Gary Patterson signing day press conference quotes
2/1/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Feb. 1, 2006
(General comments): "Our players come from a little bit of everywhere in Texas. The coaches did a great job. You have to understand that we work hard to find the good players that fit here. It doesn't do any good if they can't flourish in our system. High school coaches will tell you we do as good a job as anybody developing players and giving them a chance to succeed."The biggest group is the offensive linemen. Two of the hardest positions to recruit are center and tackle, and all of them except one can play both. That was very important for us. We feel very fortunate to be able to replace what we lost with quality.
"At the wide receiver position, we have Clint Renfro and Jimmy Young. Clint is a guy who can run by you, and Jimmy is a surprise player out of Louisiana. Clint is like Cory Rodgers in that he can take the ball and get by you. Jimmy can do a lot of things.
"We lost five defensive linemen who were seniors and two were starters. We come back strong next year with a group of young players. Tommy Blake and Chase Ortiz were both first-team all-conference as sophomores. Wayne Daniels is probably the highlight in the group. We also have Jerry Hughes and Clarence Leatch.
"At defensive tackle, we have two kids. Henry Niutei has a tremendous upside. He knows how to win and is a great competitor. Cory Grant is a great student and was ranked in the top 10 in the state in power lifting. He has a lot of strength and speed.
"The quarterbacks are Andy Dalton and Zack Eskridge. Andy played in the 5-A state championship. The intangible we recruit at TCU is winning and both of these guys are winners.
"We recruited three cornerbacks a year ago, and I thought we needed to go back to the junior colleges this year. We got a steal from Mississippi with Torrey Stewart. He can be a corner or a safety. He's a very good cover guy. Alex Ibiloye from South Garland was offered a lot of scholarships, but he wanted to say close to home.
"Collin Jones was a tailback who gained over 1,800 yards rushing and had a mess of yards receiving. The best players in Texas usually play quarterback or tailback. He has a tremendous upside. We've proven you can't have enough tailbacks."
(On Clint Renfro): "One thing about Clint is he's a tremendous hurdler. When he and his dad were evaluating schools, they looked at programs with good football and track. Fortunately, we have a great track program here as well and I agreed to let him participate.
"Clint only stayed one day on his visit. He already knew a lot about TCU. He and his dad came over and we talked about different things. We want Clint to have the best opportunity to succeed.
"He's ready to play right away skill wise, but he only weighs about 160 right now and I'd like to get him to around 175. Fifteen pounds makes a big difference. He's had a little problem with injuries as well.
"The thing I like about him the most in a football game is he's always behind people. It'd be easy for me to throw a pass and have him catch it. He comes from a program that has a tradition of winning, and then there's the legacy with his dad."
(On redshirting true freshmen): "Rarely do we talk about redshirting. I'll tell them coming in they have an opportunity to play in the Baylor game. We usually redshirt true freshmen, but we never talk to them that way. You never know what can happen with injuries or with people leaving early for the draft. That's what happens when you recruit great players."
(On recruiting battles): "I think being 2-0 against Big 12 teams helped us this year. We're trying to schedule what I call measuring-stick games. You can see that with the addition of LSU in the future. You can't win a national championship unless you play good teams on a year-to-year basis. You have to prove yourself against that type of competition. TCU is a great academic school, and we want to be among the teams people think of as top 15 and top 10. TCU showing its loyalty to me shows consistency, and we all have the same vision. That's what attracts young men."
(On replacing the offensive line next year): "One thing that always helps is when you have guys that have played together. Our players this year grew up together for five years. They knew each other and they did everything together. Chemistry is a big deal. We have to find guys that meet that aspect this year."
(On the styles of the two quarterbacks): "They both run modern offenses. Both throw the ball well. Zack is probably the faster of the two. Both of them are winners. That's the two things I would say about them; they have really good arms and they're winners."
(On Jake Kirkpatrick): "The thing about him is he only played one year of football. You should watch him play basketball. He can dunk, post up and probably throw a football 70 yards. He would be a good long snapper for us."
