BATON ROUGE — LSU head coach Les Miles spoke to the media on Monday at his weekly press conference, as his top-ranked Tigers get set to face Kentucky on Saturday at Tiger Stadium.
Kickoff is set for 11:21 a.m. CT on the SEC Network.
TRANSCRIPT OF LSU COACH LES MILES’ WEEKLY PRESS CONFERENCE
Opening Statement…
“Our football team is looking forward to getting home. It is interesting to start the season three of four weeks on the road. You understand the road regiment, what you are supposed to do and how to play in close quarters. I think we’ve got a real strong team identity. I think offensively we understand that we need to run the ball, possess the ball and not turn the ball over. We have not been giving our opponents penalty yards. We possess the ball, and we certainly get takeaways. Our defense continues to play with great intensity on the road and that is a nice identity to play with. I heard a coach say, ‘what is the reason that your football team is a good road team.’ They are a damn good football team. That is what makes them a good road team. I think our team is a confident and good football team.”
“Moving to the West Virginia game, I heard that it was going to be a special and wonderful place to play. I heard that there would be a wild crowd there, and we were not disappointed. Our team enjoyed that environment. It was every bit the great atmosphere that it was reported to be. Offensively, we had good balance. Any time that you are plus four in the turnover margin, as were in that game, it gives you a chance of winning. We had a short field most of the time. I felt our quarterback managed the game well and protected the ball well. Our running backs are running hard. Spencer Ware is providing a difficult man to tackle in the early going of games. Defensively, they gave up some yards. It certainly wasn’t a perfect outing by any stretch, but they continue to play with great intensity. Any time you get four turnovers to none, it gives you a great opportunity to win the game. You look at the penalties, and were five for 45 yards and West Virginia was 10 for 73 yards. We were plus four in the turnover margin. Time of possession we had the ball 33 minutes to our opponents 26. That to me is a great recipe for winning, especially when you throw in special teams. Brad Wing averaged 40 yards a punt, got it inside the 10 six times and was named SEC Special Teams Player of the Week. I felt like James Hairston came in and kicked for us. He gave us a real lift there and got the ball into the end zone a couple of times. He provided us with the some nice hang time and distance. Morris Claiborne scores on a kickoff return at a time when the momentum of the game was in question. It extinguished any hope that the opponent had at victory. That was the 15th special teams touchdown that we’ve had since 2005 and the second this year.”
“We wake up to Sunday and Monday to be the number one team in the nation. I have to be honest, we take it as a compliment to the program and to this team. We don’t feel that it is an extra burden or target on our back. Every time LSU comes to play, some one is going to try to beat you and they are going to give you their best effort. We’re not going to wear an extra target. It is going to be the same. We always want to achieve. It is a position where there is a game out there where we want to qualify for. I think there is a special group of guys here and I love this team. They want to improve and they recognize that they have not achieved where they want to be. Somewhere in the future there is an opportunity to qualify for that game that they are hoping back. I enjoy the position. I think we will try to play to that. It is a position that allows a college aged man to go to bed and wake up with the same thought that there might be a special spot for this. I know that we haven’t arrived. Our team understands that we are imperfect in a number of ways. We’re going to keep preparing with the idea that maybe we can get there. The best way to do that is to prepare this week for Kentucky.”
“Kentucky is a very quality football team. They have good players. I’ve looked at them and realize comfortably that this is an SEC team. They have SEC players and you can see it. Their quarterback is very talented; they have a big and strong defensive line, linebackers that can run and a secondary that can cover. I know that they are 2-2, but Joker Phillips is a fine young coach and a guy that I know will have them prepared to play. I promise you we will be focused on Kentucky. They tell me that this is a morning game. We will look forward to being back at home.”
On being number one in the past…
“I went through the learning process a little bit. We hold a spot in college football today. It is not a final achievement or the spot that we’ve earned at the end of the season. It is a compliment to the work they’re done. I think we’ll try to play to the eventually. There is no difference. I can remember in 2007 a game in Tiger Stadium every one was saying that if we finished in front of Florida that we would be named number one, and we were. Then there was a Kentucky game that came after that game on the road, and it humbled a very talented team. We’ll recognize that a talented team being named number one didn’t necessarily fair to well the next week.”
On success against non-conference opponents…
“The only thing I can tell you that each week is a different challenge. A team has to be ready to overcome personal issues and hurdles. It is a week-by-week piece. It is not necessarily the view of the conference or the view of the team. I can tell you that this conference does prepare you for big games and big environments. We were no strangers to Dallas when we arrived. We had already played on the road, so that when we went to Mississippi State it was a like environment. The experiences that we’ve had through out this year have reflected well on our conference and our team. Again, I always look at is as a brand new week and a brand new challenge.”
On forcing turnovers and preventing turnovers…
“I think that we have great speed, get to the ball violent, understand that the ball is the issue and than you have to take the ball away. It happens on defense. There are good players there. We work on ball security every practice. We work strip and takeaway every practice. It is a point of emphasis. I give credit to the coaches on the offensive side. I think that Frank Wilson does a great job of teaching it and has a proper perspective when it comes to ball security. Bill Gonzales and Steve Ensminger who coach those guys that handle the ball on the perimeter are exactly the same. Our quarterback to this point in time is making better decisions thanks to Steve Kragthorpe. I think there is a concentrated effort on what to do with the ball. We want it returned to us.”
On injuries…
“I think T-Bob Hebert is day-to-day. Alex Hurst is likely. I think Craig Loston is also a likely. Michael Brockers is a guy that will be out today but back at the end of the week.”
On how the team responded to preseason off the field issues…
“The off the field issues is so uncharacteristic of this football team and these guys. Certainly we were all embarrassed in things that were not held in immediate position of emphasis were suddenly reemphasized. I think our guys enjoyed that and understand it fully. They are a team that is committed to each other and a close knit group of men. They are ambitious and want to be more. They understand that there is a hurdle and an obstacle that hey have to get beyond if they want to achieve what they want. It just so happens that this happened in preseason and certainly an eyesore.”
On Texas A&M joining the SEC…
“There is an honest want to expand and continue to be the best conference in the country. The addition of A&M is a piece that allows us as a conference to continue to upgrade and make our presence felt nationally. Privately and in my own personal wants, I just can’t believe that the Big 12 is separating and having great teams like Oklahoma, Texas and Oklahoma State in a position where they are looking to be in another league. It is hard for me to figure this. It is inconceivable that there is not a historic base in the great state of Texas for one league. You take the traditional rivalries and throw them out the window. Do I think that it is good for the SEC? Absolutely. Do I think it is good for us and Texas? Absolutely. For college football? I am still watching. I am not certain.”
On the confidence of the secondary…
“It is an interesting piece. There is a confidence that you need to play with. There needs to be a want for competition and an enjoyment of being tested. I think that you saw that in West Virginia this weekend. I think our pass coverage was tested based on how well they threw the ball. I didn’t see any backing up or withdrawal from our secondary, and I enjoyed that. We need to improve on some of the tremendous mistakes that were made. They weren’t made because they didn’t have confidence or play aggressively to the ball.”
On the defensive mistakes…
“Any time that a guy makes a mistake in a bust I see it as a red flag that needs to be addressed and corrected. That is what we do. I don’t know that you build a monument to any of those mistakes because I think they are correctable. We have good players who will be able to do what they are expected to do.”
On the complete team effort…
“The offense did the things they needed to do. The special teams did what they needed to do. They took a 99 yard kickoff return for a touchdown. There were pieces of the game that we controlled by all three phases. We forced four turnovers and scored a special teams touchdown. We held the ball longer than our opponent. There were some real positives there. Again, it takes all three phases.”
On removing Jermauria Rasco‘s redshirt…
“We seem to think that he has a real ability to learn and understand football. We think he is one of those guys that are physically advanced and very capable. We want to watch him play and grow in this year. We think there is a lot of football left in front of this team and Rasco. We’re looking forward to him developing this year. we felt like we were ready for him to start his career.”
On multiple players wearing No. 38 . . .
“We like No. 38 more than other numbers. The guys who punt and kick around here either wear No. 30 or No. 38. The guy who goes out on the field gets to wear No. 38. So I think it’s a wonderful number or they won’t necessarily know who’s wearing what number. The opponent not having number recognition of who’s punting or who’s kicking could be an advantage.”
On Tyrann Mathieu . . .
“Tyrann is a guy who has a knack for making big plays. He has great anticipation. We like to put him in a position where his natural interpretation of play allows him to be exceptional. I think we have a number of guys in the secondary like that. Tharold Simon, Mo Claiborne, Brandon Taylor and Eric Reid all played well against West Virginia. Multiple guys in our secondary have speed, size and experience. Our inexperienced guys are very youthful and very talented and can play a lot of football in the future.”
On Jarrett Lee‘s progression this season . . .
“He continues to get better and take coaching. He understands that it’s work and progress. He has improved and I think he will continue to improve. This weekend will be another step for him.”
On the defensive performance against West Virginia . . .
“Geno Smith gets the ball out of his hand so quickly and he’s very accurate. He’s also difficult to sack. Those factors together make him special. He forced us to play coverage and he continued to play well. A lot of the plays where he got it out quick we got tips and forced picks. That was a form of pressure that worked for us.”
On the work Jarrett Lee has put in over his career . . .
“I’ve seen a lot of quarterbacks have great steady growth at the position and I’ve seen that in Jarrett right on through. I’ve always said he’s always competed to be the starting quarterback. That’s always been his mindset and we’ve encouraged that. He keeps developing. I think the quarterback coaching change helped him, not to bemoan the coaching, it’s just getting another voice and input reconciled some of his views on the throwing game. Again, he was baptized under fire in Tiger Stadium in this conference as a very young player with a team that may not be as talented as the team he’s currently quarterbacking. He’s deserving of the success he’s having and I’ve enjoyed his improvement. He needs to continue improving because it’s a different challenge every week. Kentucky will provide that.”
On La’el Collins . . .
“Right now we’re still looking at him as a guy who might still play a lot of football this season. We’re not ready to determine anything like a redshirt yet.”
Player Interviews
September 26, 2011
RUNNING BACK MICHAEL FORD
On LSU as No.1…
“With us being here right now, you grow up. You have to stay focused. You have to stay humble and level-headed. You don’t pay attention to any of that. Even if we were No. 1, No. 5, No. 20, each team is going to bring their A game and fight for No. 1.”
PUNTER BRAD WING
On his family in Australia…
“Although my dad was never involved in college (football), he was involved in the American football team. He played in the European league, and he was with the Detroit Lions for a year. So he understands what’s going on. They’re all keeping up with everything that goes on, and the support from them has just been great.”
On differences in his punting style…
“The Australian ball is a bit bigger. It’s got a bigger sweet spot on it, and it’s easier to hit. Just doing reps, reps, reps to get used to the American ball has been the biggest thing and the biggest difference.”
CORNERBACK TYRANN MATHIEU
On holding records after only less than a year and a half of college football…
“I don’t really think about it that much. Right now, I’m really just trying to help my team win the championship.”
On helping the team and getting the ball…
“We don’t want to put our team at a disadvantage. It’s really all about field position. So, the quicker we get a turnover, or the quicker we force those guys to punt the ball, the better position we put our offense in.”
QUARTERBACK JARRETT LEE
On LSU as No.1…
“We work hard to be the top team, but it’s not something we got out and say ‘We’re No.1, we have to do this’ We just have to play our kind of ball, keep practicing hard and working hard like we have been.”
On Running Backs Spencer Ware and Michael Ford…
“Having two backs like those is great. They can run the ball. They run hard. Not only do they run hard, but they protect well and pass-blocking. They catch a ball out there in the back perimeter and things like that. So, they do a whole lot other than just running and making special plays.”