Q. When you look at Tanner Morgan, a lot of things stand out, the way he runs the RPO, from my novice point of view, maybe a Brock Purdy type. What have you seen from him?
KIRK FERENTZ: Yeah, the first thing is his statistics. I think he's 21 touchdowns, four picks, I believe. That's a really good indicator that not only is he being productive but he's being smart with what he's doing. I think that's probably the biggest thing right now. They don't beat themselves. A big part of that is the quarterback play. He's really done a good job. He's a young player, but he's not playing like a young player, and that's really impressive. They've got good guys to throw it to, too, and that puts a lot of pressure on you. They've got a good run game and good pass game, so they're very balanced that way.
Q. A lot of their plays have been big plays in the receiving game, especially last -- well, all season long. Is that schematic or is that more by yards after contact or the catch?
KIRK FERENTZ: A little bit of each, but we had great respect for the receivers last year. I thought they were one of the better groups in the Big Ten, if not the best a year ago. One guy was a little bit more veteran than the other guys. Those two guys stood out, but the third guy was really good, also. Now it's a year later, year plus. We played them earlier, and they're just continuing to grow. They're really all excellent receivers, so they can take balls and run with them, but they also will throw the ball deep and do it successfully. They do a good job.
Q. The way you and your players are describing Minnesota today, it sounds similar like when you guys are playing really well at the top of your game, the balance and running. Is that kind of what you see, some similarities there?
KIRK FERENTZ: That's what you're shooting for certainly. We're not near as big as those guys, but that's what we want it to be, and throw Wisconsin in there, too, kind of similar that way. You know, that's what you're hoping to do is get a good balance. They've got that statistically the way they run the ball and throw the ball successfully, and they're just playing well. They're playing with a lot of confidence right now. They've earned that, and they've improved with every phase this season, which is a real credit to their players and their staff.
Q. Do you see any similarities to kind of what happened to you guys in '15?
KIRK FERENTZ: I mean, they're 9-0 right now, and that's hard to do. We've only, I think, experienced that twice. So it's really hard to do. We haven't done it a lot. Not many teams have. Take Alabama and Clemson out of the mix, it's really difficult to do that.
It speaks really that they're wired in. They're playing well weekly and finding a way to win. It's a little bit more challenging than just saying it.
Q. I know you didn't come until '81, but Hayden brought 'the swarm' here. Coach Fleck brought 'row the boat.' How do you get guys to buy in to that?
KIRK FERENTZ: I think whatever it is that your mantra may be or whatever it is you decide is important. But mantras and words or concepts are just that, they're words or concepts until players really understand what the concept means, what the meaning behind it is. That's part of the education process and really you have to usually experience ups and downs, but at some point hopefully there's an illustrative moment, if you will, or moments that really help reinforce the things that you're trying to get across to your football team, and they clearly are -- they're all on the same page right now, there's no question about that.
KIRK FERENTZ: Yeah, the first thing is his statistics. I think he's 21 touchdowns, four picks, I believe. That's a really good indicator that not only is he being productive but he's being smart with what he's doing. I think that's probably the biggest thing right now. They don't beat themselves. A big part of that is the quarterback play. He's really done a good job. He's a young player, but he's not playing like a young player, and that's really impressive. They've got good guys to throw it to, too, and that puts a lot of pressure on you. They've got a good run game and good pass game, so they're very balanced that way.
Q. A lot of their plays have been big plays in the receiving game, especially last -- well, all season long. Is that schematic or is that more by yards after contact or the catch?
KIRK FERENTZ: A little bit of each, but we had great respect for the receivers last year. I thought they were one of the better groups in the Big Ten, if not the best a year ago. One guy was a little bit more veteran than the other guys. Those two guys stood out, but the third guy was really good, also. Now it's a year later, year plus. We played them earlier, and they're just continuing to grow. They're really all excellent receivers, so they can take balls and run with them, but they also will throw the ball deep and do it successfully. They do a good job.
Q. The way you and your players are describing Minnesota today, it sounds similar like when you guys are playing really well at the top of your game, the balance and running. Is that kind of what you see, some similarities there?
KIRK FERENTZ: That's what you're shooting for certainly. We're not near as big as those guys, but that's what we want it to be, and throw Wisconsin in there, too, kind of similar that way. You know, that's what you're hoping to do is get a good balance. They've got that statistically the way they run the ball and throw the ball successfully, and they're just playing well. They're playing with a lot of confidence right now. They've earned that, and they've improved with every phase this season, which is a real credit to their players and their staff.
Q. Do you see any similarities to kind of what happened to you guys in '15?
KIRK FERENTZ: I mean, they're 9-0 right now, and that's hard to do. We've only, I think, experienced that twice. So it's really hard to do. We haven't done it a lot. Not many teams have. Take Alabama and Clemson out of the mix, it's really difficult to do that.
It speaks really that they're wired in. They're playing well weekly and finding a way to win. It's a little bit more challenging than just saying it.
Q. I know you didn't come until '81, but Hayden brought 'the swarm' here. Coach Fleck brought 'row the boat.' How do you get guys to buy in to that?
KIRK FERENTZ: I think whatever it is that your mantra may be or whatever it is you decide is important. But mantras and words or concepts are just that, they're words or concepts until players really understand what the concept means, what the meaning behind it is. That's part of the education process and really you have to usually experience ups and downs, but at some point hopefully there's an illustrative moment, if you will, or moments that really help reinforce the things that you're trying to get across to your football team, and they clearly are -- they're all on the same page right now, there's no question about that.