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Nebraska Football
Weekly Press Conference
Monday, Nov. 9, 2020
Pre Penn State
Press Conference Video
How is the team’s confidence right now?
“All I can say is that I trust the guys on this team and I love the guys in this team. We’ve worked so hard and we've been training for so long that I trust that we’ll be able to overcome this adversity. We haven't gotten over that hump yet. I believe it's going to happen. You have to believe it's going to happen for it to happen, and I think we have the guys. But we just keep working, you get what you earn. So we gotta go into practice this week and earn it and every week we gotta earn it.”
How did you think the younger receivers played on Saturday?
“Marcus (Fleming) played great, it’s really cool to see. Marcus, Alante (Brown), Zavier (Betts), Omar (Manning), all of them got out on the field and get some PT (playing time) and made some plays. It’s been a long time coming for those guys and I trust each and every one of them and it's finally cool to see them get out there and make plays. For the weeks coming forward they've been preparing and get ready because they know their chance is gonna come and so their chance came this week and so they all got with me different at times. Just ask questions, go over plays, make sure they have it all down even from the day before the game. They were asking questions just to make sure that they had all down they had it all right, just wanted to double check and so that attitude toward being perfect I think helped them all. And I think they all want to be great and it's going to be awesome having them in our room, being able to get some PT going forward.”
How to you describe Marcus Fleming?
“He's explosive. All those guys are but the speed they have and that acceleration it's really cool to see. I'm obviously a little envious of all those guys and the physical tools they have, but no, they've been great. It's been a long time coming for them. As I said this summer, seeing them progress has been a great and I'm excited for all of them moving forward. I think they're going to help us.”
What’s two or three things you’d like to see Nebraska’s offense get better at right now?
“I think the one thing that comes first to mind is no mistakes. We made too many mistakes that killed drives. Too many self-inflicted penalties and negative plays that we've had this season and that we had last game, and it really shows. Too many false starts, too many holdings and that's not all on the line, it’s the quarterbacks, wideouts, we gotta get better as a team with that going forward. And I think that also in the red zone we have to be more efficient when we get that close in scoring drives either in the fringe red zone or up close. We gotta finish those drives. We gotta get points. We gotta score more points and so we're gonna work on that going forward. We already talked about in our meeting so I think we're going to have some new plays and some new periods in practice is to work on those things and get better at that.”
What do you make of passing struggles in the red zone?
“I think within the red zone passing game becomes a little different because defenses play different things. The coverage is not the same, blitzes usually coming. Anticipation is a big thing for all of us in the red zone because everything happens so much faster and the windows are smaller. So I think that the anticipation, I talk to quarterbacks a lot about it, it’s key in getting the ball out quick and getting into our hands and us anticipating the ball coming. And it's something we're going to work on going forward, and I'll make sure with the quarterbacks that we’re ready going forward in the red zone to be better at passing, because we can't be one dimensional moving forward.”
Do you think the team has the belief to get it done on offense?
“Starting off with the wideouts as I usually do, those are my guys. I think that (Matt) Lubick, Wan’Dale (Robinson) and I and a couple of the older guys had a really good job building a culture in there that believes. Beause if you don't have belief, you really don't have anything else. So I think that that believing is the first key, believing that you can be successful believing that you can make those plays, believing that we're going to win these close games. And I think that that belief starts for me in my room. I think that we have worked hard over this summer, over this quarantine season to start building a belief. And I think you see those young guys step in there and they make plays. We have some older guys get some PT for the first time and they're making plays. So I think it starts from top to bottom in our room, that everyone believes, and then expand that to the whole team. I've talked to the leaders of every position group and I think that moving forward, if you don't have belief, you can't have anything else. And the fact that we've worked so hard to get to the point we’re at that you have to believe that the next step is coming or else you can't work any harder. So, I think that we will keep working, we’ll keep moving forward and we'll get over that hump. And we believe that we will.”
What is your belief right now in the quarterbacks to get it done?
“Unwavering belief in both of them. I think Adrian moving forward will work on the things he needs to work on. He's one of the hardest workers in the team, and I think he will correct the mistakes. And then Luke is always ready. You know Luke. He's ecstatic, he's electric. He knows what he's doing. He can make plays in the field, so I have unwavering faith in both of them going forward. I love both those guys and I'm blessed to have both of them as my quarterbacks.”
Do the younger wide receivers understand what it’s going to take for them to contribute more?
“Yeah, they know. They know that they have all the physical attributes to play, but at the end of the day, you gotta be able to block and you gotta know your assignment. And they know those are the two things that all these young guys have to work on moving forward because we said no block, no rock. So they know that they have to get better blocking and they have got better blocking from where they started. And then knowing your assignment. If you don't know your assignment you can't build that trust with the quarterback, you can't have your timing. So now the fact that they all know their assignments and they're all willing to block and willing to put their bodies on the line for the rest of this team, I think it's a great stepping stone and I think they all know they still have to work on it, but where they're at right now is a great spot.”
What did you see from Adrian Martinez today in practice and did you have any conversations with him in the days since the Northwestern game?
“I talked to him during the game a little bit and at the end of the game. Last night he actually came over and we just talked. Talked about the game. Kind of put it away, put it in the past behind us. But no, I talked to him. He knows that he didn't play his best. He knows that there's some mistakes he made that he wished he could have back. But he also knows that no one will work harder to fix those mistakes than him. And he also knows that he can make all those plays that he missed in the game. So his confidence is unwavering. He's ready moving forward. But yeah, I always try to stay in his ear and know that I’m someone he can talk to, that I still trust him, and he's still my quarterback and I believe that he’ll get it turned around.”
What will the vibe be like in Memorial Stadium on Saturday?
“The vibe is already different. I mean you got cardboard cut outs in the stands and we got a tunnel walk with a bunch of picture frames. So the vibe is already different. But I think that you'll see the energy is still there even with just a limited family members that we’ll have. My parents are coming, so I know they'll be screaming their hardest and I know a lot of guys are going to use all their tickets to try to fill up that stand as much as we can. But the vibe is definitely going to be different, but we've already gone through two games with no fans, so we're used to it now. So it's gonna be a nice change to have somebody cheering for us and in the stands a little bit more energy, but we're ready for it.”
NU Athletic Communications