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UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME MEDIA CONFERENCE

September 21, 2011

Michael Floyd

Q. Can you talk about Pittsburgh and what you've seen of them on film?
MICHAEL FLOYD: Great defense. From what I know, they have a great secondary, one of the young corners on the boundary side. But I mean, real experienced. He's a good player. Quick feet.
And then the other guy, he's been there, I think it's Antwuan (Reed) something, I can't even remember, but number No. 22 he's been there but always been to the field. So I haven't really experienced make against him, and the safeties always get him every single year we play them.

Q. When you think about the first three games the Irish moved the ball very well in the opening drive the last two games; anything particular the coaching staff does to prepare you so well for that opening drive, scripting plays, something like that?
MICHAEL FLOYD: You know, we just try to not make mistakes. I think that's the main thing that Coach harshes on, just making sure you get rolling and get that confidence that you know that you can move the ball down the field and we want our players and quarterback to be in the most comfortable start as possible.

Q. When you take on a guy like Robert Blanton, what makes him such a good defensive back? What have you noticed in practice?
MICHAEL FLOYD: He's tall and long. He gives you a lot of difficulty; he presses you. You have to know how to get off the line. You know, he gives us a lot of pressure and a lot of good technique that we can get help on.

Q. You mentioned Pitt's secondary a little bit. I think they are giving up -- they are 1/19th in the country and passing allowed per game; how do you evaluate that group? Where do you see opportunities? What are they maybe not doing as well as they would like to do at the back end?
MICHAEL FLOYD: Well, I kind of take it back to, you know, the high school days and coming here. When a team plays Notre Dame or when the teams played my high school, didn't really matter what the record was. Didn't really matter how they played. Somehow, some way, they played exceptional against us.
So you know, whatever they did against that team, you know, I have no -- there's no reason that I don't think they would do anything like that to us. I think they will play exceptionally well, and I don't think the mistakes will be there as it was, or if it was there.

Q. I was asking Brian Kelly about how you have improved from last year and he mentioned bursts and that you have gotten better. Some people look at quickness -- how did you improve in that area?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think the most thing what I did was cut some weight. I was kind of heavy. So just cutting down weight, I think it made me a little bit faster, a little bit stronger and made me feel more confident about myself.

Q. Where does that show up in your game the most, what part of your game improves the most because of that burst?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think the quickness off the ball and being able to get the long balls down the field.

Q. And as a motivating factor, I know you're not much into like stats and personal stuff. But to be considered the best receiver in the country, how much of a motivational point is that for you?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think about it all the time. It's early in the season and I think I can get better as the season goes on. I just have to make sure that I keep a level head and don't make mistakes and improve on the things I need to the most.

Q. I guess nationally, who do you like as a receiver when you're watching college football games or college highlights, who do you watch and like, wow, that's impressive to me?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I don't really learn from college football players. I kind of watch NFL most, those are the kind of guys who have made it to the highest level. But when I look at players from that level, I look at little guys, because I feel like you can get the most information from little guys, quick feet, just being able to get off the ball.

Q. So who do you like at the next level?
MICHAEL FLOYD: Steve Smith -- both Steve Smiths, one used to play for the New York Giants and Steve Smith from the Panthers.

Q. Another question about Robert Blanton, when you were making your decision to come back last year, I think you remember you saying that he was texting you a lot to push you into coming back; is that true?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think, you know, he's gotten better through the years, and me staying I think would just improve his game and every DB out there that I go against. I think it will just improve my game also.

Q. How has he changed since you first met him a couple of years ago?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think he's more aggressive. He still talks a lot on the field. I call him a two-split-personality guy, because he's a nice guy off the field, but he's a very aggressive guy and talks a lot on the field. But yeah, he's just a great player.

Q. He's told us that he's tried to tone that down a little bit, but he still can't quite hide it all the way, his ability to chirp a little bit on the field.
MICHAEL FLOYD: Yeah, I think he has cut it down a little bit, a little bit less than what he used to do.

Q. When you are going against opposing cornerbacks, can that ever get into a receiver's head, can a guy bother you by talking too much?
MICHAEL FLOYD: Unless he makes a great play, not too much. Usually I don't really get talkative guys, and I don't talk much myself. I just -- with my playing.

Q. Where do you think you guys stand in terms of turnovers? Obviously there was a couple early and then offensively, not any the rest of the way. And then the one special teams; where do you think you guys stand in that area in terms of progress?
MICHAEL FLOYD: We know that we have to cut that down and we know that turnovers lose games. Unfortunately that's what it kind of showed in the first two games, losing the ball can go to losing games.
So just making sure that we protect the ball and making sure we make a big emphasis on that, going forward and for next week, is big.

Q. Was there a point in the first quarter where you guys go, in your heads, here we go again, why are we committing these mistakes against ourselves?
MICHAEL FLOYD: No, I don't think so. I think you always feel, you don't want to have the mistakes come, but somehow, some way they do, some miscommunication on the field. But you have to make sure that you have to get back on the sideline, talk it out and make sure it doesn't happen again.

Q. And obviously you guys gain confidence by getting the victory over Michigan State. How critical is that to continue that momentum Saturday against Pittsburgh.
MICHAEL FLOYD: Well, I think it's very critical. We love the win, and we are not looking at it like we won a Super Bowl or anything like that. We just got to move forward and we've got to, you know, keep practicing hard.

Q. Could you just talk about the year-to-year improvement you've seen out of Cierre?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think Cierre has made a big improvement, and I think it helps our offense a lot just being able to have a passing game and a running game, and being able to do either one in any position of the field. So I think it helps us out tremendously.

Q. Pass blocking, is that one of the things that has really improved with him?
MICHAEL FLOYD: Yeah, I think so, after watching film from the pass games, having guys come from the side or from the outside of the line or inside, he's better at picking it up and giving Tommy a little bit of time to get the ball up.

Q. Just his ability to pick up yards, how much does that help your receiver core out?
MICHAEL FLOYD: That helps us out I think a great deal a lot. Just getting that second down and five, it gives us a little smaller kind of range of what plays we want to run. So just making -- just giving him the ball, and him getting five, six yards first down helps us out.

Q. Trying to put yourself in the shoes of a Pitt player, coming off the tough loss to Iowa, and now the whole conference; how do you block out distractions and go about your business?
MICHAEL FLOYD: Same as us. You can't look at the loss and be like -- you can't dwell on the loss. You have to move forward. There's still nine, ten games after the season that he can easily turn it around.

Q. Can you tack about T.J., are you impressed with what he's been able to do this year given the tumultuous off-season he had?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think he got a lot better, and I would say getting off the ball, and that's what all the season workouts, him getting stronger and getting the ability to go down the field and catch balls, because I think the defenses that we play, take a big emphasis on me going down the field. And just to have T.J. on the other side and be able to make big plays for us is great.

Q. What do you think is the next step for Tommy as a quarterback, having played with him for almost a year now what do you think is holding him back or what he's doing well that will lead him down the rest of the season?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I think just his confidence level, staying poised in the pocket. He's not scared to take hits. He knows what he's doing, and if he has something to say to you, or if you're not running a route or not getting that block, he'll tell you. He has that kind of swagger about him, you know, that not too many people have, but when he says something, you respect him.

Q. The turnovers, is he not really the guy you need to go up to and say, keep your head up, or he's already got it behind him; how does he respond to that usually?
MICHAEL FLOYD: I kind of see him as a guy that he's kind of like me, that, you know that you made the mistake and you don't need nobody harshing you down, and you know that he's going to get back out there and not make the same mistake again.

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