University of Houston Athletics
Houston vs. SMU: Weekly Press Conference
10/2/2017 12:00:00 AM | Football
2017 HOUSTON FOOTBALL QUOTES FOR THE SMU GAME
TDECU Stadium • Houston, Texas • Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017
HEAD COACH Major Applewhite
On what Kyle Postma brings to the quarterback position…
"He did some things Saturday that were impressive in terms of running with the ball and extending some plays. He gave you some options in terms of running the football, not that Kyle Allen can't, but he did a great job of taking care of the ball. There's were a couple instances in there, as there usually are with most quarterbacks, that we should rethink that throw. He did a great job of putting his eyes in the right place, taking care of the ball, ending drives with kicks, staying out of our own way and was just a different factor as a ball carrier. When plays break down and people aren't wide open, we can get involved with some quarterback run game."
On if he wants to continue to see Kyle Postma play based on what he's done so far…
"I want whoever's playing the best to play. There's nothing personal involved with it. I want production with every position and I want it deep. It's a long season and you're seeing that some guys have to step up. Regardless of what position it is, we want the best players to produce and we want the best players on the field, because those are the ones that produce."
On the difference in the style of play between different quarterbacks…
"It's much more close then in years past if you watch us. It's such a diversion from when it was Adam Schultz or Kyle Postma coming in for Greg Ward. Those two different worlds. This is a little more similar, believe it or not. As an offensive coach, defensive coach, specials teams coach, or whatever it is, you're going to build your scheme around your personnel and what they can do. If this guy's not a good puller, then you're only going to pull to your left. If this guy doesn't have great speed, then he needs to run routes underneath. If this guy can't cover people very well, then he needs to have a safety over top of him to help. All positions are looked at that way and we just try to scheme things as coaches."
On if Kyle Postma will be the starter at quarterback…
"It's week to week with every position. It's not coach speak, every position is open week-in and week-out. Commit penalties on special teams, we find guys to come in for you. Nobody is entitled to playing time. We've got to earn it as coaches and we've got to earn it as players. It's not a harder stance than anyone else we've had as a coach. If you do good things on the field you play."
On how Kyle Allen handled the quarterback situation…
"Great. We've got really great players and young men in our program. They handle things the right way and understand it. The number one key factor to that is open and honest communication. That's one thing we pride ourselves on as a program, whether that's player to coach or coach to player. You can always be upfront, honest and tell us exactly what it is and well handle it. I may not like it as a coach and you may not like it as a player, but were always going to be on the same page and not have any miscommunication."
On if there is an advantage to having the offense know who's going to be quarterback or if that doesn't matter…
"Every quarterback was brought in on Tuesday. We told them that the quarterback who takes care of the football the best, who has his eyes in the right place, who has control of the huddle and moves the football will start. We'll make that decision at the end of the week. So, when Friday night came at the hotel I wanted those guys to sleep well and not have to worry about anything in the back of their head. I also didn't want things coming out on Friday night where opponents can start to scheme and talk about things at night or early in the morning. So, then we brought all the quarterbacks together Saturday morning and explained to them that all three of them have done great things for this program. Kyle Allen's won two games as a starter and completed 90% of his passes in a game. Kyle Postma started one game in 2015 and started a game and won it in 2016. You've all done great things for the program, this is what we're going to do for the football team. Kyle Allen be ready. It's the same thing I told Kyle Postma an hour before the Arizona game, be ready. It's just like any other position. I understand its quarterback, I understand the attention that it gets. The media, the clicks, the likes, whatever. It's like any other position, you have to be ready to go period. The same way Aymiel Fleming had to be ready to go."
On if deciding the quarterback position will remain strategic for the rest of the season…
"It's going to be a consistent evaluation of the quarterback position. I don't know how to phrase it the right way I guess. We're going to continue to evaluate it the same way we are every position. As long as you are producing, taking care of the football, moving the football, and your eyes are in the right place, then you are going to play. That's what we're going to do at the quarterback position, same thing if you're a right guard. As long as you are continuing to keep your guy off the running back and the quarterback, while not committing penalties, then you are going to continue to play. So, we are going to continue to evaluate that position week-in and week-out the same way we do every other one."
On the status of Ed Oliver…
"What I have been told is that he has an MCL sprain. There are degrees to that injury; one, two, three. I don't if there's four or five. He's got an MCL sprain, he had something very similar to that last year from what I understand. He wore a brace and was able to play, so it's just kind of day-to-day with how he feels. Once he gets the brace on and starts getting more active with it, we'll have to evaluate it throughout the week."
On Ed Oliver's playing time…
"Because he was a little sore yesterday, we were not out there in full pads on Sunday. We'll have to be able to see what he does when he gets out there on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday and just evaluate it."
On the offensive pass interference calls this season …
"There's a new emphasis this year across the board in college football on offensive pass interference. Two of the four we've had this season, I don't disagree with. They were both in the end zone, with the same player and there are things you can't do. When you are a big guy like that, you're going to get attention out there. One was about four or five-yards out of bounds when the ball was thrown. We all make mistakes and had they looked back at it, they'd probably say, 'Hey, that thing wasn't catchable.' The second or third play of the game, I sent that to the league and they've been really good about getting back to me because I want to teach them. I didn't see the pass interference on Keith Corbin. I thought he made a great play on the ball. I want to be able to go back and talk to the wide receiver group and say, 'these two, we absolutely deserved, this one, the guy probably missed it.' The ball hit the punting net out of bounds is the one that they're saying is a pass interference. Even though we didn't necessarily see it, this is how they're interpreting and enforcing that rule."
On Aymeil Fleming's performance…
"In general, they had a great plan for us in a certain front. They came out in the second half, they had eight-yards rushing, 130 in the second half. They did some great things for our front. There were some times where Neil made great plays, but he was also getting his feet wet in terms of what to expect down-in and down-out. He's going to play and he's going to play well. That goes for any backup. When your number is called, it's time to show up."
On his message for the team going into Week 6…
"It's our normal week preparation in terms of play-by-play, period-by-period, practice by practice, and focusing on the here and the now. We're getting into these conference games coming down the line and we're certainly not looking past anybody. We give this opponent the same amount of respect we've given all of our other opponents leading up to this point. We have a tremendous amount of respect for them. Defensively they've got some guys that have come back into the secondary and some guys that have come back at the linebacker core. They have experience at all three levels of their defense. They can take the football away. They'll give you a lot of different looks and blitz. Offensively, they're averaging around 500 yards a game; 200 on the ground and 300 in the air. They've got a great wide receiver that's got a lot of publicity. He's a really good football player and a draft-type player. They've also got another great wide receiver in Trey Quinn. They've got a couple of guys that are averaging 26-yards a catch. They've got a very explosive quarterback who understands where to get the football and extend some plays. Their running backs are tough, shifty guys that are hard to tackle. They're very explosive on offense and a very good football team. In terms of our preparation, nothing is really going to change in terms of what we do week to week, how we study, and how we prepare our minds and body for the game."
