Gene Chizik has wrapped up his press conference. Here's what he said:
- Daren Bates is the starter at the RLB. "Whenever we can increase the speed of the defense, we'll do that. ... He learned everything at a pretty rapid pace. He's a physical football player. That's suited for him."
- H-back is an eclectic group. "They're all kind of different in their own right, but when they're in the game, they can be in different places. ... That's a position where you can get creative so you have different types of guys."
- Excited to have starters Zac Etheridge and Aairon Savage back on the field. "We need those two captains back there to direct traffic."
- Arkansas State offense similar to Auburn's. Up tempo and fast.
- Difference from Year 1 to Year 2: "Just a comfort level, players and coaches."
- Can't put a tag on what will make the team better. Then he talked about consistency. Too many highs and lows last season. "Are we maintaining that high level as much as we were last year," he said.
- The consistency line applies to the offensive line too. "They're lumped into the same category as everybody else."
- The most important thing for Cam Newton. "Anybody can be good when it's good. We want to know how everybody responds when it's not, especially the quarterback."
- Quindarius Carr, aka "Q", has done some good things this August to grab a backup receiver spot. Has confidence to throw the ball to him.
- On Kirk Herbstreit's pick that Auburn will win the SEC West. "It's flattering. I don't think anybody's expectations are higher than ours. ... The bottom line is our expectation of ourselves is high."
- Chizik did not know that was coming. Herbstreit never talked to him.
- Four walk-ons on the two-deep."Every one of those guys are guys we identified who can upgrade our football team. All four of those guys have done everything we've asked them to do and earned that spot."
- First start for A.J. Greene at RT. "That can get exciting for us. ... He's going to have to go out there and prove he can do it on game day. We feel confident he's the best guy for the job."
- On the punting competition: Ryan Shoemaker will start.
- LaDarius Owens not on the depth chart. Still transitioning from DE to LB.
- Chizik doesn't expect DT Derrick Lykes to be back any time soon. Might have surgery. Will know today.
- DT Zach Clayton was one of the guys who had the best first part of practice. Chizik said he's been healthy the entire time, which helps.
- FB Ladarious Phillips (foot) will not be ready for the opener.
- Chizik thinks Arkansas State is tough. Took Iowa, Texas to the wire in recent years. Strong defense year-in and year-out. "Arkansas State is not going to come in here and be wowed by all thing."
- On playing a Thursday night game next week: "Right now, we're focused on this game. It'll be a fast turnaround, but we're not looking ahead to Game 2, Game 4, Game 6."
Gene Chizik has wrapped up his press conference. Here's what he said:
1 comment:
I couldn't follow it live today, but it seems to have kept it's flavor.
THANKS!!!
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