Corey McKeon Quotes

Nebraska Football
Preseason Press Conference
Monday, Aug. 6, 11 a.m.
Memorial Stadium - Lincoln, Neb.

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Corey McKeon - Senior, Linebacker

On fall camp

"We had a great summer and guys are excited to get in and play some ball. Fall camp is a tough time. It’s a time for learning and time to get new guys in and integrated. Everyone’s excited and ready to play ball. Today is our first practice. We get to learn all the new stuff that we’ve learned 10 times that we’ve got to get implanted into our heads. Go practice, have fun, win games and all that great stuff."

 

On how much he has learned heading into his senior season, and how much he still needs to learn (Listen)

"There is still a lot. As we showed in the spring, we’ve got a lot of new defenses and calls and stuff like that that even the older guys are grasping. Coach (Kevin Cosgrove) Coz has done a lot of film studying in the offseason and has learned a lot of new things and wants to integrate a lot of new stuff, like different formations. He really wants guys to come into their own, move guys around, play guys a lot of different positions. So it’s learning new spots, new formations, stuff like that, that we’re going to go through early this fall to get in it so we’re ready for the season."

 

On Defensive Coordinator Kevin Cosgrove's changes for the season

"Personally I think Coach Coz kind of gets bored with stuff, so he tries new things. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. He likes to move guys around. If he’s putting Steve (Octavien) down at the rush end a little bit to run off the edge. He’s moving (Phillip) Dillard to the nose to get some speed down on the D-line for pass situations. He likes experimenting and you know it pays off. Stuff like that is fun for us. It gets to put us in different positions and different packages. Bring guys in, take guys out, you know keeping guys fresh. It’s all stuff like that that keeps it interesting for the coaches and the players."

 

On the linebacking corps being the strength of defense

"You come to the linebacker corps for everything. The calls and everything like that, you guys know that. Leadership especially, you've got four veteran guys there, four seniors. Even Phil (Dillard) has seen a lot of time there so he’s got experience that could really show through. You’ve got to hold the defense. Secondary has a lot of guys, too. D-line's got a few guys that have some experience. If you’re going to look at the linebacking corps, you’re definitely going to see the girth of the team - guys that have been there in a lot of situations the last three years. Definitely a lot of leadership coming from us and we’ll take hold of the team."

 

On elevating the program this year (Listen)

"We talk about it. We say this is the year. We say we’ve been knocking on the door. We’ve been banging around with the big dogs and now this is the year we start beating them. If I think this is the year to do it, it will break through, and then the younger guys can really see that and take that experience and go forth and win more games next season. This is the year. You look at everything. You've got the best schedule to be in position. This is the year to do it."

 

On the biggest upgrade to defense this year

"Just different personnel groupings on the field. We’re going to use different guys in different situations. We’re going to match up better with guys. Instead of just making guys play our game, we’re going to adapt to them a little bit better. We’re going to put more speed guys when we need speed guys and more pass rush guys when we need pass rush. That will be the biggest difference that you guys will be able to see that isn’t technical mumbo jumbo, as they call it."

 

On playing a 3-4 defense (Listen)

"It’s definitely in the package. It will be something that we run to. We kind of disguise and then we get into. It’s not that big complication of a difference than normal 4-3 defense. You’ll see Clayton Sievers. He’s a very big hybrid for us on the front line. He can play a lot of positions. So you’ll see him playing that outside linebacker and playing the D-end. He’s a hybrid. When you have guys like that and Barry Turner and (Steve) Octavien who can play both, it leaves your front open to a lot of options including the 3-4, so you’ll definitely be seeing it."

 

On injuries the last couple seasons

"There’s always been an issue. Whether it was Stu (Stewart Bradley) getting hurt or whether it was Bo (Ruud) with the broken arm. Lance (Brandenburgh) had that geeky little cast for a while. I went down for a while.  I’d like our linebacking corps to stay intact and see what we can do. I think we can bang with the best in the country. As long as we are on the field to prove it, it could be exciting."

 

On the inexperience in the front four (Listen)

"They’re molding and they are getting a lot better. There are a lot of young guys there, guys that haven’t had a lot of playing time, but they are talented. It takes us molding to them just as much as anything. We’ve got to be able to play off of them just like they play off of us. Them being a new corps, it’s going to take time to manage that together. As long we get together and we have the same game plan and we’re managing things the same, we’re all looking at the same angle and staying on the same page, then it shouldn’t be that difficult to come together and have a tough front seven. I know it’s a lot of question marks with the new guys up there, but they are talented. As long we get into a mold, into a strong front seven, we are going to be a dominant force."

 

On establishing a personality on the defense (Listen)

"I think it’s big and you know one of my concerns, going into fall camp with this defense, is there are not a lot of loud brash guys with a lot of personality. You know I kind of had Stu (Stewart Bradley) with me last year. You kind of have to be in a guy's face. Stu is this big, tough guy and everyone knows he’s tough. He’ll just snap you in two if he has to, but he’s not a guy that will help you get pumped up. He’s going to be the guy that will stay to himself and dominates his own way. We need guys that are loud and entertaining, that can get in people’s face. I expect (Steve) Octavien to do that. I expect (Phillip) Dillard to do that. Lance (Brandenburgh) and Bo (Ruud) are quiet guys. They are talking and talking but they're not brash and loud. For us to be the fast, dominant defense that I think we can be, we've got to get people down to the ground. We've got to hit hard, and we've got to let them know we are hitting them hard. We’ve got to see that emerge this fall. We need louder guys that are more intact, more willing to be an idiot basically. More willing to get in someone’s face and be loud and joke around, but get the job done. I think it’s very important for our defense."

 

On newcomers who may have that personality

"They’ll come in and they are just trying to feel their way around. There are some guys that definitely have a lot of potential to be that, especially on the linebacker corps. I think <?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>Austin is a very talented young man and as soon as he gets a grasp of the defense, he’s going be an asset to this team. As far as big personalities, we haven’t seen too much of it yet. I know (Anthony) Blue and Prince (Amukamura), those new corners, they are very talented and they like to talk too, which makes it fun for me. Those two are very loud, so it will be interesting to see how they integrate into the defense."

 

On Coach Kevin Cosgrove's teaching that personality

"That’s something that can’t be taught. That’s something that comes natural. You can’t make guys be loud. You can’t make guys get involved like that. His new thing that I like is, you come into his boardroom and there is a smiley face and there is a frown face and you check your attitude at the door. You’re not feeling it, you’ve got to put your name under the frown face and then the guys on that smiley face get the on the guys under the frown face to get on the smiley face, because fall camp can get a little stressful. It’s stuff like that. Coz does to try and integrate guys, and try and get them involved with each other, which is very important. Especially when you’re getting all these new guys coming in, like in the linebacking corps. You can’t teach that stuff. Guys can catch on and start doing that themselves, but a coach can’t demand that of a player."

 

On being a leader

"To be the only one yelling and the only one trying to joke around, it gets frustrating. But if guys start catching on and play along. You know Zach Potter gets into a little bit, it encourages me more, then it encourages him. Then he’s encouraging (Ty) Steinkuhler, that’s when the defense really comes together and becomes powerful."

 

On his hairdo being a reflection of his personality

"Everyone’s copying my mohawk and, for the record, you guys know that I had that long time ago. So when you see all these guys that come in with a mohawk, you can just pretty much just call them Corey. I had the mohawk going yesterday and today I walk in and 30 guys have it going."