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Michigan - Iowa
Michigan Head Coach Brady Hoke
Opening
statement ... "Thank for coming out. Obviously we have a great
challenge in going to Iowa City and playing a very good Iowa team --
undefeated at home. (It) seems to be the way this conference is to some
degree right now. But they play awfully well and are a very
well-coached football team -- have been for many, many years.
"It
will be the most physical game to this point for us as a team. When you
watch them, obviously they have -- personnel-wise you look at (Marcus)
Coker and what he's done leading the league in rushing, and (James)
Vandenberg I think has done a tremendous job in there as a quarterback,
and got a great pair of receivers, but (Marvin) McNutt obviously gets a
lot of the exposure because of what he's done out there on the field.
"But
it's going to be a great challenge for us. You play these last four,
and when you get into November, you play for championships in the Big
Ten Conference. That's kind of how it's been for many years. So we look
forward to it. We're going to have a great week of preparation, and
it's going to be fun."
On how the defense responded to the
coaching during the bye week ... "They responded well. I think when you
look at it and you grade it and you look at it position by position, I
thought up front the gap integrity that goes along with playing team
defense and the approach that the guys played with, the demeanor they
played with. I think Mike (Martin) no question was a factor in the
game, not just in the middle, but also in his making plays down the
field and those kinds of things.
"Linebacker-wise, I thought we
played downhill. I thought Desmond (Morgan) really did a nice job. And
I though Kenny (Demens) -- I could feel those guys out there. Jake Ryan
made some plays just sometimes unorthodox, but he's a football player.
"In
the back end, I think the two corners -- J.T. (Floyd) had the one
penalty late that hurt us a little bit obviously in the last drive,
which was disappointing for us. But I think I those two guys are
settling in. I think Courtney (Avery) has done a nice job at nickel.
Troy (Woolfolk) for his first start back at the safety position I
thought did some good things. I think there is more we can get from him
there. I thought Thomas Gordon played up from where he did two weeks
ago."
On Jordan Kovacs' injury status ... "Day to day. He ran
around and did stuff last night, so we'll just see. We didn't do
anything different though without him. To be honest with you I think
there is some leadership there that he brings. I think there is some
football instinctiveness that he brings that's something that I don't
know if you ever make up for whoever is in there. But he ran around and
did things last night, so I was pleased with him."
On if the
team played its best game of the season against Purdue ... "It wasn't.
We only got one turnover defensively; we (threw) two interceptions that
in tight games or championship games you can't have. You have to create
more opportunities for your offense, defensively. Not getting in,
scoring a touchdown at halftime bothers me because we got three
(points), but those four points out there can hurt you down the road.
So we've got to do ourselves better there."
On Mike Martin and
the entire defense against Purdue ... "I think you caught some momentum
obviously when the safety -- any time your defense scores or you get a
punt return I think just the whole attitude of your team, the morale,
the enthusiasm is really good. I think Mike did that for us as a team."
On
the defense allowing its first play of more than 40 yards in its eighth
game ... "If you can keep the ball inside and in front then you're
going to have a chance. If you do that, whether you're the guy who's
supporting it either way, keeping it inside and in front and getting
the pursuit from the rest of your teammates you can limit that.
(Purdue) caught us in a blitz. It was a good call by them. Not a great
total reaction by us, but I think it's something we'll learn from."
On
what has gone into forcing 14 fumbles this season ... "I think you
create your luck to some degree. I think our guys have done a nice job
of trying to get 11 guys to the football where you're opportunistic to
recover the fumble. We work strip drills and those kind of things
during fall camp as much time as any, or in an off week. Those things,
you try and get back to those simple basics, which really are not
simple because that's the game. But there are couple examples out
there. (Ryan) Van Bergen against San Diego State knocking the ball out
and ripping it out, and then Thomas Gordon at Northwestern ripping the
ball out of there. So the drills are being taken from the practice
field to the game as much as anything. Still, it's getting 11 guys to
the football."
On if he expected the team to be in its current
position heading into the season ... "I never even thought about it, to
be honest with you. I thought about the month of November an awful lot.
That's when you win championships in this league."
On if Devin
Gardner's interception played into his reduction in time later in the
game ... "No, not at all. And the other thing, we had exhausted to that
point what we wanted to do with the two quarterback offensive personnel
group. So, no. I think there was a lot more that can be done from it."
On
if Iowa is the most physical team this season ... "Yeah, and probably a
lot of it is history, but I've always loved, as a coach, watching Iowa
on defense and watching Iowa on offense. When we get breakdowns, if
they're similar opponents and we're getting ready to play somebody that
they've played, that's the first film since I was here before that I'll
put on because of how they play defense and the physicalness they play
with, the fundamentals and the techniques. It's the same way
offensively. It's a great challenge. Being a defensive line coach, you
watch your offensive line and how they're coached and the fundamentals
and the techniques, the attitude they play with. That's awesome. Gets
you excited."
On how Jordan Kovacs' blitzing responsibilities
get split up by the other safeties ... "It just depends how you're
setting your sub defense and really what you think can help from
looking at a protection standpoint or if it's one of those pressures
that'll run pressures out of that. It just depends formationally how
things will end up. I would say that (it's fair to say it's split)."
On
if winning in November requires something different than winning in
prior months ... "I don't know if our blueprint is ever going to be
different. We want to run the football. We want to be able to possess
the football. We want to take care of the football. Defensively we want
to stop the run and get bodies to the ball, create opportunities for
our offense, and be sound in our special teams and try and gain some
field position because of special teams. I can't tell you that's any
different, but it's how you have to improve on a daily basis so that
you can play your best football through the month."
On if
Fitzgerald Toussaint has established himself as the lead running back
... "I think he did, but I also think the situations of where you're at
in the game and what you can do to a certain degree. But I think he
played tremendously. I think he had great vision, balance. And the most
exciting thing was I thought his burst out of holes. The 59-yarder, he
separates the safeties and has a tremendous burst as he does it. And
the other credit goes to our wide receivers blocking down field like
nobody's business. So he's a guy that will start the football game for
us."
On if it helps the offense to know that Fitzgerald
Toussaint is the No. 1 back ... "Good question. I don't know what it
does besides the continuity of it. But I think they're so
interchangable to some degree. Vince (Smith) was a little beat up so he
didn't get as many opportunities. Mike (Shaw) comes in and gives you a
different gear to some degree. But right now, Fitz definitely will be
the guy."
On the health of Taylor Lewan and Ricky Barnum ...
"Ricky will take it day to day. Taylor is fine. I mean ankle a little
bit, knee a little bit, but he's fine. He did everything yesterday,
too. (Ricky aggravated the) other ankle."
On the impact of
defensive backs coach Curt Mallory ... "I think Curt is a tremendous
football coach, and he's done a great job with the fundamentals of
playing a coverage, whether it's three deep, two deep, man free stuff.
And talk about angles and support and your pursuit on the back side of
the football, whether it be a cutback responsibility or a chase contain
responsibility or your arc support, the last man knocking a guy out of
bounds. I think the guys have done a nice job of really understanding
the concepts that you have from a defensive standpoint."
On
Desmond Morgan against Purdue ... "He's been coming on. He would have
played a lot more earlier, but he had aggravated a hamstring during the
last week of camp. That set him back a little bit, but I think he's a
very instinctive linebacker. I think he plays downhill well. I think
also for a young guy he's grasping more of conceptually the defense and
also the opponent and studying the offense."
On his evaluation
of Will Hagerup ... "I think he had the first punt was a good punt; the
second punt, the inconsistency there. He had been consistent to that
point. We've got good competition because Matt (Wile) still is working
on both. So we'll compete there just like we do every other position."
On
if there is a script of plays designated for the two-quarterback
offensive sets ... "There will be, I wouldn't say scripted, but there
are options out of it that we'll have available. I think (the number of
times we use it) just depends to some degree on the game."
On if
the running back position is still evolving ... "No, I think it's Fitz
(Toussaint) right now. I don't think there's any doubt. I think he's
earned that opportunity."
On competing for a Big Ten
championship with so many freshmen contributing ... "The best players
have to play. If we don't play the best players, no matter who they
are, where they're from, what age they are, then we're cheating the
program. We're not going to cheat the program."
On if he expects
the seniors to mentor the freshmen ... "You're hoping they've done that
since day one. That's the whole deal. They're doing a good job since
the day the kids got here in the summer with that relationship in that
respect. Then a lot of freshman hit the wall sometimes. So far, these
guys have been able to persevere and keep learning and getting better
from a fundamental and technique standpoint."
On adjusting the
snap count at Iowa to account for the crowd noise ... "Yeah, but I
think it funny that it's brought up, but you've got a good point at the
same time. They were off-sides three times, so timing must not all be
there. But to answer the question, yeah, there are different ways that
you use, methods that you use; from a silent to guy tapping a guy there
are a lot of different ways. Two guys holding hands and one guy drops.
The guard drops his hand and the tackle knows it's time to play."
On
Devin Gardner's opportunity to score on a goal line rush ... "He needs
to run through that. We talked about it when he came off the field. He
just needs to run through it. And I think he thought he was going to
hop in kind of instead of just lowering himself and going through."
On
freshman linebackers Jake Ryan and Desmond Morgan ... "What I like best
about them is they're football players. They understand. My boy, Jake,
can be -- what's the right word -- he makes plays maybe unorthodox
sometimes. I have an example of him making a football play. It was when
he the knifed through and tackled for loss. That's a guy being a
football player. That's a guy saying, 'I'm not going to set the edge
because I'll get knocked out. If I take the guy's knees and go up
through, I got a chance."
On how he "felt" the linebackers
better against Purdue ... "I think we had good flow to the football. I
think we played downhill. We didn't play laterally. We played downhill,
and thought we got off blocks better and I thought we did a nice job of
impact at the football."
On holding Taylor Lewan out of some
drills this week to keep him healthy ... "We don't have that luxury to
be honest with you. We have limited numbers, so we'll try and be smart
and maybe take a rep here, rep there. But our depth at our offensive
line is probably as low as I've ever seen at a university."
On
Fitzgerald Toussaint showing a burst against Purdue ... "He's made some
runs like that during the course since last spring when we got here.
But I think he set up blocks well. I think the receivers did a good
job. I think he stuck his foot in the ground and really had a great
burst out of it."
On Stephen Hopkins play at fullback ... "He's
a thick guy. I think I like what I've seen so far. I think he'll just
get better and better. He's a tough guy. I think when you have a guy
like that who is a pretty good running with the ball, also you start
getting into some split back things out of the pro sets. It opens up a
whole new offense to some degree. I think Stephen has kind of moved
ahead of (John McColgan). They'll both play, but I think Stephen has
kind of moved ahead."
On if Iowa's physical play is a challenge
or a concern ... "Just a challenge. Not the way our guys have prepared
what I've seen from them. I think they prepare in a physical manner."
On
if Iowa is more physical than Michigan State ... "They always have
been, in my opinion. Now, that's taken eight years ago or whenever it
was I was here before. I always thought they were well coached and
physical. It's a fun week. It's just fun. I love this."
On if he
has to remind the team that Iowa is solid despite its loss to Minnesota
last week ... "We talked about it as a team yesterday. Minnesota is a
lot better team now than they were when we played them -- a heck of a
lot better. Jerry Kill is a really good football coach. The
fundamentals and the techniques that he's been striving and he's been
talking about. And then (MarQueis) Gray, looks like he's started to
arrive as a quarterback. Then you're playing for rivalry game, and
anything happens in those games."
On giving more reps to some of
the reserve offensive linemen in case of injuries ... "They'll have
some more, but I wouldn't say too many more. They'll get their share
which they'll need to have."
Fifth-year Senior Defensive End Ryan Van Bergen
On
defensive improvement ... "We're almost to where we want to be. We've
accomplished some of the things we set out to accomplish preseason
wise. We've done some good things over these past couple games. We've
also had some issues. But there are things we need to improve on. We
need to have a little bit better run defense. We gave up some big
plays, which we haven't done. Luckily only one of them was for a
touchdown against Purdue. We don't want to give up any big plays;
that's the emphasis of our defense and it's something we can improve
on. And then rush defense, we're playing against one of the best
rushing teams in the Big Ten in this upcoming game against Iowa. So we
need to improve our rush defense if we want to have a chance to win."
On
challenges of the November schedule ... "It holds true almost every
year that the team that wins in November wins the Big Ten Championship.
This is the time when people start getting beat up, there are injuries
here and there and everybody's got something that's bothering them
while they're out there, yet they are 100 percent. No team is the same
team that they were in their opener. There are guys who have stepped
into roles that maybe they weren't in during the beginning of the
season, and there are guys who have dropped down as well. All the teams
finally know who they are, they know where they are, and now it comes
down to if you win all your games in November you have a good shot at
being in the Big Ten Championship Game in December. So that's what
we're focused on, winning all of our games in November. It's been a
point of emphasis since the coaches got here in January."
On
confidence in freshman defensive players ... "Our freshmen have been
outstanding, especially defensively. Blake Countess has stepped up. I
would think that other teams would try to pick on a freshman,
especially in the secondary because of how exposed they can be,
especially in a man coverage or something like that. And I don't really
think anybody has been trying Blake. Maybe once or twice they'll try
him out, but he's been consistent and that's one thing you look for in
a freshman. He can make the big play and he can play consistently
through 60 minutes of football, and that's something Blake's done
really well. Desmond Morgan has been impressive. Through camp I think
the coaches had the feeling that he was going to be a contributor, and
the more experience he gets the more he learns. When you play freshmen
you want to make sure that when you put them on the field -- they're
going to make a mistake just like anybody -- they don't repeat the same
mistakes over again because that's when you get hurt. Desmond does a
good job of self-critiquing and self-criticizing and making sure that
he doesn't do that. He really understands, for a freshman, how Michigan
defense is supposed to be played. He has as good an effort as anyone on
the field. He's done a really good job, and the other freshmen who
contribute have done a great job too."
Fifth-year Senior Center David Molk
On
preparing for Iowa's physicality ... "Iowa has always been a physical
team. They have always had that aura around them of old school
football. It's hit them, bang them, smash mouth football that they play
and always have."
On Fitzgerald Toussaint's solidified role at
running back ... "It is good for that back because then he will get
more comfortable running. Experience is everything in this game and it
is going to be a positive for him."
On finding success so far
this season ... "It means a lot, especially to me. We have been here
awhile and we have not had much true success. It is just something I
want really bad, the seniors want really bad and the team wants."
On
playing meaningful games in November ... "It feels good; it is nice to
actually be in the hunt I guess. At the same time that does not change
how I play."
On the team's improving defensive play ... "I
really like it. It is always good to have a defensive-focused team.
They always say 'defense wins championships' and what we have done the
last couple of years I guess proved that. We had a really good offense,
but it only takes you so far."
Senior Tight End Kevin Koger
On
how it feels to have a shot at the Big Ten championship ... "It means a
lot. It gives the team a little bit more confidence knowing that we
could still win a Big Ten Championship as opposed to other years when
we were kind of out of the race."
On Brady Hoke's quote
"championships are won in November" ... "He's been stressing that since
January. Yesterday when we walked into Schembechler Hall, there were
flyers up on the sides of the building that said 'This is November,' so
that plays a part in it. But he stresses all the time, even back in the
summertime, he said 'championships are won in November,' so he says it
all the time."
On competing at a level the team wants to play at
... "We're closer, but we're just leaving way too many points on the
field as an offense. You saw we had a turnover on downs on the one-yard
line. That's just inexcusable. We have to put the ball in the zone. We
kicked a couple field goals which was good, but we would rather score a
touchdown than the field goals."
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