Media Day Presser Transcript: Brady Hoke

News bullets and whatnot:

• Toussaint and Clark will start practicing Monday; still no determination for Alabama
• Tamani Carter has left the team
• Roy Roundtree had knee surgery on Friday, out two weeks

Brady Hoke

Opening remarks:

We appreciate your attendance today, coming out, and your time, and your interest in Michigan football. We've got seven practices that we've handled so far during fall camp. Our first full day in pads was on Friday. We had two padded practices yesterday and I think we're starting to get how this team is going to perform. It was nice to get into pads, it's nice to hear football, and I think for the most part we've done a pretty good job with that. We need to play a little bit with better leverage on both sides of the ball up front, that's a big part of playing the game of football. We've got a lot of fundamentals and techniques and work to do. I like the energy we've had. I think for the most part the guys have gone out there and understand that this is work, that it's hard; I like that part of it. We've just got to continue. It hasn't changed. You play football up front, and both our offensive front and our defensive front, that's where we've got to make great strides. At the same time, that's where we also need to, as we get further along, find out where our depth is going to be on both sides of the ball there.

A couple in-house things: Roy Roundtree had arthroscopic surgery on Friday. He had a little cartilage that he needed cleaned up. We expect him back in two weeks. Everything went great and he feels great; it was just one of those thing that he didn't do it practicing, he just needed to get it done, kinda felt it a little bit walking back to the huddle to be honest with you. With him, he's one of the great kids on this football team and as a senior he's been a guy where he'll do a great job of bouncing back.

With Fitz Toussaint and Frank Clark, they'll begin practicing with the team tomorrow. They are still obviously, the guys who as teammates, we love them, but there's consequences for their behavior, they're paying a price, and they will continue to pay that price for a little bit. I think both of them realize they have an outstanding opportunity to play at the University of Michigan and to get a great university degree, and they understand that there's a standard of performance from a community side and a standard of performance from an academic side and there's a standard of performance from a football side that they've got to do a great job an understand. As coaches, you're a teacher, and you get an opportunity to teach life lessons, and believe me they've paid a heavy price and will continue to pay a heavy price for actions unbecoming of a football player.

Tamani Carter has decided to leave Michigan. He's a great young man, tremendous kid, but he decided to leave. I'll leave it at that. Any questions?

Will Toussaint and Clark play against Alabama?

I haven't made any of that, and I won't make that decision for a while..

How is the start of Roundtree's season impacted?

Having a scope and a little bit of cartilege in there, a lot of guys come back in two weeks. Our docs did a tremendous job, we've got a great medical staff here, and they all do a great job. I think everything went well in talking with them, I think [head trainer] Paul [Schmidt] is very happy with how it went, and then you've got a guy like Roy who's a committed guy, he's going to do everything in his power to get back.

What are you most excited about for this season?

How we practice after we have media day done with. I'm being honest with you, seeing the development and how the leadership is, we'll find out a lot about ourselves continually every day. There's an expectation for them every day. It's part of growing up and maturing and all that, I think a lot of those guys have, so we'll see.

Do you see an increase in intensity in practice because you know the first opponent is Alabama?

You come to play football at Michigan to play in those kind of ballgames. You're expected to play and perform, and playing the defending national champs is a great challenge and a great opportunity. Going to play at a venue like Cowboys Stadium there in Arlington, I think that's going to be a lot of fun.

Are you concerned about the high expectations for the team?

Our expectations are always the same and that's to win the Big Ten championship, year in and year out, that's the expectation for the Michigan football team. You're right, we don't really care too much about the rankings. I think we were picked fifth in our division in the Big Ten a year ago; that's what those things mean. It's like life, it's not where you start, it's where you finish. We have to finish in everything we do to prepare to be the best Michigan team that we can.

How concerned are you about the offensive and defensive lines?

Believe me, we could have the Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line and defensive line and I'd be concerned. Knowing the opponent that we're going to play against and watching them, I'm a defensive coach, watching that offensive line, that's a good an offensive line as I've seen in college football.

Does the defensive front have the potential to be as good as last year's?

I think so. I know we think so. I think Greg [Mattison] and Jerry [Montgomery] would tell you the same thing. They're hard-working kids. Talking about Will, you see the maturity that he's gone though and what he's done physically, from body fat to all those things, how he's worked—and it's hard—and he's really done a good job. Quinton Washington and Richard Ash and moving Jibreel inside gives us a little better depth inside at the three, and Craig inside and having Nate Brink back I think is all important.

Do you have confidence in Thomas Rawls to be the main guy if needed?

I have confidence in all our backs. Thomas is a guy who's been here. Vince Smith has played a lot of football at Michigan. Justice Hayes in a young guy who we redshirted a year ago. I think all three of those guys have had good camps to this point. We're just scratching the surface of where we're at with this team, but all three of those guys are doing a nice job.

Where have you seen Denard improve this offseason?

I think his maturity and leadership, how he approaches the game from being a quarterback, if that makes sense. What he's done in the offseason, watching football, watching technique, watching fundamentals, all that part of it, I've seen that growth. I've seen him take a more vocal, active role within that senior class. I think that's important. He's played a lot snaps. From a fundamental standpoint I think he's improved, but we're going to talk about that all the time. He's going to throw the ball off his back foot now and then, and probably shouldn't throw the ball over the middle late. He's improved. I'm really proud of him.

Is there a chance Toussaint and Clark play against Alabama?

You know, I wish I could tell you.

Can they earn that opportunity over the next couple weeks?

I'll make a decision sometime. They're part of this football team. They're guys who are 18-23, like some of us, who have not made great decisions, and they're paying for it. They're paying for the consequences of bad decisions.

What can you and the seniors do to replicate last year's success?

I think remembering what the expectations are, remembering where we failed and why we failed. I think that's a big part of it. As coaches, that's on us first; believe me, it's on me. We failed because I failed as the head coach. We've got to do a better job of coaching and a better job of preparing those guys on a weekly basis for playing the game of football and how we're going to prepare to play the game of football.

Does playing Alabama ratchet up the intensity?

It's a storied program with a lot of tradition, just like we have. I know one thing, you don't get a second chance to make a first impression, and our first impression of Team 133 is September 1st against Alabama.

Is is possible you'll have a better season with a worse record?

If we don't win the Big Ten championship ... we know what the goal is, and the expectations. If we don't meet it, then we fail. It's pretty cut and dry.

Do you think you have the ingredients to be a top ten team?

Ask me in two weeks.

You'll answer in two weeks?

Maybe.

Any more comfort level for you in year two?

It's about the same. To be honest with you, you think about those 115 kids. It's what our focus is as a staff and the people who work with them in this building. We've got a job to do as mentors, and we've got a job to be an extension of their families in helping them grow and mature. Does it feel any different? No, it probably doesn't. I've been here eight years before—well, I haven't been up here [points at podium]. It all is focused in on those kids.

Are there any freshmen that you think can help this year?

I'm not going to single anybody out because they're finishing classes, they've missed some time, they're trying to catch up a little bit mentally, and most importantly they've got to do a great job finishing those classes. Once we get that over with on Tuesday, we'll start seeing a little bit more and have a better idea. I think it's a very good class of guys. I like how their demeanor has been. Physically, genetically, they're a little different.

Do you like the kickoff changes and have you changed your approach to kickoffs because of them?

The safety issues are important. They've tried to help the kickoff return by not having three-man wedges anymore. I think moving it up, they moved it back and now they're moving it back up, the approach only being a five-yard approach; it all filters down a little bit from the NFL and what they do. I think it'll be interesting to see, now that the ball's coming out to the 25, which is a little different, to see how as a team how you approach and gameplan for your kickoff team and your kickoff return to some degree. I think the NFL a year ago, they had more kicks being returned when guys were catching them eight yards deep in the end zone. I think that depends, number one, on who your returner is, number two, who is on your kickoff return that can stay on blocks long enough. Kickoff-wise, can a guy put it eight yards deep? I think Matt [Wile] has done that at times. As we get through camp, we'll know a little more. But does it affect? Yes, no doubt.

What is the strength of the team?

I think, always, having a senior quarterback is a plus, because he's been in the big games, he's been in tough situations at home. You know, the Notre Dame game a year ago, how he handled the football game. Being on the road, and how we play on the road, I think that's a plus because there's a sense of confidence and composure and poise that's important for any position when you play in big football games. Other than that, I think the wide receiver group, to a degree. I think we have more depth at the linebacker group, in having Desmond back and Kenny back and some other guys, you know, Hawthorne has played some significant snaps from a defensive standpoint. Joe Bolden, who I know is a freshman, but coming in January gives us some depth there. The secondary, the core group is pretty good, but we've got to develop some guys for depth. That being said, our two fronts better play.

Think they will?

Yeah, I think they will, but we're nowhere near where we need to be with it.

Is the team where you want them to be physically?

The great thing about fall camp is it's a grind. It's a grind on coaches, it's a grind on our medical staff, taping and Falk and all that, the equipment, turning over laundry, and everything else, it's a grind on everybody. So you find out, when the adversity—the one thing I promised them is I'd put tremendous stress on them and get them out of their comfort zone, then see how they come together as a football team, who stands out, who steps up, who leads. Are we there? No. I like how we practiced with no pads. That usually comes around pretty good, but to be tough daily, tough every play, I can't answer that yet.

Does any part of you take delight that when you say, "This is Michigan," people respect you a little bit more a year later?

I don't know why anybody wouldn't respect whenever anybody says, "This is Michigan," you know? It's Michigan football. It's 11 national championships, 42 Big Ten championships. I don't know.

Since your first press conference you've been giving the media less to work with. Is that on purpose?

I don't know. I wouldn't do anything like that, probably.

Do you approach Alabama as a regular game or as more of a bowl atmosphere?

It's definitely not a bowl atmosphere. This is business. This is going down there, playing the reigning national champs, who've got a lot of great players. Coach Saban has done a tremendous job, obviously. We're preparing to play our best football on September 1st.

Talk about the defensive line.

Again, I think Will has done a good job from a leadership standpoint and from a standpoint—and this is usually what happens—of having self-pride in how he prepared himself to come into camp, and how he's taken the role of leader, how he's coaching guys up, and how he's come out to practice. Rich Ash has improved. Quinton Washington, there's some improvement from Quinton when it comes to fundamentals, in both those young kids. I think the moves of Roh and Black have both been positive for us. I think [Black] gives us a faster defensive line from Point A to Point B, to the football. I think the biggest thing is their weight gains have been pretty good and substantial, they've done it the right way. Now can they take the 70 plays of knock-them-back football, I think that's something that we're going to find out, and that's something we're working on every day.

Have you seen technique improvements from Will Campbell?

It's so important up front, the use of your hands. I think that part of it is probably where he's made the best growth. I think the last couple days, he's even played with a better leverage that he needs to play with. Will had a tendency to stand up and look for the ball instead of believing a visual key, a visual key that's going to take him to the football. I think he's improved in that area and just his overall demeanor when he takes the field. I could go on and on but it's probably kind of boring.

Do you like being picked to win the Big Ten? Do you talk about that with the team?

I'd lie to you if I said I didn't talk about it. We said that you guys really don't know much and it doesn't really matter.

Do you talk to the team about what a win against Alabama could do for the program?

I think the one thing we have talked about [is] the opportunity, because we get a chance to represent the Big Ten conference also, and that's important. We've got a great conference, a lot of great schools from the academic side of it, the football side and the athletic departments and all that. We have talked about that part of it. We're not just representing the University of Michigan, we've got a chance to go out and represent the Big Ten conference.