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00:00 I'm going to ask you about Beanie.
00:01 You know, we had him in here,
00:03 and he had a pretty good testimonial
00:05 for Mountaineer football.
00:07 He said, "You know, I could have --
00:08 You know, a lot of guys go hunt for NIL money or whatever.
00:12 I came to West Virginia
00:13 because I wanted to be a better football player,
00:15 and I did that, and now he's a consensus All-American."
00:18 What's that say for him?
00:20 What's it say for what you guys are trying to do?
00:22 Well, it says that he's about the right things.
00:24 You know, he came here as a guy that was kind of --
00:28 You know, he's a six-year player.
00:30 Had been to a stop previously
00:31 that it didn't go the way it was planned.
00:34 We had recruited him the year before and really wanted him
00:37 and finally got him here.
00:39 And when he came, he had a blue-collar mentality
00:40 the entire time, and I told you guys this fall,
00:43 you know, he had that alpha mentality
00:45 from really the day he stepped on campus.
00:48 And he just worked, and he worked,
00:50 and he overachieved a lot because of his work ethic.
00:55 He didn't worry about some of the other things
00:57 that transfers worry about, and he's played himself
01:01 into having an opportunity to play
01:02 in the National Football League.
01:04 And then, unbelievable honor for him to be a consensus,
01:08 first-team All-American, which those are not --
01:12 You know, they don't come around as often as we may think they do,
01:15 but it's hard to get on that list, and he's on it,
01:17 and his name will be there forever.
01:19 You know, obviously, it's a selling point for you.
01:22 You can go out and say, "Hey, listen,
01:23 you could be the next Beanie Bishop."
01:25 But for you guys, you can say,
01:27 "I want to go find the next Beanie Bishop."
01:29 I mean, so there's a little bit there.
01:32 I'm going to go -- Are there enough hungry guys
01:34 like that out there, or are they getting fewer and far between?
01:37 I think they're fewer and far between.
01:38 You got to really do a good job of vetting the young man.
01:40 And, you know, you usually know with young people
01:43 pretty quick what they're about
01:45 because you ask them what's important to them.
01:48 You know, if the first thing they say out of their mouth
01:49 is NIL and things of that nature,
01:52 then you probably know real quick
01:54 that they're not about what football --
01:57 being a great football player is about.
01:59 And it's cliche, but every great player
02:02 that I've ever coached has been a worker,
02:04 and they've done the extra things
02:07 to make themselves the best player they can be.
02:09 If you go down there, some of you guys know Mike Joseph.
02:12 You know, Mike's really hard to please,
02:14 and Mike doesn't like very many people, all right?
02:18 And he likes guys that work,
02:20 and there's not many defensive backs that love working, right?
02:24 And Mike Joseph loves Beanie Bishop,
02:26 and he's only had him six months.
02:28 So if that tells you anything about the young man,
02:30 he's been there six months,
02:31 and he's made an impact in the locker room.
02:32 He's made an impact outside of the building
02:36 with being a good citizen and a good human.
02:39 And then he's made a huge impact on the grass.
02:41 So that's a win-win for Beanie and West Virginia.
02:45 Looking at North Carolina,
02:52 Rick May played almost every snap for them.
02:55 How do you scout them knowing he's not playing?
02:58 Well, I'm super excited that I don't have to scout them
03:02 knowing that he's playing.
03:04 Great player.
03:09 Probably will be the first or second pick
03:11 overall in the National Football League draft.
03:15 He had an unbelievable career at North Carolina,
03:17 and obviously he's decided to move on,
03:19 and now they're moving to their future
03:22 with Connor Harrell, young player, really talented,
03:26 has a big arm, can throw the ball down the field.
03:28 And more of that has been me watching his high school film
03:32 than anything.
03:33 Can throw the ball down the field,
03:35 and he also can make you miss and run the football.
03:40 And so I really think that he's going to be
03:43 a really good player there.
03:44 He'll be a different quarterback than what they've had.
03:48 But, you know, he's a good player.
03:50 He was a highly recruited, highly rated guy
03:52 out of Alabama for a reason.
03:54 And, you know, we've got to be ready for him
03:56 to be a dual-threat quarterback in that game.
04:01 You just have to watch their tape
04:02 and kind of just get a feel for them
04:04 and not worry about the specifics?
04:07 Well, definitely. You watch who they are.
04:10 You know, right now we're trying to figure out who they are,
04:12 not as much personnel-driven, but who are they offensively,
04:17 and what do they like to do?
04:18 You know, they like to run the football.
04:21 They've got an All-American running back,
04:23 and they're going to want to run the football,
04:25 but they also have got good players
04:27 around the pieces that they had.
04:29 You know, with Walker opting out,
04:31 they've still got good players.
04:33 And so looking at their scheme, we're looking at scheme,
04:37 what their coordinator likes to call,
04:39 based on down and distance and situation,
04:42 and scheming it based on that more so than who they have.
04:46 Just so you do have to have some assumptions.
04:48 You probably don't want to do that,
04:50 but one of them is they may not play a lot of tight end
04:53 because they don't have any available.
04:55 So that could change what they do as well.
04:58 Yeah, well, I think when you see teams
05:00 that have injuries at tight end,
05:02 good old line coaches like to get creative.
05:04 I won't give too much away, but they like to get creative.
05:07 And so we're going to prepare for that as well
05:10 with the creativity of an offensive line coach
05:14 because offensive line coaches love to run the ball,
05:16 and they don't like to do it with skinny guys.
05:18 And so they're going to find a way to get people
05:20 with big butts around that line of scrimmage
05:23 where they have to put extra old linemen in that position
05:26 or not, but we'll be prepared for that.
05:27 So maybe some guys wearing 70s might be wearing 80s.
05:30 Oh, yeah.
05:31 Those big guys that wear receiver numbers
05:34 or tight end numbers, but they still wear knee braces,
05:37 those guys.
05:40 Is it safe to say, obviously, they like to run the ball
05:42 anyway, but is it safe to say that you figure
05:45 they're even going to cling to that even more
05:48 because you're not only losing the QB
05:50 that took all the snaps, but also Tess Walker being gone?
05:54 I mean, it seems obvious what their scheme would be.
05:57 Yeah, well, I think they'll run their scheme.
06:00 I don't think they'll change a whole lot with Terrell being --
06:05 or Harrell, I'm sorry, excuse me.
06:06 Harrell being the backup, he's had reps.
06:09 They give their twos reps.
06:10 So he's had reps, and they've recruited well.
06:14 They've had two or three top-20 recruiting classes
06:17 in the country, so they've got good players there, I'm sure.
06:19 And so with some of the guys that opted out,
06:21 it gives their young players a chance to go play.
06:24 And I think they will run what they run.
06:26 Now, will they lean on certain things a little bit more?
06:30 I think they will because of the tight ends being out.
06:32 And the way they play,
06:34 they utilize their tight ends in run sets,
06:36 but they'll use the same personnel in pass sets.
06:39 I think that they can -- in this game,
06:41 they may be a little bit more run-oriented out of run sets
06:46 and not flexing those guys out
06:48 because they don't have those tight ends.
06:50 So we'll be prepared for both packages.
06:55 And that's really all you can do is prepare for both
06:57 and see what, in the first 15, 20 plays,
07:00 what the game's going to be like.
07:02 You mentioned turnovers and missed tackles.
07:05 Is that your biggest concern when you talk about bowl games?
07:08 Yeah, definitely.
07:10 At least the team that is the most excited to play,
07:13 the team that turns the football over
07:16 or that does not turn the football over
07:18 and can tackle after these layoffs
07:21 are usually the better team in a bowl game.
07:23 And I think that all just goes down
07:25 to what you emphasize in the bowl prep.
07:28 You got to really emphasize the fundamentals
07:31 like you would in a fall camp setting
07:33 because if you lose those fundamental things
07:35 that you do on a daily basis,
07:37 lose those going into a bowl game,
07:39 and then you get in a bowl game, the motion of a game,
07:41 and then you start to get out of position tackling
07:45 and just getting off of blocks.
07:47 And that's going to be the big thing for us
07:48 is getting off of blocks and tackling
07:50 an All-American running back over and over and over.
07:54 That's going to be our focus through these next seven,
07:58 eight days that we have here,
08:00 and we'll be ready for the challenge.
08:03 From the time Beanie got here, was there a moment
08:07 or just something you saw where you realized,
08:09 like, this dude is who we thought he is?
08:12 You know, he's legit.
08:14 Was there a moment or something
08:15 that just made you realize that about him?
08:18 Well, I don't know if it was any particular moment.
08:19 I just saw a guy that when he got here,
08:23 he didn't know many people, but he was always in the building.
08:26 He was always in the building, either in the film room
08:29 or was downstairs working with Mike Joseph
08:32 and his crew downstairs,
08:34 doing extra things in the weight room,
08:37 strength or recovery.
08:39 And you just see that out of a new guy.
08:42 You go, okay, this guy is serious about his craft
08:45 and what he wants to do and what he wants to be.
08:47 And then when you get on the field, you see a hard worker.
08:49 You see a guy who's a leader.
08:52 And I think you do that.
08:53 He was able to do that because he gained
08:55 the trust of his teammates really quickly.
08:58 You know, some guys come in,
08:59 and they kind of feel their way through,
09:01 and they try to, you know, kind of fit in,
09:03 to kind of make friends.
09:04 He didn't start out that way.
09:06 He started out as just a hard charger, alpha male.
09:10 I'm going to do what I do,
09:11 and I'm going to try to bring guys along with me.
09:14 And I think that was a blessing in disguise
09:17 because what happens now is you have other young players
09:20 around him that you see kind of gravitating toward that
09:24 because now, instead of going back to the dorm room
09:27 or the apartment to play video games,
09:29 they go down and do some extra in the weight room.
09:32 And he always brings people with him.
09:34 And he's just been a great --
09:37 just a great ambassador for West Virginia
09:39 and just for our room.
09:41 Man, it's been a blessing to have and to coach.
09:46 And, you know, I hope that he left an impression
09:49 on some of these young guys that are going to have to grow up
09:51 as we move forward, that that's how you become a great player.
09:55 You got to put work into it.
09:58 And a guy like him, you know, gets the acclaim here
10:01 at the end of the year, gets the Shrine Bull invite.
10:03 You have a good shot to go pro.
10:05 Probably not surprised that he's going to play in the Bowl.
10:09 I mean, that he's not --
10:10 I had zero doubt.
10:12 You know, I've had that question from different people
10:14 from time to time.
10:15 I had zero doubt that he was going to play in the Bowl game
10:17 because he's appreciative of West Virginia
10:20 and what this place -- the opportunity
10:22 that he was given here.
10:23 And he loves to play ball.
10:27 Again, he told you guys that he didn't play --
10:29 he didn't come here for NIL and all the things
10:33 that some people like to show up for.
10:35 All he did was just come here and work and make plays
10:38 and make plays and play with high energy.
10:41 And I thought when the Bowl game was announced,
10:46 every single day he would text me and say,
10:49 "Hey, which Bowl game we playing in?
10:51 Which Bowl game we playing in?"
10:53 And I knew he was going to stay and play.
10:55 And I don't think anything could have changed his mind
10:57 about playing in the game
10:59 because he likes playing the game of football.
11:00 He doesn't like -- he doesn't just love what football gives him.
11:04 And so that's the difference in guys that opt out.
11:06 Sometimes they love what football gives them,
11:08 all right, and the means to an end that football gives them,
11:12 as opposed to just loving playing football.
11:15 And I like those guys a little bit better.
11:18 Neil talked about, in terms of the players
11:21 that did go to the portal and choose to depart,
11:23 that he was only really surprised or disappointed.
11:26 I don't want to put words in his mouth, but kind of by one.
11:29 Do you have any thoughts on the players
11:31 that left and are in the portal
11:33 just because a lot of it affected where you coach?
11:36 I really don't.
11:37 My job is to coach the players that play for West Virginia.
11:42 And when players go in the portal,
11:44 I'm not upset with them.
11:46 Sometimes it's probably best for them
11:48 because of the opportunity to go somewhere and play.
11:51 But my job is to coach the players
11:53 that play at West Virginia.
11:54 And if you're in the portal, you don't play for West Virginia.
11:57 So that's all I can worry about.
11:58 Because if you left, you're not going to play
12:00 against North Carolina.
12:01 So that's wasting my time to even think
12:04 about somebody who's not here.
12:06 And sometimes as fans and writers and things,
12:11 we get caught up in who leaves and all that.
12:14 Coach Brown says it all the time,
12:16 and I used to kind of just go, "Whatever."
12:18 But the portal giveth and the portal taketh.
12:22 We're going to add some pieces as well.
12:24 We've just talked about Beanie Bishop.
12:27 If the portal didn't giveth, we wouldn't be talking about
12:30 a first-team All-American.
12:32 So we'll reload.
12:35 You know, the cupboard's not bare.
12:37 We'll get some guys out of the portal,
12:39 and we'll fill those roles.
12:41 Won't fill them, obviously, for the bowl game.
12:43 We'll have some guys that will step up
12:45 and step into new roles.
12:46 But I promise you, we haven't been sitting down,
12:49 you know, watching soap operas here the last couple weeks.
12:54 What soap opera would you watch?
12:56 I don't know. I just watch football.
12:58 I don't watch anything else.
13:00 I do like First 48.
13:02 I like First 48, though. That's my show.
13:05 That's only because my wife watches it,
13:06 and I don't have a choice.
13:07 Bring your wife in, and it's about cooking again.
13:09 That's right. No, she gets mad at me
13:11 when I talk about her on these press conferences.
13:14 [laughter]
13:17 Sean, it sounds like you're going to get
13:19 a handful of developmental practices
13:21 in addition to regular ones.
13:22 How much can, like, Jordan and Josiah stand up to grow,
13:26 maybe even, I don't know, maybe they see the field
13:28 in the bowl game?
13:29 Yeah, well, those guys are getting a ton of reps.
13:31 Right now, we do Monday night football.
13:33 That's kind of our developmental football.
13:35 We're doing about 20 minutes after every bowl practice,
13:38 which in a 20-minute period, you can get about 30 to 40 reps.
13:43 So those guys are getting a lot of game-like reps during that.
13:46 And we watched that film with them,
13:48 and graded and critiqued them,
13:50 and you can see some growth out of those guys.
13:52 I think some of those guys are still growing physically.
13:56 You talk about Jordan Jackson in particular.
13:59 He's gained probably about 10 to 12 pounds
14:02 throughout this fall semester.
14:06 He's gotten faster, and so obviously he's gotten stronger
14:10 because he's faster, but he's a guy
14:12 that will have an opportunity to play some in this game,
14:16 and then that will only bode well for him
14:17 moving forward going into spring of next year
14:22 because it's so hard for those guys
14:24 when they go down to scout team.
14:26 They run the other team's defensive scheme
14:29 and style of play,
14:30 and they don't run our defense every day.
14:32 And so the Monday night football gives them the opportunity
14:34 to get coached by us and run our schemes,
14:38 and so you can see growth.
14:39 And I'm looking forward just to seeing those guys
14:42 get out there on the field and play a small role.
14:45 And like I always tell them, you know,
14:47 if you star in the role that you're given,
14:49 your role will increase.
14:50 And so I'm looking forward to seeing them
14:52 have a small role in this bowl game.
14:54 Okay, anything else for Coach?
15:00 All right. Thank you, Coach.
15:02 All right. Thank you, guys.