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Texas A&M Football

Jimbo Fisher talks his first spring at A&M, controlling the trenches & more

May 7, 2018
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Key notes from Jimbo Fisher interview

  • This place is a very natural fit for the SEC, especially the way they used to play football back in the day with Jackie and R.C. They had a great physical defense in the Wrecking Crew and some good running backs who could run the football. Then the passing game really took over. In my opinion you still need to be able to control the trenches on both sides of the football.
     
  • Recruiting up-front is a huge thing. The majority of the best lineman in this league come from the southeastern part of the country. You can still throw the football around, but you have to be able to win up front.
     
  • I was really pleased about the development in fitting the run on defense. We’re still learning. I thought our guys progressed. I was also pleased with the offensive line, we had a more physical look with the tight end. We will do some RPOs, but we have to be able to line up and be physical.
     
  • I'm excited for the tight end position. Jace Sternberger has done some great things. When you have a guy who can play both vertical and physical, it puts so much pressure on the defense. I think the addition of Trevor Wood from Arizona is going to be huge. He's a 6-foot-6 guy who I think has a good chance of being a high draft pick. I also think Cullen Gillaspia is doing some great things at fullback. We will use some spread formations, but we have to be able to get into the physical sets and play tough up front. When A&M first came to the SEC, they had two first-round draft picks at tackle. We don’t have that right now, so we need to help those guys out. I don’t care how good the tackles are, they’re going to need help in this league. That's what makes the SEC different.
     
  • I’ve never seen a tight end come in and pick things up like Sternberger did from the day he got here. He was always wide open. We were limited at tight end, there weren't a lot of subs and Jace was taking twice as many reps as anyone else. And he didn't say a word about it. Just “Yes sir, and no sir.”
     
  • When you have a new coach, there is always a learning curve. You don’t know what you don’t know. You have to go out and educate these guys and explain to them why you are doing something. You have to have toughness, discipline, pride and grit. Those things need to become like breathing within our program. Just non-negotiable things we always do. That’s what offseason work and how we practice has been all about.
     
  • I think the ability to learn is big at the quarterback position. In a no-huddle offense, it’s more about going fast, they were required to do a little less. What separates quarterbacks in college and the NFL is the ability to understand protections. All our quarterbacks did a great job picking things up. I want them to better understand why they do something. If you know why you did something, you know what to fix when it goes wrong, and you also know what to keep doing right. You have to understand what you do well and why you do it. You need to have that ability to do things right 80 times in a row. That’s what we're working on right now.
     
  • Nick and Kellen have both done a great job, both played well in the spring game. Nick made the critical turnover, but he came back and made drives at the end to try and win the game. Kellen’s offense struggled early, but they didn’t panic. He was patient, then got his opportunities and took advantage of it. After Nick’s team made the comeback, Kellen came back and answered. I loved seeing that competition.
     
  • I think the fan involvement is critical. There has only been one team who won a national title in the last 10 years that didn’t have 50,000 people at the previous spring game. At the end of the day it’s about the people. The kids love being supported. When you’re talking about winning it all, you havee to have everything. Once you have everything, you still need to put them in the right order. It’s like baking a cake I like to say. We need the fans to be there and be supportive of the kids. We had kids on official visits that weekend, it matters how many people are in the stands for every single game. I think fans are what puts a place over the top in my opinion.
     
  • The biggest thing I learned from Nick Saban is that no detail is too small. Everything matters. You need to create a oneness within your program. Every single person needs to be thinking the exact same thing within the building. There is no going and talking to momma after dad says no. Everyone needs to be on the same page.
     
  • I definitely feel better about tight end now coming out of spring football. I think the interior defensive lineman look great. with Keke, Rogers, Madubuike, Mack and Peevy as well as others. We're adding Diallo to that as well. I think the offensive line made some improvements as well. No one really looked bad, we just wish we had 15 more practices. Now we turn the guys over to Jerry Schmidt. It’s all about practicing and establishing good habits.
Discussion from...

Jimbo Fisher talks his first spring at A&M, controlling the trenches & more

19,305 Views | 15 Replies | Last: 5 yr ago by Tamu_mgm
Matsui
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ec2004
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Chesapeake Ag
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txag72
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AG
He makes it sound like we've been playing with 10 1/2 men at most on offense......tight end being so one dimensional in the past for us. Hmmm, not like that hadn't been noticed by the average fan though. Makes you wonder.
BoxingAg84
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I don't recall Sumlin ever visiting the Texags studio for an interview. "Fire side" chat, yes, but not an in studio interview.
S.A. Aggie
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AG
Gig'em Jimbo!!!!
StickTogetherAgs
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phatpat21
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Meximan
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Keeping alive the tradition of poor editing, I see.
DayAg!
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S
Night and Day.
MaroonGlasses99
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AG
He's the definition of media heaven...

technoviking
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AG
like what i heard from jimbo! what's up with the music while jimbo's answering questions??
gocobra
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moo
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AG
I'm not surprised Jace has been so wide open. We haven't been able to cover a TE in years!
Tamu_mgm
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AG
Jimbo exudes what it takes to win consistently.
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