Texas A&M Football weekly press conference: New Mexico

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

Kevin Sumlin

• I usually don't get together with Scott Woodward until later in the week. He's around practice when the injury situation clears up, so it's not uncommon, but we haven't spoken yet.

• I think our guys continue to give great effort. We didn't execute the way we wanted to in certain stretches, but the effort was there. We had official visits this weekend. Everyone in our organization is still going. Even though the results weren't what we wanted, we had great communication and great official visits. The attitude in that building is different than it is outside.

• It's a little different when we switch quarterbacks. One guy is more athletic, especially since the other guy is taped up. He can move well when he's healthy. We build things differently for Nick than we do for Kellen, who can run right now. In the grand scheme of things, the plays don't change very much. They change with the options that are available for each guy. One guy is more of an RPO guy, and the other is a read run guy.

• I knew something bad had happened when Nick went down against UCLA. You don't have time to think about what you could have had in a job like this. You make quick decisions based on what's best for the team. You can reflect on that in the offseason, but I haven't thought about what would have happened. It takes all your focus and energy to give your players a chance to be successful.

• Bob Davie did a great job here. Jordan Peterson played and was a GA here. He's worked camps with us. He's a quality young guy. I was on a staff with Noel Mazzone and the New Mexico wide receivers coach. They have almost 20 players from Texas, so they'll be excited to come in here. They should be. They're extremely aggressive on defense, and they've been doing this for a long time. They use a lot of motion and a lot of different options. They want to run it. They're creative in how they run it. They use a lot of read-option schemes and have been one of the top schools in the country running the ball.

• I'd be careful with assuming anything about players not doing their jobs or being accountable. We changed the schedule, which was something we calculated. We flipped the days and gave guys the weekend off for the bye week. That was a change in routine. I'd be careful talking about a change in discipline. I didn't see that as an issue. We did change the schedule, and that may have changed things from a routine standpoint.

• What I do is focus on what we have to do this week to win games. The big picture will take care of itself. I haven't looked at a number that determines whether or not I keep my job. Whatever happens on Saturday, you move on to the next week. That's how I approach it, and that's how I'll continue to approach it going forward.

• Particularly with young players, they don't want to screw up. They don't like it. They want to do the right thing, fix it and be good. The energy level yesterday was different than you'd expect. Nobody's happy. Every snap is a learning experience. Their attitude is in a different place than people think.

• It's an emotional time. I did the radio show with Dave South last night. When you're around someone that much, there's great times and not-so-great times. To be around a legend like him, a guy who's truly excited about Texas A&M sports across the board and whose voice is recognized nationwide – you become friends with those who have been in a foxhole with you. I value his friendship, and I'm sure this game will be an emotional time for him.

• I would say that I think little things are magnified when you lose. With young players, guys don't always do the right thing. The discipline that comes from that may not be recognized when you're winning. When you have 85 guys on scholarship, you want everyone to do everything right. Some guys have mysteriously not played. There's not a question about discipline on this football team. Everyone is looking for an answer, so things get magnified when you lose. No one wants to win more than Jarrett Johnson. He has given great effort and wants everything to go well. He's a different person as a senior than he was as a freshman. He wants everything to be right, and you've got to respect that. That's his role as an older player to lead by example and make sure things are going right.

• You can ask players to stay away from social media, but that's asking a lot. I don't think it's possible in this day and age. Some players take themselves off social media, but it's in the room. We don't allow phones in meeting rooms, but in the locker room, everyone is on their phone. I can't control the outside message. What's important is that the message in our meeting room becomes the message. Ultimately, there will be speculation. Things will be said. Things happen on social media that you can believe, but you've never been that great or that bad. No one will talk about you if you're average. You have to trust the people in that room. You have to be open to what's said in that room, and it's not public knowledge. It helps our guys grow. The things that are said in there for correction, what you have to do, mistakes and critical errors - as long as that's not public, people begin to trust you. That's how you deal with young guys and earn their trust. You have to make sure that information stays withing the team.

• These guys are fun to be around. They love to play football. They give great effort and get frustrated just like everyone else. For me, they're great to be around. I've done this long enough. I've been on every end of social media as an assistant and head coach. As long as you deal with it and do your job the way you feel it needs to be done and are around people that care and give great effort, you feel good about going to work. Whatever happens happens, but it doesn't change the way you go about your business. You understand what it's about from day one, and you understand what you signed up for.