Football Luncheon Quotes – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/17/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 17, 2002
Ohio State Head Coach Jim Tressel
“Looking back at the Washington State ball game we knew going into the game Washington State was a heck of a football team. They were going to come in with a lot experience and play very physical. Their quarterback is one of those guys that make it happen and defensively they really run to the ball. One of our biggest concerns was with their defense and how they create lots of problems up front. As the game unfolded all of that seemed to be true. As the game went on our defense did a great job adjusting. Offensively their front gave us a lot of problems early, and I thought our guys up front adjusted and handled the style of play their defensive front guys had.
“Maurice Clarett came up and made some big plays and gave us an opportunity to gain control of the game.”
On sophomore kicker Mike Nugent:
“Mike Nugent had an excellent day hitting three (field goals) over 40 yards. Snapper Kyle Andrews, who was the special units player of the game, played very well.”
On the road with the Buckeyes:
“We have to do a heck of job now on the road, which is a new step that we need to take. I like the stance our that our guys are in right now and I’m sure they will work hard today as we get into the physical part of the preparation for Cincinnati.”
On Buckeyes’ health:
“Maurice Clarett suffered an injury during the first quarter but was able to finish the game. Swelling in his knee over the weekend gave the physicians reason to take a closer look. Clarett had an MRI in which detected a little meniscus tear. Last night (Monday) they decided Clarett’s knee would be scoped, first thing this morning. This procedure could have him back for the Cincinnati game or not. We know he immediately begins rehabilitation and we will have a better idea where Clarett stands at the end of Thursday practice.”
“Will Allen should be back 100 percent, he played in about five plays on Saturday.
Adrien Clarke (offensive line) is healthier as we go. Defensively, we look like we’re in pretty good shape.”
On offensive captain named:
“Ivan Douglas (tackle) will be our offensive captain for our Cincinnati game.”
On center Alex Stepanovich:
“Alex Stepanovich did a great job running the show at the offensive center position. He had a tough task and played hard against, I think one of the better defensive tackles in the country. The result was a winning performance.”
On Matt Wilhelm, OSU’s defensive player of the game:
“Matt Wilhelm came up with one of the big plays of the game, assuring that field position part of the game would be ours by making that big interception and giving us the ball on our half of the field and having numerous tackles. He did an excellent job as a field general on the defensive side.”
on Cincinnati:
“Cincinnati has done a great job rising up against Big Ten football teams in which they have played over the years. We understand that this will be our first road test. We understand that they have great team speed. Cincinnati has a great quarterback (Gino Guidugli) you can never count out of a game. Guidugli has brought them back to win the Texas Christian University game and came within a field goal that hit the up right to lose 35-32 last week. Again we understand the environment is going to be a tough one, a new one and the team playing us is an outstanding team. This will be a great weekend for all of us to have two teams playing each other in the Buckeye state.”
On preparing for Cincinnati:
We are not going to change who we are. I think this is a great carry over game for us, both offensively and defensively from last week because this is a team with a lot of speed like Washington State had. Their offense spreads you out and tests you with both the run and the pass like Washington State did. They have the speed type players on defense like Washington State had.
on the game situation and the crowd:
“Well, I think there will be a lot of red. There will be a lot of black from Cincinnati fans and some gray from Ohio State fans. I think people are ready to see a hard-hitting football game. I think there will be a lot of Buckeye support and a lot of Bearcat support.”
On the field at PB Stadium:
“I know that they had to replace it and it is not where they want it. But you cannot worry about those things. The Buckeyes and Bearcats will be playing on the same turf. First downs are what I’m worried about on that field, not the grass.”
On Joe Daniels, a former Cincinnati assistant coach:
“I think when a good staff changes it’s personnel and I think UC is a good staff, they are not going to do things exactly the same this year as they did two years ago because they don’t have exactly the same guys. I think generally, he might have an idea, but I don’t think you can count on that. I think as a coach, you need to know what kind of players they have on the field and Joe has been so busy working on his end of things that we just need to rely on what we have on film.”
On Maurice Clarett:
“Maurice is a pretty straight-forward guy. He wants to know what we need him to do. He is a guy who has great confidence in our trainers and doctors and the fact that we are going to do what is best for him health wise and obviously what is best for the team. We had an appointment for his surgery this morning at about 6 a.m. and he was their (at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center) waiting at 5:45 as the trainer pulled in. So he knows what needs to be done.”
“Everyone reacts differently to surgeries. That is why they always give a pretty wide range (of time) for recovery. The doctors have said they have seen guys three days after surgery and it looks like they never had the operation and then there are guys that take a full seven days to get back to where they were. I would guess that Maurice’s attitude is a good one because he is a pretty passionate guy about getting on the field.”
“I would say this, today we know that Maurice Clarett will not be getting any repetitions. We do know that Lydell (Ross), Mo (Maurice) Hall and JaJa (Riley) will be sharing the reps. I would say that this week’s practice will determine which tailback will start the game. I would imagine if Maurice (Clarett) does not play there will be opportunities for perhaps all three (other tailbacks) to see action.
on cornerbacks Richard McNutt and E.J. Underwood:
“That CB spot is going to be there no matter what. E.J. wants to have some of the snaps. Competition is great and he and Richard McNutt played that position quite a bit. I think E.J. wants to keep showing us that we can count on him. He has done a good job learning our scheme. That is why he has gotten some playing time because he has taken on the learning task and demonstrated it on the field.”
on cornerback Dustin Fox:
“Dustin Fox has really come along. He was a safety in high school but he has all of those things that a corner needs. I think each and every game her gets more and more experience, he gets more confident and can see more that goes on in front of him. I think Dustin will do nothing but keep getting better because of the way he works at it.”
on Clarett’s other injuries during his high school career:
“I know when he got here this winter he had a thumb (injury). I don’t know if it ever kept him out. Maybe he had an ankle injury when he was a sophomore that may have kept him out for a while. He could not have been out much last year because he had (something like) 3,000 yards.”
“You could see from the surgery that his knee may have had a little bit of a tear in it a longtime ago. The good thing is that we caught it before it became a big problem. We have a great medical team here and whatever they think is the right thing for that particular person, we are all for that.”
Linebacker Matt Wilhelm on Cincinnati:
“They are pretty big up front. Their receiving corp is very deep, they have three seniors coming back. Their quarterback is a drop back passer who looks to throw rather than run, which is a little different from what we have seen through the beginning of the season, where Josh Cribbs and Jason Gesser tried to get out sometimes. They are very athletic and they have a great running back who breaks arm tackles and can catch passes. They are going to come out early and try to run on us. We just have to make them try and beat us with the throw.”
“They are going to prepare for this game the same way we are going to prepare for them. Like it is the biggest game on the schedule. That’s the way we are looking at this. I’m sure they have had this game marked on their schedule for a long time. They are going to go 100 percent and come out gunning to try and pull off an upset.
on UC quarterback Gino Guidugli:
“He stands in the pocket and makes throws that you don’t see many quarterbacks make. He makes the big play. It’s great for them to have a quarterback like that who can stand in the pocket and make the big throw late in the game. He has proven his ability to lead a comeback in the fourth quarter after his team has been down for three quarters to victory in their first game and come so close to a victory against West Virginia.
Center Alex Stepanovich
on blocking for Clarett
“Maurice is obviously special and has done big things. He just needs a little crease. He is more than likely going to knock the first guy over and there are not many guys who are going to be able to take him down one-on-one. Especially when teams are moving that ninth guy up in the box. We are not real worried about a safety making a play on Maurice.”
“The way he runs just wears down the defense. He makes you want to work harder and keep doing our job. I’m sure you guys (media) love watching him and so do we.”
on offense calling plays at the line of scrimmage:
“I think Craig (Krenzel) calling the plays from the line of scrimmage is a change of pace. I don’t think we do it to run away from anyone. Sometimes we do it to force the defense to be on the field longer. I don’t think we are planning on changing things when it comes to calling plays on the line against Cincinnati.
