 
Tracking the Longhorns: Sept. 2
Sept. 2, 2008
WR Quan Cosby On how much improvement he'd like to see from week one to week two: We have to continue to work on our blocking, of course. I think we did a pretty good job from that standpoint. We want to eliminate the dropped balls that we had, and I think we had maybe three or four of those. But that's three or four too many. We just have to continue to work on that. Especially for this week going up against their defense, we have to know what to do assignment wise. There's always something to work on and we want to keep that attitude. On the first road game of the season: It's always a little different when you go on the road because you don't have 98,000 fans cheering for you. Again, I hear it's a great atmosphere and it's going to be a lot of fun. I know they are going to be pumped and we're going to be pumped. So, I'm ready for another exciting game. On the receivers starting out hot for the first game: It looks like we're crisp, but we still have a lot to work on. We did do some good things and I definitely tip my hat to Colt and the O-line for having a great game. Our receivers are coming along pretty well. But when you watch film, it's never as good as you thought. Again, we have a lot to work on, and we're ready to work on them and just get better. On Blaine Irby's performance against FAU: It was great and it was very promising. We knew he had it in him and he came in and showed up big for us and made a lot of huge plays, got us first downs and just kept us rolling. I definitely hope he continues to grow in our offense and continues to make plays.
DE Aaron Lewis On Will Muschamp: I love him and he's a great guy. I can't explain it. He's just amazing to play for. He's young, he's hyper, he's energetic and he gets after the defensive line. He's going to get after you, and I like that, personally. I like a coach who's not going to be afraid. He's not going to be quiet, he's going to yell at plays and try to get you motivated. On if it took time for Muschamp to break into the system: I believe he just did what he wanted to do, and he coaches the way he coaches. We just had to adjust to it. On if the addition of Muschamp changed the attitude of the defense: Definitely. He tells us to be physical, no matter what you're doing. You just have to fly around and be physical. Hit someone. That's the message that we keep getting. On if it took time to adjust to Muschamp's new schemes: It wasn't difficult at all. I go in and ask Coach [Oscar] Giles and Coach [Mike] Tolleson for 30 minutes every day and see if they can go over plays and formations with me. It basically comes down to knowing our defense and playing our defense, and that's what we need to do. S Earl Thomas On the ups and downs for him during the game: When you have bad plays, you just have to forget about it. That's the goal if you want to be a good DB. After I missed that one tackle, I just tried to forget about it, and then something good happened for me. On the support the veterans have been giving the younger guys: They always encourage us and they tell us to keep our heads up. That was a big help to me during the game. On how much the younger players want to prove themselves: You can't just talk about it, you have to show it. We just want to get better every day at practice to prove everybody wrong. TE Blaine Irby On why he was so effective last week: The scheme that we had, Colt [McCoy] was able to throw the ball really well to all of our receivers. I was just fortunate enough to catch them. On blocking: [UTEP] blitzes a lot, we just have to keep our eyes right and I think we're going to do really well against that. It all depends on the different packages. Going to practice every day during spring ball and during camp, I was having to block Sergio [Kindle], [Brian] Orakpo, Eddie Jones and Henry Melton. I remember Coach [Bruce] Chambers was telling me every day during practice, we were struggling, grinding, he was telling me that the games are going to be easier blocking wise. I was just trying to work on my fundamentals every time, and it worked well. On handling the road game this week: It's going to be a huge game for UTEP. They've been sold out for a couple months now. It's going to be pretty exciting going to UTEP and just playing in another stadium and seeing the crowd. I think going to any stadium in college football is a really neat experience. On working with QB Colt McCoy in the offseason: When we came back after winter break when Jermichael [Finley] went to the (NFL), Colt and I did 7-on-7, we threw routes every day. Spring ball, we came together. Then summer helped a lot. We were throwing the ball every night basically. DL Aaron Lewis On missing the spring with an injury: It was frustrating. I wanted to be out there and show (Coach Will Muschamp) what I can do. But it was also a chance for me to step back and let the younger guys show what they can do. He's a new coach, so of course he wanted to see everybody, and unfortunately he couldn't see me until two-a-days came around and summer workouts. I believe that I've shown him a little bit and hopefully the more I step up and the more I keep playing, the more I can show him. On playing two different positions: I've been playing tackle since I've gotten here. I'd been recruited for defensive tackle and defensive end. I came in at 280 [pounds], we were really deep at three technique, so they said lose some weight, get down to 270 so we can put you at the power technique at defensive end. So I did that, got down to 265, 270, but I continued to play defensive tackle. I play a little of rush in what we call the bandit package, it's more for pass rushing. And now I'm trying to get my weight back up so I can face the run and double teams. OT Adam Ulatoski On UTEP's defense: They run a three-down base, but they're kind of crazy with how they do their blitzing. They're a 75 percent blitz team, things like that. So we're going to have to be really buttoned up on everything. On possibly being one of the best offensive lines at Texas: On why the team seems to play so well on the road: I think that we play well on the road because we kind of like that atmosphere. We like going into hostile territory. You're not really the underdog, per se, but it's kind of that feeling where you have so many people in one place against you and you want to go prove them wrong. S Blake Gideon On taking over a starting role so quickly: I really wasn't worrying about that. Like I said, I was just trying soak up as much as I could. That was my goal coming in January, just to learn as much as I could, learn from the guys ahead of me. I really didn't think I'd be in the position I'm in now, but all glory to God, I am. I'm stilling trying to learn, and that's the best I'm doing right now. On Will Muschamp: He's intense, to say the least. He gets everybody fired up every day. He's the same guy every day in practice. I think it's easy to play for a guy like that, just knowing what's coming every day. Like I said, he's intense, and I've always liked playing for a coach like that. It's working out well. He's not a guy to really talk about himself much, or the past at all. We talk about the day before practice, we correct the mistakes and we move forward from that. It's obvious that he was a hard worker to get where he is today. He really doesn't have to tell us exactly how he got where he is. It's just obvious. On seeing the open depth chart upon arriving at Texas: I was just trying to learn as much as possible. I knew that to some extent it was going to be leveled out with the new defense coming in, we were all going to starting from scratch. We were all just trying to soak up as much as possible. I really wasn't trying to worry so much about playing right away or how much playing time. I was just trying to focus on getting better every day. That's one thing that is stressed in our defense. On talking to his dad about his Texas experience: We talk every night on the phone. It's definitely a different experience. He's not my coach anymore, he's just a dad now and I think he's enjoying that. I think he's loving it just as much as me, and it's just a fun experience. All he tells me is keep working hard, give thanks to the Lord for where I am and take advantage of the opportunity. I'm tremendously blessed to be in this position, to have this opportunity. I don't want to waste one day. I'm just working as hard as I can and trying to learn as much as I can. On the advantages of being a coach's son in high school: There were a lot of late night film sessions. I think I had the advantage of just knowing the language of what coaches are trying to tell you, what they're trying to get across to players. I've been around coaches all my life, so that's definitely helped me. On this week's road game: I'm probably not as nervous as the home opener last week. I'm definitely glad to get that one game under my belt, just that feeling of knowing you can play with these guys at this level. I'll be settled down a little more, but it's the first away game. I've never flown to a football game that I'm playing in, so that's definitely going to be a new experience. It should be fun. |
|
