Clawson Presser---We're Close

Coach Clawson met the media yesterday.  I watched it....here's the interesting parts of what he said....

I thought the most interesting thing was talking about the team after Saturday's lose.  He said the locker room was very quiet and was quiet again on Monday.  An older player told Coach that the players were so disappointed because they completely bought in for the week, having good practices, watching extra film and still lost.  Of course good teams do it every week....

Coach says he thinks we are close but not there yet.  For the team to turn the corner, players need to get better.  As an example, he noted Ryland Ward, who played "poorly" against WMU but played like an "all conference" safety against UT.

He listed 11-12 freshman BG played on defense Saturday.

For our goals, Coach says this is a must win game.  A third loss at this point is deadly.  Obviously, even with the win it is a long shot, but without this game, it is all but over for a chance at the MAC title.

Temple is a power team.  UT, WMU and WVU ran the ball out of a spread when it was there.  Temple brings extra TEs and runs you over.  They can pass if they have to, but they often don't have to.  They are big and experienced and start 16 seniors.

On defense, the Owls are one of the top 10 defenses in the country.  Their strategy is to stop the run, force you into 3rd and long and then run complicated blitzes against you.

Finally, Coach said that if he had his choice, he'd prefer an experienced defense, because you can't hide someone as easy on defense as you can on offense.

John Wagner had some news on Falcon Fodder about injuries.

Kyle Bryant should play, Oullette is questionable, Hunter might be available.

Oulette is a tough one...we're going to need all the D-line depth we can muster.

Coach