The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Clark Previews North Texas, Homecoming and Children’s Harbor
10/15/2018 5:59:00 PM | Football
BIRMINGHAM - With the UAB football team set to host North Texas this Saturday on Homecoming and honor patients from Children's Harbor, head coach Bill Clark previewed the upcoming week for the Blazers.
THREE THINGS TO KNOW:
Bill Clark Opening Statement:
"Back to last week going into a road game: where were we as a team as far as following up a big win against Louisiana Tech? How would we handle that? Would we keep our focus? I really think it started with practice on that first Tuesday. I talk a lot about practice and what our energy looks like. If we're really putting the time in there, we can have expectations on Saturday. It really began last week with how we practiced. I did not see any hangovers from the game as far as overlooking the opponent or dwelling on that game. We were looking for them to keep the same energy and practice like they needed to. We went into Saturday against a Rice team that I have a lot of respect for. I have a lot of respect for Coach Bloomgren and what kind of coach he is. I'm really proud of the effort. Any time you can get a shutout, that's just one of those things that doesn't happen too often in college football. That is a huge deal for us. That's a whole team effort because we got to play a lot of our backups in that fourth quarter, even some in the third quarter. Special teams was excellent. The big blocked punt by Chase Biles was huge. Special teams was a big component of that and that was something that we saw early in the week. We had a chance to get a block against their phenomenal punter. Offensively, we had the big plays from Xavier Ubosi, who we have been really expecting big things from. This was his breakout with three huge catches. One of them was record-tying and got us out of a pinned-back situation. He had the first touchdown as well. It was a really good day for us to set up the big showdown this weekend against North Texas.
"We really meant it when we said that every game, for us, is a championship game. Every conference game is a championship game. This one has a lot of special implications. It is Homecoming, which sometimes, I think, gets a negative connotation of who you pick for your opponent. The history shows that we played Louisiana Tech last year for homecoming. That tells you that we're trying to pick our toughest opponent for Homecoming. We're playing for Children's Harbor and the recognition of the patients there with their names on the back. We're playing for more than ourselves, literally. We're going to be playing for the names on the back. Each player will receive a card in their locker today that talks about who their patient or former patient of Children's Harbor is. Last year, it was amazing to me how our players embraced that and got to know these stories. They knew who they were playing for. We're also going to have a former patient who is going to speak to the team for a few minutes today. That really just lets them know what they're playing for.
"We've just got a great opponent coming here. They're really, really good. They had the one loss to Louisiana Tech on a blocked field goal. They beat a really good Southern Miss team. They have the MVP of our league at quarterback. He is phenomenal. They do a lot of great things offensively. Defensively, they improved during the offseason. They're a lot better defensively. You've seen what they do on special teams with the punt return that they had against Arkansas. They've thrown it all the way back across the field. Coach Litrell had done a terrific job. They're doing really great things there. It's one of the fastest-growing areas in the country and they're taking advantage of it. We will have our hands full but this is why we play the game. We are really excited about the game. We are really excited about our crowd. I would love to see a tremendous turnout for all the many reasons. If our fans want to see a really good football game, they'll come out and support us and come see us Saturday night."
On North Texas quarterback Mason Fine and the challenges that he presents:
We got to see him last year. He's just not a really big guy. Their offensive coordinator, who was a Texas Tech quarterback, made a comment last year that he is the most accurate quarterback that he has ever seen. That's pretty high praise when you say that. He can literally throw it 70 yards. He has a cannon for an arm. He is unbelievably accurate. We know what kind of pass rush that Louisiana Tech has. They were all over him and he was making throws. We saw it last year in person. He's super accurate and they have a very innovative offense. They have a different run game with all the counters and reads. They get their backs out of the backfield. With the tight ends, it's a lot of block and release. They have a head coach who was a fullback at Oklahoma, so you have some of the tough run game in there. They have this Texas Tech offensive coordinator who has this mixture of run and throw. Balance is not how much you do of one or another. It's how well you can and they can do both. The quarterback is as good as advertised.
On facing a challenging opponent for Homecoming:
"Last year, there was that worry. We added the Children's Harbor component. We go play one of our toughest opponents and could not have played much better. There was zero lack of focus. I don't think we're going to have any lack of focus now because of the nature of the game. The questions is always, 'What does that do to your opponent?' I think we all know now that it's just that they fall where they fall. I don't know if they could get up any more than they're going to get up. It's going to be hard for us to get up any more than we're going to get up. It's a huge game for them. It's a huge game for us. It just happens to be Homecoming as well."
On keeping the team emotionally-level:
"I don't want to under-sell it and say that it's not a big game because it is a big game. I would hate to say it's not important because it is important. Last week was huge. We weren't going to make any bones about it. It was a huge championship game. They're all championship games when you're fighting for first place. I don't want them saying it's the biggest game in school history. They don't have to say that. People are going to say that it's a big game. They can say whatever they want to say. They need to just focus on having a great week of practice and do all the film study and all the things they would do anyway. If they want to motivate and say, 'Hey, let's have a great crowd," that's fine. That's what they should do. I don't want to put any more pressure on them than they would put on themselves because they're going to want to play well and do well."
On UAB's impressive defense:
"They have really played well. It's hard to put into words how well they've played. They get in the red zone and find a way to make a play. They make a fourth-and-one play. It's effort, it's sacks, it's coverage. We're playing a really good, dynamic, explosive offense. You can be in the right spot and they still make plays. We've embraced what it takes defensively, which is great. Effort, focus, concentration, playing every play like it's the last play of the game: that's what a good defense looks like. Up to this point, they've really embraced it. You want to celebrate a shoutout. It's a big deal at any level, but it's huge in college football at any level. I looked up in the first half and we had ten possessions. That's a lot. We had some three-and-outs offensively, which is something that we have to work on. It all goes hand-in-hand, but I'm really proud of them up to this point. We've got to just keep going.
THREE THINGS TO KNOW:
- The first-place Blazers (5-1, 3-0 C-USA) host North Texas (6-1, 2-1 C-USA) in what will be one of the biggest Conference USA games of the season. The Blazers put the nation's fifth longest active home winning streak on the line against the Mean Green. UAB is a perfect 9-0 at Legion Field since returning to action in 2017.
- The UAB defense continues to put up staggering numbers, which includes ranking second nationally in sacks per game (3.83), third in passing yards allowed per game (134.8), fourth in third down conversion defense (23.4 percent), fifth in scoring defense (14.2) and sixth in total defense. UAB has yet to allow a 200-yard passer this season and will be tested by North Texas quarterback Mason Fine who averages 315.7 yards per game and has thrown for 2,210 yards, 16 touchdowns and just one interception.
- The Blazers will once again honor Children's Harbor by wearing the names of patients on the back of their gray and lime green jerseys. On Monday afternoon, Mary Laslie Pike, a patient served by Children's Harbor came to address the team. Click here to watch the video.
Bill Clark Opening Statement:
"Back to last week going into a road game: where were we as a team as far as following up a big win against Louisiana Tech? How would we handle that? Would we keep our focus? I really think it started with practice on that first Tuesday. I talk a lot about practice and what our energy looks like. If we're really putting the time in there, we can have expectations on Saturday. It really began last week with how we practiced. I did not see any hangovers from the game as far as overlooking the opponent or dwelling on that game. We were looking for them to keep the same energy and practice like they needed to. We went into Saturday against a Rice team that I have a lot of respect for. I have a lot of respect for Coach Bloomgren and what kind of coach he is. I'm really proud of the effort. Any time you can get a shutout, that's just one of those things that doesn't happen too often in college football. That is a huge deal for us. That's a whole team effort because we got to play a lot of our backups in that fourth quarter, even some in the third quarter. Special teams was excellent. The big blocked punt by Chase Biles was huge. Special teams was a big component of that and that was something that we saw early in the week. We had a chance to get a block against their phenomenal punter. Offensively, we had the big plays from Xavier Ubosi, who we have been really expecting big things from. This was his breakout with three huge catches. One of them was record-tying and got us out of a pinned-back situation. He had the first touchdown as well. It was a really good day for us to set up the big showdown this weekend against North Texas.
"We really meant it when we said that every game, for us, is a championship game. Every conference game is a championship game. This one has a lot of special implications. It is Homecoming, which sometimes, I think, gets a negative connotation of who you pick for your opponent. The history shows that we played Louisiana Tech last year for homecoming. That tells you that we're trying to pick our toughest opponent for Homecoming. We're playing for Children's Harbor and the recognition of the patients there with their names on the back. We're playing for more than ourselves, literally. We're going to be playing for the names on the back. Each player will receive a card in their locker today that talks about who their patient or former patient of Children's Harbor is. Last year, it was amazing to me how our players embraced that and got to know these stories. They knew who they were playing for. We're also going to have a former patient who is going to speak to the team for a few minutes today. That really just lets them know what they're playing for.
"We've just got a great opponent coming here. They're really, really good. They had the one loss to Louisiana Tech on a blocked field goal. They beat a really good Southern Miss team. They have the MVP of our league at quarterback. He is phenomenal. They do a lot of great things offensively. Defensively, they improved during the offseason. They're a lot better defensively. You've seen what they do on special teams with the punt return that they had against Arkansas. They've thrown it all the way back across the field. Coach Litrell had done a terrific job. They're doing really great things there. It's one of the fastest-growing areas in the country and they're taking advantage of it. We will have our hands full but this is why we play the game. We are really excited about the game. We are really excited about our crowd. I would love to see a tremendous turnout for all the many reasons. If our fans want to see a really good football game, they'll come out and support us and come see us Saturday night."
On North Texas quarterback Mason Fine and the challenges that he presents:
We got to see him last year. He's just not a really big guy. Their offensive coordinator, who was a Texas Tech quarterback, made a comment last year that he is the most accurate quarterback that he has ever seen. That's pretty high praise when you say that. He can literally throw it 70 yards. He has a cannon for an arm. He is unbelievably accurate. We know what kind of pass rush that Louisiana Tech has. They were all over him and he was making throws. We saw it last year in person. He's super accurate and they have a very innovative offense. They have a different run game with all the counters and reads. They get their backs out of the backfield. With the tight ends, it's a lot of block and release. They have a head coach who was a fullback at Oklahoma, so you have some of the tough run game in there. They have this Texas Tech offensive coordinator who has this mixture of run and throw. Balance is not how much you do of one or another. It's how well you can and they can do both. The quarterback is as good as advertised.
On facing a challenging opponent for Homecoming:
"Last year, there was that worry. We added the Children's Harbor component. We go play one of our toughest opponents and could not have played much better. There was zero lack of focus. I don't think we're going to have any lack of focus now because of the nature of the game. The questions is always, 'What does that do to your opponent?' I think we all know now that it's just that they fall where they fall. I don't know if they could get up any more than they're going to get up. It's going to be hard for us to get up any more than we're going to get up. It's a huge game for them. It's a huge game for us. It just happens to be Homecoming as well."
On keeping the team emotionally-level:
"I don't want to under-sell it and say that it's not a big game because it is a big game. I would hate to say it's not important because it is important. Last week was huge. We weren't going to make any bones about it. It was a huge championship game. They're all championship games when you're fighting for first place. I don't want them saying it's the biggest game in school history. They don't have to say that. People are going to say that it's a big game. They can say whatever they want to say. They need to just focus on having a great week of practice and do all the film study and all the things they would do anyway. If they want to motivate and say, 'Hey, let's have a great crowd," that's fine. That's what they should do. I don't want to put any more pressure on them than they would put on themselves because they're going to want to play well and do well."
On UAB's impressive defense:
"They have really played well. It's hard to put into words how well they've played. They get in the red zone and find a way to make a play. They make a fourth-and-one play. It's effort, it's sacks, it's coverage. We're playing a really good, dynamic, explosive offense. You can be in the right spot and they still make plays. We've embraced what it takes defensively, which is great. Effort, focus, concentration, playing every play like it's the last play of the game: that's what a good defense looks like. Up to this point, they've really embraced it. You want to celebrate a shoutout. It's a big deal at any level, but it's huge in college football at any level. I looked up in the first half and we had ten possessions. That's a lot. We had some three-and-outs offensively, which is something that we have to work on. It all goes hand-in-hand, but I'm really proud of them up to this point. We've got to just keep going.
Players Mentioned
CB
/ Football
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