University of Houston Athletics
Quotes from Coach Dimel's Press Conference
9/25/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 25, 2001
Houston, Texas - Coach Dimel on how he felt after the game against Texas: "We did a lot of good things in that football game. I left the field feeling that everyone continued to improve in that ball game. We have a great chance, one play at a time, to make a good stout run at the conference championship. When asked "Have these first two football games prepared us to go on to the Conference Championship and has your football team shown the capacity to do so. The answer to both of those questions are, Yes and Yes. I think that we have done that in both cases."
Coach Dimel on TCU game this past weekend: "Going in to the TCU game, we understood that this game is very crucial for us. I feel like we are starting to play the type of football that we can play. I think that our defense was not pleased with their performance this past weekend, but we will rattle some challenges defensively. Offensively we will continue to make things as balanced as we can we and will continue to improve and make sure we protect the football well."
"It is the renewal of an old rivalry in the Southwest Conference. It is the beginning of a great rivalry between TCU and Houston in Conference USA. We feel like in the future, both teams can be top teams in this conference, as we improve and get t o where we need to be and TCU tries to maintain the level of play that they have reached in the past. "
Question: "What was the difference in Joffrey Reynolds running on Saturday, the cuts and the explosiveness we had not seen that from him in the past." "I have said how I feel about our running backs. Joffrey, Leif and Chris Robertson and about what kind of abilities that I think they have. Everyone hears me saying that, but up to this point he has not shown it in a game. I think what happened is that he started running in the game like he does in practice. He ran hard, smart and physical. Jeoffry is still improving, remember that he was a first time starter last year. Leif will continue to improve and hopefully get some of the opportunities that Joffrey got. Chris Robertson will finally be healthy this week. He got some good runs in practice yesterday and is ready to play."
Coach Dimel on the quarterback backup situation: "Right now Nick (Eddy) has a pretty good grasp of the play book, but not as good as Kelly does. He has plenty of ability, a real strong arm and good solid mobility for a big guy. He does all of the things that we need him to do. We are just getting him ready because right now he is one snap away from getting on the game. We are trying to accelerate it as much as possible, because if he got into the ballgame this week we would be able to use all of what we have in our game plan. We are trying to get comfortable with him stepping in and playing."
Coach Dimel on the Cougars recruits: "I think more than anything having Joffrey run the way he did, and Kelly throw for 350-360 yards and having our receivers catch all of those passes was pretty exciting for kids who are looking into joining our offensive system. They have to be pretty excited to see that the running backs are getting some chances and that we threw to 7 or 8 different receivers in the game. All of those things are really appealing. I think that this game was a real showcase for recruits. Since the game was possibly two plays away from a victory for us. "
Coach Dimel on Ethan Ross (receiver): " Ethan has really come along well. He has been doing as well as any of our receivers so he's the guy that we expect to see play more and more throughout the season."
Coach Dimel on Kelly Robertson (quarterback): I was really pleased with the way that he played, but going back and looking at the game there were plays that he could have done better. There were some opportunities where receivers were open and he missed them but I attribute that to trying to get used to being a starter. He has to come up this week and have a good game. Once he starts to play well on a consistent basis then we will be content with what he is doing."
Question: "Do you think that TCU is closer to the team that gave up 21 points against Nebraska or the 27 that they gave up to a Division I-AA team last weekend "Are we closer to the team that played Rice three weeks ago or to the team that played Texas this past weekend? That is where both teams have to step up and show what they are made of when the game really matters in a conference game. Neither team has played a conference game at this point, and both teams have the ability to play really well."
Coach Dimel on similarities between the two teams: "They do things a little bit different they have the same exact package and terminology, they call things the exact same that we do. This week it's going to be similar, because our offense is so diverse with formations and sets and their offense being very diverse with formations. "
Rex Hadnot (offensive lineman)
Question: "What do you think made the difference in Joffrey's running this past weekend? "I believe that the whole line is starting to gel. We were coming off the ball and opening holes up, not to take anything away from Joffrey, he ran Saturday like he has been running in practice, it was not anything that we hadn't seen, but it was a welcomed sight on the field."
Question: "Do you think that the similarities in the programs will help your offensive line? "Yes, it will help us a lot. Seeing it everyday since the beginning of the year at two-a-day's you get a feel of what they are trying to do on their side of the ball."
