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Quotes from Kyle Whittingham's Weekly Press Conference
10/7/2019 11:49 AM | Football
Opening Statement:Â
Back on the road this week at Oregon State. They had a nice win this weekend and played Stanford tough. Very balanced team, running the ball over 200 yards per game and throwing it for another 270. They're doing a nice job on offense and are outstanding in the red zone. Over 80 percent touchdown percentage in the redzone with their offense. They're doing some really good things offensively. They have back that's averaging over seven yards per carry and a big-time receiver. The quarterback is playing well and we're going to have our hands full. Anytime you go on the road in the Pac-12, it's a challenge. Any week is a challenge, but particularly in the Pac-12. They're coming off a nice win and playing with some confidence. We're going to have to be at our best no doubt about it.
Â
On the defense being really good in the second half:
Halftime adjustments have been very good for us so far this year. Credit to the coaches at halftime for making tweaks and changes to what's going on. Players are physically in great shape. Our strength coach does a great job and I don't know what else to say other than their level of training is very high and they don't seem to get too tired. Plus, we haven't played a ton of snaps on defense. A big part of the defense is we've played the fewest snaps in the Pac-12 I would imagine. Credit the offense for doing a great job of controlling the ball in the second half. That's another big part of it, is possessing the football and not turning it over.
Â
Finding R.J. Hubert in a small town in Nevada:
I think it was Freddy [Whittingham] who found R.J. and it was a small, little place down in Nevada. He was a tremendous high school player, prominently offensively is where he stood out. We knew when recruited him there was a chance he could play on the defensive side. There always is a concern playing at a small school with the level of competition how the player will project to the college level without having really stiff competition. His measurable and track numbers were really good. We took a shot on him and knew he was a mission guy which would give him two more years to develop. So far he's been a really good take for us.
Â
How do you build a successful program in the Pac-12:
Recruiting. That's the key. You guys are sick of me saying that but I'll keep saying it. You continually upgrade your roster to get bigger, faster and stronger. Continuity helps as well. Teams that are changing coaches every two or three years makes it tough as well so that's another big part of it, continuity.
Â
On stopping the run:
We've got some pretty good run stoppers up front between Leki Fotu, John Penisini, Bradlee Anae, Mika Tafua and Maxs Tupai and those guys do a great job of controlling the line of scrimmage. If you control the line of scrimmage it frees your backers to flow and fit where they need to. We expected when the season started we'd be pretty good at run defense and I think that's proven to be the case.
Â
On disadvantages to matching up a corner with a specific wide receiver:Â
There are a few disadvantages. If a team lines up that particular wide receiver in different locations, sometimes it's difficult to get located and corners to get where they need to be. That's probably the biggest is logistically getting aligned. Once you're aligned then everything falls into place. That is a strategy we've used in the past and we'll look at it again this week if it's applicable. We got Jaylen Johnson who is a weapon for us and you're not maximizing your personnel if you're not at least doing it a percentage of the time. That's something that we've done and will continue to do, but as I've said the hardest part is if the receiver is lining up in a multitude of locations then having that corner find him is a challenge.
Â
On replicating things that are unusual that other teams do (specifically Oregon State's drop kick):Â
We can replicate it. You do things you see on the tape that are out of the norm, you definitely expose them to that in practice and have them work on it as well as come up with a strategy that's applicable to combat it.
Â
On possibly using Bamidele Olaseni:Â
We will definitely use him in four games. I think it's going to be two or three weeks for him to be ready.
Â
On Utah's offense vs. Oregon State's defense:Â
I don't say their licking their chops, but you're always looking for matchups. Football is a game of matchups and what it boils down to is one-on-one matchups. That's the biggest part of the game. It's not overall schemes as much as it is this player against that player. You're always looking for ways to maximize that. Same with your defense. I would just say we're going about our business in our normal fashion to find the best way to move the football and take care of it.
Â
Does anything change when you are the team picked to be the favorite?Â
No. If you're not ready because this league is so balanced that just because you're picked to win the South doesn't mean it's you and everyone else. It's a very competitive league week in and week out so we just take the same approach every week that we've got to be at our best if we want to win the game. It's the old cliché of anyone can beat anyone and that's proven each week.
Â
Back on the road this week at Oregon State. They had a nice win this weekend and played Stanford tough. Very balanced team, running the ball over 200 yards per game and throwing it for another 270. They're doing a nice job on offense and are outstanding in the red zone. Over 80 percent touchdown percentage in the redzone with their offense. They're doing some really good things offensively. They have back that's averaging over seven yards per carry and a big-time receiver. The quarterback is playing well and we're going to have our hands full. Anytime you go on the road in the Pac-12, it's a challenge. Any week is a challenge, but particularly in the Pac-12. They're coming off a nice win and playing with some confidence. We're going to have to be at our best no doubt about it.
Â
On the defense being really good in the second half:
Halftime adjustments have been very good for us so far this year. Credit to the coaches at halftime for making tweaks and changes to what's going on. Players are physically in great shape. Our strength coach does a great job and I don't know what else to say other than their level of training is very high and they don't seem to get too tired. Plus, we haven't played a ton of snaps on defense. A big part of the defense is we've played the fewest snaps in the Pac-12 I would imagine. Credit the offense for doing a great job of controlling the ball in the second half. That's another big part of it, is possessing the football and not turning it over.
Â
Finding R.J. Hubert in a small town in Nevada:
I think it was Freddy [Whittingham] who found R.J. and it was a small, little place down in Nevada. He was a tremendous high school player, prominently offensively is where he stood out. We knew when recruited him there was a chance he could play on the defensive side. There always is a concern playing at a small school with the level of competition how the player will project to the college level without having really stiff competition. His measurable and track numbers were really good. We took a shot on him and knew he was a mission guy which would give him two more years to develop. So far he's been a really good take for us.
Â
How do you build a successful program in the Pac-12:
Recruiting. That's the key. You guys are sick of me saying that but I'll keep saying it. You continually upgrade your roster to get bigger, faster and stronger. Continuity helps as well. Teams that are changing coaches every two or three years makes it tough as well so that's another big part of it, continuity.
Â
On stopping the run:
We've got some pretty good run stoppers up front between Leki Fotu, John Penisini, Bradlee Anae, Mika Tafua and Maxs Tupai and those guys do a great job of controlling the line of scrimmage. If you control the line of scrimmage it frees your backers to flow and fit where they need to. We expected when the season started we'd be pretty good at run defense and I think that's proven to be the case.
Â
On disadvantages to matching up a corner with a specific wide receiver:Â
There are a few disadvantages. If a team lines up that particular wide receiver in different locations, sometimes it's difficult to get located and corners to get where they need to be. That's probably the biggest is logistically getting aligned. Once you're aligned then everything falls into place. That is a strategy we've used in the past and we'll look at it again this week if it's applicable. We got Jaylen Johnson who is a weapon for us and you're not maximizing your personnel if you're not at least doing it a percentage of the time. That's something that we've done and will continue to do, but as I've said the hardest part is if the receiver is lining up in a multitude of locations then having that corner find him is a challenge.
Â
On replicating things that are unusual that other teams do (specifically Oregon State's drop kick):Â
We can replicate it. You do things you see on the tape that are out of the norm, you definitely expose them to that in practice and have them work on it as well as come up with a strategy that's applicable to combat it.
Â
On possibly using Bamidele Olaseni:Â
We will definitely use him in four games. I think it's going to be two or three weeks for him to be ready.
Â
On Utah's offense vs. Oregon State's defense:Â
I don't say their licking their chops, but you're always looking for matchups. Football is a game of matchups and what it boils down to is one-on-one matchups. That's the biggest part of the game. It's not overall schemes as much as it is this player against that player. You're always looking for ways to maximize that. Same with your defense. I would just say we're going about our business in our normal fashion to find the best way to move the football and take care of it.
Â
Does anything change when you are the team picked to be the favorite?Â
No. If you're not ready because this league is so balanced that just because you're picked to win the South doesn't mean it's you and everyone else. It's a very competitive league week in and week out so we just take the same approach every week that we've got to be at our best if we want to win the game. It's the old cliché of anyone can beat anyone and that's proven each week.
Â
Players Mentioned
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DE
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