Head Coach Greg Robinson Press Conference Transcript (Nov. 19, 2006)
How much do you think your defensive line play was the reason for your success yesterday?
“I think they played well. A typical statement would be that it was a team effort, but that is how we played. I thought that up front that we did a good job. At the same time, without the good linebacker play and I thought the secondary played very good, too. I was pleased with the way that we played up front. With the number of players that we played with, too.”
Did guys like Arthur (Jones) and Brandon (Gilbeaux) get more snaps this week?
“No. I think if you go back to the week before, their numbers had been up. The younger players in that line have grown and developed to where, by them playing the number of plays that they are playing, the other guys are playing better too. Having depth is very, very important in the philosophy of the way we play defense.”
How pleased are you with (free safety) Joe Fields’ progress?
“I have made the statement throughout the season that Joe is a work in progress. I have watched his development. It has been two steps up, one step back, two steps up, one step back. He has had a season like that, but I have watched the steady improvement and he really did play very well yesterday. He made the two interceptions and the play on the reverse and those are plays that jump out at you. I see a comfort level that is beginning to really develop. It is going to take longer to really feel like he is an experienced player back there. You can see a difference. I am pleased for him because he has worked very hard and he made the sacrifice to do what he did (change to safety from quarterback). I think he also sees that there is potential for himself at that position and he has gone after it.”
How good can he (Joe Fields) be?
“Time will tell. I can make statements, but it is all about his development. He is a gifted athlete. He is intelligent. He is very intense in the way he goes about things. He has a chance to be very good.”
Can you talk about the consistency of (placekicker) Patrick Shadle this year?
“Patrick has been very, very good. (smiling) We showed the film of his second field goal (line drive) and he was working to see if he could spiral that ball. As poorly as he hit that one, it was straight down the middle. He has been very, very consistent. I am just pleased with the way that he handles it all. He is pretty steady in everything that he does.”
Does a game like yesterday help point to where your program is headed?
“There is no question that there were a lot of things that we can take from that game and build off of and I think that others can see that. Just the week before Connecticut had beaten a good Pittsburgh team. So for us to come back and to win that game (against Connecticut) is a real plus. And, yes, for us to build on. The best thing about it is the reward for the football team for their hard work. It gives us something that thrusts us into this last week.”
Does it help in terms of recruits who were there that they saw it in person to have a better idea about the program, rather than what they read or hear?
“I think so. And, we have spoken to several people who watched it on television. Absolutely it is a plus.”
Can you talk about the balance of the BIG EAST this season?
“I have made statements before that at the end of last season I was very impressed from top to bottom of what the teams were like in The BIG EAST Conference. I don’t think many really realized that these were good football teams, well coached football teams. Obviously this year has proven out that the difference from top to bottom isn’t that great. We will see how it comes out here in the next couple of weeks. I like the BIG EAST. I think it is a talented conference. Again, I can say all these things, but the numbers prove it out that this is a good conference and that it should be recognized that way. And, I think it has been.”
Did you see the game (Rutgers at Cincinnati) last night?
“Yes. I did not see the beginning, but I did get to see quite a bit of it.”
Did you smile on that bootleg that you like to run or were you thinking that you wanted to use that this week?
“(laughing) I did not go that far. I wasn’t really watching it with strategy in mind as much as I was just taking it in and watching both Cincinnati and Rutgers. It was kind of nice to sit back and watch.”
Can you take anything from what Cincinnati did (in its win against Rutgers)?
“The film just got in. We watched in on television last night, but it is hard to really analyze when you are watching it on television. You get a feel for it. Sometimes you are able to do just that (learn from another team’s strategy), but sometimes structure doesn’t allow that. Cincinnati played well. We need to watch that.”
(Wide receiver) Donte Davis was in pads yesterday, but he didn’t play. Was he ready?
“He just did not get a lot of work throughout the week. Wednesday was the first day he was really able to run and Thursday he did some good things at practice, but we were committed to the guys who had been working since last Sunday. He was not 100 percent yesterday, but I would suspect that today he will be even better.”
How nice was it to see (running back) Curtis Brinkley get in the endzone a couple of times yesterday?
“It was real good. I felt kind of bad because I took Delone (Carter) out the play before the swing pass for the touchdown to give him a break. I told him, ‘As soon as you are ready, go back in there.’ He said he would be ready the next play. Then all of the sudden, boom, it was a touchdown. It is not just about Curtis or about Delone, it is about our football team. They are two good backs and they both played well. I think it is pretty obvious that Delone did some pretty good things in that football game, as well. It is good to see. I think whoever you watch – if it is Michigan or USC or whomever – a lot of different teams play different backs. This is a good backfield that we have and we just have to keep taking advantage of it.”
Can you talk about the BIG EAST win, and maybe another one this week, and what it will do for your momentum going into next season?
“I think it is premature to talk about next year in anyway other than we want to win our last football game. There is nothing better in football than winning your last football game. That is why I always thought bowl games are great in college because there are so many bowl games that you have a lot of teams that win their last game. The lousy thing about pro football, when it comes to the playoffs, you really only have one team that wins their last game. So, for us to win our last game, that’s the momentum. We needed to win yesterday for so many reasons. It goes back to right here last Sunday when someone asked how will your team respond when you are out of bowl play. Every week, the reasoning is a little different, but we just want to win. The more we can win, the better. That is the way we look at it.”
Do you have anything special planned for Thanksgiving?
“We practice today, Tuesday and Wednesday, and then we come back Thursday morning and have meetings and practice and will be out of here by mid-day. A lot of the players will be with family and some with coaches. We are having a Thanksgiving theme for our training table tonight with all of our coach’s families together with the team. We will do all we can to respect Thanksgiving because we as people who are involved with football and college athletics have a lot to be thankful for. I think it is important that we make sure we emphasize that side of it and look forward to it.”
