Syracuse football's head coach discusses the matchup with the Panthers.
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00:00 and get you to those as well.
00:01 So coach?
00:02 Celebrating 100 years at Yankee Stadium,
00:05 playing our rival the Pitt Panthers.
00:08 First game was 3-0 Syracuse.
00:11 Obviously a defensive battle, and I'm
00:14 sure it's going to be another defensive game in Yankee
00:17 Stadium.
00:19 Physical bunch, Pat Narduzzi does a fantastic job,
00:22 and we're looking forward to meeting them there.
00:26 Like to-- oh, before I open it up for questions,
00:30 the health status of both quarterbacks,
00:33 I won't know until after the doctors see them.
00:36 Standard stuff, they don't see them until later on today.
00:39 So I won't be able to get back to you guys on that stuff.
00:42 But the team, I think we are extremely focused.
00:46 We were disappointed about last week's loss,
00:49 but I think these guys are united and looking forward
00:52 to playing the Panthers.
00:54 Questions?
00:54 Yeah.
00:57 Start right in front of Emily, then go to Jesse in the second
00:59 row.
01:01 I think you had mentioned on Friday evening
01:04 that when you have a backup quarterback in the game,
01:07 you need the rest of the guys to step up around them,
01:09 and we didn't really see that on Friday night.
01:11 I'm just curious what the tone was and maybe the messaging
01:14 from some of those older guys who were on the field
01:16 with Carlos when going back through film
01:18 and addressing some of the things that went wrong.
01:20 Well, I think that just like we hit it,
01:22 we really need to take the pressure off of him.
01:24 I thought some people did some things.
01:25 I thought LaQuint had a very good day
01:27 and the offensive line did some things there.
01:29 But we need to--
01:31 some of those passes we didn't catch,
01:32 we need to be able to make some of those plays for him.
01:34 How do you see LaQuint kind of carrying the load a little bit
01:40 more on offense?
01:41 We saw it a little bit on Friday night.
01:43 Do you envision just more touches
01:45 for him knowing the health status of Garrett and Carlos
01:48 are up in the air until you know a little bit later tonight?
01:51 We really feel that we don't want to overload him.
01:54 We've got him doing punt returns and other things like that.
01:57 But he's one of those players that makes things happen
02:00 when he touches the ball.
02:03 Coach, Jason Beck was on the sidelines for the first time.
02:06 And you said just that was just to get Carlos comfortable.
02:10 Whether it's Carlos or Garrett, do you
02:12 see Beck staying on the sidelines?
02:15 That comes down to Coach Beck.
02:16 He has the freedom to go up or down.
02:18 And it really has to do with what we're doing that game.
02:22 I think he prefers to stay up.
02:24 But if the guys need him to come down, he will come down.
02:26 Did he like to have him on the sidelines?
02:29 It didn't-- I've been in his shoes.
02:31 I've done it at both places.
02:33 It's all the preference of the coordinator where he likes it.
02:36 We'll go to Brad in the front.
02:40 You know, Elijah Clark had kind of a unique--
02:42 Start again.
02:43 Elijah Clark had kind of a unique suspension,
02:46 I guess, for lack of a better term, for that game.
02:48 Just tell me what goes into that and why
02:50 he won't play his position defensively,
02:52 but allowed to play on special teams.
02:54 I can't go into the details of that
02:55 because it's an in-house thing.
02:57 But I know that he was excited.
03:01 The team was really proud of him, gave him a--
03:03 I'm not going to say a standing ovation,
03:05 but clapped him up based off of the way he handled
03:08 his internal discipline.
03:09 And all things are made up.
03:12 And he has an opportunity to start again on defense.
03:15 When you say the team is united, is that just
03:18 your sense of football?
03:20 Or is that all things encompassed in that?
03:23 I think what I'm talking about football.
03:25 I don't know what else--
03:26 classroom and socially and all that other kind of stuff.
03:28 But I think they're united in this room.
03:30 Yes, sir.
03:31 Can you pass it to Emily Bright, and then we'll
03:33 go to Citrus and back after that.
03:34 So I just want to make sure I'm clear.
03:36 Clark's suspension is over, and he has the opportunity
03:38 to play defense this weekend?
03:41 Elijah.
03:41 Yeah, Elijah Clark.
03:42 Yes.
03:43 OK.
03:44 Yeah, that was on the--
03:46 OK.
03:47 We'll just go right in the back here to Citrus.
03:49 We'll get them next.
03:50 Hey, Coach.
03:53 After the game on Friday, Justin Barrett
03:55 mentioned that in practices you like to keep it consistent.
03:58 After five straight losses, do you still
03:59 plan on keeping it consistent?
04:01 Or are there some things you want to change up going forward?
04:02 We changed up some things last week.
04:04 Last week was the first time that we changed some things up
04:07 offensively.
04:08 And we're going to keep that change that we made last week.
04:11 Are you going to do it defensively as well,
04:13 or just on offense?
04:14 When we do that, it is an offensive and defensive
04:16 change.
04:17 So both sides have to change when we do stuff like that.
04:22 We'll go right to Jordan right there in the second row.
04:24 And then back up front to Henry.
04:26 Coach, after watching the film over the weekend,
04:28 other than the four interceptions for Carlos,
04:30 what did you see from him in the game against BC?
04:33 My biggest thing was when he's out there.
04:38 There were some things that happened
04:39 that was out of his control.
04:41 And I just feel bad for him.
04:42 Because I thought if we made some of those plays,
04:46 we may have--
04:48 and everybody may have a different opinion.
04:50 Don't judge him by one outing.
04:51 It's his first time out this year.
04:53 I think there's a lot of good in him.
04:55 We just need to be able to help him more.
04:58 Henry?
05:00 Coach, you've talked about just the--
05:01 in multiple press conferences-- just
05:03 about the offensive line gelling and just
05:05 having a lot of these injuries throughout the whole year,
05:08 at least from the guys who have just
05:09 been around the entire time, like Enrique, John Ray,
05:12 and I guess even Mark Petri to some degree.
05:14 What have you seen from the guys who have just
05:16 been able to consistently stay healthy
05:17 and perform every Saturday?
05:19 You know, they're out there.
05:20 They're doing a really good job in competing.
05:23 There's been some penalty issues, obviously,
05:26 with that group-based offense.
05:28 We've talked about some of the things that's gone on in there.
05:31 But when they settle down, even with all the young people
05:34 in there, they really have performed better
05:38 than what a lot of people think they have.
05:39 But there's no doubt when you talk about the people
05:42 that we have missing--
05:44 Moore, Ellis, David--
05:49 I mean, those guys are going to be solid starters for us.
05:53 And it's going to make us--
05:54 just like last year, when these guys come back next year,
05:57 it's going to make our line that much better
05:59 when they get on the football field.
06:00 We'll go to Samantha now.
06:06 Hey, Coach.
06:08 What does Friday's performance from the quarterback position
06:10 say about the team's preparation as a whole
06:13 and the preparation of the coaching staff?
06:15 Well, first of all, I think when you talk about you can't go out,
06:18 what we've got to do is we've got to put those guys
06:20 in a situation to make plays.
06:22 And then they have to be able to go out there and make the plays.
06:26 Those kids, I thought, were in position to make plays.
06:30 We just didn't make enough plays to win the game.
06:32 So I won't get caught up in that part of it.
06:35 We catch some of those interceptions.
06:38 We catch some of those balls.
06:39 I think we're all up here having a different feeling.
06:42 Now, we don't get to predict all that stuff.
06:44 But our job is to give them an opportunity to get them open
06:46 so they can make a shot.
06:47 Their job is to make that shot.
06:49 And we're not going to give up on them,
06:51 and they're not going to give up on us.
06:53 Go to Brian and Emily in front of you.
06:56 Coach, kind of to follow up on that,
06:58 whether it's Carlos or Garrett, there
07:00 just seems to be a real struggle in the intermediate passing
07:04 game.
07:05 Why do you see that as a struggle?
07:06 Why is this team struggling to just throw
07:08 the football in general?
07:10 I don't really see it as the struggle.
07:12 I know that the numbers don't dictate that stuff.
07:14 But to me, it's about making plays.
07:16 You're trying to stretch the football field.
07:19 And there was plays-- there was balls thrown
07:21 in the middle of the field.
07:22 We just didn't-- we didn't catch them.
07:25 But you need to attack the entire football field
07:27 and make sure the ball's hitting all the areas.
07:31 The change with practice, Garrett
07:33 had mentioned last week here at Schrader
07:35 that you guys were doing one-on-ones,
07:37 like first team versus first team in practice.
07:39 Is that the change you're referring to?
07:41 Yes, sir.
07:41 Excuse me, yes, ma'am.
07:42 Sorry.
07:43 It's OK.
07:44 And then, I mean, with potentially your two
07:47 quarterbacks, top two quarterbacks
07:49 limited in practice, how does one-on-one
07:51 look this week in practice from an offensive standpoint?
07:54 It'll look like all the guys that
07:57 are fresh playing against each other,
07:58 making sure the best plays against the best
08:00 to make sure that both sides of the ball
08:02 are ready for fast starts.
08:04 And then, with potentially both of them out,
08:06 has there been any talk or consideration
08:09 of Dan Valari switching back to quarterback at all?
08:11 I know, obviously, he hasn't been at that position for almost
08:14 two years, but he has the experience.
08:16 We have backup quarterbacks, and we
08:18 feel that Dan's doing a really nice job where he's at.
08:22 Henry, then Samantha again.
08:24 Coach, if it's going to be Carlos,
08:27 do you feel comfortable with him being your starter?
08:30 You said on the press conference after the game
08:32 just that you don't know if Garrett's going
08:33 to play the rest of the season.
08:34 But if it is Carlos, are you comfortable with him
08:37 being the starter?
08:37 I would be comfortable with whoever the family decides
08:39 to put out there, that we can do enough things around them
08:43 to settle them down so they can have an opportunity
08:45 to be successful.
08:47 We'll go to Samantha, and then back over here to Madden.
08:50 Coach, I want to know, in a little bit of a tough stretch
08:53 right now, what would be your message to recruits
08:55 that you're in contact with throughout the course of this
08:58 week and this month?
08:59 Well, one thing about our recruits
09:00 is those young men are normally committed.
09:03 I believe they are committed.
09:05 They read newspapers that people write from Syracuse.
09:08 But they also speak to me.
09:10 And I speak to their moms, and I speak to their dads.
09:13 And that's a lot of the things that those young men love
09:16 about us is the culture that we have,
09:18 the same culture that makes us spend somebody
09:21 for a game or half a game.
09:22 Because there are certain rules that we're not going to break,
09:25 but we're all going to own up to them.
09:28 Coach, heading to Yankee Stadium this weekend, a neutral site,
09:32 what are you looking forward to most, especially playing Pitt?
09:35 A win.
09:37 But of course, Pitt's trying to do the exact same thing.
09:40 I don't know about-- it's exciting to go to the Yankee
09:42 Stadium.
09:42 It's exciting for the guys that haven't been there.
09:44 Now, I want to say this is our third trip since I've
09:48 been there.
09:49 And the whole walking around and knowing Babe Ruth and all
09:55 the people that have played in that stadium,
09:58 it's kind of cool.
09:59 But I think it's more for the young men that
10:01 haven't been there.
10:02 And it's more of a young people game.
10:04 You guys know me.
10:05 I'd rather play at the Dome and turn the air conditioner off.
10:07 But I get it.
10:09 We'll go down there, and we'll play Pitt.
10:11 And it'll be 100 years since the first game, and it'll be fun.
10:15 You can pass that right back.
10:16 Oh, you're good?
10:17 All right.
10:18 Next question, we'll go to Henry and Jerome.
10:21 Just from the last season, Carlos started against Pitt.
10:24 What were some of the things Pitt was doing well
10:26 against Carlos, and what was Pitt doing overall
10:28 well in that game?
10:30 You really don't want to--
10:31 they have tape on him, and we have tape on, obviously,
10:36 Carlos going against them.
10:38 But again, when you start changing offensive line
10:40 and changing personnel, it's about match-ups.
10:44 And the match-ups are going to dictate where we're going
10:46 to attack, and the match-ups are going to dictate
10:48 where they're going to attack.
10:50 Now, they do have tape on him.
10:52 They have singing from this year, which is an advantage to them.
10:55 But a lot of that stuff from last year
10:57 doesn't really apply to this year.
10:59 Emily?
11:02 Jaden Bellamy was out on Friday night.
11:05 Do you have an update on him?
11:06 Are you expecting him to maybe be available this week?
11:09 I hope he is available this week.
11:11 I really do.
11:12 And then I think Jacob Bradford went out at halftime
11:14 again of this game.
11:15 Any update on him?
11:16 No, no update on Jacob yet.
11:18 Coach, Dwight Franey, honored at halftime.
11:24 I want to know if the alumni stay in contact with you at all,
11:27 and do they provide any insight into--
11:29 I don't know-- what's going on or any advice
11:31 that they have to give.
11:32 You know, Dwight Franey was speaking to the football team
11:36 the night before the game in this room
11:38 and did an absolutely amazing job.
11:40 If you guys didn't get--
11:42 I believe they videotaped it.
11:43 I thought some was on the internet.
11:45 I'm not great with all that stuff on the internet.
11:48 But I was so impressed with not only him opening up
11:55 his heart to the young men, but the pride that just poured out
11:59 of him from Syracuse University, someone
12:02 that's been in the profession for 16 years.
12:04 I want to say he said he's a 16-year vet, which is unheard of.
12:09 And I mean, this is not a Syracuse thing.
12:11 You go 16 years at any--
12:14 you go talk to the best of the best,
12:16 especially a defensive end who's in such a physical position.
12:21 I mean, quarterbacks may do it.
12:22 Kickers may do it.
12:23 But he-- I got me stuttering.
12:28 It was one of the most impressive--
12:31 I'm going to say speech--
12:33 conversation talks that I've seen with this--
12:36 not the most impressive.
12:37 Jim Brown was really impressive.
12:40 I couldn't talk around Jim Brown when he was alive,
12:42 and he did it.
12:43 And Floyd Little's had some amazing talks
12:46 with this football team as well when he was alive.
12:50 And we've had a lot of the guys come back,
12:51 but Dwight was really something.
12:55 And it was a good message.
12:59 And I really believe some of the things that he said
13:02 is still with those kids after that loss,
13:04 and it'll be with us going to play Pitt down
13:07 in Yankee Stadium.
13:09 That's a fantastic question.
13:12 Anything else for Coach?
13:15 Brent, we'll take one more after that.
13:16 Then we've got it.
13:19 Coach, whether it be recruits or anybody
13:21 asking about the state of the program now,
13:24 you're struggling, people are questioning
13:26 if you're going to be the coach.
13:27 What do you tell them when they ask you if you're going
13:29 to be here beyond this season?
13:31 Brent, my big thing is this right here.
13:34 I believe in God, family, and football.
13:36 My football is my ohana, which is the young men
13:39 at Syracuse University.
13:40 That being said, the only thing I'm thinking about
13:43 is going 1-0 versus Pitt in Yankee Stadium.
13:47 And that'll stop a lot of that stuff
13:49 that you guys are writing about.
13:51 And then Emily, the last question.
13:53 Would you say your team's headspace
13:55 is in that exact same place as you?
13:57 I would like to think they are.
13:59 If they're a part of the family and they've been with us
14:01 long enough, I know they are.
14:03 Thanks, everybody.
14:04 Thank you, guys.
14:05 Thank you.
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