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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEDIA CONFERENCE

November 2, 2011

David Cutcliffe

MIKE FINN: We now welcome Duke head football coach David Cutcliffe. We'll bring on coach, ask for a brief opening statement, then go to questions.
COACH CUTCLIFFE: Well, interesting to hear what you're talking about with Matt Daniels. He continues to play like an All-American. He really has been a special player on the field for us as a four-year player and a great leader off the field, a great young man. We're going to need everybody else to step up and play as well as Matt plays on both sides of the ball and in the kicking game to match Miami's great size and speed.
We're heavily outweighed in this ballgame in the lines of scrimmage. Also in that regard they're a very difficult team to match up speed-wise. So a big challenge for us this week in Miami.
MIKE FINN: Questions for Coach Cutcliffe.

Q. You have been so painfully close in so many games. How is everybody handling it? What do you need to do to get over the hump?
COACH CUTCLIFFE: Those are two good questions. I'll address the first one first.
We're handling it fine. You could use the word 'frustration' and you could use the word 'anger'. I thought we had a lot of that in the locker room and around here on Sunday. Those are okay. Those can be turned into positive emotion.
Discouraged we're not. We're not going to be. We have nothing to be discouraged about. We're playing well.
To get over the hump, I have simply told our squad, our coaches, everybody here, I think it starts with each individual, finding the thing in you that can make you better. That's the fastest way to make a team better. The quality of the team is the collection of the quality and the habits of the people that are the part of the team.
That is our challenge, to try to take that to another level.

Q. I know losses can keep you awake at night. How difficult has it been for you to turn the page quickly as an example for them?
COACH CUTCLIFFE: I mean, sometimes it's tough. Everybody realizes that and knows that. I have my private moments like anybody would. I've never gone through anything like this in my career. I've been relatively spoiled.
I get over here really early Sunday. I kind of dive into the tape. Before I go to church, I get a little look at the opponent. Then I find sometimes some way, somehow, I'm going to find some peace in that morning. By Sunday afternoon, I'm generally ready to go once I see the squad. I have my mind set on what we have to do.
Somewhere along the way I have good people and the good Lord lifting me up, I think.

Q. Coach, you have a bunch of guys from Florida, including your two wide receivers from Miami. You've won once down there already. How important is this game playing well down there to increase your visibility in a prime recruiting area?
COACH CUTCLIFFE: Well, it's one of the reasons we chose Florida International to play, is that we think going down there every other year to play Miami, which is going to happen, increased awareness with the FIU game has helped us.
Our starting center, Thad Lewis prior to this team, then Donovan and Connor, two of our more high-profile players are all from Miami. We certainly have some Broward County youngsters, some Orlando youngsters.
So I think it's important for us. I think our players realize that. But that's not at the forefront of their minds. I think the Florida kids get excited just because there's people from home there.

Q. Are you following the same pattern, same hotel? I know it's a different stadium that you played in last month when you won down there.
COACH CUTCLIFFE: Yes, we've made that decision a good while back. Actually the motel we're staying in is closer to Sun Life than it is to FIU. I do like the familiarity. We've done that when we do Navy and Maryland. It works out well.

Q. In his first couple years, Jacory Harris was very talented but very erratic as a quarterback. This year he seems to have matured, is not making the mistakes he sometimes made. Is that what you see? Is that just a function of experience?
COACH CUTCLIFFE: Well, yes, it's what you see without question. To some degree experience, yes. Obviously he's got a new set of coaches in there. I think his weapons are balanced better. I think he had people he was going to throw it to regardless. If you look at their top three wide receivers, very similar numbers. He's using the field. It's harder to predict what he's doing with the ball.
I think he's a heck of a player. I think he's a very, very talented player. He showed that his true freshman year. He was one of the bigger factors in the game, which was a very close game through three quarters, then he kind of took the game over. So I have great respect for him.

Q. Holding (indiscernible) to 14 points, does that give you encouragement going into the Miami game?
COACH CUTCLIFFE: I don't know. Miami has a whole new set of problems for us. We're playing better. That's encouraging. We played a heck of a half against Wake Forest defensively, gave up one first down the second half of that ballgame. Continued to play somewhat better against Virginia Tech.
The trend better continue. We better get better is what I'm saying. We don't have a chance if we stay the same against this Miami team. Very, very difficult to defend because of the number of weapons they have.
Hopefully we will answer the bell and continue to get better.
MIKE FINN: Coach, thanks for being with us. Good luck this weekend. We'll talk to you next Wednesday.
COACH CUTCLIFFE: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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