BATON ROUGE — LSU head coach Nick Saban along with offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher and defense coordinator Will Muschamp addressed the media on Sunday morning before the Tiger’ squad of 105 players took team pictures in Tiger Stadium in the afternoon.
Archived streaming video is available now to members of LSUsports.tv. Go to www.LSUsports.tv and click on the featured broadcast to watch the one-hour press conference. Fans who are not members of the Official Webcast Site of LSU Athletics can watch this and all other live and archived media by joining the site now.
The Tigers took their annual team photo along with individual posed pictures before the one-hour session with the media on the field in the stadium.
Team pictures will be available soon in the Gift Center of LSUsports.net. Check back on Monday for more information.
After a meeting at 1:30 p.m., the team will practice from 3-5 p.m. in Tiger Stadium as part of the annual Fan Day festivities. Fans can pick up official football posters and schedule cards, as well as schedule magnets provided by EATEL.
Players and coaches will sign autographs from 5-6 p.m. on the field and all are invited to attend.
2003 LSU Football Media Day Quotes
Head coach Nick Saban
Opening Statement
“I am very pleased that we didn’t have a lot of off-the-field problems with our team this summer. I was very pleased with the way our team came back. I made the announcement that this is the most players we have ever had pass our physical training test, which is a real indication of the commitment our players have made. How hungry, how competitive, how willing to work, invest their time, is certainly important to the outcome of what happens over the long haul with the consistency we are able to play with. It is our goal this year to be a champion. Players formulate goals each year of what they want to accomplish. I was very pleased in the spring when they decided that this was the goal they wanted to try to accomplish, to be a champion on and off the field, as a person, as a student, as a football player, as a team. Together everybody achieves more in terms of trusting and respecting each other. Some of the things that we always take for granted are not easy to get people together to understand, especially in this day and age. I feel really good about the way this team has done that. We asked our players to do something, to dominate their opponent everyday and that started way back in April and May. We have had quite a few adhere to that because this is the best conditioned team we have ever had at this point in the season. Hopefully, that will help us practice better and help us get better execution.
“As I have said before, it is very easy to identify all the good football teams in our league this year. I don’t think it is easy to identify a dominant team, but I think there are a lot of good teams, which says a lot about the programs and the parity in the league. I think at the SEC Media Days, I talked about heart and how important it was, and I asked how many people saw the movie ‘Seabiscuit.’ Wasn’t it War Admiral, the other horse that was three hands higher with all the ability, size, and speed? The most important thing when it came to the race was make sure you let the other horse get where Seabiscuit could look her in the eyes because she would win on heart and not ability. To have that kind of character and attitude is what makes you a champion. Hopefully, our team is going to continue to show the kind of signs that they have shown to this point and we will see that type of performance on a consistent basis down the road. Does this mean it is going to be a perfect season? Absolutely not. Every season has its ups and downs. We are going to have some tough times and some disappointments. We are going to have some adversity to overcome, but it is how these players do that is to a large degree if we are going to have success.”
“There are a lot of questions about the freshman. I don’t know specifically after three or four practices who is going to contribute this year. The number one thing we want the freshman to focus on is the process of what they need to do to be good players. It’s not focusing on how much playing time they are going to get. The second thing is that there are several positions on this team where several freshmen create competition, which is a focal point for this team because it will add depth down the road as they gain knowledge and experience. We are pleased with everything the freshman class has done. This is also the most freshman we have ever had pass the conditioning test. We are very pleased with the commitment they have made this summer, to go to school, work out with the team. I think it has helped in their development. I think some of the biggest challenges for this team will be how we can replace some of the specialists that we have had on special teams. John Corbello was a very good kicker, and Domanick Davis was a phenomenal return man. Offensively, I am pleased with where we are. We have talked a lot about the offensive line and receivers we have, the importance of the quarterback position and the efficiency of that quarterback, the questions that we have at running back. We have some talented players that just need the opportunity to prove and show their medal over time. Defensively, I am very pleased with the front seven. There are some improvements we need to make in the young secondary. I think development in that area is going to be very important for us.”
On the success of the program after three years
“When you talk about program, I never just talk about how many games we win or how many games you lose. I think everybody has heard me talk about our mission statement, helping our players improve as people and be more successful in life because of their involvement in the program. It is kind of a character, commitment and attitude issue. We have a lot of programs and people who contribute to that. We have sports psychologists come in, and we have a lot of people come in who work to try to help the character and attitude of our players to help them be successful. Second thing, we want our players to graduate. We want them to build a good academic support program. I feel like we have made tremendous progress in that area. Obviously, those who work at the academic support center contributed to that. Roger Grooters and his staff have helped the players a lot. From an on the field standpoint, I was disappointed in the way we finished last year in terms of our ability to overcome adversity. Not going back to the SEC Championship game was obviously a disappointment. We felt like we had good enough football players to do it. The fact that we have been able to go to two New Year’s Day bowl games, continue to attract pretty good quality athletes in recruiting is a positive. I am a perfectionist, so to sit here and say I am satisfied in any way, shape or form in what we have accomplished at this point, I can’t really say that.”
On the strength of the offensive line
“I have said nothing but positive things about the offensive line we have right now. I think it is the best line we have had in terms of ability, experience and knowledge. They are a very smart group of guys who play well together. There is a lot of good chemistry there. I feel really good about the guys that we have. I actually look at our offensive line and think we have seven starters, which is the most I can say I have ever felt that way about. I think it is important to continue to develop depth down the road. Hopefully, we will be fortunate at that position to keep the continuity throughout the year.”
Offensive Coordinator Jimbo Fisher
On the difference of the new practice schedule
“I like it, I really do. It helps the learning curve for kids because there is a lot more meeting time and they get to watch the film. Sometimes if you go two practices a day you get to watch a little amount of film between practices and all the other things that go on. These young guys especially, they can go back and look at the film. They get to see the varsity do it by the way we practice it, then they get to go out and do it again.
“I think it helps our varsity because they are helping teach the young guys in meetings. And as you know, knowing something and teaching something is two different things.”
On the offensive line
“They’re doing very well. We’ve got a lot of guys that have played a lot of football. It’s hard if you have one or two good linemen and you put one or two new ones in every year because communication is such a big factor. Today defenses are doing so much. So when you’ve got guys who have been to battle together, they can trust each other, they know what each other is going to do and they know how each other is going to react under pressure. If your going to win you have to dominate the line of scrimmage on the offensive side and the defensive side and our guys know that and they have excepted that roll.”
On QB Matt Mauck’s foot
“He’s done a good job. He’s practicing and he hasn’t missed a rep. He hasn’t been full speed but it’s going to take a little time for his body to adjust. He’s passed every conditioning test we’ve had and he’s one of our top guys in our conditioning test.”
Defensive Coordinator Will Muschamp
“First of all I would like to recognize (strength and conditioning coach) Tommy Moffitt and the outstanding job the staff did. Our kids really came in, in great shape. That is really important when you are reporting and installing your schemes on offense, defense and special teams. The kids are able to retain more information; they are not just enduring the practice. That’s the big thing to me that our kids are in really good shape right now. Twenty of the twenty-five freshmen that reported passed the conditioning test, which is pretty phenomenal for the freshman coming in. That shows a lot about their maturity along their athleticism. I am really pleased on where we are from that standpoint.
On the first week of practice
“We have had five practices. We had three good days of split squads. We got the young newcomers a lot of looks. We installed a lot and threw a lot at them and see how they react to it from a maturity standpoint and be able to retain the information. Of course the older guys have come back and we are pleased with them so far.
On how the freshman have looked during the first week of practice
“The first question is going to be what freshmen are going to play. I will start from the back end. We are pleased with all the defensive backs. It’s too early to tell on any of these kids. We haven’t been in full gear yet. We have been practicing in pajamas for the past five days. That’s basically all we have done. Jessie Daniels and LaRon Landry have both looked good at safety, are both repping up with the second and third units right now and getting quality reps in practice and have done a good job. Jonathan Zenon, Nick Child and Daniel Francis all have the ability to play corner in the SEC. Time will tell when, but they are all good football players. Linebacker Dominic Cooper can really run. He needs to gain some weight and build a little bit more body structure. This is the first time he has played up. In high school he played down and came off of the edge every time. He is going to be a good football player here. Darius Ingram is learning how to play linebacker a little bit more. He was more of a multipurpose guy in high school. He played at a small school and is a tremendous athlete. He weighs 230 and runs well and is a physical kid. Kenneth Hollis has done a good job for us at linebacker. He is a very physical and instinctive kid. He is learning his through what to do right now. We are ready for that light to click for him. He is going to contribute to our football team this year.
“Up front we have been really pleased. We moved Kirston Pittman to defensive end, which is a more natural position for him. Sean Merrill has looked good at defensive end. Jarrod Carter inside with Carnell Stewart as well. All the new comers are guys we are excited about where they are from a standpoint of a year from now. How quickly they will play doesn’t always have to do with athletic ability, its how they are going to handle it when they step out there in front of 92,000 people. From that standpoint those kids we have got to see that maturity process when we go through camp, and again we have only had five days with them.”
On his impressions of the veterans after the first week of practice
“The older guys coming back we are really pleased with the front guys so far: Chad Lavalais, Marquise Hill, Marcus Spears and Melvin Oliver … Bryce Wyatt we have moved inside and is really having a strong camp these first five days. We are very pleased with him. Tory Collins has done some good things at defensive end. At linebacker of course there are some question marks, and we are still trying to fit some guys in. Lionel Turner is playing the Mike position right now. He can play Mike or Sam. Lionel is coming in good shape and has done some good things for us. Eric Alexander and Dave Peterson are both playing the Sam position right now. At and Will linebacker of course we have moved Adrian Mayes down to the linebacker and he has really shown some flashes of good things. He is a strong handed guy, he is physical, he is tough, he is down hill and we feel like he has some playmaking ability at the linebacker position.”