John Cooper Press Luncheon Quotes – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/28/1998 12:00:00 AM | Football
September 28, 1998
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Thoughts on Penn State
%^$”I respect Penn State. They have one of the great programs in college football. Joe Paterno is one of the greatest coaches of all time. He just earned his 300th win a couple of weeks ago. Some coaches are lucky to just coach in 300 games. “As a team, they have great depth. I know for a fact we tried to recruit some of their Ohio players and those guys are just second teamers for them.” %^$
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If the bye week helped OSU
%^$”If you have a bye week, you need to take advantage of it. Sometimes they help you, sometimes they don’t. This week, I think we will be fresh. Last week, we worked hard on the fundamentals and had a solid week of practice. Having a healthy Joe Brown will be a big help.” %^$
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Their offensive line
%^$”They have one of the biggest offensive lines in college football. The smallest guy they have is guard Ryan Fagan and he’s 6-7, 296. The other guard is Kareem McKenzie and we recruited him heavily, so we know what kind of player he is. Across that line they are huge. They go 6-5, 6-7, 6-5, 6-7, and 6-5. So you know they are going to be physical and you know they can run the ball.” %^$
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The Penn State defense
%^$”Their defense is always well coached and disciplined. Like every quality team in college football, they give a lot of different looks. They have a strong and experienced secondary. Jerry Sandusky has been the defensive coordinator for a very long time and puts out a great defense every year.” %^$
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The Penn State quarterbacks
%^$”I would think that we would see (Kevin) Thompson more. Both of those guys do different things well. (Rashard) Casey is a very good athlete.” %^$
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One of Ohio State’s keys to a victory.
%^$”Our offensive line has to step up and take charge. They have played well lately but they still need to play better. %^$
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The hype surrounding the game
%^$”These are two great football programs. Joe Paterno has 301 wins and is one of the greatest coaches of all-time. I would watch this game if I were a fan. We are No. 1 and they are No. 7. Last year, they were No. 2 and we were No. 7. It’s the kind of match up that makes college football what it is today.”. %^$
