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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Prepare for Top-Ranked Ohio State
October 03, 2006 | Football
Oct. 3, 2006
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University football team ventures to Columbus to take on the #1-ranked team in the country, the Ohio State University, on Saturday (Oct. 7) afternoon. Falcon head coach Gregg Brandon and a veritable plethora of Falcon players met with members of the local and regional media on Tuesday afternoon and shared some thoughts ...
(On the BGSU offense over the past several seasons)
"Well, when we came here a few years ago that was something that we wanted to do; put in an offense that would attract really good skill players, which it did, and also be exciting for our fans. I think we have been able to generate a lot of interest in the program with what we do offensively. Not only that, it's fun and it's fun to coach. It gives us a chance to move the football."
(Is it a high-risk offense?
"I think if that's how you approach it, if that's your mentality. The mentality of the coaches and how we teach it, we don't necessarily evaluate it as risky. You can put your QB in tough spots whether you are in a two back I offense or when you are in no backs by your play calling. I think that's all a mindset that you have to establish with your team and your program. I think you need to keep people off balance and break some tendencies, and I don't want people to be able to lock in on us. I want be able to keep the defense off balance and stay a step ahead and I think we do things that give us that opportunity."
Will Anthony Turner shoulder more of the load this weekend?)
"He is a tough kid. He fought through some things on Saturday (at Ohio). We told him to not take a whack; you know, if they were starting in on him, just go down and take care of yourself and the football, and you could see that Saturday. He gets better day by day. His strength is improving and as I said he is a tough kid. For us to have a chance to win this game he has to play quarterback and play it well."
(Was he ready to take over when Omar Jacobs left?)
"A lot of us weren't ready. You can't prepare for that; it's one of those things you just have to deal with. It doesn't happen at Bowling Green a whole lot; it's not like at a school like Ohio State, where you have guys leaving (for the NFL) all the time. It doesn't happen that much especially at the quarterback position. But Anthony is a talented kid; he just needs more game experience, and that's how it is with this whole football team. I mean, we have played 15 true freshmen. Not too many people around the country have done that."
(Do you still consider Freddie Barnes a quarterback?)
"He is still in there and still the backup kid to play (QB), but we are trying to get Freddie in more as a receiver or tailback. The things he did Saturday for us are how I envisioned us with Freddie Barnes. We still put him in and direct-snapped it to him and let him run the ball. We still have that package and we are going to keep that available. I mean if you are going along with the course of a game and all of a sudden (it's the) second, third, fourth quarter and Freddie runs in as quarterback and you direct-snap it to him and he runs a play; I think you can keep people off balance doing that. And, Tyler Sheehan is a kid that we are preparing as a backup quarterback as well."
(Freddie Barnes seems to me like a kid who could have played at a Big Ten or so-called BCS school. How did he end up at Bowling Green?)
"Well, Freddie was a high-school quarterback and when we recruited him, we told him that he would have an opportunity to play quarterback. I think a lot of people who were recruiting him told him he would be a defensive back or a receiver. And, I think Freddie was a really good high-school basketball player and I think he had some notions that he was going to play Division 1 basketball. Some of the bigger schools kind of backed off because he didn't come out and say 'hey, I want to play football.' Sometimes you have a tendency to move on in the recruiting process when that occurs, but we hung on, and he has turned out to be a really great player for us. He is very shifty and has great feet. He is a pretty instinctive player and has good vision. Those are things you can't coach."
(More on Barnes)
"He is a sharp kid with good football savvy. He can do a lot of things with the ball in his hands and without it as well. He can create problems for people if you line him up one time at quarterback, next time in the slot, and next time as running back. You have to know where he is on defense."
(Diyral Briggs seems to have recovered from his broken foot, based upon his play on Saturday at OU)
"The thing is he is trying to do is get back in playing shape. He had a good afternoon, good pressure on the quarterback, as did all our front guys. They did a nice job with four sacks, nine tackles for loss. When you are getting that kind of pressure it makes life a lot easier."
(What are our thoughts about Saturday's game at Ohio State?)
"It won't be easy; that's for sure."
(From watching OSU on film, are they one of the most explosive offenses you've ever seen?)
"I think about some great offenses through the years. USC a few years ago. When I was at Northwestern (as an assistant coach), the year Penn State won the league, when they had Karry Collins and Ki-Jana Carter, that's as good as offense as I have ever seen. These guys (Ohio State) are ranked right up there with them. They've got a very physical, athletic offensive line, great size, and they've got great skill at every position. You can't take a guy away because another guy is going to get you. You have to try and be sound, keep the ball in front of you and tackle well. It's not going to be easy."
(How about their defense? Even though they lost nine starters, it doesn't seem like there has been a dropoff at all.)
"No, they just put some different uniform numbers on those jerseys. Obviously, they are a real good defensive team. Their D-line is the best I have seen so far. I mean they pushed Texas around. They pushed Iowa around. They pushed Penn State around. They are fast and physical and they are all great players."
(On the return of BGSU's Antonio Smith to the lineup)
"It was really encouraging to see Antonio back in there; that helps. Now we are only starting two true freshmen back there (laughs)."
(Your young defensive backs have shown ability to cause turnovers.)
"I think a lot of that is created by the front guys. If you watch Saturday's game closely, that kid (Ohio QB Austin Everson) was scrambling for his life, and he threw the ball to us on occasion. They dropped some of his balls too, and there were some deflections. Probably the one Jahmal Brown got should have been caught by the tight end, but it bounced off his hands and Jahmal was right there. The other one was the one I think (Loren) Hargrove got. You know he threw it all the way back across the field. But you know that was late in the game and the kid was trying to make a play. Those young kids are getting better every week, and it's fun to watch them grow."
(Were you impressed with attitude of your team going into the Ohio game?) "All we talked about all week was character and pride. That's all we talked about. We didn't care if it was Ohio or Ohio State. We are Bowling Green. We really stunk it up here at home (against Kent State),and we were embarrassed and we needed to respond, and that's what we did. I talked to the veterans and the captains and I said, 'hey, where do you want this season to go? Do you want to get back in this hunt?' If we had lost that game it would have been really tough. Not impossible, but tough. But we won that game, so we are back in the hunt to win the MAC. Kent State has to stumble, of course, but who knows? And, with a possible four bowl games, if we can stay alive and just play week to week and get a 'W,' keep guys healthy and keep the younger guys focused, and stay positive, who knows?"
Anthony Turner
(What has to happen for you guys to have a shot to win the game?)
"We need to try to keep their offense off the field. That is the biggest key, and I think we are going to try to do that this weekend."
(In 2003, BGSU had a legitimate shot to upset Ohio State [a 24-17 loss]; do you guys ever talk about that game?
"We really haven't talked about it much, but a couple of guys are going to watch that game and see what they did to keep themselves in the game, so we can do it ourselves this weekend."
(Are you nervous about going into such a big-time atmosphere?)
"It hasn't hit me yet, but I am sure it will hit me big-time on Saturday morning. Anyone who is competitive has butterflies in their stomach before a big game."
(How do you keep your confidence up going into a game like this?)
"We just have to try to keep rolling off the Ohio game, because we got better as a team in that game. That was a challenge to ourselves, to see how we would stick together in certain situations. This week during practice, we have to get better as a team and hopefully confidence will roll from practice over to game time."
Devon Parks
(How exciting is it to play the #1-ranked team in the country?)
"It is the opportunity of a lifetime. Not many teams in the country can say they have played Ohio State as the number-one ranked team in the nation."
(Is there any carry-over from 2003?)
"I think there is definitely some carry-over, but we know it's a totally different team. Back then, they had Craig Krenzel playing quarterback and now Troy Smith is playing quarterback. It is a totally different style of quarterback. I wouldn't say it's a completely different offense but it's a different team."
(On the youth of the 2006 Falcons as opposed to the '03 team)
"(In 2003) we had Josh Harris; he was an NFL draft pick that year so we definitely had a different offense. This year we are a little younger, but we can still put up points."
(How scary is it to watch Ohio State, and all of their offensive weapons?)
"No doubt they have guys who can score at the drop of a dime, so obviously, it is going to be a big task for our defense to try to limit their scoring opportunities"
(As one of the few players on the current team who saw action in that 2003 game, what do you tell your teammates about the atmosphere at the Horseshoe?)
"I am going to tell them that after the opening kickoff, it's just football."
(What about the noise in Ohio Stadium?)
"I have played there before and obviously (most of my teammates) haven't, so they aren't going to be used to 105,000 people screaming at the top of their lungs. I think at first it's an eye-opener to see that many people in one location, but it comes down to football at the end."
(What has to happen for BG to have a shot at winning?)
"Everybody on offense, defense, and special teams has to have the best games of their lives."
Freddie Barnes
(What are your thoughts on playing the Buckeyes?)
"I haven't really been able to find any words for it. But, just to be able to watch film on them and knowing we are going to be playing on the same field as the number-one Ohio State Buckeyes is awesome. The younger guys are going to have their adrenaline pumping, and they are going to try to step up their game to the next level and bring their A game to the table."
(Did playing in Cleveland Browns Stadium help to prepare you at all for the atmosphere you will see on Saturday?)
"It was a little preparation for to what is going on this Saturday. (Regardless of the crowd and other factors), we just need to go out there and try to work our game plan and see what happens."
(Do you feel like you can pull off the upset?)
"We are all competitors, so we never go into a game thinking we will lose. (An upset) is definitely on our minds; BGSU almost did it in 2003. That is also in the back of Ohio State's minds as well, I'm sure, because of what our players did a couple of years ago. It's our chance to see how we can do against the number-one team in the country; we might as well use it and play to the best of our abilities."
(What about your role in the BGSU offense?)
"I have to let the game come to me, I am not the starting quarterback. Everything has to come from AT and the coaches. I guess I will have to keep my emotions bottled in until I can get the ball in my hands, because I am really excited to go out there and make plays against those guys."
Terrel White
(On Saturday's game)
"This is a huge opportunity, not many times do you get to play the number-one team in the country. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
(Does this feel like a bowl game?)
"The environment is huge, it is Ohio State, and to play in this environment will be special."
(On the 2003 game)
"On any Saturday you have a chance. We had a chance to win that game, and (on Saturday), we just have to come with the mindset to play hard and give our best."
