Transcript: Matt Rhule TCU press conference

Baylor Football Head Coach Matt Rhule
Weekly Press Conference
November 12, 2018

Opening Statement

“I appreciate you guys being here. I will first start by talking about last Saturday’s game. Before I get into the unfortunate event that happened, I know our entire football program is embarrassed by what happened by the decisions by a couple of guys. As we tell our players anytime you take punch at somebody you are engaging in a selfish act. You are making a decision that makes you feel good but is not good for the rest of the team. It was not a good decision by Blake (Lynch) and it was an extremely poor and selfish decision by Greg (Roberts). I think at the end of the day I wish a lot of things would have gone differently. The minute we decide to throw a punch it effects so many other people. That’s what I told Greg yesterday. I have apologized to Commissioner Bowlsby and Matt Campbell for Greg’s actions. I think a positive is unlike last year we had a lot of guys run onto the field, but on Saturday no coaches or players left the sideline and jumped in. Blake and their wide receiver got into it and Greg and there running back spilled over from that. There were seventeen other players on the field who avoided any other altercations and trying to be peace makers. I thought there were a lot of guys including Iowa State coaches out there trying to stop the incident. At the end of the day it was a big-time college football game and there were two plays that spilled over. We apologize for our actions and I believe Greg has learned and we will learn from our actions moving forward.  Greg served half of his punishment on Saturday and the other half will be served on Saturday. We played a football game versus a very good team where we had more explosive plays and more yardage than them and we had a shut out in the fourth quarter. We did all the things right to win but we beat our self against Iowa State. It was a tough environment and a tough atmosphere vs a tough team. We are now looking ahead to a tremendous opportunity this week. I want to send these seniors out the right way. They have worked so hard this year. They are leaving a legacy for our seniors next year.”

On the decision of Charlie not being suspended…

“On the way to the bus someone said something to me that Charlie would be allowed to play on Saturday. Charlie is a competitor and he is trying to get a first down and he has to watch the rest of the game from the locker room. That was tough enough for him. I think a lot of times we see guys in football talking to the officials but really, we can’t have the players talking to the referees. We have a process that I talk to the officials, but we can’t have anyone else talking to the refs. I think we have learned a lot of lessons from Saturday night and we will have to remember that going forward.”

On the status of Denzel Mims…

“He just had the wind knocked out of him. In a frustrating night I was really pleased with his performance. Coming off the Oklahoma State game I think he had his best week of practice. He did a lot of great things in the game and he played with a tremendous effort. He was also sad because that was the last offensive plays of the game and he wanted to go make a play for his team.”

On struggles in the red zone…

“We were at one point the number one team in the country in RedZone efficiency. I think we could figure out what exactly the problems were. We got down inside the 10-yard line, and we got a hold and that derailed the rest of the drive and we false start. We just can’t beat our self but again that is what we did. I really have thought about this. I think on Saturday our guys just feel the pressure of having to go play their best game. If you look at that film, we slipped a ton, not slipped because we had bad cleats. It’s from playing so hard and that spilled over from Friday I think we had seniors who wanted to leave a legacy of going on the road and winning and I thought we almost put too much pressure on ourselves that in tense moments, we didn’t just relax. We’re getting outscored in the first half but we’re outscoring people in the second half. I came back this week and I spent a lot of time by myself yesterday and I’ve been really trying to think about it. I think sometimes when we get down there tight, especially early in the game, we just make a mistake because we’re just so amped up. Then when we calm down in the second half, we throw the ball to Denzel [Mims] and he makes a play, throw the ball to Pooh [Stricklin] and he makes a play. At the end, it was kind of two-minute-ish, we really couldn’t run it. Our ability to run the football in the red zone really helps. As I move forward into this game, I just want them to enjoy the opportunity of this Saturday. There was literally a point in that game where the scoreboard gave out at the stadium. I walked over to the defense and said ‘look guys, don’t pay attention to the scoreboard.’ It’s true. When we’re at practice you compete, you get beat one play and come back the next play, you just play the game. That’s what process is. Just play the play. In the second half, we played a lot better on defense. I think sometimes when we got in the red zone early in games we just make mistakes. That’s showed up a couple weeks in a row. I think the message for our guys this week is, don’t worry about this and that, just go play. Just cut it loose from the very beginning, relax and have fun, and see what happens. When we do that, we’re a really good football team.”

On the difference between success at home and not on the road…

 “I think we played well at Texas, and I think there were parts of last game that we played well. We played in four really hostile environments and I think when we come home it’s a really supportive environment. I thought the crowd against Oklahoma State was an elite environment. Even Kansas State at the end, when everything’s against you and you have to go win the game, when you look up and everyone’s cheering for you and encouraging you, that pushes you through those lulls. That pushes you through those times where you’re kind of struggling. It puts pressure on their team. It’s just harder to play on the road. When you come home, you’re playing in front of the people you care about. To me, I think a big part of that is our students. I think we’re expecting a really big student turnout. I just think it always gives you something extra. We have to learn how to win on the road, we have to learn how to win in hostile environments versus big time teams. You also have to win at home. You have to protect what’s yours. This is one more opportunity for us to do it this Saturday.”

On Drew Galitz…

 “I think Drew, especially the toughness to come off an injury and to not just punt the football the way he does, but to get it off with the timing he does, we haven’t had a punt blocked. He’s a difference maker in that regard. This week, they have a tremendous returner in Jalen Reagor so we’ll have to be smart about the ways in which we punt the football. Drew, as a senior, to battle back from what he’s battled back from to being the tremendous kickoff artist that he is, punting the football, I think it takes a lot of pressure off of those teams. It allows us to try to use those weapons.”

On how they controlled Hakeem Butler…

 “I thought it was a group effort. Derrek Thomas played him for most of the game. We had Harrison Hand back. We were able to keep him in front of us. Tried to mix some things up coverage wise. I would say it was a group effort. We were able to get some rush on Saturday. We weren’t able to sack him, he was a heck of a player, but they didn’t have all day to sit back and pat the football. We had enough pressure that when he had to escape, they were 7-for-11 on third down and most of that came from Purdy’s ability to run. That was a difference in the game.”

On talking to Blake Lynch about the fight on Saturday…

 “I talked to Blake right when it happened especially. When adversity happens, good things happen. I was finally allowed to go on the field and try to address it so it doesn’t continue, and Bravvion Roy, who’s kind of a quiet guy, he got them together and he was getting after the guys. He said ‘Is this how we’re going to go out?’ and ‘Is this who we are?’ and he said what I didn’t have to say. I talked to Blake and we’ll talk about it again today as a team because we need to learn from it. When you’re playing on a football team, the decisions of one of us affect all of us. We have to continue to make good decisions. It really all started because of the situation with Blake and his poor response to what he felt like happened to him.”

On if bowl eligibility adds an extra edge against TCU…

 “I haven’t been around long enough to have any, my interactions with Coach Patterson, he’s always been nothing but kind to me. He’s a person I look up to as a coach who’s done it for a long time, and done it the right way. I think we should all support each other, because when we support each other we support the game in our state. I’m only worried about us. I’m only worried about the seniors going out on Senior Day the right way. That’s always been a really big deal to me, that they walk off the field as winners. I want to make sure these guys who have really stood for Baylor, and they’ve also stood for me personally, I want them to walk off the field as winners. And the benefit of that is we would get a chance to play another game. I would love nothing more than to play another game with Ira [Lewis], Greg [Roberts], Pat [Lawrence], Blake [Blackmar], Josh [Malin] and Chris Platt and all those guys. I’d love nothing more than to play another game with those guys.”

On addressing Connor Martin’s struggles…

 “I think I’m just going to talk to him. What else can you do? At the end of the day, his issue on Saturday was just so visible. Everyone saw and it stands out, but there’s lots of guys who struggled. Connor is an outstanding place kicker. He has had some big, big kicks and some big, big moments and did the things he did last year and earned a scholarship and he’s our kicker. But we all have those times in life where we hit a little bit of adversity, start to doubt ourselves. That’s what I saw on Saturday. He was struggling in pregame. To me, I think it’s all inside of him and it’s emotion. The thing you learn is, I can’t give you confidence, calling your parents won’t give you confidence. Nothing we can do is really going to give you confidence. It’s got to come from you. We can support you, we can be there, we can give you opportunities, but at the end of the day, whether it’s Connor or Charlie [Brewer] or Harrison [Hand], whoever it is, when you go through some adversity, you have to muster the confidence to go out there and say ‘I’m going to make this.’ I can tell when Connor’s confident, he goes out there like ‘I’m going to kick this ball through.’ And I think we’ll get him there by Saturday. He’ll go out there on Saturday and with the game on the line, we’ll put him out there knowing he’s going to nail it through the uprights.”

On if he has heard from fans that this game is one they really want to win…

“I don’t know that I hear much from the fan base. When I got here, I could tell from the players that this is something they wanted. I think the biggest thing to me is we went up there last year and played a good half of football. It was 21-19 at the half. Second half, it got away from us. That unfortunate incident happened where we had that fight last year in that game. I remember walking off field and saying how much I couldn’t wait to get to this season.

I think for our senior class, you go back to 2016 before I was here, they were 6-1, getting ready to play TCU and obviously that game got away from them. And I think if you ask them, these last two years have been tough years for them. And for it now to all culminate and come full circle, where those same guys that were out there in that rout, here they are now with a chance to go out there on Senior Day and play their best football game. Because that’s what this is, this is an opportunity for us to play our best football, for those seniors to walk off the field and sing “That Good Ol’ Baylor Line” and walk in the locker room and dance and sing and love each other and hug on each other, they will have stood for something. If we lost the game, I still believe they stand for something, don’t get me wrong. But they will have a chance to finish it off the right way and then go play Texas Tech. I think for me, it’s more about us and the journey our seniors have been through and the things that we’ve been through this year and the opportunity to go play one more game at home in front of our family and friends and try to play our best game.”

On what he expects from TCU…

“No. 1, they’re an elite defense. And they’re elite because of their players but also because of Coach [Gary] Patterson and all the different things he brings to you. They have a veteran quarterback in Collins who’s smart, knows where to go with the football. Sonny Cumbie does a great job as their offensive coordinator. And really, Jalen Reagor is a dominant receiver. He can do it in the screen game, he can do it in the vertical passing game, and he’s someone you have to account for. But, you can’t double him because they’ve got lots of other good wideouts and they’ve got lots of other good skill. It’s a tremendous challenge. We’ll have to play really well. We’ll have to not give up the opportunities that we did this past Saturday. TCU was able to beat Iowa State, and we weren’t. We’ve got to play our best football game to have a chance.”

On talking to his players about not being baited…

“I think the thing I’m going to probably talk about the most is we want to play snap to whistle. We want to be the most aggressive team on the field, but we want to keep it in between the whistles. So, to me, if somebody takes a shot at you, I would like for you to just say what’s next and play the next play. But, don’t hit him after the whistle. The next time you have a chance to go play against them, be physical. It’s a game that allows you to be physical. There’re just certain rules. You have to be physical on the field and from snap to whistle. Within then, you can be as physical as you want within reason. You can’t do certain things. For me, the thing that I’ve tried to talk to our guys about going on the road, about going to Oklahoma, about going to Texas, I just say, just make it football. Don’t make it about the crowd, don’t make it about the rankings, just make it football. You’ve been playing football your whole life. It got away from being football at times on Saturday. This Saturday, against TCU, don’t make it about the bowl game, don’t make it about this, just make it about football. That will be my message. I always want to be the toughest, most physical team on the field. We aren’t always right now. There are times we are, but there’s times where we’re not. But, that will be our focus. Just try to keep it football and be a physical team on Saturday versus a really tough, physical, proud team in TCU.”

On Coach Teaff, and what he’s meant to you and the program…

“It’s his 85th birthday today. I’ll speak most specifically about what he means to me. When you win, you get 400 text messages. When you lose, you get four. Coach Teaff has been the person, since I’ve been here, he doesn’t text me after a game. He texts me on a Tuesday and just always has, not just insight, but deep thought about what we’re doing. So, for that, I’m unbelievably appreciative. He’s welcomed me, he’s helped me, he’s talked to our team, he’s talked to me about what it takes to win. But at the end of the day, when I’ve been through some of the harder moments in the past two years, it’s always been Coach Teaff with a text. What I love about his texts is he always says, no need to respond, just keep getting ready for the next game. Because it’s not about him, it’s about the program that he loves. So, to me, it’s an honor to continue to try to fulfill and build off of what he’s done here.” 

TCU without Turpin…

“On Monday, I don’t even know if I’m there yet to be able to say. I just kind of study cut-ups and stuff as I go. I started last night and I’m into it today and I do my media stuff. Because I’m not the offensive coordinator the defensive coordinator, I try to do a little bit of everything, I really don’t know a team until late Tuesday. Normally, I’m like, I think I have a feel for who they are. I’ll say this about their offense: Sonny just does an elite job. In college football, all of us, you lose players, it’s next man up. We lose them for different reasons. Some guys pull a hamstring, he had a certain issue. But, they’re a complete football team and it will be a battle.”

On Clay Johnston…

“I thought the game against Oklahoma State, I thought that was one of the finest performances I’ve ever seen by a linebacker. Clay is smart, he’s fast and explosive. He wears that knee brace, but he can really run. But he also has a little bit of an edge to him. He wants to be right and wants to be a good player and he’s tough. Sometimes, I don’t think Clay gives himself enough credit for how tough he is. He’s never really played truly 100 percent healthy, he’s battled through things. His best football is ahead of him. He’s done a lot of great things. 

When I meet with those juniors today and talk about these last couple games . . . because Senior Day, the seniors go out on the field, the juniors are in the locker room and it’s like their team. Clay’s one of those guys I’m going to be talking to, and Blake and all those guys, saying, Hey, let’s start to build so momentum for you guys as seniors.’ Because you play this game, you play next week, you play in the bowl game and then you’re in the offseason program and then you’re in spring ball. And I usually don’t make fifth-year seniors do a ton of stuff during the spring. Next thing you know you’re into next season. Clay is a guy that’s made a huge jump, to me, over the past four or five games. And I’m excited to see him make one more big jump before the season’s over. I think it’s crucial to our team that a bunch of guys make one more jump.”

On having Clay and his dad around the program…

“His dad is an absolute blessing. It’s funny, I try to get his dad to come to team meetings and stuff like that, and he’s like, ‘Nah.’ He likes to just stay over there and continue to work with the athletes. I think it’s good for a multitude of things. It’s probably good for Clay. Having Coach Johnston around is good for me. I think it’s been good for all of our coaches. He’s seen a lot, he knows a lot, and he’s as humble as they come. I think he’s been good for our players. I think he’s helped a lot of guys return to play faster than they would and also prevent injuries. And I think it’s just good for all of our student-athletes, he’s a strong man of faith. So, he can coach you hard and be competitive and be tough and believe and stand for something. 

I don’t know how it must be for Clay having your dad at practice all the time. But, one thing Kent said from the very beginning was coach him like you coach everybody else. It’s probably also good for a lot of other parents and parents of recruits, because when the person who’s handling your son’s return to play along with the trainers and doctors that are involved is also a parent of a player, to me I think it would give me more comfort to know that all the right things are being done for the student-athletes. 

That’s one thing I’ll say about our doctors and trainers and (Director of Athletics Mack Rhoades), student-athlete welfare is at the top of everything that we do. And I think having the parent of a player involved shows that as well.”

On wearing short-sleeves for Iowa State Saturday with the temp at 25 degrees at kickoff…

“On Sunday, I told Marcus Satterfield and Evan Cooper not to ever let me do that again. Make me wear a jacket from now on.

Not necessarily bravado or anything, it was more like you want to lead by example. I’m saying to the guys, just make it football. Just make it like we’re back at Baylor. That was my whole thing, just go play like we’re playing out here. But, it was way, way colder. That was a one-time thing. And if we play in cold again, you will see me wearing a jacket.”