Sept. 5, 2011
Franklin Press Conference | Smith, Barden, Strong | Game Notes & Depth Charts
Gameday Central
Head Coach James Franklin and select players met with the media on Monday to discuss Vanderbilt’s upcoming game against UConn. The game will kick at 6:35 p.m. CT at Vanderbilt Stadium. Both teams are 1-0 this season.
Vanderbilt Head Coach James Franklin
Opening Statement
After watching the tape, one of the things I think was important about the game was the turnover battle obviously. We had two interceptions, Trey Wilson and Casey Hayward, which were big plays for us, one fumble recovery forced by Tim Fugger and recovered by Walker May. All three of those resulted in points for us on the offensive side of the ball. Penalties, we had four penalties in the game which I think was a real positive for us, we have to continue to clean that up, our goal is to have zero penalties. Of the four penalties the one that probably hurt us the most was the roughing the kicker, which resulted in a first down. I thought Casey Hayward’s play really got us going, it was a big play for us, came really close to scoring.
The other thing I think is important, looked at Larry Smith’s stats, thought he played extremely well. We’d like to get his completion percentage up, but on the same hand, he had three throwaways where he made great decisions, didn’t take a sack. The other thing, he had five drops. He didn’t take sacks, he didn’t create any turnovers, and he put the offense in position to be successful and didn’t hurt the team.
Talking about the UConn game, things that I think are going to be important in those games for us is winning the turnover battle again. I know Coach Pasqualoni, I’ve got great respect for him and what he’s done in his career. He’s going to have a disciplined football team. On Saturday, right now, we’re going to have a +3 turnover margin. UConn is at +1. On defense, we need to be disruptive up front–sacks, tackles for loss–to get their offense off schedule. UConn has a very experienced defense with nine starters returning.
Regarding total yardage from the Elon game:
I think it was a combination of a lot of things, we only had 58 plays on offense. (The defense was) on the field too long. We had the one play drive that was an interception that our defense had to go right back on the field again. It puts your defense in a tough situation. But I think a lot of it was opportunity, you just look at total plays, time of possession, it swung in their favor, so the more opportunities you’ve got, the more opportunities you’re going to have on yardage.
On the second half adjustment to the running game:
I think we definitely adjusted in the second half and calmed down a little bit. We’re obviously going to see good offenses all year long, but I thought once we settled down and got back to playing aggressive, I thought we did a much better job in the second half.
What about the coverage of wide receiver Aaron Mellette?
First off, I think he’s a good player. We did some technique and fundamental things where we were blitzing and leaving our defensive backs on islands, which is good, we’re going to do that, but we didn’t play the right techniques and we weren’t aggressive as we need to be.
Injury wise, how’d the team come out of the Elon game? How is Norman doing?
Larry got banged up at the end but that was more a precautionary thing we did with taking him out. Warren Norman, we feel good about, we could have played him on Saturday, he’s good to go. The longer we could hold him was kind of the play the first week. If we had to play him this last Saturday, we could have.
How do you plan for the possibility of facing three quarterbacks, like with UConn?
Each one of those quarterbacks is a little bit different and they play to their strengths. I think we have a little bit better of a situation because we got to watch tape, so we got to see how the different quarterbacks were used. It gives us an opportunity to prepare.
Relationship with UConn defensive coordinator Don Brown?
I have a lot of respect for Don. He’s been a head coach, he’s won a national championship, he has been a highly successful defensive coordinator, and I think what he was able to do with that Maryland defense in two years and get that thing turned around, I watched him every day in practice and though the did a really good job. He’s a very aggressive guy. Right now he’s got a veteran defense that’s won a lot of games, that’s played in BCS bowl games, and he’s good up front. I think he’ll stay true to who he is.
Player Quotes
Senior Quarterback, Larry Smith
On losing to UConn the previous year:
We came up short last year. We got shut out in the second half and that was really disappointing for us, so hopefully we can use that as motivation to go out there Saturday and play better than we did last year.
On the major factor in the team’s previous loss to UConn:
Momentum. We had complete momentum in the second quarter, we scored 21 points and then came out in the second half and didn’t score a point at all and they had full momentum the second half and they were able to close the game out.
On his growth as quarterback:
Being smarter with the ball and understanding that there’s another down out there. Taking a sack hurts the offensive mindset and my mindset as well, so I just try to eliminate those losses.
Junior Linebacker, Tristan Strong
On anxiety in Elon game:
A lot, especially for myself. It was my first career start. I was really excited, really nervous, so there were a lot of emotions going on.
On the game slowing down:
After my first series it kind of slowed down a little bit, but at the start the game was moving really fast.
On getting into a rhythm:
It took us some time to get into a groove, and get into the game, but it turned out well. We were able to step up and shut them down.
On not overlooking UConn:
We look at UConn and they’re a strong team. They went to a BCS Bowl game last year and, and we can’t underestimate anybody. We know they’re a great team and we’re going to have to play our best game.
On UConn’s three quarterbacks:
That’s tough. I know they played three quarterbacks in their first game, but we’re able to watch film on all three of them, and figure them out…see their tendencies and what have you.
Senior Tight End, Brandon Barden
On looking forward to playing UConn at home:
We kind of have a chip on our shoulder. We’ve been talking about it in the locker room about how they got us last year, and we feel like we should have won the game. This year we know that we need to step it up and take it to another level against them.
On not getting excited about one win:
With all due respect to Elon, that’s a team we should beat. They played really well. We started off kind of slow, but I think in the fourth quarter we finally showed how we can really play. They’re a great team for their conference, but this week is definitely going to be a step up with UConn.
On taking anything away from last year’s game at UConn:
Yeah I remember scoring three touchdowns real quick, and then just coming out in the second half real flat, and we didn’t score again. We want to come out this year and beat them for good.
On what to take away from Elon win:
Just take the momentum. Now we’re 1-0, but we’ll take it one game at a time. This week it is UConn, so we’ll want to take our momentum and keep working on getting better. The competition is going to get harder and harder as we go through the year.
