Instant Interview Replay: John Thompson (Nov. 25)

Instant Interview Replay: John Thompson (Nov. 25)

11/25/2003

ECU head football coach John Thompson joined ECUpirates.com for a live Instant Interview on Tuesday morning. Following is the complete transcript of his comments from the live chat session.

Allen from Bath : Coach, all I can say is hang in there. Good things are waiting for your team and you. My question: With a 1-10 record, how hard has it been to keep the team positive? And, what do we have to do to move the ball against a very strong Southern Miss defense?
John Thompson : First of all, this team has stuck together and continued to play hard. That says so much about the character of these guys. I fully expect us to play hard this Saturday. We've got to stay ahead of the chains. We've got to put them in some short yardage situations, keep them off balance on first down and not let them pin their ears back. First down success is very critical.

tommydchi : Looking back at this 1 or 2 win season what mistakes do you see that you have made this year and how do you plan on learning from them?
John Thompson : There were some things that I wish I had the foresight to recognize, in terms of our personnel, what we could and could not do -- both on the field and having players in the right position. Every year, I will evaluate every decision that I've made and learn from every experience. There are some things that I would have done differently, but we will not deviate from our plan, if that makes sense to you. It took competition and getting in games before I realized some of the attributes and qualities of our players.

Frank : Will every senior who hasn't seem any actions this year play as this will be their last game?
John Thompson : All of our seniors have contributed to this program in so many ways. I expect for them to play on Saturday.

Keng : What has been the biggest success and disappointment this season?
John Thompson : The biggest success is that this team has stayed together through very difficult circumstances in transition. The disappointment is, obviously, our lack of success in winning games. But, there has been improvement and there's been a lot of character development that has taken place.

Wyld Pirate : JT, when will we hear this current staff take some responsibility for arguably the worst season in East Carolina history?
John Thompson : I take full responsibility for this season, Wyld. I don't think there has been anybody on this staff that has shied away from any responsiblity or accountability. We haven't made any excuses and won't.

Henry : Coach, as a life long pirate fan it has been hard to watch this team. I was wondering if you could make me feel better by talking about how recruiting is going. How many committements do we have?..how many NC kids do you think we will sign/..JUCO kids? Do you plan on bringing anyone in Spring semester? If so how many?
John Thompson : Right now, we have eight commitments. It's hard to say how many NC kids we'll have. I would hope that we'd end up with 8-10 or so, but you never know about that. We are actively recruiting junior college people to give us immediate help and we may bring in three or four next semester, if we can find the right ones.

raleighpir8 : Coach, the loss to Tulane was pretty hard to deal with, bu I guess thats just where we are. One question why were our d-backs out of position on so many wide open pass plays?
John Thompson : You're right, that was a hard loss to stomach. We felt like we should have won the game, both going in and coming out of the game. We had some busts on some coverages where we have to be more disciplined in where we look and how we play different routes and different formations. That will come with experience. We're learning with an inexperienced secondary.

Scott (Greensboro, NC) : Coach Thompson, first, I would like to say I have faith in you and your approach. Remember, Lou Holtz was either winless or had only one win his first season at South Carolina. My question is what can we expectto see over the next season or so that will give us Pirate faithful something to get excited about?
John Thompson : You're right, Lou Holtz was winless. We have all learned an awful lot about our team, our program, and ourselves. We will stick to working as hard as we can to get this program back to where it deserves to be. There are a lot of things that need to be improved, but I have no doubt that we are going to get there.

Baltimore Pirate : I am so proud of this year's team and the way they improved from the first game to now. Winning really isn't everything! How hard will it be saying farwell to those Seniors who have laid the ground work for the new John Thompson era?
John Thompson : These seniors will always be very special, not just because they were the first class with this new staff, but the way that they have held this team together and stuck by all of us is a lesson we all should learn. I am very proud and it will be very tough to say goodbye to them.

'78 Pirate : Coach, will Desmond be ready for Sat. as we need hi game exp. against a very tough S. Miss. team
John Thompson : It's still very questionable. Desmond practiced a little bit yesterday, but he's still not able to go full speed. We wish he was making more progress, but it's very questionable at this point. You would hope that from Tuesday to Saturday, he'd make dramatic improvement, but that has not been the case with these types of injuries. It's just hard to really say that, yes, Desmond will be ready.

Steve (piranha) : Do you have any special plans for the conclusion of your first season as ECU's head coach?
John Thompson : Yes, go recruiting! We'll continue to evaluate everything we're doing and get better. We'll find a way to get the job done.

tommydchi : When will you be able to announce your recruits for next year?
John Thompson : That'll be National Signing Date, which is the first Wednesday in February.

Tony : As a very disappointing and shocking ( win/ loss) season winds down what lessons/ skills must we take in spring and fall practice to turn this pgm. back around. Our critical mistakes, turnovers, lack of fundamnetal skills and poor coverages must get fixed.
John Thompson : I agree, you're right on all of those. We have to get all of those things done. Fundamentals, systems, schemes, focus, belief, ability ... all of those must get better.

Scott : What has happened to Pierre Parker? I haven't seen him playing much lately. Wasn't sure if there was an injury or is he just not progressing?
John Thompson : Pierre did have an ankle injury earlier in the year and only played in a few games at the beginning of the season. He got hurt and we'll apply for a medical redshirt for him.

Crow'sNest : Has the loss of the original snapper had anything to do with the timing and blocking of the kicking game? are there any players that you will try to get medical redshirts for.(Good, Howard)
John Thompson : Michael Yartin has stepped in and done a very good job with the snapping, so that has not been the case. We'll medical redshirt Pierre Parker because it happened early in the season. Bobby and Brandon happened too late in the season to get a medical redshirt.

Jeffrey : Without divulging an inordinate wealth of information to which Southern Mississippi coaches may become privy via public forms such as the "Instant Interview" format, what is your gameplan in the imminent contest against the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles? Will your familiarity with the Southern Mississippi coaching staff, as well as the familiarity of your associate coaches such as Fred Tate, assist you in acquiring a firm understanding of the manner in which Southern Mississippi competes against its opponents?
John Thompson : First of all, you've got to go at them and attack them. If you don't, they'll have you back on your heels. Our first mode has to be attack them in every direction -- offense, defense, special teams. While they've got a championship to play for, we've got a lot at stake in terms of pride, tradition, and justifying the foundation that we've laid here. I expect this to be physical and emotional and for us to sell out in our efforts. Watching their defense, I have an understanding of what they're trying to do. It's the same system, with some obvious changes, that was put in place in 1992. That can help our preparation some. The next step is execution.

Jackie Meough : What do you see in the future for our very youthful secondary?
John Thompson : I see them getting better and better. These guys are competitors. With experience, they'll be very, very good.

ECUpirates.com : That's all the time we have this morning. Before you go, Coach, any closing comments for the fans?
John Thompson : Thank you for your interest and questions throughout the year. I appreciate you sticking by this team and hope this Instant Interview process has given you, to some degree, an insight to what has been going on. Don't give in, because we're going to get there!

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