Today's availability was defense heavy, as we got Coach Kingsbury, Coach Gibbs, Coach Smith, Tevin Madison, and Justis Nelson. I'll just post the notes from the coaches for now, as this is pretty beefy.
Kliff Kingsbury
*First, the head coach noted that he's been happy with the energy and drive from his team so far through the offseason and the first few practices, and you can tell they want to get better.
"They've gotten after it. It's been a hungry group since they got back from Christmas break. New coaches, new schemes, but they've paid attention to detail and worked hard, so that's all you can ask of them in those first couple of practices."
*Here's what Kliff had to say about David GIbbs, what he's seen from his DC so far:
"He's done a good job coming in. He bring real credibility, a sense of calm that I think has really helped our staff and our players, so it's been fun to watch him work and build those relationships early on."
*Kingsbury said that they're really just focused on getting everything installed on defense right now, trying to teach the players everything they can in the limited amount of practices they have.
*I asked him how he felt about things going into year three as far as their efficiency as a staff and with the veteran players, and with this much time now under their belts, Kliff feels really good about where things are as far simply getting things done in the time allotted.
"I think a lot more. I think you become more efficient as a staff, working together as a unit with your players. You know what to expect, what we're about, so I think we're a lot more efficient as a program in year three."
*Also, when asked what stuck out to him about his team through the first three practices, he again noted just how badly his team wants to get better.
"Just that they're hungry. I think sitting at home for five weeks didn't sit very well with any of them or many of the coaches, for that matter. They have something to prove, so that's fun to see. It's a group that has something to prove, so we've just got to work to that end."
*Also, speaking on how things went last fall: "There was a lot missing with last year's team, it turned out."
*Coach Kingsbury pointed to the turnover margin, and how that's the number one stat in football, in his opinion. He noted that turnover margin and penalties are two things that they just have to get better at, plain and simple.
*Seeing that he'll be returning nine starters from last year's offense, Coach Kingsbury has a whole lot of experience. He's excited about bringing back so many players, and he thinks things really started to click down the stretch last fall and have continued to roll forward this spring.
"Really good. Really good. I thought towards the end of the year, some of those offensive performances were some of the best we've had since we've been here, as far as consistency goes. So, they've picked that up. Guys have a lot more confidence than they had last year. Just have to continue to develop, but like I mentioned, a lot of guys on this team have played a lot of football, and they just have to clean things up and continue to improve."
*On Mahomes and Webb so far:
"Good, what you'd expect. Both had some very high points last year, and still have a lot of things to improve upon, and it starts with them when it comes to protecting the football, and that's been the number one point of emphasis this spring."
*Kliff said that Webb is throwing the ball well, looks good, but if they were to have a live game situation with real contact, he wouldn't go right now. But, he's been able to do everything so far.
*Seeing as they'll only go through spring with seven scholarship offensive linemen, there's a small margin for error when it comes to injuries and such. Coach Kingsbury said that they haven't really ramped things down from a physicality standpoint, but they are giving the O-line longer breaks to help them catch their breath since many of them are going through things with both the first and second team right now.
"I wouldn't say physicality. I would say we give longer breaks in between sessions, if that makes sense, but we're going as hard as we've ever gone. We'll just give more rest periods, let those guys catch up. A lot of guys are going back to back in team sessions, so that's probably the biggest difference."
*He also noted that some of the true freshmen offensive linemen will have to play, simple as that. The numbers on the O-line right now won't give them much of a choice, especially if anybody gets hurt at all.
*Speaking of young linemen, Kliff said he felt Justin Murphy is where they wanted him to be physically, but he still needs to come on a bit with the mental side of things, learning the nuances of technique, etc.
*Also, sounds like Mahomes will be making the trip to California this weekend with the baseball team, as Kliff said he'll miss this Saturday's practice. That will be the only one he's missed so far, and they don't really expect him to miss much else, if anything.
DC David Gibbs
*Coach Gibbs talked a bit about the first few days, noting that he likes how guys are competing with one another.
"They're a lot further ahead on offense, but the defensive guys, we're competing every day. We're getting better. I've seen some improvement. Kids are playing fast. We've got a bunch of different guys learning a bunch of different things, techniques, fundamentals, fronts, coverages. We try to keep it pretty simple just to keep a base, build a foundation, and after three days, it's a work in progress."
"It takes time, but they're fine. They're willing and eager to learn. I've had no problems with guys asking questions, guys improving and trying to learn. We've got 12 more this spring, and we'll take advantage of each of them."
*With only two days in shorts and one in pads so far, Coach Gibbs wouldn't throw out any names that stuck out. He said he's been pleased with the defensive players as a whole, but he noted that it's hard to go against this offense every day right now.
*As far as getting things installed and a timetable on that, the DC said that they'll start with the base and will really work hard on that until they get what they want from the players on the simple things.
"I'm not going to keep installing things until we build a foundation and build a base. It would be easy to go out there and put in five blitzes and blitz every snap, but to me, that doesn't give you anything to fall back on when things get tough, and we're trying to build a base run defense where we can lineup against things other than our spread offense, and it makes it hard because you're going against two or three offenses in practice every day, but it is what it is, and playing defense in college football, you have to. Kids have been working hard and will continue to do that."
He also noted that guys are going to play fundamentally sound on his defense, or they aren't going to play at all. He also feels that some defense in college are getting too complex for the players to let loose and play well in.
"I'm just trying to build a foundation of building solid fundamental defense. Guys playing in their proper gaps, knowing their responsibilities, and executing them. That way, you can make adjustments. When you play some of these fancy defenses where guys are moving and stunting and blitzing all of the time, you don't always have an answer for what goes wrong during the course of a game. We'll have an answer, because we'll have a system now. Obviously we have to teach that system that starts from ground zero, and like I said, we're three days into that system, so we'll keep pounding and keep grinding, and we'll get there eventually. If guys are supposed to be in the A gap, they'll be in the A gap, or they won't be on the field. If they're supposed to be in the B gap, they'll be in the B gap, and everybody knows their role and will execute their role, or they won't play, and that's just the way it is from day one."
*I also thought this was interesting, in regards to pitching Tech's defense to recruits.
"Having coached in the NFL, it's easy to say that you've picked up some pro-style schemes, packages, because that's what kids want to hear. But, the truth is, you'll turn on the film, and we'll play 4-3, play 3-4 defense, but at the end of the day, everybody plays the same schemes other than the true 3-4 teams that two-gap everything. So, we'll be multiple, which is what guys like to see. We sell them on the point that they'll play multiple positions within our scheme, because once you learn the scheme, it's easy to cross-train guys, so that would be the selling point. Like I said, we'll be sound, but until we go out there and do it on Saturday afternoons, it's easy to talk."
Co-DC Mike Smith
*With the first few days under his belt as the defensive line coach in spring football, Coach Smith likes the mentality of his players and is really just trying to teach them some basic things that he feels they haven't ever really learned properly.
"They're working hard. Especially with the inside guys, being new to them as a position coach, they're working, and that's what I want. I feel like the last three years, probably the last five years, Tech's D-line hasn't been good. That's not a secret. When I first took over, they knew how I am. They knew how I work. They know how I've made a career, that's toughness and working hard, so that's the first thing I stressed. It's a new system, we're going to have busts, but if we're going to have busts, we're going to be going full speed. That's the first thing I shared with them, and they just have to get better. I'm starting from ground zero. They don't understand blocking schemes, pass protection, all that stuff, stances. We're starting over, and right now they're all buying in, which is good. We're going to stack bricks. We're going to keep stacking bricks every day and work one little thing and get better. I feel like they've been doing that so far through three practices."
*When asked about Breiden Fehoko and where he's at so far, this is what Smith had to say:
"Big, strong. For him to be out there is probably the best thing he's ever done for his career, cause he's a high school kid. Everybody has high expectations that he'll be this or that, but he's still a freshman. He should still be at his prom right now.The thing that can help him out early is that he's so strong. He's already one of the strongest guys on the team, so he can go out there and control guys, but again, it's like the rest of those guys. It's about technique, and that's what he's learning, and the thing about him is that he's coachable. He wants to learn. I meet with him, say hey, what'd you do wrong here? He'll tell me I reached, I didn't fight my hip across on a double team. He's already picking that up, whereas these older guys are stuttering a little bit trying to pick it up. So, I know he's listening, and that's the kind of kid he is. He's going to be a big part of this defense for the next three or four years, so I'm glad he's here."
*Depth at the defensive end and rush end spots were an issue last fall behind Pete Robertson and Branden Jackson, and the two had to play a ton of snaps as a result. Smith likes where some of the younger players behind them are at right now, including Gary Moore behind Jackson and Kris Williams behind Robertson.
"Pete and B-Jack should be the best in the conference, and that's a given. Both those guys are extremely athletic, big, fast, and both of them are good, but behind them, who's really been flashing is Gary Moore. Gary Moore has probably been the most productive kid out there right now so far. He's just got to gain weight. He's seven feet tall and 200 pounds. He's got to put weight on. Once he gets to 230, 240 -- but, he's extremely athletic, is unbelievable with his hips, and he's another kid who takes coaching. He's great with his different moves out there. On the other side who's been surprisingly really good is Kris Williams. He's really flashed to Coach Gibbs. More short, more like a James Harrison-type kid that's short and squatty, but he's incredibly strong. He has heavy hands, he can play the run, and he can play the pass, so he's really flashed, and then Zach Barnes has flashed a little bit. He's another kid that's only about 215, so he's got to put some weight on, but I'm very happy with the depth at the end spots now. It's going to really help us this year."
Kliff Kingsbury
*First, the head coach noted that he's been happy with the energy and drive from his team so far through the offseason and the first few practices, and you can tell they want to get better.
"They've gotten after it. It's been a hungry group since they got back from Christmas break. New coaches, new schemes, but they've paid attention to detail and worked hard, so that's all you can ask of them in those first couple of practices."
*Here's what Kliff had to say about David GIbbs, what he's seen from his DC so far:
"He's done a good job coming in. He bring real credibility, a sense of calm that I think has really helped our staff and our players, so it's been fun to watch him work and build those relationships early on."
*Kingsbury said that they're really just focused on getting everything installed on defense right now, trying to teach the players everything they can in the limited amount of practices they have.
*I asked him how he felt about things going into year three as far as their efficiency as a staff and with the veteran players, and with this much time now under their belts, Kliff feels really good about where things are as far simply getting things done in the time allotted.
"I think a lot more. I think you become more efficient as a staff, working together as a unit with your players. You know what to expect, what we're about, so I think we're a lot more efficient as a program in year three."
*Also, when asked what stuck out to him about his team through the first three practices, he again noted just how badly his team wants to get better.
"Just that they're hungry. I think sitting at home for five weeks didn't sit very well with any of them or many of the coaches, for that matter. They have something to prove, so that's fun to see. It's a group that has something to prove, so we've just got to work to that end."
*Also, speaking on how things went last fall: "There was a lot missing with last year's team, it turned out."
*Coach Kingsbury pointed to the turnover margin, and how that's the number one stat in football, in his opinion. He noted that turnover margin and penalties are two things that they just have to get better at, plain and simple.
*Seeing that he'll be returning nine starters from last year's offense, Coach Kingsbury has a whole lot of experience. He's excited about bringing back so many players, and he thinks things really started to click down the stretch last fall and have continued to roll forward this spring.
"Really good. Really good. I thought towards the end of the year, some of those offensive performances were some of the best we've had since we've been here, as far as consistency goes. So, they've picked that up. Guys have a lot more confidence than they had last year. Just have to continue to develop, but like I mentioned, a lot of guys on this team have played a lot of football, and they just have to clean things up and continue to improve."
*On Mahomes and Webb so far:
"Good, what you'd expect. Both had some very high points last year, and still have a lot of things to improve upon, and it starts with them when it comes to protecting the football, and that's been the number one point of emphasis this spring."
*Kliff said that Webb is throwing the ball well, looks good, but if they were to have a live game situation with real contact, he wouldn't go right now. But, he's been able to do everything so far.
*Seeing as they'll only go through spring with seven scholarship offensive linemen, there's a small margin for error when it comes to injuries and such. Coach Kingsbury said that they haven't really ramped things down from a physicality standpoint, but they are giving the O-line longer breaks to help them catch their breath since many of them are going through things with both the first and second team right now.
"I wouldn't say physicality. I would say we give longer breaks in between sessions, if that makes sense, but we're going as hard as we've ever gone. We'll just give more rest periods, let those guys catch up. A lot of guys are going back to back in team sessions, so that's probably the biggest difference."
*He also noted that some of the true freshmen offensive linemen will have to play, simple as that. The numbers on the O-line right now won't give them much of a choice, especially if anybody gets hurt at all.
*Speaking of young linemen, Kliff said he felt Justin Murphy is where they wanted him to be physically, but he still needs to come on a bit with the mental side of things, learning the nuances of technique, etc.
*Also, sounds like Mahomes will be making the trip to California this weekend with the baseball team, as Kliff said he'll miss this Saturday's practice. That will be the only one he's missed so far, and they don't really expect him to miss much else, if anything.
DC David Gibbs
*Coach Gibbs talked a bit about the first few days, noting that he likes how guys are competing with one another.
"They're a lot further ahead on offense, but the defensive guys, we're competing every day. We're getting better. I've seen some improvement. Kids are playing fast. We've got a bunch of different guys learning a bunch of different things, techniques, fundamentals, fronts, coverages. We try to keep it pretty simple just to keep a base, build a foundation, and after three days, it's a work in progress."
"It takes time, but they're fine. They're willing and eager to learn. I've had no problems with guys asking questions, guys improving and trying to learn. We've got 12 more this spring, and we'll take advantage of each of them."
*With only two days in shorts and one in pads so far, Coach Gibbs wouldn't throw out any names that stuck out. He said he's been pleased with the defensive players as a whole, but he noted that it's hard to go against this offense every day right now.
*As far as getting things installed and a timetable on that, the DC said that they'll start with the base and will really work hard on that until they get what they want from the players on the simple things.
"I'm not going to keep installing things until we build a foundation and build a base. It would be easy to go out there and put in five blitzes and blitz every snap, but to me, that doesn't give you anything to fall back on when things get tough, and we're trying to build a base run defense where we can lineup against things other than our spread offense, and it makes it hard because you're going against two or three offenses in practice every day, but it is what it is, and playing defense in college football, you have to. Kids have been working hard and will continue to do that."
He also noted that guys are going to play fundamentally sound on his defense, or they aren't going to play at all. He also feels that some defense in college are getting too complex for the players to let loose and play well in.
"I'm just trying to build a foundation of building solid fundamental defense. Guys playing in their proper gaps, knowing their responsibilities, and executing them. That way, you can make adjustments. When you play some of these fancy defenses where guys are moving and stunting and blitzing all of the time, you don't always have an answer for what goes wrong during the course of a game. We'll have an answer, because we'll have a system now. Obviously we have to teach that system that starts from ground zero, and like I said, we're three days into that system, so we'll keep pounding and keep grinding, and we'll get there eventually. If guys are supposed to be in the A gap, they'll be in the A gap, or they won't be on the field. If they're supposed to be in the B gap, they'll be in the B gap, and everybody knows their role and will execute their role, or they won't play, and that's just the way it is from day one."
*I also thought this was interesting, in regards to pitching Tech's defense to recruits.
"Having coached in the NFL, it's easy to say that you've picked up some pro-style schemes, packages, because that's what kids want to hear. But, the truth is, you'll turn on the film, and we'll play 4-3, play 3-4 defense, but at the end of the day, everybody plays the same schemes other than the true 3-4 teams that two-gap everything. So, we'll be multiple, which is what guys like to see. We sell them on the point that they'll play multiple positions within our scheme, because once you learn the scheme, it's easy to cross-train guys, so that would be the selling point. Like I said, we'll be sound, but until we go out there and do it on Saturday afternoons, it's easy to talk."
Co-DC Mike Smith
*With the first few days under his belt as the defensive line coach in spring football, Coach Smith likes the mentality of his players and is really just trying to teach them some basic things that he feels they haven't ever really learned properly.
"They're working hard. Especially with the inside guys, being new to them as a position coach, they're working, and that's what I want. I feel like the last three years, probably the last five years, Tech's D-line hasn't been good. That's not a secret. When I first took over, they knew how I am. They knew how I work. They know how I've made a career, that's toughness and working hard, so that's the first thing I stressed. It's a new system, we're going to have busts, but if we're going to have busts, we're going to be going full speed. That's the first thing I shared with them, and they just have to get better. I'm starting from ground zero. They don't understand blocking schemes, pass protection, all that stuff, stances. We're starting over, and right now they're all buying in, which is good. We're going to stack bricks. We're going to keep stacking bricks every day and work one little thing and get better. I feel like they've been doing that so far through three practices."
*When asked about Breiden Fehoko and where he's at so far, this is what Smith had to say:
"Big, strong. For him to be out there is probably the best thing he's ever done for his career, cause he's a high school kid. Everybody has high expectations that he'll be this or that, but he's still a freshman. He should still be at his prom right now.The thing that can help him out early is that he's so strong. He's already one of the strongest guys on the team, so he can go out there and control guys, but again, it's like the rest of those guys. It's about technique, and that's what he's learning, and the thing about him is that he's coachable. He wants to learn. I meet with him, say hey, what'd you do wrong here? He'll tell me I reached, I didn't fight my hip across on a double team. He's already picking that up, whereas these older guys are stuttering a little bit trying to pick it up. So, I know he's listening, and that's the kind of kid he is. He's going to be a big part of this defense for the next three or four years, so I'm glad he's here."
*Depth at the defensive end and rush end spots were an issue last fall behind Pete Robertson and Branden Jackson, and the two had to play a ton of snaps as a result. Smith likes where some of the younger players behind them are at right now, including Gary Moore behind Jackson and Kris Williams behind Robertson.
"Pete and B-Jack should be the best in the conference, and that's a given. Both those guys are extremely athletic, big, fast, and both of them are good, but behind them, who's really been flashing is Gary Moore. Gary Moore has probably been the most productive kid out there right now so far. He's just got to gain weight. He's seven feet tall and 200 pounds. He's got to put weight on. Once he gets to 230, 240 -- but, he's extremely athletic, is unbelievable with his hips, and he's another kid who takes coaching. He's great with his different moves out there. On the other side who's been surprisingly really good is Kris Williams. He's really flashed to Coach Gibbs. More short, more like a James Harrison-type kid that's short and squatty, but he's incredibly strong. He has heavy hands, he can play the run, and he can play the pass, so he's really flashed, and then Zach Barnes has flashed a little bit. He's another kid that's only about 215, so he's got to put some weight on, but I'm very happy with the depth at the end spots now. It's going to really help us this year."
