Opening Statement...
“Certainly an awesome environment and always is here at Autzen and I think our fans are unbelievable. There is an awesome concert going on right now. There were definitely pieces of today that were a little bit sloppy and made me wish we had some more practices but also some points of improvement, some places we can go attack. I appreciate our guys' effort and enthusiasm out there on the field. I certainly think we have great talent to go out there and compete.”
Defensive Line...
“I have to go back and watch the film and see exactly how it was. There were certainly some advantageous matchups, but there are some guys out there who can certainly play for us. If you want to win football games, you have to win it in the front on both sides of the ball. I am excited about those guys we have in that group. There’s some young guys that I expect to step up and have bigger roles than they did last year, but also a group on both sides that we can continue to develop.”
On what you saw from ball carriers today...
“Yeah I mean we’ve all seen what Jordan can do, and really impressed with that. I think there’s other guys that are doing a really good job growing in that room. I’m going to go back and look, I think there’s some of those plays we could have been more physical and look for opportunities to attack with even better pad level. Overall, I think we know what we have in
that room, we have some guys we can compete with."
On the young defensive backs...
“It’s really hard to be able to come in and compete, especially as a freshman in this defense and what we ask these guys to do. There’s a lot they have to absorb and sometimes days like today are awesome days to see those guys go out there and play fast. Dakota (Fields) had a big play.
Aaron (Flowers) had some big tackles. We’ve signed good football players and it’s our job to continue to develop them but excited about their growth.”
On wide receiver group...
“I know everybody here is going to talk about what they saw today, but I have to speak on what I’ve seen all spring. We have some talented guys in that room. We have to eliminate some of the MA’s that occur when you’re learning something new. I see burst, I see explosion, I see guys that grab the ball when it's in the air. Big catch radius is the ability to run after a catch. It’s a deep group for us, I think there’s a lot of guys that can help us.”
On the key to being sustainably good...
“Recruit well and develop your roster. Understand the strengths and weaknesses of your team and continue to build into that while always preparing with the future in mind. Obviously we're getting ready for this next season but the season after that is just as important in how we recruit and events like this are huge for it. There are a lot of recruits out there watching us play, but they're not going to impact us next season, but they'll impact the season after that so we have to do a great job of developing the young guys that we have here and continuing to build our roster.”
On injuries after today...
“I don’t have any updates yet. I think we’ll come out of it all right. Football is football. Is it frustrating for the player? Yes, but football is football. You have a limited amount of time to go out there and play. We’ve got time to be healthy and get through spring.”
On eight players getting drafted...
“I think it was eight right? Eight? Not bad. I think it’s exciting, now it’s about getting more of those guys in the first and second. You’re so thrilled for people that work their tails off for an opportunity and compete so hard for the Oregon Ducks, and for that to turn into future success for them, that’s something we’re really excited about. Those guys put blood, sweat, and tears into their efforts here and I know that's going to carry over well. There’s some NFL teams getting really good players.”
On Justius Lowe...
“Justius (Lowe) has consistently been a really good player for us. He has to be able to be healthy and when he’s healthy he’s definitely a guy who can make an impact for us.”
Being with Bo (Nix) for when he got drafted and Troy (Franklin) joining him in Denver...
“I thought that might play out, having some late night conversations with teams about our guys. Getting to share those moments with these players, I feel like it’s a small piece we can give back for all they’ve done for us. Seeing some dreams live out is pretty awesome, especially when you can be there with the family and experience it firsthand.”
On chemistry going into fall...
“I think the DNA traits for us aren’t going to change. It still has to be about connection, growth, toughness and sacrifice. Every team is unique, every team is different but it’s about growing up together. I think our team grew up a ton coming into spring. We had a talented team, but we had to become a team. I think I saw a lot of that throughout this spring.”
On what team leaders should attack...
“Getting better. I'm just excited to see these guys continue to work. Just because spring ball ends doesn't mean we don't continue to improve.”
On fuel for the return to Autzen...
“I saw some smiles on some guys' faces. Being a recruit and being a player are two different things. Getting to wear that uniform for the first time and to see our fans and how passionate they are about what we’re doing here, I think that was a lot of fun for those guys. Next time, it’s the real deal.”
On Troy (Franklin) not going earlier in the draft...
“Yeah I am certainly surprised that some teams missed on an opportunity to get him but I know that Troy (Franklin) is going to make the best of the opportunity that he got and I think he's going to a great team with coaches that understand his strengths and he's getting to play with his former quarterback. You can sit here and worry about what everybody else and their situation is, but I'm excited about the situation that Troy (Franklin) is walking into.”
On Ben Roberts...
“I think Coach Tuioti has done an unbelievable job with our defensive line and continued to develop it and grow it. Ben is certainly one of those guys that’s embraced, what’s the technique required to be successful at the position. D-Line is a really technical position, and Ben’s done a good job this offseason of attacking that."
On upcoming recruiting efforts...
“We always recruit. It doesn’t ever feel like we’re not recruiting. We are going to get some opportunities for our coaches to go on the road and see some people in person, get to be around guys that we want to target, and find some guys that we probably don’t know about. You’re always looking for ways to improve your roster and that’s what we’ll be able to do the
next couple of weeks.”
On Teitum (Tuioti) and his growth from year one to year two...
“The exact same thing. What he did out there on the field is exactly what he does in practice everyday. This guy had gotten bigger, faster and stronger. He is very intelligent and you can start to hear his voice out there on the field so I am really proud of Teitum (Tuioti) and his growth.”
On secondary performance today...
“I feel like we have a team that can compete and go win. I feel like we have a good group in several positions. I’m certainly feeling good about the secondary.”
On difference from last year's defense...
“It’s a new team. Really, anything that happened with last year has nothing to do with the next year. Other than the continuity of the coaching staff, what we’re continuing to build, some players getting older. But you want to see growth, you want to see them keep developing, keep getting better, playing with tenacity, raising their own standard of play. You know, what
winning football is to them, I think we have a group that’ll embrace that."
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