The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Looks Ahead To Non-Conference Game At Tennessee
9/8/2008 12:00:00β―AM | Football
Sept. 8, 2008
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The UAB football team heads back to the road this weekend for a non-conference game at Tennessee this Saturday.
With two games now under their belts, UAB head coach Neil Callaway and several players met with the media Monday afternoon at the team's weekly luncheon to recap Saturday's game at Florida Atlantic and look ahead to the matchup with the Volunteers.
The Blazers (0-2) are coming off a 49-34 loss Saturday at Florida Atlantic. UAB fought back from an early 21-3 deficit and had the ball trailing 42-34 late in the fourth quarter. The Owls, though, turned the Blazers over on downs and tacked on a late touchdown for the final margin.
"Obviously, we are disappointed with not winning the football game," Callaway said. "But I'm very proud of how our guys competed to the end.
"Standing on the sideline, you could feel the energy going as we had the ball on our second to last possession. Guys were still into the game, competing and doing the things they needed to do."
UAB quarterback Joe Webb threw for a career-high 326 yards in the loss as the Blazers piled up 482 yards of total offense. Receiver Frantrell Forrest hauled in a career-high 11 passes for a career-best 149 yards.
Saturday's meeting will be the third all-time between UAB and Tennessee. The Volunteers have won the previous two meetings, including a 17-10 Tennessee win in the 2005 season opener.
Tennessee (0-1) did not play Saturday. The Volunteers had an off week after opening the season Sept. 1 with a 27-24 overtime loss at UCLA.
"They have to be one of the storybook programs over the years," Callaway said. "Neyland Stadium has to be on of the top four or five places to go play in the country. Phillip Fulmer has been there a long time and has a tremendous winning percentage there. Our guys are extremely excited about the opportunity to go play."
Saturday's game will be carried on the Blazer ISP Sports Network. The game can be heard locally on WWMM 100.5 FM radio in Birmingham. The game will also be televised regionally by Raycom Sports.
Head Coach Neil Callaway
Opening statement
"A little bit about last week, obviously we are disappointed with not winning the football game. But I'm very proud of how our guys competed to the end. Standing on the sideline you could feel the energy going as we had the ball on our second to last possession. Guys were still into the game, competing and doing the things they needed to do.
"Looking back at it, you can obviously say we didn't play very well defensively. But as bad was did play defensively, we stopped them at the end to really give the offense a chance. As good as we played offensively throughout the game, we had a chance at the end of the game to go in there and tie it up and put it into overtime, and we didn't get that done. We have a lot of work to do on both sides of the ball. But I am very comfortable and confident in our guys because of the effort and enthusiasm they have put forth. If they continue that, we are going to win some ball games this year."
On PK/P Swayze Waters' performance against FAU
"He probably had the best game of his career since I've been here with the kickoffs. Of course he had two field goals, several extra points and punted the ball well. FAU had a very good return guy. We had three different kicks that we were going to kick, and Swayze executed all of them well."
On Tennessee
"They have to be one of the storybook programs over the years. They were one of the best teams in the nation in the 1990's. Neyland Stadium has to be on of the top four or five places to go play in the country. Phillip Fulmer has been there a long time and has a tremendous winning percentage there. Our guys are extremely excited about the opportunity to go play. We like the fact that we will get to play in front 103-104,000 people.
"After watching them, the most impressive thing I thought were the two running backs. They look like they are about as good as you are going to get. It's something we are going to have to recognize. They have a new quarterback, Crompton. I say new, but he's in his fourth year, his first year to start. He's a very talented young man that I've known since high school when we recruited him at Georgia. Defensively, I don't think we've seen a front seven that has a combination of size and speed like theirs. They are extremely fast. It will be a tremendous challenge for our offensive line and running backs."
On the game plan for Tennessee
"I don't expect we will change a lot with what we do on offense. We've been successful to this point establishing the running game. We will continue that. As for their secondary, we are not going to try to throw it to them and throw to us. I think that's what we have to do."
On changing up the defense's mindset
"We've tried several different things. We are limited talent-wise over there. We just have to keep working hard and stay the course. We are having a problem with guys freelancing too much and missing tackles. We did a little better last week than the week before. We've worked hard in practice, and we need to continue that."
On seeing improvement
"I think we've always got hope. As long as we play hard and execute what we are trying to do. Offensively, we are capable of scoring some points. Defensively, we've yet to slow anybody down. We are going to play each Saturday."
On avoiding finger pointing
"We've talked about that already. By no means are we perfect. There's still a lot of work to do offensively. Defensively, we've struggled. I'd be lying if I said we weren't. We just have to keep working hard and keep a positive mindset. I told the guys as long as you work hard, good things are going to happen to you. We are going to stay together as a football team."
OL Terence Edge
On how to keep each other motivated and not discouraged
"We always tell each other to keep working hard. If we get in a hole, we need to work our way out of it together."
On trying to establish the run game against a physical Tennessee defensive line
"Like Coach Callaway said, they are a physical team. If we come out physical as well, I think we will be fine."
On his first impressions of Tennessee on film
"They have a good defense. In order for us to win, we are going to have to play our best. We can't slack off at all."
LB Keon Harris
On preparing for Tennessee's offense
"Coming into Tulsa, we didn't really know what to expect because of all the trick plays that they have. We know what to expect more with Tennessee. Tennessee is going to try to run it down your throat. They play traditional, smash-mouth football."
On trying to stop Tennessee's running back Arian Foster
"We are just going to try to get down and hit him. We have to be physical. They have a big offensive line as well, and we have to get onto them, too."
On playing at Neyland Stadium
"It's going to be exciting to play there. We're just going to soak up the energy. It's definitely something that I am looking forward to."
On being just a few steps away from being a great team
"We have been looking at our problems, especially on the defensive side, and figuring out what we've been doing wrong. The opportunity for us to put it all together is there. We just need to do it."
On looking ahead to the game at Tennessee
"Obviously, Tennessee is going to be good. They have a good program. They are big, strong and fast. We're used to going to big schools and playing good teams. We'll be ready."
On preparing for Tennessee's defense
"We're not intimidated by Tennessee. We're just going to focus on doing our jobs the best that we can, making blocks and finishing."
On keeping each other motivated throughout a game
"We're a really close team. We are also a team that is in great shape. Our strength and conditioning coach Steve Martin does a phenomenal job with us. We are not going to wear down. We are mentally strong, and we're going to be there to play."
