Press Conference: After bye week, Aggies gearing up for South Carolina

The South Carolina Gamecocks come to Aggieland this Saturday for a showdown with Texas A&M, with the James Bonham Trophy on the line. Ahead of the final home game of the 2019 season, Jimbo Fisher and select A&M players spoke with the media.

The following are live, paraphrased notes from head coach Jimbo Fisher's press conference prior to Saturday’s game against South Carolina.

• I want to start today with a shoutout to all the Veterans and the active military out there. Freedom isn’t free, and they fight so that we can do the things that we do. We have two players on our team that are former Marines, so thank you to them and all the other Veterans and active military on a day like today.
   
• Defensive front-wise, South Carolina has one of the best fronts that we will see all year. Their linebackers are very active. They don’t give you much. You have to earn it. They are going to come in here guns blazing. We are going to have to be ready to go.
   
• The good of having just three seniors is that you see the future. But at the same time, you wish it could come quicker. They are getting it, but it takes time. You can see that we definitely recruited the right guys. The future is extremely bright, but there’s always a knucklehead thing that happens that is just because of inexperience.
   
• This is our fourth freshman quarterback this season. You will see more of it going forward, that’s just the way things are these days. You put the guys in there. I remember when it was a big deal that Tim Tebow won it as a sophomore, now it’s just how it is.
   
• Knowing Muschamp doesn’t make the game any more fun. I would rather play guys who I am not friends with, personally.
   
• Ainias Smith is a very good player, and he is going to be even better. He is very versatile, and he is really smart. He gets it. He is also very physical for his size. He has a natural knack for the game, and I love him to death.
   
• South Carolina is right up there in the conversation as the best D-Line. Those guys are a pain, and they are coached very well. They are a complete defensive line.
   
• Our tight ends are an extension of linemen. It has helped a lot to see them develop. It has helped the running game, too, as their blocking abilities have improved. That’s why I love using tight ends.
   
• We have gotten better up-front, and our backs and tight ends have all gotten better. We knew they could do that, but they have really started to get it and improve.
   
• I have always said this in recruiting - we want to work inside-out. It doesn’t always work like that, though, because you need a certain position that we don’t have, etc. The resources that A&M has - Top 20 education, Association of Former Students, Aggie Network, etc. But we always want to work inside-out.
   
• I really liked Justin Madubuike really early when I got here. He’s a young guy. He didn’t play much as a freshman. He just keeps getting better and better. If he keeps improving, he will have a chance to be a really, really good player.
   
• I think Kellen has really progressed. People say he should look to run. You don’t look to run - it just comes. If there’s an opportunity, you go. But you don’t look for it. It’s the same way that you guys are when you write. You get an idea, and you go.
   
• Bryan Edwards is a really good player - he is the all-time leading receiver there. He can really do it all. He will be a great pro.
   
• We have to focus on ourselves and play our game. We have to do what we do and keep the pressure on them in all three players. They can play and have really great players. The detail and execution that you play with - you have to do it all four quarters.
   
• As a general statement, QBs leave more than any others because you only really play one. My thing is, it isn’t where you start the race; it’s where you finish. Do you understand runs, do you understand fronts? Sometimes when you play as a young QB, you aren’t ready. You don’t have enough information in your head to play at the next level. Say, you get your chance for 2-3 years. Is that really that bad? But that’s really the way of the college football world today.
   
• The greatest compliment you can get as a quarterback is a game manager. All of the great ones are game managers. As we keep putting pieces around Kellen, it's exciting for the future.
   
• Elijah Blades and Demani Richardson have practiced, and the reports that I am getting are they should be good to go on Saturday.