Southland Conference Football Media Day Coach and Player Quotes
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
Head Coach Clint Conque
On the preseason No. 5 pick
"Preseason polls are mostly for the fans to talk about. Pretty much since we've joined the conference, I don't know that we've been picked much higher than that. We definitely think our players will read this and it may act as additional motivation once we get to conference play."
"But our main thing is we have to respect the process of preparation. And that's in finishing up our summer voluntary workouts, as well as heading into camp. I thought at some point last year, some of that got lost. We have to make sure that we understand that we're not entitled to anything, there is no such thing as entitlements. The only way we're going to get where we want to be is not worry about the end result, but to respect the journey and put in the work along the way."
On losing a large senior class
"We lost some really talented players, no doubt, but we are excited about the athleticism and talent we have this year. We will be youthful, but I think we have a chance to be very good with a little experience. We need some seniors to step up in the area of leadership and we need some of the young guys to come on in camp."
On finally being eligible for postseason play
"It's an exciting time for our football program and our athletic department. We're finally out from under the NCAA transition period. But with that being said, I don't think our approach will be all that different than it has for the past four years. We've always approached it as we're here to win football games, not matter if there was postseason or titles involved."
"At UCA, there is always the expectation of winning. That never changed even though we weren't eligible for postseason play. I think this may put a little more urgency into what we do in some cases, but things won't change dramatically."
Senior Defensive End Markell Carter
On being eligible for postseason play
"Obviously there are some differences, but our team has always played hard no matter what we were playing for. Just because we couldn't play for a championship really didn't affect how hard we played or how hard we wanted to win. Around UCA, you're just still expected to win and that's the way we approached it every day."
On losses on the defensive side
"We did lose quite a few people but I think we also gained some athleticism. We have a lot of young guys who are athletic. They are just a little inexperienced right now. There are some young guys who should be really good ones. I'm really excited to see players like (defensive back) Radarius Winston play."
On losing All-American Larry Hart
"Game-wise, it will be a little different. I know I will be getting the double teams and all that Larry had last year. I'm ready for the added responsibility that comes with that role. I know I have freshmen looking up to me and I have to make sure that no matter what I'm doing, I have to always set the right example for them. They are going to follow my lead and I have to do things the right way. It's my time to give back to all the other guys who helped me when I was a freshman. I wouldn't be here without what they did for me, so it's my responsibility to help the young guys."
Junior Wide Receiver Willie Landers
About returning to the field after missing all of 2009
"I've been jumping around I'm so excited about getting back out there. I can't wait to get back to the day to day grind, getting my body tired again. I've been resting up for a year now so I'm ready to get going. I used to dread going to practice and working out, especially in the hot summer. Now I can't wait to get out there and sweat and get tired."
On sitting out last year
"Rehab was probably the worst part of it. I watched a lot of football, high school, college, pro, you name it. I was just trying to learn from everyone I watched. I'm ready to get out there and compete again."
On this year's receiving corps
"I think we're going to be pretty good. We have a transfer Derek Steele coming in, and he's really talented. We have T.J (Adams) and Dominique (Croom) coming back, as well as Isaiah Jackson and Kenneth Robey and Joe Harris. We're pretty deep and have a lot of speed."
LAMAR
Head Coach Ray Woodard
"We are very excited to be here and to be a part of Media Day. The fact that we're opening our season against McNeese State back here in Lake Charles gives it extra special meaning to us and to the media from both markets. We're looking forward to the season, and our fans are all extra excited about getting football restarted."
Junior Quarterback Andre Bevil
"I met a few of the players from the other schools around the lobby last night. We mixed a mingled a little, but it's kind of like Roger Staubach said a long time ago; "You want to kind of shy away from talking very much to the enemy.
"It made me excited on the inside to get here and see how this Media Day thing works. Lamar has a lot of information to put out on this first year football in a long, long time, and I'm honored to get the chance to help put out the word. Back in Beaumont, we're all very happy and proud of the next football facilities that are now nearing completion. I haven't seen everyone else's in the Southland Conference, but I can't think that too many of them have facilities as impressive as ours are going to be.
"We're ready to get through playing against each other all the time and get down to the business of playing real games against real teams. We're very excited about the first game (at McNeese Stat on Sept. 4) and our first home game (vs. Webber International the next Saturday night). All of Beaumont is abuzz about football getting restarted at Lamar."
Junior Wide Receiver J.J. Hayes
"Media Day has been great so far. I've met a lot of players and coaches from the other schools. Everyone is so friendly, and they ask a lot of questions about this being Lamar's first season for football since 1989. I'm happy to get the opportunity to support Lamar University at this gathering and to get to have a little fun while I'm doing it.
"We're excited about our first game now being just right around the corner. Everything is coming together as far as our renovated stadium and the new athletic complex go. Everything is looking great, and we can't wait to get moved in over there and make ourselves at home. Everything is moving full force at Lamar now, and we just want to make sure we're totally prepared for the first game and for the entire season. It's going to be so exciting."
McNEESE STATE
Head Coach Matt Viator
On the Cowboy Defense"I really like this defense not only because of the talent level but also because of the attitude. Last year going in we felt we would have a good defense but we really didn't know. We did have some injuries that hurt us but we did come up with one of our better defenses. We're excited about our defense this year."
On the Keys to the defense
"It starts with linebacker Deron Minor. He missed most of last year because of an injury but is back and back in a starter's role. Desmund Lighten (tackle) creates a lot of energy and returned two fumbles for touchdowns last year and then Malcolm Bronson (safety) can make the pass interception.
"I feel that we do have to get better on defense. We would like to do a better job of rushing the passer without blitzing and then we hope we can go through the year without injuries."
Senior Defensive End Josh Ellison
About the defense leading the way early
"We need to step up and lead the way until the offense can come into its own."
About breaking the McNeese season sack record (15.5) set by Kavika Pittman
"It would be good to break the record and that is a goal but we just want to do the best we can and make our defense even better."
Senior Defensive End Terrance Freeman
About the defense leading the way early
"We will have to rise to the occasion."
NICHOLLS
Head Coach Charlie Stubbs
On the season
"It has been a great opportunity to be here at Nicholls, and definitely we have been working hard. I'm confident that we are headed in the right direction as a program. I really believe that we have talent on our roster, but we will have to be effective as coaches to teach technique and schemes to have success."
On opening up with three schools from the Football Bowl Subdivision
"I'm excited to play three Division I FBS schools right off the bat. I came here to compete with our student-athletes, and that is what we intend to do. San Diego State is our opener and a very talented football team, and we will need our ‘A' game ready as soon as possible."
Feelings on Southland Conference
"I'm very impressed with the organization of the conference and how everyone has a burning desire to be first-class in everything that we do. I was excited to meet the other head coaches, and I am very aware that there are many great teams, coaches and players in this conference. We are looking forward to competing against all of them."
Senior Punter Patrick Dolan
About the season
"I'm excited, it is my senior season, we have a new coaching staff and we have a lot to look forward to. It is also the first time that I will be on the same team as my brother (Andrew Dolan) and hopefully we will be able to help lead the team. The majority of our team has been here all summer working out, and hopefully it will pay off."
On preseason accolades
"I'm honored and humbled by the awards, and they help motivate me to help the team out as much as I can. I just want to help us win, and pin our opponents deep in their own territory when I'm needed to punt. If I'm an All-American at the end of the season, then great; however I would much rather a championship."
About the coaching staff
"This staff has emphasized that academics comes before football, and our team found that out early on. We are also held accountable for our actions, both on and off the field. They also bring a different kind of excitement to the program, and the team has bought in 100 percent."
Junior Cornerback Bobby Felder
About the season
"I'm really looking forward to the season, and opening up at San Diego State. Our defense has worked hard in the spring and summer workouts, and we have a lot of newcomers coming in that can help the team a lot."
On preseason accolades
"It is an honor to be recognized by the conference and to get noticed, but I'm with Patrick, I would trade it all for a championship."
On the progress of the defense
"We are trying really hard to not make the same mistakes twice when doing drills. I have really been focusing on learning something and executing it properly with minimal setbacks, and the rest of the team has the same mindset. Playing hard is what our coaches have preached to us all spring and summer, and that is what we intend to do."
NORTHWESTERN STATE
Head coach Bradley Dale Peveto
"We really believe we have a lot of momentum heading into fall camp. We've had a great summer with our guys doing a whale of a job with the offseason program, we got a lot done in spring ball, and we got better at the end of last season. We had a chance to win four of our last five games late in the fourth quarter. The bottom line is, we didn't, and it's unacceptable; but we have a team filled with guys who are determined to get going in the right direction this fall. We are a young team, especially on defense, but we have ability, we can run and we will compete. I have high expectations for this season.
"Offensively we have two experienced quarterbacks with Paul Harris, our returning starter, and Tyler Wolfe, who played hurt last year and was able to show great talent in flashes. Neither of them had been through spring ball with us before. Now they know our Purple Strike offensive package so much better. We can win with either of them. Paul's our starter but Tyler will compete for that job and we're in good hands with either back there. Our offensive strength is up front with four returning starters and two more guys who have starting experience. We have a nice group of talented young receivers along with a big skilled guy in Adrian Reese. We get Sterling Endsley back at tailback, where he was going to be our starter last year before getting hurt in preseason camp. With seven returning starters and good depth, we feel good about our direction.
"Defensively we are very young, having lost eight starters including all three linebackers. We can run. I look at our defense and it reminds me of the unit we had in my first year at Northwestern in 1996, when we had a lot of success and created the Purple Swarm Defense. There's very good ability, very good speed, and a lot of desire. With Ledell Love and (Dennis) ‘Tank' Clark up front we have two very good foundation players. Our linebackers have a lot to prove to the outside world but we have confidence in them. In the secondary, we have a nice blend of veterans like Cashas Pollard, Jeremy Lane, Lance Lacoste and Kevin Perry, and younger guys who have already gotten lots of game experience.
"We put a lot of emphasis on special teams and believe we're going to be much improved in that phase. We did well in some areas, can do better in all, and expect to have the Wild Demons be a tremendous asset for us this fall."
Senior Defensive End Ledell Love
"We are very motivated coming into this season. We have put a lot of work into it this summer and we feel a sense of pride about what we're doing and where we are going. We have a lot of young players on defense but it is not just like an entirely new group. We are excited to have Coach Jay Thomas working with my position group. We have a great coaching staff. We are all in."
Senior Wide Receiver Adrian Reese
"We have a lot of faith in each other on offense. Of course it all starts with the quarterbacks and we have two who can do a great job for us. I have never seen a true freshman step in and play as well as Paul Harris did last year. Tyler Wolfe showed us a lot of guts and leadership, playing hurt, and he showed us he can be a great quarterback for us. We are all a year into the system now where last year, at almost every position, we were not only having to learn the system but we had young players out on the field for the first time. We are still fairly young but we have a lot of experience and we have a lot of desire to succeed."
SAM HOUSTON STATE
Head Coach Willie Fritz
On what he is most looking forward to with practice
"I wanted to see the mix with the new guys. It is going to be a mix of about 50-50. We are going to mesh that group and make a team out of it. We have had quite a few new guys on campus getting to know everyone. That is the tough part for me getting to know everyone and see how they fit in."
"I like the staff we have put together and the guys we have coming back. We have brought in some new guys as well and I think this is going to be a good mix. It will be an interesting season that is for sure, but we are looking forward to it."
On what the Bearkats are going to do on offense this year
"I think you have to run the ball successfully to win. We are going to control the game and we are going to look and see where the weaknesses are and see what we can take advantage of. We will have a lot of different formations, but most everything we are going to do is with the same philosophy."
Senior Quarterback Bryan Randolph
"As quarterback and as one of the few seniors on this year's squad, I've really got to be a leader for the young guys. All the seniors will take these young freshmen under their wings and show them around, not only on the field but on campus and around the town. We're going to be a very young team this year but there's an enthusiasm around the young players that's contagious. We've got to keep that going.
"With a new coaching staff and a new offense, spring ball was a real learning experience. We had to learn a lot of new terminology and new philosophy, but everyone this spring worked hard and we made a lot of progress.
"Coach Fritz and his staff really are good coaches and we accomplished a lot in the spring.
"The offense is different in a lot of ways from last year. We're going to be more balanced. We'll run some empty sets and some two-back formations. We're going to have a bunch of young running backs and wide receivers. But we're ready to get started. We had a big group that stayed in Huntsville this summer to work together and everyone is pulling together and is ready to play."
Senior Defensive Back Jarvis Pippins
"Spring training was a lot of hard work but it was a lot of fun too. With the new coaching staff, there was a lot of energy on the field every day. We're going to play every down with high energy and be aggressive all the time.
"As one of the few seniors, I know I have to try to be more of a leader this year. I was to lead by my actions as well as vocally. I need to be one of the guys running hard to the ball every play.
‘We're looking forward to playing Baylor in the opener and we'll be taking the games one at a time. But there's no doubt there's been a lot of buzz on campus this summer about the "Battle of the Piney Woods" game with Stephen F. Austin at Reliant Stadium in Houston. That's going to be awesome and I know a lot of students who have already gotten their tickets."
SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA
Head Coach Mike Lucas
"We took a step forward as a program. We had some injuries last year at the end with (quarterback) Brian Babin missing some time, Tommy Connors missing the entire season, Simmie Yarborough getting hurt in the McNeese State game. That really hurt us towards the end, but with two games left on the schedule, we're playing Stephen F. Austin at home for first place in the Southland Conference. And that was exciting for our program. It was a great learning experience for our program and our key word this year is finish. I think we've put ourselves in position to be successful."
On Tyler Beatty as the Lions' new quarterback
"Tyler got to start two games for us last year. He played very well in one start and not so well in another. As Tyler goes, I think our season will go. He's a young man who has worked extremely hard and has shown great leadership in the offseason. We've surrounded him with four returning starters - who have combined for a lot of starts - on the offensive line. We've got a great group of wide receivers and a stable of running backs. We've got to get him a lot of snaps in camp, which was something we tried to do in spring ball. He's a talented young man with all the tools. He deserves to have a great year; he's worked very hard to prepare himself for this situation."
Senior Linebacker Mark Newbill
On the defense, which returns 11 starters
"As a defense, we head into the season with a lot of confidence. We have so much experience and everyone is on the same page. We believe we can win, because we had success last year and we know we have what it takes to do it again."
On being one of the defensive leaders
"I'm really concentrating on being more of a vocal leader. As a senior, I need to play my part by helping my younger teammates. We have two great leaders returning in (senior defensive back) Tommy (Connors) and (junior defensive lineman) Devin (Boutwell)."
Junior Wide Receiver Simmie Yarborough
On preseason accolades
"To me, preseason accolades aren't all that important. We have a lot to prove during the season to show that we're deserving of awards. Ultimately, if the team's not successful, any awards we get are not going to mean much."
On being picked third in the conference after being picked last heading into 2009
"Last year, we were motivated by the fact that we weren't getting much respect. This year there's more pressure, because we don't want to go backwards. We want to stay near the top of the conference, compete for a Southland title and go to the playoffs."
STEPHEN F. AUSTIN
Head Coach J.C. Harper
On sharing the 2009 Southland title
"Last year our work hard, had fun and our seniors were rewarded for their dedication by leaving SFA as conference champions. I believe as coaches that is what you are hoping for every year. To be able to accomplish everything we did winning a conference title, winning the Battle of the Piney Woods, the Battle for the Chief and to finish with a top-10 national ranking is something that can never be taken away from our players."
On being a preseason favorite
"I think we are a preseason favorite because we are blessed to have a Walter Payton Award and Buck Buchanan Award candidate on our squad. We are fortunate to have Jeremy Moses and Jabara Williams heading into the seniors seasons. When you have All-Americans like that on your team you will receive some respect."
Senior Quarterback Jeremy Moses
On Stephen F. Austin rebuilding its program
"The 0-11 season was very draining for everyone. It was hard to know where to start after that. Coach Harper did a great job of rebuilding when he brought in a new offensive and defensive coordinator. From that point we starting bring in players who met a standard. These are great guys who are focused on winning, and keeping SFA at the top of the conference."
On the pressure of being a preseason favorite
"I don't feel any pressure heading into the 2010 season. I still have the underdog mentality. The thought of that 0-11 season stays with me. We are practicing and working out the same way we did last year. I don't want us to be happy with 10-3, but I want to improve upon that this season. I want to leave Nacogdoches by giving SFA fans back-to-back titles, and to help start a winning tradition at SFA that continues. If we don't do that then we didn't do our jobs."
Senior Linebacker Jabara Williams
On sharing the 2009 Southland title
"Winning the title meant everything to our program. It was our main goal since we arrived at SFA. To win the title after going 0-11, 4-8 and then no one gave us a chance last year was really important to everyone."
On the defense's improvement
"Since going 0-11 the defense has been our main concern. We have improved every year, and we will continue to be really good in the years to come. We have good coaches who recruit talented players to a great system. Our defense will continue to get better and better."
TEXAS STATE
Head Coach Brad Wright
"I don't put a lot of stock in the preseason polls, but they are fun for the fans and media. The two solid picks are Stephen F. Austin and McNeese State. Stephen F. Austin returns lot of players from their team that won the league last season, and McNeese State has proven that they belong at the top year in and year out. Most of us have a lot of uncertainty at the quarterback position, and if one of them gets hot, they could result in one of us moving their way to the top. More importantly, we have to go out and produce as coaches and players."
"Offensively, we have to find a replacement for Bradley George, who was a four-year starter after redshirting his first season. Right now, Tim Hawkins, who is a redshirt sophomore, is the only quarterback with any experience. We also have a transfer from UTEP in Andy McCloud and a true freshman in Tyler Ardnt. Bryan Hill is also a quarterback who knows the offense, but needs to improve his arm strength to make all of the plays in the offense. We just need them to manage our offense, which has been highly successful in the past, and limit their mistakes."
"Our strength on offense is that we have some very talented and productive receivers returning from last season in Da'Marcus Griggs, Daren Dillard and Alvaro Garcia. We have Frank Reddic and a redshirt freshman in Dexter Imade returning at running back from last season. We also have Marcus Curry, a transfer from Navy, and Terrence Franks, a true freshman from Angleton, joining our team this year."
"Defensively, I look for us to be much improved. We have a lot of experienced players returning on defense, but we still are young. We have a couple of seniors who has played a lot for us. I feel good about them holding the line while we develop on offense."
Senior Linebacker Marcus Clark
"I just want to go out and have a good year. This is my final season. I want to be a better leader by becoming more vocal and keep everyone together on the same page.
"We need to be more consistent this year on defense. We have a lot of athletes and experienced players coming back this season. We have a lot of people who have been together for a long time and having the same system for the third straight season allows the coaches to put us in the right position to make plays."
Senior Wide Receiver Da'Marcus Griggs
"My goal this season is that I want to win another championship ring. That is what every senior wants to do - they want to go out on top. In order for that to happen, we have to have total team effort and come out prepared to play each Saturday.
"Last season was not a surprise to me. I always thought I had it in me. I was a starter my first season before I was injured and then, Cameron (Luke) had a great year. So, I just had to work my way back into the rotation.
"Team wise, we had a pretty good season and were contending for a title until after the McNeese State game. We were four points away from winning a conference title last season. We lost the first game and we were in the back seat until we beat Stephen F. Austin. That put us back into first place, but we lost to McNeese State by three points in the final seconds. That was tough."