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ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY VIZIO: TCU v WISCONSINDecember 28, 2010Dick BumpasTejay JohnsonColin JonesPASADENA, CALIFORNIA THE MODERATOR: All right. We're going to go ahead and get started. Again, as a reminder, we've got wireless mics on both sides, so if you could please state who your question is for. And Coach, if you wouldn't mind giving us an opening comment. COACH BUMPAS: We at TCU are very proud to be here. We're very excited about the opportunity to play in the Rose Bowl, and we're looking forward to a great game. THE MODERATOR: All right. We'll open it up for questions. Q. Coach, is there a team that you can compare Wisconsin to that you've played this year as far as their offensive style? COACH BUMPAS: (Laughs). Probably the Green Bay Packers back in their heyday. (Laughs). They're without a doubt one of the most powerful explosive offenses that I've seen in quite some time. In fact, I think Barry Alvarez compared this current team to the teams that Wisconsin had in their Rose Bowl years. Q. Dick, is there any added motivation for you going against Paul Chryst, and what do you think of him? COACH BUMPAS: Oh, I think he's a wonderful offensive coach. I think he's very innovative in what he does. He's taken the running game, I think, to a new level. The things that they do schematically causes you a lot of problems, so it'll be a very interesting afternoon. Q. Dick, can you talk about how you guys recruit for this system on defense, in terms of just looking for athletes, not necessarily positions? COACH BUMPAS: We've had a lot of young men that we've brought into the program that have gone to other positions. And the one thing that we always look at is can the young man run, and if he can, then that's a good basis to start for a lot of positions. And consequently, when they get here, then we look and feel which way they can or where they best fit in. And it's worked very well for us. Q. Dick, when you as a coach work with a guy who's a defensive-minded head coach, does that change your responsibilities in terms of calling, or is that responsibility delegated to the head coach because of his prior background? COACH BUMPAS: Oh, yeah. He's very actively involved in the call. He makes a lot of the calls, and you know, he was a great defensive coach certainly before I ever got there, and he certainly still is now, so that's that. Q. Is it a good thing or a bad thing in terms of what you do as a defensive coordinator, because I think there's a perception that when guys as coordinators work for coaches whose specialties was on offense or defense, that you're not getting to do as much as you want to do. Is that true or false? COACH BUMPAS: Well, Gary and I have worked together really now four different places. And the roles have changed, and he's now the head guy and I'm the Indian, and I think he's a great coach. Q. Coach, would you attribute the success of the defense -- it's been 10 years now -- to the scheme or the players you got for you? COACH BUMPAS: Players. Players. Definitely players. (Laughs). Because we do some innovative things, or I think they're innovative things, but the reality of it is when the rubber meets the road, it's the players that are having to make those plays. And so I think all our success is due to our players. Q. Compared to other defenses, do you think it's an easier or harder defense for players, for young kids to learn? COACH BUMPAS: (Laughs). It's pretty -- it's pretty sophisticated in terms of what they -- because they themselves do a lot of audibles. In fact, Tejay is the quarterback for us, and what he has to know and what he has to see is really pretty -- we have a lot of staffs come in, and they're a little bit overwhelmed about what our players do. Q. This is question is for Colin or Tejay, either one. When the season began, you guys had some pretty big changes and losses on defense, but specifically the secondary. It looked like the way you guys called that first game against Oregon State changed a lot as the season went on in terms of zone coverage and things like that. Do you think the coordinators, specifically head coach Gary Patterson, trusted you guys in the secondary to do a little bit more man stuff and allow you guys to bring a little bit more pressure up front, as a result putting more pressure for you guys to hold your coverages longer and then more single-coverage? COLIN JONES: Well, I think the game plan for each game is different. So I'm not sure specifically. Tejay? TEJAY JOHNSON: I think he does have a lot of trust in the secondary, on the back end, just by the way we prepare and practice and prepare for different calls and change-up calls puts us in great position to play what he calls. Q. Colin, you guys, you kind of had a role reversal with Tyler Luttrell this year. How good does it feel to be such an integral part to the defense when last year was really kind of wasted for you after an injury? COLIN JONES: Well, I think you just have to be prepared for your opportunity when it happens, regardless of who it is, and be supportive and just do your best when you're out there. Q. Dick, in your coaching career, were you always this wedded to the idea of being able to run, and if not, what was it that converted you to this way of thinking? COACH BUMPAS: Well, I have always liked players who could run fast. I mean really, you have to look at the people that are available that you have on campus and then fit what you do to what they do. And obviously at TCU one of the things Coach Patterson has done a great job is recruiting speed. So therefore, we have an edge as far as playing other teams because as a rule most of our players on defense run really well. Q. When they have the ball, is it going to be as simple as your speed against their power? COACH BUMPAS: Oh, no. I mean that's like a Ferrari and a dump truck. I mean we are fast, but the reality of it is when the dump truck is going straight ahead, it's a dangerous weapon. And we're going to have to do a good job of playing well at the point of attack and being good tacklers because their backs are extremely good. Q. I'm still writing down about the dump truck, but in your career, Dick, what sticks out as possibly similar to game planning for this running attack? COACH BUMPAS: Well, the most amazing thing to me is when I look at stats of the backs, I mean they virtually have 3000-yard rushers on the same team, which is just phenomenal. And as you watch the film, you know, game after game, those guys are just romping and stomping up-and-down the field. So it presents a unique challenge for us. Q. Anything stand out as a comparison over the years that you have a game plan for? COACH BUMPAS: Not really. They're just a really good football team. Q. For Tejay and Colin, when a team runs the ball like Wisconsin does with so many different backs, how does that change your guys' responsibility as a safety in any way? TEJAY JOHNSON: It doesn't change much depending on which back is in there. We game plan for the offense, and just to take away things that they do and just try to execute depending -- I mean no matter which back is in. COLIN JONES: 32 is more the power guy, and 28 and 20 bring a little more speed, but bottom line, it comes down to tackling and keeping great leverage. Q. Dick, it seems like you ask a lot of your safeties to make a lot of tackles. Could you talk about the challenge against bigger backs to do that all game long, especially in the fourth quarter? COACH BUMPAS: Well, that's the point. That's the one thing, we have to do a great job of tackling, because if we don't, it'll be a long afternoon. Q. Coach, could you talk about the job that Colin Jones has done? First game of the season, Luttrell goes down and he's back in the starting lineup. How big a deal that is for a coach, you've now got two guys that are interchangeable really? COACH BUMPAS: Oh, yeah. And both of them are great young men. Both of them have accepted the roles, and they cheer for each other, so it's very motivating for us because when one goes down, the next one steps in and vice versa. It's been real rewarding to watch both of them play during the season, and I have a great deal of respect for both of them. Q. Colin and Tejay, can you talk about the changes this week that you've experienced as opposed to last year in the Fiesta Bowl, how you've approached it differently, how the team seems different, anything like that? Start with you, Tejay? TEJAY JOHNSON: For starters, the whole attitude of the coaching staff, you know, practices are really intense, you know. And just from a player's standpoint, everybody is a little more cognizant of what they're doing and the habits that they're keeping throughout the week. COLIN JONES: Everybody seems really focused, and practice is the No. 1 priority, and to win the game is also the No. 1 priority, so I just see everybody working hard to get that done. Q. This is also for Tejay and Colin, but I know you're here now and it's real and everything, but was there a point in time when TCU was first slotted for the Rose Bowl that you thought, "oh, my God, we're in the Rose Bowl?" I mean I imagine that's something that you didn't think about when you were freshmen and coming to TCU. TEJAY JOHNSON: It's not anything I thought about when I was a freshman, but when the opportunity came and we were selected for the Rose Bowl, it was really exciting news and experience. COLIN JONES: Yeah. It really is pretty cool, especially going to visit yesterday. It doesn't get much better than that. Q. Guys, for either one of the players, one of the things you notice when watching the Rose Bowl game itself is how the field always looks, and I know they brought in some grass and all that. Did you guys notice when you guys did go to the Rose Bowl Stadium itself, did the grass feel or look any different than any other turf you've played on, because it always looks like you could eat off of it, it seems. TEJAY JOHNSON: Yeah, it looked a little different, a little greener. But I don't know, I couldn't feel any real difference because I didn't have cleats on. But it definitely looked different. COLIN JONES: It did. It looked like a prom fairway. (Laughs). Q. This is for the players. Do either one of you guys have a favorite Rose Bowl memory? COLIN JONES: That we've made out here? Q. From a previous game? COLIN JONES: The win at Utah for sure. After we lost there two years ago to go back to the same place and get the big win was pretty exciting. Q. I think he meant memory from a Rose Bowl game, that you've seen in a Rose Bowl game in the past. TEJAY JOHNSON: I'd probably say the run-in for the National Championship. THE MODERATOR: Any further questions? All right, guys. Thanks. End of FastScripts |
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