The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Football Breaks Down Gamecocks At Media Luncheon
9/10/2012 12:00:00 AM | Football
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- Following a bye week, the UAB football team is amped up to compete in its first road contest of 2012. The Blazers travel to Columbia, S.C., to take on the No. 8 South Carolina Gamecocks, Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.
On Monday, head coach Garrick McGee along with student-athletes Nick Adams, Marvin Burdette, Patrick Hearn and Hunter Mullins addressed the media at the weekly luncheon.
McGee and the players discussed a variety of topics about the Gamecocks, which are coming off a 48-10 victory against East Carolina last Saturday.
This Saturday's matchup will mark the third time the Blazers and Gamecocks have faced off. South Carolina leads the all-time series, 2-0, with victories in 2003 (42-10) and 2008 (26-13).
Saturday's game will air on Fox Sports, with Bob Rathbun (pxp), Tim Couch (analysis) and Elizabeth Moreau (sidelines) on the call. The contest will also air locally on the Blazer IMG Sports Network on WUHT-FM 100.7. The voice of the Blazers, David Crane will call the game action with John Whitcomb providing analysis. The pregame show will begin at 6 p.m. ET.
PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES
Head Coach Garrick McGee
On South Carolina as a team...
"They are very talented they have one of the best football coaches (Steve Spurrier) sitting on the sidelines in the history of the game which, gives them credibility immediately. They are the same team they have always been."
On the quarterback situation with South Carolina this weekend...
"What the film says is that they are a lot more aggressive as an offense. What (quarterback Dylan) Thompson gave them was an opportunity to throw the ball a lot more, which gave (Marcus) Lattimore more room to run. I think what (Connor) Shaw brings to the table is that he's a competitor and he's a winner. He's very tough and competitive. For him to play that Vandy game with a hurt shoulder and understand that it was a conference game, he had to sell out right then to win a conference game on the road and he was able to hang in there and do it shows a lot to me."
On how the UAB defense will stop RB Marcus Lattimore this week...
"The way you stop any offense is you play fundamentally sound, you understand your techniques and your schemes, and you anticipate which plays are about to be run. You have to win on the first down so that you push them into a second down and a long situation and that gives you the best chance. But it all starts with being focused understanding our scheme, understanding what they are going to do on offense, playing with the right leverage and tackling."
On one thing McGee has learned about the team since its loss to Troy...
"What I learned in the off week is that they really care, they really want to win. We went back and studied the film and looked at the things that went wrong and the places that we needed to develop and get better and we had tough hard meetings with them about it. I was really impressed with the way that they took tough criticism about how to focus, how to concentrate, how to play the game at a high level."
On how the off week will affect the team this week against South Carolina...
"Well, it was documented last week that I didn't think initially that was the best thing for us. But after playing the game and getting to go back to training camp it gave us an opportunity to really go back and address the issues that we had. It helped us challenge certain people with who they were going to be the rest of the season, if they were going to focus and concentrate and do things the way that winners do. I am really impressed with their response to it."
On how the team will change from game one to game two...
"I expect us to be a different football team mentally. Physically I expect us to be the same. We played hard, we played physical, we played like we cared about our program, and we took a lot of pride in our university."
On what will be change playing South Carolina this week...
"There will be some things that we do a little different in overall preparation for the game. Last week was a week for us to prepare our offense and really zone in on the signals. Make guys concentrate on the signals coming off the sidelines. There are things that you have to do differently when playing on the road."
On how UAB will face South Carolina's defensive lines...
"Most of the defensive lines in the SEC is what separates them from any other conference in my opinion. So whenever you go in to play a team like this the defensive front are very talented. You have to understand certain ways to get the ball out and you have to really stay in your passing lanes. Your offensive lines have to stay leveled off so they create passing lanes for the quarterback, the receiver's routes have to be at the right spot. You have to execute the way you execute at practice. That is what gives you a chance."
On Tulane's Devon Walker injury...
"It is a really unfortunate situation to have that happen to any kid. It is a violent sport but when a kid gets injured at that level I think everyone across college football, or football period really has to take a step back and appreciate that we get to continue to go out practice and play."
Senior LB Marvin Burdette
On the defensive mistakes during Troy game...
"There are a lot of freshman that have come in, and with that you always experience some mistakes. With (Troy's) hurry-up offense, I had to get my defense back into stances. It's little things like mental errors and being new to the college football environment. I think all of them got their first game jitters out, so I think from here on out everything will play out well."
On playing in front of a big crowd at South Carolina...
"It is a mental standpoint. Staying focused on play calls and playing physical during the game is key. I have played in big game before at Tennessee, Ole Miss, and others; there is not much of a difference to me, you line up and play ball like everyone else."
On being a leader for the team with valuable experience...
"I am able to sit down with these young guys and explain to them that these other teams are doing the same thing we are. It is not the team that is big, it's the crowd. At the end of the day you aren't playing against the crowd, you are playing against the guys in front of you."
With Arkansas losing to ULM this past Saturday, what advantages does that give UAB against South Carolina...
"Coach McGee tells us that anything can happen on any given Saturday with college football. How you prepare is very important. We want them to think they have an advantage over us so that we can come in with the mindset we will beat this team and accomplish a win. We want to be recognized as a team that fights for that win every time."
Senior WR Nick Adams
On UAB's running game...
"If you are running the ball consistently and they can't stop you they are going to try and stack the box and bring the safeties down a little more; that's when you go over the top. Opening up the running game will really set the game off nicely and allow us to go deep."
On playing in front of the South Carolina crowd...
"It is very exciting. We are practicing hard and preparing the best we can. South Carolina is my home state, so I am not only looking forward to the game, but also to see my family and friends. It gives us a chance to come and show off in front of them and in front of a huge crowd like South Carolina."
On getting a win against an SEC or ranked team...
"As a senior, it would be awesome. It would show how our entire program came together and won. They may have speed, but we have equal speed and competition."
Sophomore P Hunter Mullins
On following former UAB punter Trey Ragland...
"Trey Ragland was a great punter. I punted under him for two years. I went out every day and competed with him. That made me a lot better. He's been a big influence on me to be a better punter."
On mistakes made against Troy...
"I made two mistakes. I hit the ball well but I hit two balls in the end zone. I want to hit the ball to the 10 or 15-yard line to help my team out with field position. I've been working on that during the bye week. We had a bad snap but we have a really solid special teams unit and I feel that we've gotten better over the past week."
On crowd noise being a factor...
"Whenever I get on the field, I'm focused on what I'm trying to do and tune out everything outside of the play. The crowd can get under my skin if I let it. You can't let anything else matter, just focus on the punt."
Senior WR Patrick Hearn
On interest in attending South Carolina...
"I never thought about it. I didn't have many offers coming out of high school. I thought that if I played well enough I might get lucky and get an offer from Southern Miss. But they passed me by, and UAB offered me on my last day of high school. I'm fortunate and glad to be here."
On Troy game film...
"Coach (McGee) pointed out our (negative) reactions after bad plays. Our reactions should not have been like that. Coach taught us to be more aware of what's going on around us. The film showed us that we have to work much harder."
