A&M WR coach Aaron Moorehead shares thoughts on Tennessee game
Key quotes from Aaron Moorehead interview
“I think that our players are generally a year more experienced and they are older and the guys who played last year are the same guys who are leading this year. They have been there and have seen it. We have won some big games and we have lost some big games last year and I think these guys understand that this is just another football game. From a leadership standpoint, you have a year’s worth of leadership and more guys are talking and understanding what it takes to prepare and win. It started last offseason and has carried over to now. It is a great weekend and we are excited to get this thing going.”
“Jeremy Tabuyo has had a great start to the season and obviously last week was really good and we want to keep him involved in the offense. We need to keep allowing him to make plays. He has done a great job since I have been here and there have been some really great players on the field. Everybody knows it is a competition day in and day out and Jeremy is earning his reps on the field right now. That is a great thing and he could very easily be a guy that complains but instead he is a guy that puts his head down and works. It paid off for him last week and we are excited about where he is at and his role in this offense moving forward.”
“We obviously need to get the ball in Christian Kirk’s hands and see him make some plays. We are going to put him in a position at times within the run game scheme and get some screens and let those guys block for him when the defense puts too many people in the box to run the ball. Christian has done a great job so far and we need to keep this going and continue to get him the ball. When Christian or whoever gets the ball we have to make sure that we get six, seven or eight yards. We want those defenders to miss those tackles on the outside. That is the way that Christian affects the football game.”
“Frank Iheanacho has done a great job. A lot of people forget he only has been playing football since his senior year of high school. He is out here getting better and he redshirted last season and was on the scout team most of the year. There has always been a pretty steep learning curve with him and he has done a good job and is playing good football. We have to continue to keep pushing him and allow him to understand that his journey is similar to Ricky Seals-Jones’ path. He is a basketball guy learning how to play wide receiver. Frank is 230 pounds and there are times where you might want him to play tougher and closer to 230, but sometimes he wants to dance around a bit. He is starting to understand that when he uses all 230 that defenders can tell. Moving forward he is going to grasp that role and realize that he is bigger and stronger than most players on the field.”
“The one thing I will say about the Tennessee defense is that they are never going to quit. They have had injuries in many position groups. That doesn’t matter because they have guys come in and fill their sports and perform. There is not that big of a drop off. You have to give credit to the coaching staff because they have produced a really good defense. Their defensive front fits right in with what to expect from this league. Their secondary has playmakers in the back and you can’t turn the football over. They do a great job of trying to rip that football out and from that standpoint we have to protect the ball.”
“I think over the years when you are involved in these weekends, you learn how to do it. You learn how to get the guys right on the team and make sure that you are giving attention to the correct kids that drove a long way to come see us play. You don’t want to not talk to a kid or their parents. You have to be sure you do the best you can and you kind of get used to it. You have to find the balance where you aren’t too focused on the recruits and not the game or you aren’t too focused on the game that you forget the recruits. It is a balance and you learn to do it over time. When it is game time you dial it in and get rolling and you do the best that you can.”
“I think you have to pick your poison when it comes to the offense. If you want to put an extra man in the box, I love that as a receiver coach. We have five or six guys out there that can truly make you pay. We love that and that is really what they want. On the flip side if they don’t, we have guys in the running game like Trayveon Williams and Trevor Knight that can take it to the house. We are excited about the balance that we have going on offense. We aren’t running it 70% and passing it 30%. Or even vice versa. We are calling a very balanced game and Coach Mazzone has done a great job of letting the quarterback feel the game out and work it and let the receivers on the outside make plays. I would be all for that type of thing, if Tennessee wanted to come out and play one on one we would have a lot of fun.”