Mike Clowney Opening Statement: I mean as far as this week concerned with Newberry, it's a game that I think that all of us kind of look forward to, you know, in a sense that this is another opportunity to go play a good opponent to kind of figure out exactly how much growth and development we've kind of had over the season. Like you talked about earlier, they'll be the third nationally ranked opponent we play but it's good to be able to play good people and especially early in the season to figure out where you're at to continue to iron out some of the things that you need to iron out. I guess we're in the middle of the season now, to iron out what you need to iron out, and so you know our big thing is to continue to get better and hopefully we see some of that growth again this week and hopefully it'll result in a win.
Q1: No Carson-Newman football team had to face three nationally ranked teams in a five-week span. What has this done so far for your team?
You know, I think overall when we go back and look at it, I think it has the potential to really sharpen us, to help us grow. I mean I think that's like after we come back and look at last week's game yesterday. Of course, you ask guys do we think it's a situation where it's a winnable game for us and the answer was yes, so then the next thing you have to do is go figure out okay, well what do we have to do to win it. The thing that happens is the two things that that sticks out are consistency. You know, we did some things well, but we have got to do things well consistently, and then I think the things that we talk about, we have to put into action. So, when we get put in these situations where you talk about, I mean that's the story of like this group right now, is you know everything's been a little bit different for them, but to be tested, I think we'll go into the back end of the season a little bit battle tested. That's one thing we used to always do as coaches. You want to play good people and then kind of give yourself the chance to gain some traction on the back end and hopefully that's what we're doing right now.
Q2: Still a lot to play for because of the format change. You've got a division championship potentially, but you're also playing for the conference championship. How helpful is that format given the start?
You know, it's good to know like even where you're at right now that there's still something out there to continue to fight for, and you fight now for later. Then you have to fight later for later, as well, but I think it's something that provides a lot of encouragement. The biggest thing that we have to do is continue to grow and continue to find the consistency, and I hate to keep saying eliminating mistakes, but like learning from it and moving forward from the mistakes that we've already made.
Q3: Last week the talk was you all have to wrap up and have to tackle better. They did it. How nice is it that they've been putting those teaching moments into practice?
I think it's good for them and it's good when it shows up on film. Even offensively you know talk to Brian Do. There's a block two weeks ago where he winds up hitting the inside hip of a guy. He gets a pretty good defensive lineman on him this week, and he winds up getting all the way across to kind of get that block, and so now it's kind of showing up on film like some of the things that we're coaching, we're capable of doing. But it's the consistency part. Can we go do it every single play for four quarters and be consistent about it.
Q4: So, the 1980s reunion, quite literally '79 through '93. A lot of folks back for this one. How exciting is it to have so many who did so much for this program back in on campus this weekend?
I think that's where it's cool when I looked at the list the other day. I think there was like 80 guys that signed up, and that's when we just talked to Ken Burton, guy that helps us recruiting. He won't be able to make it because of the storms, but that group of guys I mean really is the reason I came to Carson-Newman. When you go in, I remember coming in and watching the highlight tapes every Saturday, you know, it's one of those things like we want to go win a championship like those guys did. So, we had this big TV down in the locker room right there like we would watch the 80s championship games in the 80s highlights so it's almost like a lot of those guys I feel like I know because we were so engrossed in what they did here. It's just such an honor to have them on campus this week. We're just looking forward to you know being able to spend a little bit of time with them and love on them some.
Q5: Newberry, you think of them, you think Dre Harris, an all-conference caliber quarterback. What's he do to operate their offense?
You know Dre's just a really phenomenal athlete, good with his arms, good with his legs, and good from a leadership standpoint. I think the other thing that helps is that he still has a good cast of running backs and receivers around. Newberry has always had a super talented football team, someone that always presented challenges for us.
Q6: Defensively, they've posed as much of a problem as anybody over the last decade. The top five in the country in run defense. What's it take to move to football against a pretty stout unit?
You know, I think we've got to we've to be creative. I think we've got to do a good job of continuing to get better at some of the things that we've done. I think schematically like we've got to be a little bit more consistent on what we've done there and make sure that we kind of we can execute the way that we need to execute. I think the big thing that sticks out on them is when you go look at their two deep. I mean they're all guys that's been there forever and been playing there forever, so the experience is kind of showing up for them.
Q7: You talk about being there forever, and that's certainly true of their offense. We already mentioned the pair, Mario Anderson, running back, and Woodruff, receiver. Feels like those guys that have literally been there through three presidencies. How does that experience show up on tape in games?
The biggest thing you see is we always talk about communication. You know, the great thing that you get to is when your communication is something that doesn't even have to be non-verbal. You've kind of done something long enough that you understand one another well enough that I see a guy press. We don't have to talk about it like we know we're going to go fade or we're going to run a slant route on that. So, that's one of the things I think that shows up on film is just a lot of their stuff, they've done it together so long that it's become automatic for them.
Q8: You alluded to it earlier that this is the halfway point. What surprised you about this team good or bad at this juncture of the season?
I think they've been pretty on course. I think from the very first week when we go to West Georgia, the thing I think we left that first meeting and going to that game as coaches was that these guys are different, and these guys will work. They'll give themselves a chance and when the score board didn't come out your way, it can kind of be frustrating, but there was still a sense of focus in the room yesterday. So, it's always, for us as coaches, like sometimes that focus to where guys are locked in and it seems like things may be a little bit dull and then nervous energy to where the guys are just kind of giddy about going and getting done what needs to get done. I don't really know, I thought yesterday in our meeting I sensed a little bit of that zeroed-in focus to where guys are like all right, it's time. Let's take this next step. So, I think it's something we have to continue to challenge ourselves with, but I think we've got a good football team still. I think we still need to continue the press to get done we need to get done.
