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University of Minnesota Athletics
Tim Brewster Quotes
8/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
As I said [at Big Ten Media Day] in Chicago, we've had a great offseason and our guys have worked extremely hard with Mark Hiller and Will Peoples, our strength coaches. They've paid the price this summer to improve this fall and I put together a highlight tape of last fall and their workouts this summer and as a staff we reviewed that tape this morning and it was very impressive. It gives us a chance. It doesn't mean we're going to be an improved football team, but that's the goal for the 2010 team-to continue to be an improved football team. There's a very strong willingness amongst this group of men to work. And again, that gives you a chance. Then you look at the fact that we're probably the most talented that we've been since I've been at the University of Minnesota. You look at the highlight tape today as compared to the one we showed the first year and you can see a drastic change in talent and athleticism and again, that's what it takes to continue to improve. Our goals haven't changed at all. When I came in I said our goal was to win a Big Ten championship. Our goal today is to win a Big Ten championship.
We know we have an extremely challenging 2010 schedule and I'm excited by that schedule. We embrace that schedule. A lot of people say it's a top five schedule in the country and that's where we want to be. We're excited about playing the home schedule that we're going to play. I don't think in the history of the University of Minnesota football program there's been a home schedule like the one we're going to play this season. It's a great schedule and I think our fan base is really excited about the schedule.
I think there's a great deal of excitement about our team and what our team can accomplish when so many people have lower expectations for our team. The writers and some of the prognosticators feel that we're not going to be a good football team, but that's always good as a head coach-to be in that position. I like the fact that we're going into our first game against Middle Tennessee State as the underdog and rightfully so-Middle Tennessee State is a good football team and they've got our full attention. We've studied them extremely hard. We're going into their backyard and playing them and it's going to be a great challenge for our team. But again, it's a challenge we embrace and again, we've got a lot of work to do in training camp tomorrow morning.
We start at 6 a.m. tomorrow morning. We'll have a run test. We'll time our guys in 16 110-yard sprints. They're all timed. I don't know any [Albert] Haynesworth situations where we'll have to hold a guy for eight days, but I think our team's in great shape. I'm doing something different this year with training camp. We're going to practice our freshmen and returning players separate for the first three days. All of our incoming freshmen will practice tomorrow at nine and then the returners will practice tomorrow afternoon. We'll do that for three days and then on the fourth day we'll come together as a team and continue the process of working. Like I said, we've got a lot of work to do-a lot of work to improve in a lot of areas. Again, like I said, we've got a great willingness to work amongst this group. This is an extremely motivated staff and I think it's an extremely motivated team.
Last night we had a senior dinner, which is an annual event for us. We don't have a lot of seniors on this football team, but the seniors that we have I think are outstanding leaders and it's a great way to kick off the season with the dinner that we have. Those guys talk about their experiences at Minnesota and what they'd like to see in their senior year.
On replacing the defensive front seven:
"We did lose a lot of good football players on defense, but we did replace those good football players with good football players-talented guys. I'm very excited about Jewhan Edwards. He's had a great summer and has worked extremely hard. Brandon Kirksey's an elected captain for our team. I think he's got a chance to be one of the top defensive tackles in the Big Ten. He's a proven player in the Big Ten and I think his best football is in the next two years. [I'm] really, really anxious to see Ra'Shede Hageman. Ra'Shede Hageman is a guy who is 6-foot-6 who weighing 295 pounds. He benched over 400 [pounds]. He power cleaned 390 [pounds]. He runs probably a 4.7 [seconds] still in the [40-yard sprint]. I don't know that we've seen a guy of his physical capabilities at Minnesota in quite some time. He's by no means a finished product. He's got a lot of work to do with [defensive line coach] Tim Cross, but again he's willing and he's an extremely talented football player. D.L. Wilhite is a guy I think everybody understands can we a good guy off the edge for us. Kendall Gregory McGhee and Matt Garin [also help] give us depth at defensive line that we've never had. That's very positive. I like our linebackers. I think Mike Rallis has got a chance to be one of the better linebackers in the Big Ten. He's playing sound linebacker for us-a very strong kid. [He weighs] 235 pounds, is very strong, and runs very well. Gary Tinsley, Keanon Cooper, Spencer Reeves, Aaron Hill-I don't want to forget anybody-but I think that group's got a chance to be a talent group, as well. My confidence is that these are talented guys that have worked extremely hard over the summer to prepare for this season. That doesn't guarantee anything. What it guarantees is that they're prepared to begin practice tomorrow."
On the secondary:
"I feel really good about the secondary, as well. We've got two great leaders in Kim Royston and Kyle Theret. Both of those guys have played a lot of Big Ten football and they're really going to help us. Ryan Callado at corner, Michael Carter at corner, we've got a couple of freshmen that really got a chance. Tyrone Bouie, James Manuel, Brock Vereen. James Manuel is a unique athlete. He's, 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, and runs extremely well. The question with James is going to be his maturity level and will he be able to assimilate what we're trying to get done. But from a physical standpoint, he walked through the door [with strength numbers similar to] that of a junior or possibly that of a senior. Brock Vereen has been impressive this summer and so I feel fine about the depth of the secondary, as well. I think the further you get away from the football, the easier it is to play as a young player. The guys on the back end-those guys at receiver and running back-I think they've got a chance to play this year as freshmen. You know that I'm not hesitant to play freshmen as long as they can help us.
On the decision to split up the freshmen and returnees for the first three days of training camp:
I think it's going to allow us to do a better job of teaching the young freshmen-of getting our hands on the freshmen, totally spending meeting time with just the freshmen, and then on the on the field time-as opposed to them being in a line that's got four or five guys in the line. I think it'll really help the amount of reps they get. I think it's going to help them from a learning standpoint, from a fundamental standpoint, and then most importantly from a confidence standpoint. I think that they'll go into the fourth day with the older guys much more confident, as opposed to if they were with the older guys from day one. It's the way it used to be in the old days. We used to have three days to work with just the freshmen before we brought the older guys in. Every head coach looks at every way in which you think you can improve your team in the offseason and as I looked at it I thought that was a way we could spend more time with those young guys and help them learn."
On the 2008 recruiting class and the recruiting classes he's had since he's coached at Minnesota:
"I think that [the 2008 class] was a good class and I think all three of our classes have been good classes. I'm really excited about the [incoming freshman class]. I think we've addressed a really big issue in our offensive line and defensive line as far as depth on our team is concerned. I feel really good that we have depth on the defensive front. We now have depth and competition on the offensive front. I agree that there are a lot of good players in the [2008 class]. Recruiting is something we want to do well each and every year. I couldn't be more excited about the recruiting class that we're putting together right now for next year. We've got kids on campus today, we've got kids on campus tomorrow, and more than half of our recruiting class is already committed to us."
On the new NCAA rule that puts a cap on each year's signings:
"I think that's good because what they've done in the SEC for a long time is sign a large number of kids understanding that a lot of those young men are not going to make it academically, so I don't mind it at all. It hasn't been an effect on us, so I don't see that being an issue. I see other things. I think an early signing date is something that needs to happen. I think it will help recruiting in a big time way and it needs to happen. I think there's a lot of sentiment toward that happening, so hopefully it will."
On establishing an offensive identity:
"We know exactly what our identity is. That's been established, so we're not trying to form an identity as practice starts. We know we're going to run the football. If we run the football we'll be successful. That's something that we're going to make a concerted effort to do. It is who we are. The change of [offensive coordinator] has had no effect at all-it's been a seamless transition-a very similar offense, less is more. I feel really good about that point-about who we are from an identity standpoint."
On having the whole offensive line back together:
"I think it's absolutely huge if that whole group's together. I think a bigger point is the competition that we've got behind those guys-the Eddie Olsons and the Ryan Ortons and the Ryan Wynns and those types of guys. Brooks Michael. Those guys are all in position to push for a starting job. That's what makes teams great-competition. And we have it for the first time since I've been at Minnesota this year."
On using the preseason to try to use the quarterbacks at a position other than quarterback:
"One thing we know is that Adam Weber is our quarterback. That's been established. He's our leader. He's our captain. What we have to do is prepare MarQueis Gray. We've been very fortunate with Adam. He's taken every snap for three years. It's been amazing. MarQueis Gray is one play away from being our starting quarterback, so we've got to do a great job in preparing him to do that and also understanding that MarQueis may be the best athlete on our team. He's 6-foot-5, he's 232 pounds, and he power cleaned 330 pounds as a quarterback. [His athleticism] is remarkable. As coaches we have to do a good job of utilizing his abilities as we did in the bowl game-we'll do some of that, understanding that he is a quarterback and I think he's going to be an outstanding quarterback going forward. Moses Alipate is a big young kid who I think is best suited to be a quarterback. I don't see him as a kid we can move around and do different things with. J.D. Pride is very athletic and can do a lot of things. Tommy Parish is a good athlete. We have great depth at the quarterback position. Jeff [Horton] are thinking about the different things MarQueis can do. It's exciting and intriguing at the same time. He'll play receiver some. We'll have a package of plays for him. He could possibly line up in the backfield some. There's not really a limited to what you can do with a kid as talented as he is. We don't want to take away from him being a quarterback because he's a quarterback and I think he's going to be a very special one when he gets his opportunity and his opportunity could very well come against Middle Tennessee State."
On his plans for J.D. Pride and Tom Parish:
"They're young guys. I would like to get to a situation where our starting quarterback plays for two years. I think in great programs in good situations, where you're doing your job as a coach recruiting quarterbacks, you have a chance to let them develop. You have a chance to let them sit and watch and learn and grow and when they get their opportunity to be the quarterback, they take advantage of it. I see J.D. and Tommy in a great position, where there's no pressure on them to immediately perform in a conference like the one we're in."
Thoughts on the Big Ten overall:
"I think from top to bottom it's an extremely strong conference. I think it's as strong a conference as there is in the country. Obviously Ohio State in the [consensus] pick to be the Big Ten champion. Everybody understands that. Everybody believes that they probably have the best team. From there, who knows. One thing we know for sure is on any given Saturday, anybody can win. It's [my] job as coach to make sure [my] team is focused and finishes for 60 minutes. If you play well, you give yourself a chance to win and I think that's what's really exciting about this conference. There's been a number of upsets. Last year, Ohio State went to Purdue and got beat. On any given Saturday, anybody can win."
The importance of getting off to a good start:
"That is the goal. The only goal that we have as a football team is to be 1-0 on September 2nd. All ofour focus is going to be on Middle Tennessee State and preparing the best we can and we'll be diligent, we'll work extremely hard, our guys will play hard, and play tough. We have to play smart. We've got to take a young group of kid and get them to play smart. We've had too many penalties. We've got to eliminate the penalties-back off the self-inflicted wounds. There are a lot of areas in which we have to improve and we've got a short time to do it."
On preparing for the first game against Middle Tennessee State:
"We started that preparation last spring-really studying Middle Tennessee and studying their personnel. Our staff has done a great job. We know who their coaches are. We know where their coaches have come from. We've invested a great deal in studying Middle Tennessee because of the type of opponent they are. It's helped us to have the whole offseason to look at them. Their quarterback Dwight Dasher is a smaller MarQueis Gray. He is an extremely gifted, talented player. They put a lot on his plate and we know that going in. They've got great athletes. We've spent a great deal of time studying and preparing for Middle Tennessee because of the challenge it presents. "
On MarQueis Gray, assuming Adam Weber stays healthy:
"Two things: You assume that Adam is going to stay healthy and the other assumption is that he's going to play well. If those two things happen, Adam Weber's going to be our quarterback. He's going to be our leader. We anticipate him hopefully staying healthy-we all know that's a crapshoot -and we really anticipate him to play well and to leader our team to victory and if he does those two things, Adam will be our quarterback all year. If for some reason he gets hurt then obviously MarQueis goes in and plays. If he's not playing well-if we're not winning football games-then we give another guy a chance to lead our team to victory. That's what the quarterback's job is. It is going to [be difficult to keep MarQueis Gray on the bench (if Weber does well), even though he's arguably the best athlete on the team]. He's a very talented guy that can impact the game, so when he's standing next to me, he can't do much to help us. Our job as coaches is to figure out ways in which he can help us, but not take away from his development as a quarterback because there is speculation of [him playing another position]. He's a quarterback and he's a really good one."
On his development as a coach since he's been here:
"You learn more about the job. I hope that I'm a better head football coach today than I was in my first year. I think that's the normal maturation process that goes on in the development as a player and the development as a coach. I'm much more understanding of everything that it entails. You can prepare all your life for a situation and once you get to that spot, there's going to be new and different things that come up. I feel very comfortable. I have a great feeling about where I'm at and where we're at going into the 2010 football season."
On playing 11 consecutive weeks:
"It is a difficult challenge. Last year, we played 12 consecutive weeks without a bye and that's a tough chore. I don't think it's a fair chore for your team. I think your team should have a bye somewhere in the middle [of the season] where your kids can take a little rest and focus on being a college student for a week instead of all the attention that goes into being a college football player. I think that part is really unfortunate and we're going to have to do a great job as coaches of making sure that we finish as well as we need to finish-the season or game. That's been my job to figure out what we need to do to become a better finishing team. I think what you really emphasize, you achieve. I think we'll finish better. We'll do the things we need to do to be a better 60-minute team and also be stronger down the stretch like we need to be. I think there's an intelligence that goes into that by how you prepare. I think the amount of contact you have, when you shorten up practice, when you take the pads off, and what you're doing from a physical standpoint, makes them mentally fresher. That's something that you really have to think about as the coach because my personality is 'Let's be physical. Let's run them together. Let's take a hard-nosed, physical approach to it,' but we've got to take an intelligent approach to it, as well. I think this year we've got a great plan in place at different points in the season to make sure that our guys are fresher and hopefully we'll stay healthier. Injuries are a big part of the game and how you respond to injuries [is as well]. I think were in a much better place to respond to the injuries because of better depth. [Instead of mentioning to the league about not getting a break], right now I'm working on Jim Delaney to make sure we play Wisconsin and Iowa in the division realignment and Jim Delaney has his plate full at this point."
On trying to replace Eric Decker at wide receiver this year:
"One guy is not going to step up and take Eric Decker's place. Eric is too good a football player, so we're going to need a collective group of football players to step up and play and that's my challenge to the receivers. The number one thing we're going to ask our receivers to do is to be the best blocking receivers in the Big Ten, first and foremost-and they can be. They've got a great leader in Steve Watson. Steve Watson was one of the best blocking wide receivers you'll have ever seen. He's going to really work with those guys and develop those guys as route-runners, ball-catchers, and making them step up. One guy is not going to take Decker's place. It's collective and that whole group is going to have to really step up."
On the emotional leaders of the team:
"I think it all starts with your quarterback and I think that Adam Weber is definitely the emotional leader of our team. Across the board, guys like Kyle Theret and Kim Royston. What [Royston] is going through is nothing short of miraculous. To think this spring he had a compound fracture of the tibia and the fibula, and after seeing [a similar injury] end Joe Theismann's career, he had a titanium rod put in there and the kid is running right now, which is nothing short of amazing. He's a great leader and an inspiration. Brandon Kirksey is a great leader. He's a very inspirational guy. D.J. Burris is a great leader. I don't think there's any shortage of guys that are going to step up and lead our team."
On if there is anyone that will be held out of practice because of injury:
"We're going to take care of Kim [Royston]. Kim is a guy that will only practice once a day, that we'll really limit initially the thing that he does and monitor the things that he does and watch him very closely. Bryan Allen is also a kid who is not 100%. He's coming back off the ankle [injury]. He at about 85% and he has got training camp to try to get to 100 [percent]. I think he will. I don't think there's any reason why he shouldn't."
On the expansion of the Big Ten and a possible nine-game conference schedule:
"I think it's truly exciting what Jim Delaney's vision is and what Jim has accomplished as commissioner of the Big Ten. The Big Ten Network has changed the landscape of college football, period. The [success of] the Big Ten Network is what has driven this whole process. I think he made a great decision in adding Nebraska. We're still going to be called the Big Ten and we're going to have a Big Ten championship this year-a nationally televised Saturday night in December where every high school player in America is watching our conference. It's something that we've needed that we now have. I'm not opposed to a nine-game schedule. I've worked really hard to elevate the status of this program by playing good teams and giving us more exposure. Playing another Big Ten team can only help in my mind. As a senior at the University of Illinois, I was part of a team that played a nine-game Big Ten schedule and went undefeated when there was only ten teams in the conference with two non-conference games. I'm not against that at all. When you look at non-conference scheduling-how hard it is-and also the amount of money that you've got to play to get a game in a non-conference schedule, I'm not opposed to it at all."
On the idea of losing the Big Ten championship game after going undefeated in the regular season:
"That's OK. To me, if you're going to be the best, be the best. Be the best every time you take the field. Don't shy away from playing great competition, embrace playing great competition and opportunities to play great competition. Obviously that would be unfortunate to lose the Big Ten championship game and lose an opportunity to be a national champion, but again, if you want to be the best, play the best."
On playing Nebraska in comparison to playing Wisconsin or Iowa:
I certainly don't feel the same way about Nebraska as I feel about Iowa or Wisconsin. I think that Wisconsin and Minnesota have the longest running rivalry in college football and it would be an absolute crime for us not to play Iowa and Wisconsin each and every year. Those games are extremely meaningful games. I think Tom Osbourne said it really well. He felt like there was a real injustice when [Nebraska] went to the Big 12 and they stopped playing Oklahoma on a regular basis. He felt like really took away from the conference and I think Jim [Delaney] is very understanding of those rivalries and I think that he's going to see to it the we play Wisconsin and we play Iowa each and every year, regardless of whether or not all three of us are aligned on the same side of the division. There's been speculation that that may not be the case. Just when you look at the formation of the Big 12 and you see the rivalry between Nebraska and Oklahoma and they made the decision to put Oklahoma in the South and Nebraska in the North and they weren't going to play every year. I think that after very careful evaluation-and I think that Jim has done his due diligence and everyone has weighed in and given their opinion-I think that those two games will be played. I think it's really important that we separate those two games-that we play one at the beginning of the season and one at the end. It was really unfortunate a couple years when we played Wisconsin and Iowa back to back. That just shouldn't happen-two games that are as meaningful as those two games. We can play Wisconsin the front and Iowa at the end or vice versa. I wouldn't be opposed to that."
On the kicking game:
"I feel really good about our kicking game. From a special teams standpoint, John Butler's done an outstanding job. We've been in the top ten of cumulative kicking game. Our kicker and our punter have been fairly solid for us. I'm excited about Danny Orseske coming back. He had mononucleosis and we got that year back. He's got four more years with us, which is a huge plus. We're bringing back Eric Ellestad. He can't help but be a better kicker this year based on all the pressure situations he was in last year. I think we've got a chance to have the combination of a really good punter and a good kicker and I think with the athleticism of our team that we have a chance to continue to be a good coverage team."
On the return game:
"The interesting thing will be the punt returner because right now I'm certainly not going to put Bryant [Allen] back there. Who's a guy that can take over that role? I was asked by John Butler whether or noit we'd put MarQueis [Gray] back there. I had to think about that. It kind of excites me a little bit, but I don't want to see him get hit. I think Brandon Green is a guy that is a really trustworthy guy with great hands that I think would make great decisions back there returning punts. I think Troy [Stoudemire] will be our number one kickoff return guy."
