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TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL: STANFORD v OKLAHOMA STATEDecember 28, 2011Andrew LuckGLENDALE, ARIZONA Q. Give us an opening comment here about your coming to the Fiesta Bowl? ANDREW LUCK: It has been great. It has been first class. Wonderful hotel. Wonderful people. I know all the guys are excited. We are looking forward to playing a great Oklahoma State team. Preparation has gone well and we are just excited. Q. I know your mind is on the game here against Oklahoma State. If you can indulge us in a couple questions about the NFL at this point. On the final week of the season, you said all along all year that you didn't have any preference over which team you wound up with. Now it has come down to the last week of the season. Do you still feel that way? It is between the Colts and the Rams. If the Colts lose, obviously they get the topic. Are you hoping that the Colts lose so you can get reunited with Peyton Manning? ANDREW LUCK: My preferences haven't changed. Wherever I land it will be great. I am not rooting for one team to win or lose or whatever. So I'm not going to say I don't care about it because I do care about football. Wherever I end up, I'm sure it will be the best spot for me. Q. Have you considered the plus things for each of the Rams and the Colts in your mind? ANDREW LUCK: To be honest, no. Q. You haven't even considered it? ANDREW LUCK: I didn't even know who the other team was. Who knows if I will be the first pick or not. That's a lot of time until then. I don't really think about it. Q. I bet you a dollar you are the first pick. ANDREW LUCK: I can't do that. NCAA student‑athlete. Q. Did you give OSU a serious look? ANDREW LUCK: I remember going to one of their camps in Houston and meeting Coach Gundy and a lot of the coaches. But beyond that, I think just didn't really go beyond that. Q. So when you were in 8th, 9th grade, at that point were you open to going anywhere or playing anywhere? Were you at that point thinking you want to play in the Big12? ANDREW LUCK: In 8th and 9th grade I wasn't thinking about college football. That was pretty young. When I started getting recruited my sophomore year‑‑ I never narrowed it on one part of the country. I moved around a lot growing up so, I think I had the travel bug in me. Maybe it was almost more destined to get away from that area. Q. So in hindsight, it turned out well for you obviously. Are you now kind of stunned that Texas and A&M weren't a little more aggressive? ANDREW LUCK: No, recruiting is a funny business. Who can tell how a 17‑, 16‑year‑old kid is going to pan out. Obviously it has worked out for me and a lot of kids that have gone to all the universities. Q. A year ago your dad hired their offensive coordinator. Were you consulted on that? Did he ask for an opinion from you on that offensive? ANDREW LUCK: No, he didn't (laughter). He keeps me sort of abreast of what's going on in West Virginia. I know he is very excited and happy with Coach Holgorsen. Q. You have seen West Virginia and Oklahoma State. Have you pictured yourself in that kind of offensive, all those options and throwing every down? Do you think about it? ANDREW LUCK: Not really. I love the offense I'm in. I feel very happy. I don't daydream too much about that. Q. To go off the recruiting stuff, what was your perception of Oklahoma State while you were maybe in highschool and thinking about where you wanted to play college football? How has that changed they have gone on this run just like you guys? ANDREW LUCK: I thought they had a program committed to winning. I remember they were going through a big push when I was in highschool remodeling a stadium and I was inundated with information about that. You could tell they were very committed to becoming a winning program, and they have done that in the past couple years with great players. I think they had a great Houston quarterback, Bobby Reid, and all the kids were interested in him. I remember being impressed with the program when I was recruited. Q. When you look at them defensively, what stands out? ANDREW LUCK: Opportunistic is the word. I know they might get a knock for giving up yards or whatever, Y, Y, Z. 42 takeaways on the year and they have won a bunch of games. Not just because they have a great offense but they have a defense. When they need a stop, they will get a stop. When they need a pick 6, it shows up. They get a pick 6 on film. Very opportunistic. Q. Is it business as usual or have you done adjustments to meet their defensive shortcomings? ANDREW LUCK: You have to adjust every game to be successful and find out what a weakness is and a strength is of the opposition. But that being said, that has been business. We always try and adjust things, but still maintain the core‑‑ or your identity on offense. It is business as usual, but you do have to adjust to certain things. Q. (Question regarding Brandon Weeden)? ANDREW LUCK: Obviously I don't get to watch film on the quarterback, but I am more concerned with the defense. I met Brandon. I have known him for a couple years. Wonderful guy, great character. Just watching highlights and maybe games on T.V. He can really hum it and he puts that offense in the great position every time he is on the field and can make all the throws. Q. How much does it mean in your offense to have the three tight end package back intact for the first time since Game 5? ANDREW LUCK: Hopefully it will mean a lot with Zach, Coby and Levine on the field. It presents interesting matchup programs. You can bring them down tight or spread them all out. Hopefully we will take advantage of those three guys on the field. Q. When they are out there from an audible standpoint, does that give you the ability to do some stuff with some different packages? ANDREW LUCK: What's great about having three tight ends on the field, there are only so much defensive looks you can give. You can sort of‑‑ not dictate what's going to happen, but sort of be prepared for howsomeone is going to line up to a three tight end set. At that makes it easier as a quarterback to see what type of play to get into. Q. What do you like about those three guys individually? ANDREW LUCK: They all very different. Levine, if you overthrow Levine or throw it too high, you should stop playing quarterback as Coach Pep tells us. 6'8", you should hit him. Coby can make great plays. And Zach can make plays in the end zone. Q. (Indiscernible)? ANDREW LUCK: I love the guy to death. I wish he could play with us again. Obviously he has got to protect himself and his future. As a friend, not just a teammate, but as a friend, very sad. Q. What about this game, what's going to be the key for you guys to move the ball? ANDREW LUCK: Not making mistakes, protecting the football. I mentioned earlier, they had 42 takeaways. Executing, that's the name of the game. Q. How many kids were in your class at Stratford, graduating class? ANDREW LUCK: 450 maybe. Q. Did you have to speak? ANDREW LUCK: No. Q. I just wondered if that would have been more difficult than anything you have had to do being 18? ANDREW LUCK: Probably would have been. Q. Can you just talk about growing up in Europe and how it influenced you? ANDREW LUCK: It was a great experience. I got to see a lot where my parents' families came from. I saw the second aunts and uncles living in Germany. So I saw the heritage of the family. It was nice. Opened my eyes to different cultures and different things. I feel very blessed and grateful. But it does come‑‑ coming back to America does make you appreciate this country that much more as well. Q. Each your parents, can you talk about their influence on you? ANDREW LUCK: They have been great. Start with my mom, obviously she is always there for me. She does everything I need in her mind. So it is great. And then my dad, he is always‑‑ he obviously played football as well and still works sort of in a football capacity. He has been there more as a father as opposed to a football coach or meddling in those affairs. Q. Ultimately were you drawn to the Stanford culture or Coach Harbaugh? ANDREW LUCK: I think it was a combination of both. Stanford as a university I think academically it speaks for itself. And Silicon Valley and all the opportunities business‑wise, social culture, it's great. Coach Harbaugh and all the guys on the staff, Coach Shaw included, they are committed to changing the program and becoming a winning, competitive team. So without that football coach, I don't know if Stanford would have been so enticing. Q. Are you blown away by what Harbaugh has pulled off in his first season? ANDREW LUCK: Mildly surprised, but I was thinking about it recently and I shouldn't have been. He did the same thing at Stanford‑‑ maybe it took a couple more years to get it going, but he definitely has that magic touch. Q. Was that pretty natural just to transition into Coach Shaw? ANDREW LUCK: Absolutely. He always had a big presence on the staff as it was. He was well liked by all the guys. Offensively, it is the same system. Obviously things change year to year even if you have the same coach. But the same verbiage and all that stuff. Guys were comfortable offensively with that. As far as day‑to‑day operations and how things went, it was all the same so it was very, very smooth. Q. Was it a stressful time at all for you and the other guys a year ago not really knowing what was going to happen? ANDREW LUCK: A little bit. Our athletic director, Bob Bowlsby, had an open policy where any player could come in and voice their opinion or ask questions, which I think sort of eased maybe the apprehension of a bunch of the players. But it is a little stressful. But we had faith that we would get a great coach. Obviously it worked out very well with Coach Shaw. Q. Does it make a big deal that he played there and went to school there? ANDREW LUCK: Absolutely. You call him a Stanford man, perse. But he understands maybe a lot of the situations student‑athletes at Stanford may get themselves into. May be a little harder for a guy who didn't get to school there. But you can tell he has a lot of respect for the university and really loves it. Q. Some people think Stanford will fall off the football map after you leave. What do you think this team is going to be like next year and in the future? ANDREW LUCK: I think they will still be very, very competitive, hopefully better. Hopefully go out and win a national championship. I think the groundwork, the framework has been set for a competitive team. I think we have got recruiting classes that were better than my class. A lot has been written by Jonathan Martin and DeCastro and Delano Howell. I think they will continue to get better and improve. Q. I have read that Texas did recruit you to some extent, but wasn't very aggressive. Is that fair? ANDREW LUCK: You could say that. Q. Was there ever an outright offer from UT? ANDREW LUCK: No. Q. Never? ANDREW LUCK: Mm‑mm. Q.  Did you have any interest in playing at the same school your dad is at? ANDREW LUCK: No. For some reason, no‑‑ maybe it was the thing where you don't want to follow completely in your father's footsteps. I never really wanted to go to West Virginia. Q. How did he handle giving you advice up on the way? Not only where you should go to college but now looking forward? ANDREW LUCK: I think he takes the approach‑‑ he wants me to make all the decisions. He is there for me if I have a question. I think he trusts myself and all my siblings to make the right decisions or the right decision in his mind. He is always there to answer a question or give an opinion. If he feels like an opinion is needed‑‑ and I'm not asking‑‑ he will give it to me. He let's us make all the decisions. Q. Does having him in the same business, sotospeak, help you? ANDREW LUCK: I think so. Obviously he has walked that path before, whether it is highschool to college or to the next level. He knows a lot of people. He can‑‑ if he didn't have an answer to a question, the answer is a phone call away from someone else in the business. It is definitely helpful. It is interesting for me to talk to him about what he has to deal with and the decisions he has to make. Q. What do you see yourself doing with your architectural degree? ANDREW LUCK: I don't know. To practice architecture I would have to go to grad school for a couple more years. That would be the first step before practicing it. Q. But, I mean, even depending how your football career plays out, is it something you want to do? ANDREW LUCK: Yeah. Obviously I want to be a professional football player. That would be great. That's my dream. But after that or if it doesn't work out, yeah, I think I would definitely like to go back to grad school and practice architecture. Q. This was somewhat of a quasi home for Frank Lloyd Wright. What do you think about his work? ANDREW LUCK: I noticed Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard. It is right next to the hotel. I think Taliesin East is one of his schools. Obviously one of the best American architects you could argue. We study a lot of his work in history classes. Very interesting. Q. I read at some point maybe because your travels or whatnot, you were interested in stadium construction and that sort of thing? ANDREW LUCK: Yeah. I think being an athlete too stadiums are interesting. My dad worked in NFL Europe. I would go on a trip to Edinburgh or Barcelona. And living in London, you get to the old Highbury Park and things of that nature. So I was always interested in stadiums and the different feels of each one. Q. You made a decision to come back this year. Obviously it is a personal decision. Can you reflect on that and what you think looking back on that decision you made almost a year ago? ANDREW LUCK: No regrets for sure. Which is not to say I have enjoyed every minute. There are things you wish you didn't have to go through. But no regrets. I try not to let myself to think what if, why am I doing this when I could be doing X, Y, Z. Definitely no regrets. I feel like I have grown and matured a lot through the whole thing. Q. Do you think you knew everything you needed to know as far as those things that made you think why you are doing this? Did you inherently know those when you asked those questions? ANDREW LUCK: I wasn't living a fairytale. Maybe I'm a little naive on some things. I knew it wasn't going to be a cakewalk every day. That's part it. Q. What are you most glad you came back for? ANDREW LUCK: If we had terrible season, it would be pretty rough. I'm glad we won and have the opportunity to go out and play in the great BCS Fiesta Bowl. Obviously it is fun to be with your teammates and everything of that nature and live college. Q. Did you feel like you were rolling the dice with the success, or did you have a good feeling that you guys were going to have success? ANDREW LUCK: I think we have a good team. That's evidenced by some of the guys that you will see drafted in this upcoming draft and the guys who maybe come back and again‑‑ I knew we had a lot of good players and definitely improve on last year. Q. Is it a strange experience to be living your life and playing college in Stanford to get clips and hearing stuff about the whole National Football Legal is just consumed with who is going to get Andrew Luck and which team you are going to and what are they going to do? Both of them have a quarterback of their own. Are you able to segment that or look at it and laugh? How do you handle that? ANDREW LUCK: I don't live in a cave, so I hear things, watch and see things, whatever. I think when you are surrounded by good teammates, if you get on a high horse, thinking about things you are not supposed to be thinking about. They did do a good job of keeping ourselves grounded. I try to an avoid in getting caught up in what will happen a couple months from now. For me college football is important. I came back to play college football. It wasn't too hard to maybe push those distractions aside and focus on winning college football games and understanding whatever happens, the next level will happen. There is time to think about it after the season and prepare for that. Right now I would be doing a disservice to the university, the coaches, the players by getting caught up in that hoopla. Q. How do your teammates keep you grounded? ANDREW LUCK: They are with me, just like anybody else. Just make sure you are‑‑ everybody is on the same page. Q. What did you think about Barkley's decision to come back relative to yours. ANDREW LUCK: I think different situations. I'm happy for him. I'm sure he made the decision for the right reasons. I am a sure he will enjoy a lot of success for that decision. I'm happy for him and wish him all the best. Q. Do you think you will be better prepared for the NFL because of what you have gone through this year? ANDREW LUCK: I definitely think so. I have learned a lot football‑wise. That's a testament to the coaches like Coach Pep in the quarterback room and getting to talk to him for another year and just getting more experience. I definitely think I will be hopefully better prepared. Q. You can't make that decision worrying about injuries. ANDREW LUCK: No. Q. You have to make it and go on. ANDREW LUCK: Absolutely. Absolutely. That's a big part of it. Q. Growing up the son of a NFL quarterback, has it always been part of "I might go play in the NFL if I wanted to"? Has that always been a part of your life? ANDREW LUCK: I think so. I always wanted to‑‑ it is not that I assumed I would show up and be decent at football. I think that was something I always wanted to do. It is obviously every kid's dream to throw the winning pass in the Super Bowl or national championship game or whatever. I always sort of figured if I put the work in, then I will have a chance to maybe do this for real. Q. When did you know you were a pretty good football player? ANDREW LUCK: I don't know. It is different in high school and college. My redshirt freshman year in college, sophomore year, you know, I had a great back in Toby Gerhart. We started winning games. I might be pretty decent, I thought. Q. You didn't necessarily think that when you were in Houston? Was it more of dream then? ANDREW LUCK: Yeah, I think so. I think so. You are young in high school. You have so many other things going on. The opportunity to play college football on a scholarship was the end all at that time for me. Q. Do you have an advantage because of your dad's experience in a way that I think Peyton and Eli had an edge on just how to handle things, how to deal with college recruiting, college coaches, NFL scout, everything? I think Archie has helped them, and I assume your dad has helped you. ANDREW LUCK: It is definitely not a disadvantage. He has been in a lot of situations I think I find myself in or I find down the road get into it. I think I said earlier, he also knows a lot of people in this business, having worked in it for a while now. If he didn't have the answer for something or experience with something, he can easily call someone up and get his advisor, give me a number to call. It definitely helps, just watching him, how he handles media or things of that nature. It has been a big plus. Q. Did you have any kind of crazy experiences when you were in Europe? Things that stand out in your mind now? ANDREW LUCK: Crazy experiences in Europe? Q. Just things that you wouldn't have had growing up in the States. ANDREW LUCK: When I hear "crazy European experience," that's one of those things (laughter)... Q. Sounds like a National Lampoon movie. ANDREW LUCK: I know (laughter). I remember going to an Arsenal game at their stadium as a young boy with my dad. Probably heard 50 words I had never heard before. I think that was my first introduction to how passionate fans are towards their teams, whether it is soccer, football, rugby, baseball, whatever. So that was an interesting experience. Q. What did your dad impart to you that has been advice you've carried? Maybe it's mechanical, maybe it's psychological, I don't know. ANDREW LUCK: I think just to respect people. Simple things like that. Just to respect people. Q. Not even football related stuff necessarily? ANDREW LUCK: He has always been there more as a father than a coach. He has never‑‑ even in middle school, he wouldn't meddle in the middle school coach's affairs, which I appreciate because I think it makes it a lot easier to come home after practice and game. Which is not to say if I had a question, he would definitely answer it. He was always more of a father and let the coaches do the coaching. Q. He never coached you? ANDREW LUCK: He did Pop Warner, 4th, 5th grade. Beyond that, with the school system and everything, it was up to the coaches. Q. Your dad is about to be an opponent of these guys, Oklahoma State, is he fired up about the Big 12? ANDREW LUCK: Absolutely. He is excited about it. He got to talk to him, not too much. I am sure he would love to be in the Big 12 tomorrow. I know there is a process you have to go through. I think he is very excited and I think hopefully that will be the end of all the changes and whole conference for a while. He is very excited. Q. He also hired these guys's offensive coordinator. Do you know much about Holgorsen or his impact on the program? ANDREW LUCK: I think he is excited and happy. Obviously they are in a BCS Bowl. I haven't met Coach Holgorsen. I am on the West Coast. Virginia is a ways away. Hearing my dad talk, just asking him a couple questions, he is very excited, happy, and looks forward to a great future in the conference with Coach Holgorsen. Q. Can you talk about Coach Shaw? A lot of people were curious about how he would do. And it has been a great transition for you guys. ANDREW LUCK: He has been great. I have known him since high school. I was always impressed with his self‑control and how logical he was to every situation that seemed to spring up, from whether it was in football or with a player in a bad situation. I'm not surprised he's been this successful so far. He has been great for me, imparting football knowledge and just life lessons in general. He is a great guy, and I think he will continue to succeed. Q. Every coach has their style. I was talking to David about his style. It is a method every day. Is that what stands out to you about Coach Shaw? ANDREW LUCK: Absolutely. I think he may be perceived as laid back, but it is more just logical for how he approaches every situation. And I think he knows in his mind what's the right way to do it, the wrong way to do it. He makes sure we know the line has been drawn. If you cross that line in a bad way, you are going to be punished. He is methodical and logical about how he goes about his business. Q. Is there a moment with him this season that will stand out in your mind when you think about him 10 years from now, 20 years from now? ANDREW LUCK: I'm not sure. I have tried not to reflect too much about the season with the game coming up. I'm sure after the Fiesta Bowl I will be able to sit down and a thousand memories will flood in, I'm sure. I think how he has handled the success has been very impressive to me. He has never gotten full of himself in front of the team. He has done a very good job with that. Q. Can you talk to us about how the offense is patient and is willing to settle for three or four yards and to move methodically down the field as opposed to big plays like Oklahoma State tries to get? ANDREW LUCK: We would love to have plays like that every time. Every time you run a play, you want to score a touchdown. I think that goes back to the philosophy of running the football first. That has been the philosophy since I have been at Stanford. You want to run the football first. That sets up the passes as a quarterback. I know that. I don't get frustrated by maybe throwing it a little less than some other guys. I understand we are successful because I run the football. Guys buy into that philosophy. I don't think we want to settle for three or four yards every play. We want to score every time. He understands running the football is our identity. Q. That keeps Oklahoma State offense off as well because they can't put those methodical drives together. ANDREW LUCK: I think our defense likes getting a rest. And we like it when the defense gets a three and out and we get to go back on the field. Any time you can stay on the field and put long drives together, that's great. That goes back to running the football philosophy. Q. Do you think this game can impact your draft status at all either direction? Do you feel like you're set as far as‑‑ you said before: I don't know if I will be the number one pick. Do you look at that game in that way that NFL scouts are still watching my last college game or anything like that? ANDREW LUCK: It is important I play a good game. I think I have a good body of work. And obviously I want to be successful in this game. But I approach it trying to win more than impress anybody. Q. You talk about running the football and Barry J. Sanders. He has talked about you going around campus with you. Can you talk about your impressions of him and you remember him being on campus? ANDREW LUCK: Forgive me, I don't know if I can talk about recruits. Q. I think you can. I don't think coaches can. ANDREW LUCK: Is that the rule? Don't get me in trouble. Q. Strike this from the record if I'm wrong about that (laughter). ANDREW LUCK: Nice kid. Great guy. Very easy to talk to. I think he would be a great fit. Q. He said one of the things he liked when he was with you is that there was a level of anonymity on the campus. You got to be a student and a guy on campus. Have you felt that way on campus at Stanford? ANDREW LUCK: Absolutely. On campus we have the President's daughter, Michelle Wie, professional golfers. People respect each other's privacy. No one is going to bang on your dorm room or yelling across during class. It has been nice to get to sort of maybe live your life as a student‑athlete. Q. Have you had the crazies banging on your dorm room? ANDREW LUCK:  No. That's a little far. Q. What does Coby bring to your offense? He is such a unique threat as a tight end that averages 20 yards per catch. What does he bring to the table? ANDREW LUCK: He is somewhat of a matchup problem. He is a big. He is fast. He can jump. And he can block. He can split out wide. He can do a lot of things. He is definitely a matchup problem. He has committed himself to being a very good all‑around football player. Not just a pass rusher but a blocking tight end. So fun to see him continue to grow. Obviously I played with him for three years and been on the team four years with him. It is fun to watch him grow. He is just a good football player. Q. Coach said he was the third or fourth fastest guy on the team.  You don't think that of a guy that's 5' and 250 pounds. ANDREW LUCK: He is athletically blessed. He has a great work ethic to go with it. Q. From a fun standpoint, is it more fun to have a guy, you know, like Weeden, a guy, you know, that's pretty good slinging the ball on the other side in a Bowl game? Can be kind of fun? ANDREW LUCK: I think it is always fun to go up against guys‑‑ obviously the offense isn't, perse, going up against the opposing offense. Absolutely. As athletes, you want the challenge of the best guy, and he is obviously one of the best out there this year. Yeah, it is definitely fun. Q. You were asked about Little Barry. Do you involve yourself in recruiting? Do you say, Coach, if you got a guy you need me to show around a little bit, you are more than willing to give your free time in the recruiting area? Some guys of your stature might say I got some things to do here. Are you pretty freewheeling with that? ANDREW LUCK: I do what the coaches tell me to do. I don't know if I volunteer my time. Q. You wait to get called into the office? ANDREW LUCK: I think in every program when you are younger, you are a freshman, sophomore, you do your recruiting hosting responsibilities. I definitely did that. As you get older, you are called in every now and then to talk or walk around. If the coaches ask me to do something, yeah, I'm going to do it. I guess my first job is to play football, not a recruiter. Q. Can you talk about the Manning camps that you went with Weeden and how you developed a bond with him? ANDREW LUCK: Yeah, I think, one, he is just a very easy guy to get along with, easy to talk to. Easy to hang out with. I definitely enjoyed that. For all the college quarterbacks, it is like being in a candy shop that you get to sit in a room with the Mannings and hear their stories and maybe get their advice. So I think we all love that and just get to talk with them and hang out with Brandon. It has been a pleasure getting to know them. Q. What did you learn in the Manning camps and have incorporated into your game? ANDREW LUCK: I think hearing them talk about their preparation and how they‑‑ whether it is in the summer throwing routes to the receivers or how they approach watching film or throwing individually, I try to take how they approach things and apply it to your own game. Q. And you think that will extend on into the NFL career? ANDREW LUCK: I hope so. You always try to look at all the great‑‑ whether it is Aaron Rodgers or Drew Brees or the Mannings and see how they apply what they do to your game. Hopefully it extends beyond. Q. Do you watch any NFL quarterbacks now and look at their footwork that you try to get game tips off of? ANDREW LUCK: Absolutely. I try to watch as many NFL games as I can because obviously they are the pinnacle of this sport. And we have Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning and Drew Brees and Phillip Rivers' film. Those are most of the guys we watched in our film system. So during the season, we don't get to watch it as much as we would like obviously because we are focused more on what others are doing. But especially this year Aaron Rodgers and seeing what he is doing because obviously he is playing at a very high level. Q. The coaches pretty much took away your running game this year just to protect you more than anything else. In the last game, will they take the reins off and let you run, design runs? ANDREW LUCK: I don't know. There are probably 50 better runners on the team than me. So I rather put the ball in their hands and let them make a play. Throughout the year, when I have had to run maybe on a third down or to get a first down, I haven't hesitated to do so. I'm sure I will still be the same in the upcoming game. But as far as design runs, I don't think we will change the offense too much in terms of QB running. Q. Prior to this year, you had a number of long runs. One of them was to run down Eddie Pleasant after he recovered a fumble. ANDREW LUCK: Thanks for bringing that up (laughter). Q. I was going to bring it up because it was a tremendous play on your part. He was a fast DB and you ran him down after a 50‑yard run. Do you remember that play? What was going through your mind? ANDREW LUCK: I do. One, I hope Chris is okay. I think that was one of the plays where he got‑‑ Q. But while you were running? ANDREW LUCK: You hope he is okay and then you realize I got to do something to try to help the team. So helping the team at that point was trying to stop the ball carrier from getting into the end zone. Q. There has been a frenzy of agents trying to represent you. I am sure your parents are helping you with that. What has it been like? Can you give us a glimpse? ANDREW LUCK: I think I am very blessed that my mom and dad do handle pretty much 100 percent of it right now. That's the way I wanted it. Q. It must have been amazing for them, getting a call from every agent on the planet. ANDREW LUCK: Ignorance is bliss for me. I don't have time. I will go home for a week after the game and really sit down and hammer through what needs to get done. I think maybe it is their version of parents trying to protect their kid. Q. When are they coming out? ANDREW LUCK: 31st maybe. Q. I know you were injured. How much do you think this program has changed since then? ANDREW LUCK: I think it has been sort of an upward climb. I think we continue to get better. Obviously that year we had a great running back in Toby Gerhart and he did so many wonderful things. Guys realized we can be successful. It was good to go to a Bowl game and get that experience for a lot of guys and then realize we got to double our efforts if we want to go to a better Bowl. It was good at that time to have tangible evidence that we can be a winning program. Q. What does if mean to you that you have changed the culture at Stanford? ANDREW LUCK: It means a lot. It falls on the guys who have graduated and maybe didn't get to go to an Orange Bowl who sort of laid the foundation. You get a little more satisfaction out of being part of a team that has turned itself around than maybe coming to a place where you have won 15 years straight and gone 10 win seasons. I think guys do get a lot of satisfaction of winning at a place where you not supposed to win, perse. Q. Is that what Harbaugh sold to you when he recruited you? ANDREW LUCK: A little bit. A little bit. I think a lot of guys' inner motivation where they could come to a place where they would have it a little harder, tougher but it would be more satisfy. Q. Did you talk to your father about his school going to the Big 12? ANDREW LUCK: A little bit. Q. What has he said about it? ANDREW LUCK: He is very excited. I think he would love to be in it tomorrow if he didn't have to go through the legal process and the process. Q. It is huge for them, isn't it? ANDREW LUCK: It is a big deal. Q. If you had to break down the keys to your success offensively in this game, what would it be? ANDREW LUCK: I think one, execution like any other game. You have to go out there and execute. The coaches put us in a position and it is up to the players to execute. It falls on us. Two, taking care of the football. Very opportunistic defense. When the ball is in the air, if it is thrown to the ball spot, they will catch it and will make the play in returning it. So take care of the football. Execute. And obviously got to put points on the board. Especially when you are playing a team as high poured as Oklahoma State is. Q. Landry Jones is facing the same decision you had. What are your thoughts on what why you made your decision? ANDREW LUCK: I know Landry pretty well. I have roomed with him at camps and stayed in touch through text messages. As far as my decision, one, it felt right, inherently felt right. That was a big part of it too. I wanted to come back. School was important. I wanted to finish school. Three, I wanted to sort of prolong growing up for another year and live the college experience again, be with my teammates and trying‑‑ learn and grow as a football player some more before hopefully getting a shot at the next level. What I would tell Landry is if he is a religious man, pray about it, obviously talk to his family members and the people he cares about, his coaches, and then make the decision that he will be happiest with. Q. What you know about Landry Jones, is he ready for that next level? ANDREW LUCK: I think he is a great quarterback. I think he will be successful no matter what he does, if he stays or goes. Q. What do you see about Brandon Weeden that has impressed you? What kind of quarterback is he? ANDREW LUCK: Haven't seen much film on him, because I'm looking at the defense. From the highlights and the games we watch on T.V. throughout the year, he can make all the pros. He has a very strong, powerful arm. He seems to make great decisions every time he is on the field and put his offense in a good spot to win. I think he is definitely up there as one of the best quarterbacks in college football. Q. There were a few times last summer that some of the Big 12 was heading back to the Big Ten. Do you think this is a culture clash? ANDREW LUCK: This is just the way things are going to be. Massive mega conferences. I know there is a lot written about it and everything. I guess it was‑‑ and for us, I think players, we are in a position where it's‑‑ where we can't really control any of what goes on about that. Q. For a few days at least Texas and Oklahoma it seemed imminent. Did it feel that certain on the West Coast? ANDREW LUCK: I don't know if there was as much a media blitz about it at Stanford. Maybe that's because we weren't on the Internet reading it. Maybe because we were already in that spot. I don't know if it felt that imminent to the Big12 country that thought about leaving or talked about leaving. Q. I was curious about having Sam and David and Cameron, what's that adjustment process been? How have you seen it from your perspective and do you feel like it is there or that they really work well as a group right now? ANDREW LUCK: I think they definitely have all gelled together. They are one of the more interesting units on the football team. They don't want credit. They come to work and hang out with each other. They don't talk to anybody else during practice. They have gelled very well. I have been so impressed with those three, lining up alongside David and Jonathan who have established themselves as being premier football players. As much as any wanted to succeed for themselves, I don't think they wanted to let David or Jonathan down or the older guys on the team. They have done such a good job for that. I think when it comes game time, they are straining and pushing themselves. Sam on the interior, it is hard to come in and place a guy like Chase Beeler, an All‑American, who seemed to do no wrong. The play hasn't dipped down at all. That has to do with him and Sam making the right calls and getting the offensive linemen the right protection or run schemes. If I were a guard, I would try to model myself after David because of what he does. He has a very bright future. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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