Coach Thompson Talks About Spring Practice
March 24, 2004 | Football
Head Coach John Thompson
Opening Comments
"We are really gearing everything up for Saturday. It will be very important in terms of competition and in terms of separating ourselves at some positions that are extremely competitive right now. This will be the most critical evaluation that we have for the entire spring."
"It has been a demanding spring for all of us. Offensively, I am sure there are a lot of questions with Noah Brindise joining us as our offensive coordinator and with Robert McFarland's offensive line there has been some changes."
"Our offense is very difficult to defend. You will see a lot of different looks offensively with a lot of different formations, getting the ball to a lot of different people in our offense. It has made us work hard on defense getting ready for that."
"Defensively I think we have played better because we have played faster. Knowing this football team, knowing our defense and where we needed to spend our time and how to do it really made a big difference there."
On the players
"I couldn't be more proud of these guys in how they have gone out there every day and worked. It has been a demanding spring but I think our guys have been hungry, I think our guys have gone out there to try and prove themselves and earn some respect. We realize where we are and that there is a lot of work to get done but I couldn't be more pleased with where we are at this point."
On Quarterbacks
"Our quarterback position is still a good battle. James Pinkney has played well. He has thrown the ball well, he has maneuvered our offense and managed our offense exceptionally well. Desmond (Robinson) has done some good things and so has Pat Dosh. Patrick Dosh hasn't been coached in two years, he has been on the scout team. He has been coaching himself for the past two years. Right now you can see every day all three of those guys getting better and better. They will probably mix with both teams on Saturday."
"Probably the best thing about this team is that we have moved the football and we haven't given up big plays on defense. I think we have been successful so far."
On the Spring Game
"We will divide the teams and be on both sides of the field. We will kick off with kick off returns. We want to look at that and evaluate that, but we certainly don't want to get anybody hurt. We are going to have a full game situation. We may cut the game time down a little bit and if it gets out of hand of if we get some guys hurt, we may run it a little faster in the second half. It will be a full game with a lot of competition. Our guys are getting juiced up about this. I am sure there will be a little bit of trash-talking going on, there already has been some between the coaches."
On the offense
"It is a totally different system. We tried to carry over a little bit but Noah [Brindise] and I talked about it and we don't feel like that is the best way to do it. We are going to put in Noah's system and Noah's offense. I have competed against this offense and this style of offense three times and it was undoubtedly the toughest style of offense to ever prepare for. I think you are going to see, even on Saturday, the possibilities of us being a lot more of an explosive team, getting the ball down the field with a lot more variety in our offense."
On the condition of Art Brown
"He is not doing much at all right now. We are just trying to get his strength up. Art is working hard every day. He is out on the practice field with us and has been a very good leader. Art has proven himself. Obviously spring practice makes you better. He would be a better player if he was out there but he needs to be a healthy play. We understand that Art is not going to be out here this spring, lets get him healthy and get him well. We look forward to seeing him in August.
On comparing last spring to this current spring
"There was a lot of unknown last year and that happens with change. We have learned from that and we are going to be better. This has been a more productive spring, there is no doubt in my mind. We have had nine practices and we are better right now after this ninth practice than we were after nine practices last year. We have gotten better and the improvement is greater."
