	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

October 6, 2015

Tracy Claeys

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Q. Do you have respect for their offensive coordinator and the way he puts together a game plan and some of his surprises he can bring?
COACH CLAEYS: Last year they did some things to us. He did a nice job. And so just they're a no huddle team that does an awful lot of formations out of a bunch of different personnel. It's a challenge to get lined up upright and make the call from -- most of the formations are unconventional. There's some way they're imbalanced in some ways.

So you don't know where the eligible receivers are. You've got to pay attention to who's on the line, who's off the line, and the motion adjustments you make. It's a challenge to get ready for in a week.

Q. How about the new running back they have, that Markel Jones? What makes him good?
COACH CLAEYS: Both backs have done a nice job for him. They've played well in pass protection. I wouldn't say they're quite as fast as the kids last year, but they're quick. They're awfully good backs. They've done a good job so far for them.

Q. Talk about the offensive line last year. It was one of the tougher ones.
COACH CLAEYS: They get off the ball. They're very aggressive up front in the offensive line. So a lot of people are more position blockers anymore up front on the offensive line. But their line gets off the ball, and they try to get after you. So they do a good job, like I say, with their schemes, with the unbalanced formations, and it will be a little bit different running game than what we've seen.

Q. Still playing well on that side of the ball. I'm just wondering like how to get back more and get more out of them moving forward?
COACH CLAEYS: We still got to play better on third down. I think we can get off the field a little bit more if we play better on third down. That will be our emphasis this week. We're giving up too many third downs right now. You give up two or three extra ones a game, and that leads to about 12 to 15 plays extra that we're having to play, and that's time it takes away from the offense.

We've got to keep going and plug the next body in, but we've got to get -- we've got to play a little better on third down to be where we want to be.

Q. Tracy, how do you set with guys that have been injured? How is that looking?
COACH CLAEYS: We don't have anybody back yet, I know that, and Craig got hurt. So we're down one more in the secondary. It is what it is.

Q. Think you're going into the game that way?
COACH CLAEYS: As of today, that's the kids that are practicing. That's what I was told today. That's how it is. It makes substitution packages a little bit harder. We've just got to do a little bit more out of our base package and play more linebackers. Like I said, it is what it is.

Q. Will Cody be all right?
COACH CLAEYS: I think he's practicing today. I don't -- again, that's above my pay grade, you know what I'm saying? I think Cody's fine. He played, and I know he's practicing.

Q. We asked you about turnovers last week. It's been three games. You can't control that, I know, but is there any -- if the offense is soul searching, is that anything on your side?
COACH CLAEYS: There's three fumbles. We didn't get any of them. So jump on the ball, you know what I'm saying? It is what it is.

Q. What about some of the other impact plays, like tackles for a loss and sacks? Obviously, you guys are playing good overall defense, but need some of those impact plays on longer -- third and longs, for instance?
COACH CLAEYS: Sure. I'd take as many of those as I can get. It is what it is, you know what I'm saying? Somebody throws the ball quick, runs the ball, do those types of things -- those types of offenses don't get many negative yardage plays. So, yeah, we're trying. We're just not getting them right now. Got to get a little momentum.

At the same time, you can't turn around and do things that are unsound and start giving up big plays. We're not giving up big plays. We're keeping the ball in front of us. We got to play a little bit better on third down. I think all of those that you mentioned.

Q. [Indiscernible], how do you feel about those two guys and how they've performed this year?
COACH CLAEYS: Good. They've been very solid. The D-line with what we've faced, we haven't gotten -- here recently, we haven't gotten a lot of people in situations where they're playing catch-up ball. So it's defending a lot of the run and having to do some things and do that. So you're not going to have as many negative plays. You look at a lot of negative plays and things like that and forcing people to throw the ball more. Those things usually happen more when teams are trying to catch up. We're just in close ball games right now all the way.

There's nobody that I'm disappointed with and thinking, hey, they've been bad. As a team on third down, we could play a little bit better. Third and longs would help us more than the third and mediums were in right now, a lot of them.

Q. Talk about the third quarter, where they had the ball for 11-plus minutes, and there was 11-plus minutes in that third quarter. And then that drive that you guys gave up a couple big chunks of yardage, and then Coach called the time-out. How did you feel like -- were the guys gassed or --
COACH CLAEYS: I don't think they were gassed. I think they were feeling sorry for themselves a little bit. When you're down 20 or 27 at that time in the fourth quarter, we just had to call a time-out and remind them that we don't play that way. You have to forget the scoreboard and play one down at a time one series at a time. We had a little thing in there feeling sorry for ourselves a little bit, the situation that we're in. It's a tough, frustrating deal there. But they snapped back, and we played okay after that.

Q. Cockran was pretty visible on Saturday in the second half. One of his better games? How's he been playing?
COACH CLAEYS: Again, he's played pretty solid overall. Got a couple hits on the quarterback. Made a few plays. Again, that's how they blocked it and how some of the calls was made. TC's done a good job of making the plays that he's had the opportunity to make. He's been banged up a little bit. He's feeling better. Not everybody is banged up a little bit. He's getting over bumps and bruises, and he's feeling better. He's playing quicker than he was for the last couple of games.

Q. Is he your best pass rusher?
COACH CLAEYS: I don't know. Hank does a pretty good job at times. Alex Keith's done a nice job with pass rushing. They're all capable. They're all capable.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297