Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Football Weekly Press Conference
11/5/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 5, 2001
Northwestern Football Weekly Press Conference
Head Coach Randy Walker
Opening Statement
"It's still a simple game and a game to me that's easily understood. There are some things things you have to do to play good football and to win and be successful at this game. We identified those things and we talk about those things on a weekly basis and usually more often than that. It comes down to this: every winning program I have ever been associated with wins the turnover battle. They stop the run and can rush the football and they play well in the red zone. We have some other things we measure, we talk about. We obviuosly want to win the kicking game and there is a yardage element to that. That's always been a big asset and we, by and large, have been, if not a good kicking team this year we've certainly been competitive and we've balanced well in those areas. We talk a lot about response after a turnover. If our defense gets a turnover what we respond as an offense. We talk about starting fast and and finishing strong in a football game. We talk about pass efficiency, we talk about sacks but the elements that continue to concern me, and they are obvious, is that you have to win the turnover ratio.
"I don't know how many points we took off the board Saturday but there were probably 28 points that resulted directly from turnovers. You have to rush the football and certainly people are going to load the box and do things to stop our run. It's no secret we want to run the football but we are not rushing the football at a level we need to. You have to stop the run and again that's been a major concern of the defense the entire season. You have to respond in the end zone. You have to make some plays. Three of seven on Saturday isn't going to win many games. It's not going to put you where you want to be. As a result also, your opponents will get an opportunity from you. You need to shut down their opportunities and make some plays. We start out in August talking about those aspects of football and how we play. We talk about it. I have an overhead that sits right here. We talk about each and every week those things that usually lead to success. Our inability to do those things on a consistent basis are the reason why we are 4-4 and we are not a better football team. That's plain and simple as can be. Obviously, Indiana came out of blocks and got a lot of momentum. We did not do much to stop it. Most of those things are included in those things I just talked about. It was a definite function of all that. That's the explanation, that's the deal, that's what happened. It's not a mystery to me. In the games we have been successful we held up pretty well in those areas. In the games we don't, we haven't. It's that simple. I still believe we have a good football team. We're going to continue to work on the things that are costing us opportunities. We will continue to try to improve and get one week better. Those sound like old-fashioned coaches' cliches or coach-speak. I'm an old-fashioned coach. That's what I believe. There is no magic wand. There is no magic formula. There are just things we have to do better that we haven't done."
On Iowa
"We face an interesting situation as we prepare for Iowa. I think they are a football team that's probably a little bit like us--a little bit frustrated. They came out of blocks strong, played well early and won their first three games, as we did. They had high aspirations and high hopes. They were the buzz of the media during the preseason. I am not exactly sure why they've lost four of their last five games. Every game's been close. We have two teams at a crossroads. Neither one wanted to be in this position, but this is where we find ourselves nonetheless. So we will see which team responds the best."
On Iowa's Physical Reputation
"I think they are a very physical football team. They are strong. They physically dominated us a year ago in that game. A game that surprised a lot of people but did not surprise me because I saw them play better and better as the season went on last year. They were really playing well in the latter half of the season. I knew we were going to be in for a difficult game and they took the game to us in every aspect--physically and otherwise. That's what they predicated to build their the program on and we try to be the same thing."
On Losing Damien Anderson This Week
"It is significant loss for a couple of reasons. He's a vital part of our team--he sets the tempo for the offense. He's also one of our leaders and just a great kid. Damien has a great work ethic--we talk about that often. He was upset with me Saturday because he wanted to go back in. I was the one who pulled the plug on him going back in the game Saturday. He was cleared to go. They resolved the dislocation and they said he could play. He wanted to go. Quite frankly, I had to find out what was wrong and how significant it is and what it means to his future as a football player. I feel confident we'll find some answers this week. There's this young man who has given this institution, this program and his teammates a great deal. We're not going to sacrifice him, his health and well-being for one game or two games. Let's find out how significant this is and what the best course of action is. Right now there is a great likelihood of him being at risk if he goes back to play this week. He is at great risk in a situation like that and very much prone to re-injury. It's not worth it."
Will Damien Be Out the Remainder of the Season?
"That would be premature to say at this point. The injury needs to be evaluated further. They do not know for sure. But they do know for sure he had a dislocation. Guys come back to play. It's my judgment that it was a significant enough situation and a great concern to me that it was not worth having him play this week."
Does Damien's Injury Change Your Offensive Game Plan?
"We're going to keep doing what we've been doing. Kevin Lawrence has improved as a running back over the last couple of years. He's become a much better football player and he deserves to be playing more. I have a lot of confidence in him, as well as Noah Herron and Torri Stuckey. There's a good chance that all three of them will play. Damien has been battle-tested for a lot of years. He's taken a lot of snaps and carried the ball a lot of times. There's a certain element of being a good running back that's learning how to play 80 plays, how to carry the ball 25 or 30 times. I'm not sure we want to take any of those other guys there yet. Those three guys will share the time. I don't view it the same way as playing quarterback. I think you can play different tailbacks and be pretty good."
On Zak's Performance at Indiana
"He missed some shots early in the game. I don't think the quarterback-center exchange was on him, but part of that's on him. Sometimes they don't have their best stuff. Sometimes you come out of the blocks and you miss a couple of shots. The thing I was proud of with Zak was the way he responded. I thought he came back and started getting us moving. I think Zak would concur--he needs to play better. He needs to play more efficiently. We can't turn the ball over inside the 10. But that wasn't a typical Zak Kustok performance, and I think he'll be better this week."
On Zak's Interceptions
"I think he only had three coming into Saturday, which isn't bad. (Fourth-lowest interception percentage in the nation.) We're throwing the ball more, which explains a little bit of it. I know Zak would like to have a couple of those throws back Saturday. They were ill-advised. By and large I feel Zak's played pretty effectively. I expect him to bounce back, like he did in the second half."
On Last Year's Iowa Game
"I thought Iowa did as good a job as anybody against us last year. I really respect Kirk Ferentz and the Iowa coaching staff. They just came out and did a very effective job of playing football. They dominated the field-position battle, they won the kicking game. They took the game to us physically on both sides of the line. It was a heckuva job. It wasn't a surprise to me. The better football team won the game that day. I'd like to think we'll respond. We're going to play our best and I expect the right kind of response. But (last year's game) was between different teams in different places. We can't worry about revenge. That's the last thing we need to worry about."
On the 2001 Losses
"Unless we do those things I mentioned earlier, we'll lose again. I've seen teams lose the turnover battle and win, but the correlation's pretty high. Same with the running game. So, while I think we're capable of beating Purdue or Indiana, you have to do those things, or you're relying on luck. Because you don't win many games and lose those components. We need to stop the run this week. And every week. It's still a game of blocking and tackling. It's real easy. Right now we're not doing some of those things. We had five games last year where we did not turn the ball over once. We have not had a game this year where we haven't turned the ball over. We haven't changed our philosophy of football. We went to the spread offense, but we still do the same things."
On Turnover Ratio
"We've always spent a lot of time on respecting the football. We work with our defense on making turnovers. I've never seen a group of defensive backs catch more balls than our guys do in practice. We work on it a lot. Why have we not had the success this year that we've had in the past? I can't answer that. I know it's not for lack of attention to detail. We're going to work hard again this week to get better."
Comments from Damien Anderson:
On the Shoulder Injury
"I suffered a dislocated shoulder. I have full function in my shoulder, and strength and movement in my fingers. Everything was fine. I am going to some specialists today and tomorrow, so as far as the extent of the injury, I don't know. As of now, it's just sore. I have all my movement. Sitting out Saturday is just precautionary. If needed, I would be able to play this Saturday, but it's just more precautionary than anything. I want to be as prepared as I can for the future. Just do the best thing in this situation.
"I'm confident in my team as well. I wouldn't be sitting if I knew my team wasn't prepared for a situation like this. Obviously we have some good guys in the backfield that can make some positive things happen. My whole career, this whole team has been about responding. That is what we definitely have to do this week. We will have a great test from Iowa. They have never given any games away. I definitely feel confident we have the guys who can make some positive things happen in Kevin (Lawrence), Noah (Herron) and Torri Stuckey."
