Video: Brock Pursley Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Mike Clowney, Brock Pursley, and Larry Slade discuss the Eagles' upcoming season, expectations for the offense and defense, and what they've seen heading into the first full season in two years for the Eagles.
Clowney Opening Statement: Preseason scrimmage and fall camp, man, it is exciting. They were asking me if this was my first media day, even though it's my second year as head coach but my first time as part of media day, but it's a great day to be an Eagle. As for the scrimmage today, we just wanted to get out there and see where we are as a staff and where our players are and try to get a vision of how we're doing in situations. Also, just wanted to get out there and evaluate our players so we can give them feedback for where they are and where we can work. A big thing that came out of today was our defense, who did a really good job and showed a lot of high energy. It was fun to see some of the plays they made, guys such as Kendall Williams, did a great job fundamentally and with stance. I remember a pass he broke up on the sidelines, it was just fun to see those types of plays and see the guys out there rally to the ball and have a lot of fun. It was just great to see the guys get out there and continue competing against each other. Offensively, think there were one or two bright spots that came out of today. It was good to see guys continue learning and adapting to the positions as we have faced some challenges with some injuries which we hope to get some guys back soon. The guys we had today did a great job of working hard and working through the situation that we had, and that leads me into the entire fall camp. We have a great group of guys, despite being a very young team overall, but I think when we look into the future with these guys, it is very promising. For the guys that we have here to not only trust us, but to open themselves up and to trust in the Lord and what He is trying to do with them here at Carson-Newman. We have had a good group of guys who have decided to trust the Lord with their lives and turn it over to Him and getting to watch that eventually transitions into the football aspect. "Once I give my life up and it's not up to me but to the Lord for what happens, I think that is one of the most exciting things to watch throughout our camp in having the players do that and be able to transition that into playing on the field."
I had a wide receiver come up to me today and we talked about "what was your devotional today?" and it was ironic because he was dealing with injury and the devotional is about overcoming challenges. He woke up really frustrated that he couldn't compete in the scrimmage, but to open the Bible and realize that it is not only about today but it is about life going forward and eventually that opportunity is going to be there. So it has been really fun to see these guys grow as people and as football players.
Q1 After only having one game last year, what kind of challenge is it for you to continue keeping the team together after what happened last year and really having no season to base off?
Last year, I didn't realize it going through the year, but it was hard. We did everything that we could so when our guys showed up to our facilities, they had no idea what was going on. They showed up and whatever we were doing that day, whether it was a regular practice or getting ready for a game, we worked our tails off as coaches to make sure everything was prepared and organized. The players got to come over for at least two hours a day and do what they enjoyed doing. However, when we got into the summer, that is when it really hit me as we were done and were not really playing and getting ready to send everyone away. It was like "phew" and I told our leaders before we started, I did not know the mental and emotional drain that it really put on me, but it makes you go back and see what it did to our other coaches and players. It has been fun to watch us come out of that little lull during the summer because there has been a lot of frustration over the summer, but once we got back, we have had the best group of guys that I have seen here in a long, long time of guys coming back ready to go. You have to trust them when you send them home that they will workout, train, and run but it was fun to watch our guys come back into camp. You can tell the guys did everything we asked and challenged them with this summer. Coach Long and his staff continued pushing that forward so our guys could cover the ground needed but also gain a little bit on that as well.
Q2 Thoughts about not having to go through the full four-game slate in the spring compared to other FCS schools.
Taking over when I took over in January, we were going straight into spring ball right out of recruiting. We lost 18 guys who had started for the team before, so as a coach you say what's one thing you like to be able to do, and we hit the pause button for a little bit to try and minimize what was going on and be able to catch up. As bad as everything with COVID was, it truly benefited us with a young football team so we could take the year to truly develop and grow the players so that they have a little bit of fundamental work and strength training under their belt as they get ready to go into the season. I think our coaches did a great job to make sure we could gain as much ground as possible.
Q3 What do you learn about yourself as a coach from when you entered in the Spring to now?
I think it gave us the chance to "practice what we preach." We always talk to our guys that it is not all about football and suddenly, the football part is taking away. If it was all about football, then it's over for us. We talk about it being about our players, building that trust between them and us, and growing and developing as a family. So, as coaches, we literally pushed the pause button on everything. What can we do to help our guys get in a better academic position? What can we do to help our team grow closer together to live up to our motto of "ONE" which is everything goes through Christ, so how can we develop the team to get to that point? So, we pushed the pause button, and that is what we truly focused on. Yes, we did the football thing as well, but we did as much as we could to help our team grow. Having guys come up and say, "I don't know how good we'll be, but we're going to fight" is something you enjoy hearing and love seeing from players.
Q4 What do you think about being able to coach a home football game for the first time in a year and a half?
It's going to be fun. We try to take out the "play, and play, and play" aspect and just say it is a great opportunity to go back and do what we love where we love doing it. It is going to be fun for me and I know our kids are excited even having fans in the stands today coming to watch them scrimmage. Guys appreciate that type of support so much.
Q5 Where did you come up with the theme "ONE" for the team and how important is it for the team?
I think the biggest thing was knowing I have the job as I go into the press conference the next day and "what do I talk about" because you must be able to talk about the team and summarize what you want to accomplish. It is also about what do we want our program to be and so, we want to try and go and try to win it all so what will be the main ingredient in us going out to win it all and be the best team in the country. The biggest thing is that we have to grow together, and it is funny because you go backwards and take the part of us coming together and us becoming one, probably the primary ingredient for us eventually being number one. So, being able to go in and find Scripture where Christ talks about the importance of us coming together and that being the key for us succeeding, it just became a natural flow of that is who we are, that is what we want to do, and what will drive us as a football program.
Q6 When the football was on pause, how did you gain the trust of the players and bring them together?
We were an academic disaster, coming off of COVID, and if we had to play with regular academic guidelines, we would have been in trouble. That showed the character of our football team and that is one of the biggest areas we wanted to attack, so we come out where counseling is online and tutoring is online as well, we didn't know what was going on with the virus as well. We were placed into an environment by ourselves, so there were things we could not compromise on and we had to help our guys buy into their academic situation a little bit better. We had them come in and talked to them about the importance of the situation and why they need to do what they need to own their academics. As athletes, one of the biggest things is competing and, in the classroom, a lot of the guys do not know how to compete against themselves in that setting. It's about maximizing your potential, so we challenged them, and they responded. It is that type of thing you hope to see trinkle onto the field of taking that competitive edge and using it everywhere you go.
Brock Pursley- Offensive Coordinator
Opening Statement: Offensively, we're young up front and got some young guys in the back as well as some guys who have experience. We have a transfer at quarterback who played some at ETSU but hasn't seen much competition here at Carson-Newman. Offensively, we're young as we have two guys on the entire offense who have played an entire season here in Braxton and Romain so we're trying to get guys into certain areas and get more time playing. Overall, they compete and get after it and try to get after the defense and make plays happen. They get frustrated when they can't get things to happen, which is good because it shows it is important to them. Offensively, it goes back to the mantra of "who do you want to be? Who do you want to be as an offense? Who do you want to be as a person? Who are you trying to be and how do you want to be remembered?" From that, we carry it over to the overall idea of "ONE" and who do we want to be as one offense and what do you need to do to get yourself to that point. As Coach Clowney said about the academics of this, it is about not only challenging the guys around you but are you challenging yourself daily to reach and raise the level so when you go to bed at night, can you honestly say, "I gave it my all every single day?" These guys are getting after it, we have a lot of youth and inexperience, but we are still getting after it and working on attacking the ball. Today in the scrimmage, there were moments where we had two thoughts going into it which we as coaches sometimes challenge our players to see if we can change the scheme and go man-on-man and run the ball down the defense's throat. There were times where we saw things we were able to take advantage of and other times where we haven't worked on something in a couple days and need to go back and work on them. Pleased to see some guys step up and some guys need to get better. Bottom line is we have less than two weeks to try and get better as we try to go win a football game in a couple weeks.
Q1 What has it been like to implement a new offensive scheme but have these types of weapons on the WR corps?
It's been fun because we are still doing a lot of what we have been doing in the past, in so much as we are still an option offense. I truly believe in college football; you have to be able to run the ball in some capacity so I'm a huge fan of the option. It's been nice to get a variety of WRs, both big men and slots, involved as the "pitchman" in the option but still be able to do things on the outside to spread the ball out more. When I think of a balanced offense, I think of how many times certain guys touch the football and how we get the ball to those guys, instead of 50/50 for pass and run. Balanced offense is how do we spread the field horizontally and vertically to get the ball in the guys who need it. It's been a challenge to see what the guys are good at and how can we place them in positions to do exactly what we need them to do. It is a good receiving corps, and it is a nice problem to have for us to have guys on the outside who can do things we need.
Q2 Opposing teams will be about to see these guys in action weekly, talk about preparing for how opponents will scout the guys.
In game-planning it all, we are looking at a couple of things which are how do we get our best guys the ball in space, whether it is in traditional ways such as plays or formations or through personnel groups by adding a certain guy in the mix. We also look at the bigger picture of knowing what weapons we have, and I assume as we get going, teams will start figuring it out as well, so it will be about how to take advantage of those weapons in a different way but the same way.
Q3 Who's been the biggest surprise of camp for you?
I would say, and it is not going to be fun answer on this one, but the offensive line. I love the offensive line, and they are my favorite group on the entire team. It is a team within a team and football is the greatest team sport there is, right? You can't do a whole lot if you only have one good football player, and you can't do a whole lot if you only have one good O-lineman. They always must be communicating, their blocks go hand-in-hand, and you rarely see a guy on an island. If a guy is on an island, he must communicate where help is needed. The O-line has been the biggest surprise. We have had some guys go down and we have had some injuries, but it is some of these young guys who in the past two weeks have been forced to become football players at the college level. Overall, the position group has been fun and very satisfying to watch.
Q4 After many decades of C-N football, offensive linemen still block downfield. Are these guys coming from different high schools having to learn how to block downfield and put their feet in the dirt?
This is probably the biggest challenge we face every year, teaching a lineman what a three-point stance is and how to fire off. Along with that, teaching quarterbacks how to take a snap under center and our running backs to get a three-point stance. It is tough to get the linemen to run downhill, but coach Guillermo has been good with these guys to drive off this foot toward the defense and get some movement. I'm old-school in that I love getting in a guy's face and dominating a team. If you have a team out there cut-blocking the opponent, it slows the defense down. A couple of years ago, we had freshman and sophomores having to adjust but three years later, they become good juniors and seniors and I think that is where we are now.
Q5 How do you balance running downhill with the talent you have on the outside at receiver?
I really do not care if we run it or throw it. I do not care if we have three tight ends in the game or five wide or whatever it may be because if one thing is working, we are going to continue doing that whether it be running or passing. It's a fine balance of what are we doing and what are we doing that's not working and how do we stop what is not working, especially on first down. If we gain a couple of yards there, it sets us up for a better second-down play.
Q6 Probably the sexiest offense is one that scores points. Thoughts?
That is what we say on offense, you got to score points. It does not matter if you are power-I or five wide doing an air raid, it is about how can we put points on the board. It's a lot easier if the defense can shut down the opponent and we only kick a field goal and win 3-0, but today's football game has turned into "basketball on turf." In a lot of ways, you got to outscore the opponent because football can change so fast and so rapidly, one or two big plays and it's over.
Larry Slade- Defensive Coordinator/Safeties
Opening Statement: Very fortunate to work in a program where Christ is the foundation and our head coach is to be real, which is what our players want in a coach. We are really excited about the coaches on the defensive side, outstanding guys first and even better coaches. Coach Luis, our defensive line coach, is doing a great job. Coach Jamison, our outside linebackers coach, helping the young guys get used to playing. Coach Brock, our inside linebackers coach, is outstanding. Coach Goss, secondary coach, does a really great job. Coach Ierulli helps us out and I am very fortunate to work alongside this whole defensive coaching staff. We talked with our players about expectations, from being on time and going to class and being "ONE" along with competing and being the best, we can. We then ask our players what they expect of our coaches, and they always say to be real no matter how much it might hurt. They want us to be wide open and be prepared. We're going to make people uncomfortable and the number one thing we will do is play fast. It is about the effort and that is a big part of what we do. Really excited about the effort our guys have put and when you start looking at our players, the one area where we are inexperienced is in the secondary. There is a young man, Cam Ellison, having a good camp after transferring in. Calum Clemens from Florida is having a good camp. Tay Little is another man who is having a great camp. The front seven group has a chance to be really good and is our greatest strength for the defensive side of the ball. Linebackers are strong as well, despite having a couple guys being out for injuries.
Q1 How do you compare this defensive unit to the first year you stepped on the field with?
I think the big thing is experience. Can they go out there and play man-to-man? Yes, but can they go leverage the football and playing our offense is helping us to gain experience where we need to improve. This year, we have some young guys and it is about them going out to play. We'll do more about that and just letting them go out there and playing to gain experience.
Q2 How important have guys like DD Brooks and Rondrow Peebles been for the young guys coming in?
It is great to have veterans and how they practice. We sometimes talk to them about how the young guys are stepping back and watching how they act and how they perform at practice. We are just really fortunate to have the leadership of those guys on the team.
Q3 What were your impressions on how the defense performed during the scrimmage?
We competed hard and played out. It's about being consistent, and I thought for the most part, they did a great job effort-wise. We must continue working on stopping the big plays. Our goal as a defense is to go through a day without a big play. Create those habits and get better at each practice and I think the guys are buying into that.
Q4 How much going against guys like Braxton and Troy Dendy helps the defense prepare for other competitions?
I think it's great. Those guys get to see the best and see what it is like. There will be the toss-up plays and you have to go out there and compete. I saw Braxton make a catch the other day and we were in a good position, but Braxton actually reached around the defender and caught the ball. I immediately said, "let's go line up again." I'm not going to get upset at the kid and it's fun to see those guys and compete against them every day.
Q5 What do you think of the keys to a successful defense?
I think the big thing that we spend time on is fundamentals. Taking the correct angles and be in the right positions to attack the ball. When you play a talented running back and take a wrong angle, you do not get that back. We take the time to hammer in the fundamentals, so we know how to compete against guys like Braxton and Dendy for the other teams.
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