Head Coach Doug Marrone - Press Conference Transcript (August 18, 2009)
Opening Statement:
"Three things we can say today are, first, Greg Paulus was named the starting quarterback last evening, second, (freshman safety) Rishard Anderson is on his way back here as he has been cleared by the (NCAA) Clearinghouse. We're excited to get him back to the team. And, third, (freshman kicker) Shane Raupers has left the team. They are really the three things going on with our program right now. If there are any questions, I'd be happy to answer them."
On how he came to his decision on naming Greg Paulus starting quarterback:
"I just feel good. I think in the last couple days there has been some separation. I feel that Greg is the player who we can win with right now. We love the competition, we love (sophomore) Ryan (Nassib), and we love (freshman) Charley (Loeb), senior Cam (Dantley), and all the quarterbacks. I feel that it was my decision, I made it. I think Greg Paulus is going to go out there for us and win football games right now. All of our quarterbacks need to be able to learn from each other. I think it's going to give our players and receivers a chance to get used to the quarterback. We can give Greg more reps now and I'm excited about that. I've always said that as soon as you see separation you can make a decision and then you can get that player ready to play."
On what he saw in the quarterback separation:
"I think there are so many different things. Both quarterbacks tend to have strengths and weaknesses, as players do at every position. At the end of the day, I felt Greg gives us the best chance to win. I love (freshman quarterback) Ryan Nassib. I think Ryan is a good player. I think (freshman) Charley (Loeb) is a good player, and so is (senior) Cam (Dantley). A lot goes into it. There are many different reasons why you choose a player – not just at quarterback, but at each position. I feel that because of my ability as a coach and my experience, Greg will give us the best chance to win."
On the reason he chose Greg Paulus as starting quarterback:
"I don't think you make a decision based on one thing. Like I told you at the first press conference, I talked to (offensive coordinator) Coach [Rob] Spence about it. I talked to both quarterbacks and told them exactly the reasoning for the decision. I told the team it's my decision and this is the direction we're going. I think we're going to need all the help we can get from everyone on this football team, and I want to make sure that everyone on the team understands and that they know from us what they need to do to improve and what they need to do to get better. Greg isn't a polished, finished product right now. We're still working on getting him better, as we are with all our quarterbacks. That's where we are with that position, as well as the other ones."
On Greg Paulus' reaction after hearing the news:
"I told Coach Spence first, I told Greg and Ryan [Nassib] together. I basically did most of the talking. I look at football as business. My job is to play the players who can win games for us now. I think the players will always appreciate my honesty. As a coach, that's what I would like from them. I've always been honest and upfront with them. That's all I think a student-athlete can ask of a coach, and that's how I treat the situation."
On whether or not ticket sales played into his decision on naming Greg Paulus starting quarterback:
"One thing I've said from the beginning is I understand what my job is. My job is to win football games. Just because I went to school here, and just because people may think I have a better relationship than some of the past coaches, I don't think that's going to get me any more time. I don't think that's going to do anything for me. My job is to win games. I think if I win games, I'm going to be in good shape. If I don't win games, my butt's going to be out of here. I understand that. I'm comfortable with that because I chose this profession. I have a lot of confidence in my ability. I always have. I have a plan, and I'm going to stick with that plan. We're going to get this program back to where everyone would like it. When I say everyone, I'm talking about lettermen, alumni, the student body, the faculty, the city of Syracuse, and the surrounding areas. I get excited when I talk about our program, and I'm excited to go out there and start playing. You said it to me last week, 'Boy, you're chatty and you're talkative,' when I first came out here, and I am. I love coaching football and I love developing players. And I love it when they can have success. I plan on putting these players in the position where they can have success. That's my goal."
On whether he's surprised about reaching a quarterback decision so quickly:
" Yes, he hasn't played the sport of football, but he's thrown a football. He's been out playing. He's been training as an athlete. The kid's an athlete, so he's gone out there and done a good job. Antonio Gates didn't play any football and he went out there and became a Pro-Bowl tight end. Now, I'm not comparing it, but I always say this and, I said it at the BIG EAST (Media Day), people asked me a lot of questions about Greg Paulus and I always say, 'I wish you could just meet him so I wouldn't have to answer the question.' I stand by that statement. He's played, he's thrown a football, he's been an athlete, he's made quick decision, and he's done a lot of things that correlate to the game of football for the last four years. For the people who question it, they haven't been out on the field to see it."
On Greg Paulus’ leadership role with the team:
"I think he's a natural leader as it is. I also think Ryan has done a very good job of that and I think Charley (Loeb) has. I learned from Coach (MacPherson), that position itself tends to have leadership qualities. You're in the huddle, you're calling the players, you're the quarterback. We all know it. I wish I grew up as a quarterback. I grew up as an offensive lineman. We all know that position has leadership qualities within it. I think all of our quarterbacks possess leadership qualities. The difference with Greg is that he has been through that stage before after being a point guard with a highly successful basketball program (at Duke)."
On what Greg Paulus will be able to do as the quarterback:
"I believe that we're going to have enough for him to win games. Is he going to be able to do the whole playbook? Absolutely not. (Saints quarterback) Drew [Brees] wasn't able to do the whole playbook that we had in New Orleans. One of the things that we can do now is start tapering the offense to the strengths of our players. That's the same with our receivers, what routes they run well, and with our running backs and what plays they like to run. It is no different than the quarterback position. It gives us a chance now to start tailoring our offense to our players. We still have some battles going in with the receiver position and some of the positions in the offensive line. We still have to settle ourselves in some of these other positions. We've had a lot more focus on some of the other high-profile battles, but it'll be interesting in these next couple days. The other ones will start separating themselves, as well."
On whether he plans to implement a one-quarterback offense or will he play multiple quarterbacks:
"In a one-quarterback offense, the only thing I do believe is that if anyone looks at my background, they will have seen that we've had Curtis Martin and LaMont Jordan in the backfield quite a bit with Chad Pennington left out. Those are things that I've done before and to say whether I'll do them or not – I'll do them if it creates an advantage for us and we can win games. We've had that before everywhere I've been. We did not do that in New Orleans, but I did that quite a bit in New York. I laugh when I see the wildcat offense now with Miami running it last year against New England, because if you go back in my background, we ran that at the New York Jets in 2001 quite a bit with Rich Anderson. We did some option with Rich Anderson and Curtis Martin when Rich Anderson actually got the ball and flipped it. We've done a lot of two-back with LaMont and Curtis in the backfield with LaMont Jordan being what I guess is now ordained a wildcat position."
On the kicking situation without (freshman kicker) Shane Raupers:
"I told Ryan Lichtenstein, 'Here you go. You're the guy. Let's go play.' We're confident in his ability, that's why we always had someone coming in there. (Junior) Rob (Long) has done a lot of things, and we're going to look at the situation. We feel comfortable right now. Would we like to have another kicker in the program? Absolutely. I'm not going to tell you that it's a great situation. It's a great situation if they both can stay healthy and kick the way that we expect them to kick."
On whether (freshman kicker) Shane Raupers could possibly return:
"Here's the thing, I don't comment on players who are not in the program, and we know that, but I want to make one thing clear – the players who stay in our program will be very successful in life. What we're trying to do is develop life skills. It does offend me if people think we're running people off. Anyone who knows me and what my philosophy is – my philosophy has always been to develop the person first before you develop the player. I've said it a million times. Young coaches have asked me why I've been so successful in coaching and I've always said that statement and I believe that. I try to encourage our players and do the best I can to make sure they're ready for life and I encourage them to stay and be the best they can be. That's part of my job, that's what I want to do, and that's why I came back to college (coaching). It's disappointing when people leave the program because I know the players who stay will be successful. People leave for different reasons and that's why I don't comment on each of them. It's disappointing to me when that happens because I think the way that we run the program, we can make a difference in someone's life."
On how he addresses those who doubt his motive:
"One, they don’t know who I am. They don't know what I believe in. They don't know how much I care about this University. They don't know that I left the NFL to come back to help student-athletes. The people who say that are ignorant to who I am. I feel badly that I'm not able to educate, or I wasn't able to get around them to really tell them how we run the program. I find it hard to believe that someone who's heard me speak about life skills or the things I want to do for our players here would stand up and say, 'I'm concerned about what he's doing to these players and sending these players off.' I feel that way. The people who are close to me and know me understand who I am and what I'm about. I really believe that."
On his reaction to SU playing USC and Notre Dame in the New Meadowlands within the next few years:
"First, my concern right now is this team today and tomorrow. To play those teams in that venue is a good situation for us. We go down there and we get a chance to play in a fantastic venue in the Meadowlands, and we're such a strong University in the metropolitan area, that will help us. Obviously we recruit those areas. I think that'll help us when we go down there and play for some of the players who can't get down there. For our fans up here, I encourage them to come down and take the trip. Come on and go to the city, or catch a play, or go ahead and tailgate – there's definitely more opportunity for that kind of experience because they have tremendous parking lots down there. I think there's a lot of positive in it. I'm excited about it, but again, that's down the road and my focus right now is this football today, tomorrow, and getting better."
On not having home field advantage at the New Meadowlands:
"I like playing those teams in those venues. I try to take situations and make the best out of them. I think that's why I'm standing here today. I think that's why I've been successful. I like the situation we're in and I'm going to make the best out of it. People are always going to say, 'Maybe that's not right or not good,' but the decision has been made. I'm supporting it 100 percent and let's go play and let's make the best out of it. Let's beat those teams in a highly-visible market. (smiling) You guys can come down and let's enjoy it. If you need to take the subway, I can tell you what subway to take into the city and get to the games."
