Oklahoma State Cowboys College Football Pregame Quote, 11/11/2019

We had a nice break for a couple days and now we’re back at it. We had practice last night. We’re back to normal weekly routine. We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us this week; going to have to put a good game plan together. We’re looking forward to playing on Saturday with an early morning kick in front of the home crowd. We’re supposed to have some great weather, so we’re excited about the game. We released our uniforms last night, which is pretty cool.

On wearing uniforms to honor the military:

Nike gave us the choice to be one of the schools to represent Folds of Honor and our military, which certainly is a no-brainer for me. You guys know how I feel about people who are willing to put their life on the line and fight on a daily basis for the freedom in this country. I think it’s pretty cool for us to represent them and show them our support. Doesn’t make a difference to me if you come from the city or the country, if you’re white or black, Democratic or Republican; I think everybody has an obligation to support the people who are willing to fight for our freedom every day. I’m a big proponent and strong supporter of our military. It’s an honor for us to be able to wear these uniforms, represent the organizations and the people who are willing to do whatever it takes for the greatest country on earth. We’re excited about that.

On Todd Bradford:

Also, we hired Todd Bradford as the director of recruiting. He’s on the job as of today. Todd had been here before and left here when Larry Fedora left to be the defensive coordinator at Southern Mississippi. He bounced around a few places; he was out one year with some private business. We brought him back in recruiting and he’s on board with us.

On Kansas:

With Kansas, they’ve done very well offensively in the last few weeks. They’re making some adjustments and getting good quarterback play. They’ve got fantastic running back play. They’ve got tall, rangy receivers who can really run. They’re moving the ball and scoring some points. Defensively, they’re getting a little better each week. So, we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us but we’re looking forward to this week’s game plan and to an early morning kickoff on Saturday.

On differences in Kansas’ offense since switching coordinators:

It’s noticeable. It’s a bit of a tempo difference. They’ve got more of a vertical passing game, more big play passing game. They’re quarterback is a good player. I think he’s a senior now. Seems like he’s been around forever, but he’s really playing well this year. The adjustments they’ve made on offense are pretty evident over the last few weeks.

On memories of coaching with Les Miles:

Les and I have had lots of hours in offensive meeting rooms, particularly when he was the offensive coordinator and I was the quarterbacks coach. I have really good memories of offensive football with him. He and I butted heads a lot, but in the end we agreed and ended up on the same page. We supported each other and we were good at moving the football together. We had a good relationship. It was unique and a little bit unusual seeing him in Phoenix in May for the Big 12 meetings, but it was fun. It was good to see him and spend time with him.

On the program that former Oklahoma State coach Les Miles left for Gundy:

We’ve changed our style of play so much. We’ve changed defensively and we’ve changed offensively, so it’s really hard to compare. Personnel was not what I wanted in certain areas based on the style of play. There were a lot of adjustments, but we had some success. We went to, I think, two bowls in a row. So we had some success and guys started to believe in winning, which made it an easier transition.

On Kansas’ offense:

They’ve been very effective with the vertical-passing game. You have to wrap that running back up and get him down. If you bounce off of him and hit him, he’s kind of like a bouncy ball. He just bounces around and keeps going. You’re going to have to wrap him up and get him on the ground. The quarterback has been effective enough at rushing the ball that we’ve worked extremely hard this weekend , trying to defend him on his running game. In my opinion, they’ve been most effective in vertical passing or play action.

On practice Sunday night:

We had a good practice last night. The players are eager, their attitudes are good and their work ethic is good. They got some time off. Everybody needs some time off. Focus last night was good and we had a great practice.