Troy Trojans College Football Pregame Quote, 10/27/2020

Starting off with the Georgia State recap, it was obviously a tough loss on Saturday. I really thought that our guys played really hard and really physical. We just had too many critical errors. Offensively, there are five things that we try to focus on each week to give us a chance to win because at the end of the day good football still wins. Some of those things that we talk about are: we want to create 10 or more explosive plays, we want five or less loss yardage plays, be 50 percent on third down, be 100 percent in the red zone and one or less turnovers. We didn’t get to our goals this week. When you watch the film, we played well offensively in spurts, but the turnovers were a huge part. We can’t turn the ball over that much and put our defense in bad situations. That is really what happened, it’s the story of the game. Overall, we are all disappointed. We had the opportunity to win a conference game at home and that was something that we talked about a lot, but at the end of the day we aren’t playing good enough. It shows up when we play good opponents.

On the offense:

I am really proud of Jacob Free. He came in and really gave our team a lift. I thought he handled it very well, being a guy with limited reps. I thought that was bright spot for him. Obviously, there are a couple throws that he would like to have back, but I think he has a lot of talent. We have to make sure that we play well around him and protect the ball better. I know we fumbled the last two weeks at the running back position and Jacob had a fumble. I think we are still trying to reach our potential offensively but are getting close. If we aren’t doing those five things consistently each week, then it’s going to keep being some up and down games. It is something we have talked about and keep working on every day.

On the defense:

I am really excited about the growth of our defense. When you look at them, I think they created a number of turnovers in the last few weeks and scored twice this past week. With the exception of one drive in the third quarter, I think we did an excellent job. Coach (Brandon) Hall and his staff are doing an excellent job putting together a great plan and giving us opportunities. Our defense played extremely hard last year. We were challenged physically and didn’t respond like we wanted. That was a point of emphasis this year, and I think they have responded well to it. Jayden McDonald and Reddy Steward were bright spots for the defense. I am really excited to see some of those guys, these newer players that we have, play a lot and make plays. I think they are going to continue to grow as they face a big challenge this week.

On special teams:

I think we were pretty good most of the day, but we have to make our field goals, especially the shorter ones. We have to execute the snap, the hold and the kick. It seems like we have been off in one of those areas more than we have been on. We just have to get it corrected. I am extremely proud of Jack Martin. He kicked off very well and had two big time punts. We didn’t recruit him as a punter, but he has put a lot of work in.

On Arkansas State:

Blake Anderson is their head coach. He has been there a long time. I have a lot of respect for him. Offensively, they are very explosive. They have an outstanding receiving corp. Both quarterbacks are really good players. Anderson is committed to playing them both and rotating them, which is very impressive. They do a good job at attacking you in different ways and they are very creative. It will be a big challenge for our defense. Arkansas State has put up a lot of points this year.

Defensively, they are mostly an odd front defense. They do a good job of muddying the water and junking it up. I am very impressed with their corners. Justin Rice is a transfer, a very smart player that looks like he is right where he is supposed to be. Their nose guard, Forrest Merrill, is one of the best defensive linemen in our league. He is very powerful, explosive and sudden. He will be a huge challenge for us up front. They have played a lot of different guys, but they do a good job and are very well coached. We are going to have to play really well on the road.

With their special teams, I think they are solid. They give you a lot of different looks and do a good job of mixing it up. Their returner, Roshauud Paul, does a really job good. He is leading our league in return years. He is a very explosive guy. We have to make sure that we kick it in the right spot and that we cover. We have to know what lane that we are supposed to be in and how we need to approach it.

Overall, it is going to a big challenge for us on the road. They are really good team, and it should be a really good football game. It will be similar to what he had this past weekend, but we just have to get better at doing the little things. I think our team is very close to playing to our potential. We have some inexperienced guys, but we have to play better and continue to try to clean up the details. I think our team is very mature in that they see the opportunities that we have ahead of us. They are very excited and resilient. All of our goals are still in front of us. We are looking forward to the challenge.

On Gunnar Watson’s return:

I don’t have an update yet. We are going to try by the middle of the week to have some kind of update. He is banged up and sore, but I know that it is nothing serious internally. We will see if he can play. Watson is one of the toughest guys on the team, and if it is possible, he will play. He is very smart and studies the game a lot. We will wait and see if he is ready to go.

On the preparing for the dual quarterback:

They are similar in their styles of play. (Blake) Anderson has two guys that he believes in. I think the original backup guy started against us last year and played really well. Both have won games there, and I think he is just trying to give them both the chance to play. I don’t see them being ‚Äònight and day’ different. They both do a great job at executing their system at a high level. In Anderson’s mind, it seems like he thinks that is their best chance to win and both of the guys have bought into it. Their team believes in both of those guys, but it doesn’t change our preparation.

On A.J. Lewis:

He has few career catches with a lot of scores. A.J. has really developed since the first spring when I got here. I have a lot of confidence in him. He is a big, physical guy that can block, but he also has good hands and is an athlete. I am really pleased with his growth.

On the team’s response to Saturday:

They responded well. They were disappointed, but Sunday allows us a lot of time to spend in the film room. We were able to really break down the issues and figure out where we were not executing. We have some very correctable mistakes, and I think our players see that. If we execute and do what we need to do, I think they see how good we can be on offense. It’s the same on the defense. Our team is full of the kind of guys that watch the film and want to correct it. Good football still wins.

On the team’s reaction to Jacob Free:

We had a pretty even competition early on in camp. I think the difference was that Gunnar made better decisions and protected the ball, but nobody has ever questioned Jacob Free’s talent. He has a good arm; he is pretty athletic. He has all the potential in the world. I really impressed by Jacob’s demeanor. He was very calm and communicated well. He has a lot of talent and wanted an opportunity. He hadn’t played in two years, and he still went in and handled things very well. We have to correct the turnovers, but he has handled everything well. He has been working his butt off to prepare in case he has to play on Saturday.

On being able to bounce back:

When you go on a road game in conference play, it is a big game no matter what. Our guys were disappointed, but I do think they understand that the big picture is still there. This is a marathon, not a sprint. We can’t overreact on one or two games, or if you win or lose. This weekend is a big challenge for us, but I think our guys are up for that.