UNIVERSITY OF TULSA FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

September 25, 2021

Philip Montgomery

Press Conference

Tulsa - 41, Arkansas State - 34

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: First of all, I'm just -- we've been talking about it all week, talked about it a ton at the hotel this weekend preparing for this game.

We knew we had a tough opponent, knew they were talented. But, really, it was going to come down to us and the way we execute and the way we play.

I felt like we've taken some really positive steps in the weeks leading up to this one, but we needed to get over the hump.

And we talked about having to go and win, you know, the first four minutes of the second half and in that fourth quarter. And I think it really came down to that.

We got in the fourth quarter, some crazy things happened in the game. But our guys stayed positive, they stayed focus. And guys stepped up and made some big plays there in the fourth. And that's what we needed to do to get this win.

And I'm proud of our team. Obviously, we've got a tough opponent in the short week next week. But that being said, it's good to get that W in the column and understanding how we got to play and what we need to do to make that happen.

Q. That drive, the six and a half minute to end the game, I mean, that's kind of a weird way to end a game. But how important was it to run that clock?

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: I mean, that's what you want to do. You know, I mean, obviously, if you pop a big run and you score a touchdown, great. We'll take that.

But if you can just methodically run the clock, get the football, and stay ahead of the chains while you do it. That's what we wanted to do.

And credit to our offensive line and our running backs that did a nice job of that. Receivers blocking down the field, too. We had a lot of different people make big plays throughout the day.

But to be able to run the clock out like that in that fashion and then, you know, the deal there at the very end, just understanding -- yeah, I would love to punch that in. It's been a crazy year of football across the country, right?

And so you can take a knee on the ball and the game would be over. I love the touchdown, but I want the win more than a touchdown.

Q. You mentioned some weird things happened in the game. The two returns for -- the kickoff return and the punt return, how do you -- obviously, you have a group of good guys. But that can be a really big moment.

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Yeah.

Q. How do you keep things on track just like that?

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Well, let's be honest, if you give up two returns on special teams, 99 percent of the time you don't win the game.

So I give credit to our guys of staying focused and locked in and mature enough and strong enough to overcome that.

That being said, that crap can't happen. It should never happen. If you have one a year, okay, somebody got you. But to have two in one game, I mean, very disappointed in that part of it.

And we're going to have to really dive into it and make sure that -- you know, from every aspect of it we got to get better.

Q. How easy is that to sure up? I mean, I know with special teams, you know, there's a number of guys that you can turn to and get guys a different look. But, I mean, you got a short week and everything else because, you know, it has been two games. How do you sure that up and shoulder it over?

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: We're, obviously, a little beat up, right? And so we got to look at the personnel we got on the field. We got to look at schematically what we're doing. You have to dive deep into it.

And, you know, not saying you can overhaul it in one week, but you got to make big jumps. And we've got to make sure we sure that up.

Q. So did this kind of give us a glimpse of how complete this offense can be potentially? I mean, you know, this has been two games in a row where you probably feel really, really good about your offense and this is trending in a good direction.

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Yeah, I think we're trending in a positive direction. I think that guys really stepped up.

I think, you know, it was good to see our offensive line and our running backs do what they did tonight. And our tight ends. They're a huge part of that.

For us to get back and being able to run the football like that, that's a really positive thing. And then still be able to plug in and do some things that we've done the previous two weeks with our receivers and with Davis and those guys being on the same page.

And I think we can be explosive like that. I think we can do some really positive things offensively. It's good to get back to that feeling.

I mean, now, I still don't think we've reached the ceiling part of it, right? I think we still got more growth and more room. You know, hopefully we get Keylon back next week.

But, you know, we're going to rotate receivers in and do some things. Because guys have stepped up and made plays. And it was good to see them continue to do that tonight in some big situations.

And, you know, Sam's big one there early, what a huge momentum thing for us. And just to see him finish it on some explosive plays that ended up in touchdowns.

Q. Over 600 yards of total offense. You know, what does that tell you about kind of going off cadences and your offense trending in the right direction?

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Yeah, I didn't know we had that many. And to be honest, I -- I'm a little surprised by it. I mean, I thought we moved the ball well. We had some explosive plays.

You know, there for a little bit in the second half, you know, I thought we were being really efficient. I thought we -- back and forth with the run/pass, being a little more balanced from that standpoint.

But also, you know, just finding ways to stay in the field on third down and keeping -- you know, I hate to say it, because Locklin is such a great weapon for us. But if he doesn't touch the field, that's a really good thing.

So, you know, for us it's always about every time you touch a ball finding a way to get points, to get touchdowns.

Q. On Davis, what kind of growth did you see? I'm sure there were some points of emphasis.

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Yeah, you know, I think more than anything with Davis, the steps that he's taking right now, I mean, I think he's really seeing the field extremely well. I think he's progressing through his coverage reads.

He's taking good snapshots of what's happening and then delivering good strikes. You know, we'll do a good job of keeping him upright and him doing a good job getting it out on time and not sitting and holding and waiting.

But I think that guy is continuing to grow and get better. And I think our receivers and him are starting to really get a better connection between them.

Q. (Question concerning a third down throw.)

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Yeah, it was good to see. Because they're a tough third down defense. They give you a lot of different looks and coverages.

You know, when you start breaking them down, it's difficult to decipher and get a really good, true read on it.

So I thought our receivers and him did a nice job of understanding, you know, as things started to spin and move right at the snap of the ball, understanding where those gaps were going to be and finding a way into them.

I think we got a really good communication component right now. And the information that's coming in from the field from us to the sidelines, those guys being able to talk about what they see, who they're working against, what they like, I think all of that has been really good over the last several weeks.

Q. How do you approach penalties with your team when things are being not necessarily consistently called game to game or even throughout a game? Like, how do you -- you don't know how things are going to be called going into a game, so how do you approach that?

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: You know, for us, penalties are going to happen in a game, right? We just don't want the ones -- there's some aggressive penalties that happened. Because it's football, right? And there's some things that just occur.

We just cut out the ones that really come down to a discipline side of it, right? You know, lining up offsides, illegal motion, you know, things like that.

You know, some of those calls is, in my opinion, it's just aggressive football, right? And just because a guy falls down on the ground doesn't mean it's a penalty. He may have just gotten blocked.

So, I mean, we'll have to go back and look at it and see it all. I think one of the big things that -- and I'm going to make this statement. So I'm trying not to get myself in trouble.

We've been hit twice with the targeting deal. And I haven't seen Jackson's play. But, you know, the way targeting right now is called in our game, I -- the way we're coaching it and teaching it I think is right.

But every crew is different and how it's called. It's been a problem all year across college football.

So we got to figure out something. Because you got guys that are losing game time over a call that, you know, may or may not have been.

Q. Managed a half without Kendarin. Pretty tough circumstances.

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Yeah.

Q. You know, I mean, how tough is this going to be, though, without, you know, your best player, probably?

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: I mean, Jackson is such a vital important role to what we do defensively. And he brings a level of that tenaciousness to the field. You know, in my opinion, the guy is like a -- he's an All American player.

And so, you know, not having him on our defense for the first half, that's going to be critical. Not having him tonight to finish the game, that's critical. So that's just an area I think, in college football, we got to somehow clean up.

Q. How important was a win and then the conference play and just getting that monkey off your black?

PHILIP MONTGOMERY: Yeah, I think more than anything, seeing the guys after the game in the locker room, just understanding that, you know, we've put in a lot of work. And I think we're a good football team.

Now, we still got a lot of improving to do and correct some things. We got to do all of that. But you got to go out and you got to go make it happen, right?

And it was good to see our guys step up and make that happen tonight. You got to taste it, you got to feel it, and you got to see it. And when you do that, you understand what it takes to finish. And I thought our guys did a good job of that tonight.