Northwestern University Athletics
Pat Fitzgerald Weekly News Conference Transcript
8/29/2011 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 29, 2011
Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald
Weekly News Conference Transcript
Opening Statement...
"We had a good go this morning, a good workout. Any time we have some extra time, we move our game prep up a day. On my work calendar, today was a Tuesday, tomorrow will be a Wednesday and then we'll do two Thursday-type practices - that's what we do when we have some extra time. I'm excited to watch this senior-laden group go out and play. It's a fun time of the year for every coach in the country. You've worked your tail off all offseason to improve and get better, a grilling camp, and now it's just time to go out and compete. It's going to be a challenge for us, going on the road to play a team like Boston College. With the success that they've had, Coach (Frank) Spaziani does a great job. It's going to be a physical game, and it's going to be compounded with having to go on the road."
On the status of quarterback Dan Persa...
"Danny's doing great. He's improving every day. We feel confident that he's just going to continue to keep going down that track, and then we'll see how things go and progress throughout the course of the week, but like I said, I think 1,000,432 times, he's the guy and he's going to do everything in his power to get healthy and play. If he's ready to go, he'll start, if he's not, he won't. We'll see how it progresses as the week goes along."
On the running back depth chart...
"(The running back competition is) going well. Those guys are working hard to get better. We've got good competition there. I thought in the last couple of weeks, Mike (Trumpy) has come on a little bit in comparison to the start of camp. Jacob (Schmidt) is as consistent of a player that we have in all of our football program and that's why he's put himself into that position. I feel like we've got some good depth. Internally, we'll make that decision prior to game day, externally, you guys will find out when the ball goes into the air.
On how the running backs improved during training camp...
"From a standpoint of doing the little things, doing them right, not some of the time, but all of the time. That's what it comes down to in that position. It's not like we've had a bellcow over the last few years, so we've pretty much laid out the gauntlet for those few guys and we'd like to see somebody take it. And the guy that's been doing it most consistenly is Jacob (Schmidt) time in and time out. That's what happens when youre a young player -- I think I said this after the first scrimmage about Mike (Trumpy) and Adonis (Smith) -- you play as a redshirt freshman or a true freshman. I think that they've improved and I think we've got a lot of great depth there. We'll see how it plays out."
On the decision as to who will play at quarterback Saturday...
"There's certainty for us at the quarterback position. We're good. We're great, actually. We have full confidence in whatever direction we're going to go. I think they (the offensive line) just have to go out and execute and do what they do. We have a lot of experience coming back up there, a lot of depth. Brandon (Vitabile) solidified it during camp. We've got a great quarterback situation."
"It'll always be health, safety and well-being to start out with, and once he's cleared by the medical staff, then it'll be our decision on how he's going to go through and execute our game plan. Pretty simple."
On the development of quarterback Kain Colter...
"First of all, last year (his progress has been) night and day. Coming off the shoulder surgery that he had in high school, he hadn't had the discipline from a standpoint of the rehab that we do in college. Everything would be crossing t's and dotting I's and there wouldn't be a stone unturned, but he went through some rehab just not the intensity level that we did, and it got better each week. We moved him over a little bit to wide-out, actually last year, and thinking about him getting involved that way, and then unfortunate things happened with Danny. He stepped up and was incredibly unselfish. (His camp was) outstanding. He's got a good grasp of the offense, he can make all the throws. He's very dynamic with the ball in his hands. He understands what we're trying to do and what we're trying to accomplish. Does he have 25 games of game experience? Not really, but he's definitely got a ton of reps, and he's poised to go if that's what ends up happening and how the cards play out."
On defensive end Vince Browne...
"(He's) a little bit different than Corbin (Bryant). Corbin's a big guy, 300+ pounds. Vince is real lean, 265-pound athlete. A guy that, not only does a great job rushing the pass, he's solid against the run, he has a high effort, a high motor. He does a nice job in some of our pressure packages. He's a very dynamic guy, maybe not as long as Corey (Wootton), Corey's 6'7", but (Browne) is probably in between Corbin and Corey as far as stature. He's played a lot of ball for us and has been very productive. I'm excited to watch him play."
On the key to success for NU's front seven on defense...
"We just need to get back to doing what we've did well at over the last three years, and that's playing good swarm and team defense and taking the ball away. We had good pass rush up until, really, last year. The wheels kind of fell off at the end of the year, not only for the defense, and they get the blame, but it was for the whole program. And as I've said for all offseason, which I'm glad is about to be done with, it's all of our fault. They get the blame and they have the chip on their shoulder."
On Boston College's running game...
"We saw (Andre) Williams a year ago play in the last few games of the season and their identity stayed pretty consistent. He's a very physical back, but can also bounce it to the edge and take it the distance. They're a very physical team, similar to Iowa or Wisconsin that we play; downhill running team, great play action pass off of it. They play very physical and sound on defense. They're going to pressure you in some situations, and play well and swarm as a team."
On the two true freshmen who earned spots on the two-deep...
"Christian (Jones) was up here this summer, and I think that time really helped him in the maturation in our offense, and being able to throw and do different things with our quarterbacks. He was able to gain a lot of trust from the quarterbacks and it showed from the minute he stepped on the field. He can really run and he's physical out on the perimeter. And Jack is a big young man who can run. We thought initially he was going to come in and play offensive tackle, but we started him a superback based on need; we had a couple of guys dinged up. He took the role, grasped it and ran with it, so that's why he's in the position he is."
On the role of starting place-kicker...
"The competition, frankly neither one of them lost the job, they both did a really good job. I couldn't give Steve (Flaherty) a specific reason why he's not doing place kicks and I couldn't give Jeff (Budzien) a reason (why he's not taking kickoffs). It was more consistency over time. I've got great confidence in both of them to execute either job, just over time as we looked at everything, myself and Hank, we just felt like putting them in those roles were great. I'm really happy for Steve; he's been fighting hard to earn a role over the last few years, and he's done a nice job through camp. He'll be on the ready ready if anything happens with Jeff placekicking wise, and flip it over, if anything happens with Steve, Jeff will still work kicking off. They'll be 1a and 1b."
On redshirt freshman linebacker Collin Ellis...
"He broke his thumb maybe last Wednesday. He'll be out for a couple of weeks and we'll reevaluate him after the Eastern Illinois game."
On the development of sophomore Venric Mark...
"Year two, he's progressed. He knows the offense a little better and he's starting to figure out exactly what he's supposed to do every given play, which was, last year, somewhat a challenge for a true freshman as much as he had to play, and has much as he was involved in the kicking game. I think we'll see a similar role for him this year, and as he continues to grasp the offense, he'll probably play more and more. He's got pretty good guys out in front of him (on the depth chart) with Ebert and Brown who are pretty dynamic, but he'll be in that rotation with (Mike) Jensen. It's a pretty good group of four."
On defensive end Tyler Scott...
"Tyler (Scott) is an explosive athlete. He's a young man that, back when he started his career, came in with a shoulder issue. He gave a great speech in camp that he felt a little bit removed his first year of camp that he was here. He's just worked so hard with our strength and conditioning staff. He's a very dynamic athlete. Understands the defense well. He's going to be involved in the kicking game, and he can play tight end for us like he did last year. He's a dynamic athlete that can do a lot for us."
On Boston College head coach Tony Spaziani...
"We've met each other a couple of times, but nothing formally. He's done a great job. You can see his toughness through the way they play. They've always been outstanding on defense and just real physical on offense. He runs a top-notch program. It's going to be a huge challenge. It's the toughest challenge in an opener since I've been the head coach."
On sticking with wide receiver Christian Jones even after he tore his ACL in high school...
"We've got a track record built up of once we've offered a young man, we're going to stick by that offer unless they changed their academic or social character. Some things are out of our control during recruiting, but (Christian Jones') injury happened during spring practice after we offered him. I remember talking with his mom on the phone, and I said, "We're going to stand by our offer. Things will get better and improve. If he has to come here and redshirt, that's what we'll do. If he's ready to play, we'll play him." He's worked his way into the two-deep for a reason. He's worked diligently. He's from one of the powerhouse (high school) programs in the country."
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