The highlights:
"We had a better day today of practice. A little better energy, a little better enthusiasm. You like to build it through the week. We went inside today because it's unusually warm for this time of year. It's supposed to be a little cooler on Saturday. I think the constant being out there in this kind of weather can wear guys down a little bit and we certainly don't want that to happen, especially with this game coming up.
"It seems like it's been a long time since we've played at home, but we're certainly looking orward to it. This is a great challenge for any player. I think playing in these kind of games are one of the reasons a lot of guys come here. Great competition, great atmosphere. Great fans. It's going to be a great team we're playing against.
"I don't really have anything different on injuries. Nothing new to report. So that's about it."
John Chavis has a reputation for being good against the spread. What is it about his scheme that makes it tough?
"I think that they do a really good job with pressure. I think they play quite a bit of man-to-man. I think they probably practice against it quite a bit because that's what they see every day. So I think all those things probably contribute to that.
"He has some really good players and he's an outstanding coach. He's done a good job for a long time, wherever he's been. I think you have about as much respect for him as anybody you play against when it comes to how he's going to try to defend you."
You've been more successful on third down defense this year. What's behind that? Is some of that connected to the turnovers?
"Well, I think third down has got to be a combination of affecting the quarterback with the pressure, which I think our guys have done a pretty good job of that whether we three-man rush, four-man rush or five-man rush. I think you've got to do a really good job of covering people and for the most job we've done a pretty good job of that. Not so good at Arkansas at times. But for the rest of the time, not bad. So it's kind of a combination of the two things. Disguising, maybe the quarterback doesn't know exactly what you're going to do. I think third down is really important. I've said this before, especially against these fastball teams, because when you get a chance to get off the field on third down, you have to take advantage of it because the long drives are what gets your players and it's going to be critical in this game."
What have you seen from Bo Scarbrough lately? How important was that last performance for his momentum?
"I think Bo has gotten better and better every week. I think he's playing with more and more confidence. Probably has a little better understanding of what's expected of him, and he's made some really good plays. I think that probably contributes to him feeling pretty good about his progress he's making, the role he has and what he can contribute to the team. We're happy with his development. We certainly need him. He's got a lot of ability and hopefully he'll continue to progress and play well for us.
Bo Scarbrough's had an interaction with a fan at the end of the Tennessee game. Did you talk to him about that at all? How important is it to exercise composure in big games?
"I did talk to him. I talked to the whole team about it. I don't know what category you would put the conversation in, whether it was 'talking to' or we've talked about these elements of 'ass chewings' before. So I don't know where you would categorize that one. But look, that's a young kid that needs people to look up to in the world. Needs sports figures that he can sort of have some admiration for the way they carry themselves, the example they set, the things that they do. That was not an action that actually contributed to that in any way and it's not how we want our players to represent themselves, their family or the program."
How has Lester Cotton progressed? What did you see with him getting the start last week?
"Lester played probably as well as he's played all year last week in the game. I think the front guys we're going to play against this week are much more talented so the challenge is going to be greater and we're going to need all of the offensive linemen to respond in a very positive way."
A&M has several tall receivers, 6-5 and above. Have you done anything scheme-wise to protect against that?
"What do you recommend? Do we take get-taller pills? I mean, I don't understand what we can do. You always want guys to play the ball at the highest point. You're always emphasizing that. They do have big receivers and they're very talented guys. You have to use good fundamental coverage technique on them. You have to do a good job of trying to be aggressive in how you play the ball, whether it's swat and hook, tackle, or get up there and be able to try and play with the size. It's no different than basketball when it comes to playing against a little bigger guy. We've got some bigger guys that we practice against and I think that's probably a little bit helpful to us."
- Sounds like practice improved today over the effort level earlier in the week. They were inside just to avoid the heat (89 or 90 degrees here today). Nothing new on the injury front.
- Spoke very highly of John Chavis: "I think you have about as much respect for him as anybody you play against when it comes to how he's going to try to defend you."
- Said Bo Scarbrough has played better and better this season and they like his role. Was also asked about him trying to high-five the Tennessee fan and said they did talk about it: "I don't know what category you would put the conversation in, whether it was 'talking to' or we've talked about these elements of 'ass chewings' before."
- Was asked if there's anything to counter Texas A&M's bigger receivers, like Josh Reynolds: "What do you recommend? Do we take get-taller pills? ... They do have big receivers and they're very talented guys.
"We had a better day today of practice. A little better energy, a little better enthusiasm. You like to build it through the week. We went inside today because it's unusually warm for this time of year. It's supposed to be a little cooler on Saturday. I think the constant being out there in this kind of weather can wear guys down a little bit and we certainly don't want that to happen, especially with this game coming up.
"It seems like it's been a long time since we've played at home, but we're certainly looking orward to it. This is a great challenge for any player. I think playing in these kind of games are one of the reasons a lot of guys come here. Great competition, great atmosphere. Great fans. It's going to be a great team we're playing against.
"I don't really have anything different on injuries. Nothing new to report. So that's about it."
John Chavis has a reputation for being good against the spread. What is it about his scheme that makes it tough?
"I think that they do a really good job with pressure. I think they play quite a bit of man-to-man. I think they probably practice against it quite a bit because that's what they see every day. So I think all those things probably contribute to that.
"He has some really good players and he's an outstanding coach. He's done a good job for a long time, wherever he's been. I think you have about as much respect for him as anybody you play against when it comes to how he's going to try to defend you."
You've been more successful on third down defense this year. What's behind that? Is some of that connected to the turnovers?
"Well, I think third down has got to be a combination of affecting the quarterback with the pressure, which I think our guys have done a pretty good job of that whether we three-man rush, four-man rush or five-man rush. I think you've got to do a really good job of covering people and for the most job we've done a pretty good job of that. Not so good at Arkansas at times. But for the rest of the time, not bad. So it's kind of a combination of the two things. Disguising, maybe the quarterback doesn't know exactly what you're going to do. I think third down is really important. I've said this before, especially against these fastball teams, because when you get a chance to get off the field on third down, you have to take advantage of it because the long drives are what gets your players and it's going to be critical in this game."
What have you seen from Bo Scarbrough lately? How important was that last performance for his momentum?
"I think Bo has gotten better and better every week. I think he's playing with more and more confidence. Probably has a little better understanding of what's expected of him, and he's made some really good plays. I think that probably contributes to him feeling pretty good about his progress he's making, the role he has and what he can contribute to the team. We're happy with his development. We certainly need him. He's got a lot of ability and hopefully he'll continue to progress and play well for us.
Bo Scarbrough's had an interaction with a fan at the end of the Tennessee game. Did you talk to him about that at all? How important is it to exercise composure in big games?
"I did talk to him. I talked to the whole team about it. I don't know what category you would put the conversation in, whether it was 'talking to' or we've talked about these elements of 'ass chewings' before. So I don't know where you would categorize that one. But look, that's a young kid that needs people to look up to in the world. Needs sports figures that he can sort of have some admiration for the way they carry themselves, the example they set, the things that they do. That was not an action that actually contributed to that in any way and it's not how we want our players to represent themselves, their family or the program."
How has Lester Cotton progressed? What did you see with him getting the start last week?
"Lester played probably as well as he's played all year last week in the game. I think the front guys we're going to play against this week are much more talented so the challenge is going to be greater and we're going to need all of the offensive linemen to respond in a very positive way."
A&M has several tall receivers, 6-5 and above. Have you done anything scheme-wise to protect against that?
"What do you recommend? Do we take get-taller pills? I mean, I don't understand what we can do. You always want guys to play the ball at the highest point. You're always emphasizing that. They do have big receivers and they're very talented guys. You have to use good fundamental coverage technique on them. You have to do a good job of trying to be aggressive in how you play the ball, whether it's swat and hook, tackle, or get up there and be able to try and play with the size. It's no different than basketball when it comes to playing against a little bigger guy. We've got some bigger guys that we practice against and I think that's probably a little bit helpful to us."
