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CAPITAL ONE ORANGE BOWL: MISSISSIPPI STATE v GEORGIA TECHDecember 30, 2014Paul JohnsonMIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA THE MODERATOR: One day left until the Capital One Orange Bowl. What's left to do for your team? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, normally what we do, we've tried to make the bowl trip kind of like a game week, so for us the day before the game we usually do not practice. We'll have some meetings, take some position tests, do those kind of things, and really just kind of try to stay off our feet and get ready to play the game tomorrow night. Q. What's the most fun thing you've done this week, and do you have fun on these trips? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, the most fun thing‑‑ yeah, to answer your question, the back part of it first, yeah, we do try to have fun. We try to make it a combination of fun and work. You know, I think the thing that I've enjoyed the most is probably just the people, the hosts, the people, the committee, getting to know them. They've been very hospitable, a fun group to be around. The functions are fun in themselves and some of the trips, but to me, I think it's more just the people. The people make the bowl game, and certainly they have a great group here to represent the Orange Bowl. Q. Specifically what do you think your players seem to enjoy? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I haven't really talked to them about it. I think that they clearly enjoyed the beach day and the jet skis and that type of thing. I think that was a fun activity for them. You know, probably each individual has their own ideas. The first couple of nights we kind of gave them some free time to go out and do things, whether they were in South Beach or whether‑‑ whatever they did, and I'm sure they created some of their own memories that way. It's a good mix of planned activities and a good mix of time that they get a little bit of downtime and can kind of find their own adventures. Q. I cover University of Miami, and I think coming into the game, Miami had beaten you guys five times in a row, I believe. PAUL JOHNSON: I can't remember that far (laughter.) Q. What was the difference this year? PAUL JOHNSON: We scored more than they did. (Laughter.) Q. Specifically, obviously the defensive coordinator‑‑ PAUL JOHNSON: We just hadn't played very well against Miami, and I think they have good players. A couple games were really crazy games. We blew a 21‑point lead a couple years ago in Atlanta, and the game went into overtime, and in the overtime period we had one guy run one play 10 guys run another play on fourth‑and‑six inches and when you do that you usually lose, especially when the one guy is the quarterback. You know, it's just been one of those things. Q. Are you surprised at how Miami finished with a losing record this year, 6‑7? PAUL JOHNSON: You know, I have enough problems with my own team and I don't really think about that, but I do know this: It's hard to win, and people who think winning is easy probably aren't in the business because if you've coached long enough, you've got to have the right chemistry, you've got to have the right mix, and it's hard to win games. It really is. It's not easy. Q. With Dak Prescott it's another dynamic QB you and your team are going to be seeing this year. How is he different from other QBs you guys have faced this year? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I think he's a very talented young man as you say. He can hurt you throwing the ball. He's accurate. He's got a strong arm, and he's got the ability to hurt you running the ball, as well. You know, I generally try to stay away from comparing guys to other guys, but there's no question that for them offensively he's the leader of their team and a really special player, and I think when you watch the tapes, sometimes the thing that impresses me the most about him, he can almost will his team to get down the field. He makes plays, and that's what it's about. He's definitely a very good player. Q. Over the time that you've run the offensive scheme you've run, how much have you had to tweak that or have you tweaked it at all? It looks very similar to me to what you ran originally but you've put some passing things in. PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, not really. It's pretty much the same base offense we ran in 1985 at Georgia Southern. You're all the time trying to make adjustments, and if people find things that give you problems, you try to find things to solve those problems. There's been, I think, a little bit of a misnomer this year. We've actually thrown the ball less this year than we did last year, we've just been a little bit more efficient with it. I think the thing that's helped the team this year is we got back to our basic stuff, and we got better at running that. Our quarterback has had a great year. I think he's embraced what we try to do. He enjoys it and our team. And it's kind of a team concept on offense. It's a thing‑‑ I saw a quote we were talking about in the car riding over here this morning, one of our captains, Shaq Mason, the senior offensive guard, and I think ESPN re‑Tweeted or whatever, but he had a quote that there's zero tolerance for selfishness on our football team, and I think that that's probably as big a reason as any that we've had success offensively. We haven't had anybody who was worried about their stats or worried about catching the ball or not getting enough carries or not‑‑ you know, she referenced the University of Miami game. I think our quarterback threw eight passes and rushed for nine yards, and he didn't care. We won the game. It was like he was excited that we won, and that's kind of the way our team has been all year. Q. Since you started with this in 1985, how much of a tactical advantage have you seen it to be, because it is a rather unique offense, and as offenses have changed in college football during that time, they've gone to more wide open, more passing. They still run, they just don't run as much. They've got more efficient throwers, and you still lean very heavily on the run and do it in a very unique way. PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I always answer the question like this. We've done the thing now for, what, 29 years. Maybe longer. Definitely longer, since I've been an offensive coordinator, probably 30 years, 33 years, something like that. But if you go back and look, I haven't done it over the last two years, but a couple years ago we went back and looked, and for that whole time span and through three schools or four schools, we'd averaged about 450 yards a game and 34, 35 points, so we really didn't see any reason to change. I think that what happens, it's like any offense, if you can execute it well and you understand it, then you have a chance to be successful. I learned a long time ago in coaching, it's not what I know, it's what the players know, and I can have all the answers when we go out there to play on Saturday, but if they don't understand and know when to do that or when to run what play or how to execute, it really doesn't matter. I think because it is somewhat unique, you know, personally I don't think it's as different as other teams try to make it and other people. I think if you watch college football now, there's very few teams who don't run some form of option football, whether it's a zone read or zone option. I bet you can count on it being single digits. There are very few. So that part of it is the same. The concepts defensively, the plays, are what you have to use when you play those teams. Q. Your special teams units have performed very well this year, and your placekicker has enjoyed a successful season. Mississippi State on the other hand has also blocked a lot of field goals. Can you talk about the challenge that you're going to have there? PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, well, special teams is always huge in any game, and especially bowl games with the layoff. I think that we've been hot and cold special‑teams wise. We've certainly had a lot of big plays. We've also had some mistakes and some‑‑ our last game‑‑ well, not last game, but the game against the University of Georgia we were atrocious in special teams. It almost cost us the game. It's something that we work hard on every week and try to get ready. I think Harrison Butker, our kicker, is a very talented young man. To be honest he probably hadn't had the season that we hoped that he would have. I think that he's an All‑American type kicker, and he hasn't had those kind of numbers. But he's very capable of providing a spark to us in special teams. He's got good range. The punter, you know, I think Ryan has done a nice job most of the year. I think we probably had the fewest punts of any team in Division I football this year, as well, so hopefully we won't have to use him a lot on Wednesday night. Q. How proficient has Thomas been compared to some of the other quarterbacks you've had at running the triple option, and what makes him so good at it? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I think that he's been really good at it this year for the most part. I think he has a really good skill set for what we want to do. He's got really good feet. He's got good speed. He's got a really strong arm. People don't realize because he's not the biggest guy, but he's got a quick release and a really strong arm. He can really provide a spark in the passing game for us. He was vertically challenged a little bit sometimes in finding a way to see, but he's learned to play through that because that's been his MO all the way playing, so he's pretty good at finding a lane and finding a way to throw the ball. Q. When you look at Mississippi State, you play a lot of spread types in the ACC. Is there a team you've played that you would compare Mississippi State's version of a spread more to or less to? PAUL JOHNSON: You know, like I said, I hate to get into comparisons when you compare teams, but they're probably similar in some ways to Clemson or North Carolina. You might even be able to throw NC State in there. But everybody has their own unique things that they do, and just like everybody who runs an I‑formation is not the same. They have their own unique ways and schemes and ways that they try to get their people involved. They've done a really good job, I think, utilizing their talent offensively, and their quarterback, like ours, is a guy that kind of makes the thing go. As he goes, so goes their offense, I think. Q. One thing Dan Mullen was saying, with the layoff and this time of year there's about 180, 190 plays he has to choose from. Do you kind of have that, as well, or is it the same 60, 70, 80 plays you're going to run all year? PAUL JOHNSON: We have about six plays that we run, (laughter), so they've got a huge advantage on us there, I guess. I wouldn't be smart enough to call 160. We've got about six or seven base plays, and that's what we'll do. We've got a few variations off of them. If they're playing a certain way we'll try to tweak them and see what happens. But yeah, we've got our whole package available, it's just not as big. Q. With the game starting so late tomorrow, can you talk about the routine typically is for a night game like this? PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, we'll get up, we'll have a mandatory breakfast because I like to make sure that we all get up and don't lay around, and there will be some special teams meetings, offense and defense meetings. We'll have a team dinner, and I'll talk to them a little bit, and then we'll have an offense, defense, and get ready to go play. Q. Back to Justin a little bit, obviously when you recruit a guy, you're hopeful that he'll be a special productive player for you, but once he got onto campus, when did you finally realize he was going to be the sort of player he was going to become? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, we knew Justin was a really good athlete when we recreated him, but you feel that way about most everybody you recruit. They all come highly recommended. But I think that once he started to learn the system a little better and get comfortable, because a lot of times you can't really tell what a guy can do until they understand what they're trying to do. You know, one of the tenets I've always tried to rely on in coaching, you can take a 4.4 guy and turn him into 4.8 real fast if he doesn't know what he's doing. I think once he learned the system and learned what he was trying to do, he got more comfortable, and with each game he played, he got a little more confidence in what he could do and confidence with the offense. And he's still continuing to grow. He's only a sophomore, and it's his first year playing, so you still see it every game, he'll come back now and he'll realize things that he might have missed, or I should have checked this or we should have done that or here's what they're trying to do to me on the read. So he's growing constantly. You could tell he was a special player when he came in. Q. I checked the weather last night, and it said 40‑percent rain, but I'm looking at it now, and now it says 20 percent for tomorrow. If it should rain, and I saw one of your players commented when he walked off the plane how humid it was, how does that come into play if it's wet out there? How many games have you played in the rain this season and also the heat and humidity factor? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, it gets pretty hot in Atlanta, especially in August and September, and it's been a while. Rain won't make any difference other than I'll probably wear a rain jacket. (Laughter.) I learned a long time ago, I try not to worry about things I can't control, and that's one of them for sure. Whatever it is, both teams got to play in it. It'll be the same. And if it's raining, we'll try to adjust and do what we have to do. The Orange Bowl Committee people have assured me that it's not going to be raining and it's going to be about 79 degrees. (Laughter.) Q. Also, does it help you guys in any way that you're used to‑‑ I know you are as a coach, but some of the players, playing at this stadium? PAUL JOHNSON: Probably not. I mean, to be truthful, no. I don't think that that really matters. I think all the fields and dimensions and everything are the same. The thing that really comes into play is if you've got stadium noise or crowd noise like when you play on the road sometimes, that can be a problem just hearing your calls and the different things. But for the most part, the familiarity with the stadium I don't think will have any bearing. Q. I saw where yesterday you had the seniors carried off the field after practice. Is that something you've done for a while, and where did that come from? PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, well, it just depends on where we're practicing. We kind of have rituals‑‑ we didn't have a lot of things we were practicing here, but it was there last practice at Georgia Tech. I think it's neat to have a little something to recognize those guys, so it was fun for them. It took two or three guys to carry some of them, but it was fun for them to get carried off the field their last practice. Q. Is it something you've always done? PAUL JOHNSON: I always try to do something, yeah. It may not be the same thing, but it depends on where you are. Yeah. Q. Going back to what you were saying about your offense and kind of six plays, one thing Mississippi State said was your offense has a lot of eye candy. How long would you say it takes for you and your kids to get that, quote‑unquote, eye candy perfect, and second, defensively are there any wrinkles you throw out similar to on offense, or is your defense a little more straightforward? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I don't know about the eye candy thing. If they told me what they were looking at, I could tell you whether or not they had the right idea. But our offense is what it is, and I don't want to make it sound oversimplified. It's a little more complicated than that. Defensively, no, we're‑‑ pressure, zone pressure, some man blitz, but nothing that everybody doesn't do. You know, I think that, again, I'm going to go back‑‑ I'm not sure our offense is as different as everybody wants to make like it is different. You know, there's a misconception out there that every play that guys are getting cut in every play, and that's not the case at all. We're trying to knock guys off the ball. We're not a big zone blocking team. We don't go sideways, we try to go north and south, but we try to scoop the backside, and so does Mississippi State. Most every team we play cut blocks on the backside. We never hear them talk about it, but they do. You know, if they think it's different, good for us. Maybe that's an advantage. Q. I saw that picture of Deon interviewing yesterday. I'm curious what he wanted to know from you. PAUL JOHNSON: Deon Hill? Q. Yeah. PAUL JOHNSON: He wanted to know how Deon Hill was playing and wanted to know what Mississippi State would think if Deon lined up at 3 technique and linebacker and safety. I told him they'd probably like it. But Deon is a character. I think he's a guy that's fought through some injuries and some illness, and to be out there playing with his attitude I think speaks volumes for the kind of young man that he is. Q. Can you talk a little bit about the ACC versus the SEC? I don't think the ACC is doing very well against power‑five conferences. Is this important to you at all, and why? PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, it's important. I don't think you're right. I think the ACC had the first‑ or second‑best record this year against power‑five conferences out of conference. Q. In bowl games. PAUL JOHNSON: Clemson did pretty good against Oklahoma last night. I think the ACC is looking‑‑ I think we've won three and lost four bowl games. You know, I don't know what the breakdown is. There's still a bunch to go. ACC versus SEC? Last week of the season we were 4‑0. We beat Georgia, Clemson beat South Carolina, Florida State beat Florida, and Louisville beat Kentucky, so that was pretty good. About as good as we could do. Q. And bowl games, I think maybe before last night they were 0‑4 in the bowl games against power five, that's all. There's always that debate, that's all, between the conferences. Do you think there's that big a difference, or no? PAUL JOHNSON: No. Q. And why? Why do you think that? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, why is there such a perceived difference? Because everybody in the media says there is. I mean, I can tell you this: When we lined up and played Florida State and we lined up and played Clemson, they're no different than the University of Georgia who we play who finished second in the SEC East. Mississippi State is a good football team. So is Clemson. So is Florida State. So is a lot of teams in the ACC. So is Louisville. So I just think that that's probably‑‑ there's probably not as big a divide as people think. I think what's happened, if you take the last four or five years, their teams at the very top of their league were probably better than the top of the other leagues. Now, of course last year Florida State in our league won the National Championship. We'll see what happens this year. But I think that's kind of how the perception started. I haven't thought about the bowl games, but yeah, I guess. I had a chance to see the end of a couple of them, and like any bowl games the Duke‑Arizona State game was a turnover. It wasn't like they showed up and got blown out. Miami had every opportunity to beat South Carolina and self destructed. They turned the ball over. I'm trying to think who the other two would have been that lost. North Carolina I guess lost to Rutgers. What was the other one? Q. Boston College. PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, they missed an extra point. Yeah, and the games were in overtime. I mean, I don't think there's a huge disparity. Q. I know you talked earlier about 1955 and all, but you said yourself the other day the Orange Bowl is our No.1 goal in our program to get to every year. Has there been much said about kind of breaking the streak since 1955? PAUL JOHNSON: No, most of our guys weren't around in 1955, and I wasn't, either. (Laughter.) We haven't mentioned 1955. I've talked a little bit about 2009 when we were here before and played, and we didn't play particularly well. Iowa had a really good football team, too. They had a lot to do with that. We just want to show up and play the way we're capable of playing, and we'll see what happens. If we're good enough, we'll be good enough. But if we show up and play hard, we'll be hanging around. We'll be around in the fourth quarter if we play. Q. With Jim Harbaugh coming back to the college ranks and coaching at Michigan for a whole bucket of money, can you talk about what that does for your profession? PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I think it's exciting for probably Michigan and their fans and the Big Ten. It's really exciting for all the coaches who have clauses in their contracts to be the highest‑paid guy. Other than that, I don't know. I think any time you can create chatter or whatever you might want to call it about college football, it's a positive, and certainly Jim had a good track record at SanDiego and at Stanford, and I'm sure that everybody in Michigan is excited that he's coming back where he starred as a player. It's probably a great hire for them, and we'll see how it plays out. But I'm sure everybody in the state of Michigan is excited this morning about it, except the Michigan State fans probably. Q. Do you think all the coaches are excited, too, seeing that the salary bar has been raised? PAUL JOHNSON: You know, honestly, I don't know that coaches as a general rule think much about that. I mean, you might joke about it or whatever, but I doubt that for 99 percent of the coaches in college football that it's going to make any difference. You know, at some schools it might, but at most schools, what they're paying Jim Harbaugh is not going to factor into what I'm making at Georgia Tech. It's just probably not. Q. The Georgia Southern game, obviously it turned very late, and it proved, I think, to give the team confidence and get some momentum going. Had it turned out differently, do you think the season would have turned out any differently? PAUL JOHNSON: You don't know. I think more than gave the team confidence, I think it taught the team a valuable lesson that the games aren't over until they're over. Everybody tends to forget we were ahead 35‑10, and then we just kind of‑‑ not to take anything away from them, but we just kind of slapped it on cruise control there for a little bit and looked up and had to fight back to get it off cruise control. I think the team learned that it's not over until it's over. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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