Northwestern University Athletics
Media Day Coverage: Transcript of Randy Walker News Conference
8/25/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 25, 2005
Opening Statement...
This is always a difficult point in the year for us with the uncertainty all of us face in college football. We came in a couple of weeks ago -- and certainly we think we have some good football players, we think we have some answers -- but there are a whole bunch of guys we don't know much about. As hard as we've worked, as much as we've tried to do the last couple of weeks, we still don't know.
There is a certain comfort-level being out on a practice field. A lot of times at practice, if you give up a sack, they'll put the ball right back on the same spot. You give up a touchdown pass, they bring the ball back and they don't put up any points on the board. There is no swing in momentum. There is a false sense of security -- almost an unrealistic picture of what really happens in a football game. Football is about big plays, momentum, swings in emotion. It's about attitude that you don't get on a practice field. We all groan through practices. I say that -- not because we don't have enthusiasm, not because we don't have crisp and sharp practices -- it's just there are no consequences for what we do in practice. Yeah, it's a learning experience -- you try to grow, you look at film, you might get yelled at on a bad day -- but you always bring the ball back and put it down.
In eight or nine days, we are going to go out there and when something bad happens, they don't bring the ball back, end of story. How kids respond, how kids grow -- that's the essence of football. I've always said, there are a lot of guys that look good in practice, because there are no consequences to failure at practice. But on game day, it's the gamers that look good. They stand out because they respond to whatever it is -- whether it is good or bad. I like to talk analogies. I like to talk about other athletes. I talk about Tiger Woods a lot. To me, he is probably the greatest athlete in the history of the game -- in terms of his mental approach, his ability to respond. He is never out of a tournament. He shoots 40 on the front side of the Masters and he's still in it. He could be eight back and he's still in it, because he believes he's still in it. He plays the next shot and he doesn't give up. He just keeps coming, playing his best golf, and that's what makes him the greatest that ever played.
The same is true in football. You can get your butt knocked down a thousand times, but there is a lot of football to be played. I remind our kids of that -- especially the young ones every year. We will be tested as we go through the season and that's what is going to measure us. It's going to be about how we respond. And I don't know the answer to that yet. I know how Tim McGarigle is going to respond, I'm pretty certain of that. I know how Brett Basanez is going to respond. I know how Mark Philmore, Barry Cofield and some of our tried and true veterans will respond. There are some young guys who are unknown commodities. We are going to throw them into the deep end and see if they come up. We are going to find out.
I didn't sleep well last night and I'll be like this for a week. Usually I'm not like this, but right before the first game, that unknown churns me up inside. Last year TCU was a horribly disappointing game -- we missed five field goals, lost in overtime. But I slept like a baby after TCU because I knew what I was dealing with. There will be things I like on Sept. 3, there will be things I don't like, but it's all about how we play. We are going to try to play the best we can for the rest of the year and learn a lot about ourselves.
Overall Statement about Offense...
At this point I feel very good about a lot of things. I feel very good about our offensive line. Everyone's first question is about the offensive line. There are some guys playing really well. Zach Strief has shown leadership and ownership of his position. The line is going in the right direction and I am confident they will play well. We were much in the same place a couple of years ago. We'll come together, and I'll think we'll play fine.
I continue to be impressed with our young running backs. Its one thing that Terrell is hurt, but Terrell has been hurt before -- that's not news. We've been through it before. Brandon Roberson has been practicing through spring and I'm pleased again about how he came out this spring. Where he stacks up right now, he's got a lot of pressure, but he's going to run for his money as the number one starter. Tyrell Sutton is playing well. I think he has matured. I like Omar a great deal. Nathan Shanks has come off the injury list and he played the last week or so. He showed some good things -- but I like Brandon Roberson and I think he's going to be a good back. I think he will contribute a great deal.
Our wide receiving core is the strength of our offense in addition to our quarterback. I personally think we have one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten. I think he's done a great job embracing our program and what we try to be. As Joe Namath said, `He's the straw that stirs the drink.' He's special and he makes a difference. We have a bunch of guys starting with Mark Philmore, who again, I would not trade for anyone in the Big Ten. I think he is a great receiver, a great kick returner and a guy who makes a difference. This difference has always been evident, and it's been especially evident these past two years when he was not able to finish the season. We're trying to get Jonathan Fields back on his feet. He went through some injuries last year, so we're trying to get him back healthy. He should be back, playing well by the opener. Shaun Herbert is one of those guys who just shows up and plays every day. He might not be as spectacular as Mark or Jonathan, but he'll catch his 40-45 balls and do a great job. Kim Thompson has showed good things. A lot of young players achieved more than we expected-- Jeff Yarbrough and Ross Lane are going to have nice years.
Overall Statement about Defense...
Defensively, we've been a little banged up at linebacker and I don't know if everyone is going to show up next week. I'm a little nervous. We got Adam Kadela back and Tim McGarigle is running. Nick Roach is a great player and a special player. He's coming back from off-season surgery and is doing well. That group makes a big difference. If those guys show up every week -- I like their chances, they are pretty good. Tim McGarigle -- if you put him in a bottle and sold it, you would have everything you look for in a football player. He has all the intangibles. Pure and simple -- he is one of the most passionate, relentless football players I've ever been around. Nick Roach is a great talent, who I think will play this game for a long time. I'll be glad when he's back out there. It was a huge loss when Adam Kadela got hurt last year in the second game. He's playing well -- back at full speed. We like the depth of our program at that position. Demetrius Eaton, Campbell Black, some of the guys who have been around the program and the freshmen are looking good.
Up front, Barry Cofield has taken his game to the next level. A lot has been said about Loren Howard's injury and departure. First of all, he wasn't going to play this year, I can promise you that. I really feel good about the young guys who are going to play. I think they are really maturing. Kevin Mims has had a great off-season. David Ngene is getting some things ironed out and I like the way he plays. I think they'll turn out to be good football players. Even a guy like Corey Wootton, a freshman, will see some playing time.
We will have some freshman in the lineup. In the secondary, I really like the way guys are playing. I think Marquice Cole -- in no disrespect to anyone that has been here before -- is as good a defensive back as I've ever coached. If you ask Jerry Brown, he would say the same thing, and Jerry has coached a lot more than I have. And Marquice was a huge loss a year ago. We never made much about it because it happened in preseason, but we thought Marquice was a pretty good player last year in preseason. Now I think he is ready to play. Herschel Henderson is a guy who has started for two years, giving us the quality and experience we need. I like the way Reggie McPherson is playing safety, I like the way Frederic Tarver has taken strong safety in Brian Heinz's departure. Brendan Smith has come into that position and I think he is going to contribute.
Overall statement about special teams...
Our kicking game has the best long-snapper in the Big Ten -- Chris Horton. No one ever talks about long-snappers -- they can't even get recognized. Give me an all-league kicker, all-league punter, and they don't even give any of those recognitions for a long-snapper. But, he's a very good player, a three-year starter and best I've ever known. I think our kicker and punter are going to go a great job. Ryan Pederson, our punter, had a great camp. I don't think there is a guy on this planet better than Joel Howells -- the kind of kid he is, how hard he's worked -- I'm so proud of where he's come as a football player.
On who will start at running back...
Brandon Roberson would walk out there if we had a game today. That would have been an easy statement a year ago and a year before that with Jason Wright. It's a little less clear now. But I have a lot of confidence in Brandon. But I still think Tyrell Sutton is growing daily--he was only a freshman three weeks ago--but he doesn't look like a freshman now. This year's backs aren't as big. Noah Herron was 228, Jason was 215, but we went our style of offense because of Damien Anderson -- Damien Anderson was only 100-something and he rushed for 2,000 yards. There was a time when I was at Miami that we needed a big back. This is different -- you can run with a big guy or a small guy -- they are all fast.
On Brett Basanez closing in on the 10,000-yard passing plateau...
If he were up here, he'd say, `No, I haven't even thought about it.' He probably has it plastered all over his walls. He wants to throw for a lot of yards and we need Brett to throw for a lot of yards. He needs to play well and we need to catch the ball and make plays in the passing game -- which should be a strength for us. A lot of young guys don't want to throw the five-yard completion -- they want to launch it. They want to show off that big gun they've got. Brett has come a long way in being unselfish, a team guy. He takes a look at what the defense gives us and he's patient. They are all the things you like to see in the maturity process. So he'd say the right thing -- that he doesn't care about records -- but sure he does. Anyone that touches a ball, if they tell you differently, they are lying. They want the ball every play. Brett wants to throw the ball every down. Our tailbacks wants to run the ball every play, but they also know we are best when we're balanced. We're best when we take what's there and take what the defense gives. Brett's done a great job of that. If he throws for 3,000-yards, I like our chances.
On this year's freshman class...
We also had a lot of freshman in 2002. The guys that have the best chance are the ones on defense. John Gill and Corey Wootton have a chance. I don't think anyone at linebacker does-- I think Nick Roach, Adam Kadela and Tim McGarigle will show up next week. We could have three on defense, but I don't see more than that. Last year Michigan started a freshman tailback and a freshman quarterback. I think that is what you are going to continue to see in college football. I hear it from my colleagues -- they've got guys that are going to play young. Well, everyone does. I think the freshmen class that we brought in is as advertised. Some of you wrote it was the best freshmen class ever at Northwestern. It's the best one I think I've had. I don't know what preceded it, but I think it's a very strong class and even the ones that won't play this year are going to be very good. They are all keepers. I don't want to throw any of them back. We are going to have probably six, eight, 10 of them that can play. A couple of them may even come out as starters before it's all said and done.
On the pass rush without Loren Howard...
Loren made a difference in the pass rush, but he didn't play a lot the last two years. So it's not like we had him every week. In some ways, we are dealing with the same thing we were dealing with the last couple of years anyway. I think Barry Cofield is really emerging and is doing a great job. I think he is going to put pressure on the quarterback. We'll find a way to get pressure off the edge. Last year, even without having Loren -- and even when Loren was back he wasn't 100 percent -- we found ways to make it work. We put in our rabbits package. We pulled our ends and put our linebackers on the edge in third-and-long situations. Nick Roach made a bunch of plays in our rabbits' package. You worry about it -- but we aren't any different than we were a year ago. We are going to have to find someone. I like some things I see out of the young players -- Kevin Mims is going to be a very good football player. Time will tell me something. There is a guy we've been talking about -- I'm not going to say anything about him today because it's still very premature -- but we think we have a guy in our program that is going to make everyone forget anyone that has ever played linebacker. We think we have a real special one. Now, maybe he'll be that deer in the headlights come game day. He's a year away maybe, and that's what I don't know. He wouldn't be the first freshman that stained his britches out there. It happens, and then they are different guys the next year. I was one of them. I was scared to death -- because it's happening a lot faster, it is more physical. But then you kind of get used to it. One day you wake up and say ok. So we will find out. We are going to learn a lot next week.
On the increased role of the tight end in this year's offense...
I've gotten in the habit for five years of not talking about those guys. We are going to have a more tight end offense. They've done a really good job. It starts with Erryn Cobb -- he's doing a real solid job. He's a little nicked up right now -- like about 30 other guys, but he should be back Friday. Erryn had a great camp and he really improved. Frayne Abernathy has given us some things at tight end. We have a different role for Chris Malleo, who probably will be more like a fullback. Sean Mansfield is there as well. We are going to have more of our ace personnel (tight end and three wide receivers) than in the past. There will be times when we even feature two tight ends in a game. We are just trying to be as diverse as we can be and those guys are going to help us do that this year.
On his team's big play potential...
Football is about scoring -- it will probably always be about scoring. We need to do a great job in making plays. I think we've got big play potential and I think we have kids capable of being very good -- much like 2000. I think college football has changed. Everyone in this league has big time players and guys who can beat you. I don't go in to any game thinking, `lets make it a 10-7 game.' We are going to have to come out and score and make big plays. We have to make some plays on defense as well. I'm not as worried about our defense as you might think. I'd be worried about it today, because Tim (McGarigle) and Adam (Kadela) aren't back. But when those guys show up, I like my chances.
On the similarities between Brandon Roberson and Tyrell Sutton...
Brandon is just more consistent than Tyrell. He's been in the program for a year now. He and Tyrell are a lot alike in some ways -- they are similar, but don't call them the same guy. They both have great vision, great instinct and outstanding burst in the hole. I call it that eight-yard box -- they get in another gear and go right on by you. They are very good with their hands, which is lucky and unusual because I've gone decades without having a good back in the passing game. That's never a sure thing. We are blessed to have backs who can catch the ball. But, really what it comes down to is productivity. We will find out -- whoever runs out there first and is productive. If he isn't, we will get the next guy going. Someone is going to be hot. Hopefully we have someone to step up and take onus.
On Tim McGarigle's Addition to Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List...
Honestly, those awards, I don't know what goes into them. I know Tim McGarigle is a heck of a football player and a heck of a linebacker. It is amazing to me that he was a first-team All-Big Ten media selection, but not a coaches' selection. Of course, Luis Castillo was one of the best defensive linemen I've ever seen and he wasn't All-Big Ten last year. He's a first-round draft choice, but I don't know. I think Tim is a lot like him. I guess people look at other linebackers and like them better, but I wouldn't trade for them. There are probably guys that are bigger, stronger and faster and a lot of other things. But if there is a more passionate, relentless player in America, I've never seen him. He is truly a special player -- he gives you everything he's got and I'm just glad he's lining up for us.
