Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcon Football Quotes: Week Two
September 03, 2007 | Football
Sept. 3, 2007
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSUFalcons.com) - The Bowling Green State University football team, after an overtime win at Minnesota, now heads to another Big Ten Conference venue. The Falcons of head coach Gregg Brandon now turn their attentions to Saturday's (Sept. 8) game at Michigan State University. On Monday afternoon, Brandon and several Falcon players met with members of the media ...
HEAD COACH Gregg Brandon
On playing another Big Ten team with another good running game:
"They've got a couple of backs with [Javon] Ringer and [Jehuu] Caulcrick, who is 255 pounds. Their offensive line averages 313 a man and is 1,565 pounds across the board and they'll all be geeked up because they got a big win, so they're going to think that they're going to have to play lights out to beat Bowling Green."
Is fatigue a concern, because in the second half it seemed Minnesota wore you down with their rotating players in and out:
"You know I thought that in the second half, but after watching the film it wasn't true. We made some assignment busts on defense that hurt us. ... There were some times when our interior defensive linemen were in the wrong gaps and it created some creases in there. That was the long touchdown run. The screen that they scored on, we blitzed right into it and we didn't get our safety down in the right position to take it away. It was a good call for that blitz. I think they caught us there, but I don't know if they wore us out. I think the guy that got after us -- we knew could run, but I thought he did a good job in the second half -- was [Adam] Weber. He reminded me of when we use to run Josh [Harris] quite and a bit and then what we did last year with AT [Anthony Turner]. That's the same style of offense and what they run up there. The same three plays that Anthony went in and ran for a touchdown, they ran those plays the whole second half and they moved the ball."
Was there a reason for not using Anthony in the second half?
"No particular reason. It's just that Tyler [Sheehan] is the starting quarterback, and that's who we are going to play and who we are going with."
The change-up worked pretty nicely when Anthony Turner came in. Is that something where he can keep the defense more off balance in the red zone?
"Yeah, when you get down in there, things get compressed inside the 10-yard line. I think you have to have the ability to run the football down in there. Tyler can obviously throw it down there, but I think as a change-up, when you run that quarterback down in there, people have to account for them. You saw what happened with us; we struggled to account for [Adam] Weber. That's really a 12th guy out there. No one accounts for the quarterback in a shotgun running game and ever since Northwestern put that package in back in 2001 and had great success with it, people have been doing it. People had been doing it before, but that's when it really got national exposure."
Is it a matter of inexperience yet on the defense or not making the right reads?
"I just think some guys were thinking that they could make the play and its one of those things you have to keep working on in all phases. You can't have an `S' on your chest. You're not going to make every play because it's designed for 11 guys and if all 11 guys do their responsibility, great things are going to happen more often than not. When a guy doesn't take care of his responsibility, big plays are going to occur, and that's what happened. Big plays get exposed when you're playing a Big Ten team. I think if that would've been a team like say, Minnesota-Duluth, who knows, the guy might have fallen down and we might have [given up] a five-yard gain and not a 50-yard gain."
On Adrian Baker, an ex walk-on who is on scholarship now and is on the two-deep:
"He's a great kid with a great work ethic; a 'yes sir' or 'no sir' type of guy who is a great leader for the young players. He's an older guy who has been in the Navy and been around the world a little bit. He brings a lot to the table that way, and is a great character kid."
How did he end up at BG?
"Well, he just enrolled in school here and decided to come out for football. We gave him a shot as a walk-on and he earned a scholarship after this past spring."
Back to Tyler for a minute ... how does his start at Minnesota compare to Omar Jacobs' first start at Oklahoma?
"It was better because we won. It's comparable, though, because they were both on the road and it was loud, but Oklahoma was as big as you're going to get. Minnesota is big, but it isn't Oklahoma. It was big for Tyler to make the plays there in the end and throughout the game, but the last couple of plays there with the touchdown to [Marques] Parks where he was getting pressured and kept retreating to draw the rush and make the throw [were impressive]. Then the two-point play was just a shot. He just drilled that ball."
Were you expecting a blitz on that last touchdown?
"Oh yeah. The play was called for that; for Tyler to keep retreating. It wasn't a screen; it was a crossing thing where it was intended to have guys crossing with defenders running into each other."
Was it a big step for Tyler to not have any real bad decisions with reads in this game?
"He did a great job managing the game. That's what we talk about with our quarterbacks all the time. Play within yourself, play within the system and do things that way. Don't put that `S' on your chest. If it's not open, burn it or chuck it down or scramble for yardage and then slide. I'd like to see him slide a little bit because he got waxed a couple of times."
It seemed like last year he had a tendency to hang on to the ball a little too long, wouldn't you say?
"Well, like I've said before, I don't think last year is a fair evaluation of the kid. When he came in the games, it was tough situations. He didn't start any games, and we were behind and needed a pick-me-up. For a true freshman to come into those situations, it is going to be tough. We didn't protect him on occasion last year and wasn't as comfortable as he is now. He's had a whole off-season now to learn the system, to practice in it in spring ball and camp, and I think you're seeing some of the results of that."
It seems like the quarterback position has been your baby ever since you've gotten here. What do you like to do to help groom these quarterbacks?
"It's not so much me, I think it's more the fact that we've just had talented kids here. I've always believed that a quarterback can lead you to a championship if he's a good player. You know, we aren't asking the right guard to take us down the field. It's your quarterback, whether he's making throws or managing the offense or whatever. I'm going to keep recruiting quarterbacks till I find one that can win a championship and if I have to recruit 10 of them, I'm going to recruit 10 of them. It's just real important to have a great triggerman."
How much freedom do you feel you have now with your play calling?
"We had a lot of things that we ran Saturday night that we couldn't have even come close to running last year."
Will Corey Partridge be ready to go Saturday?
"I hope so. We'll see, We'll see how he practices tonight [Monday] and tomorrow and we'll make that call later."
Has it been tough seeing Corey struggle with injuries throughout his career?
"Yeah, it's been tough on him, I think, and it's been tough on us. The kid really wants to be an everyday guy for us, and he hasn't been fortunate enough to do that yet. His injury wasn't anything on him; he was just running the punt back and tweaked his ankle. It's one of those things where it seems like he has had those throughout his career and that has been nagged by those, but there is nothing that he can do about it from where I sit. You know, after his freshman year I thought that some of his stuff could've been prevented by him hitting the weight room and he did that, and that injury Saturday night had nothing to do weight training, its just an injury."
BGSU PLAYER QUOTES
JUNIOR LB John Haneline
How did you celebrate after the win?
"In the lockerroom, we did our thing -- celebrated, talked a little bit - but once we got on that plane, it was nice and quiet, and we tried to get a little sleep. Sunday morning, I woke up, kind of realized what had happened, but we then started talking about the coming week."
Have you ever experienced anything like that?
"No, not in that fashion. The Buffalo game last season (went to overtime as well), but we were on the big stage for this game. All the hard work, and everything we had done during the offseason paid off, and it was a good feeling."
What were you thinking when it was happening?
"When he (Sinisa Vrvilo) kicked the field goal to tie it (at the end of regulation) and during the two-point conversion, I wasn't watching the play. I kind of turned my back, and was just watching the reaction of other players to see what had happened. (On the two-point conversion,) when I saw everybody jumping up and down and running on the field, that was one of the best feelings I've ever had as an athlete. Going into their house and winning, it was just awesome."
How much confidence does that win give you?
"A lot of confidence. We went in there and did what we had to do. We felt that we could play with anyone, and going in there and doing it, and winning the game, had everyone on cloud nine. Now, we want to go out and do it next week, and the game after that."
What is the atmosphere like around campus now?
"Awesome. My phone, when I turned it on after the game, I had voice mails, text messages, everything. Friday, before we left, one of my teachers said `Good luck when you start your real season,' kind of like he was counting us out in this game (Minnesota) and at Michigan State. I just said, `You better watch us Saturday night.' That's all I told him. So, I'm kind of excited to get to his class on Wednesday and talk to him."
How do you get Minnesota out of your head and focus on Michigan State now?
"It's just one game at a time, and we have to focus. ... Personally, for me, it's going to be a lot of fun. A kid I played with in high school (Brian Hoyer) is their starting quarterback now, one of my good buddies. I've been talking with him throughout the summer, and I'm kind of geeked up to go play against him. We're just excited to get back on the field. We want to show that (the win at Minnesota) wasn't a fluke, and we want to show that we can go out and hang with another team."
Sophomore QB TYLER SHEEHAN
How did you celebrate Saturday night?
"I went home and slept, for a long, long time. I couldn't fall asleep on the plane, so I got back and just passed out for a good 10 hours."
What was going through your mind while the team was still on the field after the game was over?
"I went over and pointed to my parents, because they had traveled all the way there from Cincinnati. So, I went over there, and I pointed to our fans as well, just to show my appreciation for them coming all that way and supporting us. And, I was looking for a few certain people as well - I was looking for their head coach, their quarterbacks, Coach (Mick) McCall. Everyone was going crazy; it was probably the best time I've ever had in my life."
Is this the top achievement of your football career so far?
"Yeah, I'd say so. Beating a Big Ten team on the road in my first (collegiate) start, that's pretty big. So, so far, yes."
Have you had a chance to look at the replay of the pass on the winning two-point conversion?
"Actually, I haven't. That's why I'm looking forward to film review, because so many people told me it looked like it was going to be intercepted, tipped, or whatever. When I threw it, it didn't look that close. People kept asking me, `Was it close, was it close?' I told them, `No, it didn't look that close to me,' but I guess it was a lot closer than it looked."
Can you talk about the winning play?
"Well, I thought we were going for one, so I was heading to the sidelines, and Coach (John) Hunter pulled me aside and said we were going for two. I already knew what play we were running, so I told the referee where to line up, and I told our center (Kory Lichtensteiger) that we were going to go on (a) silent (count), because I knew we wouldn't be able to hear. That's a play we don't usually run (with a silent count). We run that play every practice. I knew Freddie (Barnes) would be open, so I knew I just had to put (the ball) there."
You guys defeated a Big Ten team on the road, and you were named MAC Player of the Week. What is your reaction to that?
"I'm honored. A lot of it is my line, and a lot of it is my receivers. The receivers got open all night, and my line protected me all night. Kory (Lichtensteiger) did a good job of making calls up front, Freddie (Barnes) did a good job of stepping up when Corey Partridge got hurt. (The award) is more about the players around me than about me. I just went out and did my job, and the players around me all did a good job."
SOPHOMORE WR FREDDIE BARNERS
Can you talk about the two-point conversion?
"It was a play that I was very excited about. First of all, I was shocked that Coach Brandon called for two so fast. We were going off the field, and everyone was saying to get back out there. The defense knew that I was going to go across the field and do something, and I was excited. We don't usually run a lot of plays with a silent count, but if you watch the film, you can see Tyler going up and telling Kory (Lichtensteiger) that we needed to go on silent count, because we couldn't hear and we didn't want a false start. So, I had to wait a little longer, to watch for the snap. When they snapped the ball, I was just thinking about concentrating on the ball and keeping my feet in bounds."
It seemed like you were the go-to guy during the whole fourth quarter, and you were making huge catches. Is that how it felt to you?
"That's how it felt. I actually felt like Corey (Partridge) in the Toledo game. We've run those plays thousands of times, and we've caught thousands of balls, but everyone was watching right then, and we needed (the catch) for the win. I just tried to stay focused and do what I had to do."
Have you had a chance to look at the play?
"Yeah, one of my friends told me that it was on YouTube, so I went and looked at it. It was cool."
