Linebackers coach Trey Haverty joined Level and Hanni on Tech Talk yesterday afternoon to talk about how things have gone so far this spring. Lots of good stuff here from him, so wanted to transcribe and share it with you guys as a Q&A.
Hanni: How's the spring gone to this point? What are the biggest storylines on your side of the ball, from what you've seen? [/B]
Haverty: I think just improvement. It seems like a recurring deal, but just putting in a new system and getting guys to know what they're doing so they can go play fast. But, it's been good. Obviously, a lot of stuff we've got to get better at on both sides of the ball, but Coach Gibbs is going to be really good for this staff, but I think we're to a point where, and y'all are too, the fans are, it's time to just go put up and come shut up talking. But, it's going well. Guys are getting better, fighting, and we're excited for Saturday, anytime you can put the pads on, cause it's different when you're not taking guys to the ground. But, when you get out there Saturday, it's time to go play football. We're excited to see who will fight when the chance comes."
Level: And Trey, explain to, for people that haven't been around Coach Gibbs at all, and you're right in the middle of this thing, how have the players taken to him and his scheme? Cause when I was over there talking to a lot of the players, it's like pretty clear to me that they have a respect for him, and that's one word I heard mentioned a lot.
Haverty: "Yeah, absolutely, and some guys, it doesn't matter what profession they're in, you can tell when guys know what they're doing. He obviously knows what he's doing, and he's been in it. Any time you can say I've coached these guys in the NFL for 10 years, obviously kids are going to listen a little bit more. He demands that respect from everybody, staff included, the players, and it's being accountable. If you're not going to do your job, no matter how talented you are, you're not going to play, so at the end of the day, you have 11 guys doing their job and something happens, and it's usually cause one or two guys didn't do their job, so the accountability is there. There's not much gray area, this is how we're going to do it, and the checks, and it's been good. It's been fun to learn, and I'm excited to see the product on the field in the fall, but we've got a lot more work to do before then."
Hanni: Texas Tech has turnover Tuesday. Tell us what this is all about.
Haverty: "It's just a little slogan. Every time we come in there, we try to have a little thing. During the season, Tuesdays are work days, and class to special teams, it's just kind of a grind day. One thing he's done a good job of everywhere he's been is turnovers, and we're preaching that here now. That's one of the big emphasis is that even in seven-on-seven when the whistle has been blown, we're still trying to go by and get the ball out, which obviously helps the offense with ball security, and then it's just a mindset. Don't just get the guy down on the ground. The next guy is trying to get the ball out, which at the end of the day, turnovers is probably the stat in wins and losses when you look through college football."
Level: You are coaching linebackers now, and you're coaching outside linebackers, so is it fair to ask you about a guy that I think everybody in Lubbock, Texas knows the name of but has really yet to see in Mike Mitchell?
Haverty: "Yeah, you know, Mike is getting better. Sometimes it's unrealistic, some of the recruiting deals when we think anybody is going to come in and be a savior, but Mike's doing everything we ask. He's getting better. He's a guy that, at the end of the day in the fall, can play multiple positions for us, and Mike has stuff he has to get better at, just like everybody, but excited to see what Mike can do. We've seen him in the fall -- in the fall we have what we call the redshirts. A lot of those guys scrimmage on Thursday, and now going live, we've only seen him in one scrimmage, so excited to see what he does when he puts the pads on Saturday."
Hanni: Is his work ethic most impressive, or is it something else? What would you say stands out most to what he brings to the table?
Haverty: "I would say work ethic, but we have some other guys -- Breiden, who got here at mid-semester -- it's the same deal. If you can't find Breiden, go look in the training room or the weight room, and he's there, but I would say work ethic, but we have some other guys that get in that mold, too, so I wouldn't say that he's the only one. But, with Mike, work ethic would always be the first thing I would say with him. He's always in the weight room or doing what you want him to or a little extra."
Level: Is your group motivated? You know with this isn't how we wanted things to go last year, and we really need to sort some things out in the offseason, and you may not have to say as much to these kids.
Haverty: "Yeah, and I think everything personnel-wise, we're going to be a little better, and at the same time you go 4-8, it's humbling if you're a player or coach, same thing if you're the fanbase or for y'all who have to report on it every day. It's a humbling experience, and obviously it wasn't good enough what we did last year, and we've got to get some stuff fixed. That's the big emphasis, and the kids know, too. You don't go to a bowl game, and you have all of December to watch all these bowl games, you come back hopefully a little more motivated, but they seem like it. We won't obviously know until the fall how much better we've gotten. But, the kids seem motivated. We're not having to do as much hootin and hollerin from that aspect of just effort. The guys are giving effort, and the good thing is that when they're not, there's accountability on our side of the ball with Coach Gibbs."
HannI: Ok, I've got three quick fill in the blanks for you. I start the sentence, and you finish it with what pops in your head. The biggest surprise of spring practice to this point has been...?
Haverty: "I would say Justis, just from the fact that Justis last year got thrown in the fire a little bit at corner, was playing multiple positions for us. We always joked around at DB that if you disappear, that's a good thing if we don't notice you, and he's done that so far. He's a smart guy that plays multiple positions, he has length, which you like in a DB, guys have longer arms, can get into the receivers and stay over the top of them, but I would say Justis, just cause he's disappeared more than he did last year, which is a good thing."
Hanni: The best two natural leaders on this roster are...?
Haverty: "I would say Pat, maybe just the quarterback position, but then again, at the same time, Davis was, too. I'm trying to think, don't want to give you just an answer. But, Micah Awe fits in that mold, and then I think Tevin Madison. But we have some guys that, when we say leaders, the things we have to balance as coaches is guys that hoot and holler and talk and all that, but sometimes the best leaders are the guys that just back it up with their actions. They don't have to talk the most, but when you talk to them, whether it's individual reps or if it's in a team setting, they're busting their butt, and I would say those guys fit that."
Hanni: The one thing that will help you flip the scrip the most from one season to the next will be...?
Haverty: "Turnover ratio. We hit on it earlier, but if you look at it and you go through the stats, we were towards the bottom of the country in turnover ratio with the offense giving it up and the defense taking it away, and I think that's one thing that we'll be improved on, how much we'll see, but that's been the big emphasis on our side of the ball, and I think it's helped the offense, because we have three or four guys on every play it seems trying to come in and rip the ball out, which anytime you emphasize something, you're slowly going to get better at it, no matter what your profession is."
Level: You had a lot of guys get thrown into the fire last year, so how much of a payoff do you expect with some of those guys taking some lumps last year? Now they're a year in, and they understand what it takes in the Big 12, and they'll have a full offseason.
Haverty: "Yeah, it doesn't hurt. Experience is going to help you in anything, cause you know what to expect, especially with Breiden. I was talking about Breiden the other day, and he's here this spring battling and all this, well he's supposed to be a high school senior. Now when he gets into summer offseason conditioning, he doesn't have to guess what it's going to be like to take on two three hundred pound double teams. At the same time, you get the experience, and I think it's definitely going to pay off. Those two guys you spoke of (Tevin and Nigel), Coach GIbbs being a defensive backs guy, and that's what he's coached in the NFL and played in college, I think it's going to help them, just the little tips. I mean, I'm sitting in meetings just writing things down from Coach Gibbs, little stuff here and there, but I think it's going to help them. They have the experience, and now they're getting tough by being around a guy that's been the best doing it."
Hanni: What's the sales pitch been on the heels of a 4-8 season when you're telling these kids, hey, we're still building, and we want you to be a part of this from the ground floor up? But, have you had to adjust that pitch and answer any questions on the heels of a season that didn't quite have as many wins as you hoped?
Haverty: "Oh, absolutely, but any time you have to know what your opponent is going to use against you, but the good thing is that Coach Kingsbury has signed a long term deal, so these kids coming in know who their head coach is going to be. Anytime you were 4-8, obviously it wasn't good enough, so you're looking for guys to come in and make an impact, so we're trying to sell the players and prospects that, hey, you can come in and play early, but you start looking at the depth charts and recruiting rankings over the last five years, and not every school means it. We're still able to say, going into our third recruiting class, that we need guys who can compete and get on the field, and we are building something. We're about to build this new facility once this thing gets going, and it'll be the newest indoor facility in the Big 12. ESPN rated our fanbase number one in the Big 12, and if you come to our games last year, the Texas game, we weren't very good, but it still sold out. Can you imagine what it's going to be like once we get this thing going. Top five in the country in beautiful women, and that's never going to change, great people out here, restaurants per capita, and most of the areas we recruit in Texas, it's far enough away that you can go be your own man, but it's a 45 minute Southwest flight (home). You know what people are going to use against you to try to combat it."
Hanni: How's the spring gone to this point? What are the biggest storylines on your side of the ball, from what you've seen? [/B]
Haverty: I think just improvement. It seems like a recurring deal, but just putting in a new system and getting guys to know what they're doing so they can go play fast. But, it's been good. Obviously, a lot of stuff we've got to get better at on both sides of the ball, but Coach Gibbs is going to be really good for this staff, but I think we're to a point where, and y'all are too, the fans are, it's time to just go put up and come shut up talking. But, it's going well. Guys are getting better, fighting, and we're excited for Saturday, anytime you can put the pads on, cause it's different when you're not taking guys to the ground. But, when you get out there Saturday, it's time to go play football. We're excited to see who will fight when the chance comes."
Level: And Trey, explain to, for people that haven't been around Coach Gibbs at all, and you're right in the middle of this thing, how have the players taken to him and his scheme? Cause when I was over there talking to a lot of the players, it's like pretty clear to me that they have a respect for him, and that's one word I heard mentioned a lot.
Haverty: "Yeah, absolutely, and some guys, it doesn't matter what profession they're in, you can tell when guys know what they're doing. He obviously knows what he's doing, and he's been in it. Any time you can say I've coached these guys in the NFL for 10 years, obviously kids are going to listen a little bit more. He demands that respect from everybody, staff included, the players, and it's being accountable. If you're not going to do your job, no matter how talented you are, you're not going to play, so at the end of the day, you have 11 guys doing their job and something happens, and it's usually cause one or two guys didn't do their job, so the accountability is there. There's not much gray area, this is how we're going to do it, and the checks, and it's been good. It's been fun to learn, and I'm excited to see the product on the field in the fall, but we've got a lot more work to do before then."
Hanni: Texas Tech has turnover Tuesday. Tell us what this is all about.
Haverty: "It's just a little slogan. Every time we come in there, we try to have a little thing. During the season, Tuesdays are work days, and class to special teams, it's just kind of a grind day. One thing he's done a good job of everywhere he's been is turnovers, and we're preaching that here now. That's one of the big emphasis is that even in seven-on-seven when the whistle has been blown, we're still trying to go by and get the ball out, which obviously helps the offense with ball security, and then it's just a mindset. Don't just get the guy down on the ground. The next guy is trying to get the ball out, which at the end of the day, turnovers is probably the stat in wins and losses when you look through college football."
Level: You are coaching linebackers now, and you're coaching outside linebackers, so is it fair to ask you about a guy that I think everybody in Lubbock, Texas knows the name of but has really yet to see in Mike Mitchell?
Haverty: "Yeah, you know, Mike is getting better. Sometimes it's unrealistic, some of the recruiting deals when we think anybody is going to come in and be a savior, but Mike's doing everything we ask. He's getting better. He's a guy that, at the end of the day in the fall, can play multiple positions for us, and Mike has stuff he has to get better at, just like everybody, but excited to see what Mike can do. We've seen him in the fall -- in the fall we have what we call the redshirts. A lot of those guys scrimmage on Thursday, and now going live, we've only seen him in one scrimmage, so excited to see what he does when he puts the pads on Saturday."
Hanni: Is his work ethic most impressive, or is it something else? What would you say stands out most to what he brings to the table?
Haverty: "I would say work ethic, but we have some other guys -- Breiden, who got here at mid-semester -- it's the same deal. If you can't find Breiden, go look in the training room or the weight room, and he's there, but I would say work ethic, but we have some other guys that get in that mold, too, so I wouldn't say that he's the only one. But, with Mike, work ethic would always be the first thing I would say with him. He's always in the weight room or doing what you want him to or a little extra."
Level: Is your group motivated? You know with this isn't how we wanted things to go last year, and we really need to sort some things out in the offseason, and you may not have to say as much to these kids.
Haverty: "Yeah, and I think everything personnel-wise, we're going to be a little better, and at the same time you go 4-8, it's humbling if you're a player or coach, same thing if you're the fanbase or for y'all who have to report on it every day. It's a humbling experience, and obviously it wasn't good enough what we did last year, and we've got to get some stuff fixed. That's the big emphasis, and the kids know, too. You don't go to a bowl game, and you have all of December to watch all these bowl games, you come back hopefully a little more motivated, but they seem like it. We won't obviously know until the fall how much better we've gotten. But, the kids seem motivated. We're not having to do as much hootin and hollerin from that aspect of just effort. The guys are giving effort, and the good thing is that when they're not, there's accountability on our side of the ball with Coach Gibbs."
HannI: Ok, I've got three quick fill in the blanks for you. I start the sentence, and you finish it with what pops in your head. The biggest surprise of spring practice to this point has been...?
Haverty: "I would say Justis, just from the fact that Justis last year got thrown in the fire a little bit at corner, was playing multiple positions for us. We always joked around at DB that if you disappear, that's a good thing if we don't notice you, and he's done that so far. He's a smart guy that plays multiple positions, he has length, which you like in a DB, guys have longer arms, can get into the receivers and stay over the top of them, but I would say Justis, just cause he's disappeared more than he did last year, which is a good thing."
Hanni: The best two natural leaders on this roster are...?
Haverty: "I would say Pat, maybe just the quarterback position, but then again, at the same time, Davis was, too. I'm trying to think, don't want to give you just an answer. But, Micah Awe fits in that mold, and then I think Tevin Madison. But we have some guys that, when we say leaders, the things we have to balance as coaches is guys that hoot and holler and talk and all that, but sometimes the best leaders are the guys that just back it up with their actions. They don't have to talk the most, but when you talk to them, whether it's individual reps or if it's in a team setting, they're busting their butt, and I would say those guys fit that."
Hanni: The one thing that will help you flip the scrip the most from one season to the next will be...?
Haverty: "Turnover ratio. We hit on it earlier, but if you look at it and you go through the stats, we were towards the bottom of the country in turnover ratio with the offense giving it up and the defense taking it away, and I think that's one thing that we'll be improved on, how much we'll see, but that's been the big emphasis on our side of the ball, and I think it's helped the offense, because we have three or four guys on every play it seems trying to come in and rip the ball out, which anytime you emphasize something, you're slowly going to get better at it, no matter what your profession is."
Level: You had a lot of guys get thrown into the fire last year, so how much of a payoff do you expect with some of those guys taking some lumps last year? Now they're a year in, and they understand what it takes in the Big 12, and they'll have a full offseason.
Haverty: "Yeah, it doesn't hurt. Experience is going to help you in anything, cause you know what to expect, especially with Breiden. I was talking about Breiden the other day, and he's here this spring battling and all this, well he's supposed to be a high school senior. Now when he gets into summer offseason conditioning, he doesn't have to guess what it's going to be like to take on two three hundred pound double teams. At the same time, you get the experience, and I think it's definitely going to pay off. Those two guys you spoke of (Tevin and Nigel), Coach GIbbs being a defensive backs guy, and that's what he's coached in the NFL and played in college, I think it's going to help them, just the little tips. I mean, I'm sitting in meetings just writing things down from Coach Gibbs, little stuff here and there, but I think it's going to help them. They have the experience, and now they're getting tough by being around a guy that's been the best doing it."
Hanni: What's the sales pitch been on the heels of a 4-8 season when you're telling these kids, hey, we're still building, and we want you to be a part of this from the ground floor up? But, have you had to adjust that pitch and answer any questions on the heels of a season that didn't quite have as many wins as you hoped?
Haverty: "Oh, absolutely, but any time you have to know what your opponent is going to use against you, but the good thing is that Coach Kingsbury has signed a long term deal, so these kids coming in know who their head coach is going to be. Anytime you were 4-8, obviously it wasn't good enough, so you're looking for guys to come in and make an impact, so we're trying to sell the players and prospects that, hey, you can come in and play early, but you start looking at the depth charts and recruiting rankings over the last five years, and not every school means it. We're still able to say, going into our third recruiting class, that we need guys who can compete and get on the field, and we are building something. We're about to build this new facility once this thing gets going, and it'll be the newest indoor facility in the Big 12. ESPN rated our fanbase number one in the Big 12, and if you come to our games last year, the Texas game, we weren't very good, but it still sold out. Can you imagine what it's going to be like once we get this thing going. Top five in the country in beautiful women, and that's never going to change, great people out here, restaurants per capita, and most of the areas we recruit in Texas, it's far enough away that you can go be your own man, but it's a 45 minute Southwest flight (home). You know what people are going to use against you to try to combat it."
