Opponent Preview: Kansas State
8/29/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 29, 2014
Head coach Clint Conque met with the media Thursday to preview the Lumberjacks' season opening opponent:
On finally starting the season:
“It was a whirlwind process to get us all here and getting a coaching staff in place for this season. I thought they all worked incredibly hard and we saw a lot of growth throughout the spring and summer. We've had a good, quality camp and we're reasonably healthy. We've got the typical bumps and bruises that we're dealing with these final 48 hours, but we're excited to go and compete against one of the best football programs in the country. What I cautioned our young men is to prepare and practice like they expect to play and set the standard of how they want to prepare and how they want to perform, regardless of who the opponent is. I think if its a consistent approach like that, we'll continue to grow as a football team.”
On the expectations against Kansas State:
“Ultimately, we would like to win the game. I think we've got a great plan. Certainly we understand this is a huge challenge, but a great opportunity as well. Again, I think it's important for us to control the things we can control. We're going on the road in front of one of the largest crowds many of these guys will have seen and we're dealing with a bunch of 18-22 year olds. Players make plays and sometimes they make mistakes. You hope you go out this week and make more plays than your opponent. But it's a wonderful opportunity for us to go and play against one of the best programs in the country. They're obviously ranked in the preseason top-20 this year and I have a great deal of respect for Bill Snyder and the program that he's built there. With that said, we have a lot of things that we want to accomplish on the heels of our outstanding fall camp. We want to grow as a football team and as a program. We've got a lot of challenges this week and in the future, but it's time to go see where we are and what we need to work on.”
On how SFA matches up against the Wildcats:
“They do replace several in their secondary as well as a couple up front at the linebacker position, so defensively they are looking at about five perennial starters that are back. Offensively, they return a senior quarterback and one of the best receivers in all of college football in Tyler Lockett, so we'll be challenged their. There is a little bit of a question mark at running back. But ultimately its about being responsible for the guy in front of you and taking advantage of plays when they become available, working hard and playing with passion. We're challenging them to play for six seconds at a time with fanatical effort, and that has kind of become our mantra whether on special teams, offense or defense. I do like the fact that our offensive line has been working together now for the last 10 or 11 practices and we're building some continuity there with some older guys and we're hoping to create some seams and creases for our running game and take some pressure off our quarterbacks who will definitely be challenged playing in that type of environment.”
On the strengths of Kansas State:
“They run their quarterback, so any time you have a tough playmaker like they do in Jake Waters, who also returns as their leading rusher, it's going to pose a big challenge. I'm sure they'll want to establish a new option at the tailback position after losing them after last year, but having an athletic quarterback that can run always poses some challenges. And again, talking about Lockett, he's one of the great receivers in the college game. I was hoping he'd come out early for the NFL Draft last year but he didn't. I would think he would be among one of the best in the country and will probably get some strong consideration for the Biletnikof Award, which goes to the nation's best wide receiver, so that obviously creates a big matchup problem for us. He also is a threat in the return game as well as on offense. And just their size as a whole. They're big, they're physical. Coach Snyder has been there for 23 years, we've been here for eight months. He's got his program in place and its something that we aspire to be.”
On Zach Conque making his first collegiate start at K-State:
“I know it's coach speak, but we've been telling him to value the football, get us in the right play, distribute it correctly. He'll need to play fast but ultimately do the things he can control. He has some wonderful playmakers surrounding him. Not just him but Joe Minden and Hunter Taylor, all three of them had great camps. They just need to get us in the right play and get the ball to our playmakers. Protecting the ball will be huge – not taking sacks, not turning the ball over. We aren't expecting the same type of things we'd expect with a fifth year senior. At this point we're not expecting our quarterbacks to go out and win games for us, as they have other players around them that are skilled, but it's just a matter of playing smart, distributing the ball correctly and being a leader.”
On what the staff is expecting Saturday evening in Manhattan:
“Obviously we know this is going to be a huge challenge for us. There will be 50,000-plus fans there and they tell me its one of the loudest Big 12 venues. I've been talking to some of the other coaches we know in the Big 12 about what to expect and they have all commented on how loud it gets. The crowd, the travel – this will be the first time we all travel together, both internally with our football team and all the external staff as well. We're going to learn a lot about each other. The thing that I just want to make sure happens is that we keep fighting and there is no flinching. We're going to make mistakes, we recognize that. Probably some silly ones. As long as we don't make the mistakes that shoots ourselves in the foot and we continue to keep fighting and keep competing, we'll be fine. I really like this team. They want to win and they want to improve and certainly we're hoping we can take a big step forward on Saturday.”
-SFA-
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Stephen F. Austin kicks off its 88th season of football Saturday on the road in Manhattan, Kan., facing 20th-ranked Kansas State. Kickoff against the Wildcats is set for 6:10 p.m. at Bill Snyder Family Stadium as the game can be watched live online at KStateHD.TV, a high-definition online broadcast which runs $9.95 for a one-month subscription. In-game updates will be posted on Twitter @SFA_Football.
Head coach Clint Conque met with the media Thursday to preview the Lumberjacks' season opening opponent:
On finally starting the season:
“It was a whirlwind process to get us all here and getting a coaching staff in place for this season. I thought they all worked incredibly hard and we saw a lot of growth throughout the spring and summer. We've had a good, quality camp and we're reasonably healthy. We've got the typical bumps and bruises that we're dealing with these final 48 hours, but we're excited to go and compete against one of the best football programs in the country. What I cautioned our young men is to prepare and practice like they expect to play and set the standard of how they want to prepare and how they want to perform, regardless of who the opponent is. I think if its a consistent approach like that, we'll continue to grow as a football team.”
On the expectations against Kansas State:
“Ultimately, we would like to win the game. I think we've got a great plan. Certainly we understand this is a huge challenge, but a great opportunity as well. Again, I think it's important for us to control the things we can control. We're going on the road in front of one of the largest crowds many of these guys will have seen and we're dealing with a bunch of 18-22 year olds. Players make plays and sometimes they make mistakes. You hope you go out this week and make more plays than your opponent. But it's a wonderful opportunity for us to go and play against one of the best programs in the country. They're obviously ranked in the preseason top-20 this year and I have a great deal of respect for Bill Snyder and the program that he's built there. With that said, we have a lot of things that we want to accomplish on the heels of our outstanding fall camp. We want to grow as a football team and as a program. We've got a lot of challenges this week and in the future, but it's time to go see where we are and what we need to work on.”
On how SFA matches up against the Wildcats:
“They do replace several in their secondary as well as a couple up front at the linebacker position, so defensively they are looking at about five perennial starters that are back. Offensively, they return a senior quarterback and one of the best receivers in all of college football in Tyler Lockett, so we'll be challenged their. There is a little bit of a question mark at running back. But ultimately its about being responsible for the guy in front of you and taking advantage of plays when they become available, working hard and playing with passion. We're challenging them to play for six seconds at a time with fanatical effort, and that has kind of become our mantra whether on special teams, offense or defense. I do like the fact that our offensive line has been working together now for the last 10 or 11 practices and we're building some continuity there with some older guys and we're hoping to create some seams and creases for our running game and take some pressure off our quarterbacks who will definitely be challenged playing in that type of environment.”
On the strengths of Kansas State:
“They run their quarterback, so any time you have a tough playmaker like they do in Jake Waters, who also returns as their leading rusher, it's going to pose a big challenge. I'm sure they'll want to establish a new option at the tailback position after losing them after last year, but having an athletic quarterback that can run always poses some challenges. And again, talking about Lockett, he's one of the great receivers in the college game. I was hoping he'd come out early for the NFL Draft last year but he didn't. I would think he would be among one of the best in the country and will probably get some strong consideration for the Biletnikof Award, which goes to the nation's best wide receiver, so that obviously creates a big matchup problem for us. He also is a threat in the return game as well as on offense. And just their size as a whole. They're big, they're physical. Coach Snyder has been there for 23 years, we've been here for eight months. He's got his program in place and its something that we aspire to be.”
On Zach Conque making his first collegiate start at K-State:
“I know it's coach speak, but we've been telling him to value the football, get us in the right play, distribute it correctly. He'll need to play fast but ultimately do the things he can control. He has some wonderful playmakers surrounding him. Not just him but Joe Minden and Hunter Taylor, all three of them had great camps. They just need to get us in the right play and get the ball to our playmakers. Protecting the ball will be huge – not taking sacks, not turning the ball over. We aren't expecting the same type of things we'd expect with a fifth year senior. At this point we're not expecting our quarterbacks to go out and win games for us, as they have other players around them that are skilled, but it's just a matter of playing smart, distributing the ball correctly and being a leader.”
On what the staff is expecting Saturday evening in Manhattan:
“Obviously we know this is going to be a huge challenge for us. There will be 50,000-plus fans there and they tell me its one of the loudest Big 12 venues. I've been talking to some of the other coaches we know in the Big 12 about what to expect and they have all commented on how loud it gets. The crowd, the travel – this will be the first time we all travel together, both internally with our football team and all the external staff as well. We're going to learn a lot about each other. The thing that I just want to make sure happens is that we keep fighting and there is no flinching. We're going to make mistakes, we recognize that. Probably some silly ones. As long as we don't make the mistakes that shoots ourselves in the foot and we continue to keep fighting and keep competing, we'll be fine. I really like this team. They want to win and they want to improve and certainly we're hoping we can take a big step forward on Saturday.”
-SFA-
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