Wolverines Q&A: Hoke on Penn State, Bye Week
10/13/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 13, 2014
By Steve Kornacki
Head coach Brady Hoke and Steve Kornacki will talk Michigan football each week on MGoBlue.com. On Monday afternoon (Oct. 13), the two discussed the 18-13 win over Penn State, the bye week and the upcoming rivalry game on Oct. 25 (3:30 p.m.) with Michigan State in East Lansing.
Q. After the final gun sounded, you hugged Devin Gardner, who had returned from an injury in the fourth quarter to lead your team to victory, and said something to him with a lot of emotion. Would you mind sharing what that was about?
A. The biggest thing was, I was really proud. Proud of his development, proud of his maturity, proud of his leadership. Knowing he's tough, it didn't surprise me that he would come back. And the last two weeks, he's really taken on the leadership role.
Q. So, that really started with after the Rutgers game?
A. Yeah, he did. He talked to the team. He said, "We made progress, but we've got to keep pushing and staying together." It was really neat to hear him and see his teammates respond.
Q. Devin moved into sixth in career passing with 5,543 yards (passing Tom Brady and Jim Harbaugh) and into sixth in total offense with 6,350 yards (passing Elvis Grbac) on the career lists at Michigan. Can you put what he's accomplished statistically into perspective?
A. You are looking at a guy who hasn't played quarterback but two years (22 starts over three seasons at the position). So, you look at how he's grown in the system with different coaches, different schemes, terminologies, all of those things. And so he's adapted. It hasn't always been easy. He's made some mistakes along the way, but at the same time he's persevered and fought through the adversity.
Q. What have you seen from other leaders in the locker room?
A. We're fortunate that this team -- and every team is different - has had the ability to lead and has had the ability to be there for each other. And it's been from different classes -- the Jake Butts, the Chris Wormleys and Blake Countess, and Ray Taylor in his way. And Jack Miller has really come to the surface as a leader.
Q. You had more than 113,000 fans, and it was quite an atmosphere for the first Big Ten night game at Michigan Stadium.
A. The atmosphere, and our students, the 113,000 came out and affected our kids. They were loud in the situations you want them to be loud in. And so we want to thank all of them. We want to thank our former players, the students for coming out and supporting us.
Q. How many former players came back and what did that mean to you?
A. It meant a lot to our kids, and I appreciate them because I know a lot of them. But what they did, coming out here Friday night and talking to the kids, it really meant something.
Q. What are your emotions when the stadium is electric like that?
A. I don't know if anyone else can pull that off in this country. I know they can't from the numbers standpoint. But it was just how electric Michigan Stadium is and even more so now with the renovations and everything. That place gets loud.
Q. Amara Darboh had three big third-down catches, two of which were in long-yardage situations. Where has he made the most progress as a go-to guy?
A. I think Amara is a guy that when Devin (Funchess) is not in, he knows that (wide receiver) spot also. He's intelligent and works very hard. He's a guy who's got the ability to be a big-play guy for you. And he's a play-maker. I think he showed it the other night. And like all of our receivers, he's not afraid to block and get into somebody.
Q. What did you get from true freshman defensive tackle Bryan Mone in his first start? Strong safety Dymonte Thomas and defensive tackle Chris Wormley also were making their first starts.
A. With Mone, I think it was just the way Bryan played through the spring (as an early enrollee) and the fall, and Ryan Glasgow was a little dinged up, so [Mone] stepped up in there and did a good job. I think there are things like getting off blocks that we've got to do a little better job with. Chris is a guy who's played a lot for us, and he's a big body (6-foot-4, 295 pounds). I think he continues to improve. And Dymonte, it's time for him to keep improving and keep playing.
Q. What adjustments did defensive coordinator Greg Mattison make in keeping Penn State off the scoreboard in the final 41 minutes while limiting it to minus-one yard rushing and 65 yards total offense in the second half?
A. I think the whole defensive staff, and Greg obviously leading that charge, adjusted. Penn State had changed some things that they had done before (on tendencies), and so at halftime it was a matter of looking at your "call" sheets and talking to the players about what we were going to do differently on down-and-distances and even a little bit with formations. We needed to get back to some little things or change up a little bit -- especially in the calls themselves -- especially with their down-and-distance (tendencies).
That's what guys do during the bye week (like Penn State had). That's what you do. You look at yourself and evaluate what you've done the first five or six games. You don't want to be predictable, but you want to do what you do well.
Q. Now you have a bye week. How does the schedule vary for your team this week and how does the extra time factor into preparing for a rivalry game?
A. No. 1, we're going to practice on Tuesday and Wednesday. We're going to look at the tape from this game on Tuesday and then practice a little bit. They'll keep their in-season lifting schedules. And then we'll practice on Wednesday. We'll touch a little on Michigan State, but most of it will be getting back to fundamentals and techniques. We didn't run the ball as well as we wanted to, and we've got to get back to that up front.
