Oct. 5, 2010
Brady Hoke | Brown, Burris & Lindley
SDSU Football Weekly Press Conference Quotes Aztec Athletics Center
Head coach Brady Hoke
Opening statement:
"It's great to get into conference play. We've had a non-conference schedule that's been testing to some degree. Going on the road and playing Missouri, we found out a little more about where we are as a football team. Obviously, going to Provo isn't an easy place to play football. They've won 23 out of the last 26 at home. They beat Washington at home to start the season. (Washington) beat USC the other day, so they're a pretty good football team. BYU has played a heck of a schedule when you look at Nevada, the rivalry game against Utah State and Air Force. They're a prideful football team with a lot of success. I think there are only five teams that have won at least 10 games in the last four years and they're one of them. They've got a lot of pride (and) they're well coached. They'll be a heck of a challenge for us this Saturday."
On this year's bye week compared to last year:
"You always want to go back and develop your depth as much as you can, and also rest some guys up. There are some guys who have played a lot of snaps. Guys like B.J. Williams, Ernie Lawson and Trask (Iosefa) have taken poundings, not just in games but practice as well. So we needed to give them a little bit of time off without sacrificing the speed and the execution we have as a team. It's always hard to judge a bye week. I usually like to judge it at the end of the year and see what exactly you can do differently. I think we utilized the time well. I liked how we practiced and how they reacted in the weight room."
On being favored at BYU:
"I've been on the other side of it, when you're at a program with a great tradition and a great history. And when we got beat at Michigan, we were going to play our butts off the next week. They have pride in who they are, and they're a tremendous coaching staff. I know most those guys as people and they're good. We've not scratched the surface for where we want to be as a football team yet. We're doing a lot of things okay, but we're also not doing a lot of things right."
On key matchups:
"(J.J.) Di Luigi is a tremendous (running) back and he proved that out here last year. He's one-third of their offense, either running the ball or catching the ball. He's a very talented guy and he's got some good lead blockers in front of him. Jake Heaps is going to be unbelievable as a quarterback. It's impressive for a freshman to have his demeanor. As a team, we watched the game on Friday. When they got in their higher tempo, which he was used to playing in high school, he did a heck of a job. Their offensive line is one of the strengths of the team. They've got four guys back from last season and they're big guys who like to get a hold of you and throw you around."
Junior quarterback Ryan Lindley
On facing BYU for the last time as conference foes:
"From a player's perspective, we're not looking at that. I know that for the alumni and fans, it's a really big deal, but for us, it's overshadowed by the fact that it's our first conference game and we're going to Provo. There are a lot of big things involved, so we're just looking at what we have to do to prepare for the game."
On the influence of Rocky Long on Bronco Mendenhall's BYU defense:
"It's a three-man front, and there are some similarities there. You can tell that he's [Mendenhall] an aggressive defensive coach, and they play really well on defense. They have a lot of the characteristics in their defense that coach Hoke and coach Long have."
On the bye week
"We did some different things where we got off our feet a little bit. Then towards the end of the week, we turned it up. It was productive; we did a good job of being focused in practice and getting a jump on our game plan. We're ready to hit the ground running in today's practice."
Junior linebacker Miles Burris
On this year's BYU offense compared to recent years:
"They're running a lot of the same stuff. They're going to run the ball a lot, and they rely on their backs a lot to carry the load and catch the ball out of the backfield. But they don't have the same tight ends that can go down the field (as they did in previous seasons). It just comes down to us preparing and watching film so we can get the nuances of their scheme."
On BYU's struggles:
"They're struggling right now, but they're a football team that has tons of tradition and pride in who they are. They're going to come out and gun for this one. We can't take it lightly, anything can happen in college football. You can't play the game of `they beat them, so we'll beat them'. It never works that way."
Senior wide receiver Vincent Brown
On the dangers of facing a struggling BYU team:
"It can be very dangerous. Coach Hoke has said that they're a wounded bear. They're ready to come in and attack us and do whatever it takes to get a victory. It's definitely a dangerous game."
On preparing for BYU:
"We started early. We've watched a lot of film since early last week. We've taken a lot of looks at their schemes and what they like to run on different downs. "