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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

August 29, 2018

Steve Addazio

Greensboro, North Carolina

STEVE ADDAZIO: We're excited to get started, I'm sure like everybody else. There's no greater time than the start of the college football season. We've all been working for a year to get to the point where we get ready to start and open the season, and here we are.

With any questions, I'm happy to answer them.

Q. To look at the talent, obviously, the rare talent, I should say, of AJ Dillon, what you can say about what he's meant to the team and going into the season, just what you're taking away from him at this point.
STEVE ADDAZIO: Well, I mean, just the obvious. He's a big, strong, powerful guy with great speed, and I think he's going to take his game to the next level. Last year he was a 1st- and 2nd-down player, now he's an every-down player, and I think that will enhance us on offense, with him obviously in the backfield and not knowing whether it's run-pass or him catching the ball in the perimeter right now is quite a weapon.

Q. And then as far as Anthony Brown at quarterback, just what you can say, he's gone through some adversity and fought to have the opportunities that he has. Just what you can say about him leading your offense, and I know a couple years ago you had to go through the whole depth chart of quarterbacks. How do you feel about Anthony going into the season?
STEVE ADDAZIO: I feel great about Anthony. He had a year under his belt of starting and learning how to take a team in a slow start with pressure and hang in there and grow like the rest of the team did and develop and gain confidence. He sustained an injury towards the end of the year but attacked it like a professional and came back from it. I think he has a great awareness and understanding of the whole offense. I think he's a leader, and he's in the best shape of his life, so I'm expecting him to have a great year.

Q. I'm wondering how you feel about the growing expectations for the way people think that you guys can play and perform this year.
STEVE ADDAZIO: Well, it sure beats the alternative. But it's nice to be in a position where people can recognize some of the growth in the program. Now, that being said, that doesn't make it a reality. That's up to us to make it a reality. What we like to say around here since the off-season last year is taking the next step. That's what we're into right now. How do we systematically take the next step? To say it or have a cute T-shirt about it is one thing, but the actual nuts and bolts of here were the issues that we had, here's how we're going to go about correcting those issues, here's the video to back up the fact that we addressed those issues and overcame those issues.

So I think our team is a very mature team. We have a bunch of sharp guys on the team. They get it. They've worked real, real hard to address those issues. We feel confident that we're going to have a better football team that's going to be capable of taking the next step. Right now what's in front of us, I talked to the team today post-practice, I have one expectation, and that's this: At the end of Saturday, that we were the most physical team on the field and that we come out of that game with a W. That's my expectation for game 1. That's what I want to see on our football team.

We're going to take that one week at a time, and we're going to grow because every year you have to have a growth to you, and everything isn't always exactly the way you want it to be, but at the end of the day, you continue to develop and grow and you watch yourself improve as a program, as a player, and as a team. So that's been our message.

Q. I want to talk about Taj Torres, one of our local kids here in Amherst. How have you seen him progress over the course of his four years with you guys?
STEVE ADDAZIO: I mean, Taj is a -- he's one of my favorite guys, okay. He has an unbelievable passion for football. He's very tough. He's got a great work ethic. And what I've seen from him is he's taken that and learned how to work on the details of his game, the technique details, the assignment details. He's become a student of the game. He always had a great passion and a great work ethic, but I think he's a much more detailed player right now, and I've watched that develop over the years. I'm real proud of Taj.

Q. And then obviously as a senior getting a chance to be listed as a starter on the depth chart you guys released earlier this week, what are your expectations for him this season?
STEVE ADDAZIO: I mean, expectations for him are like everybody else, to play at a very high level, improve week to week, and become dominant at his position and be a leader for our team. We have a tremendous senior class of which Taj is a part, and he brings a great presence and leadership to this football program, and I expect that to continue to grow.

Q. You're playing your season opener but your opponent is not. Has that been a plus for you to have that game film to prepare for them?
STEVE ADDAZIO: You know, I think it's got some pluses, and I think it's got some minuses. Having the film to watch, no doubt that's a plus. But a team having a one game up on you is a plus for them. No matter who you are, whatever, opening day always, for whatever reason, brings about some issues, and it's just -- I think no matter how much you try to simulate, it's hard to simulate opening day and getting in the groove of playing a game and the tempo and the intensity and all the little things that surround game: Fans, crowd, everything. I think getting your first one out of the way is definitely -- if you can stay healthy, I think that's an unbelievable benefit.

Now, having the tape to watch, sure, it helps you. It helps you confirm some ideas. But I think staying healthy and playing an opening game is by far an advantage, and I think that truthfully everybody should start at the same time.

Q. Hopefully this day doesn't come for a long time, but when you finally choose to hang up the whistle for the last time, in one sentence, what do you hope your legacy is as a coach and a person?
STEVE ADDAZIO: I think my legacy is simple: I hope the kids believed that I loved them and cared about them and had their best interest at heart, and I think people will say that I stood for character and integrity and had a passion and a love for the game.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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