Patterson holds weekly news conference
10/30/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 30, 2007
FORT WORTH, Texas -- TCU head football coach Gary Patterson held his weekly media luncheon Tuesday in the John Justin Athletic Center on campus.
Following a 16-day break from action, the Horned Frogs host New Mexico Saturday at 4:30 p.m. in Amon G. Carter Stadium.
Included below are excerpts from Patterson's news conference.
On TCU's 16-day break between games ...
"There are some guys who could possibly be back Saturday. As a coaching staff, you work harder when you have a break than when you don't. We prepared for both New Mexico and BYU in that time frame, while also doing a little bit of recruiting. We kept practices relatively short and tried to develop some of the young kids. A lot of positives came out of it, because we had a chance to evaluate our younger guys."
On New Mexico head coach Rocky Long ...
"I like Rocky and feel great for him that they got the indoor facility built at New Mexico. That helps our league as a whole. He has put an ownership within the state for his team and 30-to-40 percent of his players are from New Mexico. He has also hired a solid coaching staff from within and put pride into his team. He does a fantastic job and it has made a big difference in their program."
On last year's game, a 27-21 TCU victory ...
"We came away winning, but I thought they outplayed us throughout the game. They had two weeks off before they played us, and we had to pick off a pass on the final drive to win."
On the second half of the season ...
"These next four games are not only about this year but also next season. We obviously want to win them, but it is also about moving forward and how we play them. I will be interested in the passion our players have. We will have to fight our tail off in these next few games. There is a chip on my shoulder, but I don't play."
On a bowl game ...
"One of the goals is to go to a bowl game and you need to get to six wins to do that. The key is for us to control what we do because we can only control TCU. I've told the guys all along that there is no such thing as a bad bowl game. Also, how well the No. 2s and 3s play and step up during the season determines what type of year you are going to have."
On making changes ...
"I believe you are always modifying what you are doing, and you have to judge the pluses and minuses of why you do things. First thing, you don't make drastic changes and you have to stick by your guns. Even in winning, you make changes by going back and evaluating things. We have been putting things in since the spring and the game has changed. As a coach, you evaluate every part of your program every year. You have to try and stay ahead of the times."
On New Mexico ...
"They are coming in here with a lot of confidence and playing well. The key for us is to prove what type of team we have."
On this year's redshirts ...
"Johnny Fobbs has done well, while we moved Chris Goodson to linebacker and Kris Gardner from tight end to wide receiver. Down the road, they are going to make us a good football team. We got a chance to work with our younger players during the off week and really see what they can do. Jonathan Jones has stood out a little bit as well as Jai Cavness at running back.
On Tommy Blake ...
Tommy has practiced all week. As of right now, I expect him to be back for this weekend. The key for him is not just to play, but to play well."
