Photo by: Maria Lysaker - Rice Athletics
Mike Bloomgren Press Conference Quotes
11/6/2018 5:02:00 PM | Football
Coach Bloomgren held his weekly press conference prior to this weekend's game at Louisiana Tech
"Good afternoon. Thank you all for being here today. I said it on Saturday and I'll say it again today, the fun is in the winning. Everything we are doing in this building is trying to find a way to get that winning feeling. That's what we're working for.
Looking at the film I hate that we did not play our best football, especially in the first two quarters. We did a few things that have been uncharacteristic of what we were building to in those last three games. We've seen that when we start fast, and a lot of times of when we start fast on offense, it carries over to our confidence and it carries over to both sides of the ball. We did not start fast on Saturday. They hit a ball over our head on the first play of the game and I felt like it deflated our football team for two quarters. That simply can't happen. That is absolutely something we have got to get out of these kids' minds – the soft attitude of letting one play affect the next. We have got to be able to move on to the next play. We've got to be mentally tough. We have to understand what we can control in that moment - 'What's important in that moment?' – and not what just happened. Those are things that we're constantly working towards.
I think you have to give UTEP and coach (Dana) Dimel a lot of credit. They came in here and out-coached us and out-played us. You look up at the end of the first half, and they've just made a bunch of plays and had confidence because of it. I think our football team was a little stunned. I was glad we were able to put together a quick two-minute drive and get points on the board to end the first half. We went in the locker room and made a few adjustments. To be honest with you offensively it wasn't a ton of adjustments, it was more challenging these guys. It was more making them realize this is a game they are capable of playing and capable of still going out and winning, and they just need to execute.
Defensively, I thought coach (Brian) Smith and our staff made some great adjustments – changing up the scheme, the line movement, the line placement, and also running some linebackers through gaps that disrupted (UTEP) in the second half. That helped us. You talk about defense, you talk about a tale of two halves. (UTEP) scored touchdowns on four-out-of-five drives in the first half – sometimes methodically taking the ball down the field and sometimes hitting big plays over our head – to a defense that comes out and holds UTEP's seven drives to four three-and-outs, with an interception and a fumble recovery on two more of the drives. So, a complete tale of two halves and I'm not quite sure why we can't get this team to play its best for 60 minutes like that? Obviously we would have enjoyed the results if we could have.
The offense came out and played. They really did. They loosened-up and played. They protected the passer. The quarterback made some great throws, and we had some guys make plays down field. That was really good to see.
Around here right now we're continuing to stress our process, and demand that these guys do it our way. To these kids' credit they came back in the building yesterday. They watched the film. They listened to me talk about the things that wins football games and show them how we can win football games. Then they went out on the practice field and worked.
That's always a question I'm getting, 'how is the mood of the team?' Well the mood of the team is not good, but they're doing what I asked - in terms of coming in here and working, understanding the process, and the things that win games. From that standpoint, for as hard as it is because that's hard to do, these guys are acting like winners by the way they come in here and work. Working at the process will get us that tag that we are deserving of that tag, 'winners' - sooner rather than later I hope.
A positive for us is that senior quarterback Sean Stankavage, our Day 1 starter, is going to be able to return from injury this week a lot faster than everybody thought. There were times where we thought he was going to be ruled out for the season. We're excited to have Sean's leadership and experience back in the huddle. I think that is something that will be very good. Since Sean decided to come here in January as a grad-transfer from Vanderbilt I've been so pleased and happy that he chose us. He chose to be a part of this, and help us every step of the way. The way he has attacked his rehab to get back is exactly the same way I would have expected him to – be ahead of schedule and be ready to go. Looking at him on the field yesterday he looked great. His return will allow us to ensure Wiley (Green's) redshirt. We certainly think Wiley has a bright future here.
This weekend we're heading on the road for another conference game, going against head coach Skip Holtz and the LA Tech Bulldogs. Obviously their program is in a very good place. They are a very talented group, eligible for a bowl game for a fifth-straight year. They are playing at a pretty high level. You look at them offensively they have some great receivers out there, but the quarterback J'Mar Smith makes them go. Good running game with some backs that have the ability to be explosive, but also have the ability to turn those two- and four-yard runs into efficient six- and eight-yard runs that keep the sticks moving.
Defensively, Jaylon Ferguson is as good a defensive end as I have seen in this conference. His production tells you that is absolutely true. He leads the nation right now in sacks, and he is close to being the NCAA all-time career leader in sacks. You look at him and he is how you would design a defensive end on a video game. He is going to be a great challenge to try and block him.
LA Tech is going to be a very tough opponent for us. As coaches we have to continue to put these guys in the best situations to be successful. We've got to get them to do things more consistently and overcome some of the mental issues we've had regardless of how things are going, good or bad. We have to go to the next play and we have to keep going to the next play. That's what we're really trying to get, the right mindset. We're going to continue to work and have an emphasis on competition in practice. I'm happy with how we're working and I love how the staff is working. We're doing everything we can to find a way to beat LA Tech this weekend. With that I'll open up for any questions…"
You mentioned you're always communicating with the players as a way to take the pulse and ultimately make the program better. As a first-year head coach, is there anyone outside the program who you yourself might reach out to, maybe pick their brain or get their take on things?
"First of all on our own staff there's Pete Lembo and Jerry Mack. There's people like John Simmons, who I go to for perspective on this program. There's (Vanderbilt head coach) Derek Mason, who is one of my best friends. (Stanford head coach) David Shaw has been awesome throughout this whole season. Then there's Matt Rhule at Baylor, who has already lived this movie and is doing some really good things up there. He's a guy, because he has been in this situation so recently, that I lean on. He's done everything he can to help. He's been awesome. So I feel very blessed to have those resources. To try and do this by yourself, you'd never get any sleep."
What do they say?
"A consistent theme amongst all of them they have is 'stay the course, you know what you're doing works.' They might also say they know I want it turned around overnight, but stay the course no matter how long it takes. They tell me 'keep working, keep recruiting, it's only the beginning.'"
How much benefit are all the freshmen that you're playing right now getting for the program for next few years?
"Gosh you think it would have tremendous value, right? You go back to what (former Texas head coach) Mack Brown said, I think it was, 'if a guy can get 15-20 plays a game it's worth burning their redshirt.' Well we have some freshmen playing like 60-80 plays a game. It is going to pay dividends, I know it is. It is going to be great for the future of this program. We also have some freshmen who have played, but we'll still be able to redshirt. That's exciting for the future."
Looking at the film I hate that we did not play our best football, especially in the first two quarters. We did a few things that have been uncharacteristic of what we were building to in those last three games. We've seen that when we start fast, and a lot of times of when we start fast on offense, it carries over to our confidence and it carries over to both sides of the ball. We did not start fast on Saturday. They hit a ball over our head on the first play of the game and I felt like it deflated our football team for two quarters. That simply can't happen. That is absolutely something we have got to get out of these kids' minds – the soft attitude of letting one play affect the next. We have got to be able to move on to the next play. We've got to be mentally tough. We have to understand what we can control in that moment - 'What's important in that moment?' – and not what just happened. Those are things that we're constantly working towards.
I think you have to give UTEP and coach (Dana) Dimel a lot of credit. They came in here and out-coached us and out-played us. You look up at the end of the first half, and they've just made a bunch of plays and had confidence because of it. I think our football team was a little stunned. I was glad we were able to put together a quick two-minute drive and get points on the board to end the first half. We went in the locker room and made a few adjustments. To be honest with you offensively it wasn't a ton of adjustments, it was more challenging these guys. It was more making them realize this is a game they are capable of playing and capable of still going out and winning, and they just need to execute.
Defensively, I thought coach (Brian) Smith and our staff made some great adjustments – changing up the scheme, the line movement, the line placement, and also running some linebackers through gaps that disrupted (UTEP) in the second half. That helped us. You talk about defense, you talk about a tale of two halves. (UTEP) scored touchdowns on four-out-of-five drives in the first half – sometimes methodically taking the ball down the field and sometimes hitting big plays over our head – to a defense that comes out and holds UTEP's seven drives to four three-and-outs, with an interception and a fumble recovery on two more of the drives. So, a complete tale of two halves and I'm not quite sure why we can't get this team to play its best for 60 minutes like that? Obviously we would have enjoyed the results if we could have.
The offense came out and played. They really did. They loosened-up and played. They protected the passer. The quarterback made some great throws, and we had some guys make plays down field. That was really good to see.
Around here right now we're continuing to stress our process, and demand that these guys do it our way. To these kids' credit they came back in the building yesterday. They watched the film. They listened to me talk about the things that wins football games and show them how we can win football games. Then they went out on the practice field and worked.
That's always a question I'm getting, 'how is the mood of the team?' Well the mood of the team is not good, but they're doing what I asked - in terms of coming in here and working, understanding the process, and the things that win games. From that standpoint, for as hard as it is because that's hard to do, these guys are acting like winners by the way they come in here and work. Working at the process will get us that tag that we are deserving of that tag, 'winners' - sooner rather than later I hope.
A positive for us is that senior quarterback Sean Stankavage, our Day 1 starter, is going to be able to return from injury this week a lot faster than everybody thought. There were times where we thought he was going to be ruled out for the season. We're excited to have Sean's leadership and experience back in the huddle. I think that is something that will be very good. Since Sean decided to come here in January as a grad-transfer from Vanderbilt I've been so pleased and happy that he chose us. He chose to be a part of this, and help us every step of the way. The way he has attacked his rehab to get back is exactly the same way I would have expected him to – be ahead of schedule and be ready to go. Looking at him on the field yesterday he looked great. His return will allow us to ensure Wiley (Green's) redshirt. We certainly think Wiley has a bright future here.
This weekend we're heading on the road for another conference game, going against head coach Skip Holtz and the LA Tech Bulldogs. Obviously their program is in a very good place. They are a very talented group, eligible for a bowl game for a fifth-straight year. They are playing at a pretty high level. You look at them offensively they have some great receivers out there, but the quarterback J'Mar Smith makes them go. Good running game with some backs that have the ability to be explosive, but also have the ability to turn those two- and four-yard runs into efficient six- and eight-yard runs that keep the sticks moving.
Defensively, Jaylon Ferguson is as good a defensive end as I have seen in this conference. His production tells you that is absolutely true. He leads the nation right now in sacks, and he is close to being the NCAA all-time career leader in sacks. You look at him and he is how you would design a defensive end on a video game. He is going to be a great challenge to try and block him.
LA Tech is going to be a very tough opponent for us. As coaches we have to continue to put these guys in the best situations to be successful. We've got to get them to do things more consistently and overcome some of the mental issues we've had regardless of how things are going, good or bad. We have to go to the next play and we have to keep going to the next play. That's what we're really trying to get, the right mindset. We're going to continue to work and have an emphasis on competition in practice. I'm happy with how we're working and I love how the staff is working. We're doing everything we can to find a way to beat LA Tech this weekend. With that I'll open up for any questions…"
You mentioned you're always communicating with the players as a way to take the pulse and ultimately make the program better. As a first-year head coach, is there anyone outside the program who you yourself might reach out to, maybe pick their brain or get their take on things?
"First of all on our own staff there's Pete Lembo and Jerry Mack. There's people like John Simmons, who I go to for perspective on this program. There's (Vanderbilt head coach) Derek Mason, who is one of my best friends. (Stanford head coach) David Shaw has been awesome throughout this whole season. Then there's Matt Rhule at Baylor, who has already lived this movie and is doing some really good things up there. He's a guy, because he has been in this situation so recently, that I lean on. He's done everything he can to help. He's been awesome. So I feel very blessed to have those resources. To try and do this by yourself, you'd never get any sleep."
What do they say?
"A consistent theme amongst all of them they have is 'stay the course, you know what you're doing works.' They might also say they know I want it turned around overnight, but stay the course no matter how long it takes. They tell me 'keep working, keep recruiting, it's only the beginning.'"
How much benefit are all the freshmen that you're playing right now getting for the program for next few years?
"Gosh you think it would have tremendous value, right? You go back to what (former Texas head coach) Mack Brown said, I think it was, 'if a guy can get 15-20 plays a game it's worth burning their redshirt.' Well we have some freshmen playing like 60-80 plays a game. It is going to pay dividends, I know it is. It is going to be great for the future of this program. We also have some freshmen who have played, but we'll still be able to redshirt. That's exciting for the future."
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