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PENN STATE UNIVERSITY MEDIA CONFERENCEOctober 22, 2013John UrschelQ. Just curious how Zach Zwinak has been at practice since that fumble and if you guys on the offensive line have said anything to him and if you've kind of seen a chip on his shoulder since then. JOHN URSCHEL: Well, he's a good football player, and we've all been encouraging him. To play this game well, you have to have a short memory. He learned from it. We've been doing things to focus on good ball control. But at the end of the day, he's moved on. Q. I was wondering, with Ohio State, a lot of the fans see this as a big rival for you guys in the Big 10. I was wondering, do you guys look at it that way? Do you see them as a rival, and is it a good thing to have a true rival or anything like that? JOHN URSCHEL: Definitely I'd see it as a big rivalry. But to be honest, every single game this year is big for us. With no bowl game, no postseason anything, every single game is like a bowl game. It's like honestly, you could see it's like we have 12 one‑game seasons even. Q. Along those same lines, Bill was even saying that Penn State versus Ohio State is obviously a big game in college football. Is it tough for you guys to just try to look at it as a game versus anybody else, or in the back of your mind does everybody kind of realize, this is a top‑five team, this is a little bit of a different challenge? JOHN URSCHEL: We recognize that we're facing a very, very good opponent at home, and we're really looking forward to the challenge. If you can't get excited for a game like this on Saturday, you shouldn't be playing college football. Q. You've been out at the Horseshoe before. What are your memories of playing there and being in that environment? Do you have a specific memory that stands out to you when somebody asks about playing in the horseshoe? JOHN URSCHEL: It's a hostile environment. A lot of fans. It's honestly a lot like Beaver Stadium for our opposing teams. Might be a little loud when we're on offense. Q. Do you believe that this team relishes being the underdog coming into this game, and in general do you think that they really take on that underdog role this year playing a lot of‑‑ Ohio State being a top‑five team? JOHN URSCHEL: Honestly we don't really focus on what the media says about who's certain point favorites, who's the underdog in this game, that game. We just go out and try to perform as best we can every single game, every single Saturday is a challenge. Q. You said last week, I think, that there was a situation where you did some quick math on the field to calculate how many seconds were left, that you guys needed to score. Do you do math on the field really quick and help the team out in other situations? JOHN URSCHEL: You know, I haven't been asked to. I mean, you'd think we're doing some‑‑ don't they have a manual for coaches where it says when to go for one, when to go for two, time left, quarter? I'm sure they could just come over and ask me if they'd like. (Laughter.) Yet they haven't, no. You can tell Coach OB that. Q. When you just sat down here, you said this is your first time doing this? JOHN URSCHEL: First time on the‑‑ what we call it, the‑‑ is this a podium? First time on the podium. Q.  It's kind of surprising because before the season you were one of the most talked about offensive linemen. JOHN URSCHEL: They like to put me in the little booths over there. Q. What was that like? Most offensive linemen aren't used to being on the front of magazines and stuff like that. JOHN URSCHEL: I'm not used to being on the front of magazines, so you can put in that group. Q. What was that like? JOHN URSCHEL: I just kept doing what I always do. I focus on football, focus on my training, do the things that got me here. It's as simple as that. Q. You were named best person in sports yesterday on FOX. Did you see that, and if so, what are your thoughts on that? JOHN URSCHEL: I did see that earlier this morning. I got a few little Tweets. I got a few Tweets on my phone about it. Well, it's honestly an honor, I guess. You want to call me the best person in sports, go ahead. At least yesterday. I'm no longer the best person in sports today. (Laughter.) Q. If you guys beat Ohio State, what does that say about this program? How big would a win like that be for you guys being the team to snap Ohio State's 19‑game winning streak? JOHN URSCHEL: It would be a huge win for us. But it's not enough to talk about it. Q. (No microphone.) JOHN URSCHEL: Not that I'm superstitious or anything, but there's‑‑ I don't really see any need for us to talk about the significance if we win or talk about what would happen if we win. I think we need to talk about how we need to play to perform best on Saturday. Q. How do you need to play to perform best on Saturday? JOHN URSCHEL: How did I know that was coming? Ohio State is a very, very good team. They're very talented. You don't win that many games in a row without having a great football team, a great coaching staff, and if we want to play the type of game we know we're capable of, we just have to all perform our best. We need to manage the game, try to make good plays. It's as simple as that. Q. If I could follow up, Christian has played in front of some pretty big crowds here. How do you think he's going to handle going into an environment like that? JOHN URSCHEL: You'll have to ask him that. I mean, I get a good sense for‑‑ he's really good at handling tough situations, handling adversity. But at the end of the day, you're going to have to ask him about that. I don't pretend to know what he thinks or feels. Q. Did you watch the Ohio State game live when it was on during the bye week last week? JOHN URSCHEL: Yes. Yes, I did. Q. And if so, what's the process like when you're watching the game, because I'm assuming you guys probably watch and think about it a little differently than we do as far as breaking stuff down. What's that like? JOHN URSCHEL: Just watching the defensive line all game. That's all I was watching on TV. It's tough to watch a game on TV and try to gain some insight from it, especially as a lineman. Side view doesn't really do much for you. Q. From watching those defensive linemen, their sack leader, Noah Spence, was one of the best high school football players in Pennsylvania a couple years ago. What have you seen from him? JOHN URSCHEL: Spence is their defensive end, correct? I've watched some film on him. He's a good player. But honestly my focus is on the interior. You should ask Donovan, Adam, Gary. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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