VIDEO
OPENING STATEMENT
"After watching the last game, we probably approached playing the most complete game that we played all year. There's obviously many things that we can improve on. I think the question is do you rest on your laurels or do you stay hungry to try to improve, build on the things that you did correctly and fix the ones that you didn't.
"So you can either build on it or rest on it. I think with the challenges that we have _ like I said, that's one game, we've got to move on to the next game, which is a very, very challenging team. Texas A&M probably presents as many issues as any team that we've played all year.
"They are very well coached. Kevin Sumlin's done a really good job there - offense, defense and special teams. They're highly ranked in a lot of categories, whether it's turnover ratio, scoring defense. Their ability to run the ball. Very high-powered, balanced offense. Trevor Knight has done a really good job at quarterback for them implementing their offense. Trayvon Williams, who is a freshman, has been a very dynamic running back, probably the best we've seen all year. They have a talented receiving corps. Really have some dominating players on defense in Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall, the two defensive ends that create a lot of problems in terms of being great edge rushers. They're very opportunistic on defense in terms of getting turnovers. A lot of things important for us to do very well in this game, and it's going to take all phases going well to have a chance to be successful.
What do you remember about Trevor Knight?
"He's an outstanding athlete and very capable of running the ball. They have a lot of quarterback runs where he has made a lot of explosive plays, whether it's the quarterback draws or zone-read slipper plays, where he keeps the ball and has a blocker in front of him. He's improved. He passed the ball well when we played against him before, but that was supposed to be the issue and he has done that extremely well this year for them, to create kind of balance in their offense that makes it very difficult to defend. He's an outstanding player from a production standpoint; he's as productive as anybody we've played against all year."
How hard has it been like to transition from more of a traditional pro-style offense last year to more of a zone-read run game this year? How has Jalen done making those reads?
"Jalen's done a good job in making those reads. I think he's very comfortable doing those things. I don't think the plays that we run are that much more different than we've run before. I just think that he adds an extra element to it that makes the defense have to account for him, which makes them in some cases a little softer on some of the other things that we do. I think all those things complement each other to help our offensive team. I still think we need to make some improvements in the overall passing game, whether it's protection, route running, reading, getting the ball out of ours hands - especially when you play against a team like this who can rush and the speed of the game is going to speed up. There's plenty for us to work on and continue to build on the things that we've done well. But we've got lots of things to work on, to improve on.
Is what we're seeing from the offense and defense this year an evolution from the changes you've made in the last few years?
"I think that defensively we probably are a little more athletic and have a little more speed on the field. I think that helps us a little bit in loose-play situations, which when you play these spread-type teams, thats the kind o plays that they run. Offensively, we've always tried to do what our quarterback can do. I think Lane has done a really good job of adapting that.
"This is sort of the direction we wanted to go that we started with Blake Sims. Jake was a little different type guy. He did what he did very well. But now, we're sort of back even beyond what we did with Blake Sims, which I think has made us the most effective offensive based on the skill sets that we have. But we sill want to have elements of pro-style in what we do so that we can control the game when we need to by being able to run the ball and throw it in the pocket if we need to."
Have you enjoyed playing more fastball this year?
"Yeah, I like playing fastball when we have the ball. Like you like playing the fastbreak when you've got the ball. You don't like it when they've got you 3-2 and you're the guy backing up trying to defend it."
What kind of progression have you seen from Miller Forristall this year?
"Miller's a very athletic guy. We try to use him as sort of a quasi receiver/H-back/tight end type guy. Because he's a very athletic guy, he does a good job in perimeter blocking and is a very good receiver. I think he's improved in both of those areas since he's been here. He's made a significant contribution in his ability to play and we've been able to rotate four different guys at tight end because of that."
After looking at the film, how did Cam Robinson play Saturday and what makes Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall so disruptive?
"They’re guys that are very good rushers. They both have speed, good first-step quickness. But they also have really good size and to be a really good rusher you to be able to turn speed to power, which both of those guys can do. They’ve got a good scheme on defense that makes it hard to try to help on those guys. They move them around some and do some stunts with them that everybody’s going to have to block them.
"I know Cam gave up the one sack, but that’s an example… In the game I thought Cam played well, I thought Jonah played really well. That one play sticks out, but really it’s the play before that leads to that play. We were going on two knowing that No. 9 was their best rusher, knowing he was going to get off the spot. We jumped on third-and-10 and now we can’t go on two again. So now he gets off the spot and beats us on the edge and they get a sack-fumble out of it. Sometimes it’s not just what you see, it’s sort of how you lead up to what happens that can have some impact on that. The penalty probably had as much to do with that as the execution of the next play."
What have you seen from Shaun Dion Hamilton?
"He’s played really well for us. He’s a very smart player, always in the right place. Has tackled well, fits the run well. He’s done a really good job for us. We have a lot of confidence in him. Rashaan Evans played a little bit last week in that same position and did a really good job as well. That kind of depth will be helpful to us if we can continue to develop it."
How’s Alphonse Taylor?
"He’s day to day. We’ll continue to evaluate his circumstance and situation and always have the player’s safety in mind as to when the medical staff makes a decision and he’s cleared to be able to practice and play. He’s going to do some individual stuff today but no contact."
A&M running back Trayveon Williams?
"Well, I always think they’ve been a really dynamic offense and a really difficult offense to defend. But the guy’s got great speed and quickness, he’s got great vision as a runner. The field is spread quite a bit when you play them so if everybody doesn’t fit it exactly right there’s a lot of air between him and the next defender and he certainly knows how to take advantage of it. He’s got a great burst and speed, great cutting ability so this guy is the real deal, in my opinion."
Can you use film of the Sugar Bowl a couple years ago when preparing for Trevor Knight?
"We don’t plan to do that. We’ve got enough issues trying to defend what they’ve got to worry about what Oklahoma did three years ago. We know what kind of player he is. It’s very obvious in the film. I think a lot of the things he did then are the same kind of things that he’s doing now. That makes him a very effective player. We’re going to have to do a really good job against him."
You said Jalen can handle you getting on him. When you’re recruiting guys do you get a sense for that? When did Jalen show that?
"Well, you know, I don’t really get on Jalen that much. It’s more conversational in terms of… Look, young players, I don’t care who they are – and Jalen probably handles this as much as anybody else. Just like little kids, they go from toy to toy to toy, right? When they’re 3 years old, 5 years old, whatever. They’ve got no focus, no concentration, it’s hard for them to stick with things. We deal with the same thing when we’ve got young players. They can’t stay as focused as the juniors and the seniors on all the little details – every day in practice and preparation and all that type of stuff. So we’re trying to – and Jalen is probably as mature and does it as well as anybody I’ve ever seen at his age – but still, we’re trying to help bring him along in all these circumstances and all these situations. There’s nobody on our team that wants to do that more than he does. So he sort of welcomes it. He’s very self-critical, so when you bring something up to him it’s kind of like, ‘I get that.’
"Maybe it’s because his dad was a coach, I don’t really know. But he’s one of the easiest guys to manage in that circumstance that I’ve ever been around at his age."
Ronnie Harrison has 2 defensive touchdowns from over 50 yards out. What makes him such a threat?
"Well hopefully we have several guys that have that sort of ability to make the play if they have the opportunity to. I think in this particular game the guys did a really good job of adjusting. They motioned the guy back in the backfield to reload them from empty to throw the screen out the other side. We had practice against that. They anticipated it. Reuben anticipated it and played the screen, took it away. The quarterback sort of threw the ball over the guy's head and Ronnie was playing in and out on another receiver who was cracking the guy who had the guy. So he was able to take advantage of that. Once he got his hands on the ball, it was pretty much smooth sailing. Ronnie is a good athlete. A lot of these guys we have playing in the secondary and some other guys on defense have played other positions where they've had a chance to handle the ball. They've got pretty good ball skills and running ability. I think that's why they can take advantage of what they do with the ball when they get it."
In terms of the outside talk of what your team is and what it could be, how do you tell players to not focus on the big picture? How much of that do you attribute to the upperclassmen?
"First off, I don't know what the outside talk is. Most of you create it, whatever it is. I think you know how much I really respect all of you and your opinions about what you think. Very high. Way up there. But I still don't read it, I don't listen to it. We encourage the players to stay focused to the things that matter. Those are external factors that I call clutter that really can affect your psychological disposition about how you need to compete in the next game, because you can get satisfied with people patting you on the back for what you did last week, then you get punched in the nose the next week. So it takes a special kind of maturity and a special kind of competitor to understand that. And it comes from understanding how much you have to respect winning and how hard it is to do that and what it takes to prepare to do that. I'm not being disrespectful in any way, but you have to be a competitor to understand that. We technically look at what our team needs to do and hopefully our players are going to respond to that and build on it and not listen to what anyone else has to say."
You talked a few years ago about building a wall on kick returns and punt returns, going to the numbers. Have you added anything to that or talked to anyone about that?
"I haven't talked to anybody about what we do. If we tell everybody what we do, then what do we do when we play them? This is kind of a profession that you hope you can come up with something that somebody doesn't expect you to do so you can give your players a better chance to be successful doing it. We continue to emphasize to attack the ball. We start every practice, every day with turnover drills. Effort to the ball. More guys around the ball. Ripping at the ball, all these things, playing the ball in the air when the pass is thrown, making the critical decision about whether I have to intercept it, swat and hook it, tackle the guy. These are all just fundamental things that we continue to try to emphasize. I think players make plays. We have some good players and a lot of times, one player affects another player making a play. Whether Dalvin Tomlinson is right in the quarterback's face when the ball is overthrown and Minkah Fitzpatrick intercepts it, all these things contribute. When Tim Williams is getting pressure off the edge and getting to the quarterback and he's throwing the ball before he wants to, somebody else has a chance to make a play because of it. I think all these things contribute and the players make those plays by what they do and how they execute."
Jalen seems to play better after mistakes like fumbles. What have you seen from his ability to respond?
"I think that's all part of his psychological disposition of not letting things affect him, being self-critical, knowing when you made a mistake, being able to focus on the next play, learning from the mistakes that he makes. I think this is the right stuff that we talked about that players need to have to be able to improve. If you can't be self-critical or you're defensive toward any kind of correction or criticism, it makes it very difficult for you to learn and grow. I think one of his greatest assets is that he's like a sponge when it comes to those type of things and I think that enhances his development and he's probably where he is now as a freshman because of that. He's been that way for a long time and that's all been helpful to his development and his maturity."
- Very complimentary of Texas A&M in many different ways. Said Trayveon Williams is "probably the best" running back Alabama has played all year. Called DEs Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall "some dominating players."
- More of an overall perspective: "Texas A&M probably presents as many issues as any team that we've played all year."
- Alphonse Taylor will do individual work today but isn't yet cleared to return from his concussion. They'll continue to evaluate him.
- Does not plan on using film from the Sugar Bowl to prepare for Trevor Knight: "He's improved. He passed the ball well when we played against him before, but that was supposed to be the issue and he has done that extremely well this year for them, to create kind of balance in their offense that makes it very difficult to defend."
- Had some nice things to say about Jalen Hurts as well, particularly how he responds to criticism or mistakes: "He’s one of the easiest guys to manage in that circumstance that I’ve ever been around at his age."
- This jab at the media: "I think you know how much I really respect all of you and your opinions about what you think. Very high. Way up there."
- Asked about Shaun Dion Hamilton too: "He’s a very smart player, always in the right place. Has tackled well, fits the run well."
OPENING STATEMENT
"After watching the last game, we probably approached playing the most complete game that we played all year. There's obviously many things that we can improve on. I think the question is do you rest on your laurels or do you stay hungry to try to improve, build on the things that you did correctly and fix the ones that you didn't.
"So you can either build on it or rest on it. I think with the challenges that we have _ like I said, that's one game, we've got to move on to the next game, which is a very, very challenging team. Texas A&M probably presents as many issues as any team that we've played all year.
"They are very well coached. Kevin Sumlin's done a really good job there - offense, defense and special teams. They're highly ranked in a lot of categories, whether it's turnover ratio, scoring defense. Their ability to run the ball. Very high-powered, balanced offense. Trevor Knight has done a really good job at quarterback for them implementing their offense. Trayvon Williams, who is a freshman, has been a very dynamic running back, probably the best we've seen all year. They have a talented receiving corps. Really have some dominating players on defense in Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall, the two defensive ends that create a lot of problems in terms of being great edge rushers. They're very opportunistic on defense in terms of getting turnovers. A lot of things important for us to do very well in this game, and it's going to take all phases going well to have a chance to be successful.
What do you remember about Trevor Knight?
"He's an outstanding athlete and very capable of running the ball. They have a lot of quarterback runs where he has made a lot of explosive plays, whether it's the quarterback draws or zone-read slipper plays, where he keeps the ball and has a blocker in front of him. He's improved. He passed the ball well when we played against him before, but that was supposed to be the issue and he has done that extremely well this year for them, to create kind of balance in their offense that makes it very difficult to defend. He's an outstanding player from a production standpoint; he's as productive as anybody we've played against all year."
How hard has it been like to transition from more of a traditional pro-style offense last year to more of a zone-read run game this year? How has Jalen done making those reads?
"Jalen's done a good job in making those reads. I think he's very comfortable doing those things. I don't think the plays that we run are that much more different than we've run before. I just think that he adds an extra element to it that makes the defense have to account for him, which makes them in some cases a little softer on some of the other things that we do. I think all those things complement each other to help our offensive team. I still think we need to make some improvements in the overall passing game, whether it's protection, route running, reading, getting the ball out of ours hands - especially when you play against a team like this who can rush and the speed of the game is going to speed up. There's plenty for us to work on and continue to build on the things that we've done well. But we've got lots of things to work on, to improve on.
Is what we're seeing from the offense and defense this year an evolution from the changes you've made in the last few years?
"I think that defensively we probably are a little more athletic and have a little more speed on the field. I think that helps us a little bit in loose-play situations, which when you play these spread-type teams, thats the kind o plays that they run. Offensively, we've always tried to do what our quarterback can do. I think Lane has done a really good job of adapting that.
"This is sort of the direction we wanted to go that we started with Blake Sims. Jake was a little different type guy. He did what he did very well. But now, we're sort of back even beyond what we did with Blake Sims, which I think has made us the most effective offensive based on the skill sets that we have. But we sill want to have elements of pro-style in what we do so that we can control the game when we need to by being able to run the ball and throw it in the pocket if we need to."
Have you enjoyed playing more fastball this year?
"Yeah, I like playing fastball when we have the ball. Like you like playing the fastbreak when you've got the ball. You don't like it when they've got you 3-2 and you're the guy backing up trying to defend it."
What kind of progression have you seen from Miller Forristall this year?
"Miller's a very athletic guy. We try to use him as sort of a quasi receiver/H-back/tight end type guy. Because he's a very athletic guy, he does a good job in perimeter blocking and is a very good receiver. I think he's improved in both of those areas since he's been here. He's made a significant contribution in his ability to play and we've been able to rotate four different guys at tight end because of that."
After looking at the film, how did Cam Robinson play Saturday and what makes Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall so disruptive?
"They’re guys that are very good rushers. They both have speed, good first-step quickness. But they also have really good size and to be a really good rusher you to be able to turn speed to power, which both of those guys can do. They’ve got a good scheme on defense that makes it hard to try to help on those guys. They move them around some and do some stunts with them that everybody’s going to have to block them.
"I know Cam gave up the one sack, but that’s an example… In the game I thought Cam played well, I thought Jonah played really well. That one play sticks out, but really it’s the play before that leads to that play. We were going on two knowing that No. 9 was their best rusher, knowing he was going to get off the spot. We jumped on third-and-10 and now we can’t go on two again. So now he gets off the spot and beats us on the edge and they get a sack-fumble out of it. Sometimes it’s not just what you see, it’s sort of how you lead up to what happens that can have some impact on that. The penalty probably had as much to do with that as the execution of the next play."
What have you seen from Shaun Dion Hamilton?
"He’s played really well for us. He’s a very smart player, always in the right place. Has tackled well, fits the run well. He’s done a really good job for us. We have a lot of confidence in him. Rashaan Evans played a little bit last week in that same position and did a really good job as well. That kind of depth will be helpful to us if we can continue to develop it."
How’s Alphonse Taylor?
"He’s day to day. We’ll continue to evaluate his circumstance and situation and always have the player’s safety in mind as to when the medical staff makes a decision and he’s cleared to be able to practice and play. He’s going to do some individual stuff today but no contact."
A&M running back Trayveon Williams?
"Well, I always think they’ve been a really dynamic offense and a really difficult offense to defend. But the guy’s got great speed and quickness, he’s got great vision as a runner. The field is spread quite a bit when you play them so if everybody doesn’t fit it exactly right there’s a lot of air between him and the next defender and he certainly knows how to take advantage of it. He’s got a great burst and speed, great cutting ability so this guy is the real deal, in my opinion."
Can you use film of the Sugar Bowl a couple years ago when preparing for Trevor Knight?
"We don’t plan to do that. We’ve got enough issues trying to defend what they’ve got to worry about what Oklahoma did three years ago. We know what kind of player he is. It’s very obvious in the film. I think a lot of the things he did then are the same kind of things that he’s doing now. That makes him a very effective player. We’re going to have to do a really good job against him."
You said Jalen can handle you getting on him. When you’re recruiting guys do you get a sense for that? When did Jalen show that?
"Well, you know, I don’t really get on Jalen that much. It’s more conversational in terms of… Look, young players, I don’t care who they are – and Jalen probably handles this as much as anybody else. Just like little kids, they go from toy to toy to toy, right? When they’re 3 years old, 5 years old, whatever. They’ve got no focus, no concentration, it’s hard for them to stick with things. We deal with the same thing when we’ve got young players. They can’t stay as focused as the juniors and the seniors on all the little details – every day in practice and preparation and all that type of stuff. So we’re trying to – and Jalen is probably as mature and does it as well as anybody I’ve ever seen at his age – but still, we’re trying to help bring him along in all these circumstances and all these situations. There’s nobody on our team that wants to do that more than he does. So he sort of welcomes it. He’s very self-critical, so when you bring something up to him it’s kind of like, ‘I get that.’
"Maybe it’s because his dad was a coach, I don’t really know. But he’s one of the easiest guys to manage in that circumstance that I’ve ever been around at his age."
Ronnie Harrison has 2 defensive touchdowns from over 50 yards out. What makes him such a threat?
"Well hopefully we have several guys that have that sort of ability to make the play if they have the opportunity to. I think in this particular game the guys did a really good job of adjusting. They motioned the guy back in the backfield to reload them from empty to throw the screen out the other side. We had practice against that. They anticipated it. Reuben anticipated it and played the screen, took it away. The quarterback sort of threw the ball over the guy's head and Ronnie was playing in and out on another receiver who was cracking the guy who had the guy. So he was able to take advantage of that. Once he got his hands on the ball, it was pretty much smooth sailing. Ronnie is a good athlete. A lot of these guys we have playing in the secondary and some other guys on defense have played other positions where they've had a chance to handle the ball. They've got pretty good ball skills and running ability. I think that's why they can take advantage of what they do with the ball when they get it."
In terms of the outside talk of what your team is and what it could be, how do you tell players to not focus on the big picture? How much of that do you attribute to the upperclassmen?
"First off, I don't know what the outside talk is. Most of you create it, whatever it is. I think you know how much I really respect all of you and your opinions about what you think. Very high. Way up there. But I still don't read it, I don't listen to it. We encourage the players to stay focused to the things that matter. Those are external factors that I call clutter that really can affect your psychological disposition about how you need to compete in the next game, because you can get satisfied with people patting you on the back for what you did last week, then you get punched in the nose the next week. So it takes a special kind of maturity and a special kind of competitor to understand that. And it comes from understanding how much you have to respect winning and how hard it is to do that and what it takes to prepare to do that. I'm not being disrespectful in any way, but you have to be a competitor to understand that. We technically look at what our team needs to do and hopefully our players are going to respond to that and build on it and not listen to what anyone else has to say."
You talked a few years ago about building a wall on kick returns and punt returns, going to the numbers. Have you added anything to that or talked to anyone about that?
"I haven't talked to anybody about what we do. If we tell everybody what we do, then what do we do when we play them? This is kind of a profession that you hope you can come up with something that somebody doesn't expect you to do so you can give your players a better chance to be successful doing it. We continue to emphasize to attack the ball. We start every practice, every day with turnover drills. Effort to the ball. More guys around the ball. Ripping at the ball, all these things, playing the ball in the air when the pass is thrown, making the critical decision about whether I have to intercept it, swat and hook it, tackle the guy. These are all just fundamental things that we continue to try to emphasize. I think players make plays. We have some good players and a lot of times, one player affects another player making a play. Whether Dalvin Tomlinson is right in the quarterback's face when the ball is overthrown and Minkah Fitzpatrick intercepts it, all these things contribute. When Tim Williams is getting pressure off the edge and getting to the quarterback and he's throwing the ball before he wants to, somebody else has a chance to make a play because of it. I think all these things contribute and the players make those plays by what they do and how they execute."
Jalen seems to play better after mistakes like fumbles. What have you seen from his ability to respond?
"I think that's all part of his psychological disposition of not letting things affect him, being self-critical, knowing when you made a mistake, being able to focus on the next play, learning from the mistakes that he makes. I think this is the right stuff that we talked about that players need to have to be able to improve. If you can't be self-critical or you're defensive toward any kind of correction or criticism, it makes it very difficult for you to learn and grow. I think one of his greatest assets is that he's like a sponge when it comes to those type of things and I think that enhances his development and he's probably where he is now as a freshman because of that. He's been that way for a long time and that's all been helpful to his development and his maturity."
