The following quotes have been excerpted from Army head football coach Stan Brock?s press conference, held Tuesday, September 25, 2007, in the Randall Hall auditorium.
Army Head Coach Stan Brock
(Ref: Boston College)
?After watching the tapes, we felt like our kids played very, very hard and to the best of their abilities. It?s disappointing we came away with a loss, disappointing for the kids who worked so hard. We reviewed the film, corrected the mistakes like we do all the time and we?re ready to move on.
?Offensively it was a tough day but we were playing against a good team. We knew Boston College was good and they didn?t disappoint us. We got in there and hung with them for a while, we just couldn?t make some plays when we needed to. Players need to be accountable, they know they need to make plays when they present themselves. It?s not one guy, one group of people.
?Defensively, we played well. They were on the field too much. We need to get them off the field and keep them off the field. Boston College has an excellent quarterback and a great team and prevented that.
?Special teams did a really nice job. Owen Tolson had a great day of punting. He had to handle all the kicking and came out and did a really good job. Special teams stepped it up and played much better. Coverage and return teams were much improved.?
(Ref: Temple)
?They are a team that is very much like us. They are very hungry for a win. They are playing extremely hard. They beat Connecticut. They can say whatever they want and watch the play; that was a touchdown in the end zone. They play very hard. Coach Golden has them playing hard. They are a young football team. The offensive line is huge and moves well. Defensively, they are well coached. The linebackers have a lot of speed. They have a quarterback that is probably more accurate outside the pocket and they have a running back that is very good. It will be a big challenge for us here at Michie Stadium and we?re excited.?
(Ref: quarterback situation)
?Carson (Williams) will probably play again. We haven?t got on the practice field yet but right now David (Pevoto) is progressing and doing well. I would never put him on the field unless he is 100%.?
(Ref: kicking situation)
?Adam (DeMarco) has been injured, through the whole season. It?s one of the reasons we were punting early. We didn?t want to have him in situations where he could injure himself or make it worse. We gave him last week off to get his health and strength back.?
(Ref: penalties)
?Penalties are very subjective. If you look at it and watch on tape there are some things that can be called and should be called. There is a huge difference -- in my opinion -- between mistakes and pre-snap mistakes. The pre-snap mistakes we work on. The ones that happen on the field the referees are going to make the call.?
(Ref: FB Mike Viti)
?He took a shot to the head (against Boston College). He is a tough kid and we will have to see. He will be day-to-day.?
(Ref: running game)
?The running game is like the passing game, it?s a team sport. It takes the wide receivers blocking and the offensive line blocking and the running backs hitting the right holes. And, we?re playing some pretty good defenses as well. Right now, we?re juggling the offensive line around and it?s not my choice. It?s something we have to do.?
(Ref: playmakers)
?We have a package that we use for Carlo (Sandiego) and think he is a really good player. Damion Hunter and Corey Anderson both can be playmakers. We think our tight ends are playmakers. Somebody has to step up and make the play. We?re not quite getting it done. It?s at every position.?
?I?m not down; the team?s not down. We sat in this room and broke down the whole film as a team. Everyone understands where we are and what we need to do. I think we?re going to be OK.?
(Ref: Carson Williams)
?A perfect game, no one has played, really ever. He is getting better and more comfortable in the things we are asking him to do and the reads we are asking him to make. It goes to practice. We have to practice to build his confidence. The offensive line needs to protect for him where he can go back and set his feet, to where and he is confidence he can do that. At practice, we have to have the offensive line protect him and he has to believe receivers will run the correct route. It?s not as simple as you would like it to be.?
(Ref: play of the linebackers)
?I am very proud of those guys. They are playing so hard. They are great kids, the whole team is. They are outstanding kids. To watch that linebacker corps, actually, watch the whole defense. They fly around, they make things happen.?
(Ref: Michie Stadium)
?Anytime you get to go home, it?s nice. We?ve been on the road for a couple of weeks now and we are very excited about being back. Anytime we are in that far end zone and the Corps of Cadets is there... Right now, the thing we have to hang our hat on is, we are undefeated at home. And we will hang our hat on that. We?ll talk about that. The kids will be fired up and excited and when I say kids, I mean the whole corps. They know how bad we need them. The team understands how bad they need the Corps and we?re excited to be back.?
(Ref: 0-4 Temple)
?We?re not some superpower you have to worry about. I have said this all along and when we finally believe it... It doesn?t matter who you are playing. It doesn?t matter if they line up blocking dummies or put the best team in the nation out there. If you do what you do and do it to the best of your ability, everything else will take care of itself. Temple?s coaching staff is probably feeling good that they are playing an Army team, not the powers they have been playing in their mind. They are probably excited about getting up here and playing us. I believe it ill be a very hard fought game and we will play the whole 60 minutes.?
(Ref: importance of a win)
?It?s important to have a win, at anytime. From a mental standpoint, we need a win. We needed a win last week, we needed a win when we played Wake Forest. We need a win every week and that?s how we are trying to approach it, trying to expect nothing less.?
(Ref: Owen Tolson)
?It will all depend on Adam (if Tolson kicks and punts). I know Owen is comfortable doing both. I have told you this before, Owen is one of the most confident players on our team and honestly, could be one of the most confident players I have ever been around. I just think it?s different. It?s as different as swinging a baseball bat and then swimming a golf club. The mindset is different and everything you do is different.?
LB Brian Chmura
(Ref.: the success of the linebackers)
?I really attribute it to the coaching staff and coach (Robert) Lyles. He does an amazing job. He?s one of the best coaches I?ve ever had. He tells me to come in early all the time, shows me how to play better, breaks down film for us and just helps us prepare for each opponent. So, I really contribute it to coach Lyles.?
(Ref.: places for improvement)
?Well there is always room for improvement. We went over the Boston College game and we need to play the line better and we need to get off blocks better and then we just need to keep containment.?
(Ref.: looking ahead to Temple)
?Temple is a good team. Their record may not show but they are a good team. They do a lot of motion like Boston College did and they pass the ball about 60% of the time so we need to be able to get our jams and get our drops. We need to be able to stop the run too. Stopping the run is always a key for us.?
(Ref.: a win this weekend)
?It would be a big pick up. We had a game against Wake Forest and we were so close to winning that game and then at B.C., we were in it for a while but it would just be a great win. It would help us in our spirits and help us move on.?
(Ref.: Michie Stadium)
?It will be great. I love playing in front of this crowd. I love the bagpipes, the smoke coming out here and especially the corps. It was amazing to play in front of them with how pumped they were at the Rhode Island game, especially in the overtime.?
DB Caleb Campbell
(Ref.: Temple)
?Temple is a great team. I watched them on film already and they?re a quick team and they do some good things on the offensive side of the ball so when you?re playing a team like this, you can?t look at the record. They definitely should have some wins in the wins and losses column. We?re going to have to prepare like every other team. We?re not going to take it easy.?
(Ref.: last two games)
?We definitely learned that we can play with some of the best teams in the country. We?re a good football team and when we limit our mistakes and capitalize on their mistakes, we?re definitely going to be a good team. That?s the main thing that we?ve got from these last two games, that we can play ball with a lot of the good teams in America.?
(Ref.: keys for Temple)
?Just like every other game, we?re going to have to go out there and communicate well as a defense and read our keys as a defense. Communication will be key and then going out and having fun. I think if we just go out and have fun we?re going to be alright.?
(Ref.: returning home)
?We?re very excited about returning home. I love playing at Michie Stadium. We really respect the fans and the corps for coming out and supporting us and they do a great job. They?re motivational out there and we hear them. It definitely helps out when we?re out on the field and there is nothing more that we want than to get than a victory for our fans.?
RB Carlo Sandiego
(Ref.: role in the offense)
?It?s been really exciting, especially with the new offense and coach (Tim) Walsh?s new system. It?s great to be a part of it. I really feel happy that he has made me a part of that and saw that I have the skills to help the offense out.?
(Ref.: running back rotation)
?It?s been really rewarding. Everyone?s goal when they come in here is to be a Division I football player, so you come in here and like most people you start at the bottom and you just wonder if you?re ever going to make it to the top. You watch the team on Saturdays and always wonder ?Oh man, am I going to be out there someday?? Now that I?m here, I want to take it to the next step and contribute and make it a successful season.?
(Ref.: offensive keys)
?Obviously we?re going to have to make plays. We have to get rolling. We?ve got playmakers on this team but we have to make things happen. It?s almost like we?re one little mistake away from making something big happen.?
DB Jordan Murray
(Ref.: Boston College)
?After this past weekend, defensively we?re kind of disappointed in ourselves after giving up nearly 600 yards of offense. We have the 24-hour rule in effect and we kind of got it behind us and learned from our mistakes. We just have to move forward and get back to playing football.?
(Ref.: win this weekend)
?It would be huge. It would give us momentum going into the rest of the season. After these last couple losses it?s disappointing. Everyone wants to pick it up and get a run going.?
FB Mike Viti
(Ref.: Michie Stadium)
?It feels really good to be playing at home. We?ve only played one game here out of our first four so I think this stretch at home is going to be really beneficial to the team and kind of elevate our playing a little bit.?
(Ref.: offensive improvements)
?We talked about it in a good meeting on Sunday. Consistency. There are flashes of big play capability and sustained drives and we just need to be consistent with it. It can?t just be a sometimes kind of thing.?
(Ref.: the last two weeks)
?The last two weeks weren?t the results we were looking for but as a team and understanding everyone?s role, a lot of guys came a long way and coming back home is going to be a huge plus for a lot of guys. We?re not going to see another team more talented than Boston College or even Wake Forest for that matter so playing up to that level was huge for a lot of guys. We?re really looking forward to turning things around in this next stretch of games.?
Army Head Coach Stan Brock
(Ref: Boston College)
?After watching the tapes, we felt like our kids played very, very hard and to the best of their abilities. It?s disappointing we came away with a loss, disappointing for the kids who worked so hard. We reviewed the film, corrected the mistakes like we do all the time and we?re ready to move on.
?Offensively it was a tough day but we were playing against a good team. We knew Boston College was good and they didn?t disappoint us. We got in there and hung with them for a while, we just couldn?t make some plays when we needed to. Players need to be accountable, they know they need to make plays when they present themselves. It?s not one guy, one group of people.
?Defensively, we played well. They were on the field too much. We need to get them off the field and keep them off the field. Boston College has an excellent quarterback and a great team and prevented that.
?Special teams did a really nice job. Owen Tolson had a great day of punting. He had to handle all the kicking and came out and did a really good job. Special teams stepped it up and played much better. Coverage and return teams were much improved.?
(Ref: Temple)
?They are a team that is very much like us. They are very hungry for a win. They are playing extremely hard. They beat Connecticut. They can say whatever they want and watch the play; that was a touchdown in the end zone. They play very hard. Coach Golden has them playing hard. They are a young football team. The offensive line is huge and moves well. Defensively, they are well coached. The linebackers have a lot of speed. They have a quarterback that is probably more accurate outside the pocket and they have a running back that is very good. It will be a big challenge for us here at Michie Stadium and we?re excited.?
(Ref: quarterback situation)
?Carson (Williams) will probably play again. We haven?t got on the practice field yet but right now David (Pevoto) is progressing and doing well. I would never put him on the field unless he is 100%.?
(Ref: kicking situation)
?Adam (DeMarco) has been injured, through the whole season. It?s one of the reasons we were punting early. We didn?t want to have him in situations where he could injure himself or make it worse. We gave him last week off to get his health and strength back.?
(Ref: penalties)
?Penalties are very subjective. If you look at it and watch on tape there are some things that can be called and should be called. There is a huge difference -- in my opinion -- between mistakes and pre-snap mistakes. The pre-snap mistakes we work on. The ones that happen on the field the referees are going to make the call.?
(Ref: FB Mike Viti)
?He took a shot to the head (against Boston College). He is a tough kid and we will have to see. He will be day-to-day.?
(Ref: running game)
?The running game is like the passing game, it?s a team sport. It takes the wide receivers blocking and the offensive line blocking and the running backs hitting the right holes. And, we?re playing some pretty good defenses as well. Right now, we?re juggling the offensive line around and it?s not my choice. It?s something we have to do.?
(Ref: playmakers)
?We have a package that we use for Carlo (Sandiego) and think he is a really good player. Damion Hunter and Corey Anderson both can be playmakers. We think our tight ends are playmakers. Somebody has to step up and make the play. We?re not quite getting it done. It?s at every position.?
?I?m not down; the team?s not down. We sat in this room and broke down the whole film as a team. Everyone understands where we are and what we need to do. I think we?re going to be OK.?
(Ref: Carson Williams)
?A perfect game, no one has played, really ever. He is getting better and more comfortable in the things we are asking him to do and the reads we are asking him to make. It goes to practice. We have to practice to build his confidence. The offensive line needs to protect for him where he can go back and set his feet, to where and he is confidence he can do that. At practice, we have to have the offensive line protect him and he has to believe receivers will run the correct route. It?s not as simple as you would like it to be.?
(Ref: play of the linebackers)
?I am very proud of those guys. They are playing so hard. They are great kids, the whole team is. They are outstanding kids. To watch that linebacker corps, actually, watch the whole defense. They fly around, they make things happen.?
(Ref: Michie Stadium)
?Anytime you get to go home, it?s nice. We?ve been on the road for a couple of weeks now and we are very excited about being back. Anytime we are in that far end zone and the Corps of Cadets is there... Right now, the thing we have to hang our hat on is, we are undefeated at home. And we will hang our hat on that. We?ll talk about that. The kids will be fired up and excited and when I say kids, I mean the whole corps. They know how bad we need them. The team understands how bad they need the Corps and we?re excited to be back.?
(Ref: 0-4 Temple)
?We?re not some superpower you have to worry about. I have said this all along and when we finally believe it... It doesn?t matter who you are playing. It doesn?t matter if they line up blocking dummies or put the best team in the nation out there. If you do what you do and do it to the best of your ability, everything else will take care of itself. Temple?s coaching staff is probably feeling good that they are playing an Army team, not the powers they have been playing in their mind. They are probably excited about getting up here and playing us. I believe it ill be a very hard fought game and we will play the whole 60 minutes.?
(Ref: importance of a win)
?It?s important to have a win, at anytime. From a mental standpoint, we need a win. We needed a win last week, we needed a win when we played Wake Forest. We need a win every week and that?s how we are trying to approach it, trying to expect nothing less.?
(Ref: Owen Tolson)
?It will all depend on Adam (if Tolson kicks and punts). I know Owen is comfortable doing both. I have told you this before, Owen is one of the most confident players on our team and honestly, could be one of the most confident players I have ever been around. I just think it?s different. It?s as different as swinging a baseball bat and then swimming a golf club. The mindset is different and everything you do is different.?
LB Brian Chmura
(Ref.: the success of the linebackers)
?I really attribute it to the coaching staff and coach (Robert) Lyles. He does an amazing job. He?s one of the best coaches I?ve ever had. He tells me to come in early all the time, shows me how to play better, breaks down film for us and just helps us prepare for each opponent. So, I really contribute it to coach Lyles.?
(Ref.: places for improvement)
?Well there is always room for improvement. We went over the Boston College game and we need to play the line better and we need to get off blocks better and then we just need to keep containment.?
(Ref.: looking ahead to Temple)
?Temple is a good team. Their record may not show but they are a good team. They do a lot of motion like Boston College did and they pass the ball about 60% of the time so we need to be able to get our jams and get our drops. We need to be able to stop the run too. Stopping the run is always a key for us.?
(Ref.: a win this weekend)
?It would be a big pick up. We had a game against Wake Forest and we were so close to winning that game and then at B.C., we were in it for a while but it would just be a great win. It would help us in our spirits and help us move on.?
(Ref.: Michie Stadium)
?It will be great. I love playing in front of this crowd. I love the bagpipes, the smoke coming out here and especially the corps. It was amazing to play in front of them with how pumped they were at the Rhode Island game, especially in the overtime.?
DB Caleb Campbell
(Ref.: Temple)
?Temple is a great team. I watched them on film already and they?re a quick team and they do some good things on the offensive side of the ball so when you?re playing a team like this, you can?t look at the record. They definitely should have some wins in the wins and losses column. We?re going to have to prepare like every other team. We?re not going to take it easy.?
(Ref.: last two games)
?We definitely learned that we can play with some of the best teams in the country. We?re a good football team and when we limit our mistakes and capitalize on their mistakes, we?re definitely going to be a good team. That?s the main thing that we?ve got from these last two games, that we can play ball with a lot of the good teams in America.?
(Ref.: keys for Temple)
?Just like every other game, we?re going to have to go out there and communicate well as a defense and read our keys as a defense. Communication will be key and then going out and having fun. I think if we just go out and have fun we?re going to be alright.?
(Ref.: returning home)
?We?re very excited about returning home. I love playing at Michie Stadium. We really respect the fans and the corps for coming out and supporting us and they do a great job. They?re motivational out there and we hear them. It definitely helps out when we?re out on the field and there is nothing more that we want than to get than a victory for our fans.?
RB Carlo Sandiego
(Ref.: role in the offense)
?It?s been really exciting, especially with the new offense and coach (Tim) Walsh?s new system. It?s great to be a part of it. I really feel happy that he has made me a part of that and saw that I have the skills to help the offense out.?
(Ref.: running back rotation)
?It?s been really rewarding. Everyone?s goal when they come in here is to be a Division I football player, so you come in here and like most people you start at the bottom and you just wonder if you?re ever going to make it to the top. You watch the team on Saturdays and always wonder ?Oh man, am I going to be out there someday?? Now that I?m here, I want to take it to the next step and contribute and make it a successful season.?
(Ref.: offensive keys)
?Obviously we?re going to have to make plays. We have to get rolling. We?ve got playmakers on this team but we have to make things happen. It?s almost like we?re one little mistake away from making something big happen.?
DB Jordan Murray
(Ref.: Boston College)
?After this past weekend, defensively we?re kind of disappointed in ourselves after giving up nearly 600 yards of offense. We have the 24-hour rule in effect and we kind of got it behind us and learned from our mistakes. We just have to move forward and get back to playing football.?
(Ref.: win this weekend)
?It would be huge. It would give us momentum going into the rest of the season. After these last couple losses it?s disappointing. Everyone wants to pick it up and get a run going.?
FB Mike Viti
(Ref.: Michie Stadium)
?It feels really good to be playing at home. We?ve only played one game here out of our first four so I think this stretch at home is going to be really beneficial to the team and kind of elevate our playing a little bit.?
(Ref.: offensive improvements)
?We talked about it in a good meeting on Sunday. Consistency. There are flashes of big play capability and sustained drives and we just need to be consistent with it. It can?t just be a sometimes kind of thing.?
(Ref.: the last two weeks)
?The last two weeks weren?t the results we were looking for but as a team and understanding everyone?s role, a lot of guys came a long way and coming back home is going to be a huge plus for a lot of guys. We?re not going to see another team more talented than Boston College or even Wake Forest for that matter so playing up to that level was huge for a lot of guys. We?re really looking forward to turning things around in this next stretch of games.?
