April 19, 2008
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HEAD COACH Bob Toledo
On the scrimmage:
"For the most part, I think the kids played hard. They had a lot of fun out there competing against each other. I was really impressed with André Anderson and Jeremy Williams, and Reggie Scott did a nice job. I just think we ended on a good note. We came out of it relatively healthy, and that was my biggest concern. We had an opportunity to see a lot of people get a lot of plays."
On the play of André Anderson:
"(Anderson) rushed for over a hundred yards, and carried people, and broke away and showed some speed. I just thought he did a great job. He's a workhorse. He's got to work hard this summer to come back and be in great physical shape, which I know he will be, and he's got to carry the load as a running back next fall."
On what players stood out defensively:
"I think Reggie Scott, but he's stood out all spring. He's done a nice job. I though Devin Holland did a nice job at safety. Again, it's when you're just kind of watching (the game from the sidelines) until you watch the video. But those guys played pretty well. (Cory Sonnier) did a nice job too. He got beat on the one touchdown pass, and he dropped the interception for a big play. But he's a physical guy. He'll hit you. He's just got to improve on some of those other area. But he did show up. So did Evan Lee. Evan Lee did a nice job."
On the depth of the team:
"We're playing a lot of young guys. We ended up recruiting five defensive linemen for this next year. It's a problem area because we don't have a lot of depth at that position, so I'm really concerned about that. It's the same thing with the offensive line to be honest with you. I think the big thing is out receivers - we didn't have as many as we had a year ago and we didn't recruit any this year, but I think they're performing at a higher level than they did last season."
On Jeremy Williams' ability to take some of the playmaking pressure off of André Anderson on offense:
"Yes, I think he can. One of the things we'll do is we'll design plays for him during the course of the season to get more touches. He's a guy that can make big plays. Again, we weren't trying to game play today, but when we get into the season, we have to put him into a position where he gets the ball more."
On if the kicking game will be a problem area:
"Well, today I was concerned. Like I told them, I was happy with the kickoff return for the kickoff return team, but I wasn't pleased with the kickoff defense, even though the better group was on the return team at the start. I was concerned about missing a field goal and an extra point, and that is something we've got to better at. Anthony Scelfo is our normal holder, but he's in baseball, so our punter, Darren deRochemont, was actually holding. But that's something we've got to work on, and hopefully we'll get better at it."
On what players stood out during the spring:
"Reggie Scott, our defensive end, he played really well. He was a hard guy to block. He had a bunch of stats, he's playing hard, he's running - he's really had a good spring. Jeremy Williams obviously had a good spring. André Anderson had a really good spring. I think David Kirksey, a linebacker, did a really nice job. And Parenton and Kropog, the offensive linemen showed their experience."
On his concern about the interior defensive line:
"Yes, I'm concerned. We've got some freshmen [signees] here today, and I hope they can give us some quality depth there. We just don't have a lot of players. We just don't have a lot of numbers. It is a concern, yes. [Some of the freshmen] have got to play. They've got to play. We're bringing in five, and I would think at least two of them have got to help us in the fall."
On if Anthony Scelfo will fit back into the equation at quarterback:
"Well, obviously Anthony had a chance last year to show us what he can do, and we know what he can do. We need to get better at throwing the football and one of the things is obviously, he's involved with baseball now, and this summer, he's involved with baseball. He's missing a lot of football. It's one of those things where we need someone to come in here and throw the ball efficiently and effectively, and if it's Anthony, then it may be him. But right now it's down to basically two people, (Kevin) Moore and (Joe) Kemp."
QUARTERBACK Kevin Moore
On how much fun it was to showcase what the team has done all spring:
"It was a lot fun. It was really basic, but it was a lot of fun. We had a beautiful day, a lot of people came out, which was really nice to see. It was a heck of a lot of fun. A bunch of guys were laughing and having a good time, but we still played hard and got some stuff done, so that was good."
On if the team has made huge strides from where it started:
"Every day, it seems like we're taking a couple steps from where we were the day before. Today proved that, I think. Big play capabilities from Jeremy (Williams) and André (Anderson). They came out and showed how special they're going to be. Just knowledge and concept of what we want to do. Last year, the spring scrimmage was all (the plays) we had in, but now we had to tone it down, because we know so much and we don't want to show that much in the spring scrimmage. I think that kind of points toward the fact of how far we've come. It was a good spring. Guys came out and made some good plays today. It was a lot of fun."
WIDE RECEIVER Jeremy Williams
On if he gave the fans a glimpse of what he can do as a playmaker:
"Yes, somewhat really. I just try to do my best, and I almost got that third touchdown, but [the defender] got his hand underneath and pushed [the ball] out. But, yes, I think I showed them a little bit. I don't really know exactly what I can do, but I do know I can make plays, and I'm just going to do my best every game."
On how far the team has come from the end of last season to the end of the spring:
"I just feel like we know what we've got to do, and we're a lot more fluent with our practices and we know what we came out here to do. It's just going to be a lot smoother. I feel like we're a better team this year, just mentally. We've stronger and faster too."
RUNNING BACK André Anderson
On showing that he can fill the shoes left by Matt Forté:
"I just wanted to come out here this spring and establish myself as somebody that can be the man, be the guy that can carry the load, and do the things we need to do to be the top running back in the process. So, I've just come out here and worked really hard and had a good spring and finished strong. Like we always preach, finish strong."
On if it was fun to play in front of a nice crowd and show what he can do:
"It's always good when the fans come out and support the team. I love that. That's college football to me - fans in the stands, the roar of the crowd - I live for that. When we go in the Superdome or go to away games, it gives me a rush. So, it was really good, letting everybody see that we don't have to worry about a running back for next year. We have somebody that can step up and do what he needs to do."
QUARTERBACK Joe Kemp
On how much fun it was to play a spring game in front of the fans for the first time:
"It was awesome to go out there and just get a chance to play, because for all the guys that redshirted last year, it's been almost a year or two years since we've gotten to play in a game. So it was a lot of fun."
On what it was like on the field and if he felt comfortable:
"Right before I went out there, I had a little pregame jitters, but I definitely felt comfortable when we started getting some plays going."
On if he feels like he has made strides as a quarterback during the spring:
"Yes. Definitely, definitely. During the spring - the middle part of the game - every practice that went by, everything seemed a little bit slower and a little bit easier."
On if hopes his play has made the decision of starting quarterback tougher for the coaches:
"Yes, definitely. I'm glad with how everything went today. But me and Kevin are going to work hard all summer long. I know they won't make [the decision] until next fall."
