April 30, 2011
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Opening statement:
"I thought we had a pretty good day out there today. Good things: we had no injuries when it came down to the spring and relatively we're in very good shape from a health standpoint. I thought the guys really competed hard. They had fun and that's really what the spring game is all about... guys working really, really hard through 14 practices and the spring game. It's really important to have some fun, get out there and compete against each other.
"I'm very pleased with the spring in terms of how we started and how we finished. I thought we made good progress throughout the spring. We still have a lot of work to do. But again I thought the overall attitude and intensity was good. I thought the players really understand what we're looking for, how we have to practice, what we have to do in order to win championships. And that's going out there each and every day and playing as hard as you can and doing all the little things right, both on and off the field. So now it's up to them. We have lifting next week and the discretionary week, then they'll go home for a few weeks, come back and start our summer conditioning program. Then they have to take over doing the work on their own. We get back here together on August 9 and I'm really looking forward to it."
On the first-team defense:
"The thing is, you've got to remember we didn't let them do anything. We just basically played a couple coverages and really one front the whole time, we had no movement. What we did was we had a blown coverage on the first touchdown, somebody thought we were playing a certain coverage and we weren't. We were playing a different coverage, so we blew that. But for the most part I thought they competed, They gave up a couple plays, but again that was just playing vanilla. Usually in the spring game, the way at least we conduct it, the offense probably does have a little bit of the advantage. It's like the Pro Bowl. You limit the things you do and it's always a little bit more high-scoring. "
On Danny O'Brien's progression throughout the spring:
"I thought that he's gotten better as we've gone through each practice and each week this spring. He had the one play today where he's trying to throw the ball out of bounds and he just didn't put enough on it, just didn't get it there. When he makes that kind of mistake he comes off and he knows exactly what the situation is and what happened. But I thought his knowledge of what we want to do, his command of what we want to do, you can just see that getting better with each practice. I thought he looked very comfortable, very poised out there today. My whole thing is I just think he's going to get better and better with every day that he practices."
On O'Brien's comfort with the receiving corps:
"I think he is, I think that will continue into the summer and I think it will continue as we get back here for fall camp. I'm excited about the receivers that we have coming back. I think once we get everyone out there, and we've got a rotation going, I think we've got some guys who have the ability to make good things happen. The biggest thing we've got to do is work on the consistency. And, again, those guys just have to work together a lot this summer so Danny anticipates things and they know what he's going to do. But I'm excited about the people we have to work with at wide receiver."
On bouncing back from last year:
"Last year was a good learning experience. Freshman year everything was given to me. I got the fame and all that stuff and I went through everything positive. Last year, was the opposite, I was injured and did kickoffs. So, I'm really happy where I'm at now. I'm doing a lot better than where I was. I'm 100 percent healthy, so I'm just excited to get ready for [the opening game vs. Miami] September 5."
On what he has changed about his mechanics:
"I changed my steps. I got a little bit closer to the ball, but just the change of something so miniscule can change the whole kick. I get about a half-yard closer and I'm about 6-foot-1 so it's really tight. I just figured it out on my own."
On the possibility of punting and kicking this season:
"I'd rather do both [punting and kicking]. For me, my whole life I've done everything and it puts more pressure on me and I love pressure. I love game-type situations, so the more duties the better."
On his dropped interception for a possible touchdown:
"I wish I could get [the possible pick six] back. I saw the receiver split and I was like he's got to be running a speed out. The quarterback threw it real quick at him and I just broke. I saw it coming to me and I let [the ball] hit me in my body instead of putting my hands out. I wish I could have gotten that play back. I ended up getting another one later on, so it kind of made up for it but I would still love to have that play back."
On the new defense:
"I feel like [the defense] has more responsibility and in our old defense we blitzed a lot so we didn't have to cover for as long as we do now. We just have a lot more responsibility and we just have a lot more things that we have to do in this defense and I like it. I feel like it's better for us to because we get to really get a feel for the position and we've learned so much so far playing for [Coach Edsall]. I feel like I've learned more in one week than I learned in a whole year and it's crazy but it's just a lot more responsibilities to have."
On giving up a long touchdown pass on the first play of the game:
"We've just got to keep our heads up. In the locker room our coach told us what [the offense was] going to run with the first play, so people came out thinking that that was going to be the play, but we've still got to see the call on the field because that can always change. We just had a misunderstanding where guys thought we were playing one coverage and we were playing another coverage. We just can't have that happen, but when it does happen we've just got to read that play and move on to the next one."
On his team's play:
"I liked the way we played. We didn't come out with the right intensity at the beginning, but as the game went on we felt better, got more comfortable, got in a groove, made some plays, and at the end of the day both teams did well."
On his team's offense:
"The offense is looking good. They look like a new offense and they have so many weapons. They have Quintin [McCree], Ronnie [Tyler], both our backs in D.J. [Adams] and [Davin] Meggett], and Danny [O'Brien] is just looking awesome right now. [O'Brien's] timing is looking good and the line is protecting him, so they're coming together. They're going to be a problem this season."
On the strengths of the team's defense:
"Experience [will be one of our biggest strengths]. Everybody pretty much played last year. We're hungry. We were so close to being in the ACC Championship last year that that's what we have in our minds for this year and that's our motivation right now."
On the first play:
"It was the perfect play call, matchup and coverage. I knew I was going to Ronnie (Tyler) before the snap. He ran a great route and had a great catch. It was the perfect way to start off any game. It really helped us because it sparked us right off the bat. That was a key to us winning."
On the offense:
"It was nice. Everything was coming together. We really watered down our offense and only ran about half the playbook. We were focused on executing it. I think we did that. We didn't want to stall like we did after the first four drives but overall we started off great. Over the summer we need to focus on getting some things polished up and be ready for Miami."
On the receivers:
"Ronnie (Tyler), everyone saw what he can do today. Quintin (McCree), things broke down for him a couple of times today but he seems to always end up in open spots. Kevin Dorsey is a little hurt but he has been a go to receiver all spring and is very reliable. Those three (and Kerry Boykins), and if the young guys can feed off of them we are going to be very deep at receiver."
On his thoughts on spring and his position change:
"I have a real positive outlook on the spring and the move. At first I was a little bit upset about the move but at the end of the day it's not about the individual it's about winning. With the move I could be more of an asset to the team. Knowing that, I embraced it and played as hard as I could throughout the spring and made a lot of progress."
On the defense's play:
"We started off real slow but we were able to pick it up. Starting off slow was a problem for us throughout the entire spring. With a new defense it's going to take some time for us to get settled in. At the end of the day we settled down and made more plays."
On the offense:
"The offense has been real explosive throughout the spring. Everything the offense did I already expected. They have been making plays throughout spring. Our offense is very explosive. They can score at any point. The most difficult part of matching up with our offense is the pace. It is a real fast-paced offense and with that the defense can lose focus and make mistakes. The offense is set out to make the defense make one on one tackles and make mental errors. Overall it's very explosive."
On the chemistry between Danny O'Brien and the receivers:
"We had chemistry coming in. We have gotten a lot more reps with how much our offense is throwing the ball. We get more opportunities to run routes and get the timing down. The younger guys just need to get the reps with him. Myself, Ronnie (Tyler) and Qunitin (McCree) will be gone (after next season) so they need to be ready to step up once we are gone."
On the style of the passing attack:
"It's a little bit of everything vertical and underneath. We are not one dimensional. We aren't just throwing deep balls or underneath. We do pretty much everything in this offense."
On starting out fast:
"It was huge especially for Ronnie (Tyler) coming right out and scoring. For him this is definitely a break out year. To score on the first play, it really installed the confidence that we have had all throughout spring and solidified we can really do this."
On the offense:
"We did a great job of executing the plays. The coaches called great plays. Those are the types of plays that we need to execute in games to be successful."
On the first play:
"It was a play action pass and the safeties bit. I was wide open so I can't take a lot of credit for it. Danny (O'Brien) threw a great ball and I just had to catch it."
On playing football again:
"I have always had a love for the game of football. I was excited to be able to come out and play it again this year."
On his reception with the other players and coaches:
"They have treated me well so far. The coaches threw me right into things and have given me a lot of chances to prove myself. Today I was thrilled to start with the guys before I got hurt. I have been very excited. I am going to just keep working and getting better and hopefully have the chance to play against Miami."
