Mountaineer Head Coach Bill Stewart
On today’s practice
We had a very spirited practice today in full pads after going full
pads on Saturday. We lifted yesterday and did some film work, and today
we went out there and went right back to work. It was a very physical
and demanding practice.
People say I’m an optimist; well no. Well, then am I a pessimist? No.
I’m a realist. If someone does something well, they will be told
that. If someone doesn’t do well, then they will be told that; if they
don’t like that, they will be shown the door.
Being a realist today, we strapped it on them. We went after that and
had a very intense victory drill; three-on-three. It was old fashioned
football, it was fun, and we had people doing some fine things. Then we
went into an intense goal line situation, and I left there because I
knew that was in good hands.
Then I went to watch the one-on-one blocking drill, and it got real
physical. The tempo was set today in practice and I like it. With that
being said, the defense had better stop reading the press clippings,
because they got knocked around today; they have to get off blocks and
make tackles. However, being the defense that they, are under the
tutelage of Jeff Casteel, Bill Kirelawich, David Lockwood and Steve
Dunlap, they responded on the goal line. I would not have carried that
ball on the goal line drill for love or money, because the defense
swarmed. They got kicked in the teeth all day, and we’re going to
rectify that today in film.
On the offense
Alric Arnett is sore, bumped, bruised and tired, and I’m proud of him.
Tito Gonzales has taken 100 snaps every day but he keeps going so that
tells me that we have some mature wide receivers that are starting to be
pretty good players. Dorrell Jalloh is another one who keeps going,
working hard and getting after the defense.
Our offense had a good day. Alric had a good day, and Pat (White) had a
good day; he was on fire. He is really doing a nice job of putting the
ball where it needs to be.
On the defense
There were some good things by the defense, but I want them to
dominate. What does that tell you? The first day of camp I said the
defense was ahead and now, the offense is starting to gel and are doing
some nice things and picking it up. Did we get the job done offensively
today? No. We went backwards on the goal line, but we’re going to look
at film tonight and get that rectified.
I was displeased so much at the lack of discipline, that we did some
things after practice. So today was not a good day to be a Mountaineer
football player if you are out there just for some ‘R&R’. Now, if you’re
the Mountaineer football player that we know and the player that we have
all grown to love, then it was a good day to be a Mountaineer, because
pads were popping and people were put in stressful situations here in
sunny, Morgantown, W.Va.
It was a tough practice and if you don’t love football, absolutely love
football, then it was one that you shouldn’t have been at. If you don’t
like to see the barbaric side and brutality in a zone like a football
field, then you should not have watched it, because there was banging,
clanging and some effort. It was neat and very much fun to watch, so I
was pleased with that.
On tomorrow’s schedule
We have two-a-days tomorrow, and we’re going bang in the afternoon. We
will work on special situations in the morning, do some kicking, and
then we’ll be done. Tomorrow afternoon, if we feel like it, then we will
scrimmage again. You don’t get better if you don’t go out there and get
after people’s fannies. At the end of the day when we did some down-ups
and up-downs, we bonded as brothers and everyone clapped hands, and
everyone left and was mad at ‘Mr. Rogers’. If they don’t like it, they
can leave. You need 33 people is about all you need. You need 11 on
offense and 11 on defense and 11 on special teams. The rest of them are
going to do exactly what we say, when we say it, without asking why we
say it. They will be coached by us, and they will play. Isn’t that a
great democracy we have here in sunny Morgantown, W.Va.?
On the team as a whole
The attitudes are fantastic, and they were spirited. Finally, when the
defense came to their senses, and started knocking the offense around
like tops, it was an exciting thing. There was a lot of good stuff on
both sides, but, there was some not-so-good stuff that we’ll point out
in tonight’s meeting. Rest assured that this football staff is a
demanding staff. Rest assured that the players know what 6:30 a.m.,
looks like, what the stadium steps look like, and that they understand
exactly what the parameters are.
On injuries
If they are hurt, with a T-then they don’t practice. If they are
hurting, then they will practice, or they can go elsewhere. This is not
a program for guys who do not like to get after it. It never has been
and never will be.
Jarrett Brown is good. He is fine, and we got him out there and he
worked a bit. Bradley Starks looked good as well.
Will Johnson is fine. He’s working in shells and a helmet, and he’s
getting back to football.
On Pat Liebag
I don’t know anything just yet, but I feel good about it because I know
the NCAA will do the right thing.
On watching film on Sunday and how that affected today’s practice.
We devoured it, we didn’t just watch it. It helped the offense a bunch,
from what it looked like today. The offense is getting better. We’re not
ready to play a football game. We played a half Saturday, and I wouldn’t
fib to you; Saturday was good, but it wasn’t great.
On Ryan Stanchek
Ryan Stanchek, now he had fresh legs, but ‘wow’. He was flying around
out there and gnawing on people. You notice when he’s back on the line.
He was in a white shirt, with full pads, going 150 miles per hour, and
it was really great to see him back.
On Devon Lyons
Devon Lyons decided to not participate, and I don’t know why, you will
have to ask him. We wish him all the best and he is a great young man.
We all left on very good terms, He is a great guy, class act, who has a
wonderful family. He’s a good guy.
Mountaineer Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Coach Jeff Casteel
On Reed Williams
Reed right now is only participating in the individual drills. He takes
a little bit of the run drills that we do ourselves, but we’re not
putting him at any risk. He’s doing ok, and he’s ahead of schedule so
we’ll just have to wait and see. Only time will tell, and we don’t
really have to make a decision with that for another two or three weeks.
On Pat Lazear
Pat played well, and we moved him the last weeks of spring practice. He
has had a good camp, and we’re pushing him, along with his teammates. We
have some options, but we’re looking to him to take the job. He isn’t a
finished product by any means, but he’s making progress on the field
everyday.
On whether Robert Sands could play in the first game
Yes, I think so. He has really progressed, and he’s a smart kid and a
great athlete. We’re really pleased with him. He has a lot of ability,
but he’s going to make a lot of mistakes as a young guy. But we’re
really pleased with him after our 10th or 11th practice. He’s done a
great job and showed up in the scrimmage. Everyday he makes plays, and
today he was running with the No. 1’s and No. 2’s today.
On the defense as a whole
The entire defense has a lot to work to do, because we’ve only
practiced 11 times. They all have a lot of work to do. There isn’t one
group that is doing an outstanding job. We’re in a process, and we keep
installing things everyday. That will slow down eventually, but we have
a long way to go as a group.
The defense has some linebackers who can make some plays. The guys from
last year that went unsung were those guys with their hand in the dirt.
Those guys are the ones that make plays for the linebackers. Our
linebackers realize that.
On the new spread offense
When you spread the field, and you put an athlete in space, they have
to make tackles, and that’s a bottom line. I think people have adjusted
to it. You spread the field and when you get one-on-one with Pat White,
which is usually a good thing for the offense. It’s a style of play, and
I think people have adjusted to it. We consider ourselves successful,
and our goal is to keep the opponent to 14 points or less.
Something that helped us a great deal last year was that we forced
turnovers. We ended up sixth in the country for turnovers and second in
fumbles recovered. It’s a game of turnovers and that’s something that we
stress with our guys. We try to get that in our mind and that is a game
changer, and we’re trying to get that into their minds at camp. We’re
going to get as many fast guys on the field as we can, and those who can
tackle in space. That’s the game. It’s a strike game at this level, it’s
not a collision game that you might see in a high school game when they
just run into each other. At this level, you have to move your feet and
be able to strike and those are the types of things we’re trying to get
across to our guys.
On JT Thomas
He’s doing very well, and he scrimmaged very well the other day, and
had another good practice today. He’s getting better every day, and he
is a great athlete. We’re really happy about where he is at. He comes to
work and he has an outstanding work ethic.
