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ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY VIZIO: STANFORD v WISCONSINDecember 29, 2012Chase ThomasPASADENA, CALIFORNIAS Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Practice and then we're having dinner at I think the Home Depot Center, and that's it. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: It was good. Q. Are you amazed at how much‑‑ CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, it's a lot of food. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: I made a lot of connections so far with their networking and stuff, but I might‑‑ there's a startup industry out in the Bay Area, just do like marketing and stuff like that. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: That's fine with me. Yeah. Q. When you guys face a team like this (inaudible)? CHASE THOMAS: No, I don't think so. I think probably the closest team we've faced to that would be Oregon, but completely different styles of offense. But I think their team, closest to them is facing our offense, facing our guys every day in practice during camp and stuff. That power running game is definitely something that we're used to seeing from our offense. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: You know, we've shut the run down early. If we show we can slow it down, eliminate the run in the first couple quarters, they're going to slow down, as well. As long as we do our job of shutting down the run, making them one‑dimensional and winning 1st and 2nd down, our defense should be fine. Q. (Inaudible.) Does that help the cause? CHASE THOMAS: No, I don't think so. A field is a field, and it's a completely different style of team. I don't think it really matters. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Communication. You know, we've got to communicate up front. We've got to make sure guys are aligned properly in the correct gaps, because like you said, they do a lot of‑‑ they'll do like six‑man sides with only two on the backside, so you've got to get lined upright, we've got to make sure every guy knows their responsibility and does their job well. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Not really. I think we're really more focused on their three running backs that they have and those big offensive linemen. Those are our primary concerns. Both their quarterbacks can make the right throws, not turn the ball over. They're both pretty similar. Q. What's the key to (inaudible)? You've been pretty successful at it. A.I think Coach Mason, our defensive coordinator, does a great job of putting us in a position to succeed. We're real aggressive, we like to blitz, we like to get after the quarterback and get in the backfield. But at the same time our guys do a good job of shutting off blocks and keeping our backers free and our secondary has been making plays all season long. It's really come together, the whole group, this season. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: No, I don't think three running backs, I think two is probably the highest. Q. They do a lot of outside stuff. CHASE THOMAS: Fly sweep with like 20 and 25 and then just take the ball and just run right down your throat. They've got every dimension pretty covered. Q. Talk about the team meeting after the Notre Dame loss. People have said they don't know that you'd be here without that meeting. CHASE THOMAS: So pretty much Coach Shaw got after us the practice after Notre Dame about not trying hard enough, and the fact that he had to mention that we're not practicing hard after a loss, that really didn't sit well with a couple of us, clearly the captains and seniors. So me, Schwartzstein and Stepfan Taylor, the next day had a little players' meeting in the locker room and really got the guys together and told them, hey, this season can go two ways: We can lie down right now and finish 8‑5 and go to like the Sun Bowl, or we can turn this thing around, start executing the way we know how, playing the type of game that we're used to playing around here, and the guys really accepted that challenge. They responded very well, and obviously so since we're here. Q. What specific changes did you think‑‑ was it mostly effort in practice? CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, I think it was effort, effort out on the practice field, dedication to studying film, in the weight room, making sure we got out to practice early, everyone was‑‑ we started fast every practice, and just those type of things that really do add up. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Yes, exactly. Q. When you look at this Wisconsin offense, how do you think it's improved? CHASE THOMAS: I think everyone is‑‑ they're clicking up front. They've got a sound offensive line in place now. Earlier in the year they were kind of rotating guys and now they've settled in with the group of guys they're most comfortable with. They know it works out. They know what type of plays they want to run, they know where to exploit defenses, and they've been real successful the past couple of games at doing that. Q. (Inaudible.) How do you prepare for both those guys? CHASE THOMAS: You make sure you're taking care of your responsibility. If you're responsible for the box, you take care of the box. If you're responsible for the outside, the perimeter runs, you've got to make sure you're there for that. Everyone has got to do their job and everyone has got to execute the way that we've been coached to, and if we do that, we should be all right. Q. On the offensive side do you feel like Wisconsin (inaudible)? CHASE THOMAS: Our team. Just seeing our offense every year, definitely going to help us out, just getting used to that power running game. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, I think so. They probably use a little more multiple option‑aligned fronts than we do, but at the same time we're used to all the shifts and all the motions and the downhill style running attack. Q. Talk about the demands on your time during bowl week. How is this different than any other week getting ready? A.It's a lot more busier. Back home you go to meetings and practice and go to a class or two, but that was it. Here we've got a whole schedule planned out for us. They had events for us the past couple of days, and now I think we're getting closer to the game it's going to start to slow down and we'll get our legs back and that sort of thing. But it's just more media stuff, I think more than during the week, too. Q. Can you point out for fans that don't know what this week is like what‑‑ CHASE THOMAS: Yesterday we went to a comedy improv club with three great comedians. I don't think any of these guys in this room have laughed that hard for a long time. Everyone's cheeks were just sore for like an hour afterwards. We got to go to Disneyland, skip all the lines, which was nice, and just get to the front. Also we went to the Clippers‑Celtics game the other night and got to sit up in like a box seat. They've definitely treated us really well down here. Q. Was it good to get your mind off of football for a little while? CHASE THOMAS: Definitely, it's nice to relax and refocus on something more‑‑ something else. But we know when it comes to meeting time or it comes to practice, we refocus in. Q. (Inaudible.) Do you feel you guys have taken that next step? Do you feel like you're among the elite in the country now? CHASE THOMAS: Definitely. There's probably only five or so schools out there that have been to three straight BCS games. We've only lost four games in the past three years, and that's definitely something our team is proud of. I know the nation still doesn't really buy into Stanford football, but sooner or later they will when they realize we don't go away. Everyone counted us out when Harbaugh level, when Gerhart left and when Andrew Luck left. To keep coming back, that's the style we are. We don't rebuild, we just replace. Q. Wisconsin is not much for airing it out. Are you guys definitely expecting to grind it out three yards and a cloud of dust type of game? CHASE THOMAS: Definitely. They're going to run the ball. They love to run the ball. We've got to slow them down, we've got to win on 1st and 2nd down, put them in 3rd‑ and‑long situation so they have to throw the ball, and that's where our front seven really gets after the quarterback. Q. Can they hit you with different speeds down the backfield? CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, they've got‑‑ of course they've got Ball, more the power runner right down your throat type of guy, and they've got No.20 and No.25 who both do like the speed sweep stuff around the edges and really test your speed on the perimeter, so you've got to be ready for both of those. Q. Talk about the offensive line. Do you think it's one of the more physical lines? CHASE THOMAS: It's definitely one of the biggest. I think they average like 6'6", 320 across the board. It's probably a little more than that. We'll see when it comes to game day how physical they are. We see on tape that they definitely move guys off the ball and recreate the line of scrimmage. It's definitely going to present a challenge for our guys up front. We have to dump blocks, we have to make sure we don't get pushed back and open up those creases for the ball to go to the running backs. It's definitely going to be a big challenge facing the offensive line. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Get off the block as fast as possible is probably the biggest adjustment you've got to do. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: It's definitely got to be harder on those guys. Any time you lose a coach right before a bowl game, your guys get distracted, your guys, they might lose faith or something. But they've got Barry Alvarez who's been in this spot before, played in multiple Rose Bowls. It's not like he doesn't know what he's doing. He's been the head coach of Wisconsin. They're not in bad hands. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Stop the run. We've got to win 1st and 2nd down and put them in 3rd‑and‑long situations and make them throw the ball. Q. Just curious, how comfortable do you guys feel in terms of recognizing what they like to do, especially all the shifts and motions? CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, I mean, we definitely have certain tendencies and based on what personnel they have on the field. When they line up, they like to toss the ball and they go to that six man surface a side, run a toss play. Certain things like that that we definitely picked up on watching film. Our coaches do a good job of relaying that information to us. We've faced a lot of shifts and motions from our offense, so we know how to get lined up to that sort of thing. When they do all those tackle over formations we have to make sure everyone lines up in the right gaps because that's how they beat people, they find their creases and they hit it. Q. In the championship game they had success with the sweep. CHASE THOMAS: Right. Q. (Inaudible.) What do you have to do to stop that? Is it the runs between the tackles, or is it stuff on the edge, or do you just have to be ready for both? CHASE THOMAS: You have to be ready for both. The guys that are responsible for the box need to take care of the box. The guys that are responsible for the perimeter need to take care of the perimeter. It works both ways. Our defense needs to look after their responsibility, what they're responsible for, and as long as the guys know what their job is and which side‑‑ everyone trusts the guy next to them so we know they're going to know what their job is and we should be all right in that category. Q. You guys gave up more rushing yards probably than you wanted to. I didn't see the games from start to finish, but it looked like sometimes they got you guys on the edges. (Inaudible.) What was going on that night when you guys weren't as sharp as you normally are? CHASE THOMAS: I think any time you've got to play a team twice, it creates a much bigger challenge, just like when you saw Wisconsin play Nebraska the second time, they were that much more successful, too. They know what works, they know what doesn't work, and they exploit those creases that they see in the first game. Like that long run by Franklin, that one just hit right in between the stunts. They had a great game plan for us. Coach Mora did a great job of getting prepared for us, and they really executed well, and we did a poor job of getting off blocks when we needed to. It was a little bit of both, but at the same time credit to them for really coming out ready to play. Q. Chase, youngster out of Georgia, this was the dream to come back, right, coming back for your senior year? CHASE THOMAS: That's exactly. We knew it was going to be a challenge, losing a bunch of great talent from the year before, but our guys worked really hard in the off‑season, and it really paid off this season. We struggled early on, but we made the quick adjustments and made personnel changes and really executed down the final stretch of the season. We ended up where we wanted to. Q. I recall you being interviewed after the Notre Dame game and being a little bit stunned, not getting that win and there being commentary about the game. Rather than focusing on the call, you guys focused on the future. You said it hurts but we have to focus on the rest of the season. CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, we knew we controlled our destiny. We knew if we won out we'd go to the Pac‑12 Championship Game and earn the right to play in the Rose Bowl. Our guys really accepted that challenge. They stepped up and really focused in on practicing harder and giving a lot more harder effort throughout the season. We're really proud of our guys for stepping up and accepting that challenge. Q. I know a year ago when I was coaching against you that we sent all of our protections towards No.44. Was that going on again this year? CHASE THOMAS: I think so, but it must be kind of hard because we had Trent Murphy on the other side and Ben Gardner in the middle and a bunch of other guys. If they did focus in on me, I hope they did because I probably thrived on one‑on‑one situations. That just didn't really work. Q. Tell me, as you look at Wisconsin what comes to mind? What's the thing you're most concerned about? CHASE THOMAS: Just their power running game. They'll come at you with multiple linemen, formations, they do all the shifting and all the motioning and stuff like that. So everyone has got to make sure they're lined up in the proper gap, know their responsibilities. If they're responsible for the inside run, focus on that. If they need to get to the perimeter on those fly sweeps, then they've got another job, to stop that run. Everyone has got to make sure they're on the same page every play. Q. Game played in a phone booth sounds like your kind of cardio; is that accurate? CHASE THOMAS: That's right. Q. (Inaudible)? CHASE THOMAS: I think we just have so much depth, whenever somebody gets tired, a new face comes in and it's fresh legs against a little worn down offensive lineman. Our coaches do a great job of putting in great blitzes and putting in great stunts, but at the same time we know we can just call a four‑man straight up rush and beat the tackles and guards. We found success after that just rushing four guys this year. We know if the offensive line finds the protection one way to focus on me or Trent Murphy, leaves every other guy with one ‑on‑one match‑ups. We've been able to win those one‑on‑one match‑ups this year and get to the quarterback. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: It's very important. You know, it's really been a benefit for our secondary this year compared to years past. I think we need to blitz a little more than in years past and we'll have to have a little more man coverage or not as much help in the secondary, so this year the secondary is a little more successful. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: It's going to be a tremendous challenge to make this team one‑dimensional. They can hit you with so many different running plays that are inside, outside, around the edge, so we have to slow them down, win 1st and 2nd down, put them in 3rd‑and‑long situation and put them in a style of play that they're uncomfortable with, and that's when we'll get after the quarterback. Q. (Inaudible.) Well, any time you play a team twice, it's a lot harder just like when we played UCLA, they found what worked against us, and they gained a lot of rushing yards against us. Credit to Wisconsin because they did the exact same thing, and they put a whooping on Nebraska. We know they can run the ball. There's no doubt in our minds that they have the talent, they have the big physicality of the big offensive linemen, and we've just got to really get off blocks and slow them down as much as we can, and I have confidence that we can do that. Q. I talked to Sam a little bit, and I was wondering, knowing for sure the last few days (inaudible)? CHASE THOMAS: It's crazy. I don't think it's really hit me yet. I mean, all of my team, I love what we've done here, transforming this program and stuff like that. I'm definitely going to miss it. I've really enjoyed Stanford over the past four‑and‑a‑half years, and to be moving on is hard, but at the same time we're ready. It's been a great four years, but it's starting to get to the point where you want to move on to the next point of your life. We know we have an opportunity to win the Rose Bowl, and I mean, that's what's on everyone's mind right now is just winning the Rose Bowl. Q. There were a few games where it was close to slipping away. Were there any moments where you and the other seniors had to step up? CHASE THOMAS: I mean, after the Notre Dame game we had a players meeting and we got the guys together and pretty much challenged them to saying how the season can end up in two directions, 8‑5 going to the Sun Bowl or 11‑2 and going to the Rose Bowl. And so the guys really accepted that challenge in terms of effort at practice, dedication in the film room and in meetings. So they really ran with it. They definitely did a great job of answering that call. Q. Due to how hard it is to be a Stanford student‑athlete, do you think you have a huge advantage to (inaudible)? CHASE THOMAS: Um, no, I mean, everyone gets equal time to prepare. When you have this much time, like a month to prepare, I don't think there's much of an advantage. Everyone goes back to the fundamentals, regroups on that stuff, and then we start focusing on Wisconsin and now we're more focusing on ourselves, playing our aggressive style of defense. I mean, I think it's pretty equal on both sides. Q. I know they like to run the ball a lot and don't pass very much. How do you avoid (inaudible)? CHASE THOMAS: Well, we have to earn the right to rush the passer. That's what Coach Mason always says. We have to win on 1st and 2nd down, earn the right to rush on 3rd down. If we want to get after the quarterback our guys in the front seven and the secondary have to do a great job of slowing down their running game. Q. Do you think there's something to be said (inaudible)? CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, I mean, the fact that we've won so many close games in the fourth quarter, I think it definitely adds a level of character to this team. We know we can lean on each other, whether it's the offense or defense to come up and make the big play at times when it's needed. As much as the fans and us, as well, would like to win by four touchdowns every game, it's a different style of offense in terms of personnel than the years past. We've had to rely a little bit more on our defense this year, which we love. We love having the pressure on our shoulders, and we love having to make the plays when the time counts, and we've shown multiple times that we're the team that can do that. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, I think‑‑ I don't know what it is. I think all of a sudden maybe it's the fact that our coaches, they start making the right‑‑ they figured out the adjustments that we needed to make to slow them down, and we go out there and we start finally executing them properly. We really band together at times when it's needed. Like you said, the whole certain consciousness, it's like, all right, it's starting to get serious, guys, we need to get a couple stops in a row and get the ball back to our offense. Like you said, the Arizona game was definitely a prime example. Q. Seems like there have been more games where the defense needs a stop and the offense (inaudible), but it's more last‑second stops than last‑second drives. CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, our offense puts us in a position to win. They put the points on the board and we know if we don't let them score we win the game. That's always been our mentality. We try and execute to that as much as possible. Q. Do you think that Turley's off‑season program plays a role in that? CHASE THOMAS: Of course. He's one of the best if not the best strength and conditioning coaches out there in terms of getting us in the right condition, in terms of keeping our bodies healthy throughout the season. He's really done a fantastic job, and our whole mentality in the off‑season was always start fast and finish strong, and we have to start the game off fast, and what we've done this whole season is finish games strong in the fourth quarter. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Well, Montee Ball, he's always‑‑ usually ends up in the backfield and he's running downhill at you, the power game, all the downhill stuff, and then as well as No.20. No.20 and No.25 also like to get on that jet sweep action and really test your speed on the perimeter and also throw in some reverses with those guys, as well. We know what they like to do, whether they're split out wide receiver, that fast motion type stuff. But you've got to focus in on both the inside run and the outside run at the same time. Q. No.25 Melvin Gordon, do you have a player on your team that can mimic what he's able to do on scout team and stuff like that? CHASE THOMAS: We have like one of our fast wide receivers who's been running those jet sweeps and stuff like that. That's hard to emulate a guy with that much speed and his quickness and stuff. But we definitely have some guys that are definitely giving their best and showing that similar speed. Q. With the jet sweeps, obviously you've played teams with perimeter speed early in the season, Oregon comes to mind. What about the jet sweep specifically? Have you seen any looks like that during the regular season? CHASE THOMAS: It's the fact that they're so successful in the jet sweep because they have the option of running down the middle, too. You've got to focus in on both at the same time. You can't just, ah, they're running outside. Everyone go run out there. The guys in the box focus in on the play in the box and the guys that are responsible for the perimeter, they need to do their job and stop the run in the perimeter. Definitely it goes hand in hand being able to stop that. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: Yeah, they're physical. You've got to get off blocks. They've got big offensive linemen, if you stay on them they're going to put you to the ground. The longer you stay on them, the harder this game is going to be. We just need to get off blocks and execute what our coaches say. Q. (Inaudible.) CHASE THOMAS: I mean, it's going to be hard to definitely. They're definitely going to pose a challenge to us, but at the same time we know we can execute and stop those guys. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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