Football: Coach Stewart and Player Quotes
August 17, 2010 02:23 PM | General
August 17, 2010
Coach Bill Stewart - 2010 Football Camp Press Conference 10:
Opening Statement
It was a crisp practice this morning. We got some things accomplished as always and it was good. We worked very diligently on the blitz game, not only on the defensive side, but also blitz pickups from the offensive side. We worked on the skelly drill, the two-minute drill (in helmets only) and tonight we’ll go full pads.
On two-a-days: There are only four left, so we need to make the most of them.
On the installation of offensive and defensive schemes in fall camp: We throw it all at them early. Sometimes the old-school method is to let them build it up slowly, but we throw it all at them early and have them study it in camp before school starts. In meetings they’re always talking football. We believe that’s the right thing to do. Most coaches in America throw the whole gamet in in the first five days, then you teach them in segments of what you’re trying to get done.
On the need for upperclassmen to teach the younger players: There is a huge need. Very much so. Most of our upperclassmen, in my opinion, hearing from the freshmen, are teaching them well. Many upperclassmen say, ‘We never dreamed it would be like this.’ (Chris) Nield is one of them, Scooter (Berry’s) another. (Pat) Lazear and (JT) Thomas are a coaching machine. (Robert) Sands and the corners (Brandon) Hogan and (Keith) Tandy are doing an excellent job. On the offensive side, all the linemen are doing great. I can’t say enough about (Don) Barclay, Josh Jenkins and (Joe) Madsen. All the skill guys are doing a great job. Noel (Devine) and Jock (Sanders), I’m telling you, have been two of the best big brothers, so to speak.
On Robert Sands: He’s doing well. I even saw him with the running backs doing a tennis ball drill, bending his knees, shuffling. Robert’s been working hard, both physically and mentally. Vocally, he’s become a real champion back there.
On J.T. and Jock’s development: I can’t tell you enough the love we have for those guys. They trust the program and we trust them. They’ve had bumps and bruises and scrapes along the way, but I can say that Nos. 7 and 9 have grown tremendously as men. They’ve grown tremendously as men in the community. They’ve grown tremendously as team leaders. They’ve grown as football players. It speaks volumes about the love they have for this staff and their teammates and the thrill of graduation to come back. That comes from our part as well. We have a great love for those two.
On Bruce Irvin: Oh, my. Bruce Irvin is very, very impressive. He’s a Mountaineer. He’s rough and tough.
On the importance of finishing each game: Today we put the guys in situations like a turnover circuit. You treat turnovers for 60 minutes. We’re working on that. We worked on that diligently today and it was neat to see. Offensively, we do the same drills. Last year we didn’t finish the game down at Auburn and we didn’t finish the bowl game. That’s something we’re working on very, very hard.
On social media: I don’t know anything about all that. I’ve seen coaches that have excluded that, but it’s up to them. We try to educate our players the best we can. Just like NFL agents, we brought in the NFL Players Association to teach our players. If all I do is to teach them how to catch and tackle, I’ve failed miserably as a football coach. We try to teach them all of those aspects. I don’t know if it’s my right. I don’t want to put them under such a harness that they’re afraid to look left or right. It’s all about maturity and you have to learn to speak to the media.
On JD Woods: We’re teaching consistency. JD Woods is a talent. Did you know he was over a 1,000-point basketball scorer? This guy’s an athlete. A lot like Bradley Starks. He just needs to be consistent. He’ll get more pitches and catches if he becomes consistent.
The quarterback reads coverages, and if he sees a hole, in the hole it goes. If the coverage says it’s a crossing route, we dump the ball in the middle. The quarterbacks know who can catch the ball; JD’s done a good job and he’s getting better.
As a staff, we like what we’re seeing from him. We’re seeing it from Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin as well. Those three young people have turned some heads and it’s been impressive.
Ivan McCartney
About the difference between high school and college football: In high school I was taught by guys like Stedman Bailey and Geno Smith. It’s changed a lot. The speed is different and the play calling is different. You just have to do your best and go along with it. There are a lot of different things being thrown at me right now, but I hope to see the playing field and help the team win a BIG EAST Championship.
On the pressure of being a freshman: No pressure at all. I feel like I’m just another kid coming in from high school learning the ropes and trying to play.
On Geno Smith’s help: Geno, Stedman and a lot of receivers have helped me come along and it’s making me improve. Before I came here, Geno talked to me quite a bit. We didn’t really talk about football, we just talked about how things were going back home.
On why he chose West Virginia: I had the opportunity to play early at WVU. Coach (Lonnie) Galloway showed me the depth chart and that there was a need for some receivers. All were great, quality receivers, but I knew that wherever I chose I would have to compete to get on to the field. He told me it was possible that I could see the field early this year.
On Barry Brunetti: We met each other on our official visit during the Marshall game last season. Ever since then, we’ve always stayed in contact. We talk about school, life and a lot of things. Our relationship has grown a lot. We didn’t talk too much about West Virginia, but on Feb. 3, we found out we had both decided to come here.
Geno Smith:
On his progress in fall camp: I’m starting to see more things with the defense, picking up blitzes and knowing where our guys are going.
On coach throwing more at him to learn: We’ve just been getting everyone up to speed and getting the timing down. We have some dynamic players, so I’m just finding ways to get them the ball under different situations.
On getting the timing down with freshman and former high school teammate Ivan McCartney: We work on timing a lot when we go out and the receivers run their routes and right now, the timing is down with all of the receivers. I think that is going to be the key to our offense. Getting to each receiver is something you get a feel for. When we’re on the field and everything is moving so fast, you just have to go with what you know.
Marquis Wallace
On his progress at fall camp: I’m learning everything at a steady pace. I’m playing for one of the best teams in the country with a tough head coach, so I just go out there and go hard. They’re very intense practices, so we get a lot of reps. There is no sitting around and wasting time.
On the mental aspect of the game as a freshman: In high school, they tell you, “Block left, block right.” In college, we have to worry about all kinds of zone coverages and inside blitzes that you have to get caught up to speed on.
On being a Mountaineer: Coach Stewart has given me a great opportunity to be here. I love the fans here. They’re great. The coaches sold Morgantown very well, and so far I like it a lot.
Ishmael Banks
On coming from a military academy: You’re up at 6 a.m., you march to breakfast, go to class and then you have study time and practice. It’s lights out at 10 p.m., so you have to learn to work within that schedule. It’s helped me to get my priorities in check and make sure that I’m getting my work done. You have to set time aside to study outside of practice and classes. It’s prepared me well to compete at this level.
On Coach Dave Lockwood: He’s a good guy and I like him a lot. He’s teaching me a lot and giving me a chance to compete.
On his position amongst the DBs: I’m running with the two’s right now, but I’m just trying to get better every day. I’ve got a lot of good guys in front of me. They’re all helping me out and looking out for me. We’re all trying to compete and get better and work hard out there.
On playing early: It’s not the biggest thing I work for, but I do want to play. I just need to get the defense down so that they can depend on me when I’m on the field. I don’t want to do anything that could hurt the team. I’m using every rep to pay attention to what’s going on. I want to take it all in and learn from the others.
On the adjustment to college football: You have to learn the speed of the game. Learning the plays is difficult, but I’m catching on. Coach (Dave) Lockwood makes it easier for us.
Bruce Irvin
On being in the center of attention with the media: I’ve never been in a situation like this. It’s weird, but I’ll get used to it.
On his progress with the team: I have a lot of raw ability. I’m getting there.
On going from Atlanta to junior college in California: I kind of wanted to get away for a while. There was nothing but trouble at home so I wanted to get as far away as possible, but I didn’t have the grades to go Division I out of high school. I now take life more seriously because I was struggling a lot and making a lot of bad choices. Now, I know how blessed I am to have another opportunity to be doing what I love to do.
On how he became a Mountaineer: The coaches told me to go out and play well, and so I did my best and things worked out for me. I’m here first of all to get an education. Football is not forever. I want to come in and help the team as much as I can, get my degree, and things will work themselves out.
On his transition from junior college to Division I I’m older, so the transition has been easier. Coach (Lonnie) Galloway has helped me a lot not only on a personal level, but he has made it easier for me on the field as well. Last year was my first playing defense. I’m still a baby with defense.
On why he had never played defense before: I don’t know. I first tried to be a safety, but I had no clue what was going on, so my coach told me to try out the defensive line. It was pretty easy for me, and with my speed, it made it much easier. It was the right fit.
On the DE position: It’s more than going after the quarterback. It’s about keeping the containment. I have a lot of raw abilities I still need to work on. For example, I need to learn to stay low. With a 6-foot-4 body it’s hard to stay down, but I’ll get it together. J.T. Thomas has been a big help. Don Barclay and I go at it quite a bit. We compete a lot to get better.
