After a pair of heartbreaking back-to-back losses at Louisville and Navy, UCF returns home this weekend to face ECU. During his weekly press conference, head coach Gus Malzahn talked about that challenge while also reflecting on the Navy game.
Opening statement:
"Looking at East Carolina, talking about a team that's won their last three games. Very impressed with their quarterback (Holton Ahlers). I think he's started 30 games. They've got a running back (Keaton Mitchell) who is one of the more explosive running backs in our league. Looking at their defense, they're leading the league in interceptions and tackles for loss. Very good team. They've played South Carolina very close. They've got some momentum right now. We're going to have to play good football. We are glad to be back home. We had a short practice last night. It was good to get back on the field with the guys after a tough loss. That's two losses that were tough losses. They weren't just losses. They were tough losses. I'm real proud of our team, the way they're handling it. Like I've said before, we've got a lot of winners in the locker room. They came out to practice and were ready to go for this week. We're going to have to get ready. This is a good team we're playing and we're going to have to play good football."
What do you think about the running back for ECU in terms of his explosiveness?
"You just said it. His explosiveness stands out to me. Big plays. I don't know how many he's had over 50 yards, but there's a lot of them when you look at the big play cut-up. He's a one-play drive type running back. He can take it to the house anywhere on the field. You're going to have to do a good job containing him. Last week they were really balanced against a Tulane team that took Oklahoma down to the wire. 300 yards rushing, almost 300 yards passing. Something like that. The quarterback is a threat. The running back is a big-play guy."
When you look at the film, what did you like that Mikey Keene did?
"I thought Mikey for the first time starting a college football game on the road, I thought he handled himself well. He knew exactly what he was doing, what he was reading. He protected the football. That's what you always worry about from a true freshman, making mistakes. He didn't do that. Before the game, I had my eye on him. He didn't seem overwhelmed, nervous. He just had the confidence about him. It was good for him to get a game under his belt. Really from a coach's standpoint, we learned a lot about him. You never know until the real thing. It was good for him. That's a positive. The thing about him is continuing to get better. I think he did a lot of good things."
You talked about the 24-hour rule, win or lose. That's easier to do for some games than others. What did you see from the guys last night?
"Like I said, there's losses and their tough losses and really tough losses. I think back to back we've had two really tough losses. It says a lot about the leadership of our team, the way they came out spirited and ready to practice. Nobody had their head down, moping around. We've got a mature group of leaders. That's what you've got to do. That's behind you. There's nothing we can do. We've got to correct and move forward to this game. We've got to figure out a way to win this game. We're playing at home. We're very excited to be in front of our home crowd. I think that will do good for our whole team."
It doesn't sound like you're worried about a let down after two really disappointing games. Is there something you do to guard against that or rely on your leaders?
"You rely on your leaders. It's all about leaders. We've got strong leaders. I've said that for a long time. We've got a lot of winners in the locker room. Our guys are going to fight. They're going to continue to fight and continue to get better. That's their mindset. That has to do with our players and our leadership."
What are the growth opportunities you're looking for this week in practice?
"Great thing is we've got a lot of ways to improve. Us as coaches, we're responsible for the improvement. We've got to really focus on that this week so our guys can play fast and execute."
These were close games. It's not like you're getting blown out. What is this team not doing to close a game out?
"Yeah. It's really just finishing. Like I said, had opportunities to win both those games. It's usually a play or two either way. That's what you focus on. I know from a fan's standpoint it's easy to focus on the very end, but from a head coach's standpoint you focus on the entirety of the game. There were a lot of things we did before the last drive that caused us to be in that situation. We were up 30-17 with two minutes left in the third quarter. You've got to win the game. That's what we're focused on. We're focused on the entirety to put ourselves in position to win. Like I said, any time there's mistakes that's on coaches. We've got to do a better job helping our guys correct that."
What was your team doing so well on defense against the run in the first two games, but haven't been doing in the last two?
"The quarterback from Louisville is a handful. I think everybody can see that. Last week was a completely different deal with the style of offense. I am confident we are a good run defense (against) traditional offenses. We'll keep working on building on that. The continuity, we've got guys that we know where they need to be position wise. We've got a couple people down last game. Hopefully we'll get those guys back. I think all of the above will help with that."
Special teams had their share of issues the other night. What does that unit need to do going forward to improve? Is it execution, detail?
"We need to protect on the punt. It's really simple. You protect on the punt. In the punter's defense, he gets one blocked. Then they come after him again so he speeds it up and shanks it to the right. It starts with protection. We're working extremely hard to correct that."
You were missing players against Navy. What are the chances Isaiah Bowser and Jaylon Robinson are available?
"Yeah. I'm still going with the week to week on those two. Hopefully we'll get our defensive guys back soon. Probably Thursday I'll have a better idea of that. Like I said, it would be good to get those two impact players back."
Can you talk about Bryson Armstrong and his 22 tackles against Navy?
"He's got a nose for the football. We knew that when we recruited him. He's a guy that's in the right spot and starting to settle in. A guy we can rely on."
When you don't have Isaiah Bowser, how does it change your offense?
"It's more running back by committee. Bowser, he's an NFL player. When you lose him, that's an impact loss. It's next man up. The good thing about it is we've got two games for those guys to get experience. I thought Johnny (Richardson) made some really good explosive plays for us. Trillion Coles has been Mr. Consistency. You can count on him. Mark (Antony Richards) got a chance to get in there and do some things. It's really running back by committee until we get him back."
Cam Goode as a defensive tackle saw a lot of playing time the other night obviously with Ricky Barber out. What did you see from him? He had a couple huge plays with the forced fumbles.
"He's an impact player too. He's so quick and so explosive. You know he's a veteran guy. He made some big plays for us. Played a lot of snaps. He got banged up and came back. He showed a lot of toughness. He's a really good player."
With Jaylon Robinson out, Amari Johnson had some catches. What do you like about him?
"When he has the ball in his hands he does some really good stuff. We've got some young receivers. We're continuing to grow and develop. They're going to have opportunities."
It's year one and you're 2-2. How big is this game when you look at the big picture for the rest of the season?
"Every game is big. Obviously coming off a loss like that you want to get back on the field. Thinking about it, we're playing a very quality team. It would be a good win for us. We need to do everything in our power to do that. Looking forward to playing them. I know our guys are ready to get back out there and give it a go."
What do you hope Joey Gatewood can provide to the offense?
"Joey provides a different type of preparation for a defense. He's only been here a little over a month, so he's still kind of settling in to what we're doing. He's got a chance to continue to help our team. I really think he will going forward."
Can you elaborate a little bit more about one start means for Mikey Keene?
"Big picture, his teammates know more of what to expect with him leading. I know from my standpoint, I know what to expect. That really helps everything. He's a guy that can efficiently run our offense. That's what really excited. He's got a lot of winner in him. He's a tough guy. Like I said, if you look, there were a couple plays where he got us out of bad plays. Just threw the ball away. Maybe an inexperienced quarterback would have taken a sack or something like that. So he's got some qualities that are very impressive. That's what stood out to me above everything else, other than protecting the football."
