Hal Mumme Press Conference
October 2, 2000
On the Ole Miss game
“There were three or four plays where, if we caught the ball or block a little bit better and give Jared (Lorenzen) a little more time, we really had a chance to be in that thing. We are going to take that, show it to the guys and try to be positive about it. We didn’t play well in the o-line and we didn’t play well at receiver, and that really hurts you.”
“I thought we did a good job stopping the run up the middle. We held Deuce McAllister to under 100 yards. I think Ryan Murphy and Marlon McCree had one of their best games as far as tackles go. We didn’t cover well. We have to play better at corner. I don’t know why, we just lapsed. I thought the touchdown over Kenneth Grant would have been defended. He could have caught that ball as easily as the receiver. Eric Kelly gave up one the same way. Eric’s cast hurt him a little bit. If you watch it on film, you can see that he tries to knock the ball away with the opposite hand.”
On UK’s effort against Ole Miss
“It was better than I thought it was Saturday night. I was frustrated Saturday night. Defensively, I thought the effort was there. It’s not that we are giving a poor effort, we are just giving an effort in the wrong direction. There were times on running plays where we were running left and blocking right. I don’t know how you explain that. I am curious to go over the film today with our guys and find out what was going through their heads. I don’t think it was necessarily a lack of effort. For instance, DerekSmith played real hard, but he didn’t play particularly well.”
On South Carolina and its improvement from last season
“They changed their offense. They are basically running stuff like we do: three wides, four wides, a lot of one back, a lot of rollouts. They’re playing together, playing real hard and making some plays. Their defense is a lot different. We tried watching last year’s film but couldn’t get anything out of it. They’re running more of a Joe Lee Dunn, Mississippi State type defense.”
On recovering from the loss to Ole Miss
“I think our guys were embarrassed over their performance, and they will want to bounce back. Plus, we get to play in front of our home folks. The good news about this season and what we have left is that of the six games, we have four of them at home. That should help us. We’re still young and we didn’t travel well down there. We do have to play better on the road, but being at home will help us.”
On the parity in the Southeastern Conference
“I think if you look around, there are a lot of teams just like us that are playing a lot of young guys. I said this earlier, with Ole Miss there is Deuce McAllister who is a household name, but if you look around the league there are not a lot of those. You have a lot of young guys trying to make a name for themselves. Because of that, you learn some lessons. Like LSU loses to UAB one week then beats Tennessee the next. You can’t overlook anybody. Our guys have learned some lessons, and hopefully that will carry over.”
UK Player Quotes
Dewayne Robertson, Freshman, Defensive Tackle
On adjustments made by the defense
“The last couple games we have worked to make progress as a unit, especially stopping the run. We are gaining confidence and we really adjusted well to the five-man front.”
On the new defensive scheme
“With a five-man front, the defense does not face as many double-teams because it is individual one-on-one play. I am more comfortable with this scheme because there are less combination blocks and it is easier for the defense to match up.”
Willie Gary, Senior, Strong Safety
On facing South Carolina’s offense
“They are really playing well. They’re upbeat and really focused in on what they are trying to accomplish. We must be ready to play and match their intensity. We need to play four strong quarters and not have any mental lapses. Saturday will be a big test for the team.”
On playing at home
“We are going to be fired up. The crowd at Commonwealth Stadium always gives us a huge energy boost. I think we play better at home because we are more comfortable and we relax.”
On Coach Mumme’s increased involvement in the defense
“Last week, Coach Mumme was in the film room with us every day. He wants to be more involved with what schemes we are running and what problems we are having.”
Derek Abney, Freshman, Wide Receivery
On the trip back home
“It was pretty quiet. A lot of the guys were looking back at the game and how we could’ve done better. We were just kind of frustrated and disappointed all at once.”
On the emotions of bouncing back
“It has to be a complete turnaround, going from the disappointment to being focused. That’s what we’ve got to do right now, focus in on South Carolina. The guys want to get this one after losing two weeks in a row. South Carolina is a very good team and it would be great to win this one.”
On his goals for himself
“I was disappointed with the way I played Saturday, and when you get a little kick in the butt it makes you focus a little bit more. I’ve been reflecting on the game and seeing how I could have done better.”
On playing on the road in the SEC
“I think it’s a learning process. It’s something you have to go through. A lot of times the only way people learn is through experience, and we definitely got the experience.”
On the thought process at this point
“The coaches are there to tell us how we can improve and get better and that’s a big part of it, but you’ve got to look inside yourself and see what you can do to improve. I think the main thing is the coaches saying ‘Hey, look what happened, you guys weren’t focused enough and this is what happened’.”
On the adjustment to defensive cornerbacks
“The biggest transition has been the quickness.”
Ryan Murphy, Junior, Linebacker
On avoiding a letdown
“We put a great amount of emphasis on Ole Miss and hopefully we do the same thing this week. We did everything we could’ve to prepare and we just didn’t go out and execute. We’re going with the same attitude against South Carolina, maybe a little more determination, and maybe we can come out of the blocks a little faster.”
On South Carolina
“It’s just amazing how things happen in the SEC. We basically have to win this game. That’s the bottom line. South Carolina’s a great team, but we have to go out and win. We need a win for the fans and for ourselves. We’re very anxious to go out and show we’re a good football team.”
