Team-Main-71615.jpg
Player and Assistant Coaches' Spring Update
April 16, 2016 05:34 PM | General
Players and Assistant Coaches' Spring Practice Update
April 16, 2016
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University assistant coaches and select members of the West Virginia University football team met with the media on Saturday, April 16, at the Milan Puskar Center Team Room.
Assistant coach (offensive coordinator/fullbacks/tight ends) Joe Wickline
On working with the hybrid players
First of all, it has been a good transition. I am excited to be a part of it every day. The fullback position with (redshirt junior tight end/fullback) Eli, those guys are really easy to work with. (Assistant coach/running backs) Coach (Ja’Juan) Seider has done a great job of taking over a lot of stuff as well. He takes those guys and allows me to work with the tight ends, who are doing a lot better. It is a work in progress right now. They are getting better. It also allows me to work with (assistant coach/offensive line) Ron (Crook), the tackles and the different combinations that we have. We have to be taught fundamentals every day, so it kind of works hand-in-hand.
On if he has installed any specific drills with the tight ends
We pretty much have the drills that they have been doing here forever. Again, it is just fundamental football. It is stance. It is the first step. It is a sign alignment. Who do you block? What is the combination screens? Obviously, there is hips, hands and feet. All of the drills run close together, whether it is from this guy or that guy. We are just stressing fundamentals and technique right now.
On if the tight ends are buying into the extra attention they are receiving this year
I think (offensive graduate assistant) Dan (Gerberry) did a nice job with the tight ends last year. Coach Holgorsen has mentioned it. Sometimes when you put a lot of focus in terms of putting the run and pass game together, it seems to take a little bit more. It has a little bit more teeth to it.
Assistant coach (offensive line) Ron Crook
On redshirt senior offensive lineman Tyler Orlosky’s chances of playing at the next level
I think he has a shot. Again, a lot has to happen between now and then. Things can happen both positively and negatively, so we do not spend a whole lot of time talking about that. I know that is a goal of his and something that he wants to continue working for, but we kind of gear it toward being the best player, being the best leader and being the best teammate that he can be right here. If he does those things, that all helps in his goal to play in the NFL.
On improving pass protection through practice
We have spent a lot of time this spring focusing on pass protection. I don’t think I have let the cat out of the bag. That it is something that we need to improve. You know the guys are taking it to heart. We are working hard on it every day. They are focused on it in the meeting room. They see it on film. We spend a lot of time talking about it, so they have bought into what we have talked about and what we are coaching them. It’s all about them going out there and executing. So far, they have been improving from last year.
On run blocking in the spring practices
I think we are improving there. The reason we are making improvements is because we have guys who have been through this. They have been in games, and they know what it takes. They understand the techniques and the terminology that we are using, so it is all about them going out there and improving every day.
Assistant coach (running backs) Ja’Juan Seider
On freshman running back Kennedy McKoy running after contact
That was the biggest question that you always have with young kids coming in. How well are they going to block and how well are they going to finish run plays? The thing about that kid is that he is not afraid. He will stick his facemask in there. He will run behind his pads. He is not afraid to block and use his hands. When young kids get here, they usually try to shoulder block, arm block and turn their shoulders. He is always low and looking through the block. Those are some good things that you see early out of him. He is going to be a big kid. He will be 215 (pounds), 218 (pounds) before he leaves, easily. We have him up to about 203 (pounds), 205 (pounds) now. He is able to carry that weight. His body is starting to catch up with holding that weight now, and he is able to run with the same type of speed. That is what you want to see. A kid getting in here early like that is going to be big for us in the summer and fall.
On depth at the running back position with the new players coming in
I’m not there yet. They are not here, so you never know. They still have to finish up, and you just hope like heck they are here come May. You do not want to get too excited until you get them here, because I haven’t practiced one day with them. I am glad I recruited those guys. I am glad that they are coming, but I am never going to give someone credit who I haven’t worked with. You hope they come in and fit the realm and be the player that we think they are going to be.
Assistant coach (defensive coordinator/linebackers) Tony Gibson
On the best thing that his defense is doing right now
Up until today, we didn’t miss one open field tackle. We were really good. We have been really good on third down all spring as well. Today, we were 7-for-10 with the one’s. Seventy percent would place us top 10 in the country. Third down, I think we are playing well during critical downs. We had two bad missed tackles today. Other than that, we are tackling pretty well in the open field. That was a goal that we wanted to make happen in the spring.
On if corner is his biggest concern heading into the summer
Yes. Right now, we are working on depth and experience. The guy with the most snaps in his career so far would be (redshirt senior cornerback) Nana (Kyeremeh). It might not even be a 100 yet. That is the crucial spot. We have four guys coming in that will be able to throw into it. What has to happen, we have to have guys that can cover, because I like to blitz.
On the defensive blitz
That is what I like about what we are doing. Thursday, we did the exact same thing. I blitzed the whole practice on Thursday. We had 56 situational plays, and I blitzed 36-out-of-56 snaps. We didn’t give up one long ball. I take that back. We gave up one. (Redshirt junior wide receiver) Shelton (Gibson) hit us with a slant and just out ran us. Other than that, we held up really well. It has to do with those guys blitzing. We have to be able to affect our quarterback and our receivers. We are not hitting our quarterback, but I think (senior quarterback) Skyler (Howard) is doing a great job of getting it out. He has good timing on the ball.
Assistant coach (defense/special teams) Mark Scott
On what the process has been like with new players popping in on defense
Good. Again, we have enough bodies in the spring. We are three deep. We trimmed it down last week to two deep in order to get more of quality reps and more looks. We were three deep at every position, so we were able to get in a ton of work with our veterans. We were able to incorporate some of the guys like the redshirt freshmen and the sophomores. We can teach all those guys. Come fall camp, we don’t have to spend as much time teaching. We can get them more reps and get them more experience.
On if there is anyone in particular that he likes
(Redshirt freshman linebacker) David Long looks really good. He is all over the place on defense as well. Some of those younger safeties stick out as well. (Redshirt senior safety) Khairi Sharif was really good at coverage units for us. (Redshirt freshman safety) Deamonte Lindsay. Our young linebackers as well. (Redshirt freshman cornerback) Jordan Adams is a guy who has some speed. He is not afraid to come at you, so he is going to be a guy that we throw in there as well.
On if anything has changed for redshirt junior kicker Mike Molina
No. The nice thing that it does is that it gives us a little bit more depth. It takes away a strain off of everyone’s legs with having more bodies. (Redshirt senior kicker) Josh (Lambert) also isn’t in kicking shape, so we have to get him back in the game. We have to get him going and build him up. Mike (Molina) has been great all spring. He is kicking close to 80 percent, and that is about 10-12 field goals a day. He has received a ton of reps, so we just have to continue to work on his fundamentals and consistency.
Assistant coach (cornerbacks) Blue Adams
On how the cornerbacks are doing
Not too bad. We did some good things. We did some things not so great. Again, it’s just another day in the process of searching for the ceiling. We’re going to take a look at the tape. It’s never as good as you think. It’s never as bad. So we’ll take a look at the tape and see where we are. Evaluate it, and move on.
On how different it is with scrimmages and what you can take away from it
I think that’s the benefit of it. Getting a lot of live reps is effective. You have all of those snaps, and you can evaluate all of those guys against different guys. I’m excited that we can get that many snaps and not take any casualties or injuries. Something like that. I just want to get on the tape now.
On if anyone in particular stands out
Overall, I thought we did some great things. We did some things that we have to improve on. I think every man at least competed. I think every guy had some contested footballs and were in a position where you can evaluate it. We’ll take a look at the tape, and hopefully, get some coaching points and make those guys better.
On the value of the spring game and being able to get into a live practice next Saturday
In my opinion, any time you can change it up with different venues or different environments, that’s good in seeing these guys develop. Sometimes with these young guys, you change the venue and change the floor of the practice, they kind of get out of whack. I think just the change of venue and the hype of a spring game will add a different dimension to it. At the end of the day, you still want to get better. You still want to be consistently better on a day-in and day-out basis.
Senior wide receiver Daikiel Shorts Jr.
On if assistant coach (wide receivers) Tyron Carrier’s resume speak for itself
Yes, definitely. I actually talked to (redshirt junior wide receiver) Ka’Raun (White) about it. I know he played for a lot of the coaches here, so we definitely trust him
On if he is comfortable with assistant coach (wide receivers) Tyron Carrier
We are very comfortable. He is a pretty good coach. He is cool. He is young, so he can relate to us very well. Everyone seems to like him.
Senior quarterback Skyler Howard
On if the team has had more big plays this spring than in the past
Yes. I would say so. It is hard to remember exactly what happened last spring. A lot of the days run together, but I would say we have had a lot of big plays.
On if it is hard to judge how well the offense is doing
We were coming off the field after every series, so our defense was getting out there. It wasn’t like we were in a rhythm, because we were not out there nonstop. We had to come together and regroup. Today was probably the closest to a game type situation all spring.
On what today’s practice has taught him about this offense
Like I said, we had a slow start. Games can’t start like that. This was the closest we have been to a real live game situation. In order for us to bounce back like that, I think that says a lot about where we are at. The plays are being made down field. We have to block out the outside noise. We have to go to work and execute.
Redshirt junior kicker Mike Molina
On what practice has been like thus far
It has been kind of the same. I am just getting more reps with the one’s. I have gained more reps in general. I have been doing the same thing for the last three years, but it is more reps. I have more live team reps.
On if redshirt senior kicker Josh Lambert is helping him on the sidelines
Yes. (Redshirt senior kicker) Josh (Lambert) has been helping me out since I have been here. Nothing has changed.
On if there is any difference knowing that he could probably kick in a game next year
No. I just have to keep the same attitude. Going out today was great, because it was almost like a live game experience. I was able to come out from the sideline instead of kicking in the net. I was able to come in at random times.
Redshirt senior cornerback Nana Kyeremeh
On if he takes reps with the one’s or two’s
We all get reps. Coach decides who goes in when, so we all just have to be ready to make a play.
On what were his personal goals this spring
I wanted to get better. We lost five or six guys on defense, so we all had to step up. I have to be able to step up and make plays, and I have to be able to get better every day. I am working hard, and I am working with the coaches in order to make those improvements this semester.
On the differences between assistant coach/cornerbacks Blue Adams and former coach Brian Mitchell’s coaching style
All coaches are different. They all have their own little ways of coaching their players. Coach Adams and coach Mitchell both has told us to get better and be aware of what you are doing wrong, so that has really helped.
Junior safety Dravon Askew-Henry
On if he feels like the old guy with Karl (Joseph) and KJ (Dillon) gone
Yeah. I feel more comfortable now. I feel like I am mature, and I am just ready to get at it. I want to be that leader I have to be this year.
On if he has to step up this year and play the vocal leadership role
I have to be vocal, but I want to lead by my actions.
On what it is like to go against a great receiving corps
It’s great. We go at it with (redshirt junior wide receiver) Shelton (Gibson), (senior wide receiver) Daikiel (Shorts Jr.) and (redshirt junior wide receiver) Ka’Raun (White). I promise you, we will probably have one of the best wide receiving in the Big 12 this year with (redshirt junior wide receiver) Shelton (Gibson), (senior wide receiver) Daikiel (Shorts Jr.) and (redshirt junior wide receiver) Ka’Raun (White).
Redshirt senior cornerback Rasul Douglas
On if there is still room for improvement
There is always room for improvement.
On what assistant coach/cornerbacks Blue Adams says (Rasul) you have to work on as an individual
I have to work on pad level. I have to be small, and I have to work on my brakes when I back pedal. He wants me to be low.
On if he feels comfortable with the defense
Yes, I feel comfortable. I was able to grasp the whole scheme pretty easily. I am in the film room a lot, so I know where everyone is at on the field.
On if there was a learning curve coming in last year
I don’t think I picked up on anything until about week six. When I came here, they wanted to teach me. However, they couldn’t teach me and teach the defense the plan for the next week at the same time. It was tough. It was very tough. I didn’t fully grasp it until week six, so they started to play me a little bit. That helped.
Steve Sabins | April 14
Tuesday, April 14
Mic'd Up at Pete Dye
Tuesday, April 14
Jaden Bray | April 13
Tuesday, April 14
Coach Travis Trickett | April 13
Tuesday, April 14
