a guy like that, he’s basically another coach. To have him back in the mix is beneficial for me also.”
On Sam Shields…
“He made the plays in the summertime, so everybody knew that he had the ability. But this past game he kind of stepped out a little bit. The touchdowns that he had; one of them he went up and snatched the ball, one of them he cut all away across the field and it looked like his highlight tape. I think he just went out there and had fun. He made a few mistakes at the end of the game and he knows that has to be corrected. For a freshman kid, I think he’s doing a real good job.”
