Meet the Press: Boston College Game
Head coach Al Golden met with the media Tuesday to discuss the Miami Hurricanes’ 2012 season opener at Boston College. Saturday’s game will kick at 3:35 p.m. EDT on ABC/ESPN2.
Opening Statement…
“Welcome back everybody. As always we thank you for your coverage of the Miami Hurricanes. We’re excited on the road to kickoff the ACC season and a team that got the best of us here at home again last year. It’s great opportunity for our team to go on the road certainly we’re carrying a lot of young guys with us their first experience in the ACC and college football but we’re excited, we’re excited about playing a really good team on the road Saturday in Chestnut Hill.”
On opening the season on the road…
“The time to complain about the schedule is when it’s being made. Right now we’re playing BC on the road and that’s the way it is. Not going to do us any good to make an excuse or to complain about. Honestly I don’t know if there’s a coach that would stand before you and say we’d like to play so and so or start a little easier…That’s whom Miami has traditionally played. Miami has not traditionally played an easy game to open up the season.”
On ending 2011 and opening 2012 against Boston College…
“I think they’re different teams. They have 41 returning lettermen and we’ve lost 24 lettermen. We’re a completely different team. They have almost all their starters back, including their QB who I think is a big-time player. I don’t know. They have a new (offensive coordinator), which is certainly something we have to prepare for. I think certainly we’ll see a little bit of both of those philosophies show up in that offense as well. We’ll see where we’re at on Saturday. Last year’s game doesn’t have a bearing.”
On the personality of this year’s team compared to last year’s…
“I’m not worried about last year; I think a team is reborn every year…This team’s personality is remarkably different than last year’s team…The challenge lies ahead. It’s not about worrying about any game right now or really any day than how we practiced today and how we prepare the rest of the week and how we play Saturday.”
On the difference between 2012 and 2011 teams…
“The commitment they’ve made in the offseason. The gains they’ve made in their conditioning and strength and maturity they exhibited throughout the whole camp. It’s been a fun group to coach in camp and it’s a group that has unity. Hopefully they’re going to carry that unity; they’re going to need too. BC is 12-3 in their last 15 openers. It’s going to be a tough place to play. Hopefully our young guys have some poise and play like they’ve been playing.”
On the depth chart…
“For us, it’s two acres and a ball. We’re not worried about anything other than executing. There are a lot of guys on that two-deep that are going to play and are going to play early.”
On rotation and depth competition on offense…
“Wide out you’ll see a bunch. It’s going to be 86 degrees at kickoff; we’ll rotate all those guys. You’ll see all four of those tight ends and three or four running backs. That’s where a lot of your competition is. In the secondary, you’ll see all those guys but whom the starters going to be at corner spots and safety spots remains to be seen.”
On Stephen Morris…
“Jedd (Fisch) put him in charge of one of the freshman everyday (during spring drills). Working on footwork, working on his reads, working on preparation, his film study. Making sure they’re studying the playbook and doing well on their tests. I think that helped our players. We always talk about players coaching players and we’re starting to get some more of that. Reggie Bush on ‘Hard Knocks’ last week said when it comes from a coach, it sounds like a bunch of rules. (It) resonates when it comes from within.”
On Morris’ improvements from 2011…
“Light-years better. The confidence he shows, he’s executing it. He has more self-confidence. He has lead in every aspect you have to lead in. Summer conditioning, film study, post-practice perspective. He’s done it by example. It’s given him a little more of a foundation or platform to stand on and lead. He’s unquestioned our leader right now.”
On blocking out external elements…
“I just want to go out and play. Let’s be accountable to each other. Let’s be internally driven. Let’s not talk about it. Let’s be about it. Let’s go do it. Stop worrying about the external we’re in for a long year if we’re worried about the external. Look, someone asked me about the storm the other day; it feels like we have been in a storm for 19 months now. I feel like Lieutenant Dan on a shrimp boat in the gulf. We got to stop talking and start playing.”
On leadership qualities…
“I think the bottom line is I never really sit in front of the team and talk about a senior leader or freshman leader or junior leader. To me if you have leadership qualities and you exhibit them everyday and you’re disciplined everyday and are the same guy everyday and you have consistency you have a platform to lead. We need more guys to lead. I think Denzel (Perryman)’s in that same category. Hopefully freshman guys that step up and lead. You need leaders on the team and leaders in every class. What you’re seeing from (Anthony Chickillo) is him being a leader of his class to a leader of his team, and we need more of that.”
On Shane McDermott…
“I think that’s another situation where he has got maturity that’s beyond his experience. He’s tough. He’s smart. He’s doing a great job with his line calls. He’s going to be tested. These two inside guys are really physical and the one guy they have is as strong as can be and he is a back up right now. If that’s the case those guys are going to be strong and physical. Shane’s done a great job leading and preparing for this season.”
On Brandon Linder mentoring Erick Flowers…
“I think he has settled Flowers down. I can promise you one thing. We have never talked about Ereck Flowers‘ rage or his experience or inexperience and a lot of that has to do with Linder. Communicating, keeping him poised even when they run off I can see Linder talking to him about sliding… Having Linder’s experience in there is settling for a guy like Flowers.”
On amount of playing time for Duke Johnson at BC…
“There are certain touches in game that he’ll get… He won’t carry the load that Mike (James) or Eduardo (Clements) will but we hope to get him out there and get him some touches. Like all the other guys, let’s see how they respond to college football.”
On Boston College crowd…
“I’m not going to make any excuses. Noises are going to be there. They have a tremendous student body. The percentage of students that go to the game is incredibly high. It’s obviously a big game for both universities, ACC game. There have been some great games between the two universities over the years. Anticipation, excitement. It’s going to be loud. I expect Stephen (Morris) will be much better than last year.”
On playing for and working with Coach Frank Spaziani…
“Coach Spaz is a tremendous man. Class act. I go all the way back to 1985 with Frank; he recruited me when he was at Virginia. I had a chance to work with him at BC and he’s always been someone our family is close with. I have an incredible amount of respect for him. When you look at his teams, they don’t beat themselves; they’re fundamentally sound, and they’re well coached, disciplined. Top 5 or 10 in the country in penalties. Tough, rugged, strong. A lot of that has to do with Frank’s personality.”
On how many freshmen will play at Boston College…
“15 true freshmen. Before it’s all said and done, there will be more. Guys right now who are ready – probably 14 or 15.”
On the amount of underclassmen on the roster, depth chart…
“It is what it is. I think somebody said we have 64 freshmen or sophomores on the team and 34 on the two-deep. We haven’t been a team that’s making accuses or worrying about that. They have to go out, perform, play and have fun. At the end of the day, it’s football, have some poise and go out and execute.
“What I think is profound is how the older guys, the Mike James, Stephen Morris, (Brandon) Linder, Shayon Green, (Anthony) Chickillo and them reaching out to young guys and trying to bring them along. We’re trying to get them through game week now. Keep them on task, trust that this process is going to deliver them. That’s all we really focus on is winning everyday.
“I don’t think there’s any question we’re going to learn a lot. I think you can say that every year, but we’re going to learn a lot. Whether these guys can really hold it together, play with poise and trust their technique and all of that can erode with nerves. Go out and have fun. Go out and play. We’re not putting undue pressure on them. What they were told when they were being recruited, when they got here, and game week is all congruent. I think they all understand why they were recruited by the University of Miami, and now’s the time for them to go show it.”
