Nebraska Coach Bill Callahan

Nebraska Weekly Press Conference
Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2006
Memorial Stadium - Lincoln, Neb.
Pre-Oklahoma State

Head Coach Bill Callahan
Opening Statement
“We’re really trying to give it a great effort. We’re headed in the right direction, and we’re taking all the steps necessary to improve our football team.  Watching OklahomaState over the last two days, they are a quality football team. A team that’s very solid in every phase, and I think it’s evident as you study where they’re at from a statistical standpoint. They’re number one in the conference at scoring points at 37 points per game. They’ve done a heck of a job running the football.  Their backs have been outstanding. They’ve blended a lot of option into their attack, so that’s really been a marquee feature to their running system that’s netted over 203 yards a game.  A good balance across the board in terms of their pass-run offense.  You can see it’s reflected in the total offense, really an outstanding job.  Their kicking game is exceptional, if you watch their returns, they have the number one return specialist in the country in (OSU freshman corner back) Perrish Cox, who has done a tremendous job. Then you look at punt returns and they’re right up there as well.  One of the features that stands out about this team is that they are the least penalized team in the Big 12, so it shows that (head) Coach (Mike) Gundy has done an excellent job instilling discipline and production into that football team.  It’s going to be a competitive game, a heck of a battle and one that we’re looking forward to.”

On playing against a high-scoring team
“I always come in here every Tuesday and tell you that every game is different, so it’s going to be different.  So who can tell?  I don’t know.  But we have a tremendous respect for their ability to put points on the board.  They’re balanced because they can blend the option in. They can throw the football.  (OSU sophomore quarterback) Bobby Reid is the number one pass efficiency leader in the conference right now and he manages the game well.  He can strike anywhere on the field with a pass.  He makes good decisions. He manages their team, and from my understanding he’s healthy and he’ll be ready to play in this game, so who knows.  Who knows what we’re going to see."

On this stretch of games
“Another divisional game on the road, and we’ve alluded to the fact that this is going to be the toughest stretch in our season playing three of four games on the road.  We’re challenged by that, and of course I had (NU Media Relations Director) Keith (Mann) look up some facts, and I talked to our team Sunday about the fact that I don’t think Nebraska’s won three games on the road since 1983. So this is a challenge for our football team, and it’s one that we take great pride in and one that we’re going to have to be focused in on, because Oklahoma State could be 7-0, 6-1, if you look at their performance and things that they’ve done.  They had KansasState down to the wire. They had Texas A&M down to the wire, and we’ve been there too.  We’ve had games where we’ve had leads and we faltered like we did the other day. But they’re a quality football team.  I believe Mike has done an exceptional job in the short time that he’s been a coach there.”

On developing a mentally tough team on the road
“Well our players are excited to be on the road.  They like getting on the road and playing in different environments, and we’ve tried to build a mentality to thrive on that and to embrace it.  So I think this is a team that has relished challenges in the past, they look forward to this particular football game and they know it’s the most important one on our schedule. We give OklahomaState their due respect because you watch them on film and they’re a quality football team.  They do a lot of great things and they have a lot of weapons. You watch these guys on offense, there’s (OSU junior wide receiver, Adarius) Bowman this wide receiver, their backs, their quarterback, they’re awfully talented and again on defense they have some skilled athletes that have made a number of plays.  They have a great mix when it comes to their package so it’s going to be competitive, challenging and exciting in a lot of respects.”

On whether this game is a trap game since it is sandwiched right between Texas and Missouri
“I look at it as the next game on our schedule, as the most important, as I just stated and related to all of you that it’s the most important game our schedule, and we’ve treated every opponent with that due respect, and we’d be remisa if we didn’t.  And in this conference, it’s highly competitive, and when you have a team like OklahomaState that has done some of the things that they’ve done from a performance standpoint and from a production aspect, you better respect them.  It’s hard in this conference to go on the road and win a football team.  Home teams in this conference certainly have an edge.  Stillwater has been an environment where they’ve done an excellent job in front of their own fans, in their home stadium so they’re very comfortable.  So it’s going to important that we go down there and compete like crazy.”

On the boost that NU junior linebacker Steve Octavien gave in the game against Texas
“I really felt that all the linebackers played well. I’ve watched the film very intensely and watched (NU junior linebacker) Bo Ruud play very strong, as well as Octavien.  Two guys that I don’t think got mentioned enough off that film, not only (NU junior linebacker) Corey (McKeon) for what he did, but (NU junior linebacker) Lance Brandenburgh and (NU senior linebacker) Stewart Bradley.  All those guys, the entire corps played extremely well, and I’m proud of their efforts and I’d hate to single out one guy or talk about just one guy because they’re all important to us.  But they certainly did a great job in that particular game, all four, five of those linebackers did tremendously.”

On bouncing back from the loss to Texas
“I think kids are resilient, and our team is certainly resilient.  They know that all of our goals are still intact and this the stretch where it’s important, where you wind down and you close in on these last four games, and particularly this game, it can set the tone for some things down the line.  But we can’t do anything in terms of reaching our goals unless we go down and compete as hard as we can to capture this win.”

On whether it helps that Nebraska has had to bounce back from a loss before
“I think this is a mature team that understands what the opportunities are.  I really look at our football team as a solid character group of players that embrace one another, play hard for one another, that want to compete at the highest level, that know and understand the expectations of Nebraska football, and want to do their best.  And I think they put things behind them pretty quickly, no matter who the opponent is, and they’ve moved on.  That’s a reflection of their character and their ability to refocus.”

On whether he was surprised by Steve Octavien’s strong performance after missing four games
“No I wasn’t, I mentioned that on the teleconference yesterday.  We saw him do what we saw him do in spring, and then of course what we knew about him from the year before.  He just hasn’t had time or playing time in front of a crowd, or opponents to validate that. But no, I’m not surprised and I don’t think anybody is for that matter.”

On Steve Octavien’s health status after being seen limping off the field in the fourth quarter
“My understanding is that he’s fine.”

On the possibility of making junior I-back Brandon Jackson the primary running back
“We’re going to use them all.  We’re going to do a lot of different things with our backs this coming weekend so stay tuned.”

On OSU junior wide receiver Adarius Bowman
“He’s just a big-bodied guy that transferred from North Carolina. They got a real gem in this player.  He’s fast. He’s quick. He knows how to get open. He has great extension skills when he goes to the ball. He’s a really well-versed route runner, just solid. He’s a real weapon for them.  When you look at the big plays that he’s made, that’s what concerns you.  That not only does he have the ability to make catches, but to also make big plays after the catch.  His ability to create yards and make plays after he’s received the ball is what really concerns us as a staff.”

On the changes made throughout the season
“I think we’ve changed it up quite a bit.  I think if you look at us now compared to where we were three, four, five weeks ago we’ve really altered and modified and changed.  We’ve tried to change up our package to give it more mix and variation.  That’s the biggest thing that I’ve seen, and the players back there adapting to all the changes that we’ve put in. I think that’s been huge.  They’ve done a great job with the pressure package and the sub packages, the bait packages and the variety of coverages that they’re playing back there right now. That’s the biggest thing that I have to credit to our defensive staff and our players for us, that they’ve handled a lot of new things and a lot more volume than they’ve had in the past few weeks.”

On whether NU junior defensive back Andre Jones will be designated to cover bigger opponents
“We’re not there yet in star coverage.  Star coverage is the coverage that we refer to when you take your best corner and you lock them up on their best receiver.  There’s opportunity to do those types of things, but we’ve stayed pretty flexible in that respect and haven’t locked up anybody on one particular guy. At times we can and have but not as a staple and not as a constant pattern of play where you’ll see a guy that could be locked up on one particular receiver the entire day. We haven’t done that, but we have the ability to.”

On the similarities between OSU sophomore quarterback Bobby Reid and Iowa State’s Bret Meyer
“I think he’s different. I think he’s the most unique guy we’ve played because of his ability to run the option and his ability to come off the play action and makes plays and create plays with his legs and the passing game as well as the running game.  So this is a dangerous quarterback that we’re facing.  He has been experienced and he’s been in their system, and he has a good feel for what they’re trying to get accomplished, and it’s an excellent system.  To their credit, it’s all clicked in.  I know they changed gears a year ago when Coach (Les) Miles left for LSU and Mike (Gundy) took over and they went through a transition offensively, but seemingly they’ve really transitioned well and done an excellent job.”

On OklahomaState’s defense
“I really like their package in terms of how they mix it.  They play a lot of two deep, they mix it in, a lot of man coverage and different zone coverages.  They can pressure you from anywhere on the field and that’s a credit to what they’re doing.  It’s made some tough downs for opponents in the past few weeks.  They’ll bring the corner off the edge, they’ll bring the safeties, they’ll bring backers weak and strong, so there’s a good balance to what they’re doing so they really make you check your protections and to make sure that you are solid in terms of your pick up.  So if there’s a hole in your protection they are going to try to create a pressure to puncture that particular weakness and that’s what we see on film.  They’re very good.  They have good corners, they play a lot of different zone blitz technique, they’ll play regular man technique so they really mix it up, they change the picture frequently so you can’t get in rhythm against them.  They keep you off balance in that respect.”

On whether OklahomaState gambles a lot in their defense
“I don’t think they gamble. I think they have a philosophy that they’re committed to that they believe in and that they’ve made a lot of big plays from.  I don’t think it’s a gamble. I just think it’s a matter that people are going to score in this conference. They’re going to move the ball and that’s the nature of this division and this conference.  I think they’re good. I think they’re very good in so many respects.  They have two excellent pass rushers that can put pressure on you.  Their corners are outstanding.  Their safeties can come down and make plays.  Potentially this is a defense that can keep you off balance and can keep you in the long-yardage situations if you’re not careful.”

On kickoff coverage
“I think we were pretty darn good up until this last game.  We were standing right up there in the top of the country in terms of kickoff coverage, and we got burned on that one particular play.  We’ve been pretty solid in the coverage aspect.”

On how to help NU junior wide receiver Terrence Nunn bounce back from the game against Texas
“Just keep playing him, and play through it.  Terrence is a great kid and I don’t think there’s any one player that would have wanted that play more than Terrence Nunn, obviously from being from the state of Texas.  But you just have to keep bringing him along. He’s a quality player and he made plays throughout that game to help us be in a position to go ahead.  It’s unfortunate, but things like that happen and you just move along.  He has the support of his teammates. He has the support of this staff.  We love Terrence Nunn, so we’re going to keep coaching him as hard as we can to make him better.”

On what the team can take from the game against Texas
“I think we can always be better. I think we can always go back to that game because I think we could have played it better. I think we could have coached it better. We can do a lot of things better. But it’s in the past now. We’ve really moved on from Texas, and really focused in on our next opponent, Oklahoma State."

On senior quarterback Zac Taylor
“He’s a tough guy. He really competes as hard as he can. It’s just a matter of time before he really lights it up. He’s been efficient, and he’s been excellent in so many respects. We ask him to do a lot of things, a lot of things the fans don’t even see. He commands a lot of respect in that huddle and he’s managed a lot of things at the line of scrimmage. He’s put us in a lot of great calls and put us in position to make a lot of great plays. I’m sure he’d always want a throw back or two, but I think he’s done a really great job of leading this football team. Zac is a consistent performer, through and through. The beginning of games, the end of games. He’s managed it really well.”

On the team’s performance in the second half of the game compared to the first half
“When we came in at the half we really settled down in terms of what we had to do from a protection standpoint. We straightened out a couple of protections at halftime. There were a couple of different things they were doing from a pressure standpoint that we looked at. Referencing (senior quarterback) Zac Taylor one more time, he really allowed the line to settle in. We did some things to help our guys pick up their defenders in terms of their assignemtns, but I thought we adjusted pretty well. I thought (offensive line) Coach (Dennis) Wagner did an excellent job of settling those guys down and getting them on the same page, and really helped them get their sets established. When I say sets, I thought we set better in the second half than what we did in the first half.”

On whether the team will do anything different in preparation for the contest at Oklahoma State
“Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing that we normally don’t do for a road game.”

On how the team plans to evaluate special teams after Saturday’s match against Texas
“We’ll look at everybody. We’ll continue to work everybody in that phase, special teams. Of course, we don’t want to give up field position. Field position is crucial to anybody, but in this particular instance, fielding decisions become really crucial as you get down the stretch. So those fielding decisions are crucial to us, and they’ve been pointed out to all of our players.”

On if the many fake plays utilized this year indicates an increased confidence in the personnel
“Oh there’s no question. I’d say it’s confidence in our players and their ability to perform. They thrive on doing different things, but we just want to be sure that we’re sound in everything we’re doing. We’ll take necessary risks. We’ll take the risks we’ve got to take. They’re calculated. You just don’t throw caution to the wind and start calling fakes left and right. But they’re very well calculated. I think the staff has done a tremendous job of planning those particular items. Players thrive. They embrace it. They have fun with it ? that’s the main thing. It can change the course of the game, and give you a big play like it did Saturday. They enjoy it, they have a lot of fun with it, and we’ll have to come up with a few more, because we emptied a few of those out."

On whether there is a certain point in punt returns where players know whether to fair call or return the ball
“Yeah, of course. Especially on sky-type kicks or pooch-type kicks, where they’ve crossed the plus territory or they’re on or near mid-field, and the ball gets punted with the wind and you’re on the 10-yard - you really don’t want to field a punt anywhere less than the 10 or the eight yard line. You really want to fake fair-catch it and let it run into the end zone. That’s really the thought. You’d love to field every short kick, and here in this stadium, especially with that wind, when it cranks up to the mileage that it does, you’ve got to be ready to handle the dead ball. And we’ve spent an enormous amount of time working on that fundamental. There are just some balls that get hot that you just can’t get to, and there are some other ones you want to make a confident decision on and go get it. We left a lot of yardage on the field on Saturday (against Texas), and we have to improve that.”

On the challenges a coach faces when traveling to a new stadium
“I just look at it as a regular football field, and you just prepare your team to do the best they can to go and play. It’s all about playing within the white lines and coaching. When the game gets going, it doesn’t even really matter. For the players and the coaches, everyone is so zoned in on what they’re doing, it doesn’t really matter. That’s the mentality that you have to have to overcome certain things that may happen on the tough road environment situation. Maybe it’s the officiating problem that you’ve got to overcome. Maybe it’s a score deficit that you’ve got to come behind on, or an injury on the road. We just try to plan on those contingencies the best that we can. We focus on all the positives. We don’t talk about negative phases. We just remain positive and talk about what we can do, and just really maintain that attitude through all of our preparation.”