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Rice Football 2019: Week 8 UTSA Press Conference quotes

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Rice Football head coach Mike Bloomgren wrapped up the UAB game, talked about the off week and looked forward to the Owls Week 8 game against UTSA.

More: Rice Football game preview for Week 8 vs UTSA

Running back Aston Walter and defensive end Trey Schuman joined head coach Mike Bloomgren at the podium on Tuesday. The trio made closing comments on the UAB game and looked ahead to their Week 8 game against UTSA.

From Mike Bloomgren

On the bye week…

“It was a really productive week for us. I thought it came at the perfect time. I loved having the bye week after six games. It was great for our coaches to really dive into our self-scout. To see what we’re doing numerically that other coordinators can see and try to take advantage of it. We made sure we changed those things and also really watch our cut-ups and see what we’re executing at a high level, what we need to do more of and what we need to stay away from to put our kids in the best position possible.”

On the hunger for the team’s first win…

“I think our team is very, very hungry for a win as we stand up here and just keep working. It’s one thing to stay the course and do the things that we’re asking them to do. It’s a whole other thing to get the rewards in the locker room for all of their hard work. Not just during the football season but dating back to spring ball and all of the summer workouts. I want so badly for us to put it together, play our kind of football and come out victorious this Saturday.”

On standouts from practice this week…

“If I were to pick anyone on both sides of the ball, it would be JoVoni Johnson on offense and on defense it would be Tre’shon Devones. But, there’s a lot of guys that are continuing to step up and earn more playing time. Those are two that really stood out, I think, to anybody that watched.”

On the things the coaches addressed during the bye week…

“There’s some things, personnel grouping-wise, where we feel like we were becoming too one-sided. I think when you have two backs on the field and three tight ends, you’re probably going to run it more than you throw it but maybe there’s a way we can find more play passes there. The same thing is true when we’re in ten personnel with four wide receivers on the field or 11 personnel. We need to find a little more balance in running the ball. Those are just things that are always good to see. We do, do it week to week, so we know about them, but there were a couple of them that were glaring that we’re going to try to address.”

From RB Aston Walter

On the energy around the team this week …

“We had a lot of great practices from young guys to older guys and a lot of good reputation. The energy is probably the best that has been — not saying that the other weeks haven’t had this energy — but during this bye week was amazing. And I think even yesterday during practice, you can just see that everybody’s locked in, focused, engaged, really excited to do see what we can do this week going forward, just go out there and compete and try to get that first win.”

From DE Trey Schuman

On what the front seven is hoping to improve…

“Getting to the quarterback. It’s no surprise. We don’t have the sacks and the production in the pass game that we want to and we want to be able to work well with the back end to stop the quarterback and stop them on third downs. Because we feel like as a defense, our third down efficiency is below par right now. And so for the front, it was really just getting to the quarterback just perfecting your pass rush game, knowing where he’s at, staying aware — because with this UTSA game, especially they got a guy who can run — so getting back there and making sure to keep him inside. It’s going to be on us. So we gotta handle that.”

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Rice Football: Week 2 Wake Forest Press Conference quotes

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Rice Football suffered a close loss to Army, but Mike Bloomgren and the Owls are looking forward to getting another shot against Wake Forest in Week 2.

One week down and 11 more to go. Rice Football is ready to move on from their Week 1 loss as they prepare for a rematch with Wake Forest. Hear from coach Mike Bloomgren and a few of the Owls’ players as they recap the loss and look forward to Week 2.

From Mike Bloomgren

On the offensive philosophy against Army…

“Offensively, going into the game, I wanted to match their style of play. I didn’t want them to be able to hold the ball for 40 minutes. I wanted to be able to have a pretty even time of possession, which, at the end of the third quarter it was really close. I wanted to have a chance to win the game in the fourth quarter by taking them to deep water. That’s exactly what we had. We had a drive to go down and score. I told the team this, I had no intention of kicking an extra point. We were going to go for two because we were there to win the game. ”

On kicker Will Harrison…

“In college football, when you line up to kick them, they have to go through the pipes. That’s the kicker’s job. I had a good conversation with Will Harrison. Our team has his back. We’re trying to get him to do his job and be confident that he can do his job. We’re really trying to get his confidence back so he can be the kicker that we know he can be this week. We’re going to need it.”

On preparing for Wake Forest…

“They’re a unique offense with what they do. It’s a great challenge for our guys. The other thing that’s going to be a great challenge is that I heard it’s going to be Houston Hot on Friday. They’re saying 102 degrees. So we’re going to prepare for that as well. We got the advantage we can go out in it and get ready for that. So we’re going to go out in it today and tomorrow and we’re going to be battle-tested.”

On how the offense changes against Wake Forest…

“In the flow of a normal game, we’re going to have more possessions. Maybe we’ll throw a ball on possession-and-10, the first play of a drive, which we did zero times on Friday night on purpose. We’ll have more opportunities and, hopefully, find more of a rhythm. But, we have to make the most of every opportunity in the passing game.”

From Nahshon Ellerbe

On fullback Reagan Williams…

“I call him Moses because he just parts the defense on every play.”

From Antonio Montero

On the transition from practice to stopping Army on the field…

“The speed of the game didn’t feel much different, comparing Army to our scout teams. That’s a testament to how Coach Svoboda had them prepared, the effort they put into practice.”

On the confidence level of the team…

“Playing a really good team like Army, playing them that close shows that we can play with anybody. So obviously, I’m incredibly optimistic about that too. And now we have another really good challenge coming up in Wake Forest and I think we can do, if not the same, even beat Wake Forest.”

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Rice Football: Week 1 Army Press Conference quotes

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Mike Bloomgren, the Rice Football team captains and the newly minted starting quarterback met with the media in advance of their Week 1 game against Army.

The Owls are ready to hit someone in a different colored jersey. Those who spoke on the Tuesday press conference touched on the key takeaways from fall camp and spent a good amount of time looking forward to the upcoming season, specifically their Friday game against Army. Here are a handful of the most notable quotes:

From Mike Bloomgren

On the mentality of the team as a whole…

“I think this is a team that is hungry for success. You see it in the way they practice. You see it in the way they’ve taken care of their bodies, the way that they’ve really dove into learning these complex NFL systems on both sides of the ball. Really proud of what they’ve done so far… They know that being physical is a non-negotiable trait in our program. And they have certainly answered the bell.”

On why he chose Wiley Green to be the starting quarterback…

“He’s got elite arm talent … but also the way he prepares, the way he lives a quarterback lifestyle. And very simply, I think one of the things that led him to secure this job as our starting quarterback is his experience in the system and his ability to protect the ball consistently throughout training camp. Those are the things that are non-negotiable.

“This time last year, Wiley was taking three or four reps, and he was still struggling at times to call plays in the huddle like all quarterbacks do when they first enter the system. And now he really thinks like a coach.”

On Army…

“It would be extremely hard to prepare for this team in one week, in two days of actual practice. Luckily for us, we started practicing on them in the spring, for last two weeks, our commitment to them defensively has been real.”

“You can’t waste plays against this offense, or against this team, I should say, because it’s all about negative plays, they get you in negative plays and make you go three and out. You may not have the ball for 12 minutes, they’ve proven that time and time again on film.”

“I think Army absolutely feasts on finesse teams. That’s what they want. They want people that don’t want to, that aren’t willing to stand in front of them, and throw punch after punch after punch. And what they’re going to see is, you know, we’re going to be willing, we are willing to come into the fight. And we’re going to fight. I think these guys love each other too much not to do that.”

On the difference from last year’s opener to now…

“It’s the second time around for me. And just understanding more about my staff and this team, and having the comfort and knowing how great the people around the world and the trust in them. I probably tried to do too much as a first year head coach, especially with the experienced guys that I have around me. And I know who I can trust with what and so I can focus on the things that are truly important. I know this team better. I know this group of guys, especially as leaders better. I will sleep well Thursday night.”

From Myles Adams

On his focus during for his senior season…

“Unity and togetherness… that’s what we pushed this summer in our offseason… We’ve really bought into that intellectual brutality, where we have pride in what we do, in perfecting our craft, everybody having a common goal and trying to strive for that together.”

From Austin Trammell

On the feeling around the team…

“If you just kind of ask around, you could tell there’s a different energy, a different vibe going around the guys. Because it’s a new feel with how we are together. There’s a bond, that unity that Myles [Adams] is talking about. We just all love each other so much. And we want to succeed for our brothers, not so much for ourselves. And I think that’s what it’s going to create a lot of success for us.”

From Chris Barnes

On being named a team captain as a senior…

“Never thought I would be in this position, but like I said, I’m extremely grateful for it and I just want to do the best thing I can for the team and build this culture we’re trying to establish here and leave a lasting legacy.”

From Wiley Green

On the team’s mindset facing Army’s physicality…

“Army’s a disciplined team, but I feel like we’re gonna come out more physical across the board. The offensive line, fullbacks, running backs, shoot, even at the quarterback position, we’re going to come out more physical than they are. Because that’s that’s what we preach here. And that’s what we’re going after.”

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Mike Bloomgren talks about finishing strong, Old Dominion press conference notes

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Rice football had the chance to go up against an SEC foe in Week 12. The team learned a lot, but now they look ahead to Old Dominion and the last game of the 2018 season.

Mike Bloomgren on the team’s performance against LSU

They stood toe to toe with those guys and they hit, and they hit, and they hit. I thought it was a physical football game.

Bloomgren on the upcoming game against Old Dominion

It’s going to be a great challenge for us. We know it’s going to be a four quarter battle. We want it to be a four quarter battle. We’ve got to get it to deep water and give our guys a chance to win this game. If we can play like we’re capable of on O and D and let special teams be the difference for us we’re going to be happy with those results.

Bloomgren on how big a win would be this weekend

For my sanity, it would be huge. For the direction of the program, it would be a big boost in recruiting. I think winning this football game would mean a lot to this program…It’s a constant battle of doing the things you win football games, preparing the right way. We always use the word process around here.

Bloomgren on his confidence in the program

I am disappointed that our record wasn’t better for these kids. I am not wavering in our belief that we’re going to get it done. We’re going to play in bowl games and we’re going to win championships here.

Captain Zach Abercrumbia on the significance of a win over ODU

Faith is believing in things unseen. Right now we’re holding onto the faith that we’re making progress. And we are… but to get a win would finally get us something tangible to hold on to.

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Why not us? LSU press conference notes (11/13)

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Rice football faces their toughest task of the season on Saturday as they travel to Death Valley to take on the SEC’s LSU Tigers. Mike Bloomgren and the team remain confident.

There won’t be many people around the country that have a Nov. 17, 2018 matchup between Rice and LSU circled on their calendars. From a national perspective, it’s a vaunted SEC superpower against a lowly Group of 5 opponent. While that might be the trend, Rice football seeks to be the exception.

“They’re going to be more talented than us,” head coach Mike Bloomgren freely admitted in his Tuesday press conference prior to the game. “But every week in college football you see a team go into one of those places [and win].” Bloomgren said every week there’s one game that forces you to do a double-take when you check the score on your phone and gasp, “Those dudes beat them?”

Old Dominion toppled Virginia Tech, Akron beat Northwester and Eastern Washington upset Purdue. A massive upset happens every week. Why not this week? Why not Rice? Bloomgren didn’t shy away from the possibility, remarking “Nobody outside of these walls believes we can do it and we know we can.”

The key to engineering the upset starts with cleaning up mistakes from last weekend. Quarterback Sean Stankavage’s three interceptions were at the top of Bloomgren’s gripes against Louisiana Tech. The running game, primarily on the legs of Aston Walter was better, but still has a long way to go until it gets back to the level this team is capable of.

The team is confident, but measured. Safety Prudy Calderon, who picked off two passes against Louisiana Tech knows they’re in for an arduous task. LSU is a team that he described as having that “one shot capability” – something Rice has struggled with throughout this season. Calderon’s insertion into the starting lineup has helped, but the secondary as a whole will have to step up their game even further.

“Our guys are up for the challenge,” Calderon declared, echoing Bloomgren’s believe in his team and hopes for Saturday. It’s gong to be a battle. Rice knows if they’re still standing in the fourth quarter they’ll have a shot. That’s all they’re asking for.

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