Head coach Russ Huesman
Opening statement: "It was a win. I can't say it was a great win, but I told our guys to enjoy the win. They're hard to come by, so anytime you win a game you should feel happy, but we've gotta get some things fixed, especially on the defensive side of the ball. We've gotta play a whole lot better than what we're playing right now, we're giving up way too many big plays. Offensively, I'm kind of pleased. We put points on the board, but I don't think we played as well as we could have. I did like the fact we had 13-for-19 on third-down conversions - which we needed in that game - and we didn't turn over. So there were some positives coming out of it, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, but defensively we're not where we need to be. We're getting ready to play a real good team. You know it; our players know it. They have a lot of great athletes, they're making plays and making big plays and they're playing good defense. They've been playing good defense for a long time at Samford. They've been one of the best in the league for quite a while, at least since I've been here. We've got our work cut out for us, we're going to have to play really well."
Did you feel any better Saturday after hearing the Jacksonville State score?: "Nope. Not at all."
On holding Jacksonville State to 23 points then allowing Mars Hill to score 34: "Well, we're giving up big plays. Sometimes it's not fitting the gap, when people spread you out like that, if you're not real good at fitting gaps and then we missed quite a few tackles that hurt us. They popped a run and we weren't in the gap. Part of it was kind of what we were doing defensively; part of it was we didn't do a great job there, but you can't come back and say, 'Oops. Sorry.' We're going to do some things to help us so we're not hung out, but we've played this defense since I've here and we didn't do that Saturday."
Are people not where they're supposed to be, or are they being blocked? "Somebody is not being where supposed to be. That's the bottom line. When you start playing zone-read teams and quarterbacks that can run the ball, and you get secondary guys involved in certain spots on the field, you've got to just say, 'If I've got the A gap, my hat's gotta be in there. If I've got the B gap, my hat's gotta be in there. Now there were some this past week that were just awful. We had a guy sitting right there and just missed the tackle, so all of a sudden they go and get 25. That's unacceptable, but some we just didn't fit a gap and there's a crease and all it takes is that big of a crease and a good running back will find it."
Is it inexperience? "I guess maybe we're not as focused as we need to be. I can't say it's inexperience, because some of the older guys are missing tackles. Some of the older guys are not in the right gaps. Some of the better players are giving up some throws, so we'll work on it this week."
Are people figuring out UTC's defense?: "We had the same thing at Richmond too, so that's going on 11 years. If they're only figuring it out after 11 years, they're not real smart, to be honest with you (laughing). They've been watching it. They all watched four years of it last year, so no. We know what we're doing, we've just gotta do a better job of executing."
Position changes on defense?: "There will be some guys that we need to have compete and play. We're going to go into today's practice, and we're going to see who produces, who practices in certain positions. Some guys - Keionta Davis is playing good; Josh Freeman is playing good; Nakevion Leslie is playing good for the most part. Lucas Webb is not a great factor, but he's fine. Then there's other positions we need guys to step up and play better. We hope to see that this week."
With a defensive background, do issues on that side bother you more?: "Yeah, I get pretty frustrated. I do run thoughts by the defensive coaches, so I'm just as guilty as any of the players and coaches because I spend a lot of my time watching that and bouncing ideas between me and Adam (Braithwaite, defensive coordinator). We bounce ideas off each other, technique-wise, so looking at why we're not playing good defense, people are probably going to gripe at me. But we're all in it together and we'll all get it fixed together."
Is this the best Samford team that you've faced? "They've been good the last three years, when you know if you don't play well, you won't win the game. So is this the best one? I'm not sure. They were pretty good last year. The year before when they beat us and shared the conference title, they were good that year, so it's just a typical Samford team; tough, pretty physical. They have guys who know how to make plays. If they have the opportunity to make plays, they'll make them."
Where are their big plays coming from? "They'll take some big shots in the passing game - deep shots. Posts, outside verticals, catch-and-run. They've caught screens and run big plays. Hand off to the backs. They've had big plays in every aspect: Throw it short, throw it deep. Backs popping big runs. They're well-coached. They have a great scheme and they're making plays."
Why isn't Samford ranked? "It's the same old. For one, the Southern Conference doesn't have a great deal of respect. I don't know that for sure; it's just kind of my mentality. All of a sudden you're starting to rank teams and the Southern Conference isn't the conference you're looking to say, 'Alright, who are we going to get out of there?' From day one, I ranked them in the top 25, but that's just me. I think (Furman coach) Bruce Fowler gets a vote, and he probably voted them, too. Other than that, that's all the votes they get, because nobody else thinks the Southern Conference is any good."
Memories of first matchup with Chris Hatcher, when he was Georgia Southern's coach in 2009: "I remember it was raining. I remember we were terrible on defense. They were a little different than they are now, but the screen game has always been a part of his deal. Offensively, they're pretty similar to last year. I would say the influence he has is that he likes to throw it and you seem throwing it a lot more than they have, but they're pretty similar. Their offensive coordinator is back. They're going to pound you, too. I know Hatch is always been known for getting it on the perimeter, flinging it, Air Raid, Hatch Attack, but they're putting their faces on you and pounding you and that's what makes it difficult. If we just said, let's just defend the pass, that's one thing, but you've gotta have the ability to stop the running game, and it's a good running game. They've got good backs, so it'll be a test for us, to be honest with you."
Will you play the freshmen running backs (Kyle Nalls and Alex Trotter)?: "We don't know. We want to get Trotter some more snaps. We're going to try to get Kyle Nalls a good look this week in practice and see how he comes along. I'm not sure. All four will dress. Whether we get Kyle in the game this week or not, I don't know yet. I've gotta see how we are health-wise, but all four will prepare like they're playing."
What do you remember about the 2013 Samford game?: "I remember we were lucky to get it into overtime. They were up 14-0 around midfield in the fourth quarter when Wes picked off that ball and took it to the house. It kind of gave us some new life - we got a stop and then scored. I can't even remember how we scored. We were moving the ball, but couldn't put it in the endzone. We get it into overtime and held them to a field goal, then had a shot with Taharin Tyson on the throwback, just overthrew it to him for the win. It was a great game; Samford's a good rivalry for us because of closeness, they're in the league. I've got a ton of respect for what they've done there; Pat Sullivan built that program, he did a heck of a job, and it looks like Hatch has taken it and run with it pretty good. Samford's got a lot going for them; a great university, so I've got a lot of respect, and I know we know how good they are."
On new guys handling first road test: "You can't worry about whether they're playing on the road or at home. I like road games - not better than home because I like playing at home with our crowd - but at our level, we're not allowed to put them in hotels the night before (home) games, so they're all in the dorm. They're kind of spread out. You go on the road, they're all in the hotel. You wake them up, they're all together in the same block of rooms. Sometimes at our level playing on the road is more advantageous than playing at home. Tennessee packs them up on Friday, puts them on a bus and drives them to the hotel and it's like a road game for them until they get back to the stadium, but at our level we're not allowed to do that, so sometimes things are affected. So do I like road games? I don't mind them. Phones are off, it's a relaxing bus ride, but we'll be playing on a different field. It's not like we're playing Auburn or Alabama. It's not one of those places."
Could this be a big game for Keionta Davis with Samford's passing attack?: "I hope so. It just depends on how they want to throw the ball, and what they want to do with their passing game. If they want to get a bunch of people out in the routes and single defensive linemen, then yeah, it is conducive for him. I think Davis Tull had a monster game against these guys, but he's with the Saints right now. But who knows? Every week it's who steps up and who plays. I know Keionta is going to play hard whether he has a sack, two sacks, whatever, he'll play hard. He's a guy we don't have any issue with."
On C.J. Fritz's special teams play so far: "It's nice. I hope he keeps coming as far as a defensive player. He's playing a lot of special teams, but C.J.'s gotta get his confidence back as a corner, and we're hoping he can continue to do that so he can be a factor in what we're doing defensively. He's got a lot of ability, so we've gotta keep him coming and turn him into the great player that we think he could be."
Thoughts on Jacksonville State being No. 1: "Don't really care about Jacksonville State. Sorry."
Surprised with their score against Auburn: "Don't really care about that score either. Sorry. That game has no bearing on Chattanooga. If it did, I would comment. Jacksonville State has zero bearing on Chattanooga right now and the rest of the time. That's Jacksonville State, and they'll do what they do."
Senior linebacker A.J. Hampton
How have defensive meetings been?: "Yeah, it's been different. We're clearly not happy about our performance in the first two on defense, so I feel we definitely need to step up the intensity. That's the focus right now. We know we have the talent, we just have to focus up."
How do you fix the problems? "I feel we all know our jobs, but I guess lately things have been throwing people off because we've been missing gaps, so we've been focusing on playing gap defense like we have in the past and getting back to playing UTC defense."
Is it players wanting to do too much?: "Yeah, sometimes people hop out of their gaps, but people have to make sure they do their job first."
Embracing the challenge of playing Samford's offense, which averages 644 yards per game: "I say we go into similar to every week. Work hard, we've got the talent to defend anyone in our conference, so we have to stay focused."
What's been the mood in meetings?: "We all feel confident still. It's just little slip-ups here and there we have to account for. We're trying to work hard to make sure that doesn't happen anymore. We have to play with more intensity."
Is there a pride factor with the defense?: "We're all not happy with what we're doing so far. We know we need to step it up."
Motivation with coach saying every defensive position is up for grabs: "I'm going to keep practicing hard. I've been practicing hard all season. I'm going to do my job and make sure everybody's doing their job."
Junior running back Derrick Craine
Mood of the team last couple of days: "I think the mood is we've been focusing on us. We have to get back to playing UTC football. Offensively we had a 500-yard game, but the scary part is we still haven't played our best game. This week we need to focus on UTC, focus on us, get our assignments down and go out this week and perform against Samford."
Did it feel good to have a good offensive performance last week? "Yeah, it feels good. Every week you score points, you get into a rhythm and it feels really good. Hopefully we can continue that success and continue putting points on the board."
Last year versus this year at week three: "Every year is a new year. We have new people on the board this year. We've gotta make due with what we had; last year we had to make due with what we had. Now we've just gotta go out, critique certain things, really learn our assignments and go out and play our best football game."
What got team rolling last year: "We just got in a rhythm, and I think this year we can do the same thing. We're still not at our best ball. We're just going to go out this week, really focus on our game and hopefully go out Saturday and get a win."
Memories of Samford: "I remember it being very physical. Samford is a Southern Conference game for us, and we both wanted to go out and win conference. At the end of the day it's about who wants it more, and I can honestly say we want it more than anybody in this conference. I think we're willing to do anything we can - through practice, through games, through meetings, through film - to go out there and do what we need to do to get a win."
Any added motivation from that being the team's last Southern Conference loss?: "You're always motivated to win against Southern Conference teams. Last year we were the Southern Conference champions, and the vibe has been to three-peat. That's one thing that keeps us motivated is to go out there and win another Southern Conference (championship). This week we focus on Samford and take it one week at a time. Hopefully we'll get a win and continue on through our schedule, undefeated in the Southern Conference."
On his performance Saturday: "The other 10 guys on the field helped make it happen. My success comes from front five, receivers creating run lanes for me. I've gotta give my hat off to the other guys on offense; they're really helping me out. We hang out together so we really click very well, and as far as blocking on the perimeter, our receivers practice it all the time and they're incredible at it. We motivate each other by being the best we can be."
How did Saturday's ice bath feel?: "I've grown to love ice baths. It felt incredible on Saturday."
Can a team have an identity two games in? "I think to go out and play this week and get a win, and play assignment football as well as we can, that creates our identity. We're in Southern Conference play now, but I think we have to really focus on our assignments and get the job done and come out with a win."
Thoughts on this year's Samford defense: "They play assignment football. They're going to stay true to their gaps. They're very physical up front, the linebackers are very good. We're going to have to get the offensive line moving some folks to create run lanes, get the ball on the edge, open up our offense and show some things we haven't. If we play our assignment football, I don't think we should have any problems."
Is Samford a rival?: "Every conference game is a rival. Every team in this conference is competing for one goal, and that's a championship. So every game should be treated that way, but at the end of the day, it's Samford and we're UTC, so we've gotta go out there and play the best we can play and come out with a win this week to work towards our goal of being Southern Conference champions again."