Northwestern University Athletics
Transcript from Coach Fitzgerald's Monday News Conference
11/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 10, 2008
2008 Northwestern Football
Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald
Weekly News Conference
Opening Statement...
"Looking back to Saturday at Ryan Field, obviously we're disappointed to have a loss the way the game turned out, especially to be right where we wanted to be three quarters of the way through the game, a 14-point game going into the fourth quarter. We've won a lot of those games in the past so until that point I thought we gave ourselves an opportunity to win even if we weren't playing our best football. Offensively, it just comes down to the fundamentals: blocking a little better, running through tackles, better throws, catching the ball when he had some plays to make and finishing drives. We were across the 50 a number of times and to come out empty with no points was very damaging. On defense, I thought our first and second-down defense was outstanding. We gave ourselves a chance to make some plays, but unfortunately, we didn't. It came back to keeping the quarterback in the pocket and making plays in the passing game down the field. There was a lot to learn from and that was our attitude this morning. We're excited for this week and to be where we're at with seven wins. We're excited to have a chance to go play in the one of the most storied stadiums in the country and one of the best programs ever in the University of Michigan.
From an injury standpoint, C.J. is improving. As I said last week, if healthy, he's our starting quarterback. If not, Mike (Kafka) will be ready to step in and get the job done. Last Friday, Omar Conteh had surgery to repair a ligament in his knee. Unfortunately, he will be out for the season so we're very disappointed for him but again that opportunity presents itself to Stephen Simmons, Jacob Schmidt and Scott Concannon. I've also moved Jeravin Matthews to running back for the last month of the season, a position he played in high school.
Looking to this week, we're going to play a team that when you look back to the beginning of the year, with the amount of change they had in their program, is playing their best football of the year. Against Minnesota, they played outstanding in all three phases of the game. Their kicker was the player of the week in the conference, they have the Big Ten's leading punter, punt returner and kick returner. Offensively they went out and made a lot of plays, they're running Rich Rodriguez's offense to the best of their ability. On defense, they're doing a great job of bringing multiple pressures from a lot of different places, playing not only four-down but a three-down defense as well, and they're very aggressive. They're a team I've seen improve each week and it will be a game in a very hostile environment. But the focus this week is on us, we did not play our best football of the year last week and there's a lot of room for improvement."
On Jeravin Matthews' shift to running back...
"I didn't move him there to watch but do I expect him to play this week? I think it's too early to tell, let's see how he picks up on things but I think as the season progresses, if he does the right things in practice, gains confidence in the position and earns the trust of himself and his teammates then he'll get an opportunity as the game plan dictates."
On his goals for the rest of the year...
"I'm looking forward to tomorrow's practice. We have a lot of things to improve on. No. 1 on defense is tackling, on offense it's finishing. We had a lot of opportunities on Saturday where we could have run things through better to finish drives. In the kicking game we have to kick the ball in bounds and there's a lot of other improvement we can make so that's where our focus is now."
On Michigan's quarterback situation...
"I'm about halfway through my film study so I can't be a total expert yet but it looks like Coach Rodriguez is trying to implement his offense and fit their personnel into the best positions he can to execute that offense. It looks like both young men are improving, both are dual-threat quarterbacks who can throw the ball vertically but also run the zone-read and the option, and that's where everything is based off. Coach Rodriguez is kind of the godfather of the spread offense and to see what they're doing both running and throwing out of it, they're doing a great job with it."
On Stephen Simmons vs. Ohio State...
"I like the way Steph ran the ball. I thought he ran with some authority, I thought he did a nice job on our base run plays, I thought he protected pretty well on the perimeter and got guys on the ground four times. I think for his first start in that kind of environment I believe he really stepped up. What I expect from him is to be one week better. He wasn't the starter this time last week and now he is. So I expect growth from him and just to play to the best of his ability."
On Rich Rodriguez in his first year as head coach at Michigan...
"Without being there, just from what I see on tape, I see a program that's improving from a standpoint of on-the-field success. He has a plan and has been so successful everywhere he's been. I think back to my first year, how difficult it is, everyone's just getting to know each other, you're building trust, and that's a very difficult transition. They've stayed the course, they've improved each week and I think they've been winning the last five games at halftime. They had a great comeback against Wisconsin and performed well on the road at Minnesota last week so they're playing their best football of the year right now. It's going to be a huge challenge for us."
On the standards for C.J. Bacher's health...
"He has to be able to go run our offense to the best of his ability. He's really close. He was close last week but I'll reiterate what I've been saying all along, my No. 1 responsibility is his health and well-being. We'll have conversations with doctors, C.J. and our coaching staff and look at what needs to be done for the team to have success and we'll go about making the decision. He ran around better today than a week ago so we'll see tomorrow how he executes in practice. Maybe if we were a pro-style offense and the quarterback just had to sit in the pocket it would be different, but that's not who we are. We're a spread team and our quarterbacks have to be able to do some things with their feet. If he's close and he can execute, he'll be our starting quarterback."
On keeping morale high amid so many injuries...
"I think our entire program is keeping the morale high. We have seven wins and we're in a position with two games left that not many teams in Northwestern history have been in, at least not since 1950. We're very confident, we've played well all year and when we haven't played well in our three losses, we've learned from all three of those each week and we've moved on. We have a great challenge in front of us against a team that is playing their best football of the year and we think we're playing pretty well right now too. Obviously we'd like to have a handful of plays back on Saturday but we played a team that's pretty good. When you give them a chance to make plays and they do, congratulations to them. I'm proud of our young men with everyone stepping up in the locker room to take advantage of their opportunities and play their best. Our guys, captains, leadership council and coaches have done a great job."
On offensive play-calling on third-and-long...
"Without giving away everything in the game plan, we're going to do what's best. If it's a manageable third-down and we can throw for it, great. I also saw Kafka run for about 70 yards on a couple plays at Minnesota so he can make some plays, not only with his feet but with his legs, and there were some situations especially with the wind on Saturday, where we wanted to make good decisions and win the field position game. Our punt team has been very strong in Big Ten play, and we're playing to win. If that mean's playing field position and being smart with the ball, that's what we need to do."
On the decision to run the ball late in the first half...
"At that point, we were going into the wind, there was 1:27 left on the clock and we were on our own 27. If we get the first down, then we're in the two-minute tempo and we're going to score. We didn't get the first down, we're taking it in the locker room, coming out to put together a great drive where we drive all the way down and score. I thought the right approach at that point going into the wind was if we got the first first down we'd go into two-minute tempo with three timeouts, but we didn't get it so we went into the half."
On parity in the Big Ten and college football...
"You could say it's fun. It makes you go gray. Anyone can win on any given Saturday and I think that's what makes Big Ten football so much fun. It's the same across the country. Everyone has 85 scholarships so the distribution of talent at all levels gives everyone an opportunity to win. In this league, the most challenging thing to do is win on the road. It's very hard to do in the Big Ten, as you saw with Penn State in Iowa City, what happened to Illinois, what happened to us at Indiana. It's going to be a very big challenge for us in one of the largest stadiums in the country. But yes I think it's a lot of fun. If I were a fan I'd be ecstatic with games going down to the wire every Saturday. That's what makes college football so exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time."
On NU's third-down defense against Ohio State...
"Looking at a handful of plays, we need to keep containment of the quarterback. We had some pressure there until the quarterback gets out of contain and makes a play. In the secondary we have to keep discipline with our eyes and keep the coverage where it needs to be. If we make the plays that are there to make, like we have the majority of the year, I think we'll look back on Saturday and see it as an anomaly when we gave up some plays that we made all year. Give Ohio State credit for making some great throws and catches."
On what makes it so difficult to win on the road...
"You're in a hostile environment, out of your comfort zone when you travel. You have to great focus and leadership and I think our team has done that. Once you get inside the arena you have to have great focus. Every third-down on offense will be loud, there will be ups and downs with the crowd and you can't ride that emotional roller coaster in any phase. You just have to go out and be poised to make the plays you can make."
On his memories of playing at Michigan...
"I think I only had one game at Michigan in 1995. I remember it being a nasty day and they brought a helicopter in to try to dry out the grass which was kind of neat to see. It was just a great college football game. It was a slugfest and I think we gave up about 8,000 yards rushing that day to Tim Biakabutuka. I can't spell his name but I remember his uniform number -- No. 21 -- because I was looking up at him as he was trucking me all day. It was a great hard-fought Big Ten win on the road. There was a huge crowd and great environment and it was a huge win for us."
On Nate Williams...
"I thought he was really active in the game and there's a lot of room for growth. I thought he was active at the point of attack and there was a handful more where he just needs to finish tackling, running his feet and going all the way to the end, running his feet and finishing. I'm encouraged by the way he's playing and growing each week. The expectations for him have risen tremendously since the start of the season. His role has changed dramatically and to see his growth is nothing less than exciting. It's disappointing again that Malcolm Arrington isn't out there, I'm crushed for him, he's been such an important part of our program. But that adversity has meant an opportunity for Nate and I think he's stepped up and done a nice job."
On his team's attitude in games...
"I think our team plays very tough. We come out and fight in every game. I don't question the way our team plays at all. I love the way our team plays. We play to win and I love how we're improving each week. To answer your question, do I think we play with enough focus and the right enthusiasm to execute our game plan? Absolutely. Do I think we play tough? Absolutely. I don't know if angry is the right way to play football or go about your life, I look at it the other way around because I think we are positive as a team and play the right way. That's just my own opinion."
