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ROSE BOWL GAME: OREGON v FLORIDA STATEDecember 30, 2014Jake FisherPASADENA, CALIFORNIA Q. Some of the Florida State guys were talking yesterday about I guess there's still that perception that the way to beat a Pac‑12 team is to knock them off the line. Are you guys aware of that out there? JAKE FISHER: I think that if you knock any team off the line, you're going to possibly beat them. An up‑front game is what wins battles, what wins championships. If that's their game plan, then hopefully they bring a little bit more than that, just trying to knock us off the line. We're going to get movement, as well, we're going to open up gaps. But they're a strong defense. We've seen them do it to teams. Obviously they've won 29 games in a row, so they're good at what they do. Q. They've talked a lot about being the underdog despite being on a 29‑game win streak. What about you guys being the favorites? JAKE FISHER: I think we're still coming in as underdogs because they're the undefeated champion. But we've just got to come in and play our game and see how that works out for us. Q. What's your impression of what you've seen from Eddie Goldman on film? JAKE FISHER: Their whole defense is fast and strong, very athletic. I think they get to the ball well. They're very passionate about their game. Obviously you don't get 29 wins in a row and not being passionate about football and what you want to do. It seems like they're very athletic and strong up front and they're strong in their DB core and linebacking core. Q. (Inaudible.) JAKE FISHER: Kid has come a long way. He's been one of my best friends since we roomed together freshman year. I've seen him grow as a football player, coming in as a walk‑on, determined and focused on what he wants to do and staying focused in school, the kind of guy that's very relaxed, calm, never see him really too high strung, and the person you kind of want to be around just when you're trying to hang out and do things right. He's that guy. Q. From day one how have you seen him change? JAKE FISHER: As a football player, he's done a full turn, a 360, with footwork, this off‑season, this spring, the wintertime, he's been able to change his whole game and be a starter and be contributing to the offensive line, which for him has been an absolute ride. Q. How did you guys become best friends? JAKE FISHER: We roomed together freshman year, and we just enjoyed each other's company, enjoyed hanging out. Obviously when you room with someone, you're going to do everything together, and we had our crew, and that's what we did. Offensive linemen stick together and hang out a lot. Q. (Inaudible.) JAKE FISHER: Not too many do. Q. What was the low point for this team, not necessarily you with the injury or the offensive line, but in a great season, what do you think was the low point for the team? JAKE FISHER: I don't think we've had necessarily a low point. We've always been grinding and trying to just stay focused on the day‑to‑day. I think a turning point would be after that Washington State game, throughout the week coming off and dropping an egg versus Arizona and then naturally coming out there next week with a different mindset, a different determination that we're going to come out and we're going to try and catch some people now. Q. What role did Marcus have in that because so much is made of him being sort of quiet. JAKE FISHER: He's a catalyst in his own way. He does things in his own way, and he's consistent with that. I think when you're that consistent and that confident in yourself and you're your own being as much as possible, people will follow you and people will start to trend what you do. I think we'll start to see that with other players, as well, just being yourself and being confident enough to where people will start to follow you. I think that's what he's done as a leader and obviously it's worked out. Q. Your coach says he's not quiet like he was in the beginning, he's a leader now. What does he bring to the huddle? Is there an anecdote you remember where (inaudible)? JAKE FISHER: He gets on guys when he needs to, but he's the kind of guy that will rally the troops and he'll do it in a confidence‑boosting way. He's not going to harp on people. He's not going to try to be mean about it, rude about it. That's kind of what we're for. Q. You probably talked about this, but why did you come to Oregon? You're from Michigan. JAKE FISHER: Obviously when I went through the mess of recruiting and was committed to Michigan and whatnot, the coaches ended up getting fired there, and I've seen the longevity of the coaches at Oregon. They've all been there for 30 years. I couldn't really‑‑ that's the main thing I was looking for. I went there and I trusted those coaches. I trusted the program. I wanted to buy into something that was special, and knowing that I was going to be surrounded by special people and people that were going to get the job done and really be focused on us. Q. Was there anything that anybody said that flat‑out (inaudible)? JAKE FISHER: I mean, I hope that I didn't do that. I hope they saw a little more of themselves in their future than jerseys and some cleats because you don't get those back after the games anyway. If they just want that, then I guess, but I've never heard that, no. Q. You referenced the longevity of the coaching staff and then there was a coaching change. Talk about their different approach and maybe different personalities? JAKE FISHER: Very different personalities. One was more business focused, more operation focused, and Helfrich has kind of turned it into more of a high school team where we bonded more, not necessarily built more trust, but we had that camaraderie where a high school team would have‑‑ I think you see that with everything we do. We've all bought in, all been able to come together. We all hang out together. There's no one on the team that I wouldn't do anything for, so that's kind of how it's built that way. Q. From a structure standpoint, did you notice a difference between how you do things and the operation side of things? Has that changed at all? JAKE FISHER: That was the best part about it was I guess recruiting within our guys, and we had a new coach that kind of didn't change a whole lot at all. The biggest change we had was going to the new building that year, and everything else just fell into place. Q. It seemed like he was going to get the job, and generally speaking (inaudible)? JAKE FISHER: Absolutely, we wanted to see the coaches we already have come in and do a good job and continue our success, so that's what we could ask for. Q. How has it changed from how he approaches you guys from year one to year two? JAKE FISHER: I think he's more comfortable in his shoes. You can kind of see it with the way he talks to guys and gives presentations or just simple things. He's more disciplined this year for us, has more control. I think he just fell into those shoes, and now he's‑‑ Q. Is there a sense of accomplishment for you that now you're going to leave at least getting him to the playoffs? JAKE FISHER: Just focusing on today to be honest with you. Looking back, I'll probably think about that and see it in hindsight, but right now I'm just focusing on today, today's practice, and trying to get better. Q. You've been close to it or a game or two away throughout, but you're going to leave this program kind of where it was when you got here. JAKE FISHER: That's all we can ask for, honestly. I think that our preparation daily is what has got us to this point and what got us to that point. If we keep doing that, we're going to have continued success. Q. When you got hurt was there a period of a week or two where you worried it could be longer than that? JAKE FISHER: I just did everything I could from A to B throughout the day to get the job done and get back. I had a desire to get back. I wanted to get back to my guys, for Marcus and for myself, and that's all I did was just every day treatment as much as I could, as many exercises as possible, and I've seen the success of the trainers throughout the weeks before and with that same injury, so I was able to come back as quick as possible. Q. You talked about Washington State and Arizona being a turning point. What was it like for you to watch those two? JAKE FISHER: I think it was really hard, but it was what made us come back stronger after the loss and after the shake‑up with Washington State. I think that a lot of people kind of seen it as we're either going to bust out of here and continue our success, or we're going to fall off the map, and I think we handled that pretty good. Q. In a weird way looking back, do you feel like missing those two games boosted what people thought of you and how important you were because suddenly you came back and nobody was pointing out that that was the big change? JAKE FISHER: I don't think necessarily that me coming back was the biggest change on the team. I think our overall attitude was what changed. It was kind of a blessing in disguise, yes, from the aspect of notoriety, but I couldn't ask for that. I didn't want that. I'm just here to play football. Anything else that's positive, I welcome. That's all I can ask for. Q. You didn't feel like, hey, there's a big change, all of a sudden you were being mentioned for how important it was‑‑ JAKE FISHER: Oh, it made me feel good, yeah, but we have so many special players on this team and surrounding us that for anyone to take credit like that, it's just not right. Q. At what point in your career did you have to start stepping up as a leader? You played as such a young man. Was it your sophomore or junior year? JAKE FISHER: I think you kind of got to start coming out of high school, coming in with the class that you have. You've kind of got to be the guy that everyone can look up to or come to with anything if they need it. So you've just got to start small and then build up, build the respect. You lose the respect of the guys, you're not going to be a leader, so it starts really when you get here. Q. How do you help the younger players play into their older years? JAKE FISHER: The coach is confident in us, has confidence in us. They do a great job of just preparing us, like I said, daily, doing the right things, showing us how to do it, breaking things down to make it more simple, breaking the game down, make it more simple. It's easier to click in your head, especially when you're young. Going through that stage I probably should have studied more and done more in that aspect, but I think our coaches are doing a good job of that. Q. (Inaudible.) JAKE FISHER: The kid doesn't show very much emotion. You try to get him riled up and pumped up, and he's like, yeah, man, okay. So I didn't really see much change. But he definitely has turned it up since that point. First start was probably pretty nervous for him. But he's doing a great job since then. Q. What do you think the first steps for Oregon is in the context of a playoff team? JAKE FISHER:  Can you reword that? Q. What do you think the perception is of Oregon in the context of the other teams in the playoffs? You're the only team that hasn't won a National Championship. JAKE FISHER: From that aspect, I don't think we really care to be honest with you. We're going to go out and play our game. Perception of this game, you hear a lot of the good versus evil stuff. We're just young kids playing football. I don't think there's any good in people, what they're saying. I think we're just here to play ball, and that's what we're going to do. Q. Which one is good, which one is evil? JAKE FISHER: I'll let you figure that one out. Q. (Inaudible.) JAKE FISHER: I think it just helps show you how fast it can be taken away and how fast things can go into and out of your hands. I think it just gives you that much more heart and desire to play the game. It definitely did that for me. Maybe I needed that. Like I said, it was kind of a blessing in disguise. Q. (Inaudible.) JAKE FISHER: It was very humbling just to be able to be recognized in that way as one of the greats in the country at this point. Very thankful for that opportunity and for those people to believe in me like that. It's a confidence booster, you know. Q. You guys like to talk about opportunities. Do players in the locker room talk about when we're going to get some good karma? JAKE FISHER: It just seemed to pile on and on, those injuries just kept coming for whatever reason. We've faced adversity all year, and I think we'll continue to do that. Q. A lot of good teams back over the past decade have not been able to withstand that. What makes you guys different? JAKE FISHER: I think just our overall belief in each other is honestly what it is. The next guy is going to step up. We have the same expectation for him as we did anybody else. I think that's what helps out. Q. You've made reference to (inaudible) can you talk about some of the guys you can pinpoint and say these guys are going to be the leaders in two or three years? JAKE FISHER: He's definitely started his day one being more mature than a majority of us. Definitely myself. Not seeing him outside being stupid out at parties or anything like that. The guy is a class act, he's done a very good job of staying consistent and knowing who he is and keeping that up. Next part of the question, I think Tyler Johnstone is going to do a great job and has done a great job of being a leader on this team. With his injury, he still stayed relevant and stayed respected by the guys, and I think he's going to continue to do that just for the offensive line. Ifo, as well, has been a tremendous leader. He has great speaking capabilities with his young men, and he's a guy that everyone has looked up to and will continue to, especially with the injury and how strong he is going to come back. Q. Talk about Florida State's D‑line. JAKE FISHER: Very strong and athletic. They like to play football, as do we, and it'll be a good match‑up. Q.  Does anything stand out about them? JAKE FISHER: Do you want a sarcastic answer? They're their own breed. A team that can go 29‑0 over the last how long is special, and they're a special crew. I think it'll be a fun game. Q. What are the folks back home saying about Michigan and their new head coach? JAKE FISHER: I couldn't tell you. The Harbaugh craze is definitely all over Facebook and Twitter, and I hope them success. That's my home‑state team. That's the team I grew up rooting for and was committed to at one point, so I definitely have respect for their program. I wish them success for sure. Q. (Inaudible.) Is he the MVP of this team? JAKE FISHER: He's an old guy, that's for sure. I think he's done a great job of just making sure we're prepared and making sure we're focused and getting off when he needs to and making it fun when it's supposed to be fun. Q. In meeting rooms does he come across cool and confident or does he ever seem frazzled? JAKE FISHER: You can kind of see when they're frazzled. They get on you quicker, they have a quicker switch. But not too bad. Q. (Inaudible.) JAKE FISHER: Not a whole lot. I think that he's done a great job preparing us mentally, physically, and staying on us, but the majority of it comes from us in the trenches just making sure it happens. Q. (Inaudible.) JAKE FISHER: It's going to be pretty special. Definitely going to be a special moment for our team and for myself, as well, and we're going to enjoy the moment. Q. Talk about going out this way and knowing there's so much on the line; pretty cool deal. JAKE FISHER: If you look at it like that, I think you stress yourself out too much. It's just a game with a ball, just as simple as that. If you make it any more than that you're going to stress yourself out, so I just try to focus on the things that I can, fix the things I can in myself for the game, and try to go out there and play it out. Q. (Inaudible.) What kind of sold you on the idea of (inaudible)? JAKE FISHER: I've seen the success that they've had in the past years, and I've seen what they kind of represent, and that's what I wanted to be a part of. Q. Were there any schools that (inaudible)? JAKE FISHER: In mostly every single game we've played since I've been here. Obviously there were those games that we're probably going to win. The majority of those that we're going to win. But I feel like the tough games we're really doubted and we're always the underdog. I think that that kind of sparks our play when people say that, which is only going to benefit us. Q. Is it frustrating (inaudible)? JAKE FISHER: Yeah. Q. Would you describe yourself as a prospect, a developmental guy? JAKE FISHER: Very underrated. I guess I was highly recruited near the end but not super crazily. Underrated and ready to work. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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