Press Conference with Coach Higgins, Coach Bodine, and Coach Conklin on Sept. 6, 2011
Coach Higgins' recap on the Jacksonville game…
"We watched a lot of tape of Jacksonville in the offseason. We knew they were the number one offense in the country in the FCS last year. They had a returning quarterback; they spread the field, and had multiple formations and personnel groups. Our defensive staff did a great job in putting the game plan together. Our defensive live ended up with five sacks and we held them to minus 22 yards in rushing. We were able to make them one dimensional, allowing us to perform as well as we did on defense."
Coach Higgins' recap of the offensive performance from the Jacksonville game…
"We rushed for 439 yards. This was very important for us to do. More importantly the confidence of the offense was apparent from the sideline and after the game. We watched our guys in the spring mature and we had a lot of good offensive showings throughout training camp. It was finally nice to see them put the entire package together. I thought our offensive line did a better job with their assignments. We had some good individual standouts. Ben Dupree did a nice job. We graded him out on the 23 plays we ran the triple option and he was 23 for 23 on his reads. Darien Robison was able to step up when Terrell Davis hurt his knee. Lastly, Cass Couey had good execution, as he averaged 44 yards per kick."
Coach Higgins' response on playing Furman…
"We had a chance to watch their game against Costal Carolina. Furman has an entire new coaching staff. From our standpoint, it makes it challenging to prepare. Defensively, we will be looking at the game against Costal Carolina and looking back at tapes from Vanderbilt and looking at the similarities between the two. Offensively, we are trying to get a feel for how they are going to align. We want to be able prepare this week. Overall, we have to prepare our guys for multiple looks."
"We are not sure he will be able to play on Saturday. It is encouraging to learn his swelling has gone down. He was able to rehab this morning and he is certainly not goingto practice today. I hope we can we get him out for Thursday and Friday's practices and see if he can play on Saturday. If not, we have a bye week coming up. I am sure we will have him back for Elon."
Coach Higgins' response on the Furman rivalry…
"When we first arrived six years ago, I am not sure our players could identify the real rival. Talking to alums, so many people pointed to Furman. We quickly bought into that idea. In 2005, we had a double overtime game and had a chance to win. Then in 2007, we were able to win in the triple overtime game over Furman. In 2009, we had a nice victory over them at home. Our guys understand playing Furman this weekend is important, especially in front of our home crowd.
Coach Bodine comments on the offense...
"The biggest thing we have tried to do on offense this year is raise expectations. We hold the players to a high standard. I was very pleased with their attitude. I also believe we were able to recover well on the offensive line."
Coach Conklin comments on our defensive formation…
"We always try to make favorable match ups. Some teams will be heavy on tight ends and backs, and you would need to play an even front. Jacksonville didn't have a lot of tight ends in their scheme last year, so we tried to open it up and play with a fourth linebacker. As the season evolves, we will see what fits week to week."
Coach Conklin comments on Derek Douglas' performance…
"In the offseason,
Derek Douglas has done a tremendous job from a leadership standpoint. He had a great summer conditioning and training program and it has carried over to his confidence, as a player into fall camp and the season. We are happy with where he is at. This season we have tried to heighten the level of expectation. He is a key player on the team. Derek is not where we need him to be, but he did have a decent game. He demands more from himself, as the season goes on. We are happy where he is at right now."
Coach Conklin's response of the difference between Jacksonville and Furman's offense…
"Schematically they are different. Furman has quality players across the board. They are going to be physical and more run orientated. They are also going to create more openings. Last week, we wanted to keep the ball off the perimeter. We tried to get back behind the linebacker, so we could obtain more space. This week, we know that is not going to happen because their offensive lineman can move you. If we are not sealing down the running lanes we are going to have some issues."
