Wake Forest Athletics
Quotes From Wake Forest's Weekly Football Press Conference
9/26/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 26, 2000
Head Coach Jim Caldwell
On the off week:
"It came at a great time primarily because we had a host of guys who banged and bruised. We reduced the number. We have a more healthy squad than if we would have had to play a week after that Clemson game. The other thing that helped us is that we have two new quarterbacks. Ten days of preparation was a godsend."
On Anthony Young:
"The good thing that has occurred is that he has had the chance to run the second team. That's a big plus. Even though we intended to redshirt him, he has had a lot of work with the second team during that time. He's got talent but he's going to be green. He's athletic. You can see from the plays he ran in the Clemson game - he can run. He understands the game of football, he's a competitive game and he's got natural leadership skills. (The team) has absolutely gotten behind Anthony and feel good about what he can add to our offense as well.
On James MacPherson's status:
"It appears that (MacPherson) will be able to play. We are going to count on him play some. How much? I'm not sure. But, (the doctors) could also tell me on Friday afternoon that he's not going. But he's progressing well. Today, for the first time, he's going to do everything. We've been holding him out of some drillwork. They've cleared him to do everything in practice. James is a very accurate passer. He anticipates well, is extremely smart. He's got a nice arm. Going into the ballgame, Anthony is our starter. But James is going to play."
On Michael Collins' status:
"He practiced on Sunday and had no residual effects from the practice. It looks like he'll be ready to go. The problem with knee injuries, we can say they're going to play. After they work on those knees for two or three days, all of a sudden it starts to swell and they can't play."
On the offense:
"We hadn't even released the entire playbook for C.J. So with two new guys, you start over, to be honest with you. You can not expect Anthony Young or James MacPherson to do the things that a four-year starter would do.
On Virginia:
"They're an awfully good football team. They're good every year. They seem to put the same kind of team on the field every year which is incredible. They always have a good, solid offensive line. Every year, we say, ?this is the most athletic line we've faced thusfar.' This is no exception. They make a living on running the ball inside the tackles. They have the tallest receivers we see each year."
Junior Center Vince Azzolina
On the open week:
"We went back to basics, stressing technique and execution and working on the little things. We know we can move the ball, we just have to do it. When it finally does happen, it will be nice. Plain and simple, execution has been the problem.
On C.J. Leak's injury:
"You never want to see that happen to anyone, for sure. But particularly to an offensive lineman when his quarterback goes down, you take it a little personal. I'd be lying if I said I didn't.
On Anthony Young:
"The kid's an athlete. He's fast, real fast. He's got a lot of moves in the open field that no one has really seen yet. He's a heck of a player and he makes good decisions for a freshman. He's a different character than C.J. so it's a different pace. It's not a big different. Different quarterbacks have different styles in the huddle. He's a pretty cool customer. No hollering, no rah-rah. He just tells us the play and we go do it. We really believe in the kid. We're excited to see what he can do in his first starting role."
On the season:
"We still have the same goals. We still want to play in the offseason. Now, we just have to buckle the chinstrap a little tigher and grit our teeth a little bit more. "We went back to basics, stressing technique and execution and working on the little things. We know we can move the ball, we just have to do it. When it finally does happen, it will be nice. Plain and simple, execution has been the problem.
On C.J. Leak's injury:
"You never want to see that happen to anyone, for sure. But particularly to an offensive lineman when his quarterback goes down, you take it a little personal. I'd be lying if I said I didn't.
On Anthony Young:
"The kid's an athlete. He's fast, real fast. He's got a lot of moves in the open field that no one has really seen yet. He's a heck of a player and he makes good decisions for a freshman. He's a different character than C.J. so it's a different pace. It's not a big different. Different quarterbacks have different styles in the huddle. He's a pretty cool customer. No hollering, no rah-rah. He just tells us the play and we go do it. We really believe in the kid. We're excited to see what he can do in his first starting role."
On the season:
"We still have the same goals. We still want to play in the offseason. Now, we just have to buckle the chinstrap a little tighter and grit our teeth a little bit more.
