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University of Minnesota Athletics
Tim Brewster Press Conference Transcript
10/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
“I think one of the huge keys for us offensively is to have balance. We can’t put too much pressure on Adam Weber, where he has to throw the ball 44 times in a football game. I think we really have to strive for better balance offensively, I thought the first couple of drives (against Indiana) we really did some great things running the football... We lost Duane Bennett, which hurt (because) Duane Bennett has proven to be an outstanding football player. Those are the things offensively that I think we have to do.”
“Defensively, we’ve just got to try to continue to eliminate the explosive plays. What is an explosive play a run over 12 (yards) and a pass over 18 (yards) we’re giving up too many explosive plays. Explosive plays have overtaken turnovers as the number one indicator of wins and losses in football today. It’s something that we strive to eliminate as a defense.”
“As everybody can see, the spread offense is here to stay... It’s an offense that’s tough for defenses. It forces defensive players to go out and play in space, which isn’t something that big linebackers like to do. What you’ve got do is continue to work towards getting more speed and athleticism on the field. My thought process is you recruit defensive backs and they become linebackers, and you recruit linebackers and make them defensive linemen. That way you get better athleticism and more speed on the football field.”
On why Eric Decker fits so well with the spread offense:
“I just think that Eric Decker is a very prideful football player. He’s a very prideful kid, and he wants to do everything extremely well. He comes out to practice each and every day with a great attitude. He tries to get better at practice, and that’s why he plays well in the games. Eric Decker is an outstanding practice football player. I’ve been around Jerry Rice, Champ Bailey a lot of the best players in the National Football League. You know what all of them had? Tremendous pride in going out and playing the game... That’s the best way I can describe him, as an extremely prideful young man. He’s very precise in how he runs routes, and he’s physical as a blocker, and he just does all the little things well. He’s the leading receiver in the Big Ten. Eric Decker is a heckuva football player.
And he fits well in this offense because we can motion him, we can move him outside and inside. Eric Decker was our personal protector on the punt team against Indiana. Eric Decker is a very valuable football player.”
On Dom Barber’s play in the secondary:
“Dom is like a mother hen back there in the secondary. He’s got three true freshmen that he’s trying to line up, that he’s trying to guide around, and he has an upset stomach because it. But he is playing his butt off. Dom Barber is playing as good of football on the defensive side as anybody in the Big Ten. God only knows how many points Indiana may have scored last Saturday is we didn’t have Dom Barber. Guy’s all over the field... He honors the game the way he plays it. Each and every game, he’s mentally prepared. He does things right... He’s obviously one of the better players in the Big Ten.”
On what the Gophers can do to run the ball better:
“We’ve just got to have more of a nasty mentality up front with the offensive line, and that’s what I’ve talked to those guys about. We’ve just got to be hungry, to go get a yard and knock somebody off the ball. Make no mistake the game of football (is something) we can overcomplicate all we want. But your ability to knock somebody off the ball if you want to run the ball well (is important). And a running back that’s going to have a tremendous purpose and a vision and a toughness about him... Let’s not overcomplicate it. It’s a mentality, it’s an attitude.”
On if he’s worried about Adam Weber running the ball so many times:
“Not really. He’s a big strong kid and the football’s light. He can carry that thing, and he can throw it. In this offense, the quarterback’s going to run the ball. You look at Tim Tebow of the University of Florida he’s rushing the ball 30 times a game. That is part of this offense. Now, do we want Adam running it 28 or 30 times a game? Absolutely not. Like I’ve said, I’d like to see him run it anywhere between eight to 10 times a game. He’s a very confident kid. Do I see him throwing the ball 44 times a game and us winning? No I don’t.
“Balance is the key. Obviously we want to eliminate the number of opportunities defenses have to hit him.”
“Defensively, we’ve just got to try to continue to eliminate the explosive plays. What is an explosive play a run over 12 (yards) and a pass over 18 (yards) we’re giving up too many explosive plays. Explosive plays have overtaken turnovers as the number one indicator of wins and losses in football today. It’s something that we strive to eliminate as a defense.”
“As everybody can see, the spread offense is here to stay... It’s an offense that’s tough for defenses. It forces defensive players to go out and play in space, which isn’t something that big linebackers like to do. What you’ve got do is continue to work towards getting more speed and athleticism on the field. My thought process is you recruit defensive backs and they become linebackers, and you recruit linebackers and make them defensive linemen. That way you get better athleticism and more speed on the football field.”
On why Eric Decker fits so well with the spread offense:
“I just think that Eric Decker is a very prideful football player. He’s a very prideful kid, and he wants to do everything extremely well. He comes out to practice each and every day with a great attitude. He tries to get better at practice, and that’s why he plays well in the games. Eric Decker is an outstanding practice football player. I’ve been around Jerry Rice, Champ Bailey a lot of the best players in the National Football League. You know what all of them had? Tremendous pride in going out and playing the game... That’s the best way I can describe him, as an extremely prideful young man. He’s very precise in how he runs routes, and he’s physical as a blocker, and he just does all the little things well. He’s the leading receiver in the Big Ten. Eric Decker is a heckuva football player.
And he fits well in this offense because we can motion him, we can move him outside and inside. Eric Decker was our personal protector on the punt team against Indiana. Eric Decker is a very valuable football player.”
On Dom Barber’s play in the secondary:
“Dom is like a mother hen back there in the secondary. He’s got three true freshmen that he’s trying to line up, that he’s trying to guide around, and he has an upset stomach because it. But he is playing his butt off. Dom Barber is playing as good of football on the defensive side as anybody in the Big Ten. God only knows how many points Indiana may have scored last Saturday is we didn’t have Dom Barber. Guy’s all over the field... He honors the game the way he plays it. Each and every game, he’s mentally prepared. He does things right... He’s obviously one of the better players in the Big Ten.”
On what the Gophers can do to run the ball better:
“We’ve just got to have more of a nasty mentality up front with the offensive line, and that’s what I’ve talked to those guys about. We’ve just got to be hungry, to go get a yard and knock somebody off the ball. Make no mistake the game of football (is something) we can overcomplicate all we want. But your ability to knock somebody off the ball if you want to run the ball well (is important). And a running back that’s going to have a tremendous purpose and a vision and a toughness about him... Let’s not overcomplicate it. It’s a mentality, it’s an attitude.”
On if he’s worried about Adam Weber running the ball so many times:
“Not really. He’s a big strong kid and the football’s light. He can carry that thing, and he can throw it. In this offense, the quarterback’s going to run the ball. You look at Tim Tebow of the University of Florida he’s rushing the ball 30 times a game. That is part of this offense. Now, do we want Adam running it 28 or 30 times a game? Absolutely not. Like I’ve said, I’d like to see him run it anywhere between eight to 10 times a game. He’s a very confident kid. Do I see him throwing the ball 44 times a game and us winning? No I don’t.
“Balance is the key. Obviously we want to eliminate the number of opportunities defenses have to hit him.”
Players Mentioned
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