Cougars continue to ramp up fall practices

On what has been accomplished through first days of fall camp
“A lot of good, a lot of mistakes are being overcome. I see our players who are expected to be really good playing really well. I really like the competition among the corner group, Jenaro Gilford has done a really good job with those guys having them ready to go, competition looks good.”

On who is competing for the cornerback spot
“I like Mory Bamba, Therrian Alexander, Evan Johnson, and Johnathan Kabeya. Those guys are playing really well. Markus McKenzie has done some great things. The group looks deeper right now and I like the progression, there's a lot of talent here.”

On how the defense has progressed to this point vs. last year
“In certain spots we are better, some worse. We really miss guys like Tyler Batty and Blake Mangleson and some of those guys. If you look at us without those guys we are behind because those guys have played a lot of football. We will get those guys caught up. If you look at our safety group we are light years ahead of where we were last year.”

On how the Defensive line looks
“Keanu Tanuvasa looks good, John Taumopeau looks really good, and I like defensive end Logan Lutui who has played great. The bottom line is that the group is super deep and there's a lot of talented youth in them. I'm excited to see how the next twenty three practices go before the first game.”

On Tanner Wall at safety
“Yeah, the safeties are playing really well right now. There's an absolute dogfight going on at safety right now. 
Faletau Satuala and Tommy Prassas look great. Talan Alfrey's had a great camp so far, so there's a dog fight going on in safety.”

On Siale Esera
“I like Siale Esera a lot right now. 
He's physical, he's big, he's fast, and then there's others right now. Choé Bryant-Strother has looked really good right now. I think we're progressing in the right way. Coach Justin Ena does such a good job with them. I really like where the backers are at.”

On how things change with different players
“We change drastically from year one to year two. I see us this year being different than we were last year. So I think that's good for teams that are trying to scout us, not knowing exactly what's going to come and how we're going to be. But we have to play to our personnel, we have to play our strings.”

On Jernaro Gilford’s new role
at as defensive passing game coordinator
“He was really already doing what this new role requires. He’s in charge of being on top of scouting and what we do in our individual roles. He's a huge asset for me and for our staff, and he's already been doing a great job.” 


On cutting the roster down to a two deep
“It’s going to be tough. I'm already seeing the issues that are going to arise. 
It's going to be hard to come up with a travel roster. It's going to be hard to come up with starters in certain positions, and it's going to be hard to come up with just two. Our job as coaches is to recruit the best guy we can get, create as much competition in a room as we can have, and then make the best guy win.”

On what he looks for in a recruit
“I look for his talent ceiling. What is the limit of his potential, then our job is to get them there. They come in all shapes and sizes at every position group you've got small, fast guys, and you got bigger, strong guys. Bottom line; Are they effective at what they're doing?”

On Bear [Bachmeier] being a part of the quarterback question
“It wasn’t really about summer. It’s just what he was in high school and how quickly he has been able to learn. He’s smart and up to speed. He needs reps as far as chemistry goes with his teammates, but in terms of knowing what to do, he’s been dialed in.”

On giving LJ [Martin] touches
“Yes. I don’t want to give an exact number, though. He’s one of our best players. He’s in great shape. He’s really changed his body. He’s leaned out a little bit and he’s one of the best players on this team.”

On [Hinckley] Ropati’s potential return
“We hope so. We’ve appealed to the NCAA for another year and from what I know about it, I believe that he should get another year. But I don’t know if that will happen or not. We’re waiting. We would love to have him back. I want to point out what a critical player he was for us. Last year, we won 11 games and he was a huge part of our success. We would love to have him back.”

On the offensive line
“Today was the first day in pads, but we feel like we have depth there and should be able to run the ball.”

On who has stood out in the tight end room
“Carsen Ryan has really stood out, as he did in spring ball. And there’s some other good players there. We are just working though how that will shape up, but I like that that group has improved.”

On the challenge of quarterback battles
“It’s always a challenge, but I’ve been through this enough times. I hope that people have some confidence that we can get this done. We’ve done it before and we have a good process that we go through.Whenever that starter is named, everybody on the team will be like ‘oh yeah, of course.’ We’ve done this in the past with Zach and Jaren, Jaren and Baylor, etc. We’ve been through this last year with Gary and Jake and we’ll do it again.”

On the timeline of determining quarterback
“There’s no deadline, but the sooner the better. I would prefer not to be naming starter on game day, but you have to let it play out a little bit too. If you rush it, it creates some other issues. We need to let them compete for a little while. I know you are going to keep asking every time, but we have to let them compete so we gather enough information to make a good decision.”

On the promotion of Matt Mitchell to assistant quarterback coach
“He’s been an integral part of our coaching staff and huge in the development of our quarterbacks. We team up together on that. He’s had a big role in our game planning the whole time he’s been here. When we lost him to Baylor, we missed him and we fought to get him back. Giving him that title was a way of showing him our appreciation of what he does for our program. He’s a good coach.”

On goals for this year’s fall camp
"I think just continuing to emphasize getting the ball, right? Forcing takeaways and being really intentional with the way I see and read the field. Being able to make decisions quicker and react faster than I have previously. That half-second makes a big difference, whether it’s showing up in the alley on a run or breaking on a pass."

On how this year compares to last year at this point in camp
"I think it’s kind of a tough comparison. We’re probably in a pretty similar spot, honestly. As far as our veteran guys, I think we’re definitely ahead. As far as playing as a unit and building chemistry, we’re still on that track with some new additions and young guys stepping in. But I’m confident we’ll get there and be in a really good spot come Game 1."

On the competition at safety
"We’ve got a lot of talented guys in that room, guys with game experience who’ve made plays. At the end of the day, it’s going to come down to who’s reliable, who’s doing the right things, and who’s getting takeaways and making plays. We’ve all got to compete and earn that time."

On what fans can expect from the defense this season
"Honestly, something kind of similar to last year. I’m just excited to see how much chaos we can cause, how many turnovers we can create. That was a huge reason for our success last season. We had interceptions from every position group: D-line, linebackers, defensive backs. A big focus this year is being better on first and second down and stopping the run. Coach Hill talked about how our third-down percentage needs to improve, and the key to that is winning earlier downs."

On expectations for the defensive line this year
"Absolutely, I think they’ll get to the quarterback a lot. We’ve got great pass rushers, a great scheme with creative blitzes and looks. I’m excited to see it."

On younger cornerbacks stepping up
"I’ve been really impressed with Tre Alexander. He’s made huge strides this offseason, gotten bigger, stronger, and he really knows the playbook. He’s made great plays and has been sticky in coverage. Evan Johnson has played really well too, and Jonathan Kabeya showed us flashes last year, especially in the bowl game. He’s a great young player and I expect him to make plays this year."