University of Houston Athletics
Houston Football Weekly Press Conference Quotes
8/28/2012 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 28, 2012
A-Z Fan Guide | Ticket Information
HOUSTON - University of Houston football head coach Tony Levine and selected student-athletes met with the local media Tuesday to discuss Saturday's season opener against Texas State.
Head Coach Tony Levine
Opening Statement
"I'm excited about the game. It is going to be a tremendous challenge for us for a number of reasons. We played Texas State a couple of years ago and this is not by any stretch of the imagination the same Texas State team, and this is not even close to being the same University of Houston team that competed in that game two years ago. This is a completely clean slate for both sides. It's a new coaching staff for each program. And when you look at turnover rate with student-athletes with graduation and attrition these are two totally different teams.
They have a tremendous coaching staff, which I have the upmost respect for. Coach Dennis Franchione has been doing this a long time and has been extremely successful, and he's done it at a lot of great places. The assistants that he has with him are guys that I know personally and have worked with along the way. They've been with him at different spots and with him they're going on their second season. When you put the video on from last year you see what they do schematically and see how hard their young men play, and that speaks for itself. They pose a lot of problems for opponents in all phases.
Offensively, there has been some discussion that they may play two quarterbacks. Their two guys, Tyler Arndt and Shaun Rutherford, are different styles of quarterbacks and we've been preparing to see both.
In terms of running the football they are as intricate and unique as any team we'll see this season. They have a two-headed monster at running back with Terrence Franks and Marcus Curry. They're powerful and coming off two extremely successful seasons running the ball.
They also feature one of the best tight ends nationally in Chase Harper. He is a guy we recruited a couple years ago who ended up going to San Marcos. He is extremely talented and has great size and athleticism. They'll split him out and on certain third down situations they'll put him at defensive end and have him rush the passer. That speaks volumes for the type of athlete that he is. We have to be disciplined and play fast.
We have to know who has the quarterback, who has the pitch and who has the gaps when they're running the football. In the secondary we can't fall asleep because then they'll fake a hand off and run play action and throw it down the field.
Defensively they are extremely aggressive and well coached. They will be one of the best secondaries we'll play all year. The more you hear about them and the more you see their comments you know they are looking forward to this game. (Texas State defensive coordinator) Coach Craig Naivar and that staff are aggressive and sound, and they're going to make you earn every yard you get. We're going to have to take care of the football offensively.
Their special teams play hard and they're well coached. They have a great punt returner, Andy Erickson, who played at Rice a couple years ago and we couldn't tackle him when he returned kicks against us then. We'll have our work cut out for us. We look forward to getting out there Saturday night to see what this team is going to look like.
I know our guys are ready to get out there against somebody other than their teammates and their roommates. We need to see where we're at. We need to see what we do well and what we need to work on. We have some young faces out there; a lot of inexperience, especially on the offensive side of the football. That's exciting.
Sometimes as a coach you tend to play guys that have experience and that isn't always the right decision to make. We're forced now to play some inexperienced guys and I'm looking forward to seeing them get out there Saturday night with the lights on and people in the stands to see what they can do."
On how ready his team is to play
"We're going to find out Saturday night. However, the thing I always talk to the team about is the game is a test. We're taking an exam Saturday night at 7:00 p.m., and we've been studying for the last three and a half weeks or so as coaches and student-athletes. In terms of preparation we are prepared. Virtually every situation or scenario that could arise we have covered that. I feel great in terms that we're prepared. The unknown is we're going to have some 18 and 19 year olds who have done it in practice and in high school but not on live TV in front of 30,000 people. I'll know more Saturday night on what the team needs to work on moving forward."
On the depth at running back behind junior Charles Sims
"I am comfortable. I have been here going on five years now and I like where recruiting has gotten us in terms of depth across the board. Charles isn't going to line up for 80 snaps all by himself. Kenneth Farrow is a guy that came in and played safety for us last fall. In December we moved him to running back and he had a great spring. Braxton Wellford is a young man who has been in our program and is a senior now and has a chance to play. Randall Hollimon is another young man who has a chance to play."
On how Saturday is going to feel
"I can't envision that yet. People have asked me what it feels like and what has changed, but I'm too busy to think about what I'm going to feel like walking out on the field. We had two mock games in the stadium last week, but there were only four support staff members in the stands so I didn't really have any emotions coming over me. It will be fun. On January 2 (against Penn State), when I did that it wasn't at home in Robertson Stadium."
On how much he has grown as a coach since being at Texas State
"My first college coaching job was at Texas State. When you think about what has changed for me, I have an appreciation for graduate assistants and quality control coaches because I did that for five years with the first three years being at Texas State. We don't have time to go over what I've learned since 1997 because we'll miss the game on Saturday."
On expectations after last season's 13-1 record
"That is as big of a challenge to me as anything. What fans quickly forget is the year before last we were 5-7. We're trying to become a consistent winner year in and year out. We're not concerned with outside expectations. We're going to define the 2012 football team. We have high expectations within our program."
On how the defense has looked
"The defense has done a great job. We have seven or eight starters returning. We have an idea of how guys are going to play when the lights are on and you're on television. I measure that in a number of ways. When a defensive guy knows what to do they can do it fast and full speed. That is what I've seen and that goes all the way back to spring practice. As a whole we have great teachers that are relating the schemes and the young men have picked it up."
Senior linebacker Phillip Steward
On what to expect from the defense
"I expect a lot of big things. We want to hold people under 21 and 14 points. The defense is pretty good."
On the new scheme
"We're running a 4-3 now. The linemen are keeping the linebackers clean at practice so the linebackers should be able to make some big plays."
On Texas State
"They run a lot of option. On the defensive side we have to play assignment football. If we don't know our assignments we can get beat by the option."
Senior Defensive Back D.J. Hayden
On the transition to the new defense
"(Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Jamie) Bryant has different terminology than we have been used to, but I think we have adjusted well to it. He expects much more from us. We have all definitely stepped up and adjusted."
On what the defense needs to be successful on Saturday
"I want to see us force turnovers and give our offense the chance to get the ball back."
On how Coach Bryant has stressed turnovers on defense
"Turnovers have definitely been stressed. Coach Bryant expects us to get at least three turnovers a game and in practice. That is one of our goals for the whole season."
On how linebacker Phillip Steward will play a role in forcing turnovers
"Steward is a ball hawk on defense. Somehow someway he is going to get his hands on the ball and be really great for us."
Redshirt Sophomore Quarterback David Piland
On heading into week one of the season
"I'm really excited and the team is really excited. There's a lot of energy going around the locker room and everyone is extremely excited for our first test."
On his growth as a quarterback
"I would definitely say that the game has slowed down for me as far as reads, going through progressions, understanding when to take a shot and when not to. That has been a learning process and it has gone well for me."
On the youth at the receiver position
"You can expect a lot of guys to catch the ball. There are a lot of new guys coming in and a lot of fresh legs, which is great for me. There are a lot of guys who can be thousand-yard receivers. This Saturday it will just be who steps up to the plate and who wants it more than the others."
On nervous moments before games
"There's definitely that butterfly effect before games but I have settled down doing this for as many years as I have. It's humbling before a game but after kickoff I feel a lot less nervous."
On the expectations following last season's success
"We're just excited to make our own statement. We had a great season last year but this is a different year, and everyone is going in with that mindset that we're not listening to other's expectations. We want to be a legacy and start winning more and more every year."
Redshirt Sophomore Offensive Lineman Rowdy Harper
On excitement for the upcoming game
"We are all very excited to get on the field, especially the linemen. Some of the other guys might have a little more fun in practice because they're not hitting as much as we are. For us it's every play against the same guys everyday. For us it might get a little old so we're excited to hit other guys and have some fun on Saturday."
On preparation
"Everyone is working really hard. We have Jacolby Ashworth who is about to enter his fourth season. Everyone has really gotten behind him. He is definitely a leader. We have pretty much all been together for a little more than a year so we are really excited to start this season."
