Wake Forest Athletics
Tuesday's Football Press Conference Quotes
8/31/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 31, 2004
Head coach Jim Grobe On the offensive line's youth: "I feel better today. I was uneasy in the spring and a little uneasy at the beginning of August, but our linemen have made improvements. I think we're ready now. We had good competition for two or three spots on the line and we will play two or three players in those spots. Everyone will get some playing time this weekend. We had eight or nine guys competing for playing time and they will get it. If we play well up front then we will have a chance. Our offensive line is young and has been inconsistent. It is a work in progress and will be during the season. Players will be moving up and down the depth chart. Those two or three spots will be open for anyone to take." Offensive line continued: "The older guys are playing well. I feel that our front has competed really hard. Our philosophy has always been to keep it simple. We want our guys to be aggressive, and being simple is not necessarily a factor of our youth." On coaching the revenge factor: "If you didn't play well one year, the next year you do not really have to tell the kids too much. They really want to get that bad taste out of their mouth. I see it as much a redeeming rather than revenge. This game [against Clemson] has grown into a rivalry for our guys over the past few years." On the switch to the 4-3 defense and recruiting for the defense: "I didn't have a timetable of switching defenses [from the 3-3-5 base defense]. It depends on recruiting. We've always tried to find the best players that we can find. We really try hard not to take an average football player just so we can fill a position. The guys that we wanted sometimes we didn't get, so we didn't go after just anyone else. The switch will really help our defensive line. Last year our ends had to line up over tackles last year, and a lot of times this year they will be over tight ends. The interior linemen are better run [stoppers], and this suits us a lot better. We can be pretty specific in the abilities that each position needs." On Chris Barclay: "He's stronger this year. He had another spring and August under his belt. I don't think we saw a healthy Chris Barclay last year until the fourth or fifth game. I'm hopeful that we'll see a full 11 games from him. He has very good foot speed. He is a track-oriented runner, and usually those guys run east to west, but he has a knack to go north and south. Other than the bad ankle last year, he has been very durable. He is just a good football player. He is one of those guys that you would pick in a sandlot game; he's just a good player." On the game against Clemson: "Our players were hit hard on our finish last season. They are now determined to play well. I think our guys are talking about taking our best shot 11 times this year. We will go down and give them our best shot in their backyard. They have a lot of guys back. Charlie Whitehurst is being talked about for the Heisman Trophy. We have to concentrate on our blocking and tackling and not worry about the environment and Clemson. We need to focus on our game." Junior Running Back Chris Barclay On his past success against Clemson: "I don't really know what it is. I've had pretty good success playing them. They have a defense that pursues really well. They are a very focused team and they do the little things well. We will have another good game plan for them. I am focusing on us. We'll be ready for this weekend." On the conference's competitiveness: "On any given Saturday, you can lose. You have to be focused each week. One game can put a damper on the season. Especially in the new ACC, there will be some really good games. After our loss at Chapel Hill last year, we just got down a lot and didn't really recover." Senior Defensive Back Marcus McGruder On the season opener: "This is one of the most exciting parts of the season. You don't really know what to expect. You don't know how they have changed offensively. You can watch tape on them, but you can not prepare for changes they have made. It is real exciting coming out of camp. I want to see how much we have improved. We don't know how effective our defense will be, but we think it will be real effective. You have to play each game because you don't know who is weak and who is strong. Everyone is playing their first game of the season. We just need to make sure that we are a strong team." On changing to the 4-3 base defense: "The main change for us is that we can stop the run a lot better. [The defensive linemen] are getting into the gaps better and quicker, and that gets us our reads quicker. We can now execute our play calling quicker. [The defensive backs] experience is a huge plus. We really improved over the spring and in preseason and are adjusting to the new defense."
