Wake Forest Athletics
Weekly Press Conference Video & Quotes: Sept. 5
9/5/2017 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeFB)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson, running back Matt Colburn II and safety Jessie Bates III met with the media Tuesday (Sept. 5) afternoon to discuss the Demon Deacons' ACC opener against Boston College on Saturday, Sept. 9.
Head Coach Dave Clawson
Opening Statement...
"Just to wrap up last week's game. It was a good win and we are 1-0. It was a game where we had a lot of favorable personnel matchups. What I was most pleased about was we didn't have a lot of the Game 1 mistakes. There weren't many procedures and we took care of the football until late in the game. The other good thing was we got to play a lot of players. We had 57 players play 10 snaps or more and only two players play more than 50 snaps. The good news is we won, we played relatively clean and we came out of it healthy. "Now as we head into week two, we haven't been tested yet. Boston College was tested. They found a way to win a four-quarter game against Northern Illinois, who is always one of the best teams in the MAC. It is a tough place to play and they went in there with a freshman quarterback and found a way to win.
"As always, with Boston College, it starts with the defense. They are excellent, year-in and year-out. They have two defensive ends that are probably as good as any one-two end combo in the country. Landry could be a top-one pick, a top-five pick, a top-ten pick. He is as talented a pass rusher as there is in college football. Our league has a lot of great defensive ends, we have one of them, and he is certainly one of the elite players in our conference. He was a nightmare for us a year ago. We couldn't block him. On the other end, Allen, is an exceptional player as well. Their two tackles are stout and we have never been able to knock them off the ball. We haven't in our three years here. Their linebackers are instinctive and experienced. They have the same collection of players in the secondary that we couldn't get open against. They are extremely well-coached. Jim Reid and Paul Pasquolani are two of the best defensive minds in the country. Every time we have played BC, it has been a 60-minute, low-scoring game that has come down to the last possesion. It has been like that for three years in a row. We have to be prepared for that type of game.
Offensively, they are very improved. Like any Steve Addazio team, their offensive line is physical. The running back, Hillman, when he gets his shoulders north and south is a very physical back. They have big receivers who can body-up and make plays on deep balls. Their quarterback, Anthony Brown, is a young man out of New Jersey that we recruited. We really liked him in high school and offered him. We thought he was an outstanding player. He got game one under his belt. He is athletic, makes plays with his feet and is now 1-0 as a starter. This has always been a huge game for us. We are in conference and in division. It is a team that we know and it will be a hard-fought game where we will need to play well in order to win. I think our players look forward to the challenge."
On last week's win over Presbyterian:
"We needed that game because we have four new coaches. Even though I thought our players played clean, there were a lot of things from that game that we need to clean up. There are things that we did not do well that, as coaches, we saw that we did not cover a route well but we got a great pass rush. That play this week is six points. Where we are right now with all the new coaches and some of the new guys we have on defense, I'm glad we had it. There is also a realization that we have 11 more games and we will not have that type of personnel advantage that we had last week."
On Wake Forest's O-Line and the challenge of facing BC's D-Line:
"We're playing a lot of the same guys that have been playing for us (on the offensive line). They played as freshmen, then they played as sophomores, and now four of them are juniors. Everybody we play on the offensive line is now in their third year in the program or later. We should be improved. However, the ACC is a great defensive line league. People talk about NC State's, Florida State's, Clemson's and Louisville's, but BC's is right there with them. This is a legitimate top 10 defensive line in the power five, and unfortunately, we play five of the 10. We are a better team, I believe that. With our schedule, we better be better and test number one is this week."
Junior running back Matt Colburn II
On Boston College:
"We see a team that is disciplined, athletic and a team that's really confident in what they do. They have a really good front and their back is solid. Their secondary is good as well. It'll come down to who makes the most plays and plays smart football without turning it over."
On Boston College's defense:
"It's not going to be easy. Boston College has Harold Landry, they're projecting him to go first round, but the only thing we can worry about is what we do with the ball. We're going to stick with our scheme and stick to our technique. We have to make sure we don't commit careless mistakes, procedure penalties, things like that and make sure we're sound all week. We should be able to move the ball."
On the first ACC matchup of the season:
"This is a huge game for us. Like Coach Clawson has been saying all week, this is a ring game. Our goal is to win the ACC Championship and in order to do that, this is a game we need to win to get closer to our goal. This will be a huge game for us."
On Wake Forest's performance against Presbyterian:
"It's so encouraging, especially looking back to my freshman year and seeing almost the polar opposite. We've got guys with experience, guys like Greg Dortch, where you don't know what will happen but you know it's going to be good. Guys in the perimeter like Scotty Washington and Cortez Lewis that can get the ball at any time. Then you have me, Cade Carney and Arkeem Byrd who will hold it down it the backfield. It's encouraging knowing that we have multiple weapons in our arsenal."
Redshirt sophomore safety Jessie Bates III
On Boston College:
"They're a great team. They're very physical and very well coached. They run with a lot a power and that's one of the key things that we're focusing on this week. That and play action with just keeping their explosive plays down."
On the differences between Presbyterian and Boston College:
"There's a big difference between an FCS game and an ACC game. The goals are still the same, to go 1-0, but BC is very physical and we'll see that on Saturday."
On Boston College quarterback Anthony Brown:
"He's a big kid. He's athletic. He's an ACC quarterback. He's got a big arm and he's well-coached. He's a really good quarterback."
On the physicality between the two teams:
"We have to generate turnovers. That's a key part of the game and a key part of every game. We have to continue to get better at the defensive end."
