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TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY MEDIA CONFERENCESeptember 9, 2013Micah AweQ. Have you had a chance to check out TCU as far as the LSU game and the Southeastern Louisiana tape? Have you had a chance to break down Boykin, their offense and their speed? MICAH AWE: Yeah, we have. We think TCU is really good. They really compete against LSU. They had a chance to win that game. For the most part, we just think it's going to be all about technique and doing our jobs and winning those one‑on‑one battles. Q. What about Boykin? MICAH AWE: Boykin, he's an athlete. Last year we played him with a broken ankle or whatever. This year, he's full health, and he's a real athlete and has tons of athletes around him. The only thing that's new is really the O‑line, but they're good too. So we've really got to be on our stuff today or this week. Q. Can you talk about their ground game between Boykin, and Catalon and Carter? MICAH AWE: Well, Carter, Carter's really good. Boykin, you know, nowadays, you see the quarterbacks, that is the X‑factor, Johnny Manziel, defenses. You can get good coverage, can you get good pressure, but if you leave a seam out, which you don't know where that seam is, that is the x‑factor. You don't know where that quarterback is going to go, depending on how athletic he is. Q. Playing Boykin last year, do you all take anything from that game versus it's so new this year you kind of start from scratch? MICAH AWE: Well, you know, one thing about football is that every week you're a new football player. Last year, like I said, he had an ankle, and this year he's perfectly healthy. So we can't really base it off of what he did last year, because last year he might have thought I'm going to stay in the pocket more this game. This year he might be thinking the exact opposite. So we really need to make sure coming in with our game plan and execute it, and just run to the ball like LSU did. They just ran to the ball in film, and I really like that. I respect that, and I think that's why they won that game and did well on defense. Q. What stands out to you about that game last year in Florida? MICAH AWE: First of all, what stands out is you can feel the rivalry over there. TCU really wanted to beat us, and we really wanted to beat them. It was a great game. The main thing I like about that game is I was on the sideline most of the game just to play special teams, and main thing I liked about it is, you know, we came out there and just did our job. They're going to get points because they have athletes, but to bend don't break. That's our motto. Q. What is the key containing Boykin? MICAH AWE: The key? I mean, I think the key for any, if you just think about players in general, you've got to get in their head somehow. If he is going to run the ball or do what he's going to do we have to make sure we're always in the face, always there. If he's going to get fire yards, whatever he does in the air, he's going to earn it. As long as you keep on getting repetitive and being in their face, I think we can do a good job of containing him. Q. Have you seen your style of play and how hard and how fast you play, has that become infectious with your teammates? MICAH AWE: I'm pretty sure they've noticed it. The main thing with that I don't do it with the glory or the fame or anything like that. But I compare it to my high school days. My senior year we were undefeated championship. Once I make a tackle, I get excited. I run to the ball, and I didn't make a tackle, but I get excited too and everyone gets excited. It's a rave out there. Football is entertainment. We're out here to entertain the fans, the media, so might as well have fun because we'll have four or five years and we're out of here. So we're going to do it for the glory to God and be all out, go all out, and hopefully the defense will do that every play and we'll be having fun, you know. Q. How important is it to shut them down early and give them that message and get in their heads? MICAH AWE: TCU has great athletes. It's very important that we come out there and we're solid defense. Not let them have a chance to think they can win the game easily. So when we get out there, the first thing is to run to the ball. LSU, all SEC defenses, they run to the ball. I think that's what separates them from everyone else. We've just got to have that same mentality, run to the ball, punish the ball carrier at all costs. Q. You guys talk about flying around and swarming the ball carrier and things of that nature and stripping the ball and stuff like that. What is the difference between last year in that stretch where you have five or six games where you couldn't get a turnover, but this year under Wallerstedt and things that you're doing differently as opposed to maybe what you did last year? MICAH AWE: It really starts with your general, Coach Wally. He comes in here and says don't panic. As a defense, you should never panic. We're the leaders out there. Offense, they're there. But that "300" movie, you see all those guys in front, those are defensive players to me. We're the people who hold it down. One thing that Coach Wally reiterates on is just running to the ball and going full speed, because this year that's what I think we have. Go out there five plays, get out five plays. Get back in, full speed, and that will affect the offenses. Q. You've seen him in practice and seen him on the sideline, but what do you think of Baker's mobility? MICAH AWE: Baker, you know, I don't think he's much of an athlete. Just kidding. But his mobility, it's smart. Like I said, if you look at all the dual‑threat quarterbacks out there, it's not about just being a dual‑threat quarterback. It's about using your leg when you can. I think he's really smart when he does that. Because he doesn't do it all the time because it's a quarterback. You don't want to get hurt now. But he'll do it when it's necessary, and that's really hard for defenses. In practice, we're practicing against Boykin and him coming out of the pocket. That is one of the hardest things to break down the quarterback wall is being in his face as a linebacker. Q. You talk about the energy and the entertainment. Could you guys feel that from the new video board and the sound system? Did that translate down to the sideline? MICAH AWE: Oh, yeah. It definitely does. Before I came here I used to play NCAA, and the home‑field advantage, the little R3 and pump up the crowd. But now last year with the old screen it wasn't really effective. But now on the big screen, they see you doing this, and the crowd can see in HD, so now we have that sound system, the video board, the HD. Getting the crowd pumped wasn't as hard as it was before, and that makes a huge difference. Another team sees you doing the same thing too. They're right there, and they might be jealous that they don't have a TV as big as ours, so it makes a difference. It gets in your head, that's for sure. Q. Along the same lines, how excited are you with the excitement of the last game building on and having the blackout on Thursday night, how much are you looking forward to getting out on the field on Thursday? MICAH AWE: It's a short week. I'm trying to contain my excitement right now because I've still got school and everything. But I'm really excited to see how we react as a team. That's where adversity's going to hit. SMU is a good team. SFA was a good team also, but TCU is going to be better. I'm excited to see how our energy is going to contain, and what we're going to do when things go bad, because things will go bad on them against the defense. I know that much. I just want to see if we can still be energized throughout the whole game. Q. You're expected to win the first two games, but TCU is a little more 50‑50. Have you sensed coach's approach to this game has changed in any way whatsoever? MICAH AWE: It has to change because one thing it's 50‑50 of course, but that's just because every week it's going to get harder. Look at our schedule, every week is going to be harder and harder and harder. The main thing is we have to be consistent. Yeah, we beat SMU and SFA, but that doesn't mean we are going to beat TCU, and if we have to play Alabama next week‑‑ I think every week you're a different football player. Every week, we have to refresh on to the next one. Q. How does the quick turnaround affect this game? MICAH AWE: I mean, the main thing is going to be it's player to player. I've got to get hydrated, stay hydrated, stay mentally focused, and getting that extra film in when you can, that's the main problem with all of us. This game we've got to win it Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, not Thursday. But Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday preparing for it, mentally and physically. Q. (Indiscernible)? MICAH AWE: Special teams, Coach Haverty. Like I said, Coach Wally is our general on defense, but Coach Haverty is our general on special teams. We take a lot of pride in that, because you'll see stars out there, back‑ups out there and we're going full speed because we get in here on Sunday or the day after the game, we don't want to get ripped up in front of the coaches. We want to make sure we win our one‑on‑one. Special teams is a straight one‑on‑one. You can see it all across the field. Q. (Indiscernible)? MICAH AWE: All I remember is one time in practice a TCU scout came, and I guess he didn't have interest in me, so we all have chips on our shoulder, and that is one of the things. SFA didn't recruit me either, so people wonder why I played good against them, because they didn't recruit me either. So I have a chip against everybody, and I thank God for my one opportunity here, and I hope to just do well. Q. Did anyone show any level of interest in you besides Texas Tech? MICAH AWE: To be honest, no. No one. I committed to Texas Tech, and no one came before, no one came. I'm not really worried about that because I'm here now and getting my degree. I'm just glad for the opportunity, because I'm a sophomore and having the opportunity to play in this big Division 1 stadium. I'm glad I came to Tech, because who would have ever known Coach King would come here, and that big screen‑‑ like that big screen out of nowhere. You couldn't ask for a better story. So I really thank God, just God. Q. All those tough records happening earlier, a little extra motivation this week to get back against TCU? MICAH AWE: Yeah, of course. That's going to happen to everybody. You transfer to a different high school and other people are talking about you. So Coach Haverty, I know he has his relationship over there. And also Coach‑‑ I forgot his name. The quarterback or safeties coach over there. He's the one that recruited me, Glasgow. He's there too. I want to thank him for recruiting me and bringing me into Tech, but it's business. Division 1 football is straight business. I think we all know that, but now it's personal since Coach Haverty went here, I go here. So now I've got to take this personal just like the coaches. Q. How do you think you're individually a different football player from a year ago? MICAH AWE: My main thing is mindset. I think if you get recruited to play D1 football, the coaches probably think you can do it physically. But football isn't physical, it's mental. I wish I would have known this earlier in my football career, because I started in eighth grade. It's not all about running fast and running straight, it's all the mental parts. I think the strongest minded person will win. Ray Lewis, all those greats, it's the mind. It's not really body. The body is there, obviously, you've just got to get your mind together. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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