Coach Dana Holgorsen addresses members of the media on Tuesday, Oct. 13, at the Milan Puskar Center Team Room.

 

Opening Statement

Welcome everybody. We are going to Waco (Texas) on Saturday to play the No. 2 team in the country, Baylor. We are pretty familiar with who they are, who their personnel is and what their philosophies are. We have been going up against these guys for the last four years in a row. To be frank, it is not a whole lot different from the past. It seems like they are in a good position with their program. I think (head coach) Art (Briles) has been there for eight or nine years now. He has done a good job with building that place up to where they are recruiting at a very high level. They are recruiting really good players. They are doing a good job of developing them as well. With them, everything starts offensively. With (head coach) Art (Briles) being an offensive guy, it’s the same stuff with only a few more experienced and talented guys. I hate to say it, they have more talented guys. They put four or five receivers and several quarterbacks in the league the last few years.

 

It’s about as deep as a team as I have seen, especially offensively. The (junior) quarterback (Seth Russell) is a big kid. He’s a junior. He’s been there for three years. He understands the offense. He knows what to do. He is mobile for how big he is, and he can throw when he needs too. Their whole offense starts with the run game, and you have to have a quarterback that understands that. They do. They have three great backs. Everyone wants to talk about (junior running back) Shock Linwood, but the other two are pretty good as well. They keep rotating backs in there. That’s a pretty difficult position to have one guy carry the load. Especially when you are running the ball 66 percent of the time, which is what they are doing. They have a bunch of big, old linemen. All their guys are back. They have four or five seniors, if you count the tight end. They have a junior as well. All those guys have played. They have good experience, and they know what to do. They are going to try to pound you. They are going to make you put more people in the box to where you have to stop the run. When that happens, they look for one-on-one matchups with what is probably the deepest receiving core in the country, or maybe even several decades. If they keep improving, maybe ever. They have a lot of guys that can make plays downfield. It will be a challenge. There is no question.

 

Defensively, they have made more strides in the four years that we have played them than anywhere else. They are at a point where they are shutting some people down. Their numbers are better than they have been in the past. They have eight or nine starters back from last year’s team. They have a big, physical defensive line that is led by one of the best players in college football: (junior defensive tackle) Andrew Billings. He is one of the best nose tackles in the league. They have the same two corners that we went against last year. They have the same two safeties and one of the two linebackers are back. It’s the same guys. It’s the same stuff. (Defensive coordinator) Phil Bennett has been there with (head coach) Art (Briles) the entire time. He is a quality defensive coordinator. He is a quality football coach and a quality guy. They have been getting better each and every week.

 

Overall, it’s going to be a tough task. We all understand that. Basically, It’s the same position we were in last year. We are going to lineup and play ball, and I am looking forward to going to Waco to do that. With that said, I will take some questions.

 

On how to cut down on penalties and turnovers

We lost the turnover battle 3-0 last year, and we committed 14 penalties. We still won, so I don’t know how to explain that to my team. Obviously, that’s an ironic situation with what happened last year. I have never seen anything like that. If you look at Oklahoma State this year, compared to Oklahoma State last year, there wasn’t a big difference besides the fact that we turned the ball over three times as opposed to zero. Two years ago, we didn’t commit a turnover. We didn’t put our defense in bad situations. We didn’t give them points. This year, if the three fumbles didn’t happen in the first half, we would’ve led the game 9-7 at halftime. That’s a big deal. I don’t know what else to say. We are going to keep working on it. We are going to keep stressing to the guys about ball security. We are going to work them hard in drills, and we are going to coach them hard. I can assure that we made them understand that that loses football games.

 

On blitzing Baylor this year

You have too. You have to do what you have to do to get there. If you just rush three, then their o-line will give that guy 20 seconds to throw the ball. You have to do whatever you have to do to get pressure. They are big and physical upfront. They are going to protect with a tight end at times and a back as well. You have to bring people there. If you look at what they are doing defensively, I don’t think it is a coincidence that that is what they do defensively, too. They will bring four, five, six, seven or eight guys. They will try to outnumber you to get there. It is their overall philosophy of football. They are going to try to bring one more than you can block on defense. Offensively, they are going to try and make you do the same thing. When that happens, it’s all about the one-on-one matchups with a lot of skill. We will see what happens. We are both going to try and establish the run, but it’s going to come down to what kind of pressure happens on defense, and how the offense handles it.

 

On the differences between Baylor’s junior quarterback Seth Russell and former quarterback Bryce Petty in the past

It’s not a whole lot different. They are both big. They are both physical. They are both smart. They both have live arms. (Junior quarterback) Seth (Russell) is probably a better runner. When he gets out, he can hurt you with his feet. They have another one behind him. The kid is (freshman quarterback Jarrett Stidham) from Stephenville (Texas). He comes in there and plays half the game. He looks like the same guy. He’s 6-foot-2, 220-pounds. He has a live arm. He’s a big kid, and he is very athletic and mobile. They are finding those guys somewhere. That would be the state of Texas by the way.

 

On redshirt freshman quarterback William Crest Jr. role in the upcoming Baylor game

We have done certain things with him. He has to commit to it, which he did last week. We will see how he does in practice today. He got banged up. That’s the downside of it when you take a guy that you are trying to develop as a quarterback. Playing those snaps, understanding the offense and understanding football is good for him, but he is going to be tackled and hit as well. He took some shots. We will see how he is today, and we will see what he can do.

 

On redshirt freshman running back Donte Thomas-Williams and redshirt sophomore running back Jacky Marcellus

They haven’t played much.

 

On redshirt freshman quarterback William Crest Jr. development as a quarterback

He’s a redshirt freshman. He’s taking reps. He has to continue to understand what I want him to do with the ball and where I want him to put his eyes. He has to make the appropriate checks in the run game. There are some certain things that No. 3 (junior quarterback Skyler Howard) does that nobody sees. What he sees allows us to get to a point where we are rushing for 200 plus yards a game. (Redshirt freshman quarterback) William (Crest Jr.) has to keep understanding offensive football. He has to keep putting his eyes and his feet where they need to be and throw accurate balls. (Junior quarterback) Skyler (Howard) is the same way when it comes to that. He is doing a great job in the run game, but we are struggling in the pass game. That is a combination. A couple weeks ago, I thought that the offensive line was not carrying their weight, but they made a bunch of improvements. Our protection was better. We are better upfront in the pass protection, but then there is the element of having four new receivers. They are young guys who need to run the appropriate routes and be in the appropriate spots. They have to make the appropriate plays. Timing is huge. The quarterback has to settle down. He needs to settle his feet, and he needs to put his eyes where I want him too. He needs to throw accurate balls, and I think we took a step back in that department last week.

 

On making adjustments against Baylor

We stay up all night, and we watch film. We don’t sleep, and we panic. We know what they are going to do. It’s the wonderful world of college football. It’s life in the Big 12. We are going to prepare our guys with a game plan, and we are going to practice today, tomorrow and Thursday. We will fly on Friday, and we will wake up early Saturday to lineup and play ball. We will have fun doing it.

 

On how much junior quarterback Skyler Howard cares about the outcome of a game

It’s obviously good. We have to play better. It hurt me a good bit, too. No one was more disappointed for 62,000 fans than I was. That place was electric and alive. It was homecoming. The fans hung in there when we were stinking it up in the first half. We came out and gave them a reason to be excited, but we didn’t finish the game in overtime. It’s a tough deal. With that said, we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. We can’t expect anybody too as well. We go back to work, and we lineup and play. It’s my job when it comes to our quarterback to clear his head and coach him hard. We have to get them to go out there and work, and we have teach them the game plan. We always have another opportunity to go play. That’s what we’re paid to do.

 

On junior quarterback Skyler Howard’s composure, and if there is anything that can be coached

Yes. He rushed things all game (against Oklahoma State), and he did against Oklahoma. Again, I had a reason for that. I don’t know what the reason was for this week. It was disappointing to see, but again, he’s competitive. He cares, and he does good things in the run game. He’s done what we asked him to do in the past, but he has to do that all the time. If he can’t do it all the time, then we have to find someone that can. That’s the bottom line. That’s what we work on. We watched the film, and we told him that this isn’t what it needs to look like. We have to get out there and practice it. There’s things you can do in practice that simulate that. We will force him to put his eyes where they need to be, settle the feet and throw the ball accurately. It has to go from point A to point B. That’s on him. We’ll coach his technique up. It’s the same aspect with the o-line and receivers. It all plays into it. The rapport that Clint (Trickett) and Kevin (White) had doesn’t exist right now. We have to keep working hard until that develops.

 

On what a healthy redshirt junior running back Wendell Smallwood can do to help

He’s still banged up. The kid didn’t practice a snap last week. He plays his butt off. He didn’t practice at all. He was cramping up during the game, but he’s going to get out there and do what he can do. We practiced last night, and he was out there limping around again. We’ll see what he can do today.

 

On what his receivers can do to help build that chemistry

There’s no switch with that. There are some decent things that exist with (junior quarterback) Skyler (Howard) and (junior wide receiver) Daikiel (Shorts) from the intermediate routes. There are some decent things that exist with (junior quarterback) Skyler and (redshirt sophomore wide receiver) Shelton (Gibson) down field. The rest of it is not where it needs to be to be successful. We have to keep working on it. We will run a bunch of routes, throw a bunch of balls and get the timing. I said this in camp, I don’t know when it’s going to click. It hasn’t yet. We’ll keep working on it.

 

On junior quarterback Skyler Howard’s eyes being in the right place, and if he’s missing things that are there

Yes, his reads. His clock is ticking a little quicker than what it needs to be right now. He just needs to slow down. He needs to trust where people are going to be at and see if that’s the appropriate thing. He needs to know when to throw it or don’t throw it.

 

On the running back rotation and how to decide who goes in when

Seeing how there’s only two of them, it pretty much depends on which one is fresh. Whoever is fresh and whoever has to get in there and play. It’s tough to play with one. You look at our game last year against Baylor, and there were four guys that took a bunch of carries. Right now, we feel good about two. That’s where we are. We will keep working our younger guys, and we will come up with other ways of having other people involved.

 

On junior quarterback Skyler Howard’s confidence and mental toughness

You have to be mentally tough. You guys can if you want, but no one is placing the last two losses on the shoulders of one person. You can put them on mine if you want to, but it doesn’t have to be on his. His job is to play. His job is to prepare. His job is to come to work every day, which he does. He has to watch video and get out there and play his butt off. I know he’ll do that this week.

 

On junior defensive tackle Andrew Billings’ position and senior defensive end Shawn Oakman being the anchor of Baylor’s defense

He is. Without no doubt. He’s just tough. He’s a hard-nose, tough and powerful football player that plays every snap. He has good quickness off the ball. He can bull rush you. He can get around you. He can get off blocks and make tackles when he’s blocked. He’s a good player.

 

On the round robin schedule in the Big 12 and how every team has a memory from the previous season

No, and I encourage them not to either. Of course it happens. I’m sure Oklahoma State was pissed that we won the last two years. That is what’s neat about the Big 12 (Conference). You play everybody. We watched last year’s film from Baylor, and I’m sure they watched last year’s film as well. Everyone knows what happened the previous year. We’ll probably use whatever happens this Saturday for the following year as well. That’s how it works.

 

On if Baylor’s offense does different things or if they keep it simple

It’s not overly complicated. I don’t think ours is overly complicated either. You know how they’re going to lineup. Obviously, they have a few new wrinkles. They are going to run it right at you, and say stop it. They are going to do it very fast. I mean incredibly fast. Their up tempo is as fast as anybody. They’re going to run the quarterback at times, and when they have matchups, they are going to try to exploit you. No one does it better than them.

 

On why anyone hasn’t caught on Baylor’s offense since it’s so simple

That’s a good question. They believe in what they do, and they just keep doing it. When you’re at a place for a long time things continue to get better. Your recruiting continues to get better. When you do the same thing over and over again with better players it typically works out pretty good for you. They have obviously hit on some guys as well. They have real good stability, real good commitment from the administration, and they continue to get better. I commend them.

 

On if he remembers anything from his high school/college days with South Carolina’s offensive coordinator Steve Spurrier

I don’t. I don’t remember a whole lot. He’s one of the unique characters in college football, and I’m sure he’ll probably still be around.