Northwestern University Athletics
Monday Press Conference: Iowa Week
10/16/2017 1:47:00 PM | Football
Dan and Susan Jones Family Head Football Coach
Opening Statement:
"Appreciate everyone being here. Let's go back and look at players of the week real quick. Justin Jackson offensively obviously, I don't think that's only a micro, but also a macro award from a standpoint of his terrific game and to be able to break the record was aboslutely outstanding. Defensively it was Brett Walsh playing a position he had never started at. He was really active. I'm really proud of the way he stepped up. Big playmaker on defense was Nate Hall. Very active throughout the entire course of the game. And then Cam Green when he stepped up when the opportunity presented itself was our offensive big playmaker. Proud of Charlie Kuhbander. He was our special teams player of the week and I believe the Big Ten special team's player of the week. Pretty good day for him 3-for-3 in field goals, 4-for-4 PATs. Sam Gerak o-line, Trent Goens d-line and Charlie Fessler special teams practice players of the week.
We've got a special weekend this weekend honoring the '62 team that was ranked number one in the country in Chuck Logan. Great player for us. Team captain, first-team All-Big Ten, drafted in the seventh round by the Bears and played four seasons with the Steelers and the Cardinals will represent his teammates as our honorary captain. That will be special to have those guys. We were obviously heartbroken when we lost Ara and have stayed close with a lot of his players and with Katie. We had hoped that coach would be able to be a part of this special weekend too, but our thoughts and prayers are with the Parseghian family and I think it will be a great celebration of Coach's time here and his family when his team gets together here this weekend.
Looking to the game, obviously playing an outstanding football time. Kirk and his staff do a great job. He is the longest-tenured coach in the country for a reason. There is consistency, there is toughness, there is physicality. There are playmakers across the board in all three phases. A lot of consistency when you think about Iowa. A lot of physicality. We need to have a great week of preparation and the guys need to show up and play a week better. I thought we improved last week and my hope is we can do it again this week.
On how much of his team's improvement was their own versus playing a weaker opponent than the previous two weeks:
"Ya know, I focus on us and I thought we played probably our most consistent game. It's kind of funny when we play bad it's our fault when we play well the other team stunk. That's usually the narrative I hear [laughs]. I'm not just talking from you guys, I'm just talking in general. I don't know, write what you want to write I guess [laughs]. I thought we played pretty well. We played physical and thought we played pretty consistent. We need to continue to build on it."
On what the keys to the offensive line's improved play last week:
"They first of all communicated pretty well. It didn't seem like we had very many breakdowns there. I thought we played with a little bit better pad level, not consistent enough though. We were able to keep the pocket clean. We had about 46 percent pressure we saw, one of the highest we saw all year and I thought the guys picked things up. Clayton put us in some protection checks that we needed to get in to and then became a threat with his legs. When you bring that type of pressure there is going to be holes and scramble opportunities. He did it just enough to help us be successful."
On where his receiving corps is now from the start of the season:
"Let's go back, Maryland stunk in the back end that's why we had a big day. Credit goes to Maryland not being very good I guess [Laughs]. No. They're just working. We've got a lot young guys, first-time players that are getting into the mix. Those guys are developing. The production from Charlie was great. You see a guy like Riley Lees growing each game. The way Cam Green stepped up. Macan played his best game, same thing with Flynn. I think they're working to get better. That's where we're at. We're an average team right now. You are what your record says it is and that's what we are. We're average and we just have to keep getting better."
On what he has seen from the Iowa defense during tape study:
"I just think overall defensively, I think Coach Parker does a great job. He has been there for all of 19 years with Kirk and the last five as the coordinator. They're well orchestrated. They're on the same page. You have to earn it against Iowa. They don't make mistakes, they don't beat themselves. We've had our share of wins and we've had our share of losses and this is going to be every bit of challenging of a game for us this week."
On the progress of first-year kicker Charlie Kuhbander:
"I've been comfortable with him since he won the job in camp. I think that situational football determines how I'm going to play things and where I'm going to go. We have a plan pretty early in the week on what we think and expect weather wise, where we think are going to go from an ebb-and-flow of the game. Then you just adjust in game. He has kicked the ball really well maybe outside of two kicks all year. His first one that he missed that he actually struck it well, he just had a bad plant foot and maybe bad eyes. The extra point against Penn State, I don't think he was warm enough, just went out there a little cold."
On if it is comfortable and helpful to have that confidence you can put points on the board inside the 20-25 yard line:
"Oh yeah, no doubt. Just being consistent there. You go back to when we had Jeff [Budzien]. Jeff was an All-American and that gave you great confidence that when you got in the scoring zone at a minimum you were going to get three points. I like the way Charlie has started his career without a doubt."
On when he decided Riley Lees was going to be a wide receiver:
"Pretty quickly into the recruiting process. We told him right away that we thought that is what we thought his future home was going to be. Obviously, we had a great evaluation of him not only running when he scrambled in the run aspects of his high school career, but also here. We had a pretty strong indication of what type of athlete he was."
On if he saw something in Riley when he visited camp in 2014:
"Yeah, there and on high school tape. He was a dynamic athlete. We told him the truth; We didn't think he was going to be a quarterback. I don't think he liked that initially, but I'd rather be honest with the guys as you're starting a relationship and let them know exactly where they stand so they can make their evaluation accordingly. I think he is going to be a great player here for us."
On if he sees any similarities between Riley Lees and former Wildcat Jeremy Ebert:
"Ebert. Peterman. Brewer. Yeah, the list goes on and on. He has a lot of similarities there. He has played six games, so it is kind of an untold story. I think he is off to a great start. We made a change a couple weeks ago with him being our deep returner and it paid dividends on Saturday. We were one block away on three different kick returns from having explosive plays. I really liked his aggressiveness as a punt returner [Saturday]. That is what we're looking for is guys who are looking to make a spark and make a play."
On why Cam Green was moved from wide receiver to superback:
"We thought his growth potential when we recruited him [would play into that]. You saw a big frame. You saw a guy that could potentially be that, but we didn't know. We couldn't crystal ball it. We thought initially coming in that he would stay at wide receiver, but mother nature took over and he just kept getting bigger. I came to him a couple years ago and said, 'Listen, I think your role is going to be here and this is why, but it will only work if you want to do it and you embrace it.' I think he has. It was a great day for him. Like I said after the game, I hope his confidence goes up from it. He has really been working."
On how does a student benefit from having a parent who was an accomplished athlete:
"First of all, I think it is really hard. Any time a parent has had success, a lot of times the children try to live up to that success and that expectation. Probably number one, unfair. You take great pride as a son or a daughter in the fact that your parents maybe had some success as an athlete. With that comes with some undue expectation. From my perspective with, I'm assuming you're talking about Cam specifically, from the day he has been here he has handled that really well. He has always been a very humble young man that I go back to when he was in high school how giving he was and his willingness to be involved in the community up there in Stevenson. It was really impressive to see the type of young man that he was and the man he has become. There is a ton of growth that is going to come for him here in the back half of his career."
On Clayton Thorson stepping up in the pocket versus Maryland:
"Pocket awareness and pocket mobility are things we work on every day, so nothing new this week. He just performed pretty well in that circumstance."
On Paddy Fisher's recruitment process:
"There were three guys in his class and I think we were really fortunate. We were fortunate. Batesy [linebacker coach Randy Bates] did a really good job recruiting down there. We were really fortunate. I was shocked that he wasn't being more heavily recruited. I thought from a size, speed, production [standpoint], wow. He jumped off the tape to me. It wasn't like you don't make a stop at Katy High School [laughs]. Ya know. It's like Loyola or Mount Carmel or some of the powerhouses. You know, Carl Sandburg. You're stopping there. That is what you're doing. Just very thankful we were able to build a relationship with him and I was really impressed with how he and Godwin handled last week. I thought their attitude was great. They both were disappointed they couldn't play in the first half. The first time we have had that happen. I think we will be better the next time. I think we had a good plan getting them warmed up. We charted specific things to each position and then went over that at halftime with them. I thought both were pretty active in the second half, especially Paddy."
On how he handled Paddy Fisher's emotions following ejection versus Penn State:
"He was really emotional when it did happen. He was really upset at himself. That is when I tried to settle him down and smile on the sideline. He was really upset. He was disappointed that he didn't lower the strike zone. He was disappointed that he was letting his teammates down. He was really, really emotional at that point. My thought process to settle him down and ya know, after the game he was still pretty salty. I spoke to he and Godwin at length on Monday kind of about what we thought our plan was going to be not only in the game Saturday, but how I wanted them to prepare. I thought they both handled it really, really well."
On ejections being assessed more often in college football this season:
"You almost have to look at each play as its own entity. You really do. Number one, I'm not changing my stance because a couple of our guys got called for it. I think it's the right call to eliminate that play out our game. I do think it has to be though if it's going to be an ejectable offense, what it says, it has to be forcible contact. With Godwin's, I'm not sure that was forcible contact. The play has to be looked at it of itself within all those parameters. Hey, that's what was called and that's what you play. I thought Jared stepped up very well in the first half. Again, Teddy, I don't think I'm going to change my stance on the overall feeling of the call. I think if it goes to replay, it has to be evident. We have the replay for a reason. On the field, that's a bang-bang play. I try to put myself in player's roles and what it was like looking out of the face mask. I try to put myself in our great Big Ten referee's shoes. A lot of those are bang-bang and I can see why I would call those. In Godwin's case, he lowered his head. I can see right now like when you're trailing a guy on a punt return play, you're suspect. All eyes are going to go on you and if the guy falls forward, you're probably going to get called for a block in the back even if you touch them. He lowered his head and uh-oh he was in a bad situation. He turned to try to avoid the contact. Maybe should have been a late hit, ok, sure. We need to use replay to make sure it is right because taking a game, that is a pretty severe penalty. We need to be able to see it on replay and say 'Yep.' Paddy's was textbook. That will be on the teaching tape of exactly what not to do here and probably on the same thing on the officials. Our officials do a great job. We've had them now all but one game in our league. You've got speed, you've got tempo, you've got things flying around. They're first class. Their communication is great. Like anybody, I reserve the right to be wrong when I'm wrong too. There are sometimes when I see some things when I pop on tape and think I'm dead wrong or the guys up in the box are like, 'That was a this or that was a that,' and I start talking to them or watch it on the plane or the bus or at home and I'm like 'Golly, ya know.' So the next time I see the guys, I tell them we were dead-ass wrong. Ya know, it's human. They're trying to do a great job. Billy does a great job with those guys and I think they're first class. We just got to coach better and play some plays better and the targetting is just one of them."
On Garrett Dickerson's health coming out of Saturday's game versus Maryland and how Cam Green stepped into the role for him while he was sidelined:
"Cam really stepped up. I think there are some plays that Cam will learn from. The point of attack and cut off blocking opportunities that he had that he needs to be better at. There were a couple route things. I thought it was great effort he gave on the one third down play. He ran through contact and those were two big yards to get the first down. I thought that was a big play for him because his confidence went up after that. Garrett was feeling great today. He ran around in walk through. I feel good about that."
On the increased production of the front seven stopping the run since the Duke game:
"I don't think were that bad against the run at Duke. That was your comment on stats are for losers. The longest rushes on the day were by the quarterback scrambling and then we ran out of gas when we were on the field for over 100 plays. That was more of a team issue than our defensive front seven. Hank and the staff do a really good job of understanding teams are trying to do and maybe where they will go. We did not fit everything very well on Saturday [at Maryland]. We had some issues that we worked hard to correct today in the run game. Hopefully, we will make those adjustments and then learn from that when they come back up again. They may not come back up with Iowa just because of schematics of what they run. You've got to get back on the horse again and get ready to go against a real physical offensive line, fullbacks and tight ends at Iowa. Get ready to fit their schemes properly. That work is in earnest right now, without a doubt."
On facing running back Akrum Wadley for the fourth time:
"Thanks. That's why I'm going grey. It doesn't matter what feel I have, it matters what we teach the guys. I think he is a great player. This is a running back league. Every week you've got to show up and you're playing against a great back. This is four weeks in a row that we've seen great backs and I don't think that is going to stop next week [laughs]. I'll worry about that on Sunday. We've got our hands full. There is no doubt. He is a great player and he is a threat in the passing game big time. He is a great player. He is a great player. He probably gets overshadowed a little bit because of the other players. You've got a Heisman Trophy candidate at Penn State, you've got a freshman who is doing all kind of awesome stuff at Wisconsin, you've got JJ... I could keep going, Johnson at Maryland, Scott at Michigan State. And we don't even play Ohio State or Michigan. Geesh. It's a heckuva league right now with running backs."
LB Paddy Fisher
On if he was surprised about his light recruitment...
"I don't know. I am a pretty slow guy, but I know a thing or two about football, and I love the game, got a lot of passion for it. Regardless of the recruiting process, this is where I needed to be. This is the place that fits me the best. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."
On his speed...
"Pretty slow. Very slow, actually. I haven't ran a 40 since high school, and I ran like a 4.8, 4.7, which is decent, but it's still pretty slow. I like to think I have a little bit of game speed, little bit of instinct, so that kind of makes up for it in a good way."
On his targeting call in the Penn State game...
"It was a good call and a bad play on my part. I should have let up. I needed to be more disciplined in that situation. As far as emotion goes, I was pretty emotional afterwards. Got to the locker room and I told Coach Fitz I felt like I let the team down. I felt like I left the defense down. In that situation, I just needed to be more disciplined and smarter so things like that don't happen again."
On his emotions after the call...
"I was sad. I wasn't crying or anything but I definitely felt a feeling of remorse that I just let the defense down, let the team down. I was really hard on myself, really down on myself afterwards."
On ejection as the proper penalty...
"I think the rules are the rules, and you have to follow the rules. I think the NCAA committee has done a great job with establishing the rules in that specific field. You just have to play within the confinement of the rules."
On the football culture in Katy, Texas...
"The football culture in Katy is second to none. It's a religion down there. We start playing football when we are four, five years old, playing flag football and then we put on the pads in maybe second grade, third grade. We start at a young age and just learn to love the game. I have two brothers who are older than me who played the game, and my father played it as well and his brothers too. It's a culture. It's in the blood."
On what it's like to be a middle linebacker at Northwestern coached by Pat Fitzgerald...
"I love it. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. He is the man. He has been in the same shoes as I am, so he sheds a lot of light and wisdom on me. I wouldn't want to play any other position. It's the best position in the game. You get to fly around, hit, and make plays."
On late hits on the sideline...
"It's hard. When you're playing that fast and things are happening very quickly, one bad decision is the difference between you staying in the game and getting ejected. Play between the whistle. Play between the white lines. Secure him on the sideline, make sure he is out-of-bounds and don't let him get any yards but you don't need to do anything dirty about it. Don't do anything extra. Play between the whistle and you're good."
WR Riley Lees
On the growth of the receiving corps...
"I think as a group we have gotten more comfortable with Clayton with what we are doing. I think we have got a lot more confidence in ourselves too, which helps us go out there and play fast. Just from the start to now, I think personally I have a lot more confidence in myself at the receiver position, and I think as a whole, we all do, especially the young guys that haven't played before this year."
On when Northwestern told him he would be a receiver in college...
"Right away. Right when they started recruiting me. I got moved to receiver halfway through a camp and right away, when I started talking to them, they said just so you know we are going to put it out there that you're playing receiver here, not quarterback. No one recruited me as a quarterback, so I was pretty used to it at that point. It wasn't a shock. It is what it is. I didn't have good mechanics anyway. I just kind of ran around and chucked it."
On the comparison to Jeremy Ebert's story...
"When I came here on a visit, they talked about him all the time, so I have heard the story."
K Charlie Kuhbander
On settling into his role as a Big Ten kicker...
"It has definitely been a transition, but I had a lot of help from older guys with the holder Hunter Niswander and long-snapper Tyler Gillikin helping me out and keeping my confidence high and now I am just on a roll and it's no different from practice or any other kick."
On mentality during an important moment...
"Every kick is the same for me. I treat it as 'you need to make this one.' I never even consider missing it. That never goes through my mind when I go out on the field. I am confident I am going to make every kick."
On his range...
"I am comfortable and confident every time I get put on the field. Anytime Coach Fitz sends me out, I am confident I will make it."
On developing his confidence as a kicker...
"In high school, I had a really good kicking coach with me, and I learned real early on that if you had any sort of different mindset on any kick that it would affect it a lot. You have to treat every single one the same."
SB Cameron Green
On the benefits of having a father that was a professional athlete...
"A cool thing is, ever since I was a little kid, I always wanted to be like him, so growing up, there was an image that I saw in my every day life experience where I got to see him, how he used to play, get to understand the knowledge that he had of football because he was a running back. He always explained to me different sides of football that I never understood or he would really teach me more than show me, so that was really kind of a big thing growing up. My dad taught me how to catch a football when I was two years old with just my hands, rather than body catching it.That was just a game for my sister and me. That's what we always had to do. We would play games like that. Football is just something that I always wanted to do because I just wanted to be like him so much. Even though he maybe didn't expect to teach me that, it was just kind of natural. We had that bond together, and it's something that we have always shared."
On if having a professional athlete parent was ever negative...
"No, not really. I was actually always challenging my sister because she was such a good athlete. I was trying to get out of her shadow, rather than his shadow. He just let me play my own sports. He coached me when I was little, but otherwise, he would just let me play and would give me tips here and there about what I should fix, how I looked, or just a mentality thing."
On Iowa coming to town...
"It is a Big Ten game, so every game you have to bring juice because they are going to bring the fire. It is great to play Iowa. We play any Big Ten team, we love to play them because it's just the Big Ten. Who doesn't love playing any big team like that? It is exciting. It is a home game for us, so that's going to be even more juiced up. We beat them last year at home. They beat us two years ago at home. That's personal for myself, just knowing that it's a home battle right now. Just going to go out there and play."
