Oct. 7, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
San Diego State News Conference
Aztec Athletics Center
Head Coach Chuck Long
Opening Statement:
"Looking ahead, we are excited about the Air Force week, especially with the (KGB) SkyShow. That is always a great event here at San Diego State. We will have a nice crowd and a lot of energy in the building on Saturday night, so we are looking forward to that. We started off our week of practice on Sunday to get a head start. We made quick corrections from the TCU game and moved forward because of the nature of their (Air Force) offense. We wanted to get our defense prepared early for their option game. So, we are in game week mode and have moved forward from our last game. I know our guys are excited to play this one coming back home.
"One note from our last game, I thought our back ups that came in played well, especially on defense. They played better than when they got in toward the end of the Idaho game and that is always an encouraging sign, especially when they aren't getting a lot of repetitions during the week."
On quarterback Ryan Lindley:
"At first we thought it would be a doubtful situation coming out of the game. He had a cat scan that revealed no fracture, but he does have a shoulder sprain and Don Kessler, our athletic trainer, said it might be a lot better than he thought. So he won't throw today, but it will be a day-to-day observation."
On changes in the offensive game plan:
"Overall, we want to run the football more. We have been inconsistent with our run game and we have to do a better job in that department. We won't change much as far as the spread out system and what we do. What will change are the passes we will steer toward in terms of the ones that Drew (Westling) likes. Those are the things that change within a system. He has a certain number of passes that he really likes and is good at, so we will favor those."
On the defense:
"I think that our defense has improved over the last couple games. If you look at the game against TCU, we were only down by six deep into the second quarter and we were within two possessions in the third quarter. I thought the game was managed well. We only had three penalties and one turnover. TCU is just a good football team and they beat us."
On preparing for Air Force's run game:
"We are facing a formidable opponent in rushing this week in Air Force. They have an option attack that is very good. They don't throw the ball much, so it is going to be a whole different preparation than what we are used to. We will have to commit more people to the line of scrimmage."
On the play of the defensive backs:
"Our safeties have to be really involved. We will have to have good safety play and good safety tackling this week. Last game, Corey Boudreaux had 14 tackles and it just depends on the offense you play. You don't want your defensive backs getting too involved. You want that front seven to get a lot of the tackles, but this is a game where our safeties have to be involved in the run game."
On the running game:
"I thought the way the Notre Dame game unfolded we were running the ball pretty well and that is where we want to be. We didn't do it against San Jose State, but then we came back and did it against Idaho. I think it has been more of a consistency issue. We only called four running plays against TCU, so in that particular case, it is just a matter of calling it more. We went into that game with the mind set that not too many teams have run the ball against their defense. We felt like we had to throw it and make big plays to win that game. We watched Oklahoma get only 25 yards on them, so I think we had that mind set going in that we had to throw it to win it. It just changes from week to week. We feel we have good running backs, it is just a matter of calling it more."
On the strength of the Mountain West Conference:
"The Mountain West Conference is probably one of the most competitive in the country. It is a BCS-type conference this year. You would think one of these teams would represent the MWC in a BCS game this year. It is a very good conference and I knew coming in that it was a good league, but I think it has really surpassed some others in the country right now. It is a great league and we are proving it week in and week out. We are excited to be a part of it."
On third down production:
"Our third down production has not been very good. One of the reasons is that we are in third and long too much. That goes back to what we do on first and second down, which also goes back to the run game. A good, solid run game can help you stay out of those third and long situations, which we are getting into way too much. We have to start getting into more manageable third down situations."
On the team's morale:
"The morale is really good. A lot of that is due to our senior leadership. Guys like Tyler Campbell and Russell Allen have really held the team together in a great way. They are very eager. They were good on Sunday, putting last week's game behind them and getting ready for Air Force. I believe the confidence is still there."
Senior Linebacker Russell Allen
On quarterback Ryan Lindley:
"I talked to him yesterday and he is doing okay. He said at this point, it's kind of a day-to-day thing. He really doesn't know the extent of what is going on. He's obviously a competitor and wants to get back as soon as he can. I know that he will do whatever rehab or whatever is necessary to get himself back as quickly as he can; the sooner the better. Ryan is a good leader for us and a good player. I think he is doing okay at this point."
On performing well in front of a big crowd vs. Air Force:
"It's huge. It's just as important as it is any other week. When we're at home in front of our own crowd, there's always that added energy and added motivation to put on a show. I think this is a great opportunity for us. In our history, we've played well vs. Air Force at home. It's always been a fun game for us. Going back to two years ago, the last time we played them here, that was our first win of the season. We were struggling at that point and came out and got a huge win at home. I think this is another great opportunity for us. There will be a big crowd there so that's going to be good. Hopefully we can show those people what Aztec football is and what we're capable of."
On Air Force:
"When you play Air Force, they rush the ball better than anybody. Every year, they are atop the country in rushing yards. When you play a team like that, it comes down to discipline, to doing the things you need to do on every play as a unit. Everyone needs to be in the right spots and doing their own jobs. You can't be worried about doing somebody else's job or trying to do something extra. It's a matter of being where you need to be on every single play. If we're able to do that then we can be successful."
On playing against a Cal Poly team earlier this year that uses a offensive style similar to Air Force:
"There are some similarities between the two and it's going to help us kind of understand what the pace of the game is going to be like. Those types of teams have a little different tempo. Things like that will help us (especially) having a game (vs. Cal Poly) like that under our belt. Air Force always presents its own unique challenge. That's something that is going to be interesting for us, preparing for that challenge. This will be my fourth time playing them. We play them every year. We kind of understand what it's like in a game with Air Force. I think we're going to be ready come Saturday."
On why SDSU plays well vs. Air Force at home:
"I think part of it is playing at altitude up in Colorado Springs. They're up at 5 in the morning doing all kinds of stuff all day long and they are in great shape. They have that fast tempo and they run and run and run. I think playing up there presents a challenge for us because we train at sea level and that is a little bit of a difference. But also, I think everybody plays better at home in general. I think being at home helps us no matter who we are playing. Having our home crowd and that energy is definitely another huge benefit."
On the feeling going into last week's TCU game:
"We were feeling good coming off the Idaho game going into conference play on a winning note, feeling good about it. We weren't able to get it done this past week. We got beat up pretty good by a team that was pretty physical and pretty much executed their game plan exactly how they wanted to. In the locker room after the game it hurt. You can see guys felt it. I think just as a unit every weekon Sunday we move on and now here we are on Tuesday ready to prepare for Air Force. That's all that matters at this point. We put that one behind us. We learned what we needed to learn from it and we're ready to go out there now and get a win."
Junior Quarterback Drew Westling
On getting a full week's worth of practice repetitions:
"I think it will be big. I think it will be big for timing and just getting a chance to get in there and making calls at the line. Something that not a lot of people think about is getting snaps from Trask (Iosefa), the first-string center. Just the little things like that I think will be big and should be advantageous for me this weekend."
On the team's offensive performance at TCU:
"It makes me sick because that's not Aztec football and that's not what we're about. Like I was telling other people, we are really, really excited for the opportunity to go out this weekend and show what we can do and get that bad taste out of our mouth that we had from last week."
On his preparation this week going into the Air Force game:
"I don't approach any week any different because I've always tried to prepare as if I would be the starter knowing that I am only one play away from the current situation I'm in. If I do get the opportunity this week, it's going to be something that I am going to be really excited about. What a great opportunity. How many people get to play in an NFL stadium and start a college game and get to chuck the ball around? It's going to be awesome if the opportunity comes up. If it doesn't, I am going to continue my role as the No. 2 (quarterback) and help Ryan and the team in any way I can."
On Air Force:
"I think they are a typical service academy. They are extremely disciplined. They're very well coached. They are not going to be out of position and they play 100 miles-an-hour every snap. When I was at Tulsa, we played Navy and we were a far more talented team, but they played so hard. Those guys are up every morning at 5 a.m. and football is there break. They love running 110s because it's a break from protecting our country. They just go out there and have a ton of fun and play extremely hard. That's going to present a challenge for us, but something we will be ready for."
On what the team needs to do to improve on third down:
"That's a good question. I was looking through a quarterback manual that Coach Long passed out in fall camp. It just has a bunch of tips and reminders. On third down it says it's the quarterback down and that really hit me when I looked at it. Who's ever in at quarterback, it's their responsibility to get us in the right situation and execute. Third down is all about executing. A big part of third down is doing well on first and second down, putting us in better situations. So I think that is something we will focus on this week."