Bowling Green State University Athletics
Quotes From Gregg Brandon
September 23, 2003 | Football
Sept. 23, 2003
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Bowling Green State University football coach Gregg Brandon sat down with members of the media Tuesday afternoon (Sept. 23) ... the following are some of Brandon's thoughts as the team heads into a 'bye' week before opening MAC play vs. Central Michigan on Oct. 4 ...
Any final thoughts on the Ohio State game after looking at the game film?
"Well, if you turn it over four times, you are not going to win, bottom line. You can say what you want about their defense, their offense, the environment, but if you turn it over four times, you are not going to win. We gave them the short field too much and we really didn't exploit their turnovers."
Which was the more painful, having the turnovers or not being able to take advantage of their turnovers?
"Turning the ball over on offense is probably the most frustrating thing. We really preach that (not turning it over), and we've done a good job of that. I will give their defense credit; great defenses create turnovers. Our defense created turnovers on their side, and their defense created turnovers on our side. Ultimately, that was the outcome of the game -- the turnovers."
With the bye week coming up, do you analyze the two-deep now and make changes, or do you wait a week?
"On Offense and defense, we are in pretty good shape. We're still tinkering with the kicking game. Our kickoff return is awful. We are last in the conference, and we need to get better at that. The punting game is coming on. I think we accomplished our goal on Saturday. We didn't want to punt to (Chris) Gamble, and we did a good job of containing him. The kickoff coverage has improved tremendously since the first game. (Shaun) Suisham's doing a nice job of getting the ball where we want it. Suisham is doing a good job for us. He made a great kick on the (first) onside kick, and then he just didn't get the bounce on the second one. He made clutch field goal, and there was no question about it. He drilled it right through. So, we're constantly 'personnelling' our kicking game."
When you say you're working on the kicking game, is that more work on getting the right people in the right spot or doing something different with X's and O's?
"We're always looking to do different things, X's and O's wise. What our punter and kicker do usually lend itself to what we can manage. They are both talented guys. The thing we did with the punts (at Ohio State) was that we overloaded and told Nate (Fry) to run out of there and kick it out of bounds. I didn't want to keep him in there and have him punt it normal and let the guy catch it. Still comes down to covering. Whatever you do, you've got to cover and you've got to tackle."
You mentioned everything but your punt block. Are you still 'personnelling' that, too?
"We've got a good corps of guys that have demonstrated the ability to block punts. T.J. Carswell, Cornelius McGrady, B.J. Lane, Keon Newson ... those are our warriors on that unit. We got close Saturday but we aren't able to get one. We knew it was going to be tough, because they're very stout, and their punter did a nice job. We need to get better at our punt return. It's tough, when you're in a block mode, to then try to get back and set up for a return. But, I think that unit is...we're going to get one. Our intent when the opponents punting is to make that punter feel like he is under pressure."
You had Josh (Harris) split out wide and (running back) P.J. Pope taking snaps during one possession at Ohio State. Will we see more of that offense?
"Yeah. I think when they line up there together, and then Josh shifts out and you snap it, they (the defense) is not ready. It is another way to allow P.J. to get some carries and protect Josh a little bit."
You mentioned last week that a lot of senior quarterbacks from other universities have had more starts than Josh. Do you still consider him a work in progress?
"Yes. I think when he gets his pro shot, he will really mature. He is relatively young for the position."
Is it just a continued maturation for him -- more reps and he gets better?
"Just seeing things and (being) under pressure, in battle. He has become a better student of the game, but continuing to grow that way in terms of things like film study. When we went to Purdue we showed the kids a movie the night before the game. That night before the game Josh asked if he could watch film and he did ... I just remember getting excited that he and (quarterbacks) coach (Mick) McCall were studying film until 11:00 at night the night before the game."
What kind of schedule do you have, with the bye week?
"We are going to watch the (tape of the Ohio State) game today and then practice Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. We'll give them Saturday off and go back to work on Sunday. I will practice them a little harder on Sunday than I would after a game. We allowed them to lift either today (Tuesday) or yesterday. The bye week gives us an extra week of preparation for Central Michigan, but it also gives us a chance to get guys healthy. Our starting defense does not need to go out and prove to me that they can tackle. You've got to be smart about what you do during the bye week."
How would you describe the practices that are coming up?
"We're still talking about what we want to do. I am not going to bang the starters much. I want to scrimmage some of the young guys, and have them let the fur fly. They all want to scrimmage. It's kind of a get back to basics week. We can do some things we did in camp, and maybe pull out the trick playbook and get some of those greased up. And, it gives us a little more time to put into Central."
You talked about Josh Harris as a work in progress. What about Gregg Brandon? Can you evaluate the first four games and then (talk about) things that Gregg Brandon needs to do?
"My biggest adjustment is that I get frustrated on the boundary, because I can't see squat. I am not used to that. So, I've really got to put a lot of trust in 'Beck' and 'Stud' (coordinators Tim Beckman and Greg Studrawa), who are upstairs, to tell me what is happening, because I struggle watching the game from the sideline. So that's my work in progress. Maybe I need one of those little periscopes ... it's hard. So, I'm trying to manage the game from the boundary, and I seem to do more cheerleading than I want to. My guys (assistant) are handling the strategy. 'Stud' has done a good job running the offense, and my biggest adjustment is being down there (on the field). But, I'm into it. I try to get into the adjustments between series, just so I can stay in tune with what's happening. But our staff does a great job of sorting things out. A lot of times I just listen. They're doing a great job."
When was the last time you were on the sideline?
"Weber State in the 80's, although I spent a few games with Colorado on the sidelines."
