Monday Presser 10-6-14: Brady Hoke Comment Count

Adam Schnepp

Hoke presser 2

file

News bullets and other items:

  • Derrick Green broke his clavicle and is out for the season
  • No update on Jabrill Peppers or Desmond Morgan, which only means they haven’t been ruled out for the rest of the year /waves world’s tiniest flag
  • The coaches spoke to the Big Ten about Amara Darboh’s catch that was ruled an incompletion. Hoke doesn’t seem to agree with what they were told, but said there’s no reason to dwell on what can’t be changed
  • Shane Morris is practicing

Opening Remarks:

“Alright, thanks for coming out. Number one, on Saturday I thought our guys were united. I thought they played hard together. I thought they fought, and sometimes that doesn't guarantee you anything but their effort as a team was something I was proud of, and I was proud of those kids. I know I said that on Saturday, but that hasn't changed. Sometimes fighting alone doesn't get a victory, but I think we need to change those results and execute a little better, coach a little better. It always starts with me and us. There was some good progress that was made and we want to really emphasize those things.

“Yesterday we didn't practice and that was already determined we weren't going to. We got back at– I don't know. I got home at 4:15 so I'm sure they got home late. We wanted to give them rest because rest will help you heal. We had good meetings yesterday. I think from the standpoint of corrections and emphasizing the things we want to see repeated I think were important.

“You know I don't talk about injuries unless a guy is going to miss the year, and unfortunately that's what Derrick Green – he broke his clavicle late in the football game. Nice run on our sidelines, but Derrick's attitude is very good. He knows there’s an expectation of him to help coach those young guys and coach guys and be integral and what we’re trying to get done. And so we are going to miss him, but DeVeon and Justice Hayes and Drake Johnson are three guys who need to step up, and two of them are guys that have a lot of game experience and played a lot of plays, so [we] feel good about that. And we’ll miss Derrick, but this is like anything else in competition in sports; the next man's got to stand up.”

[After THE JUMP: try to read the tea leaves]

This is related; it might be injury related. DeVeon went down, too, in that game. Will he be ready to go on Saturday?

“Remember, I would only discuss injuries that were going to be here long.”

We haven’t seen Desmond [Morgan] since Appalachian State. Should we expect him to-

“I will only discuss injuries that are year-long. Thank you, though.”

Could you update us on the status of Jabrill Peppers?

“Okay. I guess we don't listen well.”

That's not an injury question.

“Well…”

Can you talk about Devin Gardner and what he did Saturday night, and he is your starting quarterback for Saturday?

“Yes.”

And where is Shane on that depth chart?

“Shane’s practicing. Devin is the starting quarterback. I thought Devin from the standpoint of running the offense, I thought on some explosive plays that he ran, I thought he ran hard, with a purpose. I thought he did a nice job. We had a little, I think, mix-up on a route with the interception but overall, number one, I thought his leadership was outstanding. When you're on the sidelines and the energy and all those things, he did a tremendous job. We’re pleased with the progress that he made Saturday, and we expect more progress this week.”

The play by Amara Darboh that was ruled an incompletion after review; has it been submitted to the Big Ten for review or have you been in touch with the conference yet?

“Yeah. We talked yesterday and have spoken to the right people, the appropriate people. I think we might see it differently, but at the same time that play is over with, and like I told the team yesterday anything that happened on Saturday night is things that we've got to move forward because we start to focus on Penn State.”

Justice [Hayes] did some nice things for you Saturday night. We’ve seen a little bit of him. We’ve not seen that much of Drake [Johnson]. Can you talk a little about, with them moving up the depth chart, what people will see from those two?

“Justice, he's primarily been a very good third-down back or when you get in those situations where from a protection standpoint – I do think Derrick and DeVeon are getting closer with that standpoint but I think Justice gives you something there. I think his ability out of the backfield has been good. He's a different style of runner where Drake is probably a combination of somewhere with Derrick and Justice as far as when you see his ability and his quickness in the hole.”

With Drake, he was No. 2 on the depth chart last year before his injury. You guys talked a lot about him preseason, but we haven’t seen much of him. What’s maybe held him back, and what areas of progress have you seen?

“Well, I think we talk about compete and challenge and there's always that. Not that he wasn't competing or challenging but as you go through practice and the execution of everything, we just thought needed [to be] cleaned up a little bit.”

But he’s made progress?

He has. There's no question about it.”

Going back to Derrick a little bit, he had two of his runs that looked like some of his best runs since he’s been here. How big of a loss is he for the offense, and what are your thoughts about the running backs without him moving forward?

“I'm very confident in the three guys that will be doing most of the work as a running back. I'm highly confident of what they bring and what they can do. When you lose anybody–we've lost guys who have been on our scout team that you can't afford to lose because they give you such a good look, so is Derrick important? Yeah. Are we going to miss him? Sure we are, but that's why there’s 105 guys, 115 guys on this team and you've got to step in when your opportunity comes and make the most of it.”

MGoQuestion: With about 11 minutes left in the second quarter Rutgers punted-

“11 minutes left in the second quarter…”

MGoNowWe’reOnTheSamePage: Yep. Rutgers punted and Michigan had 10 men on the field to return- [Ed: thanks to Shop Smart Shop S-Mart for pointing this out]

“Yep, that was during the time where we were going to put the defense back out on the field in a safe punt kind of deal or were we going to go with our punt return group, and we decided to go with our punt return group and one individual didn't get that.”

Talk a little bit about Jourdan Lewis and his development over the last couple of years; what he’s learned and how he’s gotten better.

“Well, I think the one thing with JD is he's a consummate technique guy. We’ll get done with practice and he'll stay out there and just work with him and Terry Richardson will work through releases. His leadership is really developing. I think we think from that standpoint you're getting more from him. He's got a good burst from the physical aspect of it. There's a lot of things that he does awfully well that – he's got that make-up speed to some degree and that quickness. I think technique-wise he's improved immensely. I think the maturity and the maturation process is a big part of that and I can't say enough about how he's been for us. He's been very solid for us.”

Beyond the wins and losses, if you look at your expectations heading into the year are there areas where you haven’t met them or exceeded them as a team?

“Well, our expectations every year are – I think you always have an expectation to win in every game. I think you have an expectation, and we still always will, of winning the Big Ten championship. Have we played as well as a team on every Saturday? No. And do we need to keep coaching harder? Yes. Do we need to coach better? Yes. But from a standpoint of a team that's stood together and worked extremely hard every day and like working hard for each other, there's progress that's been made. Now, we got to go out and win.”

Did Kalis just beat out Magnuson there at that guard spot, or is Magnuson hurt?

“I think Kalis has played good football. I think he's done a nice job how he's responded. The commitment level that he made really since January has really shown itself.”

So he just won that job, and those are the five you’re comfortable with?

“Well, right now that's the five we’re playing with.”

Brady, shifting to this weekend’s game; given the recent events, the protest and everything, are you worried about fan attendance for Under the Lights?

“Uh, no.”

A twist on that approach; night games are designed to have a different feel to them and the excitement. What would it mean to these kids right now for a pretty whipped up crowd on Saturday night?

“Yeah, you took a different side to it. I think you're right. I think it will be – that environment I don't think is like any other. We’ve played enough night games at other places, and the environment that we’ve had here, there isn’t any question [that] it amps your players up because of that environment and we’re excited about it. We’ve got great fans, and they’re fans with high expectations. Well, they should be and we feel the same way.”

With DeVeon, I think he’s only had one game with double-digit carries in his career. Is he capable of taking on a heavier load? Can he be a more every-down type back right now?

“Yeah. I know he carried the ball in high school 40-some times in a game against their lead rival, and I know it’s high school but it’s still a guy carrying it. How many snaps he gets during the course of the week, how he practices and all those things- I think he’s more than capable of it.”

Brady, how did the Big Ten explain that rule to you? Is it the finish the catch rule? Is that what they talked about?

“Yeah. There’s three phases to it, and sometimes that’s subjective of what phases you think were done properly and what weren’t. But we talked about it and number one, it can’t change anything. And so to spend a lot of time going back and talking about that distracts from what’s important, and that’s going back and getting our kids ready to play Penn State.”

You said you didn’t practice yesterday but you said Shane’s practicing, so he practiced last week a little bit?

“I’m sorry.”

You didn’t practice yesterday but you said Shane’s practicing. Does that mean he practiced last week a little bit or…?

“He’s practicing.”

We talked a little bit about Devin earlier and just how he’s hung in there. Have you noticed a change in him since you sat him down, or is it the same Devin?

“I think the maturity Devin’s gone through over the course of three years, three and a half years- I just think he keeps growing. He keeps growing as a person and evolving as a quarterback, and so from that standpoint I couldn’t be more pleased than to see how he worked last week, how he supported Shane all during that week that he wasn’t the starter.”

 

I just wanted to go back to the 10 men on the field-

“I’m sure you do. Go ahead.”

You’ve had a couple instances of this. What concerns you most? Is it not getting communication? Is it coaching?

“Well, I think it’s both, and it’s more coaching and that’s on me. The other thing I would say is it’s got to be something where we do a better job, and we’ve got to be locked in to doing a better job.”

Just for you personally, how are you able to separate this? You have the football, [but] how does a coach in your position separate all the media attention, some of the negativity, and just being Brady Hoke? How do you separate the two?

“I think I am. I don’t know if I separate it. I don’t know if I quite understand. We’ve got great support here. We’ve got great kids here.”

As far as leaving work at work is where I’m going with that. Are you able to do that?

“I don’t think I’ve ever done that. We get about two weeks in the summer where you try and not take your cell phone and that’s about it. That’s just the way of the beat, and it’s not a beast. It’s fun. I get to help mentor kids. And I’ve got good support at home. Mrs. Hoke is a very good coach’s wife.”

Can you clarify- I know you don’t talk injuries, but-

“Correct.”

Is Magnuson not- did he not earn this because he’s injured and Kalis earned the spot at guard, or-

“I think they’re two really good football players that we’re glad they’re on our team.”

So you’re not saying anything.

“I didn’t say anything, I don’t think.”

It’s like reading tea leaves.

“Yeah. You might be good at that.”

“Alright guys, thank you very much. Thank you.”

Comments

bacon

October 6th, 2014 at 6:05 PM ^

His pressers are a waste of time. Why take questions if you're not going to answer any. I feel like you need to win a lot to be in a position where you can give the big FU to the media and it's okay with the fans.

johnthesavage

October 6th, 2014 at 7:45 PM ^

Belichek is usually indignant for a reason. I'm really befuddled at why we must not only refuse to talk about injuries, but we can't even say if a player is or is not injured? In the NFL, you are forced to reveal injuries, because it matters to gamblers and it helps prevent criminal activity.

Here, I just don't understand. He's just making it difficult to cover and follow the football team for the press and the fans. Clearly there is no advantage being gained, competitively. Maybe some of these injured players aren't really injured, and there are other issues he doesn't want to talk about?

The Geek

October 6th, 2014 at 9:22 PM ^

to break your clavicle. Wish Derrick the best --

On another note, my favorite exchange:

You said you didn’t practice yesterday but you said Shane’s practicing, so he practiced last week a little bit?
“I’m sorry.”
You didn’t practice yesterday but you said Shane’s practicing. Does that mean he practiced last week a little bit or…?
“He’s practicing.”

It sounds like the reporter caught Hoke a little off guard, to me. He sounded ready for the 10-men punt return question --

Mr. Yost

October 6th, 2014 at 9:05 PM ^

He doesn't have to comment on it, release the nature of the injury, tell how long the player will be out. He literally doesn't have to give ANY additional information. It would be nice, but he doesn't have to.

Peppers can be on the same list as Green and "they'll return when they return."

The problem is when someone is bench, you don't know if it's for performance or because of injury.

We knew Mags is injured because we have MGoBloggers that have reported seeing him on campus with a boot or something like that. But you can't expect the media to follow 115 guys to class to see if they have a limp.

Brady Hoke should help himself out by just sharing a list of injured or sick players. They could all play this week, none of them could...he gets to keep his mystery and he doens't give up any advantage AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, he can continue to be a dick to the media.

Because they're still going to want to know how long someone is out and if that someone is playing.

trustBlue

October 6th, 2014 at 10:39 PM ^

Hoke has always been tight-lipped with respect to the extent of player injuries, but this is the first year where he seems to be apparently determined to release injury status at all.  

Part of me wonders if this is a new internal policy that has come down as a result of the Gibbons "injury" status at the end of last year. I would not be at all suprised to find out that the some athletic department lawyer is behind this new "policy."

Mgoscottie

October 6th, 2014 at 6:28 PM ^

he slips up too much with some bad answers.  His answer about Shane being tough so it was ok for him to play hurt was incredibly stupid given that everyone else in the world was aware about the concussion or at minimum the potential for it.  

His Gibbon's comments I don't recall being very good either and I felt like they portrayed a boys will be boys attitude about sexual assault.  

Unless the white house has injuries that would be important to keep secret, I guess then he would be top notch.  

uncleFred

October 6th, 2014 at 8:30 PM ^

What he said, quite clearly btw, was that when you have a tough competitor who wants to stay in the game and has been cleared to continue by the medical staff, it's a tough judgement call when you pull him for his own good and the good of the team. 

But that doesn't fit your narrative. 

If you ca'tn recall exactly what Hoke had to say, nor take the time to look it up, perhaps you should leave that out of your comment. Just sayin

Logan

October 6th, 2014 at 10:06 PM ^

Wrong. He said it told him something that shane waved his hands and didnt want to come out of the game that he was good to keep going. This was right after the hit happened when he or someone on his staff knew or should have known about the blow to the head and the wooziness after. The medical staff could not have had a chance to clear him since hoke left him in the game. Explain that narrative.

gvsujulius

October 6th, 2014 at 6:11 PM ^

Just once I would love for Hoke to say "it's unacceptable" that we had ten men on the field for a punt. He doesn't seem to get angry about anything. I am not saying I want fire and brimstone but show me you give a damn. 



How do you coach "harder"? He continues to point out things the coaching staff needs to do better and then he is shocked when people ask him if he is going to have a job at the end of the year?



This guy is a joke and I can't wait until he is gone or acts like he gives a crap. 

BayWolves

October 6th, 2014 at 7:15 PM ^

No one asks the right follow up questions. "Do a better job coaching implies you need to make some changes to your approach. What specifically do you coaches intend on changing to help your players develop and have more success?"

johnthesavage

October 6th, 2014 at 7:49 PM ^

How about --

You've been saying you've got to do a better job coaching now for several years. At what point do you conclude you just aren't capable of doing a better job coaching?

maizenbluenc

October 6th, 2014 at 7:32 PM ^

but I'd love to get a frame of Brady Hoke calmly standing next to the ref asking for a clarification on the Darboh incompletion, and Bo Schembechler chewing the living daylights out of a ref for a call like that.

When that happened under Bo, we'd boo the ref - yell "bull shit" - and once Bo really got going, we'd cheer our lungs out. There was an intensity in him that had to flow to the players (it flowed to the crowd).

MonkeyMan

October 6th, 2014 at 9:32 PM ^

This whole 10 men on the field thing is really the heart of whole damn program at this point.

1. They have been publicly called out on this issue

2. It is a relatively simple  issue to resolve- hell just give a water boy the back up role of counter to make sure somebody is checking this

3.  IT STILL CAN'T BE RESOLVED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This really tells you all you need to know about why they are failing in everything- the little things matter, the little things add up to big things. Its not just 10 men, its missing blocks, its being out of position, its not wrapping up tackles. 

Great coaches control the details- they go crazy over little things

Hoke has the same stupid shit happen over and over

There is nobody at the wheel

Njia

October 7th, 2014 at 8:03 AM ^

Yes, we all know it and you've made that sentiment quite clear. Maybe you've played for him, maybe he's from your home town, maybe he's your next door neighbor and gives all of the kids extra candy on Halloween.

Whatever the case may be, he is clearly not competent to be the head football coach of the University of Michigan. Certainly, he hates press conferences and the circling sharks. The problem is, a great deal of this situation - perhaps most of it - is of his own making.

When "players just didn't execute", it's really a coaching problem. He recruited these players for their potential and hired the coaches whose job it is to teach. But the direct evidence of whether the teachers are effectively teaching is found in the "exams" every Saturday. Clearly, the players are trying hard, but for whatever reason, it isn't sinking in. That's on the staff to figure out and after four years the trend is in the wrong direction.

His job isn't just to teach, it's also Public Relations. He "would have walked" all the way to Ann Arbor for this job. Well, there's a reason why: it is one of the premiere jobs in all of sports, albeit tarnished. He is the head of a program being dragged through the mud on a national stage. His role is to step up and address the issues head on, not bite at the media and fans for trying to understand why things are the way they are.

His in-game management and - frankly - the whole Shane Morris fiasco shows a complete lack of situational awareness. If he were a fighter pilot, he would have been killed on his first sortie if he was even able to get the plane airborne. The pace of the game is simply too much for him and his coaches. Bo talked about this in his first book, but the expectation of a head coach - and all of his staff - is to be in charge of the game in fact not just in theory. There is really no excuse for the utter failure to do even simple things like make sure you've got enough guys on the field for each play. When that continues week after week, it's clear that the staff is in over its head.

The net of it is that he's probably a fine position coach. The teams he coached here at Michigan during his first tenure under Lloyd Carr were some of the best in recent memory. But he's clearly risen to his level of incompetence. It's time for him to go.

switch26

October 6th, 2014 at 6:16 PM ^

Since Hoke is gonna continue to be a dunce in the pressers ill just let the cat out of the bag..

 

I posted in the Derrick Green Injury thread, but Desmond Morgan is going to apply for the medical redshirt.

 

He cut all the tendons in his wrist after breaking into his locked apartment..  When he pulled his arm out he slit his wrists really really bad and had to have the police bring him to the hospital.

People won't believe me, but whatever..  Word travels fast in his hometown

alum96

October 6th, 2014 at 6:21 PM ^

if accurate it sounds like a hockey injury when a skate slices someone and you are out 3 months+.  Mike Modano had something like that when he came to the Red Wings for 1 year.  You'd think he'd be listed as out for the season like Hoke just did for Green.

switch26

October 6th, 2014 at 6:48 PM ^

I feel the same way about the depth chart thing, but at this point are we really trying to understand Hoke anymore?

 

he's so disorganized on the field, im sure he's just being stupid and not removing him from the depth chart for a couple reasons.

 

I would think he is waiting til Desmonds wrist is healed, and for him to make a decision on if he will make the decision for himself if he wants to redshirt..

 

But what we heard is that Des does want to redshirt and be able to play the full season next year, so he will probably pursue his masters next year and play football

MGolem

October 7th, 2014 at 8:39 AM ^

He should most definitely apply for the redshirt. This season is lost and having him around next year would really help both the defense and the continuity of the team going forward with a new coach. Based on some of the things he is credited with saying he sounds like a leader and we could really use a few of those.