Meet the Press: Coach Wannstedt Previews UConn
12/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 1, 2008
Coach Wannstedt Press Conference
Dec. 1, 2008
Connecticut Week
Opening Comments:
"As I told our players, the win against West Virginia, which is a quality football team with a lot of outstanding players, was a great win for our players, our program, our city and fans. I thought that after watching the tape, the thing that was very consistent from a defensive standpoint was the very few missed tackles. I think we had three in the game that we counted, maybe four. When you only miss three or four tackles against a team like West Virginia, you're doing an outstanding job. Offensively the difference in the game was being able to control the line of scrimmage and our ability to run the football.
"Our special teams - and you talk about the hidden yardage - that 20-yard punt return that T.J. Porter had at the end of the game was huge. He caught the ball around the 20-yard line and brought it back to the 40.Then we had two big first downs leading to our final score. We had decent field position with our kickoff returns. We didn't break one but we were out there around the 30 and 35-yard line. They kicked the one to Shady and he returned it to the 50. We had pretty good field position which helped from a drive standpoint.
"With that behind us, now we get ready for Connecticut. We came out of last week healthy. I don't see anyone who played last week who might not this week. I think LaRod Stephens-Howling is getting better every week. He should be much improved this week as compared to the last couple of weeks. He had five carries last week and felt good after the game. As long as practice goes good, we expect him to be a little more involved in the plays this week. Again, from a health standpoint we seem to be in pretty good shape. We have some bumps and bruises but nothing you don't expect this time of year.
"Connecticut has obviously given us some problems the last couple of years. The last two years have been two different ballgames. We won the first one (in 2005). Two years ago we had a two-touchdown lead and we had them backed up but we were unable to get off the field defensively. Last year we turned the ball over six times so I think that speaks for itself. This year they're probably the top defense in the Big East - I think they're ranked number 10 nationally. As far as our conference goes, they're at the top of the list in most of the defensive categories. They're very sound, they do a great job and play great team defense. They have some outstanding players that will present a challenge for us. They run a lot of similar plays as we do. We're two pretty similar teams. Speaking of running, we all know about Donald Brown. He leads the nation in rushing. He averages about five yards a carry and he's having a great year. This will be a very physical football game - one that we have to be mentally and physically ready for. I think our players understand the importance of going up and being prepared to play. We can't just go up and turn it loose on Saturday."
On Pitt's improved tackling the past two years:
"I have been on a few teams throughout my coaching career where we've worked on tackling five days a week. We went out there and missed a lot of tackles. I can remember when I went to USC and I was coaching out there. We missed very few tackles. I was coming from Oklahoma State at that time, where we were trying to build that program (OSU) up. We didn't have the players at the time (at OSU). The tackling drills and the time we spent on them at USC were no different than at Oklahoma State. We just had better athletes and all of a sudden we're tackling better. I would say it's a combination of having better athletes, but it's also been a point of emphasis. Last week Phil Bennett and the defensive coaches worked on those things every day. It's a two-fold reason why I think we tackled well."
On the success of opening drives followed by a struggle for offensive consistency:
"We chart the first eight, 10, 15 plays. We rehearse those. We probably need to come back and repeat plays that have been good for us earlier. I think sometimes you have a tendency to use your offensive game plan and you want to jump onto the next play. Maybe you haven't worked it as much or stressed the little things as much as the first dozen plays. That's the only reason we can come up with. I sure as heck don't think it's a mentality thing or a mindset. It's usually execution."
On the challenges of playing at Connecticut:
"The first game up there (2006), I thought we got tired at the end of the game. We missed a lot of tackles and when I say missed a lot of tackles, it was our better players - Clint Session, H.B. Blades and Darrelle Revis - guys who are playing in the NFL today. After that game is when I made up my mind that the way we were preparing for the week was not the best. Now we work on Sunday and give the players Monday off. Before, we gave them Sunday off and then had practice straight through before the games on Saturday. After doing some research and looking back on it, I felt that our guys were tired. I also changed up our routine with strength and conditioning, too. Before, we were physically worn down and mentally tired. I don't see that being the case now. In the fourth quarter of that West Virginia game, we were in great shape mentally and physically. Connecticut plays well at home and they're a good football team but we just have to go do what we need to in all three phases and simply outplay them. Any time you're playing on the road, you have to deal with that, but we've played South Florida, Notre Dame and Navy, which was a sellout. We've had some full houses that we've played in front of on the road and for the most part we've played pretty good. Cincinnati would be the exception. I think the noise got to us a little bit and we had some penalties."
On Connecticut's discipline and skill:
"They're very sound in what they do in all three phases. They have better players than what a lot of people give them credit for. I think they've only allowed 12 sacks all year. The quarterback is a good passer but a lot better athlete than people give him credit for. Donald Brown, what can you say about him - he's just a good player. They have a little bit more talent than what they may get credit for and they have good coaching."
On Bill Stull's recent play:
"I think it's a little bit physical with Bill. Everything comes with success. We had success -- I'm going back here now against Louisville. All it takes is one game. We go up and struggle against Cincinnati for several reasons. Unfortunately the quarterback is, as we say, going to get more credit than he deserves when the team plays well and more negativity and blame than he deserves when things don't go well. That's part of being a quarterback. I think that when you have a first-year starting quarterback like Billy is -- he's dealing with that right now. He's trying to work his way through. He is more than capable of hitting the fullback in the flat but we don't hit him (against West Virginia). He has to set his feet and get the ball up. He makes that throw ten times a day in practice. The other thing of course is making good decisions. Not forcing the football and managing the team are things he has to do and he understands that. He made some good plays though early on. He opens up and makes a good throw to Derek Kinder and a great pass to Nate Byham. He starts off the game hot and he has confidence. All of a sudden he throws some incompletions and a pick down on the goal line and his confidence is shaken. He has to get it back. Is he struggling right now? I would say no. I don't think he's struggling, I think he's just working extremely hard to get better. West Virginia has a pretty good defense. So does Cincinnati and Connecticut for that matter. He's going to need to step up this week."
On the possibility that prior injuries to Bill Stull could be affecting his play:
"That's never been brought up."
On the play of Connecticut's quarterback Tyler Lorenzen:
"He's more of an athlete. They'll do the movement passes with him. With Frazer in there, they didn't do nearly as much as that. Also, he's (Lorenzen) a returning starter from last year."
On Connecticut's defensive play and pass rush:
"They don't do a whole lot of things different than what we do. They rush four and do a nice job up front. They'll do a little bit of pressure stuff with the linebackers but not a ton. They've got four-down linemen that I remember watching through the course of last year that have the same philosophy that we have. The one defensive end was a linebacker who put his hand on the ground. The one starting defensive tackle was a defensive end and they moved him inside. They're trying to put as much speed on the field as they can.
"I think if you're a 4-3 (defensive scheme) team as we are, and they are, you have a tendency to study each other on tape. You look at what was good and bad and how the opponent tried attacking you. There were some things that we did different and we'll do different this week. Some of it is ability too. They've got some younger guys on the inside and experience on the ends. Our experience is inside with our tackles and Scott (McKillop) and a little bit more inexperience at the linebacker position."
On the similarities and differences between LeSean McCoy and Donald Brown:
"I think there are a lot of similarities between the two. The both have good size and strength. Both can catch the ball well. LeSean is probably more of a make-you-miss by bouncing the ball, outrunning you or giving you a little fake. Donald Brown -- when he gets in the clear -- he's got a great stiff-arm and he's powerful. He probably breaks more tackles than LeSean and LeSean probably makes more guys miss. They're both good players who play to their strengths."
On the play of Pitt's offensive line:
"The sad thing about the Cincinnati game was that the penalties and sacks never allowed us to get into any rhythm. When you look at LeSean's stats against Cincinnati, it was 4, 6, 7, 5-yard runs and then a holding call or a sack and we're out of it. He's been consistent and I think our offensive line is improving. The best thing they did last week was adapt to the 3-5-3 scheme that West Virginia plays. On a short week, I think our guys did a great job of handling that."
On the game against Connecticut and the possible bowl implications:
"There are so many things to consider with the whole Big East playing this weekend. Nothing will be determined until Saturday night or Sunday. Number one, these guys beat us the last couple of years. Number two - which might be more important - our guys would like to end up with nine wins (to finish the regular season). That hasn't been done around here in over a quarter-century. That would be a nice thing for our football team to accomplish. That's kind of our focus more than what bowl because we have no clue."
