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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEDIA CONFERENCE

November 9, 2011

Mike London

MIKE FINN: We now welcome Virginia head coach Mike London. We'll ask for a brief opening statement and then go to questions.
COACH LONDON: It's another great opportunity for this program to have a home game, another conference game with a conference opponent. Acknowledge the fact of being bowl eligible. But by no means is the season far from being over, being satisfied with having six wins. Still our team is progressing and hopefully getting better by two back-to-back road wins. Now this is probably one of the most important games that we have as far as our season is concerned because it can dictate a lot of other things.
Players are excited about the opportunity to be back at home and playing a Duke team that has a very dangerous offensive passing attack, but nonetheless looking forward to the challenge.
MIKE FINN: Questions for Coach London.

Q. I know in the last three Duke has won all three. You've only been a part of one of those. What are they doing that's making it difficult there for Virginia? Specifically last year, what did you learn from that that will make you better this time around?
COACH LONDON: Only speaking in regards to my participation last year, there were some things that I don't know as much as what they did as what we didn't do, what we allowed to happen with missed coverage calls, with mental errors, mistakes, that cause you to lose games.
You talk about blaming it on the transition from 3-4 to 4-3, our safeties playing linebackers, the linebacker reads, all those things like that.
In reality, they out-executed us knowing their offense better than us being able to play our defense. I think hopefully now we're at a point defensively where we're playing much better, much of a sense of assignments, less mental errors, players making more of a difference on big plays, tackle for losses, things like that.
They've had that system for a while. It's something to say. But when you've had a system that's been consistent as what you do, you make it productive for yourself. So as they had that going before we played them, hopefully now that we've had our system in place for two years here, I'm talking offensively and defensively, the continuity that they enjoyed the last couple years under Coach Cutcliffe, the style of offense that they play, is something with the second year that we have now to be able to play the techniques and do the things that are required for us to be successful.

Q. Michael Rocco looks like a quarterback playing with some confidence. Is that just the natural maturation of a young quarterback or is he no longer looking over his shoulder or both?
COACH LONDON: I think it's more the first part, the maturation of a quarterback. Part of him being able to do that was also his ability to stand on the sideline and watch the game unfold. He does a great job preparing for the opponents.
Part of his maturation was also being able to stand there and watch what was going on, young David Watford having a chance to play. I think all those things, then making the throws, his understanding of the offense, his curve has really improved.
As I said before, his temperament, the highs don't get him too high, the lows don't get him too low. His confidence is something, although he does not really show it with emotion, he's a very mild-mannered guy that understands the offense. The maturation process of seeing coverages, blitzes, making audible calls at the line of scrimmage, those type of things have benefited him this year. He'll continue to get better at it. He's going to have to if we're going to have opportunities beyond Saturday.
But I would say the first part of your question was probably the most significant part.

Q. Mike, it seemed in one of your earlier games when you faced a potent passing attack against Southern Miss, they hurt you with passes in the middle, shorter passes that they took some distance. How would you rate the pass coverage of your linebackers now as opposed to six, seven weeks ago?
COACH LONDON: I would say it's improved. It's improved from the standpoint of during the course of the type of teams you played, their philosophy on offense. Duke, their receivers and the quarterback, Vernon, Varner and Renfree, are very good at finding the hole. If you're running your inside technique, they start inside and pivot outside. You can see it's their system that they've run, Coach Cutcliffe has run, has been successful at.
I think the learning process, the improvement defensively has been, with the different styles of offense we face, but also understanding concepts, the high-low concepts, in-and-out concepts, the crossing route concepts, that just comes with playing, it comes with practicing, seeing and doing.
I think at this point of the season, the multitude of different types of concepts that we've seen has helped us, and now we just have to concentrate and be more specific on what we think they might do to us and be able to play those routes, those concepts that they have.
It's been neat just to see - we just talked about the maturation of the quarterback - it's the same way with the linebackers.

Q. How important is Steve Greer in pass coverage?
COACH LONDON: He's very important in the fact that the crossing routes, the check-downs, carrying number three vertical, different things like that. Your middle linebacker is heavily involved with a lot of things like that. Again, it goes back to him playing in a lot of games and being out there towards the end of the game when big plays have to be made.
He might not be the fastest or the swiftest, but I think there's a level of experience and understanding that he has when it comes to those concepts we just discussed of being able to play smart, being a smart football player.
Going to have to rely heavily on him being able to play smart on Saturday.

Q. You have really developed a balanced offense with Perry Jones stepping up, Michael Rocco playing well. How much of that is the efficiency of your offensive line, what they're doing for you?
COACH LONDON: Well, I think in order to be balanced and try to keep defenses off schedule in terms of what they do is that you got to be able to run the ball. Running the ball, it sets up for your play-action passes with your run fakes. When you can do that, sometimes you get behind defensive backs. Sometimes in your pass protections your runningbacks are out quickly when you decide to blitz. Perry and Kevin Parks have been able to sometimes stay in and block and sometimes release. It just causes defenses to have to, in their blitz games, things like that, decide how they're going to cover and who they're going to cover.
When you have a balanced attack but you can run the ball, play-action pass off of that, you can use your backs as weapons as far as wide receivers, it helps a lot.
I think the success of the offense would dictate that a lineman being able to block versus the run provides enough protection and time for Michael to throw the ball when we do have to throw it downfield.

Q. Your pass protection, with eight sacks, considering how often you throw, is probably the best pass protection in the league. Again, is that a function of the line or something of the system?
COACH LONDON: It's what you just said. It's a function of the line, being able to keep minimum hits off the quarterback with the line stunts, blitzes. It's a function of the quarterback recognizing presnap reads, who his throws are going to. It's a function of the wide receivers recognizing coverages, knowing where to sit, knowing where to turn, knowing where to find the open hole. It's a function of the quarterback knowing the offense again, going on the second year, having an opportunity to really excel because of the system that Coach Lazor has set up for them.
I think it's a combination of all four things. Probably the last thing, again, is the familiarity of the system. When you have those things going together, it helps and lends itself towards success.
But the bottom line is you got to have the players, the offensive line, a talented group of players. It probably starts with that from the start.

Q. I know you rightly so are one game at a time. The fact of the matter is if you win out, you go play for an ACC championship. That has to be exciting for not only your players but your fans. What's your approach there?
COACH LONDON: Well, without being a killjoy on that, at this stage of our program, having been a long time since we've been in those predicaments, that situation, ones we definitely want, but for us the goal of any type of goal we set for ourself has to start with an opportunity this Saturday. Outside of a positive outcome, all that talk of the game after, the game after is a moot point.
For us and our players, we don't look beyond what's immediately in front of us. So we got to take care of a situation where it's a home game, it's a conference opponent. They've been successful. Our guys have been here for three years. They have not experienced winning against them. They're a good football team. Like I said, their passing attack is third in the conference.
To look beyond that, human nature can look beyond it, but to look beyond it as a football team... Probably the thing I like about this team is they see it out there, but at the same time they're like, Coach, we don't want to get caught in the trappings of what's down the road, we want to take care of the challenges in front of us. That will happen this Saturday.
MIKE FINN: Coach, thanks for being with us. Good luck this weekend. We'll talk to you next Wednesday.
COACH LONDON: Thank you, Mike.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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