Press Conferences (James Peoples) Elite Edition September 2

0:00And the JK lied me a group on a high-stayfan. So I watched him a lot and there are similarities in our game, but of course I am on back. So I did take a little thing from the JK's game and implemented it to mine. So I could definitely see the similarity. What are some of those things? Similarity is just how he's a one-cut slash ship. He has a good jump cut. I did play a good amount last year, but of course, y'all didn't get a chance to see me fully open up. So this year, y'all will see that. But there's a lot of similarities in our game. Just how he moves and of course our statistics as well. A high weight. They may call that comparison, but then today I am on back. So that's a good comparison. What did you see from both? I mean, he's a hard worker. He came in here and just kept his head down and just been working. He has good speed, of course, good feet. He had good back and good through as well. So what were I going to do? I mean, obviously, two-and-a-foot running back. So what can you learn in your mouth about a approach to position in more than just an onto your last back pre-hats? What is your own aim for the team? I'm trying to cue how they approached it.

1:01Was this to approach every day like it's your last day? You know, every day, I know because I talk a lot with trade. He just picked out one thing he could get better at every day. So taking that and bringing that into this year, one thing I could get better at every day, and then upholding the standard as well and running back in, it's been great. So that's something I can get to go. What did you start to feel confident in when you think in your first season here? What did you start to feel? Okay, they were to ask me to take on a bigger load. I started feeling comfortable, definitely fall camp. When we started getting them reps and things started ramping up. I felt confident myself since I got here, but I'm especially in the system and how much I learned and knew about the playbook and everything. I really started feeling like fit in. Why Jay? Well, I think my dad and my mom are actually from Cleveland, and I'm from Yachtstown, and I just grew up watching a high-stake. That would always turn around in the 70s. We came to know that history of that. That's the end of the ride. Yeah. All of us aligned. It was a little bit you, that's what we get to get to get to the next year. It's a great honor.

2:01I mean, this is RBU, and it always has been since I was growing up watching them. So to be the next one in line, I got to work for it, but it's an honor and I'll take it completely. You know, there's a lot that goes with that. So that's something. The first one I ever watched. The first one I ever watched. Do I want to see for sure? Yeah, that's where I'm when I saw it watching this at my Z. Is it here? Yeah. James, can you describe the intensity that Coach Aloklin expects from you guys and practice? How does he get you guys to rank belt and satirant? Is he hard to please? Is he hard to please? I don't know if y'all saw a little bit today, but he is definitely on us all the time on him. But he always says like today he encouraged me about my finishing. He said everything was good, but he's like, you guys finished more. He said, I'm gonna make you great. So that just shows that everybody's gamers always something can get better at. Always something to improve at no matter who you are, how highly talented you are. The abilities, there's always something that he's gonna nitpick on.

3:02He's gonna push you to get better at it because that's gonna bring out the best of you in every situation. So first meeting him, where are the more of the things that you got better at just from his table? And Charlie, I mean, is it guidance? You said first meeting him? Yeah, for first getting to know him to that. I don't mean. Well, I got to know him. So I think he came down to the campus in Antonio. And the same way he is now. Yeah, man, I've been actually playing under him for a while. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, um, wait, can you ask that question one more time? Yeah, no, it's what he was. What kind of a couple of things you learned? That was your game, you know, just from what? One thing I learned is definitely like my tempo, my speed, and then off the field things like just, you know, being the guy I'm supposed to be and being a leader, and pushing myself in every situation I can to be better. He's really just, he really pushes that aspect of just being better every day because he has accepted that same standard. You're obviously in a position this year that you're going to be like a featured part of the offense where it's last for you to take your time learning behind Trayvian and Quincheon. How does that hit you? Is there a pressure with that? I guess what is kind of your emotions surrounding the potential to be a real patient?

4:04No added pressure at all, you know? I had to train Q-runner, I was like, okay, I just got to learn. You know, so I had to take that patience with it, but no, you know, your time is coming, but you just got to wait. So I've been waiting for this. And of course, like I said, I still got to work for it. We got great backs in the room, but you know, just holding myself to that standard every day and pushing myself to be better. My first rating was, you know, it was going in the last year, and kind of in trash time, you ever made any pop-up duty, etc. Like you said, you haven't really gotten your show, what you really all about, and a game fit, and you know, that'll help us stay. My first rating was that, but how did it help you get into this room? It's just a maturity thing, you know, you got to mature. You got to know it was like, okay, I got to wait my turn, you know, there were both great backs, and I knew that I got to take up what I can from the situation. So that was all, I was just taking what I had to do, what I did from the situation. Oh, honestly, I leave that up to y'all to describe, you know, I know my game, and of course this season, this season, they started,

5:06but I definitely say I'm like a slash, kind of back, but I'm going to have to y'all to decide. I'm Texas Recruit, team the 417 Ohio State, why do you think Texas football compares you for Ohio State? You work, West! I think Texas is the best ball, some of the best athletes out. So especially in the run-up acquisition, because this is like that. So I mean, Texas, the coaches, and how we parent, I know we like, there's not every state, you know, you got all season football, all season. So I just feel like the development and the coaches, stuff like that, but, I mean, just great players all around, but guess there's a trend, you know. You mentioned, though, how about Terba Rogers, what have you seen from him in the first couple of times? Terba, Terba's not here yet. Isaiah, Isaiah West is another guy, he's recovering, he's paying attention, but Terba gets here, he comes in this Friday, he's going to be here this Friday. How about Isaiah? Yeah, Isaiah, yeah, he's been a guy, he's really dialed in, you know, and he's not matured in the mid, that his A-T may be right now, because, you know, he's healing, he's getting better in, I'm pretty sure he'll be back for our fall camps that we get to see him shine.

6:10Stany confidence in the team, it's early, it's a long year. We've been through worse, and I think we'll respond well. Dr. Cup weeks ago, about feeling the loss, what is the balance of feeling this loss and when you have a game in a few days? Yeah, I think we need to turn the page on this one. It's pretty clear what happened and why we lost, so I think it's kind of a blessing in disguise that we're playing on Thursday. The second change is preached by coaches every week in the NFL to go from a blocked field goal attempt where you score a touchdown. Moments later, you lose your kicker. It's a pretty big swing. How did you, how did that affect things you think? Yeah, I mean, not having your kicker is tough, and hopefully it's going to be all right, but Mitch did a good job on his one kick, but it shouldn't really come down to that in the end.

7:10You know, a lot of missed tackles, especially in the second half. Is the heat a factor in that? Just the game going on and on in that heat? Yeah, I mean, I wouldn't say it affects people on long drives, but Conner's a really big good back, and he makes people miss. I think I had a couple of miss there too, so just got to get him down. Yeah, I had like 12-14 yards before the last two drives, and he had 72. Were they doing anything differently with him? Yeah, they were, they were giving us a different look on the zone read, and I think in all of our losses, the preparation we've had has been great, but teams are playing us different and doing things differently, and we need to adjust a little better, just showing different looks and kind of,

8:11than what we were looking at on tape. So she got to adjust and get him down. It needs recovery time, but how much of you would it help to play on Thursday in Seattle, and try to, you know, just get back on the field. Yeah, like I said, I'm happy that we're going to get right to it. Before the interception, would Kyler made a check on the plan of scrimmage? Kind of looked like you were intently listening to what he said, did he say something that kind of dipped you off? No, honestly, I felt the downblock, and then I just kind of saw those guys peel off for screen, and I think I was kind of low in hiding, and he couldn't see me. I'm just glad I caught it. Is this about the team learning how to finish? Yeah, finishing and playing complimentary football, it's definitely something we've been good at throughout the years, and like I said, we got to stop losing games, but I haven't lost any confidence in the team.

9:14There's a shift in momentum, like the first half and the Los Angeles game, and that's why you had a lot of momentum going into the halftime. And then you have an instant. Yeah, I mean, there's so many opportunities to put teams away, and we're just not doing it right now. On the quarterback, Kyler took it outside. Your responsibility is to crash on that first drive. It was, yeah. It was, yeah. Thanks. Yeah. I mean, feels good. Just say somebody going out there and playing with a man or man, guess Ohio State receivers, it's something crazy. But you know, we just ready for the challenge. They said they're not chasing their game plan, but we got to go out there and show them the reason why not to play with them. We're in a preparation announcement of the 12th, 26th, and the subject is not going to be right now. We're going to be the conversation. Yeah. I mean, I don't really, if I be on a curve, I be on a curve.

10:16I mean, it's not really a big deal to me. It may definitely be a blessing for sure just to be on a curve of a game, but you know, it's not really a dream of mine. It's a dream of mine, but I don't really think too much of it. I mean, no, not yet. Probably hit me after this easy. No, just no playing in the Carlos football playoffs as a freshman, playing in the Rose Bowl as a freshman, playing in the Cardin Bowl, not in the National Championship. I mean, it's a blessing for sure, but it hasn't hit me yet. I'm sure. I'm putting it right here. I'm sure about what you're paying me on that, too. My favorite catch, I would say. We played Michigan State on the one I caught, but two defenders. Definitely probably my favorite for sure. Or you could go the one from Iowa, I should say, and answer probably them, too.

11:38I don't, I mean, like you said, it's pretty frustrating me having a game that I had in the Rose Bowl, and they're coming to the Cardin Bowl, and they're just doing different things, chasing their scheme up against me. But I mean, like you said, whatever I could do to make, I mean, help the team win. It's not really a big deal for me, and long as we win, that's all I really care about, and it got us to the National Championship. It means a lot. We put a lot of work in this season. We have highs, we have lows, we have people cutting us out. But we hear now, we just ready to put on a show Monday.

12:38Yeah. First of when there's a National Championship, because there means a lot. I mean, you see everything that he bent through this year, people saying he should be fine, and there's that in the third. But I mean, you see everything that he bent through this year. I mean, I seen everything that he bent through this year, I see everything, people saying my hand on Twitter. I wasn't here, he first got the head coach on job, but I know this year, for sure, we definitely got to win this for him. I mean, it's a lot of people in the league, I should say. I can't really say who, but I mean, you had guys like Odele, you had guys like Odele, you had Stefan Dix. It means a lot of Michael Thomas Chris Carter, just a lot of guys I played in NFL, and stuff like that. But yeah, really them guys for sure.

13:42No, just keep going. You got it, you've next up for sure. Really, I really appreciate that. Like a physical defense, like people say, like they like to play men, they're not changing their skin. You're just ready for the challenge. Like you said, best defense, we probably go see all year, and we just got to be ready to go out there Monday and just put on the show. I'm excited for Will. First coming here in Ohio State, January, our first workout we had together. Just everything that we did through the season. I'm just happy for him to be in this position right now, but we got to finish the job and that's the winning out of the O Monday.

14:44I'm just saying that because I'm just only a freshman, but I miss the breadth of a show of people who even say that, but I've got two or three more years left of college. I'm just focused on college right now and I'm not really worried about the NFL right now. It's very special for me. Just being a freshman and playing on the national stage, up here for a national title was something that I dreamed of as a very young kid. I'm just happy to be here and I just can't wait to put on a show of Monday for you guys.

15:45All of the seats we were just sitting on the bench and we just sitting here and hitting the quarterback in the ball. We all just got up and just started jumping up and down. We all decided. Happy for jacking that moment and we just knew that that moment was like, we're going to the daddy for sure. How does that feel to have that moment so that it is the same as the other thing? Me and so is a lot going from high school or winning three-state championships, I saw my mom and daughter then coming to Ohio State just competing for national title right now. Me and just so that I've picked two great schools, but I'm happy to be here and I just can't wait to put on a show of Monday.

16:45The coolest person? I mean you got a lot. I can't really say just a specific person. You got a lot of great guys re-challenging the lead like O'Dell. You have guys like Stefan Dicks. A lot of other players will just get cut off my mom but really them two guys will show O'Dell a Stefan Dicks. When you're looking at Notre Dame, what's something that you got on your mind? Try to attack and try to dominate it. Yeah. Like they say, they play man so I'm just ready for the challenge and just get ready to go out there Monday and just no putting on a show. Thank you. The vice-geno had gave me. I said just keep golf first. I know the reason why I'm here. I mean like he said just keep golf first and just no keeping the main thing and the main thing. And the best corner I've played for the first time in the year is the first. The vice-geno had gave me. I said just keep golf first.

17:47I know the reason why I'm here. I said just keep golf first and just no keeping the main thing and the best corner I've faced this year. I mean I've faced a lot of great corners. I can't really say but yeah I've faced a great corner. I can't really put a name on it. I'm a dream vacationer. My dream vacationer is Teres and K-Codes. I said both respect and frustration as well.

18:48I mean I thought they come out there and try to be me and they say stick it to what they've been doing all year. That's playing man coverage which is ready for the challenge. Pretty good group Christian Gary 29th is a great corner. 15, Lenard Moore. Two great guys are right there. Very physical but we all have to receive it so we're ready for the challenge. Another question. I'll say just no understanding the defense, understanding the game plan, understanding what Coach Kelly was trying to get done. I mean just coming in I felt I progressed from my first game against Akron to now.

19:53I felt I got better each and every week. I mean things slowed down a lot for me but yeah really just no understanding the defense and no understanding what they're trying to do to me for sure. I'm two guys great part of the best we're going to see all year for sure. Two physical guys but we're ready for the challenge that they're coming with and that's the play man oh man. We're ready to go on Monday. I mean the environment is pretty crazy seeing all these cameras. Suddenly I never thought I'd see them alive but it's a blessing for sure this is the main exposition right now. I mean we just had a prayer lit prayer lit meeting and you know we all they all the I mean we all discussed the issues because they discussed issues and you know we just want the work.

21:04I mean that two and a half weeks we had off before Tennessee game and we just played came out there on Tennessee game and we played with a chip on our shoulder. All throughout the playoffs and we go continue to play with that chip on our shoulder and that's championship on Monday. Do you know how that very impactful he had a very impact on my career I should say you know just going to his games as a very young kid seven eight years old him playing Westfield Westfield G and they played Clemson Orange Bull down in Miami. I mean just go there seeing his games it was like yeah I definitely want to play on the stage and I can't wait till I get to know that moment for sure. Who are you. I'm just going to get his mind right trying to get his mind ready for the game but you know he just get everybody hype in the locker room and you know just trying to get us ready to go to win the game.

22:18Yeah. Oh yeah. Oh yeah for sure. I mean you go play man against Ohio State receivers. I mean just be ready because you know we definitely go come out there and know give our best. I mean they said not go change what they do so we just ready for the challenge. I mean just to be able to be in this position right now is you know a blessing or just a young kid from Miami to be here and I won't take it for granted. I'm going to go out there and give him a roll.

23:34I was watching a game against Georgia. I was pretty sick myself because I was actually committed at that time. So I mean yeah they left a bad testimony mouth but I mean we ready to go out there and Monday to redeem myself and you know just put a show Monday. I mean I just laugh but you know that's what they do they not go change what they do just because we're Ohio State so I'm just going to go out there and put it on. I mean why not to play man on man against us so we just got to go out there and show them Monday. My journey here at Ohio State prepared me a lot for National Championship.

24:39Let me just go on through everything that I've been through. My first guy here all the Matt Jules all the hard workouts that we had all the hard practices. Just preparing all of us for this moment and I'm just ready to go out there and give it up my all on Monday. Okay okay yeah. We just squeezed this. One or nine. 200? I mean he is big and strong. Yeah go. What's your name? What's your name?

25:40Yeah that's great yeah pretty good no problem. I mean I'm a good guy. I mean I'm a good guy. I mean I'm a good guy. And why not probably like the most is the one against Michigan State when I caught over two defenders on their side line. Probably like one or the one after that I should say or you go the one against Iowa. Probably them three probably my best ones for sure. I mean just we'll put in the ball in my area and I just know how to make a play for them.

26:40Even though somebody was gathering my face I just know I still have to make a play because the ball touched my hand. So I mean just when the ball is the other thing I have to make the play no matter how the ball comes at me. After a big game I mean we really they really feed us Chick-fil-A or piece out of the game so it's really either Chick-fil-A or piece. So yeah probably Chick-fil-A for sure. Yeah. It went pretty good everybody just speaking with their thing is going right in what they think is wrong. We just a lot of the older guys was in their opinions on what we need to do to come together as a team.

27:45But you know that me and definitely helped us in a big way because it helped us on the field as well because we playing our great football right now and we just got to to you that one Monday. What was the standard you were playing back in the coaching? Yeah definitely got emotional. I can't really say what it really was said because players only and coaches only but it was definitely some stuff said that people took and it went with it and that's the reason we playing the Wizz Rowery Plan right now. Yeah, Mac helped me a lot this year. Him being our older guy in the room. Me and Carl Nell as well and Brendan and all the guys in our city room as well. Me just a great guy as well. Very smart. I mean Mac just been a big part of the reason I'm having a seat that I'm having a well because he's been a big. You know, older guy been there. Been a lot of great guys in that room like Chris Alivegaer was in Marvin Harrison Jr. Jackson's making a joke of it.

28:47So he's seen all the greats I've been through there and he teaching us the right thing and the right way and in the buck out way for sure. We heard a lot of good things about a lot of business here. So I was here going down the gate hours of our release. Are you envisioning right now that you want this to be a five six person operation? Yeah, well, I think Coach Dave's talking about it a lot right? It's gonna be a long season. And so I think we need to have I've always been on the opinion if you have two guys you have two guys when you ride with them right? If you have six you have six and I've been blessing. I would say right now we're probably at five. That I would feel confident rotating out there on the field. And look, I'm old school right? So I come from the era. I used to yell at Luke Pickle with who taking out. Oh, I get so mad. I get some maybe 42 whatever against young. Now state how he's so upset coming out of the game. But seeing how violent this game is from this perspective. Now you have to say, hey, okay, not only within games can we keep guys fresh?

29:47Right? But can we do that so that when you get to the last few games in a season that act that are the big ones right? The ones that you're judged off of when you get to the game are we healthier? I think that's it's kind of a full full fan right? So I feel confident with five guys and that's going to be a week to week. You know, like these guys know, I think honestly, who start to be week to week? If you display during the week of practice that you're locked in and somebody else has a bad mental week. Well, I can't reward you with starting if you have six mental errors during the week. You know what I mean? Just because you started last week. So I think it's got to be that iron sharpens iron constant complications due to the whole fall. That is not like something that you would have to throw in a player kind of a Jew as he just alluded to. But is that part of which one has to drive you then? Was it driving you then? You just assumed that was kind of the case when you played anyway. I always felt when I was here that they were trying to outrofruit me. Which is the reality, right? Yeah. Which is why it prepares you so well for the national football. That's why Ohio State prepares you so well for the league because now it's like they're trying to outjaph you.

30:49And so I use that as fuel. But I also thought firsthand, you know, like there was a season where it was John Kerr, Marcus Freeman, certain guys rotating week to week. And so I thought like, should it fit to happen to them that can happen to me? So I just tried to be a certain way in practice. Like I tell the guys all the time, you have to control the things that take no talent. You have to eliminate all the loves. Like if you if you loaf on the field, you're a trader, like you should just go play for the team. Like that can't you can't be coaching effort. And then you can't have mental errors because if you have a mental error, then you can't trust you. So those are the two things I always have the player who was like, all right, you're not going to catch me loafed. And you're definitely not going to catch me not knowing what I'm supposed to do. I might get beat and that's that's inevitable. It's football everyone got scholarship, right? But those two things you can control every single day. What's the next step? You're going to be some crazy. I think it's just seeing it, you know, we haven't we haven't done like any of my series. You know, we know he can tackle and all that. But I think it's just the repetitive grind of a football game from in the box, the constant.

31:54And he's been he's been willing so far, you know what I mean? As far as his hand placement has been good, even more on the strike. He's tough. So it's just continuing to have him challenged to there's plays right now where he's seeing it. From the first time from a well backer. So the next time he sees it, maybe throw catch tackle is an intersection. You know what I mean? Because he's seen it before from that perspective. Everything he's seen before this has been from top down off the shelf, right? So now it's dropping back, that'll be driving. So he's made great progress and I'm really happy with how son he's done. James, look at that recruiting. This is like it's really well for you. Obviously you can't talk about specific recruits, but just overall how do you feel like that's going? And are you enjoying your food? I am. I am enjoying it. I think it's it's fun to build relationships and get to know so many different types of kids, you know? Ohio State presents opportunity, right? And so many different ways. You're not going to get developed better anywhere else in the country.

32:55You have the largest fan base. Largest alumni. It makes this opportunity everywhere, right? So you try to just like explain your passion for the school that did so much for you, you know, especially being an out of state kid, not being from Ohio. And then realizing how much Ohio State changed my life. And so now you communicate that to other young kids who kind of see it and you try to tell them the vision like where you can get to. And I think the fun thing for me is that most of the kids that are recruiting are way more athletic than I ever was. So it's like I tell them if I can the only way I survived in the NFL eight years was the fact that I had football intelligence like I knew where I was going. You know what I mean? I knew where I was fitting. And so if I can impart that information on kids who are extremely athletic, well now you're now you got something special. You know what I mean? How much of you guys have staff already talking about the long season and the need to play more guys? Well, I think yeah, you're going to have to have depth.

33:56That's just a reality, right? It's a longer season. There's more games. And there's no excuse that a place like here like if you're all I'm playing with a maybe a guy who was third or fourth, you know, matter. You know, like you got to be ready to go. So I think depth is crucial at all of the vision. Because injuries are going to happen. There's part of football, you know, you never want to wish it upon anyone and you're certainly not. But it's just you can't be naive to think that you're just going to have every single starter healthy for the whole season. You talked about your mentality as a player and then you're recruiting different players than you were. How do you, how do you marry that when they may not have the same mentality that you need is what you want them to have? Well, you figure that out when you get to know them. And there are certainly some kids that you start to recruit to where you see like, you know what? Ohio State might be too big. It might be too big for them. You know what I mean? And so it's not for everybody. You have to want to come in and compete against the best and realize that you have to win every single game to be the best in the world of what you do.

34:59That's the expectation. That'll have state. And that's certainly not for everyone. And that's okay. But you have to through the process kind of find out who has that mentality, who really craves football. You know, like who craves football versus a lot of the other fluff that kind of comes with it. Who craves ball because when they craves football then the other stuff will take care of itself, right? And we'll just keep getting better and better and better if they want to be the best. Two more questions for Dave. Yeah, that's I mean, I think that's your job as a recruiter is you got to figure out what's the mindset of the kids. And are they are they serious about football and you have to talk to the people that are around them and you got to figure out how to talk to coaches. You just got to try to figure out like who loves ball and the NFL they do the same thing, right? Now they're attending the massive amounts of money and they're saying, okay, we're going to get this person money as a change their motivation or they still love ball. So now it means college is the same thing. Like who actually wants to be the best or who just likes the attention that comes with playing football. James, I've found out that if you already talked about it, but can you tell a little bit of the elevations from our bell from end of the class?

36:04Obviously, Mr. Time last year with the injury, but where he's at now versus the expectation that he had to move this way. Our bell is I mean, showing a lot of progress, you know, most importantly, you know, mentally with the playbook and everything. I think our bell last year, there was a couple things, right? Because of injuries on the D line and camp. You know, he moved the end for a little bit and then we brought him off the ball and then he had an injury and he kind of missed some time. He wasn't an early mid year, you know, so he comes in right in the summer. And so he missed some reps there. So the see where he's at right now is extremely impressive. And for a guy of that size and that much power and his ability to run, he's a special athlete. And so our bell is at a good spring. He's got to continue to dive into the playbook and got to continue to learn all the little things. And as you go, right, like week one, week two, you start seeing new schemes, new schemes, things build. And it becomes kind of a lot. He's the guy continue to comb through it all because athletically, you know, he's one of the most gifted guys that we have in the room. I know, and I have probably mixed with what has changed the time that you've been recruited to now that you're with me. Like, are there other differences you've noticed in your home?

37:14No, I think I think it still comes down for the most part. Like, NIL is certainly an aspect for some. For some, it could be the most important thing. It's always a factor. But I think you still just need to find out who are the kids that love football and they want to be developed. And it's about the relationship to an extent. Like, a relationship gets you to the final stretch. For some kids, NIL might be the thing that pushes them over the top. I mean, I don't know. Like, every kid is so different, right? I try to view it as you're just building relationships. And are you going to get a young man to trust you to develop them into not only the player that they want to be, but the person that they want to be in the future. And can you convince mom and dad that you're the right person to do that, you know what I mean? So I think one of the things that is helpful is my playing experience. I think, you know, when you've played and you've done it, and the drills that you're doing, you know that they work, you're not going to waste your time on stuff that doesn't work. And then the fact that, you know, I am blessed to be at my alma mater, you know, so there's no sense of trying to leave here. You know, and the question I get a ton is,

38:20what do you see yourself in five years? I'm like, where I'm sitting? My alma mater, you know, my kid's love it in Columbus, obviously. I love Ohio State. So I think those are things that can kind of be in advantage. Okay, I think I've even worked with you know, kick off and punch teams as well. It looks like it's like for you in Trentville, you're getting involved with that. Yeah, it's awesome. Maybe I love it because it gives you an opportunity to coach the whole team. You know what I mean? Like special teams in a spot where the whole team probably minus the quarterbacks, right? Is all in one team room, in one meeting room. So you get to actually directly impact other positions and just your own. And I think it also gives. It gives a little bit of urgency to your own room like when you're in there every single time you better be making an impact on punts if you're a linebacker, you better be making an impact on kick return or kick off kick off return. Put return all those things. You better be making an impact, right? Because your coach is in there all the time. So it's been nice and there's a lot of stuff that I think our coaches have done to kind of push that that sense of team when you're in special teams that we every position matters.

39:26I'm curious if someone has been in a foul. What do you think what being a foul is doing to pick off now? Do you think that's like it could be good for college? I mean, the thing that stands to take away like the surprise on time, you know what I mean? But all these rules are changing so much for the safety of the game. I mean, I think it's only a matter of time before it triples down. It seems like everything triples down. So we'll see as of right now we'll keep things going the way they are. All right, James, thank you. Thanks, guys. Pick C34 people around you can't really do too much. Like I said, there's a lot more space with his offense, a lot more holes in the defense that you're trying to get the playmegers into. So I'm excited to be able to work with that. You can't really do it as much in practice. You know, you're not going to get hit, but more preseason and first couple games. I'm excited to see what that looks like. Pick up the sheets.

40:27I'm excited, man. Like I said, from the jump, he's a special, a special player. You don't really get that so many players like him that's so quick, so fast, at least speed and anchor around routes too. I'm excited to see what he does in the future, but I feel like that's the least they can do for him this year. How do you think he would get me out of the way for another? It's just speed, man. Speed, you can't teach speed at all. Just having us on opposite sides, even playing on both sides. It's just speed down the field. He could run 15, 20 yards in breakers, out breakers. And like I said, you can have to play two safes most of the time, or you could run the ball, you could get underneath the routes. It's going to be a great compliment to the offense, so I'm excited. Chris, you said you hope this new offensive, but the playmaker's in position to make place. What about you specifically? What's an area where you think you'll have more opportunity to finish your game? It's a lot of areas that you can see to look at, to improve my game, but yards have the kisses to when I'm looking forward to just more opportunities with that, more space.

41:37I just showcase my speed and my ability with the ball. So I'm excited to do that this year. Something that I really showcase the first two years, so I'm excited to be with... Is it something that I think the quick game element of it just gives the ball in your hands? Yeah, quick game, play action. More over the middle routes. It's a lot of different things that you can say that this guy's going to help that, but like I said, I'm excited. How would you describe the chemistry between you and Eric and you going? We're getting way better, man. I mean, it was our first year last year, so it was kind of up and down, but that's what it comes with the game of football. So we worked a lot this off season, OTAs, which was really good, and we got off to a good start these first two days at camp, getting extra working. But that's going to come with time, so I'm not worried about that at all. We both competitors, we both want to be the best, so we got to do something to be good. Where do you kind of notice that difference? Just like feel on the routes? What do you kind of notice now that it's year two? That's more natural.

42:41What do you mean? It's like, Eric, are you when you're just going to start your game? It's just like, it's more than that, man. It's NFL, everybody's good, so we just got to know what each other is thinking, preaching that post-knife coverage is where the walls won't go. Just reads, what read I am in any progression, everything goes along with that. Just being on the same page, being, like I said, chemistry is built with time, so just little stuff like that that turns into big things is going to be huge. You caught one from Spencer Routland at A2, what are your early impressions from him? He's real talented, that's the first thing I've seen from him. His arm titles out the charts, he's a real natural feel out there. He's going to be real good, I want to see him in action, but from my first impression, he's going to be a real good player. It's going back to the sheet that we talked about all the different stuff he should do, you think there's still a lot more there for him? Oh yeah, he hasn't really, I think this is the first year of being receiver two or really receiver.

43:45In my opinion, we both are receiver one, so I just be able to move around, run real routes, feel like it's going to be a huge advantage for his saying. It's a special player and I can't wait to see him ball, I can't wait to see him get more opportunities and see what he can do. My run real routes, he's just like an opportunity to run. Yeah, just getting more, he hadn't really played too many plays in his first few years, he kind of just get thrown in there when he's getting the ball or he's a decoy or something like that. But he's actually being involved in the offense, always being in, even on run plays, I feel like he's going to be a huge advantage for him to get a feel for the game and be more natural out there. How hard is a receiver like that to shed kind of a, you know, think of him as the deep threat label and then so people just think of him as a deep threat, but he can do more hard isn't to kind of shed that label or that perception like the ball. I mean, that's what life everybody is trying to label somebody as one thing or two things, but I feel like you can showcase, I mean, that's not really who you are in your own sense.

44:52As you get more opportunities as you can see, you can see you can do more and more. That's what anybody on the team. So I'm excited, like I said, for his huge opportunities going to get this year, it's going to be a big one for the Saints. Does this scheme ask for more blocking from receivers as they're more responsibility? So I mean, that's what I told you to, we both have to block and I know we're not the biggest guys or the strongest, but like I said, we want to be on the field, we got to be on the field for the play action plays, all those things. We both got to go block D-Line and block Lyonbackers, but that's what coming football, so we both got to take that next step in our game. Is that somewhere there's like a payoff, like you guys know you play from play action next time? Yeah, it's going to be a huge payoff. Like I said, most of our office is based on play action, all the in-breakers, all the yards at the catch up plays, so we got to go on there and block. Like I said, take that next step and be able to be great for our team.

45:54Like being here? Oh yeah, so after I filled the weather out here, man, that's what I'm used to not using the war and then it's out there trying to catch my breath. It's a great opportunity for us. Are you going to chance to see family and friends at all, so this is their football friend here? Not yet, but they don't come out here soon. Appreciate you, Chalena. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you guys for getting back in the first game. It's good to play good football, but they've got to spend the second match. I mean, it feels good to rip off these runs because I mean we've put them so much work on this and practice them. You know, seeing a product, you know, that hard work, you know, these runs goes through. Tech Reserve sense that just off its line wise is you'll prepare this week with Don for back in there. It's all hope for some really good season. I'm not, you know, it's not particularly in Austin. It's just more of Don for Jackson, for each season all American, et cetera. I mean, join the group, you know. Don for Jackson is a very good football player, man.

46:55Anyone who's on the field, he makes his presence tough. I mean, we've all been training on like, there's no tomorrow just going through. I mean, it's him, we know it can be. Yeah, there's a secret being. There was a sixth who's watching you guys last week. No, or even more of a course, it felt like watching you guys. Then maybe even any help, or did it feel authentic? Yeah, I mean, we put in the work during practice. We practice really hard. Coach Day really challenged us to practice hard. I mean, I was just a result of it. But when it's rolling like that, what does it feel like being in the mix? It's not being. It's us. It's. When you work hard for something and you're able to see like what comes out of it, like that's, there's no better feeling in it. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. You don't go to anybody's where you're from, and I all know what you're talking about. No, I mean, I was really funny to see.

47:55Thank you so much for being here. It was just maybe a surprise. What did Saf been all for? You brought some of you guys for the first few games. What's it been like playing XN for the last two? You know, he's really calm and storm. Like, you never see real panic and having a guy like that next to you. you know you're having really played as many meaning for snaps. There's no one else that would rather have to my left and some my right and you know for our end set. Those guys they do so much for this offensive item. People talk about his intelligence really kind of showing up in the film or then on the field. Where have you noticed that intelligence and how has that helped you? Yeah like I said and crunch time you know when things are exactly looking like how we practice it you know having a guy like that. We'll do this this this and then we execute having a guy like that like this. There's none better than that.

48:57You wrote? What's my favorite cake? I almost came back with a couple of times I guess some more. Take a look at it Marshall. They got a couple guys on the deep bits of bread that have big 10 bodies. Absolutely. What do you see when you look at their tape and see 15, 7 and a couple of those guys are pretty pretty big. Yeah those guys they're real players. They're real players. You can sell their coach well. You can sell. They go hard you know they're real players over there. We've been practicing to the best of our ability to you know expect and I'm prepared for that. You see they've been for G and K and last year.

49:58They're different. They take the plane. Yeah they play they play good ball over there and you know their defense plays hard. They challenge teams you know sometimes they might be overlooked and they still challenge teams you know. And so they come out there with the mentality like no matter who's in front of us. I mean the actions right there right in front of you right now which is kind of a good thing and kind of a bad thing. You know you should shake off the rest you know hitting back in it inside. You talk to your friends and you know that's what it means. Yeah I mean I hear from Paris every once in a while trying not to bother too much but it's always it's always good to hear from guy like that guys like the one even Matt Jones returning back. All right Tiger thank you.

50:58Appreciate you. Thank you. Really experienced it. It's tough. I've been in between the last 25 seconds but I passed out that's a little tough. But no it was awesome and then playing at Wisconsin is pretty cool. My dad got me this big like 10 pound bag of cheese. We put in a lot of realy showing it off on the bus and stuff like that. So it's like besides the calls from the line like being able to develop as a player. Obviously not going into super wide out now because I've played those games. I've played it to North. I've played it like a sewer against Penn State. I played out Wisconsin. I was hired to play that in a new name which is electric. So being able to develop that skill of being calm and calm and strong has been really developmental for me. We can put that especially this next year you know playing a new game in Penn State and all those big places like that. It'll be helpful. Yeah and like being as young as I was is very hard to kind of understand because looking at a guy like a Jersey guy.

52:06Big tough rug. You know I want to be like that but I'm not that yet. And I think trying to be that kind of like bigger than I was at the time. Looking back on it wasn't really kind of the best for me. Like obviously playing was super awesome is just for me is more of a developmental year. And looking into that as I'm going to grow a lot from this and looking back on it. There's some mistakes. I'm like there's no way I'd make that right now. There's no reason why I would do that but I just need that to develop into what I am today. So I'm super grateful for it. I know that's what I was thinking. I was a little bit frustrated. Yeah. In my mind I felt prepared. Looking back now you're like wow I can really know what you think. But I think just the confidence I had not only in myself but like the guys around me like Donnie and Matt and Leigh on their three years of expertise and their how much they've gone through is really helped.

53:11Because maybe sometimes I would be looking at them like I don't really understand this and there'd be Donnie or Josh Fryer but no this is what we're looking at. I'm like okay it makes a lot more sense now to help me become kind of the point of the line stuff like that to make those kind of calls that we need to. I'm pushing for I always says you know the best five of play. That's regardless of really a position and I don't really have any like here or there when it comes to what position. If I could play I'd be more than happy whatever I'm at. But you know the best five of play and I think they did a really good job facilitating and rolling guys at different positions and stuff like that. So I'm not really sure what they have in store for us but now we'll see to the spring and they're going into the summer because all that can change as well. Currently I've been all set up.

54:11You mentioned that you're under size. What's your weight at now? Weight in today at 298. So I'd like to bump that up to 300 like 303 if I could. I got real 303 not drinking Gatorade. I was trying to get up to 303 but that probably the end goal to really get my legs into that leverage going together again. What has been like a bolting up as you've got here every one out there? You can ask for your own is my roommate. He's been horse feeding the kitchen social. But I was doing that. Three game weight protein shakes getting in touch with killer. Art and fitness her and Zoe are super awesome. Kind of they've developed a good plan for us to get up to that weight because you know if you can play heavier and more your legs like why won't you kind of leave them on the table. And I think for me last year I was like I really struggled with that kind of discipline of keeping my weight up and playing like way way lighter than I should have been like to it is way too crazy.

55:11And I think that this year like developing with coach making stuff like that is like real weight. It's not like kind of fake water we water you wait. It's like real like I can play my leg now a lot more. You were playing you two 88 times last year? I was really low that was like the beginning of your back up obviously. When you're talking to a doctor with a face you can try to act like that. I don't know if it is that because I had all that like help on the line with me. I wouldn't say it was a trial by fire but it was definitely a big learning experience. Especially for a young guy who wouldn't do it not playing a single snap. I remember I was so nervous before the end of the game I'm like literally shaking him like tearing up himself and like oh my leg is real. Going into it you think like I put all this work on should be there. And then you like I said I go back and you watch it take this year and like what am I doing. So I think it's like it's such a good development here for me that I'm super so grateful for that experience.

56:11Going into this year trying to learn off that and learn off what we learned this spring into the summer. I think it's going to be really good here. If you want to go to yourself now just like a practice that you're presenting in the comparison. What's the table you would do last year? What do you think of finding yourself like the biggest game of the experience? Mostly just playing in my height and playing in my leverage. I would always have a problem with like really tight ankles and playing like tall on my toes. And whenever I got high hips and like I'll like that that's when I get snagged and tossed. And then just like more recognition of what's going on having the game slow down with you. Because the more you grow you kind of feel like the game obviously doesn't really slow down. You guys get faster every year but it starts to slow down a little bit for you. So like you just kind of see last year and be kind of like jeering kind of figuring out what I'm doing. And then that's where I end up in those bad situations. But this year it's more with more like film study and more study with the coaching and stuff like that. I can find myself in better positions of power and making the right blocks. Is it not 100% knowing exactly what you're doing?

57:14And that's not a coaching problem. That's not. Obviously it's a me problem but it just comes with reps and it comes with experience when you haven't had that before. How do you have noticed that I have a lot of stuff to do? Do you feel like you're doing it? I'm doing some kind of a rough word for it but it's just kind of like you know you're indecisive as a better word when you know when you know you're 100% ready to make this block you play so much faster. And this year when I've been able to do that I played obviously I'm not saying that. I make the same mistake twice. I think he learns from every experience when he's out there. We have really good conversations in between drives when hey this happened. If it comes back and that look comes up again he doesn't do what he did before. He moves on to it. I think he's done a good job protecting football. We never want to turn it over but he's been really good from that standpoint so far in the first four games. His completion percentage has gone up in every game so excited about where he is there. We continue to complete the ball at a high 60-70% rate.

58:15I think we'll be really successful in the fish in the past game. He's used his legs a little bit you know I think that's more than the aspect that I think he's good at it but it just depends on how defense defend. The Art of Defending Us says if he has to do that so. Well we're talking after they came about well they were still some things that we really wanted to get you that were excited about. The opportunity we wanted to talk about in the roads asking about game playing specific stuff. When you look big picture of your offense and the playbook how much you have we've seen and how much more is there at your disposal? There's always more at the disposal but I think it's what is applicable in the game that you're playing. I think you have a course of X amount of plays over a season but then that's cut down for what you're doing that week because you can't practice all those plays during the week. And then even the plays that you practice during the week you don't get called in a game because that specific situation may have not come up in that game. So as you go through it sometimes you find yourself in the red zone more than you thought you were going to be in the red zone.

59:18Other times you find yourself you were never in the red zone. You know you can go two or three weeks where you don't have the ball inside the five yard line but you got some really good goal line plays but you never got a chance to call those goal line plays because you scored from 20 yards out as opposed to punching it across the goal line. So each week is different. I think we always over prepare probably more than often than not and say hey we got some really good stuff in these situations but if that situation only comes up once you really get the call one play. You had five that you thought were pretty good but you only came up once so those other four you know you kind of put them in the Tupperware and tuck them away and then try to bring them back out again next week but we spend a lot of time of how many reps do we have at this particular player this particular scheme. And then maybe two weeks from now you're playing somebody that's similar to who you had three weeks earlier and say hey let's take some of the things out of the Tupperware that we practice that we and really didn't give a chance to run. You get one more four times four times and it all over to the last one and like I'd about want to be aggressive and win the game the most five foot foot work in the situations but you're the most important for just hitting work.

1:00:25Yeah there's an analytic aspect to it but I don't think it's always analytics I think you also have to get the flow of the game and kind of how that's going so it's a combination of both. And what are the percentages if you go for in terms of success rate but also you have to factor in what's what what is that due to our team if we don't get you know I think everybody is always hey we're all in we're all in well you're playing poker and you're all in and you only have a pair of twos you know they may have a better hand in you and that's that's where the situation is you know it's easy to sit there and say four down you should go for it all the time well that's not necessarily the case but I also think you always have to think about what how we should do it. How is your defense playing at the time and you know we willing to put our defense on the field right now if we don't get the first down so that's part of it and then we have certain packages based on down a distance that if we get to a fourth and fourth and have a situation then we're going to dial these plays up so I think our players are really comfortable because we're calling something that they practiced and run a lot. I heard from you talking about a little however dead summer pitch much more you can do right but there's always you can remember development what would you like to see me develop.

1:01:35I played every pass and that would be one chair golf did it last night right I think he went 18 for 18 so and then I'm on my same brown one for one so they were they were 19 for 19 as a team so. What about do you think you lost on receivers a little much and from the up train guy how about it for a Russian looking guy so. I think we'll do a good job I think there's always a growth with all of that you know sometimes it may be a new erupt that had gone in and it doesn't have as many reps in the bank as he does with some of the other things that we've run since they want to spring you know I think but I think the every quarterback can improve every coach can improve every player can improve I think it's this this is a growth game you know and how you develop it. And I hope in game eight we're not playing like we played in game four you know I think it's as you continue to go on and start to add different elements different things that are happening different opponents that that's always part of it but the growth is is how do you develop over the course of the season so I'm pleased with where will is right now but that doesn't mean that he's arrived I don't think you ever arrived in this game I think every day you got to try to be just a little bit better than you were the day before and that's that's what I love about world over that's kind of his mindset is how do I do that.

1:02:46I think all guys have it but I do think it can be developed you know I think for everybody you know it's no different than the first time you move into a city you're going to have to take a map out and try to figure out your GPS like how do I get from point A to point B and then after a while why was I going this way up there? I was I go this way if I could have gone around I would have been there a lot quicker here so it's it's just part of the process that you go through when you're new when it's you're trying to figure your way around and you need a map to look at but after a while you kind of figure you lay in and then you're a lot more comfortable in your environment the more comfortable will get in our office I think the more success we're going to have. Obviously game plans dictate something where got where balls can go you guys have as many weapons as you do do you find yourself as you in build the game. Okay well this guy maybe has as many touches can you even do that in this office where you're trying to get guys more involved.

1:03:53I mean I think at times theoretically you can do that but you also have to factor in what is the defense's decision on how they defend how they decide to defend you. You know we're not when people can say we're not going to let you run the ball well then we have to throw the ball so okay you know we're equal opportunities it doesn't matter if you run the ball across the line across the goal lane or throw the ball across the goal and it still counts as six points so you know we're not caught up in it has to be totally balanced and 50-50 run pass or whatever it is it really is it's indicative of what they're doing and if we can kind of figure out what they're doing you get a really good beat or what they're trying to take away then you are you know there's sometimes you plan things going into a game I'm saying hey if I was defending us this is how I would do it and then you get into a game they're like they're not doing that all right well then we need to take advantage of that you know what I mean so we talk about it and we want to be balanced and I think we're pretty good at distributing the ball through but there are some games with the ball and we want to do that. So they're not going to roll through but there are some games with the tight hands may catch the ball more than the running backs catching ball that's just the nature of how the game kind of expressed itself you know but there are we have specific plays where we think we're trying to get the ball but we're never going to force it you know if they're going to double cover a guy then and they double cover the guy if they've double covered him then someone's single

1:05:08and that's the beauty of having as many weapons as we have as if you're going to double one guy then that means somebody else is you can't double them all if they did it's a penalty because I get to make guys don't feel it. So when you have as many weapons as we have, I think that's always a bonus and that's always a benefit. Well, here at the moment, that you know, four games of the offensive coordinator up in the box, kind of refreshing with the Brian, how has that gone for you and how you would be settled with him? It's been smooth. I think our guys have an understanding in terms of, because we spent so much time together during the weeks of how it's going to flow. And I don't think there's anything that has gone on in a game that's been a surprise, like, hey, what was that? And why do we do that? There's a constant dialogue going on. But when we're in a third and short situation, we only have four or five options on third and short. You're not making plays up at the time. They're what you practice, what you've gone over. Because you're going to call something that your players

1:06:10have a lot of confidence in running because their confidence is based on their demonstrated the ability of doing it in our training sessions. So I think it's been smooth. You know, we haven't really faced any ton of adversity on the offensive side of the wall. So I think that's really when, you know, it'll show. But I'm confident that our communication systems and our protocols that we use right now are solid. So there are some of the dual, your conversions, like, a little better, as an often coordinator maybe than as head coach. So I missed the first part. Was there anything you'd like to better being an offensive coordinator? Surprise you as opposed to being a head coach? You can go to the bathroom between series if you have to. You're putting the only difference, I think. It's always kind of tough coach coop and tell you that on the sideline. It's really difficult to say, hey, I'm going to leave, you know what I mean? But there's a bathroom upstairs by the booth. So if need be. Yeah, obviously you have a lot of triggers that are big

1:07:14like those pet assaults. Is there a full worry or a risk sometimes of getting too far over the skis being aggressive? Knowing that you have almost like get out of jail three cars at your house and get out there. You can just throw them to or, you know, Ryan was talking about trying to outskim and get the guy like a partner and just saying, you know, you enjoy that challenge. Is it sometimes hard to die of back when you have guys that are that exposed? Yeah, because it's not, we're not trying to outskim anybody. We're trying to put our players in positions where they can make plays. I mean, anybody can draw a play up and say, you should do this, you should do that. Then my question is, well, how many reps do you have that running it? You know, and do we feel really good? Because we've seen the four or five different ways they can defend that. So we're not trying to, and you're not going to outskim to the parker. You know, that's this, I think maybe people think a little bit too much into that part is that these people ready to hit that people's number. This game has always been about the players and always will be about the players. So, you know, who can really show up in those matchups?

1:08:19And that's what this game's about. You know, this is as good a defense as we talked about as we faced, but there's going to be a lot of one-on-one battles. You know, we have to win against their interior defense of linemen or outstanding. So that matchup with our center-owned guard against the two interior defense of linemen and the All-American linemaker are a huge matchup. And that comes down to just fundamental football. Do we block better than they get off of blocks? You know, can we give the quarterback enough time for our receivers to run the proper depth of the routes to get the ball thrown? Is the quarterback throwing the ball on time? Where's he holding the ball too long? You know, it's all of that. So, but we don't sit in there and dream up because you have a Jeremiah or you have a Mack or you have a Q or a Tre that we should do this this and this. I think we're always trying to action with their strengths and play to it, but you have to look at all 11 when you're making those decisions because hey, let's just show it to him. Well, then how long are we going to protect for? You know, if Jeremiah is going to run a 60-yard route, you know, I learned a long time ago, every inch on a piece of paper is a second of protection.

1:09:19So can we protect for that long? Can we hold up and now what are we going to do for that? We're going to keep guys in and protection. You know, I think there's a lot that goes into it, but I think the ability to have weapons at all spots makes the defense have to defend all those spots. So we're not trying to specifically go to one or another. I think we're just trying to see how they deploy versus these formations and what their tendencies are and then what are our best chances. And then we got to go play and then we got to go execute because the scheming's done once the ball snap. You know, it's do our guys hold up long in protection and do our receivers get to the right depths. And as a quarterback, deliver the ball on time to a location where the defender can't get his hands on them. I have a question. Yeah, just follow up on that. So when you go against a parter, does it feel like a chess match where the pieces can move independently, type thing, and then what is the tale that you've gotten into a defense of coordinators head for one of another term

1:10:22as a game goes on? There it is a chess match where the pieces are moving. So what happened on play one may not be the same thing that happened on play five. It could be different because you could make a different call. And I don't think any coordinator neither started the ball, everything's about am I getting in this person's head. We're really microscopic in terms of our vision what's the next play and what's the situation. It's second and ninth on the left hash. What are our calls on second and ninth on the left hash? I'm the plus third of the outline. That's really where you are. You're not thinking about am I in his head, not in his head. If you're thinking that, then he's in your head. And I don't have enough space for anybody else in my head. So I'm just going to concentrate on what's next down and it's the only thing. Can I just want to quick follow? This is awesome. Just a quick follow. We're about to ask you a follow. You said the tone though. Yeah, but when I put it up. Well, I think it's easy to see when you listen to our guy

1:11:23speak like those three that you just mentioned, but you could listen to tray or G or Donovan Jackson. I can go through the list of guys and you just become so impressed so fast. And I think Ohio State brings out the best in all of us. We all have to step up our game everybody because the expectations are so high. And so I just think it makes us better across the board. And but I think to answer your question specifically, we haven't reached our team goals yet. We have one more game to go. But to see these guys overcome adversity and have success is really what we want to see as coaches. And so I'm proud of who these people are. I love these guys. I love this team. And that's why I just, our focus has got to be on win in this game so that these guys can tell that story and be able to cement themselves in Ohio State history, which I know means the world to these guys.

1:12:24Now, now real healthy. It was just a, I don't know, I guess a blood vessel or something that looks a lot worse than it is. He's doing great. Guys are healthy. We had a great week of practice. And you know, for game 16, we're doing good. No, no. And I think it's a great lesson for our young players to see somebody who came back to be the best guard in the country and had to transition, tackle midway through the season. But then take that on, never make an excuse, never complain, and just own it. And then the leadership that he's shown has been tremendous. We had a lot of conversation around this time last year, actually it was before this. It was, yeah, I mean, it was probably the first or second week of January. And he was on offense. He had an opportunity to go play in the NFL and would have been drafted significantly high.

1:13:28And I think there was a point where he actually said he was going to go to the NFL and then had to change your heart. And I think that had everything to do with the brotherhood, everything to do with his teammates, and having unfinished business. I think when you go into games like this, there's a lot of ways to look at it. There's a lot of stats we can look at. The truth is we played these guys three years in a row. Well, this will be our third time in three years. So our guys know who these guys are and have a lot of respect for them, and are excited to play in the game. So this game has nothing to do with the past and what's going on. It's all about what's going to happen in this game, and that's what we'll focus on.

1:14:39Yeah, I think when you go into a game like this, one of the most important things to avoid distractions. So I'm letting my wife handle that right now, which is a lot. But the number one thing for us right now is focusing on this game. And so I said that to our team that we have to avoid all distractions right now. We have a lot of family, a lot of friends, a lot of people who certainly want to come to the game. And obviously those things need to get taken care of. But ultimately, we have to do our job. They're all there to see us. And that's what we're going to focus on. So no, it's an opportunity, obviously, to be on stage and finish our mission. But we have to make sure we avoid all distractions. It just makes me realize I've grown up a lot since then.

1:15:47I feel like our guys are men. We have 145 guys on a team right now, which is when you hear it, it just blows you away. You have that many guys. And everybody's job on the team. And that includes coaches and staff is not to be a distraction to the other player as they prepare. But also, just in general, avoiding distractions for yourself in terms of your focus. And so the question right there about tickets and all the different things or some of the stuff that the stories that are written, talking about previous years or previous games or things that has nothing to do with what's going on in this game. And just being focused on this game and how we execute. And that's been a message without overdoing it. But our guys understand what the message is. And I believe they're locked in. I know that we need everybody.

1:17:12So former players, people who are going to be at the game and having a great presence in Mercedes-Benz stadium and being allowed will need them. So we're playing for them. People who are back home in their living rooms, whether it's back in Ohio or in another country or across the country, just setting great energy. Our guys feel all that. So we're playing for everybody. He was pulling to be a buck guy. We're playing for Buck guy nation, for sure. We're also playing for each other and for this team. And that's it. I'm not going to get too far into that right now, but that's it. Yeah. Yeah. He's like family. He is. Being the first really commit and guy who recruited the other guys,

1:18:17especially on defense, but also on offense. He was a leader from the jump. And being a buck I met even more to him growing up in Columbus and Pickering, Tin O'Hyle, his family, just great people. And this is a guy who overcame some things. He just didn't come in this freshman year and dominate, leaving three years and going to the NFL to be a first round draft pick. This is a guy who, again, I say it all the time, wears a hard hat to work every day, brings his lunchpale to work and has the respect of his teammates. And you're seeing his play, he was talking this year. So I know who he wants to play at his best, this game. Being a captain, again, in August having his teammates vote him in was a big deal for him. It was an emotional moment. And winning some of these games has really built him more and more confidence in knowing that this is what he wants. He wants to win a national championship more than anything.

1:19:17And that I think represents our entire team. Now I just think that this year with the 12 team playoff it's just been a little bit different. And there's everyone has their own story. And there's a lot of great teams out there. And a lot of things come into play when you make a run like this. Injuries and just different things. So we'll look at it at the end of the year and figure out the adjustments that need to be made, I think internally. But I also think that we all need to look at how this is playing and what this means playing 16 games. I think it's a great learning opportunity to see what that's going to look like moving forward. But I know it's been exciting for College Football and for their fans.

1:20:26Yeah, I think they do a great job on offense. Coach Dembrox done a great job wherever he's been. Riley Leonard's an excellent leader. Jeremiah Love is one of the most talented backs we've gone against. And they have a very good offense line. So Evans is really good at tight end. They have multiple tight ends. Receivers are weapons. So they're going to challenge us in a lot of different areas. And so we have to play Big 10 football. And that's what it's going to look like. And every play matters when you play in a game like this. And certainly against this team, it'll be the same way. Yeah, I think we built. We say this in all the time is that when you have momentum, you got to keep it. When you don't, you got to go get it. And we didn't have momentum at the end of the season. We had to create our own momentum.

1:21:29And then we started to build some momentum. And now we have to keep it. But I think the ability for our guys to sustain throughout the season has been significant here. And now it's going to be the best. It's got to ramp up. And again, the goal was to play our best game and to finish the mission. But we talked early in the season about building a foundation for down the road. And just like anything else, you build a foundation of a building when storms come. It has to withstand those storms. But now we've got to finish. We've got to finish what we started. And that's it. I think, again, there'll be time to reflect on some of those things after the game. Right now, we're just going to continue to look at Monday night and play in our best game. I think we're going to have to wear a pair of boots and then put them on our pants. And let it go. I think we're going to have to go around the road. And then we'll have to go around the road. You know, it's been enjoyable to be able to start it off with the home game against Tennessee. And then went on the road to the Rose Bowl to LA.

1:22:29That was an experience. And then we went through that and then went down to Texas. And played Texas in Texas, which was very much like a road game. And so now we're into Atlanta. And we have a lot of guys on our team from the Atlanta area from the southeast. So for a lot of these guys, it's like coming home. So that's exciting. But it's allowed our families and team to kind of be on a road together for the last month. But we just, I kind of say we're like train rats. We just come to work and figure out what the next mission is to get back to work that way. That's really what it is. And every once in a while, you've got to come up for air and realize that it has been a great run. But now we've got to finish it. And so every once in a while, you take a step back, but then you get refocused on what matters. But to your point, it's about everybody. And certainly it all starts with the players and what they do. And I think our energy has continued to grow. I think we talk about the mental fatigue.

1:23:31I just don't see that with our guys. I think it's only increased. The energy's increased. The focus is increased. I think our team is fresh right now. I think if we had to, we could continue to play for a few more weeks. But that just shows you the experience, the maturity, the depth that we have. And I think that's all important. But we're not going to play anymore. We've got one more left. And it's going to be our best. I'm going to play for a few more weeks. Say that again. Yeah, we have. We have. And excellent football players with just great focus on family. And you can see how important relationships matter. And when you have an opportunity to recruit families

1:24:34and get into their homes, you've got to feel for what that's like at home. And you can certainly see how in the Haitian community, family matters, relationships matter. So that when you bring somebody into your family and the football family, they grab onto the culture. And it's been a huge asset to our team. I don't know. Yeah. One of the things that you have to do is to put it in your home and take it all in your home. And then you can also have one or nine. And then you can just put it all in your home. And then you can have three or four. Say it one more time. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. What do you have to do to take part in that? Oh, I got you. Yeah. Well, yeah, we're kind of, I guess that that transition has been happening the last few years. But you can see obviously this year, it's really accelerated. And the thing that's hit me is that, you know, we're in the middle to late January.

1:25:37We're still playing. And, you know, some teams are starting spring ball in another week or so. And so it's just very, very different. I think it's all things that we have to learn from when we assess what's going on. But it's been hard to take a step back and look at anything because, you know, you know, you'll have a short period of time back and win the next game. And like every single ounce of your energy has to be to go win the next game. And then you wake up and you realize you're on to the next one. And so we're not there right now. But I know after the season, you've got to wake up what just happened, you know, and then we'll try to assess it the best we can and make it better. I know there's a lot of things that we can do to make this all better. And I know institutionally we'll continue to make those adjustments, like you said, and do things the way we've done before, but also adjust, but also, you know, I think in college football, we need to look and see how we can make this even better as it's gone on because every year it has gotten better. And I think it's great right now. But man, when you think about the potential and what it can be for the players and these teams, it's pretty extraordinary.

1:26:37Oh, yeah. That's it. That's it. And I think our strength coach, Mick Morati, really, you know, is simple. By fall, it's everything, the team, the team, the team, it's what it's all about. But in order to add to a team, in order to add to a collective, you've got to focus on the individual. The individual must improve so the collective can improve. And so building the base, I think, schematically and fundamentally, culturally is what we're attacking as we head into spring. How much is Brandon looking forward to a different spring, a different opportunity? I know it wasn't fun for him having to take a little bit of a backseat to a knockout. Where do you see him, the fire of the passion right now? See gets right to this one. Yeah, I think when you come out of a season, you get out of January and kind of take a breath, then when you get back in the winter, it's the first opportunity to reestablish the new role that I want to have.

1:27:40I mean, across the board, there's not one guy that doesn't want to improve roles. So, I think they're all attacking it that way. I think Brandon's one of them, but he's one of 50. And I think that it's our job to provide opportunities, to grow, to separate themselves, to see peer-to-peer e-vows, to allow these guys to check a chase, a role, at least through winter they've gotten that started, to continue that through spring. And I think Brandon's, you know, fits in line with that. I think Brandon did a great job looking back, of finding his role last year and excelling at it. We know we talk a lot about, if you want to be a starter, you have to be a starter before you're the starter. And if you're not, then you're never going to be the starter. So, I think he embodied that, you know, he gave himself an opportunity to get into spring, and get into us, he's made into winter, continue who he is, continue to build, you know, his base, build his leadership, and then now he's got to take that in spring.

1:28:41So, all the great things you do prior, doesn't mean anything, you don't have to go out there and do it in spring. So, that's the harsh reality of this sport. You know, what have you done lately? And I think all these guys are chewing at the bit to get back on the field. Brian, everybody brings their own experience. Ryan was a quarterback, you were a receiver. And then to become a play caller, obviously you have an understanding of the whole offense. But what was the process like for you, of protections and the run game and a quarterback play, and just continuing to grow with your knowledge of that part of the game as you prepared for this position? Yeah, I mean, I think you're always growing, I think, that you still have a specialty here. You still have an expertise in one area. It's seen you have an expertise in all of it. That's just not true. In my opinion, I've seen multiple coordinators, and I know that as a fact. So, you know, for me, I think it's just, you have an opportunity to be with the best staff in America every single day

1:29:43with the best coach in America. So, just stay off your phone and pay attention and take notes and actually maximize your time. It's amazing the amount of people that don't do that. So, every time in a meeting, I just try to make sure I'm getting a nugget or I'm getting information or when things are said, do I truly understand it? And I really, guys, will tell you, I don't care. I'll ask the question. You may think I'm, I look dumb, but I don't care because I want to know the information. So, I think that approach, I think a lot of guys have that approach. That approach allows you to just build, you know, over time. And then, that'll continue to build from now to game one and then build to the season. So, the opportunity to grow is literally daily. So, I just try to make sure I'm finding those opportunities. I'm aware of those opportunities when they're writing my face. I think I'm going to do a role in the offensive meter of how important is that. Yeah, Coach Jordan's always been a huge part of other receiver room. I think that, yeah, he's just understanding that my pull away is real.

1:30:48That can happen. So, he's going to be on his toes and be ready that we're ready to not skip a beat. So, information wise, communication wise, he's got to be locked in on that and just on to assume that, you know, Coach Hard's got it. He never really has. I expect him to continue to do that and, you know, he's been a big part of everything we've done. Is that almost like taken from what Ryan did last year, where he shipped away from play calling? And he ended up somebody else and shipped him away from being a Portobex coach? Or like, get to have somebody you trust and how long did it take you maybe to develop that trust, and that relationship with them and to where like, you know that, hey, if I pulled away for a second, I'm like, Devon's got this. I don't have to worry about like, what my room is here. I think it's more important that I do a great job being organized. So, I'm never pulled away. I will be in that receiver room and they will be coached at the very highest level. So, I think there's ways to eliminate being pulled away by being organized on top of things, having the right work and working, right help before that receiver meeting ever happened. Is that important for you, because that's the way you've got to emphasize?

1:31:49Nothing's going to change in terms of your, I never... There's no, nothing's going to change in my involvement in the receiver room. Brian from Milan to be going through a full spring, full oxygen for the first time. What do you look at everything? It's areas he can grow to push for playing time is here. Yeah, I mean, Milan is doing a great job. He's growing at exponential rate, getting stronger, getting bigger, he's got way added. You know, I'll tell you like, you know, I always explain to him like, you don't realize how much you've missed when you come in June versus the mid-year. Like, it's massively different. Not saying you can't overcome it, some do. At the end of the season, you know, some have. But, you know, I think that's probably reliant on the room. You know, and Chris had an opportunity late, a lot of, you know, in the season to kind of make an impact. But it's very, very rare. So, and now, you know, he's going through the winner workout, his growth, his everything he's done. He's like, hey, Coach Harri, you know, I know what you're talking about now, and you miss that, that section of winner workouts. So, that being said, it makes you laugh, but he's doing a great job.

1:32:50I expect expectations for him through spring. And I don't see that changing. The only staff, the only staff this year is this younger than it's been past years. I think it's a mega, but that you don't have somebody who's maybe. What's the average? It's like the average, like 30. Is the average age? Is that including support staff? No, it's just the primary. I got you. What's it been in the past? A couple minutes. Two more minutes. No kidding. I don't know. Yeah. Kevin Wilson. I don't know. Dan Lantings, the head coach at Oregon, I was his average. I'm asking. I don't, I'm 38. Can you Dylan Hamles? It's 30s and 50s. So, I don't really know. I gave zero thought to that. I think that, you know, I think your ability to kept with players is important. I think you probably see a little bit of that happening in the NFL as well. I really have given zero thought to that. I don't want to just ramble on that. Yeah, I just didn't know if it was the thought of the manager.

1:33:50No thought to it. You were in proportion? What's the next step for him? Because we've heard him make a talk to him. He's like, he seems to generate a little bit of buzz, but has limited role. Like, now he's got an opportunity. What's the next step for him to get that opportunity? Take the next step and be a, be everything he's capable of being, right? I mean, I think the guys that, you know, are out there are, uh, very consistent in all job phases. You know, like, again, I think he wants to be a full rounded receiver. And you know that. I think he loves playing in the slot. The great job there. I asked him to come out to the outside a little bit. Did a good job out there. I think it's natural positions and is in the slot doing a great job there. But it's just another opportunity to establish himself based on his peers, right? I mean, it's kind of like the drafts and trying to explain sometimes to these guys. Like, you come to Ohio State to compete with the best. It'd be alongside the best. It's always pure to peer evals. Like, that's how it works. Like the draft embodies that. Like, if it's easier to go play somewhere else, then that's fine.

1:34:50That's what we're kind of looking for. Per se, I'm not saying that's price. I'm just saying it's a very competitive room. And you chose that because of this room. Now you got to beat your peer to play more and do more and all that stuff. So, um, you know, I think that, um, you got to continue to build worries at. And the guys that seem to be, you know, starters in our room. You know, really, I think over the last eight years have been NFL quality guys. So if you're, and it become a start on Ohio State, it's a good chance. You're probably NFL caliber receiver. I mean, again, just go on to the numbers. So, um, you're chasing that. Can't get discouraged. Or maybe not being, you know, not doing what you think you should have done. And that goes for everybody. It's not just Bryson, but all these guys are chasing that. As I ramble about Bryson. But, um, you know, I think that it's not just him. It's at BI. It's car now with everybody wants, it's chasing a higher level of play. And this spring is another step forward to do that. What's your impression of the freshman? How much in your estimation is that a gift? Do we have to do it? How much of it is learned? And where do you stand on that?

1:35:50Oh, never gave it a lot of thought to it. I've never, I've never called a play in a game. So for me to have an opinion, I think that'd be a little brash. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. That's a good idea. So for me to have an opinion, I think that'd be a little brash. I would say that, uh, like anything, it's probably a skill that you can improve on. And do better at it. Do good. Do worse at it. I think being reminded with guys and seeing how they do it has been a blessing. And it's very clear, there's more than one way to do things. So, um, being, uh, being aware of that, um, I've noticed that. What's your impression of the three freshmen and how they maybe transition to your... Yeah, all four freshmen, I'm like very, um, encouraged and pressed with they carry themselves the right way like we have hoped they worked their tails off if all improved I would say that they're the right mold the right fit they belong in the room and now they hesitate to improve now

1:36:50they're competing both you know first individually between each other and then you know as we get in the spring they'll start competing against each other with the rest of the guys what I mean by that so but as a group the freshman group very impressed and they're off to the right start coach our land thank you bring it on the roll and that the end of the game defense is more sound and those guys are more stiff as this far as giving up yards and as the game the game goal is like okay guys are playing up so just keep running but you kind of see it especially right now what do you see from Indiana's defensive front that's the strength of their team yeah undefeated team right now I think more so sound and you know those guys are super disciplined they like they want to give up any art so that's our job we got there you know we talked to Trey last week about just kind of how fresh he felt how about you obviously have you have he worked with the last couple years but yeah man I think right now you know I felt the best ever but like especially mentally and physically feel great just having a great group of guys around me to go out there and try to go win it all so you know having Trey around as well he's been since acid to this team and you know

1:37:53just supporting each other throughout this whole year and just trying to go win it all which I'm good you expect the offensive line to pick up pick up where it left off obviously losing Seth is a huge blow and so what have you noticed like today from the spree to cover that group yeah I don't know does anything out of the ordinary you know whoever steps in those guys are gonna go in execute so I don't have any doubts of anybody I don't know how far the line I know there's a guy you know they're going in execute and play their best thank you so what was it about a high state staff that may be correlated between what you were going into with Alabama that you felt you could transition over here I feel like there's a really good quarterback development coach day pre-cord like whisper you know the quarterbacks they've had just the past five years shown to kind of create numbers and I've just really done things the right way and I've wanted to come this offense because by hand because my coach Kelly you know make a adjustment line I had pretty much contact with them you know you want to play a

1:38:58doing one of the things that coach today says if you don't like to have your hand held and kind of process now you you played up in the age a lot of time what is it about you to drive you want that much coach I'd say you know in high school I had a coach that you know he was doing a lot of responsibility and I he would you know tell a lot of my responsibility I mean make make sure on me and so I just you know I want to be the best for back in the deep and take the take the knee do the field do things the right way and just do things on my own I love watching Joe Barrow he makes that adjustment line he's a really good decision maker I like Justin Herbert but I charge his hands I lost a one play on some of those bad methods you know the decision makers who make big mistakes I would say I'm a little bit more quiet but I'm working on the heck with that you know coach today is trying to get me to do more of a walk of the leader up there with the guys

1:40:03that's why it's definitely quite a confidence confident in your ability to play I know what we do up to that club actually I think I've only been here once in a few months I love them really good good places the place of the lead and out of friends I think I visit maybe freshman or sophomore yeah just just for the camper and visit just just the just the facilities I know it was only a few days but being in the Alabama program especially as they prepared for a challenge football plan front what did you take away from that short period of time yeah it was it was really good with the coach recent you're saying and they were they were coaching players hard and I saw the work it takes to get to the playoffs and then coming here just seeing the older guys putting their work throughout the winter you know seeing our older guys are all the leaders putting their work in showing the happenings how much of a relationship did you have with air obviously coming in he had been committed you come in you both freshmen what was it like before

1:41:07and what's your relationship like we didn't have much relationship prior we measured the 11 I knew each other a little bit and then come in here you know we're back room everyone here's really close so it's a we're all pushing each other be better we're all taking push points from each other trying to get ready I would say we are a cop I surprise you know come back from the game and you're a little bit high spirits because of the tournament there was definitely a lot of motions but I'm not family lean on I can't really explain how that out I would be just really trying to develop them

1:42:11take coach push today and then take coach push coach Kelly to run the offense when they want to come and take their coaching points and then try to get them on there if you look at your situation I think that I can be a really good decision maker for the offense and someone who would be absolutely nervous and trust I think it's it's kind of a lot of things I was always around for a ball my I was a quarterback and so he used it quarterback and I was a high school and I was a top-off on his pitch so I've always been around for a ball and then I just been a high level officer high school and just really just had a lot of my career who do you want one more who's your favorite type of tagger?

1:43:13what is he saying? I have a taste of my life. I'm a different type of person. I'm a different type of person. I'm a different type of person. I just keep it right here. And he's certainly making a case to get on the field this fall. So I think it's been a really good spring for CJ. There's just always whenever you have a good day you've got to follow it up by another good day you know and stack days and I think that's what a pro does. You know what I mean like there's always you want to be a pro you got to keep stacking and that's the expectation and I think you know he's had some really good days and then he's had some days where you're like you're trying to push him a little bit but I think I think CJ where he is now compared to where he was last fall is he's a lot better football player. A lot of individuals here are going down to eight hours. Are you envisioning right now that you want this to be a five six person operation? Yeah well I think Coach Dei's talked about it a lot right it's gonna be a long season and so

1:44:14I think we need to have I've always been on the opinion if you have two guys you have two guys and you ride with them right if you have six you have six and I have a blessing so I'd say right now we're probably at five that I would feel confident rotating out there on the field and look I I'm old school right so I come from the era I used to yell at Luke Pickle what he would take me out oh I get so mad I get so maybe 42 whatever against Youngstown State I'd be so upset coming out of the game but seeing how violent this game is from this perspective now you have to say hey okay not only within games can we keep guys fresh right but can we do that so that when you get to the last two games in the season that act that are the big ones right the ones that you're judged off of when you get to the game are we healthier and I think that's it's kind of a both a both-hand right so I feel confident with five guys and and that's gonna be a week to week you know what I mean like these guys know I think honestly who start to be week to week if you

1:45:14display during the week of practice that you're locked in and somebody else has a bad mental week well I can't reward you with starting if you have six mental errors during the week you know I mean just because you started last week so I think it's got to be that iron sharpens iron constant competition through the whole fall I always felt when I was here that they were trying to out-recute me which is the reality right yeah which is why it prepares you so well for the national football that's why Ohio State prepares you so well for league because now it's like they're trying to out-drat you and so I use that as fuel but I also thought firsthand you know like there was a season where it was John Kerr Marcus Freeman certain guys rotating week to week and so I thought like should if it happened to them it can happen to me so I just tried to be a certain way in practice like I told the guys all the time you have to control the things that take no talent you have to eliminate all loves like if you if you if you loaf on the field you're a traitor like

1:46:18you should just go play for their team like that can't you can't be coaching effort and then you can't have mental errors because if you have a mental error then then you can't trust you so those are the two things I always have the player was like all right you're not going to catch me lough then and you're definitely not going to catch me not knowing what I'm supposed to do I might get beat and that's that's inevitable football everyone's gonna polish it right but those two things you can control everything the next day I think it's just the end you know we haven't we haven't done like any of my series you know so we know you can tackle and all that but I think it's just the repetitive grind of a football game from in the box the constant and he's been he's been willing so far you know what I mean as far as his hand placement has been good you've been going the strike he's tough so it's just continuing to to have him challenged to there's plays right now where he's seeing it from the first time from the will backer so the next time he sees that maybe throw catch tackle is that's an intersection you don't even mean because he's seen it

1:47:18from that perspective everything he's seen before this has been from top down off the shelf right so now it's dropping back that'll drive in so he's made great progress and I'm really happy with without sonny's going James looking at recruiting seems like it's going really well for you obviously you can't talk about specific recruits but just overall how do you feel like that's going in and are you enjoying your food I am I am enjoying I think it's it's fun to to build relationships and get to know so many different types of kids you know Ohio State presents opportunity right and so many different ways you're not gonna get developed better anywhere else in the country you have the largest fan base largest alumni it may be his opportunity everywhere right so you try to just export like explain your passion for the school that did so much for you you know especially being an out-of-state kid not being from Ohio and then realizing how much Ohio State changed my life and so now you communicate that to other young kids who kind of see it and you try to tell them

1:48:22the vision like where you can get to and I think the fun thing for me is that most of the kids I'm recruiting are way more athletic than I ever was so it's like I tell them if I can the only way I survived in the NFL eight years was the fact that I had football intelligence like I knew where I was going you know what I mean I knew where I was fitting and so now if I can impart that information on kids who are extremely athletic when I hear now you got something special you know what I mean how much of you guys have already talked about the long season and the need to play more guys well I think yeah you're gonna have to have depth that's just a reality right if it's a longer season there's more games and there's no excuse that a place like here like if you're all on playing with a maybe a guy who was third or fourth that didn't matter you know like you got to be ready to go so I think depth is it's crucial at all of the vision because injuries are gonna happen there's part of football you know you never want to wish it upon anyone and

1:49:22there's certainly not but it's just you can't be naive to think that you're just gonna have every single starter healthy for the whole season you talked about your mentality as a player and then you're recruiting different players than you were how do you how do you marry that when they made that same mentality that you need it but you want them to happen well you figure that out when you get to know them and there are certainly some kids that you start to recruit to where you see like you know it Ohio State might be too big it might be too big for them you know what I mean and so it's not for everybody you have to want to come in and compete against the best and realize that you have to win every single game to be the best in the world of what you do that's the expectations that Ohio State and that's certainly not for everyone and that's okay but you have to through the process kind of find out who has that mentality who really craves football you know like who craves football versus a lot of the other fluff that kind of comes with it who craves ball because when they crave football then the other stuff will take care of itself right and we'll just

1:50:24keep getting better and better and better if they want to be the better yeah that's I mean that's I think that's your job as a recruiter is you got to figure out what's the mindset of the kid and are they are they serious about football and you have to talk to the people that are around them and you got to figure out talk to coaches you just got to try to figure out like who loves ball and Dan I fell they do the same thing right now they're attending the massive about the money and they're saying okay we're gonna get this person money as a change their motivation or they still love ball so now it means and college is the same thing like who actually wants to be the best or who just likes the attention that comes with playing football James I found out if you already talked about it but you tell a little bit of the elevation from our bell from end of less obviously missing time last year with the injury but where he's at now versus the expectations that you had to move this way our bells I mean show a lot of progress you know most most importantly you know mentally with the playbook and everything I think our bell last year there was a couple things right because of injuries on the DLIME and camp you know he

1:51:28moved the end for a little bit then we brought him off the ball and then he had an injury and he kind of missed some time he wasn't an early mid-year you know so he comes in right in the summer and so he missed some reps there so the see where he's at right now is extremely impressive and for a guy of that size and that much power and his ability to run he's a special athlete and so our bell is had a good spring he's got to continue to dive into the playbook and got to continue to to learn all the little things and as you go right like week one week two you start seeing new schemes new schemes things build and it becomes kind of a lot he's just got to continue to comb through it all because athletically you know he's one of the most gifted guys that we have in the room. I know what has changed on the human footage now that you're waiting like there are other mental differences you've noticed in your video. No I think I think it still comes down for the most part like NIL is certainly an aspect for some for some it could be the most important thing it's always a factor but I think you still just need to find out who are the kids

1:52:31that love football and they want to be developed and it's about the relationship to an extent like a relationship gets you to the final stretch for some kids and I might do the thing that pushes them over the top I mean I don't know like every kid is so different right I try to view it as you're just building relationships and are you going to get a young man to trust you to develop them and to not only the player that they want to be but the person that they want to be in the future and can you convince mom and dad that you're the right person to to do that you know what I mean so I think one of the things that is helpful is my playing experience I think you know when you've played and you've done it and the drills that you're doing you know that they work you're not going to waste your time on stuff that doesn't work and then the fact that you know I am blessed to be at my alma mater you know if there's no there's no sense of trying to leave here you know and then the question I get a ton is what do you see yourself in five years I'm like where I'm sitting my alma mater you know my my kids love it in Columbus obviously I love

1:53:33Ohio State so I think those are things that can kind of be an advantage yeah it's awesome maybe I love it because it gives you an opportunity to coach the the whole team you know what I mean like special teams in a spot where the whole team probably minus the quarterbacks right is is all in one team room in one meeting room so you get to actually directly impact other positions and just your own and I think it also gives it gives a little bit of urgency to your own room like when you're in there every single time you better be making an impact on punts if you're a linebacker you better be making an impact on kick return or on kick off kick off return punt return all those things you better be making an impact right because your coach is in there all the time so it's been nice and and there's a lot of stuff that I think our coaches have done to kind of push that that sense of team when you're in special teams that we every position matter you're just someone who's been a VNF all what do you think what VNF is doing to pick off now

1:54:33and even if it could be good for college I mean the thing that states it takes away like the surprise on side you know what I mean but all these rules are changing so much for the safety of the game and I mean I think it's only a matter of time before it triples down it seems like everything triples down so we'll see as of right now we'll keep things going the way they are all right James thank you yep thanks guys yeah I think when you go to a game like this one of the most important thing is to avoid distractions so I'm letting you know my wife handle that right now which is a lot but yeah the number one thing for us right now is focusing on this game and so I said that to our team that we have to avoid all distractions right now we have a lot of family a lot of friends a lot of people who certainly want to come to the game and obviously those things need to get taken care of

1:55:35but but ultimately we have to do our job they're all there to see us and that's what we're going to focus on so no it's it's an opportunity obviously to be on stage and finish our mission but now we have to make sure we avoid all distractions it just makes me realize I've grown up a lot since then you know again I feel like our guys are men we have 145 guys on a team right now which is you know when you when you hear it it just kind of blows you away you have that many guys and everybody's job on the team and that includes coaches and staff is not to be a distraction

1:56:38to the other player as they prepare but also just in general you know avoiding distractions for the for yourself in terms of your your focus and so when you we know the question right there about tickets and in all the different things or some of the stuff that you know the stories that are written you know talking about you know previous years or previous games or things that make that has nothing to do with what's going on in this game and just being focused on this game and how we execute and that's been a message without overdoing it but our guys understand what the message is and I believe they're locked in yeah

1:57:39well I know that we we need everybody so you know former players you know people who are going to be at the game and and having a great presence in Mercedes-Benz stadium and being allowed yeah we'll need them so we're playing for them you know people who are back home in the living rooms whether it's back in Ohio or you know in another country or across the country you know just said in great energy our guys feel all that so you know we're playing for everybody who's pulling to be a buck I we're playing for buck I nation for sure we're also playing you know for each other and for this team and that's it I'm not going to get too far into that right now but but that's it yeah yeah he's like family he is you know being the first really commit and guy who

1:58:45recruited the other guys especially on defense but also on offense he just he was a leader from the jump and being a buck I meant even more to him growing up in Columbus and Pickering, Tino Highell his family of just great people and this is a guy who overcame some things you know he just didn't come in this freshman year and dominate leaving three years and going to the NFL to be a first round draft pick I mean this this is a guy who again I say it all the time you know where's a hard hat to work every day brings his lunchpale to work and has the respect of his team teammates and you're seeing his play do is talking talking this year so I know he wants to play at his best this this game being a captain you know again you know in in August having his teammates vote him in was a big deal for him it was an emotional moment and and you know winning some of these games has really built him more and more confidence in knowing that this is what he wants you know he wants to win a national championship more than anything and that I think represents our

1:59:48entire team no I just think that this this year with with the 12 team playoff it's just been a little bit different and there's a lot everyone has their own story and there's a lot of great teams out there and you know a lot of things come into play when you make a run like this injuries and just different things so you know we'll look at at the end of the year and figure out you know the adjustments that need to be made I think internally but I also think that you know we all need to look at you know how this is playing and what this means you know playing 16 games I think it's a great learning opportunity to see what that what that's going to look like moving forward but I know it's been exciting for college football and for their fans

2:00:55yeah I think they do a great job on offense coach Dembrox done a great job wherever he's been Riley Leonard's an excellent leader Jeremiah Love is one of the most talented backs we've gone against and they have a very good offense align the heavens is really good at tight end they have multiple tight ends receivers are our weapons so you know they're gonna they're gonna challenge us a lot of different areas and so we have to play big ten football you know that's what it's gonna look like and you know every play matters when you play in a game like this and certainly against this team it'll be the same way yeah I think we built we say this in all the time is that you know when you have momentum you gotta keep it when you don't you gotta go get it and you know we didn't have momentum at the end of the season we had to create our own momentum and then we started to build some momentum

2:01:59and now now we have to keep it but I think the the ability for our guys to sustain throughout the season has been significant here and now it's now it's gotta be the best it's gotta ramp up and again the goal is to play our best game and to finish the mission but we talked early in the season about building a foundation for down the road and just like anything else you you build a foundation of a building when storms come it has to with with with stand those storms but now we gotta finish we gotta finish what we started and that's it I think again there'll be time to reflect on some of those things after the game right now we're just gonna continue to look at Monday night and play in our best game you know it's been it's it's it's been enjoyable to be able to you know it started off with the home game against Tennessee and then went on the road to the Rose Bowl to LA that was an experience and then you know so went through that and then went down to Texas and you know played Texas in Texas

2:03:07which was very much like a road game and and so now we're into Atlanta and we have a lot of guys on our team from the Atlanta area from the southeast so for a lot of these guys it's like coming home so so that's exciting but it's it's allowed you know our families and team to kind of be on a road together for the last you know month but we we just like we're like train rats we just come to work and you know figure out what the next mission is to get back to work that way you know that's just really what it is and every once in a while you gotta come up for air and realize that you know it has been a great run and but now we gotta finish it and so you know every once in a while you take a step back but then you get refocused on what matters and but to your point it's it's about everybody you know and certainly it all starts with the players and what they do and I think the you know our energy has continued to grow I think you know we talk about like the mental fatigue I just don't see that with our guys I think there's it's only increased the energy's increased the focus is increased I think our team is fresh right now you know I think

2:04:08you know if you had to we could continue to play for a few more weeks but but that just shows you the experience the maturity the depth that we have and I think that's all important but but we're not gonna play anymore we got one more left and it's gotta be our best so say that again yeah yeah we have we have and you know excellent football players with you know just great focus on family and you know just you and you can see how important relationships matter and you know when you when you have an opportunity to recruit families and get into their homes you gotta feel for what that's like at home and and you can certainly see how you know

2:05:10in the Haitian community family matters relationships matter so that when you bring somebody into your family and the football family you know they grab onto the culture and and it's been a huge asset to our team say it one more time yeah yeah oh I got you oh yeah we're kind of I guess that that transition has been happening the last few years but you can see obviously this year it's really accelerated and the thing that's hit me is that you know we're we're in the middle to late January we're still playing and you know some teams are you know starting spring ball in another week or so you know and so it's

2:06:12just very very different um I think it's all things that we have to learn from when we assess what's going on but it's been hard to take a step back and look at anything because you know you know you know you'll have a short period of time to get back and win the next game and like every single ounce of your energy has to be to go win the next game and then you wake up and you realize you're on to the next one and so um we're not there right now but I know after the season you gotta wake up what just happened you know um and then we'll try to assess it the best we can and to make it better I know there's a lot of things that we can do um to make this all better and I know institutionally we'll continue to make those adjustments like you said and um do things the way we've done before but also adjust but also you know I think in college football we need to look and see how we can make this even better as it's gone on because every year it has gotten better and I think it's great right now but man when you think about the potential and what it can be for the players and these teams it's pretty extraordinary oh yeah that's it that's it I think our strength coach Mick Morati really um you know symbolizes

2:07:21kind of what that means you know he has this old school work ethic you know because the line still the line and the cone still the cone you still got to have your foot behind a line you still got to run through the cone plus two but there's so many other things now there's sports science there's GPS there's a longer season and so having to be able to adapt with those times is important I think it's the same way with our program and how we run things and the tradition is not going to change Ohio State and that's one of the reasons why these guys come here it's one of the things we sell and recruiting you know is that um you know just over a hundred years of football and the great teams and players that have come before and what the expectation and you know we have an obligation to be the best in a world at what we do and that's the expectation whether you're a player or coach and we own that we we absolutely embrace that and but then also adjusting with the times and now we have a new playoff system in place so but all that being said here we are a couple more days before the game and we've got a chance to finish our our season and finish the mission and then again cement ourselves in the history

2:08:23of Ohio State football as the 19 to win an national championship and the third in over 50 years a lot of good teams along the way and that's been a message to our guys and it's not about how you start it's how you finish try not to get too much into those nostalgic thoughts because um it's just it's a distraction and there when you're in a game like this it's easy to easy to get distracted players and coaches so what matters is what we do on Monday night how we execute how hard we play and that's it and then after the game I think there's a great opportunity to sit back and think about all those types of things but yeah there's a lot that I could probably go into if we were to sit back and talk about what

2:09:26Monday night means but but ultimately we have to we have to go win the game and that's it right now so uh 48 hours out I know a lot of people want to talk about different things we're just going to focus on executing at a high high level everybody doing their job and find a way to win the game in the fourth quarter and that's it I think um you know in life you know you have to um you know work through tough times and it's how you respond to those tough times and and that's it and that's been the message all along to our players and um it's not always how how things happen in your life it's how you respond and I

2:10:27think our guys have learned a lot about that and I again I said this before I think there's some great stories to be told about you know what went on behind behind closed doors and um you know some of the things that were said and and you know the personal challenges that we we had for each other and um you know collectively the story but the only way that gets told is if a banner gets put up in a woody that's it and and that's the that's the sobering reality of this game that nobody cares about what you go through and and you got to win that final one to finish the mission and so that's it for our guys and um you know as much as some of these these wins have been great wins for us you know to me you know it's about winning this final game and so um all that being said I think our guys have learned a lot about life over the last month I think um it's been a tight group we we've seen the good the bad and the ugly and it's a special group of guys that care a lot about each other and that are going to go on to be very very successful moving forward because they're strong they're loyal um and and they're they're very mature um you're going to see you know

2:11:3410 20 30 years down the road these guys making an unbelievable impact not only on their families but in the community and in the game of football yeah it's it's uh it's football and you know I said to my wife all the time like that's we signed up for it and you know it's the highest of highs and the lowest of lows this game will take you to knees and and give you some of the greatest experiences in the world and um that's it you know um not a lot of people get to experience those those highs and lows and you have to manage the tough times and you got to enjoy the good ones and that's it and um you know the more you're in this game the more you're going to realize that and that's it and um those are opportunities to show strength and and that's it so you know we're counting on that to make a difference on one a night yeah you got it

2:12:43yeah that's it and set a great example for the younger groups one of the good things about having 145 guys on the roster is some of these new freshmen and and and transfers that are coming in get to see what it's supposed to look like get to see great leadership if this wasn't the case they wouldn't have an opportunity to see what you know a mecca buka's like Wil Howard Travian Henderson Lathan Ransom uh Benzel Burke you to go through the list Cody Simon I mean these you know Tileek Williams you know what does it look like how do they prepare not only for one week but with several weeks and um and these these guys are they're men they are and the way that they go about their business not only they love being Ohio State Buckais but they love their teammates and all those things matter um and so again they want to play their best game here and and finish themselves and cement themselves so that you know when they come back they can see that banner up there and you have a bit of a ring to show for it so that's it you know we'll get back to the hotel here get back to work get to these meetings and focus on what matters right now

2:13:52yeah hard to put in the words what a mecca's meant to this team or to me or to my family or to Ohio State it started when he first got here he had a different look in his eye he's extremely competitive no jobs too small for a mecca uh he's selfless uh he's really made it unbelievable strides in his life but also just in his faith and you know he speaks people listen he's very well thought out he's said I don't have a conversation with a mecca buka you're gonna walk away extremely impressed and um but then when you talk about his play on the field uh he's made a lot of great plays he's been very clutch he's been very consistent and this is a guy I know who wants to finish his career out with a great game Monday night

2:14:52okay okay I think when you're when you're starting out this season and you're putting a roster together you have to start from this game and move back um and and I think when when that happens you have to build a team and I think now the big 10 has allowed us to do that with with the addition of some different styles of play on the west coast um and then certainly the the traditional big 10 play it's a combination of being able to get big and strong and heavy and stop the run and run the football when it matters but also being a spread out game where you can be in a little bit of a track meet and have the skill to play with anybody in the country and I think that's the combination that you need to have and um and that's the goal every year to do that you know when you when you

2:15:53when you need to go get that yard you get that yard it when it's time to get that stop you get to get that stop but also having the skill to be able to run with everybody in the country and that's that's how we start and then as the season goes on we look to identify the areas where we have to um you know get better or whatever that might be but um but I think it all starts in the off season with our offseason program and what mcmurati does and um I think our our offseason program when and I know it now because when I see players come from other teams that's you get great feedback you know you get you know guys who come in from different programs and say you know talk to me about what your program is compared to our program offseason during the season all that it really gives me confidence knowing we're doing the right things you I think every year you learn and I think you know to be to be you know to be honest I think you know

2:16:56every year I learn and grow and and figure out what needs to be done to get it fixed and identify the issues and be honest and call it out for what it is and get it fixed and get it addressed and that's what leaders do and um you know they look out in the horizon see what's coming because the soldiers are fighting right in front of you and that's what they are and so what's coming down the road and then obviously what what areas need to get addressed and get fixed and that always starts with you know who's in the right seats you know players coaches and staff making sure that's organized and then building it from there and so every learn every year you grow to try to get better um and then you know identify it the next year and move on from there and keep growing and and we all have to continue to learn and I think you know I've done that as well yeah yeah Caleb is mature beyond his years is a tremendous player but he brings a work ethic

2:18:00um that's tremendous he and Lathen ran some both um in the way that they bring energy to practice every day and they let their play do the speak do the talking for him but but they're great leaders um during the recruiting process I went all the way down to the wire it's been told before and we were right there at the end and you know I wished him good luck and understood I mean coach Saven is a um unbelievable coach and certainly uh his success speaks for itself but also just as as a defensive backs coach and I totally understood and was pulling for him in his freshman year and you can tell my my family and my wife and kids we were all pulling for him because he's just such a unique talent and great person and great family and then when when coach retired and you know he was in the portal it was an opportunity to reconnect with him and I think he had great relations with some of the players and it's been it's been great to see him this year really flourish within our culture and you're seeing the best version of him now

2:19:04well it's going to be a great environment we know that um great crowds on both sides so it'll be electric um and you know different than uh in the past where you kind of had these you know bowl game and then a final game we you know these playoff environments now or or something that you know we become accustomed to and so we need to focus on what really matters in the execution and find a way to win the game in the fourth quarter that's it um you know this is a team that continues to come at you so we know what's going to take four four quarters it went all the way down in the last play last time we played him and you know we have to be prepared for that but but that's it um great environment um you know and and you know we it's good to get over there today to have practice just to kind of see it again feel it again and um I know our guys will be ready all good okay thanks you've got one more question here and then uh

2:20:09yeah I think he's built confidence as an offense alignman throughout his career and especially this year and uh he's become a leader for us up front and we'll need him to be at his best in this game as well thanks yeah yeah I I mentioned this before that um you know this is about these players in this game and it's all going to be about who executes well during the game that's it and I think our guys understand that and feel that um know there'll be a lot of conversation which is great it's exciting for the fans to talk about um but we know what really matters and that's what our focus is on is executing at the highest level we possibly can that thanks being here um but you know it takes another level of dudes to be able to receive that reward especially as a freshman so um you know that's kind of what I knew it's even me more on that when you and Mara first got here

2:21:11Garrett and Chris were adamant about the way that you guys even as freshmen were pushing two guys who were about to be first round graphics and then Mara kind of said the same thing about Carnail and Brandon last year how did JJ push you guys when he first got here as the young guy and now you guys are the older guys yeah I would say it's it's very similar it's kind of the same exact thing and um you know I don't know what it is about the culture and its own mistakes but we keep bringing in these type of people year in and year out that that's what makes our room so great but I think that um some of that JJ was able to push me and was just um you know he was able to push me in my leadership um I needed to grow in that aspect but he also was able to challenge me when it came to the weight room and on the field um because we were always always paired together when it came to summer and when our workouts we were always lifting together you know I get a couple wins he get a couple wins so um it's really that next level uh step of competitiveness that I needed and that edge that I needed that Murphy 2474 you guys came into the Tennessee game with a lot of outside motivation with Michigan loss and kind of the three weeks of talk I know obviously

2:22:16there's still not motivation to go on and win a national championship but how do you keep that kind of edge to life with better term mentally after some of that stuff has kind of gone away and followed the big one um I would say kind of if you lose your edge I wouldn't really call you a true competitor I think that you know the way with the college football playoffs is structured the intensity cranks up weekend every every single week so um if you're not more intense than you were the last week then then something's wrong with you I think that you know Tennessee was a great win great for our momentum but um we have our full focus on organ not worrying about anything in the past nothing in the future our full focus is towards this game um and then you know we win this one we go on to the next one our full focus is gonna be on that one so it's just um you keep moving down a ladder like this step on cranks please let me know if there's been a lot of change to college football in the playoffs and things of that nature but you know the way in some you and some of your teammates and coaches talk about the Rose Bowl seems like that's one game that's really you know maintain a lot of that tradition you you play the net you know what it's about could you explain it to you know also you would never have a chance to play that why the Rose Bowl

2:23:19has maintained you know that level of respect from players and coaches yeah I think uh I don't know they're just something about us some in the air down there in Pasadena um it's just a beautiful venue especially that time of the year um like you said the tradition is held year and in year out and it's kind of the the game you dream of playing in when when you're a little kid you know playing backyard football with your friends um the Rose Bowl is always one that that tends to come up so just having a chance of playing it um it's definitely very surreal and this is gonna be my second time so I'm gonna do my best to take it all in while also being fully focused on organ Dan hope let me worry macro well so he still has nightmares about that first game of the organ just what kind of driving you see in this week wanting to get back at this one yeah will is uh he's a he's a laser focused person he goes about his business um he's very loose and he's very calm and he's able to rally the team but um you can you can see it in his eyes that um this this game means everything to him so every single practice every single huddle making sure we're sharp making sure we have a you know a better practice than than we had last um than than yesterday

2:24:19better practice than organs having so um his his full focus is is on being um this team and you know obviously it's it's hard not to think about the stuff of the past but I know he's he's laser focused on what we got coming up um honestly I wasn't I was never really a a Buckeye fan until you know I really committed here and I and I saw what it was all about I was actually an organ fan growing up especially on the Pacific Northwest um you know my grandpa went to UW and stuff like that so I like the Huskies too but there was a legendary football player named foe to liato from my high school and he went to organ and a couple you all probably know that story from a couple of years back but he tragically died in the car accident um and you know he was he was someone I looked up to in high school um you know I was a relatively close with him even though he was a bit older than me in age but um just seeing what he did at my high school and then going on to play big time football organ um that was

2:25:19a school that I really dreamed of going to um they build a bit like this back I think actually another uh Jeremiah question is there one moment one play one something that made you visco oh man I've never seen before that just incredible yeah I'll say it's happened multiple times there's not really one I can pinpoint but the more he does it the more um I tend to react less so I was say probably my earliest memories of it were in spring ball um kind of getting the first glimpse of him when he's making all these ridiculous catches and he still does it time and time again um even now but it's just more common now for me the land that one that takes the north oh my god you had uh I think it was 12 touches in the first game against organ fan receptions two carries this there's something about this matchup that that favors you and now that you have where that productive the first time you played this team what kind of the tension or I guess maybe different defenses are you expecting to see yeah I mean uh we're not entirely sure what their gameplay is going to be but we're paired for

2:26:22everything um you know I'm not going to get too much into scheme and stuff like that but uh we know that if the ball comes our way we've got to make those plays so whether I have 10 receptions again coming up this game where I have zero or one um we're just looking to to get this win on the road um because it's really a road game for us you know flying across two time zones so um I think that uh you know it's going to be a great matchup um whether they tend to focus on me more or or not it doesn't really matter to me because I know our team has a great plan regardless you can kind of feel it throughout the game I would say um you know he's he's a true competitor he wants to get involved but at the same time he's super selfless um he's really humble so he's going to do whatever it takes for the team to get a win um but it's the competitor nature in them that wants to you know contribute as much as he can so um you know I try to be in his ear to to tell him to be level head and stuff like that not that I need to he's a very level headed and selfless guy like I'm saying but um you know sometimes that's just how the game goes you know I

2:27:23had a game this year where I only had one catch um but you know we ended up winning by lot so um I think that you know it's it's hard or it's easy to be focused on the uh the personal attributes that you could have game in and game out um but no one's really going to remember those if we're holding up the trophy at the end of the year he could be a number one one 95 percent of the boss was right now but he's like no agree you see his work as like all of those things that he does that makes a play you guys ever been behind him like yeah this guy can absolutely be a number one for those guys for our officers um I would disagree with you I think that he is a number one I think that we don't have a number three receiver that we have three number one receivers out there so um whatever the defense you know if they want to put their attention on one guy or or a couple of us um they're not really doing their selves any favor because we're gonna have a favor will match up on the other side of the ball so um that's never how we view ourselves we know we're alpha dogs out there every single one of us um knows we have the capabilities to be a number one receiver and we are number one receivers and final question Steve howling and 24.0 sports yeah mech at the end of that game he made one of the clutch plays

2:28:27that passed down the sideline at any time when you make that play you think and did you ever your mind that we're gonna win this game after we we're now close to field goal range I mean did that play in your mind say my goodness we've got a chance to get out of here with the win uh yeah I definitely knew where I caught the ball and I knew we were you know closer being a field goal range so um you know there was a sense of you know I knew I knew was a big play that I made but um in those moments you have to finish out the game no matter what you can't get a big head you can't get complacent you have to finish the game um and until the clock hit zero so that's some we've been working on you know we work on two minute every single Wednesday um every single Wednesday practice so today we'll work on our two minute um and we don't even call it two minute we call it clutch because um in in those time in those in those games in those big moments someone has to a clutch play so we're focusing on that every single game knowing that we're gonna have to make one of those plays coming down the stretch here what would it mean if you're able to finish this one off and get to the final four this and play out just what in your mind just would this be

2:29:29you know just the ultimate I suppose to be a team that's already beaten earlier this year no I think the ultimate would be winning the national championship so um you know we're focused on this this just happens to be the next team in the way we're not focused on when we played them earlier this year whether they got the win over us um they're just a nameless faceless opponent so we're going out there fully prepared not worried about what's happening in the past um you know we played them before we felt them out so it's all about who got better from that point in time until now a message thank you thank you if you want to try to do it yeah I mean this year it's kind of different because I obviously I'm pushing to the ball but it kind of feels the same you know I think I like being able to play these I like tiny things up and being able to run full speed and be able to hit somebody and

2:30:30catch the month guard and that's just what I'm able to do now just on the ball and closer to them we haven't really talked about like a few guys but he's talking about like winning the Guinness I got the chance to work with him my my junior at the opening but I was different because I was playing off-road yeah that's done we got the normal Smithy road style it's very intentional but he knows that we're human so you know he knows nobody's going to be perfect and it's okay to mess up but the thing is being able to learn from that mistake and not do it again um it's different but like I said I've just been enjoying the ride

2:31:31no I like why I am now so I'm just gonna grow at this fight and get to where I want to go no it's very hard we're just looking at our 22th class we've got a lot of guys and now we're probably only having like five or six guys here exactly so being able to just stick it through just you know I feel like me staying here each year I feel like I was telling me this thing because yeah it was opportunities to transfer but I just kept telling like God just stay let his will be done just let his will no no I try to every little drill that we do I try to make sure I'm doing it to to the team you know I don't like to mess up and that's why you see me after practice working with coach Johnson or coach Patricia because of the fact I know it's very urgent but I still

2:32:34feel like I have time you know it's only the spring yeah about 158 days probably two weeks I just remember there throughout December obviously what exactly did you start to make that tradition though and when you heard they were hiring not Patricia or you um obviously in December it was different because we had coach knows here and coach knows what he was telling me different ways he was going to use me with the jack and where he was going to have me line up and things like that um coach day what he was telling me was we're going to bring in a different coach and just you know uh they'll just be a specific coach just for the position I was playing just that way could just be easier on everybody and that probably what was going to be coach knows because obviously it's just decent but um with coach Patricia coming in I feel like it's a lot easier on everybody because of the fact like I said his experience and he's everything that we're doing now it just feels like everybody can just play fashion to beat themselves

2:33:37we talk about every day yeah coach day brings it up every day because of the fact we got a like yeah we have one good day today but we do have to stack day on top of day on top of day because of the fact that we played sex and sex is just in the playoffs you know they're not on saw sheet or even on that they're probably in the same mindset as we are right now because they lost a lot of started but it still doesn't mean you see guys like like a person's a little part of they started their career trying back as they moved to the edge how much does that inspire you to see what kind of success does that know um I feel like watching those guys I feel like it you can see like it helped them in the longer um especially with the blue especially with the good last year because of the fact it was it's first year on one on a lot of scrimmage but um you know obviously I watch those guys I watch other guys but I mean it means that they can happen really

2:34:42big big love I mean I would just describe it in the room I mean I guess you just got to learn everything slowly of course there's a lot to learn um but I got a lot of hope so you can say a very unique experience on the early and early as you got a chance to go to you know the semi-final some of you went to the Rose Bowl there's nothing caught in the national championship game what was like what was that like how much do you think that helped you oh that was a credit we just see how other leaders led in that position and just seeing what they did and how they prepared that's gonna help a lot with everybody what was the highlight of that that time other than winning the national championship itself was there something that stands out to you uh just being able to uh trouble and get to meet everybody meet all the players um everybody at one in 80 and meet all early and early as that early it's been the most difficult part making the transition from I was really just living on your own you gotta be independent um that's pretty much it though trying to get I'm trying to get myself in this college I mean of course it's adjustment but I'm getting

2:35:46this for you uh yes sir one need a hundred percent I mean of course it's hard to miss my senior year uh last year kind of with some of his friends it was an interesting year how did you get your uh what do you have to say I was uh baby my uh dad like my dad my master's like once I was like once I was doing okay but why did they pick that uh my dad looked up to me and I'm a junior so please work in there you're I think you should be your first name tomorrow right yeah okay so could wear eight two you know I'm sure I said four yeah you got two choices

2:36:57it's a desire that can be a digger for people you know I think I fell into that no younger age but super bad that that's not so do you get I watched the lab last time you started a land band on the plan I downloaded it's a great show but I don't know that this this web seems to be like what I'm not doing it's a good show you're the oversteam speaker coming on the come up we all listen to it all right so I'm excited to see how I do it oh I've never been a good job um I'll surprise honestly it seemed like it seemed like you knew what he was doing for you it was cool so the important question you say you hit your mom and Sally if you guess we did all this mom get a pay raise or I don't know what to talk about that just here having meeting or something you can see it figured out everybody should have

2:38:03you you yeah well let me first off but thank god you doing this service to to my teammates about you know me even think about what's nice this what's right in front of us isn't over yet that's another thing it's gonna tell me so much through is just being present in every single moment that I'm in it you know not looking too far ahead because I'm tripping what's right in front of me so again I just that's too selfish of thinking for me to even be thinking about what's next to me did you or you at least were wearing a lot of speculation out there that people are gonna throw a huge number of the two to go in the portal and just season I mean right now I'm just not working but all that stuff I mean people can say all they want to say but you know I'm just focused on focus on Friday

2:39:09nervous I mean I I still get nervous for sure but I just don't think I think I do with good job just understanding that that moment whatever moment it is that I'm nervous about it doesn't define who I am as a person and it doesn't define who I am and God's eyes and understanding and knowing that it's just kind of put like this force field of peace around me that I think it allows me to be able to be calm in certain situations but I mean I just love the game so much and if you don't get nervous or a little bit of work because I don't think you you had that same buzz I mean I've got butterflies since you know going in the football game since I was you know five six years old so I don't know what that feels like I'm just kidding I don't know I just you know football just doesn't mean as much as it did to be back there I want it to always be that much

2:40:18I've been told but I just wanted to get like more experience under my belt so I can know bring younger guys with me because I've been doing one of those younger guys we're seeing it's first time it's hurt all your life you're just listening what have you seen from well because I should have real forgot about it because he was hurt and now he's running you know almost a second man I don't know what did you see in your memory? uh well as a workhorse he he goes stay quiet you go and work hard and that's all I love about it he focuses he don't really talk much he's going to get a job done do a job right really has any mistakes so what what it would be a successful season uh a national championship I'm reading when all the games we don't want to lose anything uh we got a mindset that we can't be beat and the leads you got to go show it that mindset different seems like you guys expect the national championship every year

2:41:21this year even more so you guys have all come back for this guys have all decided like enough as a month is that is keep feeling different or is there not really any difference it's just I was definitely a difference everyone working harder um we noticed our last run like we most of us don't have any years after this so we got to go go bigger go home then we not try to go home finish big we know what you guys think of Michigan but when you look at what they did they won the national championship and you guys took them down to the final minute right you know what I mean I mean you you were right there something goes a little different you guys could have won that game against them does that tell you anything about like that hey you guys want to win a national championship but you played to the 59th minute with the team that won the national championship last year like you're that close so I'm saying uh we just like work harder that's that's kind of coach makes uh saying you know nobody cares just work harder like those know we'll play Georgia is the same thing uh last last play you know they went on the win in 90 so

2:42:21we just got to get over that hump at the end of the season I think we'll be fine how frustrating is that you're that close against the last two national title uh of course as you know it's frustrating but you can't change the outcome you can't really do other uh dwell on it you just gotta you know come back and work harder do things better than you did last year and hopefully the outcome will change as that as you get older you kind of learn I thought I was working hard and you always find out there's a little more you could have been doing yeah definitely I mean that's how that's what growing up is basically in college and I thought a freshman year I was working as hard as I could but now I look back at it I really wasn't working hard at all compared to what I'm doing now so just to learn anything uh 80 85 I mean I can it's all on me I just I think it's a little higher I was just trying to be funny but I mean it's all on me I just got to run harder in shape

2:43:35I think I think I definitely can last I was just you know we got to get the young guys to come along with us we can't play 50 stamps again that's just too much on our bodies uh just everybody like online D-line we gotta get those younger guys to play you know get that pieces on the D-line and online and everywhere else so we can last that uh yeah I did unless we were like winning by like a lot uh I thought like there are no mommy's you know I can go sit down or something but we're playing them big games like you know Notre Dame too on North those kind of games of course I want to be because I know I can contribute and I won't want to put that on anyone else when I know I can get the job there. Oh yeah definitely K-Mac is a K-Mac's animal y'all you haven't really seen it yet but in practice he shows all the time he's just he's just he's growing right now he has a work ethic he just has to

2:44:35get you know in the playbook and things like that you guys are about the exact same size it's listed you're both listed six three you're three twenty seven he's three twenty six yeah he's I kind of look at him like my my junior but you know K-Mac he's gonna be a great player he's got to develop more and get into playbook so really a lot on you older guys there's that large group of young guys and the seniors in the back is that part of your task for this year to bring those guys along as well yeah definitely we got to be leaders um like I say we got to have them play this year we can't just play all the snaps they got to get in there and get some work and we got to get them right during the all season so they can play and not just play they want to like contribute like make plays tackle success yeah there definitely some big dudes um and they all work hard I'm really seeing much as only day two when I'm passing on but throughout the workouts they've been working hard you know

2:45:36they're determined I just say that and it looks like they're ready to work to make it how important this dude feels like there's a lot of great defenses that you have big athletic defensive tactics you can eat up space but also move you know right that is that because I have a requirement maybe for a great defense to have guys like you that have some balls but also a great senior I think that is definitely I think if you look at the last uh a couple of nice and championship winners uh like see my North they didn't know they got two good uh detackled two athletic detackles litter Georgia two athletic detackles so I think that's definitely need if you want to go on a big run and beat those big teams wait if you think about this they won't defied by their defense tactics like what's Georgia Jordan Davis and DL Carter let's miss again it's Chris Jenkins you understand this as you play it but I feel like some time I don't know are people realizing

2:46:37how important defense tackles are a little bit more than they used to I think so uh I think they're starting to develop to develop more and more of these like freakiest detackles yeah like in the combine just now you see in like those guys they're moving four to four seven eights and things like that so we'll see and when you think it when you think about those freakish athletic defensive tackle how do you think you fit into that ball of that kind of player you watch that and say yeah that's me yeah definitely I think I'm top notch when it comes to detackles but I don't want to you know get a big head but you know I wash it come on I wash it through the drills I have Tate here you're like looking like my film so I think I'm up there with all the stories I think I have I think I have more than that but I think they're counting I think they're

2:47:40counting some of them and some of them were like just missed it so but I think we work on drills matching the hand I think that's uh goes big and uh what we do is a D line you know just affecting the quarterback is anyway you can it's just great for the defense you know it's that little thing covered is I you know he might throw it a little bit to the left to our player so let's something that you really really have to work on you that's one of the things that you've maybe worked on the most in your time here because there are a few guys that I've seen like oh that passed me down we don't have that kind of kind of expected for the physical I think I just have like a like a eye for the ball kind of I kind of just look at the quarterback and just I see him like load up I just try to get in his ways and sometimes he just throws it to me I'm irritated if you want to be a high state quarterback I mean they get frustrated but you know we're a team you know we're just good but I should lot a lot of different backs man they just learn and grow for them

2:48:48I don't really have a top three but I'll give you I'll give you one I would say say Juan Gibbs and I like McCaffrey auto he was injured this year I like McCaffrey best back in this draft I lead out of the yard that's y'all that's y'all decision playing well Howard when I'm going to remember most we're a Howard man he's just such a great lead such a great leader man it's just like in moments where you know usually a lot of players they fold man he was just always calm and relaxed man he just the leader that he was man that's one thing I'm gonna remember about him yeah he's shoot he's gonna be really good man he's um Coach Lock I think he got the transfer in as well from West Virginia just that one two punch with them both as well they're gonna be really good backs and so James people's man he's smart the way that he goes about his business man he's mature and so man he's growing you know just

2:49:51as a person in as a player and so man yeah definitely Ohio State you know that running back room is in gray hands yeah coach coach hard line man he's full of energy man and he's creative as well you know I'm just learning from him as well you know I'm trying to run more outside the backfield was being able to learn from coach hard line and so he's definitely creative at what he does and he brings a lot of energy to the team as well and so I think they'll do really good um just intensity man then since he did other playoffs um every game and it's like the intensity got you know higher and higher and so um you know being able I know in the lead it's it's the same thing even if it's not the playoffs it's every every game and intensity it keeps getting higher and so yeah you just I know you got to bring it you know each and every day and come in and work just like Ohio State you know I definitely feel like Ohio State they definitely do a good job of

2:50:53preparing us for that you know I just remember even before going through this process I'll I'll talk to a lot of players um before then and they told me a lot of just about how much Ohio Ohio State prepared them you know for the NFL and so yeah yeah yeah I know I took a couple days off after the um national championship and then shoot right after that I'm right in right in Tampa Florida and I'm right to it and so um yeah I think while I trained I trained at um Yo Murth performance um I think it's called the House of Athlete or the compound now um they did they did a good job man it just um bringing us in and the the way they went about training us man they were they did a really good job the bucking near you know I haven't Tampa Tampa nice this is nice it's a nice city man really nice uh the 40 to broad and avert

2:51:57yeah yeah no man uh it's really all about technique and then it's about mine said as well and so um I say you know it's for the love of my brother it's for the love of will highway it's for the love of the receivers who I got on the perimeter just making sure you know um first of all my quarterback doesn't get sacked um and I I told will I think it was before the first game I was like I got your brother it's uh I said man I'm not gonna let you get hit you know um and so I don't know if I don't know if I gave up a sack I'm not sure that um but I know if I did I haven't given up too many and so man it's for the love of my brother's though man making sure the the ball get in their hands you know the guys on the outside and making sure they get fed you had to hit the practice field later today what is something you'd be working on right now in my game uh you can't really work on this you know in all season I feel like it's more so you know you got to put the pads on you got to go through some inside run you know maybe

2:52:58uh it's really just continuing run through tackles and so that's I feel like that's one of the areas in my game you know I want to continue to get better at I feel like I did a good job of that my senior and so I just want to continue to build on that yes I did yes I did I did me with New Orleans as well um I never got that comparison actually um I know I know I'm a Camera shoe yeah man I have a Camera great great back man um just what he does and those 101 matchups he's dangerous man and he's so smooth he's so smooth as well I'm not going to be like he's smooth yeah um inside zone from stack being able to hit that thing downhill and I'll say the next one is probably just an option route out of the backfield you know and man and man coverage you're getting on that linebacker and so

2:54:04yeah I say the man the biggest thing is the way that he carries himself man and the way that man um he approaches the game he comes in with the mindset you know he's going to work every single week you know every practice you know he's working hard you know um even shooter I don't know every good I think he had a every game was a good game for him man and so but still man he always has him and Tyler did a mindset that you know he's going to come in each and every day he's going to continue to work and get better man and so he's definitely man he's going to be a special player man he really is man man a lot of ups and downs man it's just how you respond to adversity and I feel like that's something that God has definitely helped me to do better is just not have something to lean on now you know I remember before I met him you know going through those adversity I had nothing to run to you know you can run to people but they still can't it's

2:55:06not too much they can't truly help you you know I feel like you know I feel like the only person that can truly help you is your relationship with Jesus Christ and so being able to lean on him you know he gives you in those moments where it's tough you know where it's low and um when you're behind the scenes and you're going through things that people don't know about um he gives you he gives you that peace and comfort you know um even in those moments man we're so hard that you can't you can explain it's like man I'm going through this but like how am I still filled with this internal joy you know how do I have so much peace in this situation and so that's something that only Jesus Christ can give you and so um man eight those guys have such a great mentality man am I just really love their mentality especially um Q as well you know I talked about Will Howard his leadership but Quinch John the man um that boy just yeah that boy just gifted you know you see you know sometimes he put

2:56:12in a situation where he looked like you know he should have a negative five yards and as soon as you know it you know he that running through somebody step on somebody and shoot it's again a 10 it's uh yeah man I think it's like he's just gifted man to be honest he's just gifted you know he's he's a big back you know he's strong and so um you know he's he's able to do he's able to do those things and so um yeah man it's definitely you know I look at his game and I want to you know at the same time I want to learn from Quinch John you know I want to look at this game is like man where where can I get better at as well you know that's the type of player I am I'm always looking to get better man I'm always looking to grow as a player Julian San oh yeah he's gonna be a great but he's gonna be a great quarterback man he's so so accurate and so um he's definitely man I know Coach Dez definitely going to get him right just you know um container grow as a leader container grow as a player and so he's going he's going to be really good for high state uh he's that I know just the quarterback position um I feel

2:57:17like you know the quarterbacks in the past they've they've definitely been vocal and so I feel like that's something that they're definitely going to um ask Julian San as well it's to be that vocal leader and lead the um and lead to offensive lead to steam sure man he has he has a build like JK Dobbins and um I kind of see them you know similar similarities in their game as well and I know JK Dobbins he was a great running back I feel like he's not talked about his none um a lot but man his career here you watch his highlights is is great I remember um before I recruit before I committee here I remember watching JK Dobbins highlights like every every um one of his years here like four or five times and so man he was such a great back and um I feel like you know um when I see JK Dobbins when I see um James people I see similarities to both of their games I feel like they play the same and so appreciate you all you

2:59:55you well I got coming in last I knew the role so I just attacked Eric Dave really the same way thanks to the van very rare physically different are you weight wise body wise on that from the year ago oh I think I got a lot bigger I'm like 240 you know like 244 right now last year I played it like 236 to 37 what does it feel like a 244 or a belt you feel like a almost a different machine out there yeah what's it what does it feel like to be running around out there like you are with more more back I just feel like I'm like like like more downhill like stronger like I'm taking all blocks better it's big yeah is it daunting uh maybe that's not the

3:00:57correct term but to think you're going to be playing much more than you did even last year and you played quite a bit last year instead what do you have to get straight in your head about being on the field that much more this is gotta get ready to just play there to be more snaps so how would you describe how much you're looking forward to it from an eight day point yeah I'm looking forward to it I'm ready for it my I'm ready for it it's a rematch so it's big but it's not really two different teams compared to the ones that me all played and stuff how does that enhanced this camp for you and this team getting ready for the where an opener of that magnitude yeah with an opener like that we've been um we've been emphasizing it a lot and we know we got coming so we know we gotta do we look prepared for it I already just probably went to yeah I think Riley ready to play right now he he advanced freshman like he in the he in the book he studying like he advanced and his measurements is crazy like he saw like the saw line too or like you said you're ready right you know you're ready what was that process like during last

3:02:00season could you feel yourself becoming more and more ready to go wherever the team needed yeah because that's pretty much what my role was just whenever I was needed I had to step up so I feel like that's what built me into me being able to say I'm ready for this year when you say ready is it more a physical thing is it a mental thing when I say ready I think it's pretty much like everything physically mentally mostly I think I'm there a different is that oh that's the one more time how different is that responsibility oh um I feel like it's uh it's a way bigger responsibility with me having to step up this year but I kind of go about it the same way like last year I was intentional with everything I did I feel like this year it's gonna be the same thing it's probably a little bit more for somebody who's some reason and what work everybody works you watch you

3:03:07uh I say describe like now I say like when you think of me you would think of like like a like a bullet like a silver bullet like I'm really a bullet I'm always on the ball that's how I like to play you know I ain't got to be my nickname but oh yeah yeah yeah yeah it's like um think of fit me because I don't know I just like the defense I feel like we got like you said we got a lot of freedom and we're moving around a lot a lot of the terms is like you know I don't know I don't really not answer that that's okay does it you can go on your instincts a little bit more baby and it's not so thinking of too much I don't even know if I say that because there's a lot of thinking going on but it's like I just like it's deep I like completely different I like what you got going on

3:04:14now I wanted to say that I was kind of like happy fun yeah that's what you want all right that's my dog I'll say yeah kind of missing a little bit but yeah I'm happy fun though don't think go ahead one last but coach days talked a lot about the guys who played some last year but maybe weren't the starters and the hunger for I know that wasn't maybe your national championship you guys know in your own yeah how much do you feel that is the guy who certainly contributed last year but will be in this bigger role and a lot of some of your classmates yeah I do feel like um yeah I do feel like I did win the Nady last year but like you said my role wasn't same as how's gonna be this year so yeah I definitely want to want to go get another one experienced that like feeling we need to be on the field a lot more place oh well thank you very much thanks I've been using you you know that almost that safety role of stuff how much is it grown uh that you can put your finger on yeah I was growing immensely I mean uh Caleb he makes a lot of checks lathe and makes a lot of checks uh I listen to them whatever they

3:05:17need if I need to cover somebody out I'll go cover anybody if they need me to uh do run support I'll do run support and it's really uh what Caleb does what we do and lathe and it just goes back to coach g's preparation um and everyone's preparation to give us more flexibility and it doesn't matter who's in those positions and we can all play every position whether it's covering somebody or running running and tackling did you feel like that was the case before the Oregon game you're sure I'm not saying me is it something's been added uh it just you know rely on a little bit more go ahead yeah it did I've probably been a broska game uh me getting more safety reps and we had a five week to prepare so I really learned to play but a lot more even though I knew the playbook I learned a lot more it amounted like in debt you know so uh really just after the Oregon game it helped me a lot to go back to safety go go to nickel and everywhere you guys had a lot of issues of giving up big plays in a passing game in the first game against Oregon what do you feel if you guys need to

3:06:20do better this time around just to make sure that doesn't happen uh just the same same mindset we got to challenge these receivers um you know every dog has her day maybe some people didn't have their day that that game but um we'll look out there and hopefully change the narrative and we still play with the same confidence same technique and yeah they'll remain with this batch and ten zel obviously had a tough game and that one what have you seen from him and how he's responded do you get a sense of from him how he is for this rematch oh yeah he's super stoked for this rematch um his preparation has been very good um he's always been preparing even though it didn't go the way he wanted to go that game but he just always had his confidence and we're going to see a big game out of him uh this week and you know I know you guys wanted to play them in anapolis um but the fact that you get to play them with the Rose Bowl I mean get a second chance and people have said you don't get that very often how determined are you guys to take advantage of it

3:07:22well we're super super determined uh we watch film I mean we've lost a lot of film the first time we played them now we've got another six games that they played of film to watch and it's just they've grown a lot as a team same as us we've grown a lot we're not the same team we were when we played them week one or weeks later whatever but now we're out there and going to play fast physical and everything like that all right Jordan we're going to jump to the to assume a question here from Joey Kaufman Columbus this match oh my bad not you Joey Cameron T. Robinson the athletic hey Jordan um you've moved around a lot in the second day and you in your career and and now kind of getting some many more safety reps what is it like at this point when when Walt or or Coach Mills comes to you and asks you do some else and it just how much can you lean on the experiences you've had moving around when you're trying to to learn something new in the in the middle of the season uh means a lot we always talk about this is if is being on selfish uh whether that's

3:08:23making plays or not making plays or doing your job so another person can make plays that's kind of what we pride ourselves on and it's just fun me moving around different positions uh as I'm always up for a new challenge and a lot of people in the country can't do that uh just hold myself to that standard where I can play any position and excel at it okay uh anybody else need to question let me know but otherwise we can go to Austin more of the podcast Jordan when you were talking about watching film or again which one do you think is more valuable to you watching that against yourself you know seven games ago even if you've changed or the ensuing six games for Oregon which one do you put more stock in uh kind of both for me uh I kind of watch what I did things I did well things I didn't do too well against them and their team is saying that like their scheme has changed some players have been out uh those those stretch of games so uh I really watched the past can we played and I know they're gonna go back to some of the stuff that they liked of

3:09:25course and different games like Penn State maybe Illinois they run a lot of men so just watching watching stuff like that every game matters so yeah Jordan thank you very much thank you all really playing as much so I just wanted to get like more experience under my belt so I can know bring younger guys with me because I've been through one of those younger guys we're seeing it out here it's the first time I've scored all the last years what have you seen from well because I feel like last year we all forgot about it because he was hurt now he's running you know almost a second man up behind you and tied what have you seen from those games where was the workhorse he he goes stay quiet you go work hard and that's what I love about him he focuses he don't really talk much he's going to get the job done do a job right really has any mistakes what would be a successful season national championship by ring when all the games we don't want to lose anything we got a mindset that we can't be beat

3:10:25and we just got to go show it seems like you guys expect the national championship over here this year even more so you guys all come back for this you guys have all decided like that was enough because that is a good feeling difference or is there not really any difference it's just the same work it's definitely a difference everyone working harder we noticed our last run like we most of us don't have any years after this so we got to go go bigger go home then we're not trying to go home finish big we know what you guys think of Michigan but when you look at what they did they won the national championship and you guys took them down to the final minute right you know what I mean I mean you you were right there something goes a little different you guys could have been one that came against them does that tell you anything about like that hey you guys want to win a national championship but you played to the 59th minute with the team that won the national championship last year like you're that close so I'm saying we just like work harder that's that's kind of coach makes of saying you know nobody cares just work harder like those

3:11:26know when we played Georgia it's the same thing last last play you know they went on the win in 90 so we just got to get over that hump at the end of the season I think we'll be fine how frustrating is that you're that close against the last two national titles uh of course as you know it's frustrating but you can't change the outcome you can't really dwell on it you just got to you know come back and work harder do things better than you did last year and hopefully the outcome would change is that as you get older you kind of learned I thought that was working hard and you always find out there's a little more yeah definitely I mean that's how that's what growing up is basically in college and I thought freshman year I was working as hard as I could now look back at it I really wasn't working hard at all compared to what I'm doing now so just to learn anything uh 80 85 I mean I can this all on me I just I think it's a little higher I was just trying to be funny but I mean it's all on me I just got to run harder get the shape

3:12:35idea up to 16 to 17 and you said about that idea there's a maybe nervous about can you last that long I think I think we I definitely can last I was just you know we got to get the young guys to come along with us we can't play for the snaps of game that's just too much on our bodies just everybody's like online deline we got to get those younger guys to play you know get that pieces on the deline and all line and everywhere else so we can last that uh yeah I did unless we were like winning by like a lot uh I thought like there are no moments you know I can go sit down or something but we're playing them big games like you know in order to do those kind of games of course I want to be because I know I can contribute and I won't want to put that on anyone else when I know I get the job there. Well it stands out about Keaton McDonald because he got it you guys in a second.

3:13:35Oh yeah definitely K-Mac is a K-Mac's animal y'all you haven't really seen it yet but in practice he shows it all the time he's just he's just he's growing right now he has a work I think he just has to get you know in the play bird things like that. You guys are about the exact same size it's just you're both listen six three you're three twenty seven he's three twenty six. Yeah he's I kind of look at him like my my junior but you know K-Mac he's going to be a great player he's got to develop more and get into play. So really a lot on you older guys there's that large group of young guys and then there's the seniors in the back as part of your task for this year to bring those guys. Yeah definitely we got to be leaders um like I said we got to have them play this year we can't just play all the snaps they got to get in there and get some work and we got to get them right during the all season so they can play and I just play they want to like contribute like make plays tackle sex. It seems like these guys get big. Each one first in the class. There's guys kind of there's going to kind of while you're in the cell.

3:14:39Yeah they're definitely some big dudes um and they all work hard I've really seen much it's only day two when I'm not as on but throughout the workouts they've been working hard you know they they're determined I could say that and it looks like they're ready to work with me. There's a lot of great defenses that you have big athletic defensive tactics we can eat up space but also move you know right there's that because that's an inquire maybe for great defense to have guys like you that have some balls but also a great feeling. I think that is definitely I think if you look at the last couple of not some champions and winners like team up North they you know they got two good uh detaco two athletic detacles look at Georgia two athletic detacles I think that's definitely need if you want to go on a big run and beat those big teams. Okay, if you think about this if there was a fight by the defense with actors like what's Georgia? Jordan Davis and DL Carter? Let's miss you again it's Chris Jenkins.

3:15:40Tell me more questions. You know how I mean you understand this because you play it but I feel like some time I don't know are people realizing how important defense tackles are a little bit more than they used to? I think so I think they're starting to develop to develop more and more of these like freakiest detacles. Yeah like in the combine just now you see in like those guys they're moving four to four seven eights and things like that so we'll see and when you think about this freakish attack how do you think you fit into that ball of that kind of player? You watch that and say yeah that's me. Yeah definitely I think I'm top notch when it comes to detacles but I don't want to you know get a big head but you know I watch the comment I watch the dude do the drills. I have tape here you like you're looking like my film so I think I'm up there with all those you're going to break practice you're not doing it much a weapon or weapon.

3:16:41Do you have like a goal one? I don't remember how many I've lied to you like you have a goal one? I mean as many as I can have I think I have more than that but I think they've accounted. I think they've accounted some of them and some of them were like just missed it so but I think we work on drills matching the hand I think that's uh goes big and uh what we do is a D line you know just affecting the quarterback is anyway you can it's just great for the defense you know just that little thing covering his eye you know he might throw it a little bit to the left to our player. So let's something that you really really have to work on. That's one of the things that you can maybe work on the most. I think I just have like a like a eye for the ball comment I kind of just look at the quarterback and just I see him like load up I just try to get in his ways and sometimes he just throws it to me. I don't know how your advantage is if you like to be a high state quarterback state. I mean they get frustrated by you know we're just getting better.

3:17:48That's a lot of a lot of different backs man and just learn and grow for them. I don't really have a top three but I'll give you I'll give you one I would say say Juan Gibbs and I like McCaffrey auto he was injured this year I like McCaffrey best back in this draft I lead out of the yard that's y'all that's y'all decision playing well Howard when I'm going to remember most uh we're a Howard man he's just such a great such a great leader man it's just like in moments where you know usually a lot of players they fold man he was just always calm and relaxed man he just the leader that he was man that's one thing I'm gonna remember about him. Yeah he's he's gonna be really good man he's um

3:18:49Coach Lock I think he got the transfer in as well from West Virginia just that one two punch with them both as well they're gonna be really good backs and so James people's man he's smart the way that he goes about his business man he's mature and so man he's growing you know just as a as a person in as a player and so man yeah definitely Ohio State you know that running back room is in great hands. Yeah um coach coach heartline man he's full of energy man and um he's creative as well you know I'm just learning from him as well you know I'm trying to run more outside the backfield was being able to learn from um coach heartline and so he's definitely creative at what he's he does and he brings a lot of energy to the team as well and so I think they'll do really good. Just intensity man then since he got the playoffs um every game man it's like the intensity got you know higher and higher and so um you know being able I know in the lead

3:19:50it's it's the same thing even if it's not the playoffs just every every game and then intensity it keeps getting higher and higher and so yeah you just I know you got to bring it you know each and every day and come in and work just like Ohio State you know I definitely feel like Ohio State they definitely do a good job of preparing us for that you know I just remember even before going through this process I'll I'll talk to a lot of players um before then and they told me a lot of just about how much Ohio State prepared them you know for the NFL and so yeah yeah yeah yeah I know I took a couple days off after the um national championship and then shoot right after that I'm right in right in sample Florida and I'm right to it and so um yeah I think while I trained I trained at um Yo Merth performance um I think it's called the House of Athlete or the compound now um they they did they did a good job man they're just um bringing us in and the the way they went about training us man they were they did a really good job the bucket near know I haven't

3:20:54temple a temple nice this is nice it's a nice city man really nice uh the 40 to broad and avert you yeah yeah no man uh it's really all about technique and then it's about mindset as well and so um I say you know it's for the love of my brother it's for the love of will highway it's for the love of the receivers who I got on the perimeter just making sure you know um first of all my quarterback doesn't get sacked um and I I told will I think it was before the first game I was like I got your brother it's uh I said man I'm not gonna let you get hit you know um and so um I don't know if I don't know if I gave up a sack I'm not sure that um but I know if I did I haven't given up too many and so man it's for the love of my brother's though man making sure that the ball get in their hands you know the guys on the outside and making sure they get fed

3:21:59in my game uh you can't really work on this you know in all season I feel like it's more so you know you got to put the pads on you got to go through some inside run you know maybe uh it's really just continuing to run through tackles and so that's I feel like that's one of the areas in my game you know I want to continue to get better I feel like I did a good job of that my senior and so I just want to continue to build on that yes I did yes I did I did me with um New Orleans as well um I never got that comparison actually um I know I know Camera sure yeah man I would come here great great back man um just what he does and those 101 matchups he's dangerous man and he's so smooth he's so smooth as well I'm not going like he's smooth yeah um inside zone from stack being able to hit that thing downhill and

3:22:59I'll say the next one is probably just an option route out of the backfield you know and man and man coverage you're getting on that linebacker and so yeah I say the man the biggest thing is the way that he carries himself man in the way that man um he approaches the game he comes in with the mindset you know he's going to work every single week you know every practice you know he's working hard you know um even shoot it I don't know every good I think he had it every game was a good game for him man and so but still man he always has the mentality to mindset that you know he's going to come in each and every day he's going to continue to work and get better man and so he's definitely man he's going to be a special player man he really is man man a lot of ups and downs man it's just how you respond to

3:24:03adversity and I feel like that's something that God has definitely helped me to do better is not have something to lean on now you know I remember before I met him you know going through those adversity I had nothing to run to you know you can run to people but they still can't it's not too much they can't truly help you you know I feel like you know I feel like the only person that can truly help you is your relationship with Jesus Christ and so being able to lean on him you know he gives you in those moments where it's tough you know where it's low and um when you're behind the scenes and you're going through things that people don't know about um he gives you he gives you that peace and comfort you know um even in those moments man where it's so hard that you can't you can't explain it's like man I'm going through this but like how am I still feel with this internal joy you know how do I have so much peace in this situation and so that's something that only Jesus Christ can give you and so

3:25:05um man those guys have such a great mentality man I might just really love their mentality especially um Q as well you know I talked about Will Howard his leadership but Quincham mentality man um that boy just yeah that boy just gifted you know you see you know sometimes he put in a situation where he looked like you know he should have a negative five yards and as soon as you know it you know he that running through somebody still forming somebody and she was just gaining a 10 it's uh yeah man I think it's just like he's just gifted man to be honest he's just gifted you know he's he's a big back you know he's strong and so um you know he's he's able to do he's able to do those things and so yeah man it's definitely you know I look at this game and I want to you know at the same time I want to learn from Quincham you know I want to look at this game is like man where where can I get better at as well you know that's the type of player I am I'm always looking to get better man I'm always looking to grow as a player

3:26:07Julian San oh yeah he's gonna be a great but he's gonna be a great quarterback man he's so so accurate and so um he's definitely man I know Coach Dez definitely going to get him right just you know um container grow as a leader container grow as a player and so he's going he's gonna be really good for high state uh he's uh I know just the quarterback position um I feel like you know the quarterbacks in the past they've they've definitely been vocal and so I feel like that's something that they're definitely going to um ask him Julian San as well it's to be that vocal leader and lead the um and lead the offense and lead the team. Shoot man he has he has a build like JK Dobbins and um I kind of see them you know similar similarities in their game as well and I know JK Dobbins he was a great running back um I feel like he's not talked about his none um a lot but man his career here you watch his highlights is is great I remember um before I recruit before I committed here I remember watching JK Dobbins highlights like every every um one of his years here like four or five times and so man he was

3:27:11such a great back and um I feel like you know um when I see JK Dobbins when I see um James people I see similarities to both of their games I feel like they play the same. I appreciate you all y'all yeah I'll be going.

3:29:22I thought I got coming in last round in the row so I just attacked every day really the same way it's taking advantage very well. Finsically how different are you weight wise body wise all that um I think I got a lot bigger I'm like 240 you know like 244 right now last year I played it like 236 to 37. What does it feel like at 244 or well you feel like almost a different machine out there yeah like it. What does it feel like to be running around out there like you are but with more more back I just feel like I'm like like like like more downhill like stronger like I'm taking all blocks better it's bigger. No is it daunting uh maybe that's not the correct term but to think you're going to be playing much more than you did even last year and you played quite a bit last year instead of what do you have to get straight in your head about being on the field that much more so this is going to get ready to just play 30 more snaps so. But are you are you how would you describe

3:30:27how much you're looking forward to it from an eight stand point. Yeah I'm looking forward to it I'm ready for it. My I'm ready for it. The text is open it's a rematch so to speak but it's not really two different teams compared the last time you all played and stuff. How has that enhanced this camp for you and this team getting ready for the where an opener of that magnitude. Yeah with an opener like that we've been we've been emphasizing it a lot and we know we got coming so we know we got to do we've been prepared for it. I already just probably worked today. I think Riley ready to play right now he he advanced freshman like he ended up here in the book he stood in like he advanced and his measurements was crazy like he saw it on the sideline too. I said you're ready. What was that process like during last season could you feel yourself becoming more and more ready. So whatever the team needed. Yeah because that's pretty much what my role was just whenever I was needed I had to step up so I feel like that's what built me into me being able to say I'm ready for this year. When you say ready is it more a physical thing is it a mental thing. When I say ready I

3:31:32think it's pretty much like everything physically mentally mostly I think I'm there. A different is that feeling it's your damn last. Oh, asked one more time. How different is that I feel like it's a it's a way bigger responsibility with me having to step up this year but I kind of go about it the same way like last year I was intentional with everything I did I feel like this year it's gonna be the same thing it's probably a little bit more. It won't work. How's anybody worked you watch. I say describe like now I say like when you think of me you would think of like a like a bullet like a silver bullet like I'm really a bullet I'm always on the ball that's how I like to play a thing.

3:32:34You know, I ain't I got to be my nickname but I say good. Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, that's like Oh think it fit me because I don't know I just like the defense. I feel like we got like you said we got a lot of freedom and we're moving around a lot a lot of the terms is like you know I don't know I don't really not answer that. That's okay. You could go on your instincts a little bit more baby and it's not so thinking of too much. I don't even know if I say that because there's a lot of thinking going on but it's like I just like it's different I like how different it is I like what you got going on. What was it sad when CJ left me? No I wanted to much sad I was kind of like happy for you. That's what you want. No. No. That's my dog. I'm going to say yeah. Kind of missing a little bit but yeah I'm happy for him.

3:33:38All right. Well, don't thank you. Go ahead one last but coach days talked a lot about the guys who played some last year but maybe weren't the starters and the hunger for that wasn't maybe your national championship guys in the win you're out. How much do you feel that as a guy who certainly contributed last year but will be in this bigger role and along the summer year your classmates? Yeah I do feel like um yeah I do feel like I did win a national championship but like you said my role wasn't same as how's going to be this year so yeah I definitely want to go get another one experience that like feeling maybe on the field a lot more place. Great. Oh Bell thank you very much. I'm sorry I feel and I just need to take you and now sometimes sometimes like basketball or want to be on that just like the fan but you know you got to stay. You stay square in some box. Exactly. Yeah that's a great question. I mean I don't think I feel like these two can answer that for the beer right now. I think KK here. I can answer that. Well I don't know what I

3:34:40want to say about that. What do you guys think? It's not like a coach man. It's not like a coach. It's not like a coach. Chip Kelly's in for exchange your mind about maybe like the idea of tackle versus garden because obviously his offense of predelictuous for like offense blind play. That's you can partly settle the end of the game. That's um I would say maybe I don't know but I mean when I when I first heard you got the job I was really excited because I'm one of those guys

3:35:42who's the tempo. I can run with the tempo you know I mean I'm playing basketball all I think set up football and I feel like just the fast pace often so we're running really fits the guys we have right now I'm really excited. I know you think it's over for ball six to five guys but can you kick the football of 75 years ago? Lincoln. Lincoln what's your question? How is your your roommate at the community? He's a blessing man I can't complain he's a great guy. His name's Lincoln. Teen hoes. Oh he's a cleaner. I think we're both really clean that's why we kind of take each other's roommates because we're very cleaning. We don't like our rooms really messy. Well it's true though it's the truth they're both pretty clean so. Luke are you still a cross-training at TACO some or if you just been all-dark this break? Oh so far I've been all-dark. I really don't know like I said I'm taking it practice I practice I could end up being back at TACO I could not but you know I'm just really focused in on this past practice

3:36:43and the next one. Yeah oh that mean a lot you know you put a lot of work in to play here and it's been a dream just from being in Ohio kids I'm from a Ohio kids perspective it's I mean that's the biggest wish possible I would have I would say that's gonna be pretty cool. What was it like last year first game getting on the field for the first time? It didn't like this can be a weird answer but it feel like I was playing a game yet if that makes sense I did. I was pretty locked in I felt like just no anxiousness no stress no nothing really I just went in that first game was like shoot I'm here now it's time to roll you know it didn't really hit me I was like it didn't hit me after but my mom was like what'd you feel then if like getting out there in the end I was like honestly I don't know I felt less nervous I didn't high school and that makes no sense. What do you think about that? Um a lot I mean I'm learning from Josh Ann Austin I think prior to one of my biggest role models here is my bigger big brother my first day but I'm up to do it. No yeah yeah so yeah

3:37:51to be an awesome those are my guys man I mean even miles two I mean all three of them that's those are my roommates and they're progressing every day as well and I'm excited to see where they where they can get to I'm excited to play with them oh yeah you know I've been really helpful you know just keeping my mind just settled and straightforward on the next play it's a great question um like I said I mean I just need to take consistent in my work I think that's the biggest thing for me is just ain't consistent and worry about the next play so you got it from the guy you were in the play yeah wow that's weird yeah I guess they didn't want to get my nerves up but like I was ready I mean I did I took most of the ones that solved camping I mean I was already I was pretty much that I wasn't really nervous to start the game yeah what was his advice to you yeah he said you got it you mean you're going against high league and Kyle every day and practice me and this is not different almost different

3:38:51or you now both do we tend to get two parts in the game as a as a player you know having having that under your belt um me I'm more confident I know what's going on I can see like I can see what's going on with the defense I know what's going on I know what's coming I mean I understand them the games a lot better than what it was like yeah which adds up to what fast the car yeah yeah playing with that dust for a while I mean if we get out early it's get the defense changing plays it like changing their defense you start fast and they're trying to get the calming play but you start faster I'm not gonna back you or trust a lot of trust you yeah of course days pretty much that those surface plays you know some warm up fast but would you expect this where they need me if it's left right wherever I didn't go in I'd go in and go in and go back to do the front of me I'm looking back to high school days but I should back at high school it was really random ball up really and doing passes but it was fun change got my made my feet better

3:39:56I would say how confident you feel like you play there if they want me there I'll get some player I mean they need me they need me also in the illness that's up through the office line room a lot of times coaches and players I was still relying for the groom you know getting you experience among others what was that like for you and double dipping playing some tag with playing some guard the same practice it was based on a group effort like for me you know we had guys out we just had to go back practice all five guys wherever they were playing we just got to go how much of that accelerate your development like that time with the ones you actually go they really said it did um I was jumped in there I didn't really know so we get like one or two practices with practices but like after those I was like I was good you know my confidence grew um yeah it seemed like there was sort of a settling in-pract process for you and the acronym game maybe play got better if the game went on it and

3:40:59really do especially in the ground game things seem to take off but was there a moment when they clicked on the field for you like was there nerves and then a time of settling in I guess how taking you through kind of that first game mentally yeah um first game obviously you're gonna have nerves be the first time starter but then like after the first couple plays meaning you have nerves naturally so that's first couple play that was good I was rolling also there's a weird me yeah um you yeah it's but like I prepared well um and camp and practice all week and I was I was ready um yeah I have two multi-year starters it did a lot I mean I could ask them hey well we got here but you know I was prepared well I mean I was telling Jimmy and says like I would play our blocks with it probably emotional excited it wasn't just as a guy from Ohio what is it

3:42:02mean to start it it was always my dream to come here and play and start and having that like me I just gotta keep going keep building those days and those games and keep building like what a much younger Austin no no not I don't think even I told like me I asked my younger self even committing I wouldn't believe that now I have a couple of starts yeah awesome has this happened faster than you I guess you're technically a sophomore no I knew that year two I was gonna see you some playing time now starting week one year two I didn't receive that but like I was ready in spring ball like I knew I was going I was going to play some soccer play so what does it mean to you to it's not only get the opportunities to play but like you play well enough now I guess it

3:43:08shows like my preparation my hard work and just everything I put into this and I just finally showing up on a field there a moment the top season in the end of the spring and I realized that you could play at this high level power with the ones yeah yeah uh the definitely was in training camp I mean blocking highly can tie every day like he feels he feels a lot of confidence in doing it well and not like getting balled or anything so there's he doesn't have one hero in Jason Moore and Taiwan all those guys me pretty much anyone on his deepened line gets pretty tough time so and came back as well so yeah he also used to put a lot of a lot of effort collected how about the stability and the drinks and a lot how much can he help me he helped me a lot and I'm proud that he's our starting center not someone else he's but um I mean he's like the captain of the line he's another voice on the line with guys

3:44:12like Josh Fryer and Josh Simmons dining Tiger that means another voice and another captain look way to having that and everything's much experience help me a lot he can tell you like before to play what's going on and like how to block someone like what you need to do and helps a lot Tiger talking about how calm he is how much does that benefit you have a guy who's kind of been there and it makes us more calm like especially me and Tay as a first star so like we were up here what what said like he brought us down I mean we were like fine like our emotions weren't high we were settling is that like something he tells you is that something you pick up on by how he's acting how do you kind of mean sense what he's trying to do by how he's acting and what I mean him when we're on the side of him both Josh Donnie like he was telling us like hey we're cool like we got it but it's pretty much like everyone oh cool group

3:45:13I said how much do that as a first time starter how much did you add that though me and a lot and that was my first time ever using high pads we didn't use the high pads in high school but I mean you can say like try to remember the defense you can just come on a sideline bring up we'll play and get help though really not I probably the first or second but after that I thought we say oh and settle it Austin thank you very much it seems like training part is important but it's not the whole thing they're getting bigger it's wrong yeah it's like the culture part yeah it's it's also it's a lot and I mean it's and I feel like you can't be able to transform your body like I like I have with like people here come and do that without having that mentality part with it it's like we we always talk about competitions here and our our culture is fight so we're always here compete and I feel like that is just that's what gets you in this mindset when you talk about

3:46:19that transformation you just give us a little sense maybe with numbers or body fat or what do you do in the weight room how big is that transformation definitely I don't have really specific numbers but I just like it's more just like I can just I feel like feeling when I'm playing like I remember how I felt to play when I just got here and now I know how how it feels to play like like like just today like it feels physically different on my body and it's like it's just it's I'm getting used to that makes sense Kadea also said about you that you are just a completely different guy from last year we're here to work this year so let's get it done yeah look so you're here do you feel like you weren't at that place mentally I think I was but I think I had some I would say like kind of like

3:47:19confidence issues like I was just but you know I mean I work past it and I know I can I know why am I know I can be here so if you have confidence issues how do you get through is it yourself teammates there's somebody family it's I know I can do it it's not like that's those are those are all it's on the past now did the past the play time in a very obvious opportunity guys had the stuff up beyond the business that helped you get over that confidence issue there because it's now a number since your opportunity so kind of is just like just I mean it's just just being here like I feel like being here every day working with the guys every day just like you know you become this person that you might not have like

3:48:21you might not have like felt like you were before that but like coming here working every day stacking these days like like you know I mean I just feel like I realized who I am and I know what I can do now I knew I knew I could play here I mean it's just it was like the like I just I don't know how to explain I just like I've always known I could play here it's just I'm just like let's go like I'm ready like I'm ready to attack with our guys the room to help you figure that out for sure I think KJ was a big influence tie Hamilton and Tileek they all they all helped me a bunch last year kind of just pushing through you know I just wanted to get like more experience under my belt so I can know bring younger guys with me because I've been through

3:49:29now he's running you know almost a second man up behind you and Tile what have you seen well as a workhorse he he goes stay quiet you go and work hard and that's what I love about he focuses he don't really talk much he's going to get the job done do a job right really has any mistakes what would be a successful season a national championship I'm bringing when all the games we want to lose anything we got a mindset that we can't be beat and we just got to go show it seems like you guys expect the national championship every year this year even more so you guys have all come back for this you guys have all decided like enough as a lot because that is to keep you in a difference or is there not really any difference it's just the same word I was definitely a difference everyone working harder we noticed our last run we most of us don't have any years after this so we got to go go bigger go home and we're not trying to go finish big we know what you guys think of Michigan but when you look at what they did

3:50:30they won the national championship and you guys took them down to the final minute right you know what I mean I mean you you were right there something goes a little different you guys could have been one that came against them does that tell you anything about like that hey you guys want to win a national championship but you played to the 59th minute with the team that won the national championship last year like you're that close so I'm saying we just like work harder that's kind of coach makes of saying you know nobody cares his work harder like those you know one plate Georgia is the same thing last last play you know they went on the win in 90 so we just got to get over that hump at the end of the season I think we'll be fine how frustrating is that you're that close against the last two national title uh of course as you know it's frustrating but you can't change the outcome you can't really dwell on it you just gotta you know come back and work harder do things better than you did last year and hopefully the outcome will change as as you get older you kind of learned I thought that was working hard but then you always find out there's a little more yeah definitely I mean that's how that's what growing up is basically in

3:51:35college and I thought freshman year I was working as hard as I could but not look back at it I really wasn't working hard at all compared to what I'm doing now so just to learn anything 80 85 I mean I can it's all on me I just I think it's a little higher I was just trying to be funny but I mean it's all on me I just got to run harder in shape I think I think I definitely can last I was just you know we got to get the young guys to come along with us we can't play for this now it's a game there's just too much on our bodies uh just everybody like online D-line we got to get those younger guys to play you know get that pieces on the D-line and online and everywhere else so we can last at the mall around speaking about life plan

3:52:48oh yeah I did unless we were like winning by like a lot I thought like there are no moments you know I can go sit down or something but we're playing them big games like you know Notre Dame 2 or North those kind of games of course I want to be because I know I can contribute and I won't want to put that on anyone else when I know I get to drop them oh yeah definitely K-MAC is a K-MAC's animal y'all you haven't really seen it yet but in practice he shows all the time he's just he's just he's grown right now he has to work I think he just has to get you know in the playbook things like that you guys are about the exact same size you're both listening to six three you're three twenty seven he's three twenty six yeah he's I kind of look at him like my my junior but you know K-MAC he's gonna be a great player he's got to develop more in getting to play but it's really a lot on you older guys there's that large group of young guys and the seniors in the back is that part of your task for this year to bring those guys yeah definitely we got to be leaders um like I say we got to have them play this year we can't

3:53:49just play all the snaps they got to get in there and get some work and we got to get them right there in all season so they can play and not just play they want to like contribute like make plays tackle six yeah they're definitely some big dudes um and they all work hard I've only seen much of some like day two and not pass on but throughout the workouts they don't work hard you know they they're determined I can say that and it looks like they're ready to work with me I think that is definitely I think if you look at the last uh a couple of nice and

3:54:50challenging winners are like team up north they didn't know they got two good uh detaco two athletic detacles literally torture two athletic detacles so I think that's definitely need if you want to go on that big run and beat those big teams what's Georgia Jordan Davis and Jaylen Carter and let's miss again it's Chris Jenkins I don't know are people realizing how important defense tackles are a little bit more than they used to I think so uh I think they're starting to develop to develop more and more of these like freaky detacles yeah like in the combine just now you see in like those guys they're moving four to four seven eights and things like that so we'll see and when you think when you think about those freaky shackles how do you think you fit into that mold of that kind of player we watch that and say yeah that's me yeah definitely I think I'm top-notch when it comes to detacles but I don't want to you know get a big head but you know I watch it come on I watch

3:55:52it do the drills I have to see like you're looking like my film so I think I'm up there with all those you're going I mean as many as I can have I think I have more than that but I think they're counting I think they're counting some of them and it's some of them where I like just listed so but I think we work on Jordan matching the hand I think that's uh goes big and uh what we do is a D line you know just affecting the quarterback is anyway you can it's just great for the defense you know just that little thing you covered is I you know he might throw it a little bit to the left to our player so so it's something that you really really have to work on

3:57:00I think I just have like a like a eye for the ball kind of I kind of just look at the quarterback and just I see him like load up I just try to get in his ways and sometimes he just throws it in his I mean they get frustrated by you know we're just a lot of a lot of different backsman and just learn and grow for them I don't really have a top three but I'll give you I'll give you I would say say Juan Gibbs and I like McCaffrey auto he was injured this year I like McCaffrey best back in this draft I lead out of the yard that's y'all that's y'all decision playing well Howard when I'm going to remember most uh we're a Howard man he's just such a great

3:58:02such a great leader man it's just like in moments where you know usually a lot of players they fold man he was just always calm and relaxed man he just the leader that he was man that's one thing I'm gonna remember about him yeah he's he's gonna be really good man he's um coast lock I think he got the transfer in as well from West Virginia just that one two punch with them both as well they're gonna be really good backs and so James peoples man he's smart the way that he goes about his business man he's mature and so man he's growing you know just as a person in as a player and so man yeah definitely Ohio State you know that running back room is in gray hands yeah coach coach hard line man he's full of energy man and he's creative as well you know I'm just learning from him as well you know I'm trying to run more outside the backfield was being able to learn from coach hard line and so he's definitely creative at what he's he does and he

3:59:05brings a lot of energy to the team as well and so I think that'd do really good um just intensity man and since he got the playoffs um every game and it's like the intensity got you know higher and higher and so you know being able I know in the lead it's it's the same thing even if it's not the playoffs it's every every game and intensity it keeps getting higher and higher so yeah you just I know you got to bring it you know each and every day and come in and work just like Ohio State you know I definitely feel like Ohio State they definitely do a good job of preparing us for that you know I just remember even before going through this process I'll I'll talk to a lot of players um before then and they told me a lot of just about how much Ohio State prepared them you know for the NFL and so yeah yeah yeah I know I took a couple days off after the um national championship and then shoot right after that I'm

4:00:05right in right in Tampa Florida and I'm right to it and so um yeah I think while I trained I trained that on your worth performance on I think it's called the House of Athlete or the compound now um they did they did a good job man I'm just bringing us in and the the way they went about training us man they were they did a really good job the bucking near know I haven't really good city Tampa Tampa nice this nice it's a nice city man really nice uh the 40 to broad and avert yeah yeah nah man uh it's really all about technique and then it's about mindset as well and so um I say you know it's for the love of my brother it's for the love of will highway it's for the love of the receivers who I got on the perimeter just making sure you know um first of all my quarterback doesn't get sacked um and I I told will I think it was before the first game

4:01:07I was like I got your brother it's uh I said man I'm not gonna let you get hit you know um and so I don't know if I don't know if I gave up a sack I'm not sure that um but I know if I did I haven't given up too many and so man it's for the love of my brothers though man making sure the the ball getting their hands you know the guys on the outside and making sure they get fed in my game uh you can't really work on this you know in all season I feel like it's more so you know you got to put the pads on you got to go through some inside run you know maybe uh it's really just continuing to run through tackles and so that's I feel like that's one of the areas in my game you know I want to continue to get better at I feel like I did a good job at that my senior and so I just want to continue to build on that yes I did yes I did uh I did me with um new Orleans as well um I never got that comparison actually um I know

4:02:08I'm a comrade shoe yeah man I'm a comrade great great back man um just what he does and knows 101 matchups he's dangerous man and he's so smooth he's so smooth as well I'm not going to lie he's smooth yeah um inside zone from stack being able to hit that thing downhill and I say the next one it's probably just an option route out of the backfield you know and man and man coverage you're getting on that linebacker and so yeah I say to man the biggest thing is the way that he carries himself man in the way that man um he approaches the game he comes in with the monster you know he's going to work every single week you know every practice you know he's working hard you know um even shoot I don't know every good I think he had every game was a good

4:03:10game for him man and so but still man he always has the mentality to mindset that you know he's going to come in each and every day he's going to continue to work and get better man and so he's definitely man he's going to be a special player man he really is man a lot of ups and downs man it's just how you respond to adversity and I feel like that's something that God has definitely helped me to do better is this um not have something to lean on now you know I remember before I met him you know going through those adversity I had nothing to run to you know you can run to people but they still can't it's not too much they can't truly help you you know I feel like you know I feel like the only person that can truly help you is your relationship with Jesus Christ and so being able to lean on him you know he gives you in those moments where it's tough you know where it's slow and um when you're behind the scenes and you're going through things that people don't know about um he gives you he gives you that peace and comfort you know um even in those moments man where it's so hard that you can't you can't explain

4:04:14it's like man I'm going through this but like how am I still filled with this internal joy you know how do I have so much peace in this situation and so that's something that only Jesus Christ can give you and so um man eight those guys have such a great mentality man I might just really love their mentality especially um cue as well you know I talked about will Howard his leadership but Quench my mentality man um that boy just yeah that boy just gifted you know you see you know sometimes he put in a situation where he looked like you know he should have a negative five yards and as soon as you know it you know he that running through somebody step on him somebody and shoot it's a game to 10 it's uh yeah um shoot I think yeah man I think it's just like he's just gifted man to be honest he's

4:05:18just gifted you know he's he's a big back you know he's strong and so um you know he's he's able to do he's able to do those things and so um yeah man it's definitely you know I look at his game and I want to you know at the same time I want to learn from Quench I you know I want to look at this game is like man where where can I get better at as well you know that's the type of player I am I'm always looking to get better man I'm always looking to grow as a player Julian San oh yeah he's gonna be a great but he's gonna be a great quarterback man he's so so accurate and so um he's definitely man I know Coach Dez definitely going to get him right just you know um continue to grow as a leader continue to grow as a player and so he's going he's gonna be really good for high state uh he's uh I know just a quarterback position um I feel like you know the quarterbacks in the past they've they've definitely been vocal and so I feel like that's something that they're definitely going to um ask him Julian San as well it's to be that vocal leader and lead the um and lead the offense and lead the team shoot man he has he has a build

4:06:19like JK Dobbins and um I kind of see them you know similar similarities in their game as well and I know JK Dobbins he was a great running back um I feel like he's not talked about his now um a lot but man his career here you watch his highlights is is great I remember um before I recruit before I committed here I remember watching JK Dobbins highlights like every every um one of his years here like four or five times and so man he was such a great back and um I feel like you know um when I see JK Dobbins when I see um James people I see similarities to both of their games I feel like they play the same and so I appreciate you all you have to go

4:08:53to the right. Well I got coming in last year I knew a role so I just attacked every day really the same way it's a really very rare physically how different are you weight wise body wise all that from the year. I think I got a lot bigger I'm like 240 you know like 244 right now last year I played at like 236 to 37. What does it feel like 244 or better you feel like an almost a different machine out there. Yeah like what does it feel like to be running around out there like you are but with more uh more back. I just feel like I'm like like like like more downhill like stronger like I'm taking all blocks better it's bigger. You see if don't think uh maybe that's not the correct term but to think you're going to be playing much more than you did even last year and you played quite a bit last year instead. What do you have to get straight in your head about being on the field that much more. You just got to get ready to just play 30 more snaps so.

4:09:57But are you are you how would you describe how much you're looking forward to it from an 8th standpoint. Yeah I'm looking forward to it. I'm ready for it. I'm ready for it. The text is open it's a rematch and so to say but it's not really two different teams compared to one time y'all played and stuff. How has that enhanced this camp for you and this team getting ready for they were an opener of that magnitude. Yeah with an opener like that we've been um we've been emphasizing it a lot. We know we got coming so we know we got to do we've been prepared for it. I already did broadly right there. I think Riley ready to play right now. He he advanced freshman like he ended he in the book. He stood in like he advanced and his measurements was crazy like he saw like the saw line too. Orbel you said you're ready. What was that process like during last season could you feel yourself becoming more and more ready. Yeah because that's pretty much what my role was just whenever I was needed I had to step up so I feel like that's what built me

4:10:57into me being able to say I'm ready for this year. When you say ready is it more a physical thing? Is it a mental thing? When I say ready I think it's pretty much like everything physically, mentally, mostly. I think I'm there. A different piece that you want to do your bandline Oh, that's the one one time. How different is that with possibility? That's the reason you said you just need more strength all that. If you want to ask you, you knew you were a home player. Oh, I feel like it's a uh it's a way bigger responsibility with me having to step up this year but I kind of go about it the same way like last year I was intentional with everything I did. I feel like this year it's going to be the same thing. It's probably a little bit more. For somebody who's some reason that you're some reason to help you. And what word? How's everybody working? I say

4:11:57describe my game. I say like when you think of me you would think of like a like a bullet like a silver bullet. I don't really know what it's like on the ball. That's how I like to play and think. I think I'm not saying that the nickname. Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's like. I'm the first question for Patricia's style and how it's free. I mean, how does that fit you and what are you enjoying about playing in that kind of style? Um, I think it fit me because I don't know. I just like the defense. I feel like we got like you said we got a lot of freedom and we moving around a lot. A lot of the times is like no, I don't know. I don't really not answer that. That's okay. Does it? You could go on your instincts a little bit more. Maybe it's not so thinking of too much. I don't even know if I say that because there's a lot of thinking going on, but it's like I just like it's deep. I like how the Patricia deep is. I like what you got going on. What was it sad when CJ left the watch? Uh, now I wanted to much sad.

4:13:00I was kind of like happy for you. Like, no missus. That's what you want. Don't miss him in that? No. No, that's my dog. I go, so yeah, kind of missing a little bit, but yeah, I'm happy for him. Well, don't think go ahead one last but coach days talked a lot about the guys who played some last year, but maybe weren't the starters and the hunger for that wasn't maybe your national championship. You guys will win your own. Yeah. How much do you feel that is a guy who certainly contributed last year, but will be in this bigger role and along the summer year, your classmates? Yeah, I do feel like, um, yeah, I do feel like I did win the Natty Lash, but like you said, my role wasn't same as how's going to be this year. So yeah, I definitely want to want to go get another one experienced that like feeling with me beyond the field. A lot more place. That's it. Great. Oh, Bell, thank you very much. Thanks. I'm so. You need to offense compared to NFL, especially with the way he uses receivers. How do you anticipate your role? Engine it. How do you view the offense from a receiver perspective? Specifically. Yeah. Um, I mean, I think he likes to really push the ball down the field.

4:14:02He likes to be balanced. He likes to give different looks to a difference. You know, we're going to not to try to get too much into it, but you know, we're going to use emotion, move some guys around and things of that nature. I think for myself, I feel comfortable playing any of the positions that is that is asked whether it's the slot, the outside positions and unique part about our offenses. I don't think necessarily you play the X or the Z because the pit on the formation of the hash, you can be the opposite. You can be the X, but then you're to the field now you're the Z. So you got to really learn the entire concept and know where you're out in the field, which I think makes everybody smarter players because you don't pigeonhole yourself. I just play X. You know, I'm only in this position. Like you get in two minutes, you're the Z. Now you got to know what to do. You may have the clear out route or you may have the backside dig. Like you got to know what you're doing. So I think he doesn't just say like we're going to do this offense. He's really trying to create an offense that fits our personnel really well. That that field boundary thing.

4:15:02Yeah, that's a thing in college, but it seems like it's more to me to clip. Is that something you're used to seeing in other offenses? Yeah, definitely. I mean, I think if if I'm on the left hash, like technically I'm on the X, you know, I'm in the boundary, but if we're on the right hash, I'm still on the left side. I'm really the Z in the concept because I'm to the field, I'm to the strength of the tie-down. So I've been in offenses like it's similar like that before. And I just think he one thing I think that's really stood out as the compliments of our routes that we have so far. I feel like we have a chance to really run similar stems, but there's different routes off those stems and things like that, which I think for receiver like myself who you get, you know, a really good look at DBs and they study your film, they study your splits. Like having routes that look the same, but break off at different angles is extremely important because it feels like you have some versatility in your bag to go out with versus like, you got this hitch again, your backside, like that's all you got, you know what I mean?

4:16:03So yeah, he's just been a really good player, a person to work with and he's been really communicated with the leaders and how we want this offense to look like and some of the ideas that we may have as well. So it's been a really cool transition. You talk about the transitions, you've nerded offense in three years, probably your fourth and sixth years. How do you not kind of build up some barriers? Yeah, man, I got to do this again. Right. I think, you know, human nature is always a factor in whatever you do in life, but I think I try to make a conscious choice of coming in with a new year mentality each and every year. And I think it's easy because we've had so many changes in, it's been great working with Marcus and Jaden and Jeff and Sam, all of everybody, like it's been great with working with all the quarterbacks and I just have a mentality of not really being complacent, like I try to really focus on the things that I can come back better at this year and I've been working my,

4:17:06my butt off to do that. So I think the easy thing and when I was younger, you're like, dang, like you just want that consistency, you know what I mean? Like you want that something you could depend on, but like life isn't, life isn't always like that. So I've been reinvigorated because of just the energy that DQ brings in to our building each and every day and the coaches as well. Like it's fun competing, you know what I mean? And sometimes I could get lost in the grind, but I think the reason why you make it here at this level is because you fall in love with the competition of it. And I think the competition breeds the success because that is really where you, the iron, truly sharpens iron. So you know other guys are going to make plays, but when you get excited to go in there and know that the next day we're going to go right back after the defense. So for myself, I'm just looking forward to continue to grow with the quarterbacks that we have. I'm in year six now, which is extreme blessing and leader, one of the leaders in our room.

4:18:09And I just try to take the bull by the horns with that. And so that's really been my focus and you know I'm excited for another year. So us, it's looked like you're being more vocal on the sidelines to help young guys. Definitely. Something you decided this offseason or? I think that's been a part of my maturation process as a leader. I've always seen myself as somebody that was a leader by example. But from coaches and other teammates I've had over the years, guys like to hear what I have to say for whatever reason sometimes. You know, and I think the biggest thing where I've tried to figure out where I fit in with my vocal leadership is I never wanted to be like a dictator. You know what I mean? I never wanted to tell guys what to do or be a yellow or things like that. Like when I say something I wanted to have power, I wanted to have meaning. And I hope the guys would feel the same way if they were to ask them that question. Because I want to see all these guys win, man. Like it's hard to make it in this league and stay in a career. And so anyway I could help the receivers, the DBs.

4:19:10I'm talking to some alignment. Johnny who's rehabbing his foot. You know what I mean? Like everybody has a role and everybody has a different story and path. And so if I could share what I've been through my testimony to help them or do things that kind of slow down the process, I'm going to try to do that because we need everybody from the rookies to the 10 year vets to make this thing work. So more so I try to speak to what I know. And really those honest conversations that I try to have with guys, what they know I'm coming from a good place. And I think I'm not the type of guy where I'm just going to talk in at them. Like if they see something, I could take a coaching point from Luke McCaffrey. I could take a coaching point from Deami from Jahan from Marcus from anybody. You know? Like I think that's what makes you a great player when you can really be coachable from anybody and not take it from a personal standpoint. Hi. Hi. How are you doing? Good. Yeah. Going back to what you were saying about Cliff and Vince, how is he as a teacher in teaching all this?

4:20:13Yeah, I mean I think he does a really great job of making things simple first and foremost. He doesn't overcoach. And I think that's the trust that he has in our group and his coaches, our position coaches to fill in the details. So we'll have an install meeting and it'll be a good amount of time. But then our position coaches will have time and we'll make it specific to that position. And so then we'll come in and have a walkthrough. And then after that, we'll have another walkthrough. And so I don't think there's been a time where I've come out here and I'm kind of worried about what I got. You know what I mean? And when you get into certain offices, there could be so many details where you could be overwhelmed. And I think then it forces it kind of separates guys in a sense that like one guy may study more than another guy. But when you have these sessions that we have where we're having installs in the morning, we're having two walkthroughs and then we're coming on the field and doing it like, I think you notice a lot of guys are playing a lot faster and more confident because he's keeping it simple, but also he's very particular in what he's expecting. But it's not a lot.

4:21:16So there's not a pressure of to get it right, but at the same time, you know it's expected of you and you know you're going to have the tools given to you to be successful out there on the field. And this offseason, just the totality of change from front office players coaches, the turf field. I mean, what does that been like for you just to see what's going on? It's been fun. You know, I think from Mr. Harris and the entire ownership group down to Adam Peters, down to DQ, down to Jada, who we drafted and bringing in Marcus and Jeff and all those guys and down to leaders. We have on our team. I think it was extremely specific on the way they tried to build this thing going into this year. First, having the right people, bringing in leaders, bringing in guys who loved to compete. First thing that DQ said when he came here was and his first meeting like, if you love to compete, this is going to be the place for you. And I love it. You know what I mean? I love bags and going at it with the DBs every day. Like the little mundane stuff can seem a little boring, but that's I think that was the

4:22:17where you make the gains during the offseason where you're really focused on, hey, like I'm I'm going to give all I got for this day and I'm going to get better and then I'm going to learn from the film and come back tomorrow and ready to do it again. And he also understands like the benefits of having breaks. Like he's giving us breaks. We've had weeks off here and there that we can compose ourselves, but then come back and give it all we got. You know what I mean? And when you got a coach that understands the physicality of an entire season where you guys do need breaks by the same time we're going to get after it, it makes it fun as a leader because you can take that to your room and be like, yo, we got these we got this week, you know what I mean? That's extremely important, but you know we have this little break coming up where you're going to get your your mind and your body and your soul right. So coming into this season I'm really optimistic of what we can be this year. And I think it started with the foundation that the ownership group and the entire staff has built. And now it's on myself as a leader to continue to hone that in into the locker room. But I think it's great because we have so many great leaders from

4:23:19all across the league who have won and we got Bobby Wagner in there. You know what I mean? I asked a hall of fame or so like, you know, being able to have kind of guys like that that you can lean on that can sometimes take over that leadership role where it doesn't fall on one person. I think it's extremely refreshing and knowing that everybody's on the same page and the message is the same allows you to go out there with confidence and always expect to know you. Terri, you seem to spend many of your off seasons learning about things beyond football, hobbies, what have you. Did you do any of this off season so far? It's hobbies or increase your knowledge of this world around you. Let's see the question. Play a lot of golf. That day just keeps my competitive juices flowing. Planning the wedding. That's going well. And I just been grinding like honestly, you know, I mean, I've been hungry this off season. Like, I started working out, you know,

4:24:19pretty early and you start to see guys like coming back and it's just fun to like to be here and compete and feel like everybody's on the same page, you know what I mean? Like, and so for me, I'm a grind every off season, but just this one just feels like it's the start of something, you know, new and special and the foundation of his extremely important and to be a part of that to have a hand in that, you know, it's an honor, you know, and I put a lot of expectation on myself to come out here and be the guy that I know I'm capable of and also like taking the next step and being somebody that are quarterbacks that can trust and believe in. So this off season was pretty simple for me. It was just really about, you know, working and grinding and getting better. He talked about Jayden before. If anything so far, I know we haven't seen everything, but in terms of his arm strength, the throws, he's making anything surprising so far about the types of his ability in that regard. Definitely. I think after the second or third crosser that he threw, I started

4:25:22telling the receivers like, hey, you gotta get your head around, you know what I mean? Because again, each quarterback throws the ball differently and sees the field differently. So sometimes on crossers, a lot of quarterbacks may like to see you cross the ball and get into that open zone over there if it's a man flattened off. They like to see you get open. For him, he has a really good anticipation over the middle of the field where he can make those throws and give you a chance to catch and run. And he's really accountable too. Like we had to play today where he felt like he missed me and, you know, it's not a big deal at all. You know what I mean? Him and I could talk to those things and there's been a play that I've talked to him about. I could do a better job. But again, like that open that open form of communication from a rookie, I think is very rare. And I think it speaks to the confidence he knows who he is, but he's also not afraid to say when he's wrong. And he knows he needs room to improve. But his touch on the D-Balls is amazing. You know, I love getting extra reps with practice, after practice with him. We're just catching the topping of a D-Ball. As big for me, you know, I mean, I get to track the ball over my shoulder and as big for him to be able to

4:26:23get used to dropping the ball in the bucket. But he just naturally has an ability to throw the ball. He sees the windows really well. And now he's just, you know, continue to get adjusted to the speed in the past, Rush. I think he's these reps that he's getting are unbelievable during 11-11 because he's getting to feel pain and all in and DA and Cleveland Farrow. Like we got some dogs up there who are going to come after him, you know what I mean? And we got some great guys up front who are going to protect them. And so these reps I feel like are even better than just 7-0-7. And 7-0-7 I think he could do in the sleep to be fair. Like he throws the ball really well. But when you get this 11-11, two-minute drill, you're putting them in game like situations and I'm looking at him in his eye. I'm like, we play a real ball now. Like we we we play him. You know what I mean? And you just see no no anxiousness in his game and his demeanor, which is extremely exciting. And and then you know he's extremely lighthearted and he's always smiling. So he's joking with lime and d-line. He's just cool with everybody. And like I said, like for a rookie quarterback to come in like that where guys are gravitating to him and he's not afraid to be who he is. That's dope. I

4:27:25think he has a bright future for himself. The tough losses, the tough seasons can weigh on a player. Sure. You're entering the prime of your career. J.A. kind of mentioned it last year. All he cares about is winning. He wants to win now. Is there a sense of urgency? You obviously always want to win. Yeah. Knowing that, you know, you're you're getting to the prime of your career. Like you want to win now. Yeah, I think that's a fair question. I think, you know, you start to evaluate when you I'm in year six and you know how fast it goes. And I try not to put the cart before the horse were looking too far ahead by the same time. You do want to win. You want to be a part of a winning culture and have a chance to win the Super Bowl and the playoffs and all those things. That's why we we do this personally. And I'm just excited with being a part of an organization in an environment where now like everybody's on the same page in the in the message is uniform and it speaks from the top down. And it reflects the guys that they're bringing in. You know, all the guys that they brought in

4:28:29are guys who are hungry, who are competitors, who not only fighting for spots, but we want to help us win games. And when you're around an environment like that, like that, that makes you excited, makes you hopeful. And you know, you don't know how that's going to turn out until we start playing games. But the foundation is extremely important. And I think this offseason, we've really done a great job of building that. They have. And then when a coach Quinn guy here building with this team. So I feel like we're going to be going into this offseason really knowing we all got to do individually become ready for camp. But the message is clear to come back to camp ready to compete and and be ready to win. Thanks, Derek. Appreciate you guys. One of the funniest guys on the team right now is playing as much. So I just wanted to get like more experience under my belt. So I can bring younger guys with me because I've been going.

4:29:30One of those younger guys we're seeing out here is the first time it's heard all your life stories. What have you seen from Will? Because I kind of don't like to read all forgot about him because he was hurt. Now he's running you know almost a second man. Well as a workhorse he he goes stay quiet. He's going to work hard. And that's all I love about he focuses. He don't really talk much. He's going to get the job done do a job right. Rarely has any mistakes. What would be a successful season? A national championship? A ring? When? All the games we don't want to lose anything. We got a mindset that we can't be beat. We just got to go show it. Definitely a difference. Everyone working harder. We noticed our last run.

4:30:31Most of us don't have any years after this. So we got to go go bigger. Go home and we're not trying to go home. Finish big. We know what you guys think of Michigan. But when you look at what they did they won the national championship and you guys took them down to the final minute. You know what I mean? I mean you you were right there. Something goes a little different. You guys could have been one that came against them. Does that tell you anything about like that? Hey you guys want to win a national championship but you played to the 59th minute with the team that won the national championship last year like you're that close. So I'm saying we just like work harder. That's kind of a coach makes of saying you know nobody cares. Work harder. Like those you know we'll play Georgia the same thing. Last last play you know they went on the win in 90s so we just got to get over that hump at the end of the season. I think we'll be fine. How frustrating is that? You're that close against the last two national title. Of course it's you know it's frustrating but you can't change the outcome. You can't really dwell on it. You just got to you know come back and work harder. Do

4:31:35things better than you did last year and hopefully the outcome will change. As soon as you get older you kind of learn and I thought I was working hard and then you always find out there's a little more you could have been doing it. Yeah definitely. I mean that's how that's what growing up is basically in college. I thought freshman year I was working as hard as I could but now I look back at it. I really wasn't working hard at all compared to what I'm doing now so just to learn anything. What do you need it to be to be your best? 80 85. I mean I can it's all on me. I think it's a little higher. I was just trying to be funny but I mean it's all on me. I just got to run harder. 16 and 17 and 17. I think I think I definitely can last. I was just you know we got to get the young

4:32:35guys to come along with us. We can't play for the snaps again. That's just too much on our bodies. Just everybody like online D line. We got to get those younger guys to play you know get that pieces on the D line and all line and everywhere else so we can last that long. Ah yeah I did unless we were like winning by like a lot. I thought like there are no small means you know I can go sit down or something but we're playing them big games like you know Notre Dame too or North those kind of games. Of course I want to be because I know I can contribute and I won't want to put that on anyone else when I know I get the job done. Oh yeah definitely. K-Mac is a K-Mac's animal. You haven't really seen it yet but in practice he shows all the time. He's just he's growing right now. He has a work ethic he just has to get you know in the playbook things like that. You guys are about the exact same size. Listen you're both

4:33:37listening six three you're three twenty seven he's three twenty six. Yeah he's I kind of look at him like my my junior but you know K-Mac he's going to be a great player. He's got to develop more and getting to play. It's really a lot on you older guys. There's that large group of young guys and then they see seniors in the back because that part of your staff for this year to bring those guys along. Yeah definitely we got to be leaders. Like I say we got to have them play this year. We can't just play all the snaps. They got to get in there and get some work and we got to get them right during the all season so they can play and I just play they want to like contribute like make plays tackle six. Yeah they're definitely some big dudes and they all work hard. I've only seen much of something day two when I'm passing on but throughout the workouts they've been working hard you know they they're determined. I would say that and it looks like they're ready to work.

4:34:58I think that is definitely I think if you look at the last couple of nice and much information winners are like team of North they didn't know they got two that detackled two athletic detackles. Look at Georgia two athletic detackles. I think that's definitely neat if you want to go on that big run or beat those big teams. Let's miss again it's Chris Jenkins. Tell us more questions. I mean you understand this was your play but I feel like some time I don't know are people realizing how important defense tackles are a little bit more than they used to? I think so I think they're starting to develop to develop more and more of these like freaky detackles. Yeah like in the combine just now you see in like those guys they're moving we're in the four seven eights and things like that so we'll see. And when you think about this freaky shot. How do you think you fit into that bowl of that kind of player? You watch that and say yeah that's me. Yeah definitely I think I'm top-notch when it comes to

4:35:59detackles but I don't want to you know get a big head but you know I watch it come on I watch it do the drills. I have teams here you're like you're looking like my film so I think I'm up there all the time. Do you become like a artist or a band-up guy? In your way he's having things. I mean you're going to spring practice you're not doing as much a 11-11. How do you work on that? Do you have like a goal or mine? I don't remember how many I've last year but you haven't gone on my screen. How many do you want to have little screen? I mean many as I can have I think I have more than that but I think they've got counseling. I think they've got counseling on them and some of them where I like just listed so but I think we work on Joe's matching the hand I think that's uh goes big and uh what we do is a D line you know just affecting the quarterbackers anywhere you can it's just great for the defense you know just that little thing you cover in his eye you know he might throw it a little bit to the left to our player so. So it's something that you really really have to work on. I think I just have like a like a eye for the ball comment I kind of just look at the

4:37:16quarterback and just I see him I load up I just try to get in his ways and sometimes he just throws it to me. I mean they get frustrated by you know we're just getting better. That's a lot of a lot of different backs man they just learn to grow for them. I don't really have a top three but I'll give you I'll give you one I would say say Juan Gibbs and I like McCaffrey auto he was injured this year I like McCaffrey. Best back in this drive I lead out of the yard that's y'all that's y'all decision. Playing well Howard when I'm going to remember most uh we're a Howard man he's just such a great such a great leader man it's just like in moments where you know usually a lot of players they fold

4:38:19man he was just always calm and relaxed man he just the leader that he was man that's one thing I'm going to remember about him. Yeah he's shoot he's going to be really good man he's um Coach Lock I think he got the transfer in as well from West Virginia just that one two punch with them both as well they're going to be really good backs and so James people's man he's smart the way that he goes about his business man he's mature and so man he's growing you know just as a person in as a player and so man yeah definitely Ohio State you know that running backroom is in great hands. Yeah um coach coach Hartlan man he's full of energy man and he's creative as well you know I'm just learning from him as well you know I'm trying to run more outside the backfield was being able to learn from coach Hartlan and so he's definitely creative at what he's he does and he brings a lot of energy to the team as well and so I think they'll do really good

4:39:26um just the intensity man then since he got the playoffs um every game and it's like the intensity got you know higher and higher and so you know being able I know in the lead it's it's the same thing even if it's not the playoffs just every every game and then since he keeps getting higher and higher so yeah you just I know you got to bring it you know each and every day and come in and work just like Ohio State you know I definitely feel like Ohio State they definitely do a good job of preparing us for that you know I just remember even before going through this process I'll I'll talk to a lot of players um before then and they told me a lot of just about how much Ohio State prepared them you know for the NFL and so yeah yeah yeah I know I took a couple days off after the um national championship and then shoot right after that I'm right in right in sample Florida and I'm right to it and so um yeah I think while trained I trained at um your real-merced performance um I think it's called the House of Athlete or the Compound now um they

4:40:28they did a good job man it just um bringing us in and the the way they went about training us man they were they did a really good job the bucket in the airs know I haven't temple a temple nice this is nice this is a nice city man really nice uh the 40 to broad and avert yeah yeah no man uh it's really all about technique and then it's about mine said it's well and so um I say you know it's for the love of my brother it's for the love of will highway it's for the love of the receiver so I got on the perimeter just making sure you know um first of all my quarterback doesn't get sacked um and I I told will I think it was before the first game I was like I got your brother it's uh I said man I'm not gonna let you get hit you know um and so um I don't know if I don't know if I gave up a sack I'm not sure that um but I know if I did I haven't given up too

4:41:30many and so man it's for the love of my brothers don't man making sure the ball get in their hands you know the guys on the outside and making sure they get fed in my game uh you can't really work on this you know in all season I feel like it's more so you know you got to put the pads on you got to go through some inside run you know maybe I was really just continuing to run through tackles and so that's I feel like that's one of the areas in my game you know I want to continue to get better I feel like I did a good job of that my senior year and so I just want to continue to build on that yes I did yes I did uh I did meet with um New Orleans as well um I never got that comparison actually um I know I have a command shoot yeah man I have a command great great back man um just what he does and knows 101 matchups he's dangerous man and he's so smooth he's so smooth as well I'm not going like he's smooth yeah um inside zone from stack being able to hit that thing downhill and I say

4:42:44the next one it's probably just an option route out of the backfield you know a man and man coverage you're getting on that line backer and so yeah I say the man the biggest thing is the way that he carries himself man in the way that man um he approaches the game he comes in with the monster you know he's gonna work every single week you know every practice you know he's working hard you know um even shoot I don't know every good I think he had every game was a good game for him man and so but still man he always has the mentality to mindset that you know he's going to come in each and every day he's going to continue to work and get better man and so he's definitely man he's going to be a special player man he really is I mean I'm not going to be a lot of stuff in your videos and injuries man a lot of ups and

4:43:45downs man it's just how you respond to adversity and I feel like that's something that God has definitely helped me to do better is this um and I have something to lean on now you know I remember before I met him you know going through those adversity I had nothing to run to you know you can run to people but they still can't it's not too much they can't truly help you you know I feel like you know I feel like the only person that can truly help you is your relationship with Jesus Christ and so being able to lean on him you know he gives you in those moments where it's tough you know where it's low and um when you're behind the scenes and you're going through things that people don't know about um he gives you he gives you that peace and comfort you know um even in those moments man where it's so hard that you can't you can't explain it's like man I'm going through this but like how am I still filled with this internal joy you know how do I have so much peace in this situation and so that's something that only Jesus Christ can give you and so

4:44:49um man eight those guys have such a great mentality man oh my just really love their mentality especially um Q as well you know I talked about Will Howard his leadership but Quench I'm mentality man um that boy just yeah that boy just gifted you know you see you know sometimes he put in a situation where he looked like you know he should have a negative five yards and as soon as you know it you know he that running through somebody step on him somebody and shoot it's a game of 10 it's uh yeah man I think it's just like he's just gifted man to be honest he's just gifted you know he's he's a big back you know he's strong and so um you know he's he's able to do he's able to do those things and so um yeah man it's definitely you know I look at his game and I want to you know at the same time I want to learn from Quench on you know I want to look at this game is like man where where can I get better at as well you know that's the type of player I am I'm always looking to get better man I'm always looking to grow as a player

4:45:52Julian San oh yeah he's gonna be a great but he's gonna be a great quarterback man he's so so accurate and so um he's definitely man I know Coach Dez definitely going to get him right just you know um continue to grow as a leader continue to grow as a player and so he's going he's gonna be really good for high state uh he's that I know just the quarterback position um I feel you know the quarterbacks in the past they've they've definitely been vocal and so I feel like that's something that they're definitely going to um ask Julian San as well it's to be that vocal leader and lead the um and lead the offense and lead the team shoe man he has he has a build like JK Dobbins and um I kind of see them you know similar similarities in their game as well and I know JK Dobbins he was a great running back um I feel like he's not talked about his none um a lot but man his career here you watch his highlights is is great I remember um before I recruit before I committee here I remember watching JK Dobbins highlights like every every um one of his years here like four or five times and so man he was

4:46:56such a great back and um I feel like you know um when I see JK Dobbins when I see um James people I see similarities to both of their games I feel like they play the same and so appreciate

4:49:07you all I got coming in last round new world so I just attacked every day really the same way it's taking advantage very rare physically how different are you weight wise body wise on that from the year oh I think I got a lot bigger I'm like 240 you know like 240 for right now last year I played it like 236 to 37 what does it feel like 244 or about you feel like almost a different machine out there yeah what does it what does it feel like to be run around out there like you are with more more back I just feel like I'm like like like like more downhill like stronger like I'm taking all bloods better it's bigger yeah is it daunting uh maybe that's not the correct term but to think you're going to be playing much more than you did even last year and you played quite a bit last year and stuff but what do you have to get straight in your head about being on the field that much more this is gotta get ready to just play 30 more snaps so

4:50:10are you are you how would you describe how much you're looking forward to it from an 8th standpoint yeah I'm looking forward to it I'm ready for it wow I'm ready for it the text is open it's a rematch so it's okay but it's not really two different teams compared to one time y'all played and stuff but how's that enhanced this camp for you and this team getting ready for the where an opener of that magnitude yeah with an opener like that we've been um with the emphasis in their life we know we got coming so we know we gotta do we're prepared for it already this is probably what I think Riley ready to play right now he he advanced freshmen like he in the he in the book he stood in like he advanced and his measurements was crazy like he saw like the side line too or like you said you're ready right now you're ready what was that process like during last season could you feel yourself becoming more and more ready so whatever the team needed yeah because that's pretty much what my role was just whenever I was needed I had to step up so I feel like that's what built me into me being able to say I'm ready for this year when you say

4:51:12ready is it more a physical thing is it a mental thing when I say ready I think it's pretty much like everything physically mentally mostly I think I'm there oh ask that one more time how different is that responsibility oh oh I feel like it's uh it's a way bigger responsibility when me having to step up this year but I kind of go about it the same way like last year I was intentional with everything I did I feel like this year it's gonna be the same thing it's probably a little bit more and what word how's anybody worked your watch uh I say describe like now I say like when you think of me you would think of like a like a

4:52:13bullet like a silver bullet but I'm really a bullet I'm always on the ball that's how I like to play and think no I ain't got to be my nickname but oh yeah yeah yeah it's like oh think it fit me because I don't know I just like the defense I feel like we got like you said we got a lot of freedom and we moving around a lot a lot of the terms is like no I don't know I don't really know how to answer that that's okay does it kind of you can go on your instincts a little bit more baby and it's not so thinking of too much I don't even know if I say that because there's a lot of thinking going on but it's like I just like it's deep I like on three to three because I like what you got going on now I want to say that I was kind of like happy for you

4:53:13like yeah that's what you want no that's my dog I'm gonna say yeah kind of missing a little bit but yeah I'm happy for you though don't think go ahead one last but coach days talked a lot about the guys who played some last year but maybe weren't the starters and the hunger for that wasn't maybe your national championship you guys will win your own yeah how much do you feel that as a guy who certainly contributed last year but will be in this bigger role and a lot of some of your classmates yeah I do feel like yeah I do feel like I did win a nati last year but like you said my role wasn't same as how's my beat is here so yeah I definitely want to want to go get another one experienced that like feeling with me be on field a lot more place leaders on the b-line at the d-in position so we kind of just have to do the things that you want to do and we love it we all competitive people we all love

4:54:23to fish each other and that's really the best side of all we feel like we all just kind of bouncing off each other we see what one person does and we kind of bled it into our school box we all kind of just kind of built one great thing and you are going to relax you and you have to get the shot at the full-packing boat and the day of protrude that idea and two coached him I mean how to get come up out because you're a jack sawyer is not me so I definitely did it in high school I was pulled back and a little bit of tidying so I feel like they kind of saw what I could do there in Coach Wilson I was the hero of Washington too before he left and I feel like he planned that seat and coach day's head and coach day kind of just went for it and I tried to do the best I could do it exactly the way now I mean I'm really new to you anything new to play about guy to not know you and got that far I like to think myself as a football player I can really play any position on the field you need me to just give me a weaker to to learn it and kind of perfect it and I'll

4:55:24try to do my best for you. Kitchak you the same thing oh yeah for athletes that's why Kitchak is talking to Coach Johnson on Tuesday about some of the conversations he sort of saw you and got out to have some conversations after JT and Jack decided to come back just got a win into those respected and how did that help you maybe get the right mindset I guess for the next one. I'm definitely kind of seeing it all the way through I feel like the people kind of just see what happened and they don't know everything that goes into it how long the season is now what you got to do prepare for and what's happening all that time from here to to that so I feel like we definitely just coached it in me kind of connected and we kind of just talks man-to-man and he kind of just sat straight to me and I feel like we kind of both have been on the same team and we know we're making it together. Making each other better every day and we got the four best the ends five best the ends honestly and coach football and we're going to be one of the best D-Rimes and coach football. I think you feel like a better player today anymore. I feel like I've taken big steps in my rules of just being responsible and being

4:56:29more of a leader and kind of stepping up and taking a step to kind of get out there more on the team and kind of bring people in and I feel like I'm kind of helping out more. How do you recommend where the positive team at TKFC? The next sound. I mean the sounds bizarre but I mean the season goes by so fast already so when you're kind of like week 10 in you're like wow it's already week 10 so now it's kind of gives you more time to kind of enjoy it and kind of save for it because there's a mindset. Yeah definitely definitely going to have that the mental stability to handle all those weeks and all those practices. How much is Larry talking about you guys around the field? Last question right here. 2016, 2017, 4 NFL 2 Fetchers, all in San Ocasio. How much is he talking about that? I mean he doesn't have to talk about it. We know about it. You see it in every day. We watch the film. We see them all working together. We know what it could be. We know what we could become so we know we we're right at the same, we're at the

4:57:32right place at the right time and God wanted us to be here and He knew we wanted us all to come together and kind of play together and be able to bounce off and just protect our craft together. And I feel like we all are just great individuals and we come together. It's a special great plan as much so I just wanted to get like more experience under my belt so I can know bring the other guys with me because I've been going like one of those younger guys we're seeing it. It's the first time it's heard all your life. What do you see from well? Because I feel like I should have real forgot about it because he's heard it. Now he's running you know almost a second man out behind you and tied. What have you seen in the World's a workhorse. He he goes stay quiet you go work hard and that's what I love about him. He focuses. He don't really talk much. He's going to get the job done do a job right. He really has any mistakes. What would be a successful season? A national championship? A ring? When all the games we don't want to lose anything. We got a mindset that we can't be beat and we just got to go show it.

4:58:50It's definitely a difference. Everyone working harder. We noticed our last run. Most of us don't have any years after this. We got to go go bigger. Go home then. We're not trying to go home. Finish big. We know what you guys think of Michigan but when you look at what they did they won the national championship and you guys took them down to the final minute right. You know what I mean? I mean you you were right there. Something goes a little different. You guys could have been one night game against them. Does that tell you anything about like that? Hey you guys want to win a national championship but you played to the 59th minute with the team that won the national championship last year like you're that close. I'm saying we just like work harder. That's kind of coach makes of saying you know nobody cares just work harder. Like those you know when we played Georgia it's the same thing. Last play you know they went on the win in the 90s so we just got to get over that hump at the end of the season I think we'll be fine. How frustrating is that? You're that close against the last two national titles. Of course it's frustrating but you can't change the outcome. You

4:59:52can't really dwell on it. You just got to come back and work harder. Do things better than you did last year and hopefully the outcome will change. Is that as you get older you kind of learn? I thought that was working hard and you always find out there's a little more. Yeah definitely. I mean that's what growing up is basically in college. I thought freshman year I was working as hard as I could but now I look back at it. I really wasn't working hard at all compared to what I'm doing now so just to learn anything. 80 85 I mean I can it's all on me. I think it's a little higher. I was just trying to be funny but I mean it's all on me. I just got to run harder. I think I definitely can last. I was just you know we got to get the young guys to come along with

5:00:59as we can't play for the snaps again. That's just too much on our bodies. Just everybody like online D line. We got to get those younger guys to play you know get that pieces on the D line and the end of the line and everywhere else so we can last. I yeah I did unless we were like winning by like a line. I thought like Dernos mom is you not gonna sit down or something but we're playing them big games like you know Notre Dame too and those kind of games. Of course I wouldn't be because I know I can contribute and I won't want to put that on anyone else when I know I get the job. Oh yeah definitely. K-MAC is a K-MAC animal. You haven't really seen it yet but in practice he shows all the time. He's just he's growing right now. He has a work ethic. He just has to get you know in the playbook and things like that. You guys are about the exact same size. You're both

5:01:59listen six for your three twenty seven. He's three twenty six. Yeah I kind of look at him like my junior but you know K-MAC he's gonna be a great player. He's got to develop more and get in the playbook. It's really a lot on you older guys. There's that large group of young guys and then there's the seniors in the back. Is that part of your task for this year to bring those guys along? Yeah definitely we got to be leaders. Like I said we got to have them play this year. We can't just play all the snaps. They got to get in there and get some work and we got to get them right during the all season so they can play and not just play they want to like contribute like make plays tackles sex. Yeah I definitely some big dudes and they all work hard. I've only seen much of some of the day too when I'm not as on but throughout the workouts they've been working hard you know they are determined. I just say that and it looks like they're ready to work with me.

5:03:21I think that is definitely I think if you look at the last couple of nice and much I think the winners are like see my North they didn't know they got two good detacled two athletic detacles. Look at Georgia two athletic detacles so I think that's definitely neat if you want to go on that big run and beat those big teams. If you think about this they're going to fight by the defense attackers like what's Georgia? Jordan Davis and Janet Carter. Let's miss again it's Chris Jenkins. Couple more questions. You might as well tell me how I mean you understand this is you play it but I feel like some time I don't know are people realizing how important defense tackles are a little bit more than they used to? I think so I think they're starting to develop to develop more and more of these like freakiest detacles. Yeah like in the combine just now you see in like those guys they're moving four to four seven eights and things like that so we'll see. And when you think about this freakish attack how do you think you fit into that mold of that kind of player? You watch that and say yeah that's me. Yeah definitely I think I'm

5:04:21top-notch when it comes to detacles but I don't want to you know get a big head but you know I watch it come on I watch it do the drills. I have a tape here you're like you're looking like my show them so I think I'm up there all the time. You become like a artist who comes to the bad guy's the way he's got your things. When you're going to spring practice you're not doing as much a weapon of a weapon. How do you work on that? Do you have like a goal? I don't remember how much you're like you have a goal. How many do you have on that? I mean as many as I can have I think I have more than that but I think they're counting. I think they're counting some of them and some of them are like just missed it so but I think we work on drills matching the hand I think that's uh goes big and uh what we do is a D line you know just affecting the quarter baggies anyway you can it's just great for the defense you know just that little thing covering his eye you know he might throw it a little bit to the left to our player so it's something that you really really have to work on. It's one of the things that you've maybe worked on the most.

5:05:25You can think of your time here because there are a few guys that I've seen like oh that passes. We don't have to ask you to try it. We kind of kind of expect it. I think I just have like a like a eye for the ball counter. I kind of just look at the quarter bag and just I see him I load up I just try to get in his ways and sometimes he just throws it in his way. I don't know how your advantage is if you want to be a high state quarter backspin. I mean they get frustrated by you know we're a team you know we're just good. Yeah I watch a lot of a lot of different backs man they just learn to grow for them. I don't really have a top three but I'll give you I'll give you one I would say say Juan Gibbs and I like McCaffrey. Although he was injured this year I like McCaffrey. Best back in this draft I lead out of the yard that's y'all that's y'all decision.

5:06:29Playing with Will Howard when I'm going to remember most. We're a Howard man he's just such a great lead such a great leader man it's just like in moments where you know usually a lot of players they fold man he was just always calm and relaxed man he just the leader that he was man that's one thing I'm going to remember about him. Yeah he's he's going to be really good man he's um coach lock I think he got the transfer in as well from West Virginia just that one two punch with them both as well they're going to be really good backs and so James people's man he's smart the way that he goes about his business man he's mature and so man he's growing you know just as a as a person in as a player and so man yeah definitely Ohio State you know that running back room is in gray hands. Yeah um coach coach heart line man he's full of energy man and he's creative as well you know

5:07:31I'm just learning from him as well you know I'm trying to run more outside the backfield was being able to learn from coach heart line and so he's definitely creative at what he's he does and he brings a lot of energy to the team as well and so I think that'd do really good just intensity man then since he did other playoffs um every game man it's like the intensity got you know higher and higher and so you know being able I know in the lead it's it's the same thing even if it's not the playoffs it's every every game and then intensity it keeps getting higher and higher and so yeah you just I know you got to bring it you know each and every day and come in and work just like Ohio State you know I definitely feel like Ohio State they definitely do a good job of preparing us for that you know I just remember even before going through this process I'll I'll talk to a lot of players um before then and they told me a lot of just about how much Ohio State prepared them you know for the NFL and so yeah yeah yeah I know I took a couple days off after the um national championship and then

5:08:39shoot right after that I'm right in right in Tampa Florida and I'm right to it and so um yeah I think while I trained I trained at your birth performance I think it's called the House of Athlete or the compound now they did they did a good job man they're just bringing us in and the way they went about training us man they were they did a really good job the bucking nearest know I haven't Tampa Tampa nice this is nice it's a nice city man really nice uh the 40 to broad and avert train you've been uh racist and awesome locker yeah uh yeah nah man uh it's really all about technique and then it's about mine said as well and so um I say you know it's for the love of my brother it's for the love of will highway it's for the love of the receiver so I got on the perimeter just making sure you know um first of all my quarterback doesn't get sacked um and I I told will I think it was before the first game

5:09:41I was like I got your brother it's uh I said man I'm not gonna let you get hit you know um and so um I don't know if I don't know if I gave up a sack I'm not sure that um but I know if I did I haven't given up too many and so man it's for the love of my brother's though man making sure the ball get in their hands you know the guys on the outside and making sure they get fed in my game uh you can't really work on this you know in all season I feel like it's more so you know you got to put the pads on you got to go through some inside run you know maybe uh it's really just continuing run through tackles and so that's I feel like that's one of the areas in my game you know I want to continue to get better at I feel like I did a good job of that my senior year and so I just want to continue to build on that yes I did yes I did uh I did me with um New Orleans as well um I never got that comparison actually um I know

5:10:43I'm a Camera sure yeah man I'm a Camera great great back man um just what he does and those 101 matchups he's dangerous man and he's so smooth he's so smooth as well I'm not going to be like he's smooth yeah um inside zone from stack being able to hit that thing downhill and I'll say the next one is probably just an option route out of the backfield you know and man and man coverage you're getting on that linebacker and so yeah I say the man the biggest thing is the way that he carries himself man and the way that man um he approaches the game he comes in with the mindset you know he's going to work every single week you know every practice you know he's working hard you know um even shooter I don't know every good I think he had a every game was a good game for him man and so but still man he always

5:11:47has the mentality to mindset that you know he's going to come in each and every day he's going to continue to work and get better man and so he's definitely man he's going to be a special player man he really is man man a lot of ups and downs man it's just how you respond to adversity and I feel like that's something that God has definitely helped me to do better is not have something to lean on now you know I remember before I met him you know going through those adversity I had nothing to run to you know you can run to people but they still can't it's not too much they can't truly help you you know I feel like you know I feel like the only person that can truly help you is your relationship with Jesus Christ and so being able to lean on him you know he gives you in those moments where it's tough you know where it's low and when you're behind the scenes and you're going through things that people don't know about he gives you he gives you that peace and comfort you know even in those moments man we're so hard that you can't you can

5:12:48explain it's like man I'm going through this but like how am I still filled with this internal joy you know how do I have so much peace in this situation and so that's something that only Jesus Christ can give you and so um man those guys have such a great mentality man I might just really love their mentality especially um Q as well you know I talked about Will Howard his leadership but Quinch Charm mentality man um that boy just yeah that boy just gifted you know you see you know sometimes he put in a situation where he looked like you know he should have a negative five yards and as soon as you know it you know he that running through somebody still forming somebody and shoot it's a game to 10 it's uh uh um shoot I think

5:13:49yeah man I think it's just like he's just gifted man to be honest he's just gifted you know he's he's a big back you know he's strong and so um you know he's he's able to do he's able to do those things and so um yeah man it's definitely you know I look at his game and I want to you know at the same time I want to learn from Quinch time you know I want to look at this game is like man where where can I get better at as well you know that's the type of player I am I'm always looking to get better man I'm always looking to grow as a player Julian Sand oh yeah he's gonna be a great but he's gonna be a great quarterback man he's so so accurate and so um he's definitely man I know Coach Dez definitely going to get him right just you know um continue to grow as a leader continue to grow as a player and so he's going he's gonna be really good for high state uh he's that I know just the quarterback position um I feel like you know the quarterbacks in the past they've they've definitely been vocal and so I feel like that's something that they're definitely going to um ask him Julian Sand as well it's to be that vocal leader and lead the um and lead the offense and lead the steam

5:14:52shoe man he has he has a bill like JK Dobbins and um I kind of see them you know similar similarities in their game as well and I know JK Dobbins he was a great running back um I feel like he's not talked about his none um a lot but man his career here you watch his highlights is is great I remember um before I recruit before I committee here I remember watching JK Dobbins highlights like every every um one of his years here like four or five times and so man he was such a great back and um I feel like you know um when I see JK Dobbins when I see um James people I see similarities to both of their games I feel like they play the same and so appreciate

5:17:30you all I got coming in last round I knew we're all so I just tacked every day really the same way it's a very very rare Instically how different are you weight wise body wise on that from your uh I think I got a lot bigger I'm like 240 you know like 240 for right now last year I played it like 236 to 37 what does it feel like a 240 for or well you feel like almost a different machine out there yeah what does it what does it feel like to be run around out there like you are with more uh more back I just feel like I'm like like like more downhill like stronger like I'm taking all blocks better it's bigger yeah is it don't think uh maybe that's not the correct term but to think you're going to be playing much more than you did even last year and you played quite a bit last year instead what do you have to get straight in your head about being on the field that much more just gotta get ready to just play 30 more snaps so

5:18:34how would you describe how much you're looking forward to it from an 8th hand point yeah I'm looking forward to it I'm ready for it I'm ready for it I'm ready for it the text is open it's a rematch so to say but it's not really two different teams compared to the ones I'm going to play the stuff how does that enhance uh this camp for you and this team getting ready for they were an opener of that magnitude yeah with an opener like that we've been um we've been emphasizing it a lot we know we got coming so we know we gotta do we've been prepared for um I think Riley ready to play right now he he advanced freshman like he in the he in the book he stood in like he advanced and his measurements was crazy like he saw like the saw line too or like you said you're ready right you know you're ready what was that process like during last season could you feel yourself becoming more and more ready the team needed yeah because that's pretty much what my role was just whenever I was needed I had to step up so I feel like that's what built me into me being able to say I'm ready for this year when you say ready is it more

5:19:36a physical thing is it a mental thing when I say ready I think it's pretty much like everything physically mentally mostly I think I'm there oh I still have one more time um I feel like it's uh it's a way bigger responsibility with me having to step up this year but I kind of go about it the same way like last year I was intentional with everything I did I feel like this year it's gonna be the same thing it's probably a little bit more it won't work uh I say describe like now I say like when you're thinking me you're thinking like a like a bully like a silver

5:20:37I don't really a bully I'm always on the ball that's how I like to play a thing no I ain't got to be my nickname but oh yeah yeah yeah um think it fit me because I don't know I just like the defense I feel like we got like you said we got a lot of freedom and we're moving around a lot a lot of the terms is like no I don't know I don't really know how to answer that that's okay does it you can go on your instincts a little bit more maybe that's not so thinking of too much I don't even know if I say that because there's a lot of thinking going on but it's like I just like it's defense I like how it's pretty different I like what you got going on uh now I wanted to say that I was kind of like happy for me that's what you want no that's my dog I'm gonna say yeah kind of missing a little bit but yeah

5:21:45I'm happy for you all right well don't think go ahead one last but coach days talked a lot about the guys who played some last year but maybe weren't the starters and the hunger for that wasn't maybe your national championship you guys know when you're out yeah how much do you feel that as a guy who certainly contributed last year but we'll be in this bigger role and along with some of your your classmates yeah I do feel like um yeah I do feel like I did win a nattie last year but like you said my role wasn't same as how's my beat is here so yeah I definitely want to want to go get another one experience that like feeling we need to be on the field a lot more place yeah thank you very much championship and naked you know before and everything like that and also need to get your teeth knocked in you know first game and you know can't have that happening because then you know it really doesn't mean anything and so just the constant mindset to continually get better has been on the forefront of my mind and forefront of anyone here you can ask yeah yeah I know we uh we look at the uh class stats every

5:22:48non-ending be like oh man they're gone they're gone no it's been it's been good I mean the guys who are still here I'm as I've definitely kind of bonded together pretty good so yeah I mean uh you know Marv came in other days like in a class 21 best class ever and like yes sure okay you know okay I can't really even you know just sitting to that you know I'm much left but um uh yeah I mean to do what we can and do what we can for this team has been really important for all of us and I think um us now realizing where the veterans you know with all the guys now in the group has been kind of strange at least to begin with you know because you go from um all those guys you like Donnie and Josh and those guys and all of sudden it's Sunday we have a team meeting after the um like the celebration the shoe and all of sudden the next day there's got and you know it's just very different so I think us being able to step up as you

5:23:51know leaders and as as vets to help bring out you know along the team our units and um this program has been really important. What are you doing overall two more questions just to try um but then you were sure you're off the slide for the first year Luke said that Jake has been by six so far he did the James yeah. Somebody who went through that would have been impressed by the Jake no it could spend doing really well I mean I could go and he goes to work um he's extremely athletic extremely flexible um you know he's a young kid obviously he's a lot of um a lot of development a lot of he's a little adversity at all of us do um but I think he's going through that right now but he's been um coming out on the better end of it so far and excited to see what he can do because he's very impressive at this young stage. So I sure overall level of excitement just to be back with the rest of this year off to the line group you guys have been so much experienced. Yeah extremely excited I mean um trying to just build that culture back up again

5:24:54you know like what we had last year uh I we're trying to do a little stuff here in there and I can know I think we're going to Rayres barbecue I think tomorrow so shout out Rayres but uh um but yeah just trying to get that brotherhood back get that you know that oblock spirit back uh sure it's coming soon um hopefully um but uh just to kind of get those uh not those same faces but those same kind of mindsets back and our our group is important right now and it's been fun to meet new guys from different backgrounds and stuff like that um and try to figure out how to you know build that and mend that together it's been pretty cool. Now as you are one of the most experienced veterans on this team how much do you feel like you have to be a leader for the students here? Yeah for sure I mean I think that comes um it's obviously I don't feel like it's natural to anyone to immediately step up and that's something I've been working on every day and talking to God about um but I obviously understand that and that's something I want to continue to work on. I want to be able to um be a guy that people can fall back on and like coach was saying before

5:26:00like we're going to have highs in those but the great players the ones being set are clocks too and I kind of want as my goal is to be one of those people that you can do that um and I think for especially a very new set of eyes um in the Woody um not only coaches but players um I think it's very important to kind of keep that steady um mindset and I think for me learning how to be a leader has been important just uh not be too hard on myself but also not let myself kind of slack off in some departments is trying to keep um steady. Just your story itself though is testament of what it means to like for perseverance is tough too though right? Carson I mean you know that's uh that's gonna have to stand up from somebody to say that right? I mean just yeah what do you what do you think you've shown more than anything else in every card? Yeah I mean I've been blood