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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

November 15, 2017

Steve Addazio

Greensboro, North Carolina

COACH ADDAZIO: We have a great contest here in Fenway which a great venue right down the street here. We're playing the University of Connecticut. Randy Edsall has done an unbelievable job there in the past, and you can tell, building that program much like he did before with toughness. Really well coached. Really well disciplined.

They have got good players on offense. They have got a new quarterback who is very athletic, two strong running backs, receivers are catching the ball well on defense. They have got a really fantastic nose guard, linebacker, Junior Joseph, and defensive end Cole Ormsby. They have got talent. They are getting better each week. They are playing their best football right now.

It's a geographical game. There will be a lot of people from the northeast there and it will be a great atmosphere. We're excited to get back to play and looking forward to getting back on the field Saturday night.

Any questions?

Q. Randy Edsall said this is a game he would like to play every year, and as far as northeast football and the respect he has for you as a coach, how would you respond to this matchup?
COACH ADDAZIO: I feel like when you're out of conference and you can play a regional, a local, regional game like that, I think it's good for college football. I think it's good for the northeast. I think it's good for everybody. You're not talking about a big budgetary dealing having to travel a long way and all that other kind of stuff.

I'm a Connecticut guy and very proud Connecticut guy and I love seeing the University of Connecticut playing Division I football. It was something I always hoped would happen. I think it's great.

Q. What can you say about how the team has performed the last couple seasons and how you're in control of your own destiny right now once again?
COACH ADDAZIO: If we win Saturday, it will be four out of five years we'll be Bowl eligible. That's been why we've really developed this football program. I think this year, you know, I think we've played really well this year. We have the second-ranked most difficult schedule in the country and with that, we've lost nine starters. You know, now, including our quarterback.

So to overcome all of that with the second toughest schedule, playing in the toughest conference on a very tough side, I think if we can win Saturday and get Bowl eligibility again, realizing how many great young players right now, freshmen players that are elite players; I think the future is very, very bright.

So our focus and attention right now is finding a way Saturday night in Fenway Park to go win a football game and overcome everything and play at a high level and win. That's what's on our mind.

Q. When can you say about having the adversity at quarterback? You've had success at the position, but just what you can say about moving forward and weathering the adversity.
COACH ADDAZIO: Well, I think everybody else has to pick up. You pick it up a little bit. You rally together. You bond together. We've got a lot of good reps in here. Darius Wade, he's got a lot of good reps and all together as a program, you go out and you win a football game. That's what it is.

Everybody across the country has faced difficulties and you can't waste one second worrying about that. You've got to put all your energy into I didn't remember plan to win. You know, some years are going to be faced with more -- there's all difficulties. Just depends on how they come.

You've got to deal with it. How you deal with it will speak to the integrity and the toughness of your program. We're going to be just fine and we'll put a good game plan together and play at a high level. We've got good players.

Q. As a quick follow-up to that, you guys were rolling on offense and found good chemistry with the young players. How difficult was it to see Anthony go down last week?
COACH ADDAZIO: You know what, it was -- I felt just devastated for Anthony. I love the kid. He's got something special about it him. He's going to be a special player in the conference.

Sure, it was exciting. We had good rhythm even last Saturday, he was in there until the beginning of the second quarter. We had great confident and great rhythm.

Now we'll be a different team, but we'll still be a good team. What teams do like families do, they rally together and they bring the best out of each other and they pick it up. That's what we're going to do here. You know, that's another mark of a good football team.

So what I really believe is that -- and this is not being said to be complaining. This is said that we've lost so many guys this year, that so many other guys that had to step up and play; that this is going to make us such a strong football program, because we have talent and ability, and everybody will be back.

And these experiences are going to build us from the inside out, even better. And I believe that, and feel great about that. I loved our practice today. I loved the way our kids approached it. They are pretty resilient. They have taken a lot of shots right now from a lot of different injuries and keep coming out and making this the best part of their day.

So if you can't get excited to coach that group of guys and you can't get excited about all that, then shame on you. We had a great day and we're looking forward to playing a great game.

Q. Talk about playing in Fenway Park. What are the obstacles for playing in that stadium? That used to be the host for the Patriots back in the 60s. Is there anything you have to work on because of that environment because it's like a baseball stadium now?
COACH ADDAZIO: I think the biggest thing is both teams are on the same sideline. So your team box, so to speak, is not the same.

So when the team -- when your team is away from you, it's a much further distance to travel. So substitutions become more complicated and more difficult. You have to pay attention to that.

I think that's the biggest factor here in this game. The venue's great, the energy, the specialness of it is great. But the functionality of that is a challenge, and you've got to practice it.

Q. Talking about Randy Edsall. He had problems at Maryland because the State of Maryland can't recruit a lot of players, but when he was at Connecticut he built the program from the bottom up. What type of coach is Randy Edsall?
COACH ADDAZIO: I think Randy is a fantastic coach. I've played Randy when he was at UCONN. I played Randy when he was at Maryland. And every place he's been, I feel like he's really built a good football program.

He's a really good evaluator in recruiting. On the field his teams are very fundamentally sound. They are disciplined. I think he's excellent. Having sat in head coaches' meetings with him, I think he's a real bright guy that always has great insights. And so, I have a lot, a lot of respect for Randy and what he's done and what he'll continue to do.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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