252cane
All-ACC
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2013
- Messages
- 15,843
Do you have a sense yet where if you have the personnel to play the style you want?
“All we have done up to this point [is where shorts and shirts in practice]. We won’t know until Saturday. These practices are just meant to get used to helmets and it is a study or review session. The guys have the basics of the defense and now they have to be able to operate when the physicality ramps up when the pads come on.”
Are the players understanding what you want?
“There is a level where you think you know and then there is a level where you know you know. We don’t expect them to fully understand everything we are doing. We understand it is going to be a process. We just want to keep it simple to where they can function in the basics of our defense and learn the things that are most different. We are not trying to make this about scheme. We are trying to make this about personnel. All we have heard about is scheme, scheme, scheme. The scheme is not going to save us. The accountability comes from the personnel we have and the first thing we have to learn is if our players are good enough or not. They have walked around as if they are not the problem and some of them may be and some of them may not be. That is really what this spring is about—who is really good enough to be here and get Miami to where it should be?”
Do you have any sense of what you have right now in your secondary?
“For sure, we will be green on the back end. Some of the younger guys have made some steps. It is early at this point, but we have competition back there and we have guys that can help us in the fall. I am curious to see how they respond in the coming weeks. Redwine and Jackson and Henley played very little last year, but watching their ability to run around, I think they can do it. The question is can they do it consistently and within the framework of the defense?[/b]
The numbers are down at linebacker too it seems. What are your thoughts on that group?
“You can tell with Jermaine Grace that he appears to have the sense of urgency that you'd expect a senior to have. Beyond that, without really understanding what Darrion Owens can do, we are green there. We are going to try and mix and match and find the best three and then find the best three behind that group. Obviously, right now we are running around with our pajamas on and they can all look good. It is going to be fun to see what those guys look like when the ball gets run down our throat on Saturday.”
Guys are saying they are having fun and you are still getting on them. Is that what you want out of the group?
“What we want to do as a coaching staff is when it is not good, we will tell them it is not good and when it is good we will tell them it is good. I think as a player, that is all you can ask for. As a coaching staff, we are fully invested in the development of our players. That is all you can ask for. They may not like what we tell them, but they will know it is the truth as far as we can see it. I think if they know we care about them and we are there for them, they will respond to that. On the first day we had to get on them a little bit about playing with more passion. They are learning what that means and we want to be a team that when you come watch us play that we look like we are playing with the proper passion.”
Do you feel like the culture change is happening?
“The one thing you can see is that the kids are willing. They have bought into what coach Richt is saying and they want to be coached hard. They get it. Nobody here is happy with the amount of games that have been won recently.”
What are your first impressions on the guys you have on the defensive line right now?
“I think we have some pieces there to be a pretty disruptive defensive line. They work with coach Kuligowski and I thin that is crucial. I think when you start with Muhammad and Thomas on the outside, they are guys that can give an offense some problems off the edge. To me your defensive line is only as good as your eighth best guy because with the tempo offenses you have to roll two defensive lines to have a chance. I see the same thing inside with the depth we have and we may be able to roll four or five defensive tackles and same thing at end with four or five defensive ends. We are just playing tag right now, but physically I think we have some guys that can be disruptive.”
What do you feel like Gerald Willis can bring to the defensive line?
“He is very blessed athletically. He has got great agility for a guy his size and a good knack for being hard to block. He plays in the backfield and makes plays behind the line of scrimmage. That is a big part of what we want to do. His attitude has been good. He is willing to learn and work and if we want to the the type of defense that we want to be, we need guys like Gerald who can make those type of plays."
“All we have done up to this point [is where shorts and shirts in practice]. We won’t know until Saturday. These practices are just meant to get used to helmets and it is a study or review session. The guys have the basics of the defense and now they have to be able to operate when the physicality ramps up when the pads come on.”
Are the players understanding what you want?
“There is a level where you think you know and then there is a level where you know you know. We don’t expect them to fully understand everything we are doing. We understand it is going to be a process. We just want to keep it simple to where they can function in the basics of our defense and learn the things that are most different. We are not trying to make this about scheme. We are trying to make this about personnel. All we have heard about is scheme, scheme, scheme. The scheme is not going to save us. The accountability comes from the personnel we have and the first thing we have to learn is if our players are good enough or not. They have walked around as if they are not the problem and some of them may be and some of them may not be. That is really what this spring is about—who is really good enough to be here and get Miami to where it should be?”
Do you have any sense of what you have right now in your secondary?
“For sure, we will be green on the back end. Some of the younger guys have made some steps. It is early at this point, but we have competition back there and we have guys that can help us in the fall. I am curious to see how they respond in the coming weeks. Redwine and Jackson and Henley played very little last year, but watching their ability to run around, I think they can do it. The question is can they do it consistently and within the framework of the defense?[/b]
The numbers are down at linebacker too it seems. What are your thoughts on that group?
“You can tell with Jermaine Grace that he appears to have the sense of urgency that you'd expect a senior to have. Beyond that, without really understanding what Darrion Owens can do, we are green there. We are going to try and mix and match and find the best three and then find the best three behind that group. Obviously, right now we are running around with our pajamas on and they can all look good. It is going to be fun to see what those guys look like when the ball gets run down our throat on Saturday.”
Guys are saying they are having fun and you are still getting on them. Is that what you want out of the group?
“What we want to do as a coaching staff is when it is not good, we will tell them it is not good and when it is good we will tell them it is good. I think as a player, that is all you can ask for. As a coaching staff, we are fully invested in the development of our players. That is all you can ask for. They may not like what we tell them, but they will know it is the truth as far as we can see it. I think if they know we care about them and we are there for them, they will respond to that. On the first day we had to get on them a little bit about playing with more passion. They are learning what that means and we want to be a team that when you come watch us play that we look like we are playing with the proper passion.”
Do you feel like the culture change is happening?
“The one thing you can see is that the kids are willing. They have bought into what coach Richt is saying and they want to be coached hard. They get it. Nobody here is happy with the amount of games that have been won recently.”
What are your first impressions on the guys you have on the defensive line right now?
“I think we have some pieces there to be a pretty disruptive defensive line. They work with coach Kuligowski and I thin that is crucial. I think when you start with Muhammad and Thomas on the outside, they are guys that can give an offense some problems off the edge. To me your defensive line is only as good as your eighth best guy because with the tempo offenses you have to roll two defensive lines to have a chance. I see the same thing inside with the depth we have and we may be able to roll four or five defensive tackles and same thing at end with four or five defensive ends. We are just playing tag right now, but physically I think we have some guys that can be disruptive.”
What do you feel like Gerald Willis can bring to the defensive line?
“He is very blessed athletically. He has got great agility for a guy his size and a good knack for being hard to block. He plays in the backfield and makes plays behind the line of scrimmage. That is a big part of what we want to do. His attitude has been good. He is willing to learn and work and if we want to the the type of defense that we want to be, we need guys like Gerald who can make those type of plays."
