Big Ten Football Teleconference – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/18/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 18, 2001
Tressel’s opening remarks for Big Ten conference call
As I can be sure that you can imagine, our guys our anxious to get out and play a game. It has been a difficult week or so not just for all of us, but for all of our young people as well. I thought they’ve done a good job of handling the situation and growing from the situation and then putting back their focus to some of the tasks at hand that they need to do while still be very acutely aware of what is going on in the world and just what it means to all of us. We’re anxious to play a team like UCLA. Obviously, they are ranked very highly and deservingly so. A very veteran football team, I think they have 24 seniors, outstanding talent, some very highly regarded people at their positions, as they should be. We know as we travel to the Rose Bowl that it’s going to be a tremendous challenge for us. It’s going to be a challenge not unlike what they’re facing after missing a beat in the line of progression and improvement and so forth. We’re going to need to make sure we step up as quickly as we can and play as if it is our third game even though we’ve only played one. But, I’ve been proud of the way our guys have handled the situation and I’m sure they’ll handle the football game as well.
Tressel fields questions via telephone
Q: A lot of people talk of travel concerns given what happened last week. Is that a concern for you? I know that most teams take charters so how much of a concern is this for you, if at all?
A: “Well, I think individually it will be different. I think some of us may have a real genuine concern, others may just feel as if it’s business as usual. But, we at the university have excellent faith in the charter company. We have excellent faith in our airport authority and so forth. We’re looking at it as traveling just as if we always have. That doesn’t mean there won’t be a little queasiness with all of us.”
Q: Jim, How did you guys use that off-week? Obviously, you were one of the first teams to find out your game had been moved. Were you able to get any sort of rest, or did you have guys banged up? Did anything good football-wise come out of that time off this weekend?
A: “Ours was a little unusual and as you say we were one of the first teams that knew we weren’t playing. Tuesday, obviously, we didn’t do anything. Wednesday, we spent a decent amount of time talking a little bit about the world’s situation. We weren’t in school, which made it a little different. We don’t begin until this Wednesday and we had the opportunity to have a faculty member who is an expert in some of the things who are going on come in and share with our guys and really let them open up and ask questions. And they asked a number of questions and I think got some things off their minds and their hearts and so forth. Then we practiced Wednesday, which I think coaches and players alike were trying to get through it. It was something where we weren’t sure if we should be out there but we weren’t sure we should be sitting in front of the TV, either. Then I thought Thursday we had a pretty good work-session on some fundamentals, on some things the things we were trying to build on from our first ballgame. Friday, we toned back a little bit and then Saturday we had a workout that we began talking a little about UCLA and what we knew of them at that point. Then, of course, we had the good fortune here in central Ohio to have a memorial service at Ohio Stadium Saturday afternoon, which a lot of our players had a chance to take part in and kind of draw together with our community and let the people out east and elsewhere that have been affected know that we were certainly thinking about them and they were in our minds and hearts. Sunday, then, of course was off and we got back to work beginning Monday on UCLA.” Q: Do you recall what the professor taught by any chance?
A: “I think he taught us all different things from where we were coming from. I think everyone that asked questions asked questions from their vantage point as to what, at that moment, they understood or thought they understood and I think he just gave us a general feeling-our faculty member happens to be a fellow who is a faculty member in psychology, history and political science-and he gave us insight really from all three areas as to what some of the political parts of this situation were, what some of the historical significance was, what some of the psychological significance and thought processes of people involved (were). We were in there probably 90 minutes together and I think we all learned different things.”
Q: Is it important for you guys to get a win against a ranked opponent on the road before you start the Big Ten season?
A: “Well, we think that this UCLA game is great game for us in that it’s against an outstanding football team on the road and we have to play a number of outstanding teams in our league on the road. We are going to have to be an excellent road team to achieve the goal that we set out in front of us. I think it’s important that we go out there and we play well and we feel very good about the fact that we’re progressing. I think that as you go through a season, how you progress each and every game is going to have a lot to do with just how good you are at the end.”
Q: It has been said that it is a little bit of a down-year for the Big Ten. Coming from out of the conference do you see anything that explains that?
A: “I think when 2001 ends, that there won’t be many people saying that the Big Ten was in a down year. I think as you came in to 2001, you didn’t see some of the marquee names that we have had in the past. But that is what a season like this is for. At the end of the year there will be new marquee names in the Big Ten and I think that you’ll see that it won’t be looked upon as being a down year. In fact, it will probably be discussed as being just what we think of the Big Ten: and that’s very, very physical, good top to bottom and capable of beating anyone in the country when they had the chance to play them. I just think it’s the name recognition that gives people the feeling that we may be a down-cycle.”
Conclusion of conference call
Tressel’s Opening Remarks To Local Media
“With that, let me just share a little bit about a general view of UCLA. I think we’ve talked a little bit about what we’ve been doing and where we think we are and where we need to go and then will open it up for questions. We also have LeCharles Bentley on the far end there. We have Courtland Bullard, Mike Jacobs and Jonathan Wells and so feel free once the questions begin to certainly ask them as to where we are on their particular sides of the ball and on special teams because Mike and Courtland are very involved with special teams as well and will be happy to cover those things.”
“But, as you watch UCLA, I think what you see is a mature football team. You see 24 seniors. You see excellent technique. You see guys who have played a number of years and therefore have good name recognition, (like) DeShaun Foster and there are great players on defense. I know them by numbers more than names, quite honestly. No. 8 (Robert Thomas) is considered one of the finest linebackers in the country. No. 7 (Marques Anderson) and No. 4 (Jason Stephens), the two safeties, No. 9 (Ricky Manning), the corner, No.99 (Kenyon Coleman), the defensive end, all those guys have been multiple-year starters and I think four or five of them were All-Pac(ific)-10 last year as underclassmen. So you see a mature football team, most especially on their defensive side. You go to the offensive side and you think about DeShaun Foster, you feel like he’s been there forever and he has certainly been an outstanding tailback, but as you watch the film of our ’99 game, he played some free safety against us. He played both ways. He carried 17 times plus played a little defense. They were a little shorthanded that particular day and he did a little bit of that. You see the great receivers, Poli-Dixon and No.1, Tab Perry, I believe it is. Then you see a very solid, rangy, big, athletic offensive line. They use a couple different tight ends (and a) big strong fullback. Now the fullback, as you watch the ’99 game, played linebacker because No. 8 (Robert Thomas) was out for our game in ’99 and he played linebacker, but now is over on the offensive side. And I think like many teams who are in the mature state like they’re in, their ability to win the Pac(ific)-10 championship, I think, is going to be based on how they come along at the quarterback position. He’s a guy (Cory Paus) that now has been in there and he has had some success and he has had some tough times when he was young. And he is a guy, I’m sure, that how he handles the football is going to have a great deal to do with just what their opportunity is to be Pac(ific)-10 Champions. Probably, the most impressive part, number-wise, of their football team, might be their kicker and punter. The kicker is a three-year starter. The punter is a two or three-year starter. (They are) both outstanding. The punter, I think, is over a 43-yard average. Their coverage group is good, fast, strong kids, obviously well schooled in everything they do. It’s just a good football team. You can tell good teams when you watch them on film because their technique is very, very good. And so it’s a tremendous opportunity for us to go and see how we’ve come along and go out there and play against a very, very good football team in a big game that the whole nation is going to see and it’s our opportunity to take one more step.”
Let me open up to questions about the past, the present, UCLA. Any of the guys up here, feel free to throw a question their way and we’ll go from there.
Tressel and players field questions from local media
Q: How would you describe DeShaun Foster as you watch him on film?
A: (Courtland Bullard) “He’s an all-around great back. He’s got great strength and cut back moves and protects the ball well. We’re going to have to be fundamentally sound as far as tackling on defense to stop him. We need to be very physical when tackling him to wear him down. He can catch the ball well and he can run well.”
Q: How do you think missing last week’s game hurts your team not having that extra game to prepare for UCLA?
A: (Coach Tressel) “I don’t think we’ll ever know the answer to that. We didn’t play last week’s games and that’s the way it is. Our players have worked hard despite that. I think its been harder on them emotionally this week as it has been on them playing football. We have to ignore any thoughts of a setback because we have to line up against a very good football team on Saturday afternoon in front of the whole world.”
Q: Will you rotate Steve (Bellisari) and Scott (McMullen) the way you did against Akron or is this Steve’s show from here on out?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We’ve been working on things with the thought in mind that they could both see some playing time. We’ve been looking at the things that they each do well and what they both do well. But to re phrase the question, are we going to do it like we did the first game, I really don’t have the answer to that yet. I’m not sure we’ll have a set plan on when I’ll put Scott in. I would hope that Scott would get some playing time in an atmosphere like that. Steve missed some time last week so I’m not ready to say what the mix is going to be.
Q: What are some of the player’s thoughts on playing in the Rose Bowl?
A: (Jonathan Wells) “It’s going to be very exciting for us. We’re really looking forward to the challenge and playing fundamental and physical football.”
(Mike Jacobs) “I was fortunate to be out there for the ’97 Rose Bowl as a fan. I’m really looking forward to going out there as a player this time. It’s going to be exciting.”
(Courtland Bullard) “It’s going to be a real exciting atmosphere. I’m looking forward to us coming together as a team and a unit and playing fundamental football.”
(LeCharles Bentley) “I’ve never been out there, but I did watch the ’97 Rose Bowl and it seems to be a very exciting place to play. We can’t get caught up in that. We need to focus on the task at hand which is UCLA.”
(Coach Tressel) “If you watch the emotion that Major League Baseball has brought back to the country, we now have that same opportunity to bring back some of that emotion when we take the field on Saturday. We can serve as an energy source for our country. What venue would you rather be in front of than in front of 90-100,000 at the Rose Bowl? I think we can do some good by the way we play.”
Q: Talk about your emotions from the past week and how the team is dealing with playing again. Is the security issue going to be in the back of your mind?
A: (Wells) “Once we get out there we should be fine. We can’t go out there and be scared. We have to focus on the task at hand and that’s beating UCLA.”
(Jacobs) “I agree with Jonathan. We can’t go out there scared. Baseball has had a lot of security checking all bags and things like that. That puts our minds a little more at ease when you see the security around the country now.”
(Bullard) “We just need to have faith in the security personnel. We have to do what we do best and that’s coming together as a team and playing our style of football.”
(Bentley) “I agree with the rest of my teammates. We can’t worry about what else is going on. We only need to think about Ohio State.”
Q: What is the most important area of concern you feel that you need to get better at Saturday?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We have a whole list of things we need to get better at. Probably the most glaring problem would be our turnovers. We left the ball on the ground too much against Akron and we only knocked it loose once. We need to minimize the turnovers while creating more at the same time. I think from a team stand-point the most universal improvement has to come in the turnover margin.”
Q: On that note LeCharles, how much have you worked on the quarterback-center exchange?
A: (Bentley) “We always work on that in practice. We know that shouldn’t happen, but unfortunately it does. We’ll keep working and we’ll be better at it.”
Q: Discuss DeShaun Foster and what else concerns you about their offense?
A: (Coach Tressel) “To be honest, I haven’t watched too much of their offense. I have studied them over the years when we studied teams all over the country and they’ve always had good tailbacks and talented offensive linemen. They know they have to be able to run to win. If you want to win big you have to have a good running game. So it’s been a tradition there to have good running backs. Foster is one of those guys who has had a lot of carries and as Courtland Bullard has mentioned, he does it all. He’s a good cutback guy, he’s got great vision, he catches the ball and he’s very physical. There’s no question he’s one of the best in the country. It takes a lot of pressure off their quarterback when they can run it so well. They pose a very good challenge for our defense and we’ll need to play with good technique and be very aggressive.”
Q: Do you feel like UCLA has this reputation of not being tough enough with the baby blue jerseys and guys being from laid back L.A.?
A: (Coach Tressel) “I’m not sure how these guys feel, but I know how we as a coaching staff feel. We primarily put those kind of subjective type opinions completely on our part. We don’t really question anyone else’s toughness or things you really can’t measure. We kind of hold those measures to how we feel about ourselves. So I don’t have a preconceived notion on UCLA.”
Q: With it being your first road game and being in Los Angeles, are you concerned with distractions at all?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We wouldn’t be there real long. It’s not like a bowl trip where you have multiple days and so forth. I guess you can call this a business trip and we’re in the business of building a team. We’ll do two things from the time we board the plan until the time we leave: that’s grow together as a team and relax as individuals so we can focus in on what we need to do. So it won’t be a situation where we’re involved like a bowl trip.”
Q: Do you have in your mind a No.1 punter or kicker yet based on what you’ve seen against Akron and in practice?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We’re still in an early season mode when it comes to that. I would’ve liked to have another game to give guys reps and put people under the gun and so forth. We’ve lost a game full of rep in the early season. Now were playing a Top 10 team, or whatever they may be and we’re still in a preseason mode.”
Q: Were you a little bit disappointed in the quarterback play after Saturday? Granted they did some good things as well, but where do you stand on your quarterback situation?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We evaluate play by play. So when we see a disappointing play, we point it out and correct it. When we see a good play we talk about what they did well. That’s the way we grade things.”
Q: Compare UCLA today to the UCLA team you’ve seen on film from ’99?
A: (Coach Tressel) “There’s no comparison to two years ago. In ’99 they were playing hurt and with guys who were young. It wasn’t like they weren’t schooled well because they were very well schooled. They have excellent personnel. They still execute very well and they’re going to end up with a very good football team.”
Q: Do you think the UCLA game two years ago was Steve’s best game since he’s been here?
A: (Coach Tressel) “I think any game where the quarterback has zero turnovers has to rank high with his best games. I’m sure he’s had a number of those. I think he may have has 12 interceptions last year in twelve games. I think the fact that he had no turnovers and a good completion percentage proves that may have been one of his better games. I think numbers wise that proves a lot. Plus the 50-yards rushing was a good indicator. I did not study ’99 as well as I did 2000. In the Iowa game he came out and threw for a couple hundred yards early. So he has had days that match that UCLA game. I would have to go back and look at the X number of games where he had zero turnovers to determine that.”
Q: What sticks out in your mind from the ’99 UCLA game? Do you think it was a deciding game for the quarterbacks?
A: (Bentley) “I just remember it as being a great game. It was at home and it was the first night game that I have been a part of at Ohio State. I’ll remember it as just that.”
Q: How are you disciplining yourselves this week in preparation for Foster and their offense?
A: (Bullard) “We just have to go out and be fundamentally sound and have faith in the guy next to you that he’s going to do his job. We’ve been watching a lot of film and doing different things with our defense. I’m going into the game with tremendous faith in my teammates and my coaching staff.”
Q: Talk a little bit about your defensive end and how satisfying their play has been?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We’re very, very fortunate that we have very good defensive ends. And in this day-and-age they are tested in a little different way then they were 10 years ago. Whereas they were tested back then a little more in the hard pounding and so forth. There’s a real pressure put on your defense this day-and-age and I think our guys respond to it well.”
Q: Are you concerned at all with the time difference and the L.A. heat?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We had our guys run all summer in the heat of the day. We knew that we were going to have two 12:00, early September games and one out in California. We’ve trained in the hot weather and we should be fine come Saturday. We lost a little bit of our edge against Akron. It wasn’t a matter of us being tired.”
A: (Coach Tressel) ” I think it depends a little bit on when we’re leaving. Typically we will leave late afternoon on Friday so we don’t miss classes. That wasn’t possible. We’re going to miss Friday classes. So we’re leaving Thursday night. Historically in west coast games that I’ve been involved with that was the way we did it. Because we have a little bit more time I would opt for doing something meaningful together. Typically when we fly out at 3:30 or 4:00 on Friday I want our guys to just relax. We do have some plans to do something briefly. Most importantly, we’ll have a chance to relax and get ready to play a game.”
Q: How much more difficult is it going into your first road game with everything that has gone on in the past week?
A: (Coach Tressel) “We talk about the fun and excitement we have about playing UCLA at the Rose Bowl, but also the relative good we can do while getting our enjoyment. We’re not only going to enjoy the challenge of playing a good UCLA football team, but we’re going to relish in the fact that maybe we can do some good along the way. That’s what it’s all about.”
