Mark Stoops Press Conference
Mark Stoops News Conference
Post-Murray State, Pre-Texas
November 18, 2024
Opening statement…
“Obviously it feels good to be back in the win column. As I told you last Monday I felt like our team is in a better place. Trying to get some guys healthy coming off the bye. Playing a non-SEC school, getting the victory. Trying to go 2-0 in that last part of the season and just trying to finish strong and we need to play our best football of the year.
“Obviously another great opportunity, another great challenge going into Texas. Coach Sark (Steve Sarkisian) has them playing at a very high level, a very good football team that he has been building for some time. It’s evident they have a lot of continuity. I think it is the only power 4 school in the country that has had the same offensive coordinator, same head coach, same defensive coordinator, so they have continuity and it shows, both in the recruiting and portal. The additions they got in the portal, especially offensively — look at their wideouts, a couple guys they got are added to a dynamic wide receiver group. Just a good football team top to bottom, with play calling, very creative, very good, very well coached in all areas. For us again, I feel like we have to build on where we’re at, getting healthy for the last part of the season coming off the bye. I think we’re in a good place. For us the challenge has been consistency. It’s not been competitiveness, we have been competitive against some of the best teams in the country, we just have to be more consistent. That’s what we are striving to do and we’re striving to give them our best shot and play our best ball. That’s what we are looking to do, to build on that and have a great week and go in there and let it rip. Play another great team in a great environment and another big challenge. It is another big opportunity as well.“
On how you have gotten the team to step when playing the three playoff contenders…
“I think it’s the consistency. You’re right, there is no excuses in our area with the inconsistency. Look at our league. I bet you there is not one news conference where they haven’t had to answer that question. If you think about it, you know what I mean. The totality of what you go through in this league is hard and it drains you. That’s why there are ups and downs and you see it. You saw Kirby (Smart) talking about it. They have had a brutal schedule. It is very difficult to play at the level that they played last Saturday every Saturday. Those guys, they’re beasts and they are great. And there’s a lot of really good teams in this league. As coaches we feel that frustration and to each of us, to myself I am just worried about our team and fanbase and our group. I understand the frustration of the inconsistencies, it is a challenge, it’s hard. We need to worry about our team and what we are doing and how we build this team and what we do to move forward and how we have the depth that we need to play at that level because it takes extremely intense preparation and a really good plan and then guys playing extremely hard and then executing and playing at a high level.”
On taking anything from the Arkansas/Texas game…
“There’s no weaknesses on this team, the eye tests, they’re as strong as anybody in the country. Tell me one group, you look at them offensively – a dynamic play caller, great coach, o-line is completely solid, running backs two great ones, probably more, four; but wide receiver room arguably the best in the country, dynamic tight ends. Defensively, front four, they lost some guys to the pros, replaced them in the portal with pros. Really deep, really big. I would say arguably the best secondary in the country, bar none. When you put that together, pretty solid team.”
On the Sarkisian offense…
“Creative, you hear the word ‘eye candy’ is probably thrown a lot around press conferences across the country. But dynamic, he does a great job of marrying the run and the pass and then a fantastic job in the screen game off all that. So you’re thinking run, you’re thinking play-action pass, come back to a screen and he ties it together as good as anybody.”
On getting to play a lot of young players on defense vs. Murray State…
“I think we played 34 guys on defense, I’m not sure we’ve ever done that.”
On new linebackers…
“They did a good job. It was nice to see them get some reps. A guy like Grant (Godfrey) and Jayvant (Brown) and all those guys, seeing them get some reps, it was good. They needed that, and it was for good for them. As a group, I’ve been telling you, without singling out guys, I just think it’s a good young group across the board, on both sides of the ball. It was good to see them get some snaps.”
On using the end of the season as a springboard moving forward…
“I’d like it to be. Let’s not kid ourselves, we’re looking, as I mentioned off the bye, I want to finish strong, the last third of the season. We had a third of the season when I talked to you about that, and I told the team, ‘We’re 1-0 off that reboot.’ We have another great challenge ahead of us here, but absolutely, I’m always looking to make sure the program’s moving forward and the needs that we have, the areas of concern, and making sure we’re getting a look at the young players. Again, there’s no mystery, and I know everybody’s talking about the quarterback position. You look at Cutter (Boley), the first time he really was under center with getting a lot of practice reps with the ones and the twos and being prepared for that opportunity and making the most of it. So, a lot to build on there, but Brock (Vandagriff) will be under center, and Brock has given us a chance to win on the road and beat a playoff team, and had an opportunity in some others like you have just mentioned. Brock’s done some really good things as well, but we will absolutely continue to have Cutter ready and get him those first/second team reps, and just get him ready and keep on developing him. We certainly like what we saw in one half of football, but again, Brock has done some really good things in some really, really tough, hostile environments to put us in a position to win as well.”
On Brock Vandagriff’s first two passes, what they looked like on video…
“Again, I knew it right on the field, and the film confirmed it, it was indecision. It was not clean with a freshman wide receiver and not defending the pass either, especially the second one. But he expected the receiver to rip it across his face, there was nobody there to cap it, the post (pattern) was there. By that time, it’s late, and you probably try to get a lot of extra, and your footwork’s bad, and it just comes out worse than it is.”
On if anything surprised Stoops on Cutter Boley’s film…
“Did not surprise me, but it was really good to confirm that and see that in live action. Because you’ve heard me talk about it, we’ve discussed it, it’s really hard to simulate that in practice. So, for him, completely live on a quarterback, that’s hard, we don’t do that in practice, even the spring games, or anything. For him to get in the game and go completely live, for him, it was really nice to see that poise and just him operate and distribute the football and just look very comfortable.”
On if Gerald Mincey is out…
“Yeah, he’s out for an extended period of time, with a knee, with an injury.”
On Texas’ talent in the offensive and defensive lines…
“There’s no doubt, like I said, as I mentioned, I don’t think I need to build up Texas (laughter). I think it’s pretty evident, they pass the eye test. Sark’s done a really nice job of building a really complete football team. It starts up front, we all know that in this league. He says it, and I say it, everybody says it. They’re really good around those lines as well. It starts up front; he made sure, even from day one I remember, the emphasis he put on building an O-line, and that’s evident right now. And then defensively, same thing. He has good depth, they have really good size. Again, they lost a couple of NFL players and went to the portal and got a couple more NFL players. And then the young guys that they have and the depth that they have – pretty good, pretty impressive.”
On playing a new team in the SEC…
“It’s very random and some people got the short end of the stick this year on certain draws and some people didn’t and that’s everybody. We’ll play the same next year, just rotated but to us, yes it is a completely new opponent but doesn’t change our approach really at all. As you know, college football and college sports, the turnover is very dramatic year-to-year and so our kids, it’s another opponent, a very good one, one we have a lot of respect for, but we’ve played in very challenging environments. You’ve been there this year, you’ve seen some of those venues, this will be another great one.”
On if he has been to the University of Texas…
“I have not. No, never been.”
On if any memories stand out about Texas…
“No, not as a child or anything growing up like that but obviously I could go back to, when did (brother) Bob get to OU?, 99’? Something like that, so obviously I was pretty dialed in from ’99 on, with the big rivalry with Oklahoma and Texas, and I think it’s pretty safe to say that the Stoops family was pretty tuned into that game each and every year and it was a pretty big game for both teams. But that’s probably when I probably really started watching them closely.”
On how the backup offensive linemen played vs. Murray State..
“Some of them, nothing we probably didn’t expect, some we think are going to be really good players just with some time and reps and then some others struggled a little bit, so it’s something we will address.”
On if he still gets excited about going into a new place…
“Yeah, I do get excited about it and I hope our team does. That’s something I hope our team, I have to talk to about, is let’s dial in on our preparation, and you hear me say that a lot but it’s very true, because I hope they’re excited to embrace this great challenge we have. But what an opportunity! It does start with being excited today, and tomorrow, and Wednesday and if you don’t do that work, you have no chance.”
On having some success in road games and talking to the team about it…
“You just talk about it in that you know that we can do it. Being competitive again hasn’t been our problem, being consistent has been our problem. We know we can be competitive, so that’s the part I’ll talk about. Not in particular in a game, or any of that, it’s just our players know what we’re capable of, we need to do that, and we got to have our best shot of the year.”
On Terhyon Nichols…
“I thin he’s going to be a really good player, good player. Good young guy, true freshman. Gotten a lot of reps, fought through some injury, doesn’t blink and just continues to go out there and play hard.”
On if D’Eryk Jackson will have another year…
“Yeah, I believe he could, that was never in the plan. I talked with him afterwards and he’s given us everything he has and we appreciate it. I really appreciate him and his leadership and his toughness. He’s been a really steady guy for us so it’s disappointing that he had to have season-ending surgery but I just wish the best for him. Let him heal up a little bit and then we’ll have some conversations, there’s a whole roster that, as you know, we have to go through and have some discussions with.”
On roster management…
“Roster management really never ends, like we evaluate our own team, if you go back to camp, we’re evaluating our guys and having meetings and discussing and all year, is this player going to be ready later this year, is he going to be ready the following year? You’ve seen development at this place that some guys have done some special things after years, right? Nowadays, that’s just a different practice, with the second part of that, anticipating those moves and talking about those moves, always trying to stay one step ahead with all of that. But, it’s a part of it, I would certainly love to have some continuity, like we’ve had great defensive continuity, offensively I’m excited and hope to keep that consistency, build on the good things that we have. Again, I think you saw a spark in a young quarterback and I’d love to have several, all of our quarterbacks back and have that continuity and build on things across the board so it’s always just a moving piece, it’s very much always a moving part.”
On building a good offensive line with the transfer portal…
“I think you can, for us and for everybody, there is a balance of still recruiting high school players and supplementing them with the portal. Some years you may need to go to others, again you’re sitting here talking about Texas and Sark and his coordinators being there for four years, and they do a phenomenal job in a hotbed of recruiting talent at a place that a lot of people want to go to. They’re fantastic but they still have to supplement, that’s Texas, your wide receiver room or your top two receivers are portal guys, and on the D-line they’ve got some really good players there and they recruit well. I think I saw an article, don’t quote me exactly, but I think the number one team in the country has 14 portal starters, if I’m not mistaken, I thought I read that. That’s just something like ‘Oh, by the way,’ you know what I mean, just information like, okay.”
On getting Josaih Hayes back for the last three games…
“I was really happy, number one, to see him out there. He’s been practicing and I’ve been trying to pat him on the back and keep him engaged because that’s a tough injury. He’s really worked hard, it’s really good to see him back out there and really for the first time, he looked close to himself. That was good because again, that injury, playing that position, pushing off and the power that you have to have is tough sometimes, and tough to trust it but it was great to have him back out there.”
On how he gets portal players and high school recruits and if he will change anything…
“That’s not different than high school guys either. The difference is maybe in high school in the old days we used to have a lot more time to figure out, to get to know these guys. With the way they changed the rules and the way it is now, you do as much homework as you can, behind the scenes with all of that, but we’re dealing with 100 players. So I think building your culture, developing your culture, who you are and defining that, we have to do that, we talked about that, expediating that process and everything else, but let’s be honest, you get the best players you can, money helps.”
On everybody looking for offensive linemen in the portal…
“Yeah, I think it’s fair, you know every scout that comes in here for the NFL, every one of them is looking for offensive linemen. Every single team is looking for guys that can play in the NFL, whether they’re a starter or a backup or bring to camp. There’s a lot of college teams making sure we’re looking for offensive linemen, too. Again, there’s some really great teams in our league that are having to answer the same questions that I answer, so we just have to continue to work at it and get confident and get back to having that identity that we want.”
On how revenue sharing is going to work…
“We’re working through it. I think there’s a lot of unknowns that’s coming not until July and I think we’re just working our way through that and getting a bit more clarity, little by little as we move forward.”
On the decision for Brock to be the starting quarterback…
“It is what it is right now. Brock’s our starting quarterback and he’s earned it and worked his tail off. Cutter’s a very talented young player that we’re excited about. The reason I say that, it’s like that in every position but everyone wants to over-exaggerate the quarterback position.”
On if it is more difficult to evaluate Cutter’s play since it came against an FCS team…
“As I just said, I already commented on that. I thought he looked really good, I thought he made really good decisions, I thought he looked comfortable. He has a lot of talent and those are things we saw in practice and in games, it’s good to see him get some game reps. I think we all know it’s a little different with playing a team we just played at home or playing one of the other SEC schools on the road. You’ve heard every SEC coach talk about the challenges of the road in the SEC, I think everybody’s talked about it.”
On the current challenges of getting offensive linemen…
“Why I think that is, because I think it’s getting more and more — you know the SEC is a little closer to the NFL where there are so many dynamic rushers. There’s so many good defensive players, they’re so big and so strong that it will expose you. Again, look around. I’m not saying all, not saying where we need to be, but look around the league. Some of these dudes are hard to block and if you watch NFL games, you see that all the time. The difference is they’re really elite and in the NFL they are definitely getting rid of the ball, quick. That ball has to come out for the most part.”
On if high schools aren’t producing offensive lineman or is the transition (to college) harder…
“I don’t know, I’m not ready to – I haven’t had the time to put that kind of level of deep dive into that. We’re just trying to get ours, trying to get some good ones. I do think that’s a fair question, as far as I said the other part of it, with so many good defensive players there are in this league.”
On the Jackson Schulz interception and how the sideline erupted and what does that show about your team’s mental state this late in a tough season…
“Yeah, it’s a tough season but again, I felt like our guys have always played hard. Prior to the bye (week), we were really in a challenging position physically, and if you’re in a challenging position physically, chances are you’re in a challenging position mentally, right? So, we went out and laid it on the line, played extremely hard (at Tennessee). As someone in here pointed out, had an opportunity in a really, really tough environment to take the lead in the fourth (quarter). Didn’t happen, I know, ifs and buts, but I was proud of our team. Carried that over to the bye, to the last week when Schulz went up and made that catch, the team was very happy for him. We played a lot of guys, wanted to play more. I think the quarterback position is really hard to rotate and get the reps they all want and deserve. Gavin (Wimsatt) has played so well and done so many good things for us this year in tough spots and Beau Allen is a guy that can distribute the ball, too, and play and I just love him personally, he works hard, he’s always ready. It’s just hard in that position, quarterback is a unique position, but yet sometimes you look around the league, I don’t have the exact data in front of me and I don’t follow every team if we don’t play them, we see crossover but, chances are, a lot of teams in this league have to play two quarterbacks. At some point, you’re going to get somebody banged up.”
