Tuesday News Conference Quotes
10/14/2008 8:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 14, 2008
Head Coach Ralph Friedgen
On Maryland's injury situation:
"The people who are out for this game are Tyler Bowen, Kevin Dorsey, Matt Furstenburg, Stephen Hargett, Dominique Herald, Paul Lariviere, Adrian Moten, Ben Pooler, Richard Taylor and Joe Vellano."
On having a bye week:
"During the off-week I think we got a lot accomplished. It gave our travel squad some time off. We practiced Wednesday and Thursday. Practices were good. I thought we improved in some areas we were trying to get better at. The main thing was that we were trying to get healthy. We got a few players back. Hopefully we can go into this week and get ready for a very important game - maybe the most important game of our season so far."
On the Wake Forest Demon Deacons:
"We're playing a very good Wake Forest team. I think probably they are the best team we've played so far. Their defense is outstanding. They have eight redshirt seniors starting for them. They have five guys who have started over 30 games, and they have nine who have started at least 15, so they've very experienced. They're very well-coached, they run very well and they play very, very disciplined football. They've very good."
On Wake Forest's linebackers:
"They're led by an outside linebacker named Aaron Curry. He can play in space, and he can play in the box. I predict he'll be a very high draft choice - he's an excellent player. But they also have two other linebackers that are redshirt seniors to play with him - Stanley Arnoux and Chantz McClinic. Both of them are redshirt seniors who seem like they've been playing as long as I've been here."
On the Demon Deacons' defensive line:
"Their defensive line is led by Boo Robinson. He's a redshirt junior and really an outstanding defensive lineman. Defensive end Anthony Davis is a redshirt senior, and John Russell, their defensive tackle, is also a redshirt junior."
On Wake Forest's secondary:
"Their secondary is excellent. All four starters are back from last year. Three of the four are redshirt seniors. They're led by Alphonso Smith. Alphonso is also their punt returner. He had the big interception against us last year. I think he's got three interceptions this year. He's just an excellent player. I predict he'll be a high draft choice also. The other corner is Brandon Ghee. He started for the first time against us last year, and he's been starting ever since. Their two safeties are redshirt seniors - Kevin Patterson and Chip Vaughn. Both of them are excellent players also."
On Maryland's preparations for Wake Forest's defense:
"Their defense is, to me, very good. We've been working very hard trying to find a way to move the football and score points against them. They're doing a very good job of keeping people out of the end zone."
On the Demon Deacons' quarterback and running backs:
"Offensively, they're led by Riley Skinner, who I think is one of the better quarterbacks in the conference. He's a playmaker. Their tailbacks are Josh Adams, a kid we tried to recruit very highly, and Brandon Pendergrass. They'll split time, and both of them are very good players. Their two fullbacks - Mike Rinfrette and Rich Belton - both split time also."
On Wake Forest's passing game:
"Their tight end Ben Wooster also plays as a wide receiver. He's a very good pass receiver and a good blocker. Their wide receivers are led by D.J. Boldin. Chip Brinkman and Marshall Williams are the other two wide receivers. Their offensive line is young, but they have three starters back in that area."
On the strengths of the Demon Deacons' offense:
"One of the things they do a very good job with on offense is they're very versatile. They'll run the option, they'll run screens, and they'll run misdirections and speed sweeps. They're throwing the ball more this year than they have in the past. I think they want to run it, but they haven't run it as well as they've been running it in the past. That's kind of limited them, and you can see from the Clemson game they've kind of gone back to trying to improve in that area. They have a lot of playmakers, and they do a good job of getting the ball to their playmakers."
On Wake Forest place-kicker/punter Sam Swank:
"On special teams, Sam Swank is probably the outstanding kicker in the conference. He missed the Clemson game. He's 10 of 13 on field goals. He's punting for a 37.6 yard average, which is way under where he's been. He's got a leg injury, and he's questionable for this game. That's a big injury right there because he really impacts the game, not only from scoring points and on kickoffs, but also from field position with his punting. We'll have to keep a close eye on that."
On the rest of the Demon Deacons' special teams:
"Their punt returner, Alphonso Smith, is dangerous. He really takes chances, and you have to be aware of him. Their kickoff returner Devon Brown is also a wide receiver, and C.J. Washington also handles kickoff chores."
On Wake Forest's disciplined brand of football:
"As always, a Jim Grobe team is very well-coached. They have had one game where they had multiple turnovers, and it cost them. But they do a great job of forcing turnovers on the defensive side, so it kind of balances out."
On the Wake Forest program turnaround over the last few seasons:
"I think Coach (Jim) Grobe has had a plan. I think what he does is redshirt his players and keeps them in school and I heard a comment on the TV the other day, `unless a player will play 25 plays or more as a true freshman, he decides to redshirt them.' That concerns me sometimes when you do that is, students good enough to play as a freshman are usually good enough to come out as a junior. But I think that has really helped him in building experience and maturity to their team. They've got a lot of experience and that helps them."
On the two-week break after the loss to Virginia:
"The loss to Virginia is probably one of the toughest losses I've ever experienced. We just didn't play well and they played very well. I don't mean to take anything away from Virginia but I think our kids were down and they had some time to get away and evaluate where we are. They had a meeting themselves and I don't know what went on but I was impressed with the two practices in the off-week. What impressed me in our practices is not that we did everything right, but I saw a sincere desire to try to do everything right. So it wasn't like we were trying to get through something, it was more like we were committed to getting better. I think if you have that, then you can get better. Now the question is whether or not we can sustain that. I told our players where I was at with that loss, and that I've moved on. I think we have an excellent opportunity to get back this week. I think a win would do a tremendous thing for us, and we are still in this race. I told them that this is a six-game-tournament; the team that wins the most games from here on out will probably win the (Atlantic) division. You have to win the division first to win the (ACC) championship game. We don't have an easy road because all the teams we play will all be very good teams, but a win this week would do a lot for us from a confidence and league (standings) standpoint."
On rebounding from a tough loss:
"We are going to need our best effort this week, and this has been who we are as a team; we come back when things were bad and we've responded. I think that is testimony to the type of kids we have here and I'm counting on it that we'll be ready to play Saturday."
On the sentiment heading into the game:
"I always tell our kids it is the most important game because it is the next one. (A win in) this game would get us back in the lead of our division. It gets us closer to a bowl game. I think if you look at our record, we have responded pretty good coming into these situations. I think that's more of a testimony to our players than it is to their coach. I believe in our players, I believe in them as people and I would be very disappointed if we don't come back and play the way we are capable of playing. We are 4-2 and I don't think we've even come close to playing at our potential as a team. Sometimes I look at it and we probably should feel fortunate to be where we are right now. But I am still waiting for us to play to where I think we can play. That's why I am really talking to our players and trying to get them to realize the opportunity they have with these last six games."
On wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey and what he needs to work on to improve:
"I have no question about Darrius' work ethic. I thought he's worked extremely hard and I thought he had a good practice yesterday. Darrius knows what he needs to work on and he's going to continue to do it. The type of kid he is, he type of character and work ethic he has, I'm realizing that someday he'll blossom and be everything he's capable of being."
On Wake Forest's maturity within the last two years:
"Jim Grobe came into the league at the same time as I did so we've been going against each other for a while now. From day one I've always though he was a very good coach. I think they do a very good job at kind of messing with your reads. He's very sound and has been dealing with guys that have been in his system for awhile. When they work, they work pretty good. Last year I think we did a pretty good job in the first three quarters then they kind of got to us in the fourth. Right now, I think what has happened is that he has gotten better and better players and they are more mature. That, with the coaching solidifies the program."
On players motivating themselves:
"Ultimately, that is my responsibility and I am going to keep working my butt off to do it. I think everyone has to be accountable."
On Wake Forest's defense:
"They play their coverages really well. They have very good quickness and they do a very good job at reading the quarterback and breaking on the ball. When playing them, you better not be late on your throw because they'll get a lot of interceptions when the ball is not even thrown to a receiver in their area. They'll come off and make that play. Again that not only goes along with their athleticism and speed, but also their experience. They've been in it awhile so they know their coverages and they know their defenses very well."
On Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner:
"I've been amazed at this guy since he came into the league. As a (redshirt) freshman, I was so impressed with his poise and his ability to make plays and ability to see. If the play breaks down, he still finds a way to make a play. I think that is God-given, you either have the ability or you don't. Obviously, here is a guy that wasn't highly recruited but he has that in him and that's what really makes him a good football player."
Senior Defensive back Kevin Barnes
On Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner:
"He's not a Mike Vick, Marcus Vick speed guy, but he's very vocal. He's a great decision maker. He's tough. You have to respect him."
On playing better defense:
"We need to play our assignments. After watching the Virginia tape, I saw that they really didn't beat us down too much. We were just missing assignments."
On the key for Saturday's game against Wake Forest:
"Play every play as hard as we can. We have to make sure we get on our assignments and we need to play a full game of that. I don't think we have done that yet."
Senior Defensive Lineman Mack Frost
On the focus of the team:
"When we watch film, we watch us because the other team is going to show up but it is all about what we do. We can't really worry about what they do because they are going to come prepared (to play)."
On benefiting from the bye week:
"The bye was really good for us. It gave us a chance to get healthy and we've had two crisp practices so that gives us a chance to clear up any mistakes."
On the senior leadership:
"We need accountability. As seniors we are all accountable for ourselves and we bought that to our team."
On the change in how Wake Forest plays:
"The change is the fundamental aspect. They don't make any mistakes and they are a physical football team. We are coming into a physical game and they are not going to make any mistakes, so we have to be more perfect than they are."
On the game's importance:
"It is because we just loss and that can seem as a confidence shaker but we lost to Middle Tennessee and we came back and beat California. This is an important game because we have to bring it back to Maryland football."
Senior Offensive lineman Edwin Williams
On getting the bad taste out of your mouth from last year:
"We are getting that itch back after being off a week. We're ready to go. Obviously, last year we didn't seal the deal, we were up 24-3, and they came back and beat us in overtime."
On the offense:
"We have to improve the run game. Just get back to playing our game and getting our communication right. It will help that it is a home game and that we'll have the crowd behind us."
On Wake Forest's defense:
"They have a great defense, they've always had a good defense. They are very disciplined. (Defensive lineman) Boo Robinson was a big matchup for me last year and I suspect that he has got a lot better since last year. It will be a good challenge to go against somebody who is a premier defensive player."
