JMU Football Weekly Press Conference - Bob Chesney - Aug. 27, 2024

thanks for being here uh week one obviously day one in the books I thought all guys did a really good job it's warm out there and it's going to be warmer tomorrow so there's a little bit more of getting back to Camp mode as far as hydration body weight all the stuff that comes with it not that we weren't paying attention to it but now you got to really lock in on it I thought our guys did a great job for the first day obviously we had a little bit of a leadup last week so we're not just on what we'd normally be on a Tuesday we're a little further ahead and uh I thought they managed well today so I'm excited to get back watch this film and and attack tomorrow coach was the progress was it what you wanted throughout all camp and and this past week do you feel like you're ahead of schedule behind schedule do you feel like it's right where you want it to be yeah I think it's right where we would expect it to be I think maybe a little further ahead in some areas you know I think as far as the looks that we're getting upfront you know on the on the o line protection wise there's a lot that goes into that but it was a complicated Camp anyway but now the looks we've been able to show them over the past 3 days is certainly helpful puts you know a little bit little bit more on them but I think they're doing a really good job of it and then defensively this team is really good and their schemes really good they do a ton of stuff there's a ton of motions ton of shifts ton of things with the quarterback in the plus one run game and they got a brand new quarterback they got you know power five offensive lineman and receivers all over that field the running back I think is phenomenal there's a whole lot of good stuff happening on that side of the ball as well so uh huge huge challenge which we're excited about how challenging is it getting ready week one's a challenge anyway because there could be a lot of new stuff you just never know but now with another new team with 71 new guys on their roster all kinds of new players everywhere um how challenging is it getting ready for this game because you just don't know what you're going to see yeah that's exactly right so you're it's challenging you you you're you're seeing how the scheme holds up but then at the same point you're trying to watch their guys do it and there's hardly any left right so I think that's the that must stink but if you ask them about us they'd be saying the same exact thing right so that's kind of where we where we both sit in in that disadvantage or Advantage but either way we're both going through it so I think it's something that you know both teams are going to have to find a way to prepare through and I think we're doing a nice job of it we talked about depth early in in Camp and and if how it was much deeper obviously than than the spring do you like where your depth is at now that you've seen them through camp and through four or five weeks yeah I do and and we are in a situation where there's you know just knock on wood we're we're still in a great spot here and we just when we start playing these physical games obviously can change but right now you know we're in a really good spot of everybody being back everybody being available and just one guy post surgery that's really close and that's where we started that's where we're ending camp and beginning our first practice of game week we're talking a trend Cole here in a little bit just why have you been able to unlock and those guys that have allowed them to become more vocal figures this year it just seems like they're always kind of like the Qui type bches this year it seems like they're much more vocal last year well I think just by history and time spent here in this Stadium there's a comfort for them as there should be in theory this is their team right they were here the whole time they they chose here they stayed here they remain here and I think that with that comes a certainly a responsibility to make sure that all the other guys on that team understand what it means to play football here but also at the same point there's a comfort that should come with that because they're learning you know 60 some guys the new guys coming in are learning 120 guys right so you need them to step up and you need them to be leaders and that was expressed to them very early and I think they again have done a really good job of that how much when did the prep start for Charlotte exactly like at what point of Camp do you kind of turn the corner and start putting in some installing game plans we we had been putting in some stuff for them for weeks now right there's just been a couple challenging plays to to our scheme that we made sure that we put in there a couple challenging looks that we made sure we put in there for the offense without our team really knowing it and then like we said last week we got to a sort of a prep week and a mock week where we used uh we had a Tuesday a Wednesday and a Thursday you know before we got to that that uh Sunday day off so we've been through Tuesday Wednesday Thursday preparing for these guys already and here we are you know doing it again in this one you know obviously for real you know this is a very intriguing matchup especially for those kind of outside of both programs because you have Charlotte who really struggle on the FBS level a lot of people sort of underestimate them a lot and then you know your program brand new people haven't really seen what y'all can do on the field yet you know how are you kind of trying to approach Charlotte and kind of just block out all that outside noise yeah as much preparation as we can on them again they have 70 some new guys just the same but there is film that you could gather from them whether it be high school or whether it be College you can do your prep work and just see where they're at but they have many you know fourstar five-star guy on their team you know right now so this is you know a very very serious offense and defense that they're about to employ out here right you got you know Florida State and Clemson and you know just go through the list of the GU the quarterback that started at Florida you know running back that played a ton in start a game at Iowa State like just go through it there's this is a power five you just look at where they transfer from you know it's a power five loaded team at this moment and that's just exactly what uh challenge we understand we're up against so we have to go back and find that film find out you know what they did well individually and then just trust our continual breakdowns like you do every week one you know you don't really know you know but you don't really know you're looking at a lot of film from an entire season what are they actually going to do is the question when we get out there and that's what we have to be able to figure out pretty quickly you guys started your preparation last week like you said and you're kind of ahead of schedule in that sense how much does having you know that extra week really benefit you guys when you are heading into to face a team that you know you don't know a ton about necessarily as a collective unit yeah I think a lot I think it benefits you a lot I as long as they do what Their film says they'll do right so I think that's the the biggest one when we get out there we know there's going to be a ton of wrinkles and things that we haven't yet seen them do so I think you have prep but then with that prep you're trying to find you know sort of the put the finger on the pulse of what they do and what is their identity and then you have to understand that they're going to have to diversify that just a little bit and dress it up quite a bit with motions and shifts and all the things that they typically do so uh that's what you're trying to do is jump in and figure that out and having any lead time on it rather than just the you know Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday of a week is valuable what goes into making sure your players can adjust when they do something against you that you guys haven't seen on film yeah so that that comes down to the intent of the play and the why right so why are we running this play where is it weak where is it strong what is the purpose of that defense we're calling what are the strengths of it the weaknesses of it what is the intent of that play what are we trying to get here is this a shot play is this a pick up a couple yard play is this you know what is is a safe play a play that plays against anything a play that only plays against this cover three look or this manfree look or this zero look what is it those are the intent of the play that they need to understand and then we have to just have on our call sheets all the things preparing us for things we haven't seen but that are still within things that we practiced and they understand the ins and outs fully of that structure of that offense or that defense and where it might be weak and and what we're why we're using it and when they understand that then when we say hey this game feels like it's going in this direction now more we're going to have to switch to this they've already had reps of it they understand it and they understand why we're changing into something something like that you're talking about watching film um what have you seen of Max Brown given that you know he played a little bit last year but was thrown into some pretty tough situations and everything what have you gotten off of him from film well I mean he's got a huge arm I mean he's got a big time arm he's a big guy to begin with but then he is not afraid to pull the ball down and run and when he does it's not an easy out like you don't just knock him he doesn't just fall to the ground like this kid doesn't slide he's tough he's physical and he can run you know he can run really well and to walk in there he's playing in Florida against Florida State and standing in the pocket and delivering some unbelievable throws you know in the end they get to him you know when it's said and done but ultimately that that kid you know is a tough very Fierce competitor very capable in the Run game and the pass game and you know he's going to be a a big issue uh you want to go ahead you guys are very polite very polite um obviously there a bit of an elephant in the room right with the QB situation yeah so move on talk about something else yeah okay talk about something else okay cool um you know just I mean just in general kind of with the depth chart kind of just drop in today just talk a little bit about you know just do you have how you know do you have a sense of kind of just like who's going to be on the field just like just kind of a sense of who you're putting out there and you know yeah yeah yeah we sure do yeah yeah we do we do and then not only do we but like where it says whatever the depth is there could be it could say or on every one of them it could say and on every one of them because we're not just walking out with 11 and playing 80 some snaps with 11 that's not what we're going to do so um there needs to be there could be ANS in there there could be hyphens in there there could be slashes whatever you know grammatical you know device you want to use you can use in there but that's ultimately there's a lot of guys that will play a lot of different positions so they all need to be ready and prepared and I'd like where they're at uh kind of moving in for this week as well I know with prep week already under way you know going into this you got 58 new guys kind of what's the energy level been like throughout that locker room just how excited it are they just to be able to Showcase himself be able to make a statement for who JMU is yeah I think that there's a lot of excitement in there you know the the you go through camp and it's just all day right you're just against your you're good on good all day long every day that's just what camp is and to finally turn the corner and start to challenge yourself schematically and start to you know see a different color out there and understand that you're going against someone else there's film to watch there's you know it's not just you getting better it's now you getting better against what this team does that's what I really like to see that flip and that switch and with it comes a little bit of you know just adjustment to what game week feels like having last week was good but now it's here right so you're in that moment where it's game time you know this every rep you take now has to have intent you have to be locked in you have to be focused and you can't waste them because you don't get enough of them throughout the week and then how do you put your mind in a situation where it's not just practice but you are in the game like you're not walking you're not going through a drill just because it's a drill you understand you know the intent of drill then you also understand you know that you need to execute it not only physically but put yourself in the moment you know that you would be in a game that's a huge part of this but they're excited you know I love the way they came out to today and you know we'll have a whole lot more of that tomorrow and Thursday what's the excitement level on your part I feel like when you were introduced in the building over here I me there's a lot that's happening between then just finally for you what have you visualized kind of or what's your emotion yeah there's a whole there's a whole lot that has certainly happened since then you know there's a a ton that's happened not only professionally but personally you know getting my family down here and living those seven months without them and there's just a whole lot of sacrifice that went into it from all of our coaches and we'll continue to go into it from the coaches and the players and I just think that you know you've you you play this game because you love this game right that's why you do it you love being on that field you love getting a chance to try yourselves in that in that pressure situation you love trying yourself against another opponent that prepared for you just how well did you prepare how disciplined are you in what you do how mentally tough are you not only the physical part but how mentally tough are you yeah those are all things that you're excited to really learn about your team they don't the biggest growth happens from week one to week two for a reason that you have not been in that situation yet so now you have a chance to learn about that team and see who can you trust who needs a little bit more work who needs a little more time to to get ready to to be trusted in those game moments all those things are you know Works in progress and you're not the same team you are in week one that you are in week two definitely not that you are in week four and I think those things are how quickly can we you know sort of uh expedite that growth and move it along quickly you know that's what we we need to see from a lot of guys that didn't play together before just because you still haven't made that that QB decision yet I'm curious how you think the chemistry is with whoever that QB may be and or both of them phenomenal phenomenal yeah I think that they're you got a very mature room down there very well-respected mature room and I think they really you know enjoy each other's success on top of it's not easy that's one position where really one sometimes only plays right so that's always you know a challenge where a receiver you could support your buddy and then you're probably up in three plays anyway you know at this position you're necessarily not but I I think these are two you know mature guys that have both been through similar situations right that have put themselves in spots where you know they had some success and then all of a sudden it slowed down for a little bit they they supported someone else and now they all have their chances again and I think it's a pretty neat Dynamic and I really like the responsibility and the respect and the the the way they go about their business they're phenomenal just because they may be splitting time right now how do you think their relationships are with the pass catchers think chemistry together great talk a little bit about their schemes because I'm guessing that's kind of what you've based on last year looking at that film talk about the schemes and kind of what they run on both sides of the football yeah well they're they start off extremely aggressive last year on defense you know tons of pressure tons of a whole lot in there then they you know have the ability to play some man they got a great Corner out there I don't know how much you follow but phenomenal so that's a a big deal they're dline there's a whole bunch of new guys in there and all have film to back them up with just how good they are so there's a whole lot that they're doing on defense you get the third down it gets extremely exotic and that's one that we really have to prepare for and that the quarterbacks and the o line and all of our coach has got to be locked in on you get to their offense and you know they ran with four different quarterbacks throughout the course of the year and you know one of them in particular was a excellent Runner just an excellent Runner and they used him a lot in that run game I imagine no similar case will happen coming up with with this guy their tight end room is unbelievable they're o line they're all new but they're 66 340 lbs 360 lbs you know whatever it might be you know they're certainly going to be a huge challenge in there and then their running back you know is as good or better than everything I just talked about so then you add in the two receivers on the outside the kid that came from UNC via Middle Tennessee or Middle Tennessee State prior to that UNC local kid from that Charlotte Area you know really good and and then the other guy that plays the X out there with them coming from Idaho after Vanderbilt for the spring or not Vanderbilt but tan for the spring really good one as well so they they got and then this I'm talking about their slot receiver you add all this thing up you know and it's really their punter from Michigan state is excellent there's a whole lot on this team that looks different than a year ago for them you know just I think this is a matter of who gels together quicker and who has the ability to you know get on that field and play together the best and the quickest and and the longest because that's going to be be a big part of this but there's a lot of challenges offensively and defensively out there we can't just go you know run our our base defense and call it a day that's not going to work we can't just go out there and run our you know base offense and call it a day that's not going to work so there's a whole lot in here that we got to be buttoned up on and I know our guys are excited for that challenge would you like to see like a preseason game or preseason scrimmage for college football obviously the NFL has their their games high schools have scrimmages would you like to have a scrimmage before the first game yeah I think what if you could get one in before the record actually counts it's always would be helpful and you could play who you want and rest who you want but you can learn a lot about guys and how they are you know interacting in moments of you know I don't want to say pressure but with an outside team coming in someone you don't know pushing your buttons a little bit those are exciting moments psychologically to learn about so yes I think that that would be beneficial it's also beneficial because you know like we talk about it when we go good on good if someone gets injured it's a 100% chance it's our guy you know someone gets injured in a scrimmage or a game there's a 50-50 at your guy so th just those odds alone are also exciting but how do you interact with those moments how do you interact with how do you play with your emotion and how do you not tip over those are all things that you're trying to figure out and you got to do it in game one and that's you know sometimes a challenge um just because it's been so many years since Jamie has been able to play like quote unquote meaningful games that actually count in the Records books do you feel there's an extra sense of of eagerness especially with the returners for week one this year yeah I think for everybody I think there's there's no more asteris on this thing like you're this is full go so I know that this is really the moment we've all been preparing for every single person in this organization all these kids that joined our team came here for that reason you know because they wanted to continue to win and they wanted to do it at a high level and they wanted to you know be able to play meaningful games later in the year as well and I think that is exactly where we find ourselves now yeah they all understand it they are all excited about it and you know I know that they're ready to go