Tuesday Press Conference Video and Quotes
10/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 13, 2009
Press Conference Video: Grobe | Adams | Bechtel | Midgett | Skinner
 Jim Grobe  | |
On the team's confidence level...
"I think we're a confident football team. I don't think we're as good as we need to be, we've got a lot improvements we need to make. Confidence is no issue, but we've got to continue to try to play well."
On Riley Skinner's performances...
"We've said all along that Riley isn't going to be the issue. If the other 10 guys around him play well they'll give him a chance to play well. That's about the way it's turned out. When the other 10 guys support him I think he does a good job."
On the division standings...
"We know how competitive the division is going to be. Everyone in the league is good. Our division is tough. The rest of our schedule is brutal. We've really got to focus on playing good football. That's going to be the key."
On balancing offensive and defensive work in practice...
"We've got a lot of room for improvement offensively. There's no question we need to run the ball better, we need to protect our quarterback better, we need to run routes better. Defensively we're improving each week but we've hit some lulls. We've got to try to play consistently. We've got to be better on third down. There are a lot of things we need to do better defensively but that doesn't eliminate our concerns about our offense."
On Clemson...
"We don't see anybody that has more talent than Clemson. They've got a good coaching staff and they've played a brutal schedule. Georgia Tech and TCU are two of the top teams in the country. They've played both of them."
On playing in Death Valley...
"It's an exciting atmosphere. The problem is it's hard to concentrate. Especially players that don't have experience playing in Death Valley, it will be a great challenge. It's really hard to play and concentrate for four quarters but that's what it's going to take. Not only concentrate, but play great football."
On Clemson's bye week...
"It's a good time to be able to heal up some injuries, I think they have some players back that they hadn't had in the lineup. We are going to take Clemson's best shot Saturday."
On the team's character...
"We found out we have a lot of heart, athletes that like to play. We've had a couple of very tough losses. But we've proven to be a pretty resilient football team. We've got a football team that's improving and wants to get better. They are doing the kind of things that you'd expect a team to do that wants to win."
On Riley Skinner's leadership...
"He's your best leader because he has no ego. You never hear him say "I" or "me." He's always first to take the blame, the last to take credit. Those are the kind of guys you want to lead your football team. The team rallies around guys that don't put themselves first."
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R-Senior QB
On the team's confidence level...
"The confidence level is pretty good compared to last year and the beginning of this year. I think we're starting to click a little bit more. The guys on the offensive side of the ball are getting a little more comfortable, a little more confident. Our offensive line is playing really well right now. They are pass protecting well, which has helped us. Our running game is getting established, Josh Adams and Brandon Pendergrass are running really hard. But you can't get too confident. We started out really well last year. We were averaging 40 points a game and then we went on a dry spell. We have to stay consistent in the way we prepare every week."
On the team coming together...
"We did start off slow, we had a tough loss at BC. But even at BC we started clicking a little bit offensively. We're starting to sharpen up. We're not making a lot of mistakes we were making earlier in the year, but we're still doing things that hurt us in terms of penalties, misthrows or misreads or dropped balls. But for the most part we are starting to feel comfortable in our offense, starting to get comfortable with our receivers. It's fun when you can start spreading the ball around."
On preparing for the Clemson defense...
"I'm going to be plenty busy this week preparing for Clemson and their defense. They do a lot of different stuff up front and also in the secondary, that if you're not studying and you're not ready for then they can come out and get you pretty quick on Saturday. That happened two years ago when we went down there. We remember what happened, we're going to do everything we can this week to make sure that doesn't happen again."
On Clemson's bye week...
"They've had an off week, they've had a lot of time to prepare. Two years ago they came out with 20 new formations and 25 different plays. We know they are going to have some stuff for us so we have to be more prepared than we usually are. It's always scary when someone has seven extra days ahead of you in preparation. They don't have to think about anything else but your team, your schemes, your personnel."
On the ACC standings...
"Every conference game is big. Our conference is so unpredictable, you get so many teams that are competitive and can beat you week in and week out. Each game means something. We just prepare like we would for an ACC opponent and be ready to go."
On playing at Clemson...
"I like it. It's a pretty exciting place to play. I enjoy going to stadiums like that. When their crowd is going against you, you have to play through 80-something thousand people yelling at you, it makes the game that much more fun. I think that's one of the reasons you play college football."
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Senior (Middle Linebacker)
On the confidence of the team right now coming off two really big wins...
"The confidence level is high right now, but every day in practice we know that we get a little piece of humble pie from our defensive coordinator, Brad Lambert. He keeps us mainstream with correcting plays and just going over everything in practice."
On focusing a little more on the defensive side of the ball in practice...
"Basically, it's offense and defense. It's a team thing. The offense is playing really well right now, and the defense is still putting together pieces. But, we're practicing hard and we're just going out there trying to make plays."
On the surprise that Clemson is only 2-3...
"Yeah, actually I'm kind of surprised. I really don't look at the record, though. I know we have to go down there in a hostile environment. We went down there two years ago and got embarrassed, so it's really going to be a challenge for us this week and record really doesn't matter to us because we just have to go play."
On the fact that this may be the biggest game of the year so far...
"Yes, sir. The defensive attitude this year is that we treat every game as big. Every game is like it's our last game, and we just thrive on working hard in practice every day and trying to go out and get a win. We want to go down there and make a statement. As you said, we're at the top spot and so we want to go down there and prove to people that we can hold this top spot."
On playing in Death Valley...
"If you don't get pumped for Death Valley, I don't think you deserve to play football. It's a great environment, and you've got to love that crowd."
On playing against Clemson's CJ Spiller...
"He's very well-respected. Our defense can't wait to meet this guy Saturday because CJ Spiller is all we hear about. He doesn't just do it on the offensive end, he does it on special teams also, so as a team we are talking about #28 this week."
On Clemson having a bye week, and thus an extra week to prepare...
"I don't know how much it will help them. I don't want to say we're not worried about their bye week, but it's all about us as a team right now. It's all about us and how we prepare."
On the importance of putting an entire game together...
"Coach Grobe is preaching that real hard, and as players we all understand what he is talking about. We know that we haven't put a game together yet, and that's what keeps us going every day. Day in and day out, watching film, practice, the extra meetings...that's what keeps us going."
On what to focus on this week in order to get a win at Clemson...
"Basically as a defense and as a team, we feel like a lot of people are expecting us to lose this week. We just thrive off of that, and we have our embarrassment from two years ago in the back of our heads this week. We've got a lot on the table this week, but we're just going to prepare for it today, tomorrow, and Thursday. We're ready."
On having a lot of local players making big plays this year...
"It always keeps you motivated. Being a hometown guy, people are right there. When you do good, you've got a text message but when you mess up people are not patting you on the back but they're telling you to do better and get your head right. It just keeps you focused and keeps you humble."
