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ROSE BOWL GAME: IOWA VS STANFORDDecember 28, 2015Cole FisherPasadena, California Q. What do you know about this Stanford offensive line and just the fronts in general? COLE FISHER: If you look at them, they're an experienced group. I think almost all of them are seniors and returning seniors, or returning starters. Really big guys, and they've really shown that they run this offense, this type of offense, really well. Q. Have you seen this play, the one where we got the pulling guard going out and takes out a safety? As a defender what's your initial reaction to that, knowing you're going to be going up against that? Josh [Garnett] is 320 and he has speed. COLE FISHER: Um, you know, the kind of thing, when you play enough games, I think, at this level is everyone kind of meshes -- I guess everyone is very similar to the line. Everyone has got big linemen, everyone has got speed on the line. For years we all practiced against Brandon Scherff, last year the Outland Trophy winner, and I don't think I've gone up against anyone who's hit as hard as that guy. So I guess I've seen the best. Not to downplay or anything what he's done, but it's just when you go against somebody, it seems like everyone is good, I guess is what I'm trying to say. Q. So what sets apart truly elite offensive linemen then, or just an offensive line in general? COLE FISHER: You know, it's just -- I think it's when you get them all working together. They know maybe when they see different fronts, they still know where to go on the blocks. When people don't let up when you want them to, that's when it causes confusion on the line, and I think these guys have shown all year long how versatile they are in all the fronts they've seen, and they can still react and play different fronts. Q. You hadn't really heard about Christian McCaffrey until all the Heisman stuff came out. Why do you think that is? COLE FISHER: I mean, that's being in the Midwest. I just never really watched a lot of Pac-12 games just because they just start so late back at home. I think they're after midnight for us. It's just a geographical thing in my mind. Q. Do you think given the stage for you guys to try to stop him, does that give you a little extra incentive? COLE FISHER: I mean, yeah, I guess. Just the whole atmosphere of this, being in the Rose Bowl and playing the Pac-12 champion, and they've got a Heisman finalist on their team, the whole situation is just all motivation, I guess, for all of us. Q. On tape what stands out about this offense more? COLE FISHER: Just like I said, what I've said about this whole offense is that they have a game plan going in and they don't switch much from it. They know what they're good at, and they stick to it. I think they've shown that in a lot of the film that I've seen. Q. I think Jaleel [Johnson] was saying earlier about how Stanford, you could almost predict what play was going to happen based on formation. Would you agree with that? COLE FISHER: Yeah, they do have some formations, they have some tendencies, but that's everything. They're not 100 percent, but it's just something you can kind of go off of and get an idea of what they might be running. Q. So a lot of the Stanford offensive guys said that your defense doesn't really throw too many complicated looks but you guys are really good at executing what you do. I think Stanford's offense would pretty much describe itself like that, too, just good at execution. Does that make the preparation for you guys easier, or how does that happen? COLE FISHER: No, not necessarily. I guess they don't throw too many crazy looks at us, which makes it easier to sit here and practice. We don't have to go through 10,000 different looks. But really, this game is going to fall back on who plays the better fundamental football, who gets the best reads. It's not going to be anything crazy I don't think. I don't know how many explosive plays there will be. It's just going to be fun football. Q. A pro-style offense, is it kind of a been-there, done-that feel? COLE FISHER: Yeah, I guess so. Our offense does that, as well, so I guess that's the only thing I've ever seen. Q. Running against the scout team, do you think that preps you pretty well for this? COLE FISHER: Yeah, that's one of the main things that's has given us such a successful season is that we have a great scout team. They've given us fantastic looks each and every week. Q. How do you try to emulate Christian McCaffrey on the scout team? COLE FISHER: I mean, you know, a Heisman finalist is going to make it tough, but the guys are trying their best, and I think they're giving us good looks. Q. Who's been simulating him? COLE FISHER: There's been a couple of guys. [Eric] Graham has been the main one. But they've given it to three or four different guys. Q. Stanford, you're the smart engineering guy. We talked to them for about an hour today, and they have a very sophisticated offense. Do you see that, as well? COLE FISHER: Yeah. What happens with them is they don't have too elaborate of an offense, but they're very good at what they do, and they don't stray from their game plan too much. I think it's kind of similar to us in a way, and I think it just shows when you get the right group of guys playing together and they really mesh well, basically on both sides what they can do. Q. How about their quarterback; seems like he's a real smart guy, and I think that's probably why they're so good on third down. What does it take to outwit a guy like that who's been there four years? COLE FISHER: Well, you've just got to really hone in on your keys, maybe try to look at the formations, see if they have any tendencies in there, definitely down and distance and passing situations. There's tendencies usually in third and 4-6, third and 7-plus. It's kind of one of those things where you really want to put a lot of effort into seeing, maybe getting an edge on what they've run in the past, what they like to go to in certain situations. Q. Who do you think is going to take your spot next year? I see [Aaron] Mends and [Jack] Hockaday; what do they bring? COLE FISHER: Aaron, coming in this year, people weren't really sure how good he'd really be, but I think he's excelled this whole entire year, just gotten better and better. He's got the physical tools to be just crazy good, the amount of power and speed that he brings is nothing that I've seen since I've been here. I remember when he came in as a freshman, he asked if he could lift with me, when we were doing like bench and clean, and I was looking at him like you can't, I don't really want to be picking up the weights left and right the whole entire time. And he goes to his first set, and I think he put on weight on top of mine, and it's like, what is going on right now; who are you? And Jack is a guy that jumped out in front of the freshman pack really quick during fall camp, and he's a player I think -- he's got a really bright future, so it'll be interesting to see what goes on between those two. Q. Mends is still 212 pounds. I don't know if that's accurate, but -- COLE FISHER: I think it's more than that. Q. But he's consistently shown that strength and explosiveness? COLE FISHER: Yeah, I think he's already got the squad record, like 595. I mean, 130 pounds is like 121 to me. Q. You've got some records, too, right? COLE FISHER: I've always been more of a clean guy. Q. Are you coming out early? I'm just kidding. Stanford really prides itself on being a physical offensive line. You play against a physical offensive line every day. When you guys are defending a physical battle against an offense, what are some signs that you see, like, okay this guy is done? What are some physical signs that you see, or do you? COLE FISHER: Well, I've never really noticed that. Q. Like a guy maybe stops making eye contact with you or a guy stops talking? COLE FISHER: I've never really noticed that to be honest, throughout the season. I think it's maybe stuff just happens so fast during a game that I'm usually more worried about what keys I'm looking at or maybe if they have any tendencies in their formation and stuff. We're not paying attention to that too much. I've never really noticed it, I guess. Q. I imagine the first thing that you guys want to get off your chest is the 22-play drive. You guys don't want to have anything near that in this game I imagine. Are you guys eager to get out there and kind of exorcise that? COLE FISHER: Yeah, I mean, the Big Ten Championship, that's going to be one that stings all the players and the fan base for quite a while, just to get up so close and come up short, but at the same time, you've got to move on from it. It does you no good to stay in the past. You can learn from your mistakes. But other than that, you've just got to try to put it in the past and move on. We've done a good job of that so far. Q. Time of possession in this game on both teams are -- this is a time-of-possession game. How important is getting off the field with three-and-outs? COLE FISHER: Yeah, it's going to be huge in this game, just because of the way they've shown that when they get rolling, they just go -- and it's not even like -- not really explosive plays. They just do such a good job of, hey, we're second-and-4 right now, let's maybe try to get this to third-and-1, and their short-yardage offense is phenomenal, really nothing that we've been able to -- really hard to replicate, too, just the way they come off the ball is just so low. It's tough. That's why I feel like I always try to jump over it when I watch the film. It's one of those things that they're really good at what they do in short yardage. They try to get to a third-and-1 situation and it's hard stopping them then. Q. Efficiency is important in this game, too, getting that four-and-a-half yards on first down, probably whichever offense gets better at doing that probably wins? COLE FISHER: Yeah, yeah. And you know, our offense is really pretty good at that, too. They've had a great bowl prep, as well. Usually we don't like to brag about it, but when we go against the offense, we like to think of ourselves as maybe getting them most of the time. But they've done a good job with this bowl prep. Yeah, the competition experience has definitely become really heated. Q. They've caught up with you guys since August? COLE FISHER: Yeah, I guess -- Q. August was -- COLE FISHER: I'm sure if you ask them, they'll tell you differently. Whenever you get the No. 1s going against each other and get the coaches yelling back and forth -- Q. (Inaudible) is fun when he talks a little trash. COLE FISHER: Yeah, kind of fires up the rest of the team, too. Q. Curious, people always say that Stanford is the Big Ten team in the Pac-12. Do they remind you of that? COLE FISHER: Yeah, I think they do. You look at a lot of Pac-12, you look at Oregon, USC, and a lot of other explosive offenses, they're not really too much power. I've always thought when I hear of a power offense, I think of the Big Ten, not that other teams don't have it in the SEC or Big 12 or anything, it's just that's what comes to mind for me. It's Big Ten football when you have a power offense. Q. If it's a power offense, what specifically do you see that you think makes them successful? COLE FISHER: You know, when it comes with -- I think the key to make a power offense really is when you have a solid line who is faced with different fronts, that hardest thing for an offensive line from what I've heard is that when you get looks, where guys aren't where they think they're supposed to be, and then trying to get everyone to block their people, it's not only when you get a combination of that, and then their backs are patient waiting for the gaps to open, because with a power offense is everything can be money. It could be a split-second, there's the hole. When you get those two together, I think they've shown that they're a force to be reckoned with. Q. Have you been out here before? COLE FISHER: I've been to California once. Q. You guys went out yesterday -- COLE FISHER: We went out yesterday a bunch. It was definitely weird seeing people all bundled up when it was 50 degrees out. Q. Even though he's got the bowl decision looming over his head, does that sort of match with what you've seen out of him? COLE FISHER: Yeah, he's a guy that he takes every game like it's the biggest game. Just prepares for it the same way. Treats it like a championship game, I guess. Obviously he's treated this game so differently. He's working even harder than he usually does. I don't expect him to have any kind of focus problem. I think he's going to be playing at the same level he's been playing at all around. Q. How many corners have you played against that are as complete as Desmond [King] has shown over his career at Iowa? COLE FISHER: I think personally the only one I can ever think of is Micah Hyde. He went on to have a very successful NFL career. Like I said, that personally comes to mind in terms of completeness. Q. I mean, let's face it, a lot of times guys are focused on picks and breakups and they can let that part of the game slide. COLE FISHER: Yeah. Q. Yet he gets his nose dirty from what I've seen from you guys, he'll get in there like you guys, linebackers. What's kind of funny, too, is that when you're -- COLE FISHER: When you're in offense, I guess their goal is to get effort from our offensive coaches, is to get the corners to make tackles, because that's not their main job, and he's shown all along it doesn't faze him at all. He gets in there and gets his nose dirty. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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