Buckeyes Spoke to the Media Before They Hit The Road
10/30/2024 10:36:00 AM | Football
On silent count at Oregon:
“It’s a big challenge, going on the road. That’s a big part of going into that environment is handling that and that’s the challenge for those guys. During practice we try to make it as loud as we possibly can and simulate what it’s going to be like. We make sure we’ve done that in preseason camp, we did it in spring, and obviously we’re doing it now during this week. Guys have reps at it, but it takes discipline. We’ve had multiple guys do it so we feel confident going into the game that we’re going to be able to handle it.”
On how Zen looks:
“I would say it's trending that he’s not gonna play, so we’ll keep evaluating it. We’ve got a pretty good plan moving forward.”
On Jack or JT having a breakout game:
“They want to. They're pushing hard and they had a really good practice today. In these types of games our best players have to play well, that was the message to the team. Our leaders got to lead and our best players have to play well in games like this. I know they are pushing hard to play their best game.”
On contributing last week:
It was a blessing.The ball finally came my way a lot. I made plays, got in the end zone, but ultimately it wasn’t a great offensive performance. We had our highs and lows from there."
On the ball coming to him:
“I knew the ball would come my way each and every week. We have plays for all of us. It just really depends on what the defense gives us. If they give us one thing the ball goes away from me or comes to me. Ultimately, it’s not in my decision where the ball goes.”
On Penn State:
“They have good, solid corners. They play man a lot, so we have to win our one on ones outside on the perimeter.”
On playing snaps and thinking like a receiver:
“I get a feel for routes early on. In my training, understanding the route combination and what they want to run on different down and distances has helped me out.”
On their running backs:
“They're both over 220 so they're going to run downhill. They play with good pad levels, so they're going to put their pads low. As a nickel, like me, I got to make sure I run through their outside leg and get them down.”
On being hungry as a defense after Oregon:
“I don't think it took the Oregon game to wake us up like that, but it was definitely part of our season. We have to bounce back overall as a defense and as a team and use that to ignite a fire in us for sure.”
On benefits and challenges of silent counts:
“The challenge is that you can't hear the quarterback. So if I'm going left for a run block, I have to look to the right to see when the ball snapped. You don't really know what's going on sometimes. That is the challenge, but the benefit is that they have to look at the ball too.”
On self reflection of this season:
"I think it's been good. I don't put limits on my play or try to be a big critique. I go out there and play, God does the rest. I think it's going pretty well so far."
On routine catching passes:
“Tuesdays and Wednesdays after practice, we catch probably 50 balls on the drum machine, me and our GA Coach Binckes. Throughout the week, we're working 7 on 7 where I'm always catching balls on the scout team. We’re trying to enhance everything we can here."
