Opening statement:
"Good afternoon, I'll give you an update on our football team. I think we've accomplished our goals going into this game week against Nebraska. With the bye week, I think we got rested, got a chance to get out and recruit a little bit, players got a chance to jump ahead or catch up with their academics, and we got a jump game plan-wise in practice with a very good Nebraska team that we're going to play. To give you update on personnel, (junior OL)
Kurtis Gregory had turned his ankle in the 1st quarter against Buffalo, but he practiced full on Saturday and Sunday and he's certainly probable. (Senior strong safety)
William Moore also practiced both of those days and we expect him to play also. Otherwise, I think we're in pretty good shape. (Junior WR)
Danario Alexander continues to work with his knee and get better. I think his confidence grows as he does that. We moved (freshman)
Michael Egnew, he was a wide receiver, but he came in at tight end. We knew eventually he was going to play tight end, and we moved him back there. We think with
Danario Alexander coming back, that's a good move and he's doing a good job there. Nebraska's a very good football team. We understand that, it's the first game in the Big 12. We're excited about playing it. We're excited about getting in league play. We're playing a team that's very well-coached, that's disciplined. I'm very impressed with them. If you look at their offense, at (senior) Joe Ganz, their quarterback, I think he's a very talented player, he has a lot of energy. He's very good in terms of reading defenses. He can get out of trouble, he can make plays downfield. (Senior) Nate Swift, their WR/punt returner, has done a great job. And then they have (senior Marlon) Lucky, their running back, and we all know how talented he is. (Nebraska Head Coach) Bo Pelini defenses are good, you know they're going to be because he's the best in the business and he's been doing a great job with their defense. I'm very impressed with (senior LB) Cody Glenn, they use him all over the field, he's got great speed and he makes a lot of things happen, puts a lot of pressure on offenses. The thing that you'll see about this defense is they play with a lot of energy, they're very physical and with great effort. That's our challenge. We're going to work hard to play our best game. That's what we strive to do. We're looking forward to practicing hard this week, and going and trying to play our best."
On the reaction to this weekend's upsets in college football..."It's all about respect and it's all about preparation. It's just that simple. That's our job as coaches to motivate, educate and remind players and get our leadership to work together. If you're not doing that, then you're not going to play your best and you'll increase your chances of losing tremendously. It's the fear of every coach out there. It's still about respect and preparation, and if you cheat either one of those, you won't play your best. I guarantee my players have heard it many, many times."
On the strength of the Big 12 conference..."I think our league is going to be good this year. Last year, as you well know, people were taking shots at our league until the end, when the bowl games were over, and everybody said, 'Guess what, the Big 12's pretty good.' That all sorts itself out. I mentioned today on the Big 12 conference call that I coached 12 years in the Pac-10 and now I'm a head football coach in the Big 12, and how that's an honor for me. It's a great league. Obviously I'm very prejudiced to think we've got the best league in the country, but I'm very proud to be a part of the Big 12."
On senior quarterback Chase Daniel's performance two years ago against Nebraska...
"He's ready to play when he wakes up on Monday, with the competitor he is. That's a long time ago. Every player draws from every experience he's ever had. Good or bad, you learn from things. You move on. I think that's one of the best things he does. I don't think he's gotta' go back in time for any motivation. He's a great competitor."
On the play of the Missouri defense...
"I think it takes six or seven games before the numbers really settle. They are kind of what they are. They gave up some big plays early, gave up one or two last game. But, I think we're certainly making progress. And we're going to get tested this week, so stay tuned. We'll find out. I think we're doing a lot of good things. Rush defense and score defense, we're doing a pretty good job. Turnover-wise, we're doing okay. And those are really the kinds of things I look at the most. With our offense, our defense is on the field a little more bit than others. There are a lot of things we're looking at there, I think we're working really hard to improve. And that's the big thing I want to do is continue to improve."
On playing in a tough environment for the first time this season..."Hopefully we can handle it. We prepare for it, like any other time. We embrace it. I think we like to play in it...It's a great stadium, with a great tradition. We'll prepare to deal with the noise, just like with every road game."
