Football: Head Coach Bill Stewart Teleconference
September 21, 2008 03:58 PM | General
September 21, 2008
MORGANTOWN, W.Va.- Quotes from Head Coach Bill Stewart's teleconference held on Sunday afternoon.
Opening Statement
We’re getting ready to lift and run today, and have practice. We will try to regroup and get back after the loss out at Colorado. We had a really good trip, and I saw many positive things, we just didn’t come away with the win. That will ache for a long time, but we don’t have too much time to ache-only until about 4:30 and that’s when we go out with our players and practice.
I was very pleased with how hard our young men played. I want to thank our administration for making it possible for us to get out there on Tuesday, because we did have some travel problems Tuesday night, and it would have made for a terrible day on Wednesday, if we had gone then. We got out there and got acclimated to the time change, and I really appreciate our administration for letting us do that.
I also want to compliment our young men for how they played in the so-called altitude. Some people tried to make a big thing out of it, but I’m proud that our guys played for 60 minutes. We were flying around, and it seemed that Colorado was dragging a little bit-they just made some plays that they had to. I thought we were fresh, and I thought we played hard, so I am proud of the effort that our football team gave.
Defensively, we were flying around and striking people. If that fumble had not occurred for the offense early in the game and they got that 14th point, I don’t know if they would have scored again after that first drive. I’m really pleased about how our defense responded after the Villanova and the East Carolina games. Our defense came to play, and they came and hit. They had tremendous efforts by not only the team, but we had some outstanding individual efforts. That will be announced with our team awards. I can’t say enough about our defense and how hard they fought. It was 14-0 and they just played like warriors. I’m so pleased with how they played.
Special teams wise, I can’t say enough about how we covered. I thought our punt team was absolutely awesome to hold Colorado’s Josh Smith to 3.8 yards punt return. That showed tremendous character by our punt team and by our kickoff team. We held him to 23 yards and one of those was a bobble. The guy was averaging 50 so we cut his yards in half. I’m thrilled with that.
Right now, we’re fifth in net-punting in the nation. If you would have told me that prior to the Colorado game with that Smith youngster, I would have looked at you like you were crazy. I shouldn’t underestimate these Mountaineers, because they went out there and laid it on the line. Our special teams, except for our last kick which I feel so bad for Pat McAfee; I looked at the film over and over again and the snap was good, the hold was good, and the foot placement was good but it just hit the upright. Sometimes that’s the hand you’re dealt but I felt so bad for Patrick because he has had so many big kicks for us. I’m so optimistic and proud of what our kickoff team did and most importantly, what our punt team did. That was a tremendous effort by our special teams.
We only got one kickoff return, because they kicked it out. Marc Rodgers brought that bad boy 36 yards and that was really good. We were striking them and that was good to see. I told Coach Holliday, who is in charge of that back wedge, what a fine job that back wedge did.
Offensively we rushed for over 300 yards against a Big 12 team on the road and that was exciting to see. Pat (White) threw some nice balls and went 10-14. We didn’t push the ball vertically down the field as much as I’d like to, but when you’re running the ball as much as we did, and trying to get back in the game, and play a ball control game, I thought it was good. The plan was good and outside of the third-down conversions, we played a tremendous football game. This game has changed a little bit. We only had 67 snaps and that includes the overtime. You just don’t get as many snaps as you used to because of the 40- second clock and that is happening throughout the country. Again, I was very pleased with how our guys competed. We had great individual effort up front-we had two lineman that played just has hard and as well as you could. We had 21 knockdowns. You have to be doing something to have 300 yards. Pat ran the ball well, guys blocked and that was a great effort.
Third downs is a concern but we will get that worked out; that’s why you practice and that’s why you try hard and that’s why you go back to the drawing board and try to get the best plays you can.
I thought the Mountaineers played their heart out and it’s a darn sham that we didn’t come away with the win. Sometimes, like I told the team afterwards in the lockeroom-you have to keep pressing onward and upward and keep straining and playing hard because they really played their hearts out at Colorado and I know they will get ready to get after this Marshall team.
They have just been outstanding. They had a tough loss up in Wisconsin, and they have big wins over Memphis and at Southern Miss. I’m very happy for Mark Snyder and their staff. Mark is a tremendous guy, a class act and is great for the game. He has the Herd playing hard, and we’re going to have to give an outstanding effort.
We want to come back and play just as hard and inspirational as we did out in Boulder. If we do that, we have a chance. If we don’t do that at home-play like that or practice like that-then Marshall will have one heck of a good game. Get better in game four than we were in game three-that’s our goal and that’s our objective. I’m so pleased with the progress we made between games one and two and three, even though we lost the game, we now have the chance to play game four and that’s what we’re looking at; one game at a time.
Offense consistency and balance
Free wheeling a little bit. I told them to keep the ball in No. 5, No. 7 and No. 9’s hands. I wanted it to be a ball control game. We were trying to keep their offense off the field, and us moving the ball, but we just didn’t. We didn’t score and we didn’t capitalize when we had a chance. We need to pitch and catch the ball a little bit more. The biggest thing that we have to do is move the chains on third and short, we have to stay in the flow and the rhythm of the game, and then we can throw the ball more on first and second down. That is what I want to do.
On Marshall
They beat a very solid Memphis team and then they went to Southern Miss. and beat them; let me assure you of this-Marshall has more than our attention. Marshall is playing great. I’m happy for Mark Snyder, and I think he is one of the class acts in the game and he’s one of my friends. I consider him a friend and hopefully they will have a tremendous year, just not this week. I’m very impressed from what I’ve gathered and what I’ve seen, but today we are taking care of West Virginia. Tomorrow we will spend all day on the Marshall film. What I’ve seen, Marshall is a tremendous football team and they are on a roll. They are 3-1 and to beat Memphis, who is a good football program, and Southern Miss.-that’s big. That is really big.
On Mark Snyder
He is a tremendous human being, and I think he is a great football coach. Mark is a man of character and is a guy that has his young men believing. He has some great coaches on his staff, and they are all playing their hearts out. They are making plays, and they are attacking. I haven’t had the chance to break the film down but I know this, he has them playing and playing with a passion. Their stats are tremendous. I can’t be any happier for such a class act like Mark Snyder. He has a great year going but just not this Saturday; it’s our job to take care of our business. We’ll get more into them as the day and evening goes on, and we’ll get to watch them all day tomorrow. We were down 13-7 at the half last year and I want to remind you of that. These guys will come into Morgantown ready to play. I’m not worried about Marshall right now, I’m worried about the Mountaineers-that’s my job. Mark has him team rolling, and I’m happy for him, but we’re going to have to try and put a stop to that Saturday. After that, I hope they go into Conference USA and I hope they win them all. I really do because I am a big Mark Snyder fan.
On J.T. Thomas
He is doing well. We went over the injury report this morning and J.T. is doing well. He was pulling on my shirt at the game saying ‘please, let me go in’. He had tears in his eyes, and I said the best way to help your team right now is to help with special teams on substitutions and keep cheering your heart out for these guys and keep everything positive. J.T Thomas was like a coach on the sidelines. I was so grateful that he was so positive.
Wasn’t that a nice, class-act move for Coach Hawkins’s part to come over and see how J.T was doing. After the game, when we were talking, Dan asked me how he was and if J.T was going to have to stay overnight, because knowing Dan, he would have gone to the hospital that night. I told him no and that J.T was coming home. J.T is going to be fine and he will be playing on Saturday and practicing. It’s not a concussion and he wanted to play (after his injury). We had to hide his helmet because he wanted to play so badly.
Short yardage
How easy for me would it be to sit here and say well, the guy that led the blocking here last year is at Seattle? The guy that ran the ball last year is at Houston? We have good players, and our guys can do it. On the sneak, we had two guys get beat. Our roster is our roster, and we had two young guys on the second play that were there, that blocked off the edge, but the guy made a heck of a play and slipped in. That was one that hurt us. We’re going to be ok. We don’t have a big back right now that is ready to be that guy. We will put Will Johnson back there but you have to get good at that. That is the only thing we are not good at and that is my job. We’re going to work on it very hard in practice to get that situation resolved.
On Ellis Lankster
I don’t know if he could have done any better. He was an absolute man out there on punt returns. Maybe he got sick of me telling the team about their Josh Smith but he turned that game into the Ellis Lankster show on punt returns. He got tired of Bill Stewart challenging him. He played well and our defense played very well against a tough team. It was a good team who beat us.
On the offensive line
We rushed for over 300 yards and when you do that, you either win the game or put yourself in the position to win. Whatever Dave Johnson did, I’m real tickled with, and I hope he keeps doing it.
On Reed Williams
He played like a warrior. Reed played very well and he played very hard. He is an inspirational leader, and I just can’t say enough about how that young man plays. Our defense needed him and he jumped in and made play after play. Reed Williams was all over the field. They played 78 snaps and Reed was playing 52 of them. That’s pretty good. Fifty-two snaps your first game back is pretty good, and he played like a man possessed. I couldn’t be any prouder.
