alltimetwinsfan
Grand Poobah
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2008
- Messages
- 2,130
- Reaction score
- 53
- Points
- 48
These are the press conference notes from Tim Brewster's September 28th press conference:
-When the team begins the season 1-3, there is great disappointment for the football team, and if you look back, we could easily be 4-0 looking back. The team had opportunities to make that happen, but the reality is they're a 1-3 team.
-The most important record is that the team is 0-0 in the Big Ten, and they have an opportunity to win a homecoming game against a Big Ten opponent and go 1-0 in the Big Ten
-Northwestern's a good football team, and one that the team has had great battles with over the past three years, including a triple-overtime game three years ago and two close games over the past few years
-The mental status of the team is excellent, and though some of the things the team has done are unacceptable, they realize that they could just as easily be 4-0 as they are 1-3
-What the team needs to do defensively is eliminate the big play, whether it's run or pass
-The team has done a lot of things well on offense, including being #2 in the country in time of possession
-Northwestern starts and ends with Persa, the quarterback. They are more option oriented now than they were with Kafka last season. Persa is quick to pull the ball and run, which means the defense has to be ready for that
-They also have some excellent receivers, and they do a good job of creating routes to get them open
-Defensively, they are very sound, and they do a very good job of avoiding the big play
-It's critical to stay on the field and win the time of possession battle in this game
-They will need to get Marquis Gray involved in more facets of the game; Brewster mentioned that he may be used in an option situation
-Troy Stoudamire has been reinstated for Saturday's game
-When asked about time of possession, Brewster said that it's key to hold the ball on offense, but it's also critical to limit the number of snaps that the defense has to be on the field; mentioned that Air Force is #1 in the country
-Said that when you've got young guys in the ballgame, they're going to make mistakes, and game experience is going to allow them to learn from that
-On the negative criticism around the program, Brewster admitted that it's part of the job, and that it's frustrating that the team is 1-3 for everyone. However, for the disappointment that the fans are feeling right now, "compound that 50 times. That's how I feel." He also added the team feels more disappointed than any fan can possibly feel, simply because they're feeling it first hand
-When asked about whether he's concerned about his job, he said "absolutely not," and added that that's the job of the journalists to worry about that, and that he's worried about winning football games. They're working hard to make sure they're ready for the Big Ten season, and again pointed out they're 0-0 in the Big Ten
-Said that everyone should be available to play
-He said it hurts badly that they lost two games that "there's no doubt in my mind we should have won," but the reality is they didn't win those games
-Brewster mentioned to Marcus Fuller of the Pioneer Press that Stoudamire has a message for him on Facebook...also said that he will play on Saturday. Brewster said that what forced his suspension was self-inflicted.
-Brewster noted that he doesn't think Royston is fully ready for him to be put in full pads until today, but that's he's going to give it a go today
-He also noted that Northwestern's offense is well-designed, and that they execute it very well, making it very difficult to defend. Noted again that staying on offense will limit their plays
-Said Northwestern is running more option now than they have in the past
-On mistakes by the Special Forces, he said it's very frustrating that mistakes are being made, but that they are young guys out there and sometimes they make the wrong decisions out there. It's the coaching staffs' job to make sure that doesn't happen
-Brewster was pleased with Ellestad's recovery after kicking the opening kickoff out of bounds
-On the defense only having two sacks thus far, Brewster noted that not all defenses are set up to sack the quarterback. Brought up Northwestern, which has a quarterback out of the shotgun, and utilizes quick passes, and that the sack is not the be-all, end-all.
-On the Big Ten season becoming more physical, Brewster noted they played a good non-conference schedule, and that they have a plan for how to get the players ready for each particular game
-On players using social media, Brewster said he would love to eliminate the use of social media by the players, but that that's tough to do, and that you need to inform the players on how to make good decisions when using it
-On the win vs. Middle Tennessee vs. the losses that have followed, Brewster noted that time of possession had a lot to do with it, and they limited the time the defense was on the field
-Brewster made note that he is pleased with the improvement of the wide receivers, crediting Steve Watson. Noted that Marquis Gray is probably one of the best receivers in the Big Ten, and is happy with Lair and McKnight as well
-Said that they have run the ball pretty successfully so far, and they want to improve that every week
-Said that they will stay the course when it comes to the quarterback position, and that while they continually are tweaking things, they are close as far as what they want to do
-Noted that when you get opportunities to score, you've got to score touchdowns, and that they've got to maximize everything they do, since the margin for error is small due to the fact that each game has been close thus far. Every possession has seemingly counted so far, and when they do maximize their possessions, they will win those close games
-When the team begins the season 1-3, there is great disappointment for the football team, and if you look back, we could easily be 4-0 looking back. The team had opportunities to make that happen, but the reality is they're a 1-3 team.
-The most important record is that the team is 0-0 in the Big Ten, and they have an opportunity to win a homecoming game against a Big Ten opponent and go 1-0 in the Big Ten
-Northwestern's a good football team, and one that the team has had great battles with over the past three years, including a triple-overtime game three years ago and two close games over the past few years
-The mental status of the team is excellent, and though some of the things the team has done are unacceptable, they realize that they could just as easily be 4-0 as they are 1-3
-What the team needs to do defensively is eliminate the big play, whether it's run or pass
-The team has done a lot of things well on offense, including being #2 in the country in time of possession
-Northwestern starts and ends with Persa, the quarterback. They are more option oriented now than they were with Kafka last season. Persa is quick to pull the ball and run, which means the defense has to be ready for that
-They also have some excellent receivers, and they do a good job of creating routes to get them open
-Defensively, they are very sound, and they do a very good job of avoiding the big play
-It's critical to stay on the field and win the time of possession battle in this game
-They will need to get Marquis Gray involved in more facets of the game; Brewster mentioned that he may be used in an option situation
-Troy Stoudamire has been reinstated for Saturday's game
-When asked about time of possession, Brewster said that it's key to hold the ball on offense, but it's also critical to limit the number of snaps that the defense has to be on the field; mentioned that Air Force is #1 in the country
-Said that when you've got young guys in the ballgame, they're going to make mistakes, and game experience is going to allow them to learn from that
-On the negative criticism around the program, Brewster admitted that it's part of the job, and that it's frustrating that the team is 1-3 for everyone. However, for the disappointment that the fans are feeling right now, "compound that 50 times. That's how I feel." He also added the team feels more disappointed than any fan can possibly feel, simply because they're feeling it first hand
-When asked about whether he's concerned about his job, he said "absolutely not," and added that that's the job of the journalists to worry about that, and that he's worried about winning football games. They're working hard to make sure they're ready for the Big Ten season, and again pointed out they're 0-0 in the Big Ten
-Said that everyone should be available to play
-He said it hurts badly that they lost two games that "there's no doubt in my mind we should have won," but the reality is they didn't win those games
-Brewster mentioned to Marcus Fuller of the Pioneer Press that Stoudamire has a message for him on Facebook...also said that he will play on Saturday. Brewster said that what forced his suspension was self-inflicted.
-Brewster noted that he doesn't think Royston is fully ready for him to be put in full pads until today, but that's he's going to give it a go today
-He also noted that Northwestern's offense is well-designed, and that they execute it very well, making it very difficult to defend. Noted again that staying on offense will limit their plays
-Said Northwestern is running more option now than they have in the past
-On mistakes by the Special Forces, he said it's very frustrating that mistakes are being made, but that they are young guys out there and sometimes they make the wrong decisions out there. It's the coaching staffs' job to make sure that doesn't happen
-Brewster was pleased with Ellestad's recovery after kicking the opening kickoff out of bounds
-On the defense only having two sacks thus far, Brewster noted that not all defenses are set up to sack the quarterback. Brought up Northwestern, which has a quarterback out of the shotgun, and utilizes quick passes, and that the sack is not the be-all, end-all.
-On the Big Ten season becoming more physical, Brewster noted they played a good non-conference schedule, and that they have a plan for how to get the players ready for each particular game
-On players using social media, Brewster said he would love to eliminate the use of social media by the players, but that that's tough to do, and that you need to inform the players on how to make good decisions when using it
-On the win vs. Middle Tennessee vs. the losses that have followed, Brewster noted that time of possession had a lot to do with it, and they limited the time the defense was on the field
-Brewster made note that he is pleased with the improvement of the wide receivers, crediting Steve Watson. Noted that Marquis Gray is probably one of the best receivers in the Big Ten, and is happy with Lair and McKnight as well
-Said that they have run the ball pretty successfully so far, and they want to improve that every week
-Said that they will stay the course when it comes to the quarterback position, and that while they continually are tweaking things, they are close as far as what they want to do
-Noted that when you get opportunities to score, you've got to score touchdowns, and that they've got to maximize everything they do, since the margin for error is small due to the fact that each game has been close thus far. Every possession has seemingly counted so far, and when they do maximize their possessions, they will win those close games
