Head Coach Scott Satterfield, quarterback Brendan Sorsby, safety Christian Harrison, defensive lineman Jalen Hunt, and offensive lineman Gavin Gerhardt spoke with the media on Tuesday ahead of Saturday's game vs. UCF.
CINCINNATI - Head coach Scott Satterfield, redshirt junior quarterback Brendan Sorsby, redshirt junior safety Christian Harrison, redshirt senior defensive lineman Jalen Hunt, and redshirt senior offensive lineman Gavin Gerhardt spoke with the media ahead of Saturday’s home game vs. UCF
The Bearcats and Knights will kick off at noon at Nippert Stadium. The game will be broadcast on FS1.
Head Coach Scott Satterfield
Opening Statement
“First of all, I just want to mention, how great of an atmosphere it was Saturday. The stripe out hasn't been done since 2016, it was awesome. The crowd was into it, students were into it, it was great. Great to see a college football environment and a great home field advantage for us, we'll need that again this week. We need everybody to come back out and support this team and so we can feed off you guys. Our players love to see the excitement, and when they make a play and look up into the stands it's just more fuel for that fire. We appreciate that. Going back to the game, I thought our guys came out great to start the game. That was obviously the biggest piece of the win, is how we came out about as good as you can be in the first half. Scoring every possession, a lot of big plays. I think we ran 40 plays in the first half. Obviously the second half is a little bit different. We had our plays basically cut in half, and some of that was on us with the turnover that we had there. I was very disappointed in that, at a critical point in the game where we needed to get some momentum back, we didn't do it, but overall, huge win. I have a lot of respect for Iowa State’s coach [Matt] Campbell, his staff, and I knew they were not going to lay down. They're not going to quit, and they came back, made it a game. Credit to them for doing that and continuing to fight. Rocco Becht, what a fighter he is, he took one of the hardest hits I've seen. He's a warrior. Moving on to Central Florida, Coach [Scott] Frost, I have a lot of respect for him and what he's been able to do in his whole career, coaching-wise he does an incredible job. Central Florida is a team that we're very familiar with. When I was at Louisville, we played him a couple times, and obviously played them since we've been here. I think every time we've played them, it's always one of the faster teams you're going to play based off overall team speed. When you think about all three phases, you turn on the tape, those guys are rolling, and they play extremely hard, they play fast. They have a lot of talent, and they certainly have a team that can go out and win any game they play. Last week if they don’t get stopped on the one-yard line at Kansas, that game is probably going to overtime. We basically did the same thing against Kansas, had to score right there at the end. He has a very talented team, a team that, after you get a couple losses, your back’s against the wall, they'll come out fighting for sure. Then for us, I feel like each and every week's a new season in this conference, each week presents new challenges. Obviously the challenge is to come back and then have a great week of practice in preparation this week against a really talented UCF team.”
On staying focused after big wins
“When you start a season, the first two or three weeks, you're excited. Everybody's going to play hard, you're going to be focused. I think once you get into the middle of season, the meat of the season, however you're playing, you feel like you’re just showing back up. You're showing back up. It's human nature. But you get to this point, it's the teams that can show up each and every week, because if you don't show up in this league, you get beat. We've seen that, and it's about showing up on a Tuesday, like today for practice, and making this our very best practice we can possibly have, to have that mindset each and every day to bring it. You can't relax. As soon as you relax, somebody's getting better than you, somebody's going to beat you, so you need to continue to train with the chip on your shoulder, that you have something to prove. That's the challenge. I also think you go back and play here or play there, we're sitting here, going to the league. How are you going to come and show up? I just think about that. The last couple years, we've been on the other side of that. For us to be here at this point, we have to show up.”
On preparing for UCF’s starting quarterback
“Last year, they ended up starting a true freshman against us in that game. They've had some injuries at quarterback. They had some guys get banged up. It happened again this past week against Kansas. But the quarterback that came in, he actually started the first game of the year. He's a talented player. I think really, all three guys can run. All three can throw. They're dual threats, all three. So, as you're preparing for these guys, obviously you're going to prepare for their running backs, two guys, I think can really run, and then the quarterback run game as well, because they can run. You have to be able to make sure you got the guys where they need to be in order to stop the run. This is the team that can run the football. They've run on anybody, averaging maybe 112 yards in conference play. We know they can run. But I think as far as just preparing for the offense, you better know where you're stopping the run.”
On assistant coach Nic Cardwell and the offensive line
“Coach Cardwell is a very passionate coach. He doesn't do anything halfway. He's 100 miles an hour all the time. I think Gavin [Gerhardt] is maybe the best leader I've ever been around. Three-time captain, he’s been here six years. He committed out of high school his sophomore year, so he loves this place. Anytime you have your guy that loves the place, that is also one of your best players, who is one of your the best leaders. That's what you want. That's the recipe for success. So not only is Gavin the best leader on our team, but obviously with that offensive line, he makes them all better. We brought in a couple of transfers, and they slid right in. He's just led that group as the highest possible way to lead. I think Coach Cardwell has been in lockstep with him as well. In the same way, they take a lot of pride in everything that they do. We all know offensive linemen, they don't really get to touch the ball, they don't score touchdowns, they don't get the big-time accolades, but if the offense is having success, then they get to have reap some of those rewards. That's what's happening. Our offense has been really doing well, we're running the football, we're throwing it, we're scoring points. I'm glad to see that our offensive line is getting the recognition that they've gotten, because I do think they've been playing really well. They're playing physical. They take pride in not giving up any kind of, you know, pressures or tackles for loss.”
On the matchup with UCF’s defense
“It's a very talented defensive front that we're getting ready to play. These guys are long, some big defensive tackles. They're fast, they're twitchy. They create havoc in the backfield, and then their linebackers can run as well. It seems like they're always keeping six guys around that box right there, no matter what they're doing in the secondary. That makes it difficult for the offensive line. Obviously we have five guys, if they have six we have to figure out which five to block. Then when they're twitchy like that, it makes it more difficult, but obviously you want to establish the offensive and defensive lines. I think any time you can do that, you're going to give yourself a great chance of winning the game. We love to run the football, we all know that. I think Central Florida does as well. So to me, that's a big-time matchup, like who can get their establishment up front. We'll have a great opportunity to go win.”
On tight end Joe Royer
“We lean on Joe a lot. I feel like there are times where you want to give him a ball, and there are two guys on him, and you can't, so he doesn't get the targets that you mentioned. Then there are other times, I know the big touchdown that he had was in one-on-one. We got the ball to him, and he broke the tackle to score. That's what we expect out of Joe. If it is one-on-one for him to go win that matchup, he is a matchup nightmare, I think, for defense at 6-5, 255 pounds with soft hands. I think what we're seeing is that if they are doubling him you get some single coverage for some of the guys outside. Those guys have been winning, which is great to see. I think one of the things that makes our offense good is that we have a lot of different weapons. You think about Joe here, you think about the two running backs and those wideouts out there, plus Brendan [Sorsby], who can run as well and throw it. That's just a lot of pressure that's getting put on defenses. When Brendon's making good decisions that I think we are hard to stop.”
On the fans storming the field following the win vs. Iowa State
“Oh, man. I don't know how many I've been a part of, maybe a few, but it's good when you get in the field storm, because you beat somebody good and you won. It's very cool. It was great to see. We've been here, this is the third season, and we haven't had a whole lot to celebrate. I'm happy for our fans and our students to be able to celebrate that. I think as a student, you're going to school here, and you're participating in your school's games, and to be able to do that, that's the stuff you talk about with your friends, and later on, when you come back as an alumni, those are things that you remember, you talk about. It's great to create some great memories for our students and our fans. So hopefully we have more of those.”
On calling plays and seeing a hole in the defense to exploit
“Oh, absolutely. You love it. It's happened many times this year. I remember several. That's one of the great things about when we first started the communication device; people were talking about it. I don't feel like people talk about it this year much. That's a fun part of the device, and we're no huddle, so we're going fast, and so we can talk to Brendan [Sorsby] before he gets to 15 seconds. It's really cool when you can say, hey, it looks like they're in this, or this guy may be open. It’s a little bit of a clue. Or, I remember at Kansas, hey, looks like field pressures coming. You have a plan. Then those little cues, I think, really help him perform at a high level. It's so awesome to be able to have that, because before we'd be yelling out, here comes field pressure. It's hard to hear, but to be able to have that is awesome, and then you watch that ball in the air, and good, he ran under it, man, go get it, go get it, and he did. So, yeah, that's fun. As a coach, when you put a plan together and the guy's going to execute it, there's nothing better regardless there’s nothing better than that.”
Quarterback Brendan Sorsby
On his approach vs. Iowa State in the first half vs. the second half
“They brought their guys a little lower. Their box was a little bit more crowded, and their guys were playing the stakes a little bit better. They made some good adjustments, but at the end of the day, we still shot ourselves in the foot in the second half. The second half, the turnover and then the penalties. We just need to try to find a way to avoid those mistakes.”
On competition in the Big 12 Conference
“We've been saying it since the summer and before that, the Big 12 is a very competitive league. Anybody can beat anybody. We have to go out there, ready to go on Saturday, executing at a high level if we want to win this game. And UCF is a really good team. So we have to be ready to go.”
On communicating with head coach Scott Satterfield during games
“There's never really a ‘relax and let me play,’ but he never says too much. It's always little tips and things like that. He just lets me go out there and play. He's giving me the play call and letting me go do what I do. I appreciate the little tips that he does give, but it's never too much. Sometimes I wish I could talk back, but that's not an option. But I appreciate his communication.”
On UCF’s defensive line
“They have four good pass rushers, and they just let them go to work. We have to be on top of our execution. We have to have the run game going and the pass game going to slow those guys down. They're a really talented team, really athletic. We have to go out there ready to go.”
On his mindset this season
“I just continue to trust my guys. Nothing changed from the week of Nebraska. Preparation wise, I was prepared for Nebraska. It was just a tough defense that we faced. Week by week, we're trying to find ways to improve and get our play makers the ball. We've done a good job of that. We try to continue to attack each practice with the mindset of getting better and finding ways to improve. That's what we've done a really good job of these past four or five weeks, and we try to keep doing that, because this league is really competitive. If you don't come out there and you're not ready to go, you'll get beat.”
On UCF quarterback Tayven Jackson and his relationship with him as former teammates
“I talk to Tayven pretty regularly. I'm not sure if he's going to be good to go or not. I'm sure he's not going to give me that information, if he is in or out. I'm just checking on him, making sure that he's good. Coming from a previous teammate, I have a lot of respect for him. It's one of my good buddies. I’m wishing him a speedy recovery. I don't know if he's going to be able to go or not this week. They're definitely not pulling me in there to try to get the inside scoop.”
On if he wants to play against Tayven Jackson
“Yeah, for sure. He texted me earlier this week, ‘I hope I can make it back for us to be able to play against each other,’ but at the end of the day, regardless if he plays or not, I hope he's able to make the trip down, and we'll be able to see each other. I have a lot of respect for him. He's one of my really good buddies, so I'm excited.”
On the offensive line being three-time Big 12 Offensive line of the Week award winners
“You would rather them be able to protect you and be winning offensive line of the week than not. I love those guys up front. They take really good care of me. I have to continue to return the favor in some shape or form. Those guys are doing a really good job up front. Hats off to those guys in their preparation. They're a really talented group, and they're playing really well together right now, so we just have to find a way to keep it up.”
On his relationship with assistant coach Pete [Thomas] and experiencing the field rush with him
“They were one of the first teams to believe in me in the portal. Whenever I came here for my first visit, I knew it was the place I wanted to be because of the relationship that I had built with him, and it’s just grown since then. I’m really excited and happy to share that moment with him. He gets me ready each and every single week, and then just, listening to our staff in general. They deserve it, so we try to keep finding ways to win.”
