Weekly Press Luncheon Quotes
October 22, 2007 | Football
Oct. 22, 2007
GREENVILLE, N.C. - East Carolina University Head Football Coach Skip Holtz addressed members of the media prior to this week's game against UAB. The following are selected comments:
Opening Comments:
"In reviewing the NC State game, it was a hard and frustrating loss. I know from the players' standpoint, they were extremely down and it was a very emotional game for them. They were quiet last night at practice. What is frustrating is that I think they played hard, physical and with a lot of emotion. We certainly didn't play very smart or well. We won our last three games with the defense creating a lot of turnovers and giving the offense a short field but when you make mistakes like fumbling or getting a punt blocked, it makes it very difficult to win.
"We did not play well on both sides of the ball. We had as many dropped passes as we have had all year. Rob [Kass] did not throw as accurately as he has the past few weeks.
"I give NC State a lot of credit. I think they played hard and tackled well. Daniel Evans really had a great game as he was able to make some good throws and protect the ball. You can tell that [NC State's bye week] was very beneficial to them because they corrected some of the mistakes that were plaguing them. However, we did give some things away that we didn't make them earn. When the score was 24-20, I wanted to hold them to field goal but we allowed them to march down the field and put the ball in the end zone. We have to take our bumps and bruises from this game and move on to UAB."
On UAB:
"I told the team that when they come back on Tuesday, it's time to get ready for UAB. We are back into the conference race. There are two types of teams playing in November; those that have goals to play for and those who want to spoil others opportunities. We are very fortunate to still be in the chase for the conference title. Obviously, we need some help from Southern Miss somewhere along the way but all we can do is control what we can.
"You can fall into a similar trap with UAB that you did with NC State. We said that NC State had a 1-5 record but had played some very talented teams. The same goes for UAB. When you look in conference, they have lost to Tulsa and Houston and out of conference to Michigan State, Florida State and Mississippi State. You can take the statistics and records and throw them out of the window.
"I think Coach Callaway has done a great job as he has just started. They have a very scrappy team and they play extremely hard. They are playing with freshman wide receivers that are big and fast as well as a predominantly freshman defensive front. Their strength is in their secondary and they are doing a nice job on the back end against the pass.
"I think the main concern coming into this week is us. We need to focus more on what we do and not get concerned with who we are playing. Make whoever it is earn what they get and let's worry about our execution. We have to put a better step forward."
On Injuries:
"[Quentin] Cotton should be back. He played about 29 plays on Saturday and he rotated with [Jeremy] Chambliss. Chambliss is really playing better. He is a sophomore getting on the field and you can really start to see him flourish. It's like last year when Cotton had a chance to roll with Van Eskridge. Pierre Bell came out of [the game] much better than he did a week ago as he is getting healthier. Chambliss is going to be sore this week so hopefully he can avoid slipping out. Nick Johnson will be limited this week and we will have to see how he responds to treatment. Willie Barton is out with his ankle and Anthony Johnson, a special teams guy, is out with his foot.
"Outside of those three, there are 13 who will be limited with practice time. It was a very physical game. Phillip Henry hurt his shoulder, Michael Hickman has a groin injury and Jamar Bryant tweaked his knee. All three should play on Saturday but they too will be limited in practice. Josh Coffman should be back this week which is nice because we can put Stanley Bryant at right tackle to roll with D.J. Scott. D.J. is doing some nice things in the running game but in the passing game he is struggling with some things.
"As the season progresses, we are going to have to be smart with this team as a coaching staff. With only four games remaining, we are going to have to cut practice time and take them out of pads. Guys have a tendency to be beat up at this point so we need to have them fresh for Saturday. You want to still emphasize the fundamentals without working them so hard."
On the Overall Mood Of the Team:
"They were down last night. I went in to the team meeting and they were very quiet but focused. They understand that we did not play as well as we can. We have a plan on how to win and we did not do that. We lost the turnover battle and we were not very good on third down. We gave up too many big plays as a defense and not enough of them as an offense. Following the plan is how we won the last three weeks but Saturday we failed to execute it. We need to understand that it's not enough to just play hard. Steve Shankweiler said that there are many great battles in our history from a war standpoint and all have a winner and a loser. Even the losers can say they fought hard. As a football team, we want to be good. We just aren't playing smart and we have to eliminate the key mistakes that get you beat."
On Playing So Many Games Without a Bye Week:
"It will be nice getting back into our routine after last week with fall break and everything. We could use an open date from a mental and emotional standpoint but as I told the team; we don't have it. We could sit here and talk about the advantages and disadvantages but the reality is that we have to line up and play this week. I told the team that they have until Tuesday to get [the loss] out of their systems. We play with who we have. For example, our secondary has struggled and when asked about it, I said "it's an ugly baby but it's our baby." There are no waiver wires or free agents in college football. When they come to practice Tuesday, there will be no pity party or limping around feeling sorry for ourselves. We are going to go to work and get ready for UAB."
