TKR TV: Rutgers Football HC Greg Schiano talks first scrimmage of spring
Rutgers Football Head Coach Greg Schiano met with the media today following the team's first scrimmage of spring practice on Saturday afternoon.
GS: Thanks for coming today, guys. What can I do for you?
Q: Just your overall thoughts on the quarterback play today, Greg?
GS: I thought it was pretty smooth. Today was the first day in a game situation with the coach-to-player communication. We’ve used it in practice, but to do it in a game situation, it was interesting. We’re going to have to really look at it because we have to shut it off at 15, which is different. You can’t talk all the way to the end of the clock, so there's going to be some strategy involved with that if you want to be able to talk to the quarterback through it. Once it goes down at 15, now it's back to the old days where he's on his own, so we gotta get a feel for that. I thought overall, it was it was pretty clean, a couple missed throws that could have been interceptions that were dropped. Defensively, I thought we had a few opportunities that we didn't take advantage of. But overall, it was positive and we got all four of them good work which was good.
Q: What are your thoughts on the receivers so far this spring, specifically, some of the younger guys that are kind of still developing and trying to carve out roles?
GS: Yeah, I think guys are at a different stage in their development, and we have all different stages. And with the transfers, getting Brantley eligible is like getting two portal receivers, not one. And Chris Long is like getting a third portal receiver because he really couldn't play last year. I think we have an infusion of talent at the position, and then the young guys are doing well. So it's exciting. I think the room has some depth to it now and that’s a good thing. We needed that. We needed that desperately.
Q: Greg, I'm kind of curious on your thoughts on this: Going back to your first tenure to now, do you feel it's a little bit easier to get true freshmen at the skill positions more playing time, just based on the fact that they early enroll now and they had so much training throughout high school?
GS: Probably more the early enrolled than the so much training in high school. Seven-on-seven is a different world, being able to do the blocking that you need to do at this level, being able to get off of aggressive press coverage. But yes, the number of people that enroll early now, it's basically flipped. It used to be, you know, half a dozen early and the rest in June. Now it's most of them in early and half a dozen in June. So that certainly helps. I think we have some really good young talent right now. So that's exciting.
Q: As you built the culture here last year, at this time you liked the leadership, where has it gone to now, that leadership?
GS: Well, it's several of the same leaders, right? So I think it's even stronger. They're more mature, they're more experienced. Anytime you're more experienced at doing something you hope you would do it better, right? The only thing that can get you is if you think you got it, right, I got this. Well, what I tell the players all the time is when you think you got it, it's got you. So we just have to keep working at it and the relationships. You can't lead unless you have relationships with your teammates. That's the critical part. But I like the chemistry of our team. I think it's a tight team and guys respect the upperclassmen, which is important.
Q: You return a lot of guys on the offensive line with starting experience, do you kind of have an idea of the five you want or is that still kind of up in the air, maybe, and will go on through camp?
GS: Yeah, I have a pretty good idea. But there's still competition every day. But yeah, I think I have a pretty good idea who will be on opening day if we can stay healthy.
Q: It’s now year two with Kirk, have you seen overall offensively the guys kind of making the progress that you want to see in terms of picking things up, recognizing what they need to see, things like that, just kind of making the adjustments that they need to?
GS: Yeah, I have, I mean, certainly the second go-round. Anytime you do something for a second cycle, you're going to improve, plus it's a second cycle with Flats and the O-line, right? So when you look at those two things, second cycle with Brock and Johnny with the wideouts, so you look at things. Coach Shaw now, second cycle with the running backs. I'm excited that we can be better on offense and we need to be. we weren't good enough. So we have to be better but better is a relative term. We need to be substantially better.
Q: Coach, obviously a couple new cornerbacks out there today, how’s the evaluation on that position and where do you think you are looking for that number two guy?
GS: I think Shorty - Salaam - has really got natural ability at the position, I do. He's going to, he's gonna play. He's athletic, he's fast, a competitor. So I'm excited. Who else are we referencing?
Q: I didn’t see Bo Mascoe out there, just generally who would be the number two corner at this point?
GS: Yeah, I think Bo, Shorty, Eric Rogers. Well, Eric and Robert are the starters. But we roll guys, and we play guys. We kind of try the three men rotation all the time. Plus, guys go in and play the star and the nickel. So we play multiple DBs, we don't just play four, we play five and six DBs. So I like the depth we have there, I like the depth that we have on the D-line. I think the linebackers, Moses is doing a really good job as is DJ.
Those two guys, you know, when you have Mo, and you have Tyreem and then you have those two guys that are really coming out strong, and then you have Jamier Wright-Collins who has also I thought had a good spring. So if you have depth on defense, you got to play it all. You want guys that are fresh, that are running around. There's the advent of these sideline devices that they're going to be able to watch, that's going to help too. Sometimes you worry, well, a guy just can't get in the flow, because he's not seeing it. Well, he's seeing it now, he can sit down and watch it in between series.
So you may be able to play even more guys, which I love that for two reasons. One, they practice harder all week when they know they're going to play. Number two, it keeps everybody fresher for the long haul. I felt last year, we literally stumbled to the finish. We just didn't have the size and the stamina to finish like this. So we limped to the finish. And it's my goal not to do that this year, we got to be able to finish the season going like that. So a lot of thought’s going into that as well.
Q: Staying on that topic at safety, you have some young talent with Kaj, and moving Jessie [Ofurie] over, what are they doing? How are they faring? I should say and what's your overall impression of that group?
GS: Yeah, I think those young guys have a chance, they just need they need to log reps, right? Back there, you're covering a large area of real estate against the best athletes on the field. The receivers, I always joke with the DBs, if you were the best athlete over there you’d be catching balls for touchdowns, right? So you have to defend them. They know where they're going, you don't. Those are serious disadvantages, right? So you really have to be smart, you really have to understand angles, cutting people off. That's what the young guys do.
People say “why are reps important”? Because you get a feel. It's like when you started driving. And when you first started driving, looking over your shoulder, then as you get more comfortable and you're looking in the rearview, right, because the more you play, the more you understand angles, the more you understand how to read the quarterback. It's more of this kind of driver instead of the white-knuckle guy, and that's what they need to do. They need to accumulate reps so they can do that.
Alright? Thank you guys.
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