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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MEDIA CONFERENCE

October 16, 2006

Mack Brown

COACH BROWN: First let me talk about the BCS. There have been some calls and questions about what we felt about being rated ninth in the BCS. Our first thought is that the undefeated teams, the Michigan, Southern Cal, you start looking at Ohio State, until some of those get knocked off, it doesn't matter for the rest of us. We'll be in a mix of one-loss teams if we're good enough and keep winning at the end.
You study the history of the BCS, the first one is usually very unimportant. The Nebraska game and the fact that we're trying to win the Big 12 Conference is much more important to us than whether we would be rated fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, or ninth. There's not a lot of difference in fourth and ninth right now. That's what happens when you start looking at the BCS.
I think last year at this time we were rated first and Southern Cal rated second, which was very unimportant, too, because we didn't think we deserved to be rated first. But the computers sometimes like you and sometimes do not. I can't even turn one on, so I sure can't get so I understand the computer.
BCS is very, very unimportant to us as we get ready to head to Lincoln.
Secondly, you start -- last week, there was a lot of talk about whether the Baylor game was a trap game or not. In looking back, it really was. You stick a game between Oklahoma, which is one of the top five winningest programs in the history of football, Nebraska, fourth in the history of college football, both of them really good. Baylor was much improved.
But it's harder to get your players' attention when you've beaten Baylor as badly as we've beaten them over the last few years. And the standard has changed at our place. I remember the year before we came, we lost to Baylor. Then the first year we were here, we scored to go up by three points with a minute left, and we kicked off to them, they fumbled, we got the ball, scored, won 30-20.
We were really, really excited about the big win over Baylor. Now we win by 32 and we leave with our heads down and Baylor is all pumped. It's just a different time for us.
I don't think people give Baylor enough credit for what they've done and the improvement that they've made, especially offensively. Those guys are going to score points against other people, and did last week.
With all of that said, at the same time, we didn't start well offensively. Give them credit on defense. They had high energy. I saw even on the TV copy where Guy Morris had said, "We have got to keep them from getting ahead of us the first seven and a half minutes. We've got to play well. We can't get behind in this game like we have in the past." And they played with that energy. They played really, really hard.
They don't line up in the "I' a lot. They did in the first play of the game to go deep. Over our head. Give them credit. A good call, good scheme. But then give our defense credit. A lot was said about our defense giving up too many points last night.
The defense really turned the game. They're the ones that came out and forced the short field, forced the turnover, had an interception for a touchdown. I think we stopped them five or six straight times there in the first quarter when things could have gotten out of hand until our offense got on track. Then offensively we just took over, started scoring about every time we had the ball.
So what we've got is we have a game where we played really, really hard, so we weren't flat. We weren't sure about that during the game. We didn't seem to spend a whole lot of emotion, which is important when you're playing football. So we won by 32 without spending a lot of emotion, which from a coach's standpoint is a good thing.
You wish we would have had more emotion. Since we didn't, and won easily. Then we forced a lot of turnovers. We won the turnover ratio 5-1. We're forcing more turnovers the last three weeks than we did the first four or five. That's a real positive thing in our business.
Our guys that are touching the ball are taking care of it. Our ball security has been very, very good. We won two of the three phases in the kicking game. We didn't return kickoffs like we wanted to. They hat trick one long kickoff return where I thought we relaxed because Hunter Lawrence kicked off so well. But it was four yards deep and they brought it out. We got a guy out of his lane. They ended up having a really, really good return.
We out-rushed them 162 to 27. When we've out-rushed the other team, we've won 76 and lost only once. When we've won the turnover ratio, we won 58 and lost only five. When we've won both explosives and turnovers, we're undefeated. When we've lost both, we haven't won a ballgame. Those things are obviously great predictors of success.
Ten explosive plays to their seven. Eight passes and two runs. Again, most of the teams that come in like Baylor are going to try to stop our running game and force us to throw, and Billy Pittman makes a couple of great plays. Limas Sweed, Jermichael Finley, one in the end zone. But our running game continues to hang in there and be tough.
The other thing that happened with the injuries to our defense, it really, really helps us to have to play some other guys, gain some depth, especially for the future. I thought Deon Beasley did a good job for the first time out on the field.
Somebody said they're going to pick on that freshman. They have good coaches. Senior receiver, senior quarterback, they know what they're doing in the passing game. I thought old Deon hung in good. He did tell me after the game, "This moves a little faster than high school." He's sure right there.
We didn't do all the things we wanted to on defense, but we did change the momentum. We did score on defense really with the kicking game twice, and then the kicking game forced a fumble short.
We made a lot of great plays. We forced five sacks. We held their rushing yards down to minus yardage really except for the one run, which we didn't tackle well. And at the same time, we gave up too many big plays that we would like to have back. Those are things that we can work on for this week.
We always enjoy -- I always enjoy personally going to Lincoln, because it was one of the programs as a young coach that I looked at and thought, This is the way you should run your program. I always felt Coach Osborne was one of the guys who did it right, with class. Nebraska fans were great. They came every week.
I used to think they came regardless, but they always won, so they didn't have to come on losing weekends. But Bill Callahan has done a great job. You get a guy that coached a team in the Super Bowl two or three years ago, it brings a lot of great experience to college football and some recruiting power with his ability to coach in the NFL and show guys what they can do there.
His runningback coach is Randy Jordan, who was one of our two tailbacks when we were at North Carolina. Very proud of Randy. He has a great family, superb, played really well for us. He got some academic awards leaving North Carolina.
It's another opportunity for the No. 3 winningest program in the country to play No. 4. It makes it fun for our kids. I forget, it's been four years since we've been up there. We asked yesterday. Only our five-year seniors have ever been to Lincoln. This will be a new experience and a fun experience.
I'll never forget the Nebraska fans giving Ricky Williams a standing ovation in '98 when we left the field and a chant of Heisman. That was one of the highlights of my time in sports, because I thought it was one of the classiest things I've ever seen and continues to be so.
I have great respect for the Nebraska fans, their coach, their players, that program. It will be a challenging week and a fun week.
You look at the two programs right now, we're averaging 42 points a game, they're averaging 37. We're converting 46% on third down offensively, they're converting 47%. We're stopping people, holding people to 47 yards rushing; they're holding people to 98.
We're giving up 13.7 points per game. They're giving up 13.4. We're stopping people 31% of the time on third downs with our defense. They're stopping people 30%. You start comparing numbers, this one looks like it could be one of the those fourth quarter games that both teams play well.
Questions.

Q. Is that environment -- Nebraska, talk about the environment. Is it as intimidating as it once because?
COACH BROWN: It's intimidating, but classy and fun. Their fans understand football. They appreciate kids and coaches coming in there. They like their games. Even as you're walking out on the field, they just have small ropes that are between the dressing room and the field. Their fans applaud you as you're walking in and coming back out at halftime, after the game.
I've seen our fans in the north end zone starting to applaud the other team after the game. It's just such a classy thing. In a lot of environments now on the road in sports, you really worry about being hassled and things being thrown at you. We have never been treated any better than the way we were treated at Nebraska.
In fact, Coach Royal was with us on one of those trips. When he got back, he said, "I wish everybody's fans could be like the Nebraska fans, because they really handle it right. They want to win. They get angry if they're not playing well, I'm sure." I mean, we're not perfect here as we look at it. But I think their fans are a great example of what everybody should be across the country.
But still you can't hear. It is intimidating. But they've done it in a classy way, which is very unique.

Q. For your program, how big was that '98 win?
COACH BROWN: Probably the fact that we won coming in after a 4-7 season on the road against such a great program was really, really important.
The rides don't matter. Always worried about getting dropped with my bad news. They threw Gatorade on me two weeks ago, Todd had to give me a towel. I had sticky in my hair for a while. At some age, you like the fact they're excited, want to do those things. You'd just as soon they not do them.
The fact: Nebraska is Nebraska. Maybe for me growing up liking Coach Osborne, I really went to Iowa State because I wanted to coach against Oklahoma and Nebraska and see what those programs were really like as a young coach. Coach Osborne is one of the guys that we really patterned ourself and the program after when we got to North Carolina. We were running the option. We were doing a lot of things they were doing.
So for me personally, to be in the Big 8 twice, then to go back and coach in that environment, have a chance to win as a head coach, was really satisfying.
For our program, we'd had some really great games. We had some great years. We had not been consistent. So it at least got us some national attention where people thought, Maybe we should look at this place again.

Q. The difference between Nebraska and Baylor, they throw it a lot, different way with the West Coast.
COACH BROWN: The first difference is Nebraska is really balanced. They haven't gotten enough credit for rushing for more than 200 yards a game. We're rushing for 187. I think they're 207 or something.
When you play Nebraska right now, you have to go back to the old days and stop the run. If you don't stop the run, Bill will keep running it. They're averaging about 33 minutes in time of possession. There's not much difference in their turnover ratio and ours. I think ours is plus ten, theirs is plus seven.
You're talking about running game first. Then because they're running the ball so well, they're able to play-action. Zach Taylor has been so accurate that he and Colt are two of the more accurate quarterbacks in the country. Throwing touchdown passes, completions. That's why they're in the 40s in third down conversion. But he's not throwing interceptions, not losing the ball, not getting sacked very often.
I really believe there will be a lot of prospects in this game. Again, you look at the list across the country, a lot of guys on their list. I just think Nebraska's back to what they used to be. They're throwing the ball really well, but their running game and the fact that they're being so physical, like Oklahoma was, are things that are opening up the play-action on their west coast offense.

Q. Is it a good thing or bad thing that in December these two teams will be meeting again?
COACH BROWN: Well, it's a good thing for us. I'm sure if you ask them, it would be the same thing. It's one of the things that you do not like about conference championship games, or I don't like, because the three times that we've played in the conference championship, it's been a repeat. I just don't like it.
I think -- I really wish we'd do away with them or change the format, or at least make everybody else do it. I think if you ask these two teams this weekend, I guess we're the only two undefeated teams right now in the league.
If you ask these teams this weekend, I'm sure both of them would agree to go ahead and meet right now. We got some other things on the way before we get to that point.

Q. The running game, does that play into your hands?
COACH BROWN: It does. At the same time with all of our injuries in the secondary, we've given up more big plays off play-action than we would like. We've got to continue to get better and do a good job of stopping the run each week. We did it against Oklahoma, which was a great opponent. Iowa State didn't run it very much against us. Ohio State didn't run it very much against us. It will be interesting to see if the Nebraska game plan as we start the first part of the game.

Q. You talk about the offensive numbers, defensive numbers. You saw a lot of those Nebraska defenses back in the day. How does this one compare?
COACH BROWN: They're really good. Both ends are big, strong prospects. The nose tackle is the same. It's why they're doing such a good job against the run. Plus they've got a pro style defense. They're doing an outstanding job of disguising. They're moving around a lot. They're blitzing in the 38 to 40%. They're taking a lot of chances.
When you get in an environment like that that's so loud and they are changing up so much and doing such a good job of disguising with an older defense, then it also puts your quarterback in a tough spot. Colt will have to do a good job and we'll have to have a good plan for him this weekend. That probably means it's a little bit more simple than some others just because you don't want to go in where you're checking all the time.

Q. You've had a lot of success against Nebraska, particularly up there in Lincoln. What do you attribute that to?
COACH BROWN: We've been successful on the road against just about everybody. For whatever reason our guys really enjoy playing on the road. The bigger the environment, the better. Our problems have been in Dallas. Just about every other place on the road, we've enjoyed it and had fun.
But this is back to a different thing because this is a really good Nebraska team again.

Q. (No microphone.)
COACH BROWN: This one is getting back to that. Watching them last night and this morning, it sounds funny for a coach, when they walk out on the field, they dress out nice. They're big, good-looking guys that can run. It's the way it used to be up there now. They're getting that pride back of the black shirt defense.
Transitions are tough. We forget Frank won 10 games his last year there. That was 10 years ago. When Frank left, Bill came in, and things are different. They changed offenses. At the end of last year, the fact that they won at the end against Colorado and then beat Michigan was a huge sign to all of us that we better look out, that Nebraska's back. They've continued this way.
The only loss being on the road to Southern Cal. You go back and study that game. They were in the game and had chances to win.
I think Nebraska is a force now to be reckoned with again in the north. People will talk about either Nebraska or Missouri obviously in the championship game. But this bunch is really good. We'll have to play the best we've played this year to win.

Q. Zach Taylor.
COACH BROWN: Really, really smart. Good, accurate. When you look at a guy that's taking care of the ball, he's throwing touchdowns and not throwing interceptions. That's what you're looking for in college football, 'cause all we talk about are explosive plays and turnovers. That's what the game has gotten down to. He's making his explosives. He's not taking sacks. He's throwing the ball away, but he's also really, really protecting the ball. He's thrown very few interceptions. They've thrown a lot. It's a credit to him.
I thought he was getting that way last year. We didn't play them, but just watching him on some films of teams we were playing against, it's a real credit to him. I think Bill Callahan is one of the great offensive coaches around, too. Bill has done a great job.

Q. (Question regarding Miami - Florida International.)
COACH BROWN: I remember Don at Virginia Tech, Larry is a good friend. Sometimes you get out on the field, kids just get frustrated. It's interesting in college football when you're coaching kids that get all pumped up for a game. Those two schools are right together. They probably all knew each other. Then all of a sudden something happens and it just triggers something. It just gets out of hand.
I really hate it for Larry, Don. I hate it for college football. I hate it for those kids. Those kids got into Miami, Florida International. They're sitting there. All of a sudden now, if that was a fight that happened 25 years ago, everybody would have broken it up and sent them to the corners. Now it's on TV. Every play, every step. It wasn't good.
Some of those kids are going to hate that for the rest of their lives. That doesn't go away. That's what I hate for them, too. You could be a really good kid that lost your composure and got frustrated and got out of hand and made a mistake. I just hope it doesn't cost them for long.
Thank you.

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