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SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE MEDIA CONFERENCEDecember 1, 2008Antoine CaldwellCHUCK DUNLAP: Would you mind just giving us your thoughts on playing Florida in the championship game? ANTOINE CALDWELL: I think it's going to be a huge game. Everybody around here is excited. You know, we haven't played for this in a long time. We're just going to approach it like we do every other week. Florida is a great football team; everybody knows that. They've done a lot of good things to get to where they're at now, and it's going to be a good game. Q. You played really well in the first quarter and Florida has been the same way. With that in mind, how important do you think it's going to be for somebody to get off to a fast start Saturday? ANTOINE CALDWELL: It's going to be huge. It's going to be huge to start fast. That's the way we approach every game. The fast starts are always crucial and it will be no different in this game Saturday; we'll definitely have to start fast and start early. Q. What do you think has made you such a fast starting team? Why have you played so well in the first quarter this year? ANTOINE CALDWELL: I just think that we've been up for the games. We've been really prepared for them, specifically my offensive line coach does a great job with us preparing us during the week for what we're going to see. I think when we get out there on the field, it's kind of like practice. We've just been really prepared. That's what's enabled us to start fast. Q. I'm just wondering how many times maybe you've had a chance to match up with Terrence Cody and how tough of a job that is. ANTOINE CALDWELL: I match up with him every day in practice. We do one-on-one drills together, we do team drills together, because we do a lot of good on good. It's good work for both of us. Of course, he's not just a good defensive lineman, he's a great defensive lineman. We kind of help each other out, and he's definitely helped me out to get better and feel stronger in the games this year, and I'm sure I've done the same for him. Q. How tough is it to even get him moving backwards or sideways just an inch? ANTOINE CALDWELL: Man, it's tough. When a guy is that big and that athletic, of course it's going to be a tough job. I mean, that's what he's here for. He does a great job for us, and he's been doing a good job for us all year. Q. You guys have been No. 1 for several weeks now. You're undefeated. But as you come into this game or over the past few weeks, Florida has been the team that's been getting a lot of hype, Florida and the Big 12 teams. You guys have almost been coming in under the radar. Florida is a ten-point favorite in this game. How do you guys feel about kind of having this underdog role? ANTOINE CALDWELL: It doesn't bother us. Like I said, we don't worry about the spread and all that kind of stuff. We're here to prepare the best we can this week and to go down there and play our best football. We'll be ready to play, and I'm sure Florida will be, too. Q. Are you almost relishing this opportunity to kind of show the nation what you guys are all about? Is this like a big stage for you guys? ANTOINE CALDWELL: It definitely is. We've kind of been on that stage all year, though. The start of the season was on a big stage in Atlanta, and it will be no different in this game. It's going to be a huge game and everybody is going to be watching, but we're going to be ready to play. Q. I was wondering back when Coach Sabin was first hired if you remember any moment or moments where you kind of realized that, wow, this guy is going to do things different here? ANTOINE CALDWELL: Probably in his first meeting, his first introduction. I just noticed that a lot of guys -- he demanded respect and a lot of guys kind of sat up in their chairs when he walked in. That's what he brings with himself. He's a proven winner. His résumé, where he's been, speaks for itself. He demands a lot out of us, and I think that's a big part of why we're at where we are right now. Q. Do you feel like he sort of gets colored the wrong way in the national media? ANTOINE CALDWELL: I do sometimes, but like you said, he'll tell you sometimes he's responsible for that. That's just how he is. He's not willing to change, and he's been successful everywhere he's been. That's the media's job, to portray him any way they want to. Coach does what he does, and we're just following behind him. Q. Both Coach Meyer and Coach Sabin talked about how it was easier in their second years to kind of get everything rolling, that that first year we're trying to get guys into it; some of them aren't going to buy into it. Can you discuss a little bit of the transition from a player's perspective and how that played out with Coach Sabin from his first year to his second? ANTOINE CALDWELL: The first year was a lot of ups and downs, everything was so fast-paced, and a lot of us had kind of the deer-in-the-headlights look around here. We didn't know really what to do and what to expect. In the second year it started immediately in the off-season. Everybody knew what he expected, what he demanded of us, and it's a lot easier when you know for sure what a coach wants and what he needs you to do. That's what guys did in the second year; we made a smooth transition. A lot of guys got on board and everybody on this team has bought in since day one, and I think that's a big reason why we've been so successful this year. Q. What impresses you most about Florida's defense? ANTOINE CALDWELL: Their speed. They're incredibly fast. A lot of those guys have played a lot of games together so the chemistry sticks out. They do a good job of being disciplined, and they've played a lot. It's just going to be another big challenge for us to make sure we stay on the same page and we can get it done. Q. Of course Florida has beat everybody this year by 23 or more points except for Ole Miss, the one close game they've lost. You have had a couple of close games where you may not have played your best but you found a way to win. Do you think that would benefit you guys if the score was 24-24 going into the fourth quarter? ANTOINE CALDWELL: You never know. Each game has an identity of its own, but it does benefit us that we've had close games in the season with Ole Miss, Kentucky, and the LSU game, and finding a way to win definitely does something for your character on a football team, and it kind of helps you out going down the stretch. If it were to be like that again Saturday, we're just hopeful that we'll keep doing what we're doing and keeping the pedal down, and it'll work out. Q. Tim Tebow gets a lot of the hype. Can you talk a little bit about your own quarterback and his skill level? ANTOINE CALDWELL: I mean, John Parker is amazing. Like I said, I know Tebow gets a lot of hype, which is well deserved. He's a good football player. But we have a lot of confidence in -- the utmost confidence in the quarterback that we have. He does a great job for us this year, and he plays with an edge. That's what we love about him. He's done a great job this year of managing the football games, going out there and making the throws when we need him to and not making any costly mistakes, and that's John Parker's game. He's stepped up this year and been a great leader for us, a leader that we knew he could be, and that's why we've been so successful. Q. Can you talk about how it's been different for him this year and last year? He hasn't thrown nearly as many passes this season as he did last. ANTOINE CALDWELL: It probably starts with us up front. We've done a great job of running the football, and he hasn't really had to make any spectacular throws or had to come from behind as much. That makes it easier on the quarterback, and that's why he's gone out there this year and done a great job for us. I think it's because we've done a better job up front. Q. Everybody makes so much about Florida's speed, but what about Alabama's team speed? Should people not sleep on that? ANTOINE CALDWELL: Well, you know, you can't really tell people what to say or what to think, but we are confident in our speed on our football team. Florida gets talked about a lot, which they should; they do have incredible speed on their team and they're fast. But we're definitely confident in the speed that we've got on this football team and we've got players that can make plays just like Florida does. It's going to be a exciting. It's going to be a big challenge for us, but that's why you play games like this, for the challenge, and we'll be ready for it. Q. Do you think you guys have enough speed to contain those edges when guys like that get in open space? ANTOINE CALDWELL: We're going to do our best this week to prepare for that speed and try to contain it as much as we can. I'm sure Coach will have a great game plan for them, and we know when he dials it up, those guys will be ready to go, and this whole team will be ready to go. CHUCK DUNLAP: Thank you for your time. End of FastScripts |
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