Below is the transcript from Jon Embree's weekly press conference on
Sept. 25, 2012.
General
"This is the breast cancer awareness game for us,
so we will have some pink on. I am sure
a lot of people can say; it's hit a few people close to us, our program, our
players. So we want to do what we can
with the awareness, so that will take place this Saturday. Wear your black and your pink. I'm just excited for the players, they did a
great job last week of responding to what we were asking them to do as a
coaching staff, and focusing on the things we wanted them to focus on. That was a big bounce back to go in there and
win that game and to win it in that fashion.
It is a great reward for these kids; they have been working hard, you
have heard me talk about how hard they have been working, all offseason, all
season, all summer, and all through camp.
So for them to finally get a win, and a reward and to do it like that
and to do it on the road says a lot about these kids and where their mindset
is. We look forward to playing UCLA this
week; it's a great program, great tradition there. I have got to meet [UCLA head coach] Jim [Mora]
a little bit, haven't spent a lot of time with him but I know a few coaches
very well on that staff, and I know that we are going to have to play very well
if we are going to have a chance against those guys."
On UCLA's Running Game
"Their running game with Jet Ski (Jonathan
Franklin), he is a very good back, I think he has a chance to be the all-time
leading rusher there before it is all said and done. He is explosive, he runs with power, and he
has a lot of speed. He is a great kid;
obviously I have a relationship with some of these kids on this team, real good
kid. I know he didn't have the game he
was capable of last week; Oregon State did a good job on him but he is a hard
guy to contain. You have to do a good
job of tackling him and you have to have more than one guy there, because if
not-he hits a seem and you are in the wrong gap, its six."
On Oregon State Defending UCLA's Running Game
"I think sometimes fans, or people, get the mistake
of, 'Well, if they did it then, you can do it.'
If it's not within your scheme, it's sometimes hard to get some things
taught or to try to do things if it doesn't fit with what the background with
whatever your basis is for your scheme.
I thought the key in that game was Oregon State's front did a really
good job of tackling when they had opportunities to make plays and that's what
you have to do because if not, he will take a 2-yard loss and make it an 80-yard
touchdown."
On UCLA's Talent
"UCLA has some good talent, they really do. I think it is funny; the first question was
about their running game, but to me when you talk about UCLA, you have to talk
about their defense. What they have done
from a defensive standpoint, [I] worked with [defensive coordinator] Lou Spanos
at Washington (NFL), Lou has done a great job of installing a 3-4 there... They have done a good job of taking some of
their talent at other positions and moving them, like Anthony Barr was a
tailback, real talented kid, and now they moved him to outside linebacker, and
I believe he might be leading them in sacks, and it looks that way when you are
watching tape. As an outside linebacker,
Datone Jones, and Cassius Marsh up front, with other guys they rotate in and do
a very good job. They are very solid up
front, the seven and the back end you have to start with [Tevin] McDonald, he
is the kind of guy that gets it all going back there at safety. UCLA, it's about their defense, their defense
creates a lot of opportunities for their offense. So our offense has to do a good job of
converting third downs and when we get opportunities to get points, you are
getting touchdowns not field goals."
On Tony Jones And CU's Running Game
"It's good to have Tony [Jones] back. He got hurt early in CSU, so he is still not
100 percent back but he is close. It's
funny, we were walking up the hill yesterday after practice and I said, 'Well
at least you made me look good because everyone is always asking me what is the
difference between you and Rodney Steward and I said, 'well you had that long
speed, you could hit that home run,' so I am glad you didn't get caught on
that.' He adds another dimension to us,
he can get on the edge and if he gets a crease, he is the guy that has the
ability to go the distance. It is great
having him back, he is a good complement with Christian [Powell]. Josh Ford got some carries in there, at least
one carry, and he did something with his.
It's a little bit of running back by committee right now, but they all
bring a different skill set in. The main
thing is they are all physical runners and I think [offensive coordinator and
running backs coach] Eric [Bieniemy] has done a good job in that room, they
pull for each other. They add a
different element when each guy is in the game, it is good to have fresh legs
in there when you are running the football like we are trying to get done."
On Believing In QB Jordan Webb
"I don't know if he had to lead us to a win to get
that, but I think that just adds to his package. He has that swagger about him in practice, he
had that in training camp whether we were doing a two minute drill, a third
down drill, whatever it was, he had that swagger and carried himself in that
manner. It's great for him to get that
and get the award (Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week0 because he took a
couple shots in that game and for him to bounce back and really only miss one
play because of some of the hits he was taking.
That talks about his toughness but more his attitude about being out
there and wanting to lead the team to victory."
On QB Jordan Webb Playing Every Snap Versus UCLA
"We will keep doing it, and if it's a situation
where we feel like we can get [quarterback] Connor [Wood] some reps, we will
always be looking for that, in the right situation. It has to be the right situation or scenario
to do that with Connor. But there is no
doubt he (Jordan Webb) is the undisputed leader on the team and the number one
quarterback."
On Moving Paul Vigo To Linebacker
"The nature of the offenses that we are going to
see; UCLA to a certain extent, Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon, you need those
hybrid type players. It was good to see
Paul; he was our defensive player of the game, he had nine tackles two TFL's
(tackles for a loss), PBU (pass break up), a forced fumble and then he played
well on [special] teams before he knocked himself out. He will be fine though, so that is the good
news. But that is what I expected out of
Paul, to be able to match up, give us flexibility. He is a physical player, that has never been
his issue. And same with Kyle
[Washington], so moving him closer to the line of scrimmage-I know it is a
little bit of an adjustment, they have made mistakes and they will continue to
make mistakes as they continue to learn and get comfortable with the position. But they are starting to make plays for us
and that's what we need at that position."
On The Team's Mind Set Going Into Washington State
"There are a few things that happened. Between Monday and Tuesday practices, so
between Monday after the six o'clock practice and between practices on Tuesday,
I had a meeting with every player that was on the travel squad. I talked to them about a couple of things; I
believe in them, and I told them why.
The next thing I talked to them about was being in their situation as a
player and as a coach before, and some of the things that allowed us to get out
of it. I talked to them then about how
we have to approach things from here on out.
Another thing that was big for our players was; [Jamie] Guy and John
Snelson, our two video guys, that got game balls for this, put together a video
for us. Some former players were here,
Chad [Brown], C.J. (Charles Johnson) were two of them, and they talked about
what it meant to be a Buff, the legacy of this program, what it means when you
are through being a Buff, how you look back on it. It was about a twenty minute video and we
showed it Friday night, and that I think when that was all said and done, put it
into perspective for them. It tied into
them what I was talking about privately.
I just think all of those factors combined with the fact; each week they
went out and practiced hard and got after it, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday;
unfortunately their efforts and the way they were practicing wasn't quite
carrying over like you would like on Saturday.
I think what you saw this week was it all coming together for them and
it carrying over, I think those things were the biggest. They heard from Deon Figures, [Alfred]
Williams, there were a lot of former players, Kordell [Stewart] is coming in, [Michael]
Westbrook wants to talk with the guys.
Them hearing from the former players about how they believe in them, it
was impressive, the list of former players that called in either through me,
Eric [Bieniemy], [defensive line coach and alum] Kanavis [McGhee], [linebackers
coach and alum Brian] Cabral, whoever; calling in and letting those guys know
they believe in them and they are behind them. That is what they needed to hear at that time
and they responded."
On Playing Psychologist
"That never stops.
If I would have known that, I would have gotten my degree in psychology
when I was here. You always have to play
that role with your team. You have to
have a good pulse on your team of where they are, when to be hard on them, when
to love them and that doesn't change just because you win a game."
On Being Afraid Of His Team Quitting
"No, I never once felt like that was even on the
Horizon. It is a special group of guys,
it really is. These freshmen, every time
they go out, it is their first time; that was their first conference road
game. I remember my freshmen year as a
player; just every time is just a new experience, a fresh experience. We have a lot of guys that, that is where
their mindset is. And then we have so
few seniors; when you look at it, juniors and seniors, there are probably nine
kids in our two deep that are upperclassmen.
I know how they want to finish their time here in Colorado, because of
the nature of our two deep, that has never really been an issue because I know
what those nine, ten guys are made of, I know what their mindset it; whether it
is Paul Vigo, whether it is [Ray] Polk, even though he has been injured,
Chidera [Uzo-Diribe], Will Pericak. Will
Pericak has had a heck of a year so far; he has done a lot of really good
things. Those guys aren't going to let
people quit on them."
On Ugly Yards
"Yeah, part of that was due to some things we
wanted our players to understand from an offensive standpoint. One of the things I talked to the players
about in the meeting was about this thing called, 'ugly yards,' it was kind of
a motto we had around here when we were struggling. Basically, it was about how to get four
yards, every time you are up, and one of the things we did when we were in the
huddle is, you always looked at the chains to see if you got your four yards
and if you didn't, you just tried to get four in that play and not do anything
special. So that was part of the thing
about huddling, just so that they could get together and be with each other;
look in each other's eyes, see what the chains are, 'Did we do it?,' if not let's
do it this play. It kind of helped us at
the time for us, just focusing one play, just focus on the task at hand, and
everything else will take care of everything else."
On The No-Huddle
"It is still something we want to go to and still
do. We will do it at different times in
the game. I think if you look in the
fourth quarter, we were in kind of that no-huddle pace and the guys
communicated well and there was no panic, we didn't have alignment issues. It is something that I still want us to be
able to go to and grow to, and become more efficient at it, and do that as we
continue to move forward."
On Struggling To Put The Win Behind Them
"I thought practice was good yesterday, the energy
and enthusiasm and all that. Don't
worry, we will be on them. Like I told
them in the locker room; it is 24 hours and then we move on. They will be handled appropriately, along
those lines."
On The Younger Players
"They have been good. There are a lot of things; guys showing up on
time for study tables, guys are going to class.
Those are the things I think you look for as a coach at this level is;
are they still doing the little things.
Are they coming to the weight room on time, are they working out hard when
they are in there, are they dressed like they are supposed to be dressed. The academic piece of it; are they doing what
they are suppose to be doing academically.
Those are the things to me that are red flags of giving up, of saying
'Oh, well,' and those things have never dipped.
We have had great class attendance; we have had effort on that side of
the program, academics and same within the weight room, and then seeing what
they are doing when they get on the field.
I am not worried; they are going to respond how they are going to
respond. Whatever happens Saturday, it's
not going to have, what happened last week is not really going to have a bearing
on it, it's going to be just another step in our process with these kids, and
moving forward. We haven't won a home
game yet, there is a lot out there for them to go out and get."
On Eric Bieniemy On The Sideline
"It was good to have him down there, obviously
keeping the offense involved in the game when the defense is out there. I didn't really pay attention to all that
stuff because I am in a whole different mindset, a whole different mode. That is probably something you would have to
ask the players; what affect that had on them.
I know the running backs didn't like it.
We all know what Eric is about; with his energy, with his excitability
as excitable as he gets, and it is contagious and I thought our sideline was
great. I thought there was a tremendous
team effort, offense pulling for the defense, defense pulling for the
offense. We get a penalty on the
touchdown, they called it on Josh Ford, it didn't bother me; but the funny
thing to me was, Parker Orms was the first one down there. Parker was also the first one to get back
there before Josh, so Josh gets the penalty.
But just seeing that excitement that guys were pulling for each other
and they were that into the game and were that aware of what was going on, it
was great. That locker room, that team
was tremendous. We took that next step
of being a team and what it is like; when you are young, you have to show guys
kind of how you have to do it, so that excitement, that enthusiasm has to come
from us as coaches too. So having Eric
down there is a plus because that is another guy down there that will help them
with that process, and then that will become natural for them."
On Being A Part Of A Big Turnaround In Two Weeks
"I can't say that I have, where it has been as bad
as it was the week before. It is never
as bad, and it's never as good, I know scores can say differently. They hit us perfectly in Fresno, a lot of one
play touchdown drives and when that happens, it makes it really difficult for
you. I thought last week our guys never
blinked, they did everything we asked them to do, and the resolve they had; I
talked about that last Tuesday about the resolve of this team. I can't put my finger on it, but there is
just something about this group of guys that they really do believe and they
really are trying to do it. If you have
that, eventually it will happen for them.
So we will see, there are a lot of games left, a lot of other things
coming up. It will be great when we get
some guys back; [Ray] Polk, [Doug] Rippy, Gus Handler, you start getting some
key pieces back that will also help too."
On The Biggest Benefit From Saturday's Win
"I think the biggest thing coming out of that win
was a few things. One was to win in that
manner was important, and doing it on the road is important. You guys know the history of playing outside
of Folsom, and that was a huge step to go and come from behind like we did on
the road. We can't talk about doing
great things until we can prove we can win on the road, that will be an experience
that all these young kids; when you look at the Utah game, how many kids were
there; half of our team was eating Thanksgiving dinner, they weren't even
there. So for them to get their
experience at that is big. The other
thing that, that win does, it springs them forward and gives them confidence,
and it helps validate the things we have been doing with them and asking them
to do. There are a lot of demands put on
them, and to put those demands on them and have nothing to show for it can be
demoralizing. They have been good at
being disappointed, but not discouraged, because discouragement leads to
failure, discouragement leads to quitting, discouragement leads to a lot of bad
things. Disappointment, handled right,
can be fuel to use to get better, the fuel to work harder, and that is what they
have done. Winning that game and in the
manner we did, also teaches them how hard it is to win. It is hard to win, because there are things
that happen that are not in your control and your ability to let that go and
focus on the next play is huge. You are
going to get calls missed on both sides, are you going to let that effect you
for a whole other series. Kenneth
Crawly, the kid scrambled looks over the wrong shoulder and the ball is over
the other one, touchdown; opening drive, what are you going to do? Then they come back and get another one on
you, what are you going to do? Then he
has a couple key pass break ups, has some good tackles, he comes up and
supports the run well on the fumble recovery; it is him hustling for the ball
that kept it alive so that Terrell [Smith] could get it (the fumble recovery). The kid didn't quit, him understanding how
important that is and those are the differences of us winning and losing, that
kind of effort. It is huge for us to win
it in that manner, it really is. If we
would have won it any other way, I don't know if we would have gained
everything that we did gain out of it by doing it the way we did."
On Concerns On The Kicking Team
"Well going for it on a fourth, it didn't have
anything to do with Will [Oliver] missing it (an earlier field goal). Let's just say that I had a nice conversation
with the two of those guys (also punter Darragh O'Neill) yesterday, so we will
see."
On UCLA QB Brett Hundley
"Great kid, big kid, athletic, can run, and can
throw it. He can throw the deep ball, he
likes to throw it to Shaquelle Evans, No. 1.
They have very capable receivers; Jerry Johnson, Jerry Rice, Jr., and
then Joseph Fauria is a big target. He
can throw it and he can run it, so when you have a duel threat quarterback like
that, you have to be very assignment conscience with what you do. When you are pass rushing him, and he is in
the pocket, you have to be in your pass rush lanes because he will pull it down
if you have him covered, and 20 yards later, there he is. Brett is getting better each game, this is
going to be his fifth game, and each game you can see him gaining more
confidence and getting better just like I see it in our younger players, their
first time playing. It is good to see
him doing well, he is a great kid; I know him a little bit and his father, I
just don't want him to have success this week and then he can pick it back up."
On If He Recruited Hundley
"No, I didn't recruit him. Just because of my son going there, going out
and seeing him, you see a lot of kids and visit with them. "
On Former UCLA Coach Rich Neuheisel's Excitement In Hundley
"Well, Rick felt like he was going to be the
quarterback of the future, and there is no doubt about it, and he is the guy
that could help them win a Pac-12 Championship.
He is a heck of a player, he is going to be really good before it is all
said and done."
On If He's Been Surprised By Any Other Teams In The Conference
"I really haven't watched anyone play. The thing that I kind of did see on the way
home, on the plane ride, was it looks like Oregon has gotten faster, which is
disappointing. I don't know what [Oregon head coach] Chip [Kelly] gives it, but
he has got them rolling. Obviously the
big win that Stanford had, but I really haven't had a chance to watch or see
anyone. Generally what I do on Friday nights,
I start watching film of our next opponent just so I can get ahead. I have been like that in the NFL and in
college too. There are just not enough
hours for us to get all the stuff done that you really want to get done, so to
have felt like you have thoroughly known the opponent, I start that on Friday's
and if it is a late Saturday game, I will watch it Saturday morning too. Now that we are in conference play, I will
get to see some of the other teams, but I really haven't had a chance to pay attention. Just Oregon because it was on TV coming home
on the plane."
On The NFL Referees From Monday Night
"I saw three plays in the game, and that was one of
them and I could not believe it. It is
just crazy, it's the best game out there, is the NFL. It's the best league, it's the best game
going. I think what people will
understand now whenever they do get it fixed is how good those guys are in the
stripes. They are the easiest target,
but those guys; they get it right a lot. I guess Baltimore had something
against New England on the field goal and then I know about Kyle [Shanahan],
and I guess [John] Fox and [Jack] Del Rio (got fines). We as coaches get on officials the right way
and argue in the right way and when some of those names I just mentioned are
being singled out because of officiating, sticking up for their team. As a coach, you want to stick up for your
players and for your team, and I know they aren't going to get everything right. There was some things missed in the [WSU]
game and I talked to the official and he was great. He said, 'Hey we have to be better,' and I
said, 'I have to be better,' and it's okay, it's just as long as he knows. And that is generally the relationships that
coaches have with officials, it's not an adverse relationship. When it starts seeping into the game like
this and players are sure thinking about it and wondering about it, it is just
too bad because to me, it is just the greatest game, greatest league
going. They always talk about the
integrity of the game, about gambling and it seems like this is affecting the
integrity of the game now. Hopefully
they get it fixed."
On QB Jordan Webb Having Swagger
"Well, you know it's kind
of like, Ryan had asked me that something similar to that last week about when
people are saying, 'you can't,' what makes you think you can. I think a lot of
it with Jordan was how he was raised, when you have a good support system, good
coaches around you when your growing up and people always telling you can and
helping you believe in yourself and helping you see the positives in some of
the setbacks you have, that adds to it. There's no way you can play on this
level, whether you lose it or win it, there is no way you can play at this
level if you don't believe in yourself at the end of the day. We have some guys in the locker room that haven't
played a down, but they're going in the Hall of Fame though if you ask them.
And so it has to be in your DNA, in your makeup, for you to do it in spite of,
and then you have to be able to block it out. You know when the same bad thing are said about
you, you can't listen, you can't listen when good things are said about you,
you got to be able to keep yourself in a certain mindset in the zone, so to
speak, that your always pushing it trying to find a way to get better, not
letting outside influences affect how you prepare. And he does a good job of
that, he really does, I didn't know of any of that stuff until you just told
me, I just knew we were 0-3. I didn't know about any of that other stuff, but
that's a testament to the kind of kid he is."
On TE Nick Kasa's
Matchups Problems for Defenses
"You
know me, I think any tight end creates a matchup problem for the defense. You know Nick, it was good for that to happen
to him because he's really a freshman, he's played five games as a tight end,
and there's a lot of nuances that go on with that position from blocking and
running routes and finding the soft spot, you know earlier in the game he was
open and Jordan threw him the ball but he wasn't looking, and if Nick had
played two or three years at the position, he would have seen it and caught the
ball gone on, so he's done a really great job at working hard and not making
the same mistake twice. He's a big kid that can run, he's a big body, and I
think as you see guys on Sunday, using their tight ends, the big tight ends, they
create problems because if you put a guy that's big enough to matchup, in cover
you might be able to run as well, and then with his speed getting down the
field or getting behind you is a real possibility, and so then you put someone
that can run with him, but then you're not quite as good at the point of attack
and the passing and the run game. He can
be a match up problem and I'm glad that we have him. Like I said, he gets better every week, he
does, he makes his share of mistakes. The
thing I love about Nick, he doesn't make the same mistake twice and as a coach
that's really what you love, because it's so important to them, he's a prideful
guy, he wants to do it right and I look for him to continue to have more impact
on the games. You know that pass he
caught was similar to the one he misjudged against Sac State. You know he ran with his arms up and all
that, this time he kept running through it, just the little things like that he
keeps getting better at."
On DL Will Pericak Having a Good Year
"Will, he did a great job a lot of times we dropped
nine, just to clog up some passing lanes.
The reason we're doing that was because Will, Chidera [Uzo-Diribe], Kirk
Poston, were doing a great job when they were the two man rush of collapsing
the pocket, making a move, getting pressure on the quarterback. We asked Will to do some different things
this year, not just play inside but play outside, he's done a real good job of
that. You know he's a guy that's going
to play on Sunday and he may have to play on the edge, in a 3-4 front or he can
play inside on an even front. The best
example I can say for Will is you know after we gave up that first touchdown
against CSU, it could have been easy to be demoralized, they line to kick their
extra point and he comes through and blocks it, and he plays every play like
this is the one play that is going decide the game, he chases the ball and runs
to it. You never question his effort and
he's a smart player on top of it. He has
been very productive, he's been very disruptive, you know sometimes numbers can
be deceiving for defensive linemen because you look at tackles and sack and all
that, but to me, it's about being disruptive in the run game it's about penetration,
it's about knocking the quarterback down, making him move, doing all those
things and Will has done that consistently in every game, and that's what I
mean by he's having a heck of a year. He's
playing very well and he does a good job with the young guys up front, getting
them to follow him."
