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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Urban Meyer Press Conference
November 13, 2002 | Football
Nov. 13, 2002
BGSU Coach Urban Meyer
On coming off a loss:
"I've done this 18 years, and I don't know of any program that has won every game that they've played. Eventually a loss is going to happen. How you respond to it is key. Our problem is that we face a team that beat the heck out of NIU, and they're the most talented team we've played up to date this year."
"We had a team meeting on Sunday night, and it was misery. I'm sure everybody on this team didn't sleep very well. The bus ride home was awful. I made the decision that I wanted to be around our guys, see their eyes, talk to them, spend time with people we care about, so we had a team meeting. We had an excellent Monday practice. It's like you would imagine...it's a bunch of good kids that went out to work."
On building for long-term success:
"This is a long term process (building a football program). I always say there are only about eight or 10 really good football programs where year in and year out they win.
I have a lot of admiration for what Coach Novak has done at NIU in building their program. You have to admire that they have improved the facilities and recruited well. The excitement around the stadium and their scoreboard helped provide a great atmosphere.
On South Florida:
"I knew that they were a program on the rise. I had no idea until I really started watching them when they played against Northern Illinois. Their defensive line is incredible. Their defensive line and linebackers are very talented. There is going to be a bunch of NFL football players out of that group. Offensively, there is going to be a bunch of guys playing pro football at receiver. This is an extremely talented team. You know South Florida just started football not too long ago. But I've recruited Florida and I know Tampa and that's right where I've recruited. Wow! The players-plus I've heard it's a beautiful place and I've never been down there. I've been to the stadium. Watch out for them in the next five, six, seven years."
On Robert Redd:
"I'm very proud of Robert. I was very disappointed with his work ethic when we first got here, I was very disappointed with his ability to learn what we were trying to teach him. and I think that him and Coach Gonzales have a great relationship. Robert Redd is a product of the program here from the past two years."
"That is why a person coaches and why a guy like Billy Gonzales is hired, a former player of mine. Billy had a little phase about him his first two years of college. The last two years you mature a little bit, and I'm sure that Robert was a little immature when he first came here, and he has matured. I believe that this is because of his relationship with Coach Gonzales. It is extremely gratifying to know that he is going to graduate. I listen to him talk to the media and I am really impressed by him. I think he is going to have a fine life after football and hopefully he will get the chance to continue to play."
USF Coach Jim Leavitt
On the Bowling Green offense:
"It is explosive, they can deliver the ball to a lot of different receivers. They run the ball extremely well, they spread you out and open up running lanes, somewhat similar to our offense except that they go without anybody in the backfield a little bit more than we do and they run the quarterback more than what we do. Their quarterback is 6-3, 230 pounds, you can understand why. He is big and he is durable and he is very good. They have great balance and it makes it extremely tough, that's why they've been getting so many points on so many people, nobody stops them because you don't know if they are going to run or throw the ball. They can do it out of every formation, they do both. They spread everybody out and put everybody on islands and it makes it very difficult. They are very skilled and very well-coached, they're very well-skilled at what they do, they've got a number of seniors on that offensive line, they give them protection, and they're all tough athletes. They're tough, they work hard and they play hard. I really have enjoyed watching them on film because they are very good, very talented on both sides of the ball. Everybody talks about their offense but their defense plays extremely hard and is well-coached also, you have to get the ball back to the offense and they do a pretty good job of that. Their numbers on offense are so high so that kind of overrides it a little bit."
On Bowling Green's ranking and record:
"We've played other teams that have been ranked fairly high and our guys have done a good job staying focused. Oklahoma was pretty good, Arkansas is not a bad team, we went and battled a little bit there. Not as good against Arkansas but we battled a little bit against Oklahoma. So it's not the first time we have played a ranked team. They are very good, they are very talented. Our guys know how good this team is. I don't think we are going to back down or anything, I think we are going to play hard and compete with them. I don't think our guys will be so focused on their ranking. We will give it a shot and see if we can play with them and see if we can compete."
On playing a team like Bowling Green at home as opposed to going on the road:
"You know Southern Miss isn't bad, they're not a terrible team. Memphis, I thought, had some pretty good athletes on their team. We've had teams come in that have been decent, it's not like we haven't played anybody. But they are very good and it's exciting. The whole world is wrapped up on Bowling Green and should be because they are very good, very talented. They are the big story in the country this year, it makes it exciting."
On if he regrets that Bowling Green is not coming into the game undefeated:
"I don't worry about that too much, they are a good football team whether they are undefeated or not. It's pretty hard to go through the whole season staying undefeated. There are only a couple of teams that have done that so far. So it doesn't really faze me either way. It doesn't really do anything for me either way."
On Bowling Green's success:
"I think it's tremendous. I think Urban Meyer has done a great job there, no doubt about it. I think they are getting the reputation, maybe not (like) Oklahoma, but all the others you mentioned I think they are. They are the ones who are ranked in the Top 25 and I think they are getting a lot of play and they deserve it. They are that good. I think they have done an outstanding job. They are well-coached, special teams, offense, defense, they play hard. They have some tremendous athletes, they deserve everything they are getting right now. They are that good."
On stopping Bowling Green quarterback Josh Harris:
"I don't know. I mean I'm telling you, I do not know. You tell me. If you get everybody in there to stop the quarterback and he'll throw the ball, you get everybody out there to stop the pass and they run the ball. Aren't they about leading the nation in points? It doesn't seem like too many people have done a very good job yet. Northern Illinois did a pretty good job. What they did was they tried not to let them have the ball. They have such a strong running attack they figured you're not going to stop them running or throwing and the only way you can stop it is don't give them the ball. If he doesn't have the ball in his hands then he can't run or throw. That's basically what Northern Illinois did I think, they just ran the ball so well that they controlled the clock and did a good job there. But you tell me. He's tough. He's tough. I don't know what we're going to do. We'll still play the game. We'll battle. I don't know. We're not going to give up yet."
On if this is the biggest game in USF history:
"Oh I don't know. There have been a lot of big games. Kentucky Wesleyan was a big game, it was our first. That was probably the biggest. Through the years we've had some big games."
On if this is the biggest home game:
"We've had some big home games. Kentucky Wesleyan was a home one. It was. I just said 'Kentucky Wesleyan' and you said 'biggest home game?' I believe that was home, it was the first one, wasn't it? That was a huge game. We had a huge crowd, wasn't that the biggest crowd we've ever had in the history of South Florida football? It was big, I mean really, and we've had some big games along the way."
On the 18-game home winning streak:
"I don't know. I don't know. I really don't. People come up and talk about the streak and it goes in one ear and out the other. It really does. I'm not just saying this because I'm trying to be coy. I'm being honest, I'm really being honest from my heart. Somebody says you've got 18 wins and I say 'okay.' That's as much time as I spend thinking about it because I probably am walking from one room to another and I'm thinking, 'how in the heck are we going to be able to do our kickoff return this week?' I really am, I'm thinking about that. I mean I was just asked how are you going to stop this quarterback. I don't know. You know I'm walking around thinking how are we going to stop the quarterback. I'm not thinking about 18 wins. When I leave here I'm going to walk back to my office and do you know what I'm going to be thinking? When I walk through the Sun Dome on the way back to the office I'm going to be thinking about how are we going to stop this guy? I don't know. How are we going to stop their passing attack, they're running attack, how are we going to move the ball on their defense? That's all I'm going to be thinking about. That's it. I'll probably walk into a stop sign or something. I'm not trying to be funny. I'm being honest. Where I'm at in my life, really what a life. But heck, I enjoy it."
