Story Poster
Kevin Sumlin
John Chavis
Noel Mazzone
Trevor Knight
Christian Kirk
Avery Gennesy
Jeremy Tabuyo
Connor Lanfear
Justin Evans
Kingsley Keke
Texas A&M Football

Texas A&M Football weekly press conference: Tennessee

October 4, 2016
18,946

The following are live, paraphrased notes from Texas A&M's weekly press conference. Videos of the interviews will be added to the story as they are rendered.

Kevin Sumlin


• Statistically, you've got the two best defensive ends in the NCAA in this game. You play a lot of guys that are good and have athletic ability, but Derek Barnett is productive. From a production standpoint, he's one of the best in the country. His productivity separates him from other good players. That's where he stands out.

• Daeshon Hall was a basketball player coming out of high school. He's gained about 60 pounds. We had to play him his freshman year, and he's had some shoulder problems. He didn't get to spend a lot of time in the weight room due to all of that. The last year and a half to two years have given him a good opportunity to get his body right. He's done that. He's keeping his weight up. He was light in the bowl game, and it showed. He's done a good job this year keeping it up. He shouldn't have played as a freshman, but we had to play him. All that experience helps him now, though. He is a developmental player. He has a lot of talent. Right now, he wouldn't have to play as a freshman, but he's hung in there. He's tough. To play the way he has played, especially last week – he's been fabulous. He's still a momma's boy though. He always will be.

• Being 5-0 is something that people keep harping on. If we win Saturday, it'll be brought up next week. If we lose this week, our season isn't over. This team has done a great job of focusing on the little things. We have great leadership from the staff and the players. Guys across the board are creating a really good nucleus. Going back to August, these guys have blocked out noise. People said we were in disarray. They've played a high level of football. They way they're going about their business has been different. I expect that to keep up.

• Jeremy Tabuyo hasn't been very consistent. Sometimes when he's been in the game, it's been against lesser opponents or opponents that were down in the second half. He had a big game against SMU, but he's played more in the first half than people know. I was very, very proud of Jeremy. There were a number of guys that we challenged over the week that new that the starters weren't going to play. We didn't want the standard of play to fall off. We weren't expecting a drop-off. He made a case to get on the field more. He hadn't done that previously in those competitive situations. He blocked well and did the things we need him to do. Koda Martin - the best thing you can say is you didn't notice him. He did a great job. Jarrett Johnson and James Lockhart made some plays for us. Hardly anyone has the skill level of Myles Garrett, but those guys answered the bell. Jeremy Tabuyo was one of those guys this week too. They earned trust from their coaches and their teammates. You have to practice like that and perform at that level on gameday. We're going to need those guys on Saturday. We go through seasons and end up talking about guys we weren't talking about at the beginning of the year. It takes more than the starting 22. It takes a lot of people against a schedule like this.

• Tennessee is a team that looks lucky on paper. They haven't gotten lucky. Josh Dobbs is No. 1 in this league in points responsible for. That gives you a chance in every game. He's been through everything. He's been in different stadiums. He's been on the road. He's seen all of this. That creates confidence in a football team with a really good defense and a lot of speed. When you have a team like that, you're explosive. Combine that with a great quarterback, and you're a confident unit. We have to play for four quarters. This is a different challenge with a quarterback that can put points up in multiple ways. They should be confident based on the way they've started the season.

• Statistically, Trevor Knight is mediocre, passing percentage-wise. I think his best statistic is winning. We're still working on things. He brings a lot of other things to the table. He's been effective and productive. Last week was the first time he didn't protect the ball well. That is being addressed. He hadn't played in 19 months before he got here. He's only played 5 games. I didn't understand the nervousness of the first two or three weeks until we sat down and talked about it. He's getting better every week, and that's all we can ask. We're progressing.

• You'll have to ask John Chavis how he feels about playing Tennessee. I'm not going to speak for him. Purdue isn't on the schedule, so I don't know how he feels.

• College GameDay doesn't go to bad games. It means your program is relevant. I remember when GameDay went to Houston for the first time. Them being here puts how far we've come in perspective. It tells you how big this game is. You work hard to be in these games, but you also work hard to win them. Our fans have been great. This Saturday should be exactly what people envisioned years ago. It's GameDay. It's a top-10 matchup. This is what people wanted five or six years ago. GameDay validates that and doesn't hurt recruiting.

• I think there's great communication among our coaches. I told our team on Monday that the biggest compliment we could give them was that they didn't panic after that opening touchdown. The biggest compliment I can give them is that we've been behind, settled down and played football on the road. That comes with maturity. That comes with communication. I talk to our team about that. That's a great compliment, and it comes with the guys on the field. When your guys can tell you exactly what happened and tell you how they're going to fix it, it tells you the type of guys you're putting out there. I think our players are doing a phenomenal job of communicating with our coaches in game and during breaks.

• I was asked when I got here how big a deal it was to be a black head coach in the SEC. For me, we want to get to a point where it's not a big deal that there's a black head coach at an institution. The only way to do that is to continue to win and create more opportunities for guys like me. You're not a black coach. You're a coach. We've had two black coaches in the Super Bowl. Now the numbers in the NFL are down, but the best thing I can do is to do a good job at the job I have and create opportunities for others. I have a lot on my plate in the SEC West. To win a championship in this league is our goal. The work that goes into that isn't about me. It's about making this organization better. We've gotten better. We're continuing to get better. That's all that I can do.



John Chavis


• That wasn't the way we intended to start that game. it was one of those plays that shouldn't have happened. We want to stay away from that, but we stayed together and played good football after that.

• It's always difficult facing a versatile quarterback, but when we saw football heading in this direction with dual-threat quarterbacks, we saw more big plays on offense. It's something you see every week now. Out of 12 games, we'll play 7 or 8 quarterbacks that play that style.

• Tackles for loss come with scheme and players. We take pride in pressure. We pressure both the pass and the run game. We run blitzes specifically for the run. Our linebackers are better. Our safeties are involved.

• Daeshon was a good player before I got here, but the biggest thing was about him gaining strength and size. He's a good athlete. He's gotten stronger and more physical. He loves to play the game. He's got a good skill set.

• I don't think about playing Tennessee. It's been a long time since I was there. I went to school there and spent a long time there, but it's a business. They have athletes all over the field, maybe the most we've seen thus far.

• The Aggies are always in the game, too. (Referring to Tennessee's recent comebacks.)

• I knew both Myles and Daeshon were good players, but I really knew it after spring practice. I think they're the best pair of ends in college football.

• There was a lot in the media in 2005 about Texas A&M only having four turnovers going into the Cotton Bowl. We decided to double that for them. Our kids got that done when I was at Tennessee. That gave us something to feed off of at that time. Our kids played well, and I'm glad I am where I am right now.

• Josh Dobbs does a lot of things well. He's intelligent. He's very talented in terms of being able to run the ball, and he throws well. If a guy is going to win the Heisman, he has to have people around him. He has that. He's got good receivers and a great tailback. We have to account for that tailback. He's got skill, but he's got a lot of skill around him. This is his fourth year in that offense, and he has great command of it.

• Offensive schemes have changed. They score so much and so fast that I think fans get tired of cheering. No, you have to play well for home field and the crowd to be an advantage. I've been in many stadiums throughout the country, and none of them can come alive like Kyle Field. We love the noise.

• We're going to have a system you can believe in and teach our kids that system. It's proven to work in the SEC. We just want kids to buy in. That starts with Coach Sumlin. He has a big impact there. Our kids have bought in.

• As the game goes on, you should get a better feel for it. Working against the scout team is a different pace. The game slows down as players see things. I think that's a big part of it. You can't just go against your starting offensive unit all the time. We do it, but I think that adjustment to game speed makes us better as the game wears on.

• We want to play 60 minutes of football. Hopefully, we've had our bad start already. The competition in this league - if you don't bring your A-game, you'll lose. There aren't many SEC games where you can send your starters to the locker room after 20 minutes. I'm not preaching. It's just a fact.



Avery Gennesy


• Practicing against Myles and Daeshon helps prepare me for Derek Barnett and the Tennessee defensive line. They're all good. They're quick and agile. It'll be a great challenge for our offensive front this week.

• We critique each other along the line. We focus on the little things. We're just focusing on details this week and trying to get better.

• Going up against Myles in practice was different at first. I get better each week competing against him. He and Daeshon are different, but they compliment each other. Myles plays hard and chases plays down on the backside. The defensive line has been doing a great job.

• Winning wouldn't be a statement. Every game is big. Tennessee is just the next football team we have to prepare for.

• Myles and Daeshon are both fast, but if you watch them, they play differently. They both play hard and make plays. Our linebackers and defensive backs have been making plays and putting us in position to score.



Noel Mazzone


• Derek Barnett fits right in with the rest of the linemen in this league. He's quick. He's good. He's physical and has speed to the edge.

• We tell everyone to protect the ball on this team. It's a fine line for a quarterback. You want him to be a gunslinger, but you want him to make good decisions with the ball. He's done a good job of that and protecting himself by throwing it away.

• You want to be able to run clock with your running game. We need to do a better job of that on offense. We don't want to put the defense on the field. In this offense, most of the runs we call have a pass attached. We need to do a better job of understanding when to hang on to the ball and keep that clock running.

• I live for today's practice. I just want to come up with a good plan for what I see on film. I don't worry about the team I'm playing or if I've coached there before. For me, I don't think about it. Once they kick off, it's just another football game. You're calling plays and trying to score points.

• It's always been an option offense. It's triple-option football without being in the wishbone. Trevor has three options on every play based on what the defense does to him. It's not anything that hasn't been done before. You're just trying to give different looks to the defense. If you're doing that, you risk not being able to run the clock. We need to do better in that area.

• In a practice, you probably spend most of your time as a receiver catching and running routes. You don't practice blocking much. I'd give us a B- there this week, but they're improving.

• I think Myles and Daeshon help prepare our offensive line for this whole league. They improve playing against great players. To have success, they have to work at their craft. I think it's an advantage for our guys getting to go against our front every day in practice.

• I thought Koda Martin was good on Saturday. I thought we were average offensively. They did a good job against us and made us make mistakes. After the first play of the game, Chief and the defense locked it down. We circled the wagons a bit and got a little conservative.

• I think Tennessee is very good. They have an upper-tier SEC defensive front. Their linebackers are a little knicked up, but they haven't lost a game yet. That defense is playing pretty well.
Discussion from...

Texas A&M Football weekly press conference: Tennessee

10,512 Views | 7 Replies | Last: 7 yr ago by AgsMnn
Mr. Black
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Sbisa04
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Vepp
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Ex-liberalag12
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Not the smartest thing for Summy to talk about Hall and shoulder problems, both now and for potential NFL pick.
Gig'em
The Collective
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AG
Quote:

Not the smartest thing for Summy to talk about Hall and shoulder problems, both now and for potential NFL pick.


I interpreted it that his problems were due to his size, and he has been able to take care of that issue.
FriendlyAg
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liberalag12 said:

Not the smartest thing for Summy to talk about Hall and shoulder problems, both now and for potential NFL pick.
Lol... You don't think anyone else knows that information? ha.. He wears a shoulder brace every game.
AgsMnn
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AG
CJS4715 said:

Quote:

Not the smartest thing for Summy to talk about Hall and shoulder problems, both now and for potential NFL pick.


I interpreted it that his problems were due to his size, and he has been able to take care of that issue.


I think it was referring to his freshman year and not being able to get in the weight room as much.
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