Coach Brandon holds Spring Game Presser

Gregg Brandon Spring Game Press Conference--

Here we go, Falcon Nation! Deep, rich minutiae leading up to Saturday's "game." Wallow away. Wise ass remarks are in orange below.

April 18, 2007

Bowling Green, Ohio - Bowling Green State University football coach Gregg Brandon talked about Saturday's upcoming Spring Game. The scrimmage will be held at Bowling Green High School at 1 p.m. Admission is free. (I would hope so).

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Have there been any injuries or problems?
"Loren Hargrove pulled a muscle in his shoulder and we are sitting him out the rest of the way, just to be on the safe side. He lost some strength in there and he had been doing a great job at middle linebacker and he's earned the starting spot going into the fall. (WHOA!! Hold the phone. Loren Hargrove is going to play middle linebacker? Very interesting. The spring depth chart had him at Weak LB and Haneline at MLB. In fact, my own post registered caution on Haneline at MLB. Hargrove is only 211, so we're apparently building for speed, because that is very light. We're going to need the D-line to keep blocks off him.) There is no need to force him back. We are just going to rest him and get him healthy in the summer. When he gets his strength back he'll be able to crank it up a notch."

On the orange/white game
"We are going to draft the guys tonight. It will be a steak and bean game, the winner eats steaks and the loser serves them. That will be Tuesday night after our last practice. (Sounds like fine motivation. What kind of beans, anyway? Never mind. For fans, the key point here is that it isn't #1 offense playing together. They are going to be mixed up)."

Have you had any intense scrimmages this spring?
"We had two of them. We had one the first Saturday and another one this past Saturday. The first Saturday was intense and it wasn't as long. We probably had 70 or 80 plays and last Saturday we had upwards of 90. Very similar scrimmages, a lot of good work."

Is there anything that stood from Saturday's scrimmage?
"I think Tyler Sheehan is stepping up at quarterback. I am going to keep evaluating. I have three players that are all competing. With Sheehan, [Anthony] Glaud and Turner I think I have three guys that are all capable." (Interesting signal from Coach. Kremlinologists will parse each word to determine what they might mean. If nothing else, they may be designed to motivate Turner--or, Sheehan might really be the guy. I think QB controversies are really distracting for teams looking for a leader, so I hope we can find a guy and stick with him. MLB controversies are not such a big deal)

Anyone else who has stood out?
"Sean O'Drobinak has really taken to defensive line. He has really stepped up that way. Erique Dozier, we moved him inside and he can play in there. (WHOA again! Moved to the inside of what? Does he mean inside as backup MLB, or inside, as in the defensive line? He's only 221 pounds. WTF.) He has done a good job with that. We know he can play out there with space and now we have put him in the box. (Must have been a failure to communicate). He has got to be able to mix it up in there and be a physical player, which he is. He has found a home in there and I am excited about that. I think our secondary has matured. I really like the way those kids are playing together. Adam Gonzaga has done a nice job with that group. Our corners are veterans now, Antonio [Smith] and Kenny [Lewis] are going into their third year. All of those Freshman that played last year, Jahmal Brown and P.J. Mahone, Mahone we moved to linebacker. (HOLD THE PHONE AGAIN!! All right then. He started the spring at FS, back up, but is now at LB. He weighs 201--not to be overally anal about that kind of thing). Those guys are doing a great job. They have a year under their belt and they are stepping up. You can just see the maturity and growth of the football team in that regard. (If there's so much maturity and growth going on, why does everyone have to change positions?) That is something I knew in the back of my mind all last fall. I was saying that these kids are a year away or a spring away. It's spring and we are twelve practices in, and we are making progress with the youth on defense. With O'Drobinak in there and Mike Ream is improving as an inside guy. Jacob Hardwick is having a great spring as an end. It has allowed us to leave Jacob at end with Nick Davis and Joe Schaefer being out. Two of our better players are out on the defensive line. Diyral Briggs is picking up where left off. He is an impact guy and a hard guy to block. I am pleased with the way our defense is running to the football. We are developing some depth, which we haven't had in the last couple of years. We have recruited speed in the last couple years and it is starting to show up. You don't really have the patience to let that happen, but we didn't have a choice. We didn't have the patience to let that happen and last year we went through some growing pains there."

On the spring game
"We are going to do live kicking but there won't be tackling. Everything will be above the waist (it is prom season after all), which you do in the kicking game anyway. We just won't take anybody to the ground. I want to see the ball punted (don't we all) and I want to see us cover kicks, from a kickoff and a punt perspective. I want to see our guys catch the ball. We will fair catch everything. I want to see them handle balls. If we kick the ball on the kickoff, since it is from the 30-yard line, I think we need to see that because there are going to be a lot of returns. I want our guys to run and catch kicks, I want the whole thing."

Will you rush the punter?
(Beads of sweat appear on the foreheads of the Falcon Nation). "We'll rush him, but we will be in a return mode. (Whew. We'd be the first team to have four kicks blocked in its own spring game. Merely seeing our team line up in the accursed formation will be enough to drive fans to distracton). I want to see guys cover and I want to see guys holding up the guys that are covering. I want to see where we are with that. We are not going to try and block it, because we are going to split the teams up and that could be chaos. (as can be witnessed viewing special team game films from last season. Final note. I will bet that no other coach in America was asked if he was going to rush the punter in his spring game)."

Will it be 15-minute periods in the first half and running time in the second half?
"That's the plan, that is what we have done in the past." (The media is really grilling coach, here).

What do you hope to get out of Saturday?
"(Steak. Not beans). I want the kids to have fun and enjoy playing a live game. I have done that every year I was here except for last year because we didn't have enough bodies and we couldn't do it. We were just so young that we needed this practice and we needed this scrimmage. I am not saying that we do not need that now, but I feel comfortable now. (OK. If anyone can make sense out of that, feel free to translate in the comments). The kids have had a good off-season and they had a good winter. They had 13 good practices and the attitude and chemistry of this team is coming together. Let's let them play a game and put something on the table, the steak and beans, and let them have some fun."

Do you give the fans a chance to come and watch? (Apparently. And for free).
"Our fans can come out and see our kids in a live situation which is good. I think they have to understand that the teams will be split, so you are not going to see the best offense or the best defense out there. The spring is an opportunity for individuals to make moves, to make jumps on the depth chart. Every situation that we have created in the practice has been competitive, to see how guys handle pressure and how guys respond when we turn on the lights. This game is going to be no different. It is an opportunity for a guy to make a play, to catch a touchdown pass, throw a touchdown pass, to get an interception, to get a tackle for a loss or to get a fumble. All of those things are out there, but you are not seeing the best offense or the best defense. I think the fans will understand that. (Speaking for myself only. I understand that.)"

Is there anything else relating to the spring game?
"We are going to select the player of the spring. Basically it is who every coach would take as a first round draft pick. (I think if he is on the losing team he should get steak, too) We are going to do it at Commons, with Bob Sebo as the commissioner. It should be a fun deal."

Are there any other roster moves that you have made?
"Vincent Corner has been working out at safety, he had been a cornerback but he is working in safety now. (I personally think that a guy named Corner should play corner, but, hey, if you want to run around doing what's best for the team and everything, rock on. I would assume he is taking the spot held by Mahone.) Offensively, Marques Parks has stepped up in his receiver position (This is pretty huge. If Parks, Partridge and Barnes can be our receivers, then I think we can start to open things up a little bit). Eric Ransom is in the lead in the running back position. That to me is like the cornerback race. We have Ransom, Chris Bullock and Dan Macon who are there good options." (Last and final WHOA!! I actually don't find this surprising. Coach made a cryptic comment earlier in this regard and Ransom appears to be a big talent. We will have depth at RB).

See everybody Saturday! Go Falcons.