Charlotte Football: Week 1 Press Conference

yes uh thank you all for being here first of all I appreciate it thank you for your interest in the kids and the program um and uh I want to make a couple of opening comments before we get into your questions so bear with me um we uh first off first start with our team um we have come out of Camp unfortunately uh pretty banged up um uh we have definitely eight probably nine starters that are injured uh which is you know I'm not great in math but it's getting close to 50% and I feel very bad for those kids um but I know that the young people that'll get an opportunity to play will play hard and and I take responsibility for that as the head football coach um you know when you when you open with JMU you know program that's 19 and4 over the last couple years uh uh you you can get a little overzealous and you have to balance between that that that CIS um that you want the players to have and then getting them healthy and I I get I think I get an F minus on that for this Camp um it looks like you know it'll take probably the first three games games for us to get back to full health uh but again um you know I feel bad for the youngsters uh that are banged up and um and again take responsibility for that uh talking about um uh our opponent JMU um they're one of the great programs in the country I mean you know they are really really good uh and they have a program you know when coach chzn was hired uh one of things he said was he said and I agree with him he said um you know I'm not here to rebuild or or build I'm here to take it to the next level and he used the word accelerate I'm here to accelerate to the next level and um he's an outstanding football coach he's won 111 games which if my math is right is 108 more than I've won um and uh he's been successful everywhere he's been uh they've done a really good job of uh main uh retaining really good players from last year's roster and then bringing in really good uh strategic uh additions to their football team uh I've looked at pretty much every interview he is done and uh and the team is done and he really likes his football team and he should um really loves his young coordinators and uh at least offense and defense a little older and special teams he has a great offensive line coach who I heard last night left the NFL he was speaking he said he left the NFL because he wanted to coach with with uh Bob so it is a really uh uh strong program we have nothing but respect for them uh talking a little bit about their personnel I'll start on offense no no particular reason to do that but just you know start with them uh quarterback positions um they have um uh really good players um they uh Dylan Maris is someone that I'm somewhat familiar with um because uh he was the starting quarterback for the University of Washington in 2021 when they came to play us at Michigan um I think he threw for 2400 yards that year uh he's thrown for 24 touchdowns he's a serious and he's a six-year player he's a very mature skilled serious guy that can really spin it and then you I think we're going to probably see two um I I I don't think we're going to just see one guy and uh the Barnett youngster is you know people say well he's an athlete he's a good run he is that but he's a passer too and uh and so that presents problems they offensive line has 200 starts between them I've never heard of that okay I've been doing doing this Al long I've never heard of that um so they're highly experienced the guys they bring back uh the kind of interior guys they bring back are really really good football players and then uh the kid from Holy Cross uh and the kid from Campbell are really good players and they are their style of play is they want to smash you um you know we used to say at Michigan smash smash smash and they're like that they're very physical in the Run game game and they're they're they they play like and I mean this is a compliment they play like bullies uh in a run game um I think they're going to want to run the football on us and um and their running back room is crazy they brought in IO from North Texas and he he rushed for I don't know over a thousand last year he's a he's a small statured put together guy that you better tackle or he's going to have a lot of yards after cont and then they brought pedway in from um from from North Carolina Chapel Hill and he is electrifying um he is a guy that uh in space is dangerous and on the perimeter is dangerous and um also dangerous in a return game uh and then they have two big backs um that you know they'll want to use in short guard uh their tight end room is very good um a young man that played here uh uh is one of their guys who is a really good pass catcher good receiver they brought in a young man from Vanderbilt who is a big guy who's a blocker and then they're returning tight end is an excellent player he's I think he's all all a sunb Belt Conference kind of guy he's a really really good player and the receivers are very Twitchy um you know going to be really tough in space uh there special teams they have an All-American punter and he is outstanding um haven't seen their their place kicker uh or their Long Snapper because those guys are new but um Greg Frolic told me at the beginning of camp this year he said expect our special teams to be very well coached and very good defensively they pose problems uh their coordinator is out of um uh Mike elco's tree and and um they play a very very sound defense um they return some really good players up front and these are tough kids uh they want to stop the run they brought in uh two Edge guys that are really good uh kid from St Francis who played over I'm sorry from Long Island who played over 700 snaps last year with a lot of production a young man from Colorado who is a edge guy very good and then they brought in a guy from Syracuse who's an excellent player played a lot of snaps at Syracuse last year the strength of their defense is probably their linebacking crew uh the the dobs kid is um uh he is you know I think he was a four-year captain at Holy Cross and he's made every he's on the budus watch list he he's one of those guys that you know you just love to love to coach I've got a young man from Fresno State who is you know um he's very unique physically he's very very very Twitchy and strong and they've got two other guys there too they go four deep there all day long um we expect to probably see three linebackers out of them U but I don't know and then the secondary uh um chony is a corner is a long he's a preseason allamerican kid very good player and their safeties are physical and um so they have an excellent football team um and um and and I'll I'll stop and answer any questions you may have uh coach I guess down eight or nine starters can you clarify some of those guys no I'm not going to use their names or numbers or positions I don't think it's fair to them um but it is what it is and it's uh you know when you write your stories you can crucify me about that okay Coach what type of opportunity is that for the guys that are going to be able to step up in those TRS it's a great opportunity um now now they haven't had a huge amount of time to prepare because these a lot of these injuries are fairly recent um but they're accepting the challenge and they work really here's what I do know about our football team the guys we put on the field will give it everything that they have and whenn lose or draw we will not be able to say we did not give our very best and I told the players have to practice yeah they're a little discouraged I mean obviously a lot of their friends were banged up and and and and and I get it um but but what I told them is that you know something happens to you when you coach a team and I really love these kids I mean I like like love them and I'm going to the mat with these guys and um because of the kind of human beings they are and the effort they'll give um I am so proud of them coach what do you know about your team the one that's going to take the field on Saturday night what do I know about do you know training camp what's your sense of um they're very good human beings um they care about each other they care about Charlotte um they're driven to help us build a program here that the school and the community uh can be proud of and they try like hell that's what I know about them coach you painted a bit of a picture couple guys banged up going against a very strong JMU team what do you think the keys are going to be for this team uh in Charlotte to come out with a win on Saturday well we're gonna have to uh you know play flawlessly okay we can't turn the ball over that's the first thing uh we're going to have to try to create some turnovers on defense we're going to have to be really good in in the uh special teams area we can't have any kicks returned or blocks or we got to make kicks um and then and then we just have to you know we have to try to control the football and it always comes down to this you know stopping the run and running the ball coach if I understood you correctly it sound like there is some light at the end of the tunnel for some of these injuries I think he's a three four weeks so none none of these injuries are season ending no they're not season ending injuries no we we ought to have everybody back by league play for sure how does these injuries change your game plan at all I'm sorry say it again how does these injuries change your game plan at all uh well you know um probably the honest answer is it makes you reain it in a little bit um you don't want to put young inexperienced players in positions that you know might show that inexperience um but but um I I think that's an honest answer you kind of reain things in wouldn't do you don't go in with a full game full of a game plan as you normally would the time when you lean on like some of the senior leadership oh yeah yeah you got to lean on them right um and you got to lean on everybody you know everybody's got to do a little extra now and the key thing is staying together you know no matter what happens early uh you got to stay together because it is 60 Minutes coach it's a Prime Time game it's on National Television guys are wearing gold helmets I know the kids are excited about that what kind of chance is this for the program to what is the chance for you guys to show off on Saturday night what do you have to show excuse me um well we're gonna I know we'll play hard that's that's what I know you talked about the JMU coach accelerating his program uh the path to a playoff now is a little bit better for the group of Five Guys how do you accelerate this program and get them to that point where they're with you guys are a threat to keep on well first of all we G get healthy and we got to stay healthy once we do that I'm pretty you know I'll just say it this way I like this team and uh we'll be competitive I think in games and we got to win games look it comes down to you got to win games right and the first step is you know you got to win the games that you you should win you got to win a few that you probably shouldn't win and you got to try to get to that magic number of six because if you do that then that's really the accelerant on your program but the key thing is making progress from last year that's the key you know it is a marathon not a Sprint anything that's built should be built to last and that takes a lot of work and a lot of time and a lot of effort and um our kids and our young coaches were doing that Hunter Char Observer for both you guys dealing with the injuries you guys work through I guess late in this Camp what is it been like and what do you expect for some of these young guys that will have to step up on Saturday uh I say we all know what's at hand um I feel like um all I can do is like uh encourage the young guys to step up and uh just to do it you know do what we supposed to do not do nothing spectacular and just you know F into the game plan yeah I think it just comes to um being able to understand and handle adversity um going throughout this whole season you're going to be able to experience multiple different types of adversity and how do you handle it as a team is kind of a big path of what your team and what your future is going to look like like going forward in the season so how excited are each of you guys to get out there in front of your home crowd in a big game under the lights on Saturday night against a good program uh I feel like it's very exciting um I feel like a lot of people have been waiting for this moment uh we have that's why we work year round for this um like it's going to be you know it's going to be a a great a great night yeah um it's kind of what you play for and work for the whole the whole season I know it's always the end goal in mind going and working through winter workouts and OTAs and going through workouts in the summer when it's hot and doing stuff with your your teammates and your brothers so I don't think there's a lot of things that can beat being able to go and play on Saturday especially in front of a pack crowd and bunch of Niners that are going to be excited so we're excited just as much as they are feel about the gold helmets oh I like them uh you know we just had to switch it up a little bit and you know I didn't know like what was coming out with some new helmets and new uniforms so when I seen them I was very excited you know just a new look we can put on so Observer Max I know obviously emphasis on running the ball with this offense you got plenty of guys you can hand the ball off to and I've seen you throughout training camp slinging it how much are you excited about you know really kind of developing seeing more of your passing game especially looking at the JM defense both aspects of your game being as a runner and working with these receivers yeah I think going through the whole seven on seven and being able to work with our receivers and tight ends and understand what our goals are and our timing and understand uh what we can do and go out and work through Camp through spring and just being able to go and put it on tape is extremely exciting um having new guys um on in the tight end room new guys a receiver new guys in the running back room guys that can all catch the ball so um just kind of excited to be able to go out and put on tap being a part of this group again how much have you noticed the leadership this guy sitting right next to you has brought within this program and just keeping just everyone all together around him uh ID say he definitely brought like a a different vibe that we needed um somebody to step in and say something when uh you know when at that time he considered a bad guy so I feel like we needed that um we need someone to you know um lead this team and to lead our offense and I feel like we got the perfect guy to do it what are the first game JS like for you guys me for Dante your returning Max this since your first start with the new program what is it like for both of you guys uh uh I'm just ready I'm not really nervous um uh like you said it's my second year in the program so like getting pretty comfortable um just going out there and execute it's really the the main goal so don't do you know don't do too much but you know at the same time do what you got to do so like I'm ready yeah just being able to go out and take every um snap and every play and every time I get to go out there as an opportunity and uh just being grateful for it I think that's one of the things that sometimes you can take away trying to be too nervous but just enjoy it being able to enjoy the moment you don't get to experience it all the time so just being able to go out and experience it especially with a crowd I haven't been around and a crowd that I'm excited to see so I guess you could say the same for this team adding 71 new players but studying a basically brand new team filmwise what does that like for you guys how how deep does it go well you repeat it one more time you're studying a whole new team bring back just a handful of starters on this team what is it like trying to put those pieces together as far as film study to know who you're going against to open this season yeah I think going in and understanding what you're looking for um offensively and defensively being able to First go through camp and understand what we do well but also go and being able to study our opponent and understand what you can exploit and different schematic things that you can use so I think that's the way we we go about it I just say uh just for us being prepared for whatever um just getting a good grasp of like what they possibly can do but they can go out there and do anything so um we just trying to be prepared as much as we can Dante for you preparing to play a team that hasn't announced a quarterback you know they have one that likes to sit in the pocket one that can get out and run what changes for you as a corner in that that mindset uh I have to say Personnel like you just said um knowing who's in the game um KN knowing what they like to do um I'll just say just just a slight tweak it ain't nothing too you know too crazy but um just you know like I said sticking to the game plan so I got Dante stonan he told me that Ryan Osborne gives off WWE energy would you suck at that yeah yeah he definitely gets us going um it don't matter what time of the day of what the weather is he's he's the same person um I feel like um eyes he makes us you know like play hard for him so I feel like that's a big emphasis on what like what we do and how we play so any other questions thank appreciate y'all thank you guys