Sept. 26, 2000
Three of Baylor's head coaches spoke to the media at Tuesday's press luncheon. Below are excerpts from their comments.
Head Volleyball Coach Brian Hosfeld:
On suffering two losses last week:
"We're coming off a tough week... We had two close ones, matches in five games -- kind of the overtime of volleyball, in a way."
"We've got 16 matches to go in conference left. I think this team is still in a good frame of mind."
"It was nice to see Tisha Schwartz step in and put up good numbers. We're gonna have to rely on her a little more, and we want to try to get Dana Chuha to score a little more."
On the team's recent struggles:
"I think right now it's a confidence level. With the amount of juniors that we have, I would have expected it to be higher. I guess because we have two or three freshmen in at any time, it's thrown a little bit of doubt in there..."
"I think they've got a pretty good perspective on things. It's not too late to turn this around."
Head Soccer Coach Nick Cowell:
On opening Big 12 play last weekend:
"For us, this weekend was considered a success. To play a team like Nebraska [ranked No. 3 in the nation] and hold them to three goals when they came in averaging seven a game says a lot about our defense. We just didn't get into an offensive rhythm enough."
On playing Texas and Texas A&M this weekend:
"Both teams we're playing this weekend are picked to finish higher than us in the Big 12 coaches preseason poll. Both are ranked higher in the regional poll."
"This past weekend really solidified where we think the team is. The games we play against other teams ranked in the top 10 in the region will really tell us where we are, if we are one of the top five teams in the region or the bottom five in the region."
On freshman defender Melissa Humke:
"Humke is playing sweeper, sort of the quarterback of soccer. She's responsible for starting out the attack... She's very fast and very quick. She's not real big, but she's quite strong physically. She rarely gets beaten one-on-one. She's taking more of a leadership role with the older players now... She's really coming along. She's been one of our more consistent players."
Head Football Coach Kevin Steele:
On the importance of Saturday's win over South Florida:
"I think it's huge. We probably as coaches didn't even realize how big it was for our guys to be on the winning side going into the Big 12 schedule.
"I walked onto the practice field yesterday and saw practice, and I had a feeling I've had with other very, very good teams. Things flow... It's like being around a bunch of winners. What does that mean for Saturday? Well, it gives you a better chance."
On entering Big 12 play this weekend:
"This week, entering the Big 12, we all know in this room that it's a major task. Iowa State feels this is their year. I just did a radio interview with a station up there, and everyone was talking about going to a bowl game this year."
"This is the start of the Big 12. We know more about our team from playing the non-conference schedule... It's important for this team not only to win in non-conference, but to learn how to win in Big 12, too."
"You've got a uniqueness in this game in that you've got two teams from the bottom half of the Big 12 trying to make a push to get in the upper half... This is probably the best record either team has had entering league play, so they're wanting to get off to a good start in conference."
On QB Guy Tomcheck's confidence if he stumbles against Iowa State:
"I don't think Guy's gonna lose any confidence... He's got a lot of confidence... He's been through adversity before. I don't think the team will lose confidence in him. That was the big thing that happened Saturday, it wasn't that Guy got confidence, but that the team got confidence in him."
On the quarterback situation:
"We will probably play two quarterbacks. They've been told that since Greg went down... We'll look for opportunities to play Kerry [Dixon] in the game, because that takes some pressure off Guy... Guy is our starter, but we'll look for opportunities to play Kerry in every game."
"Guys will adjust [to having multiple quarterbacks] if you practice it. Communication is the key."
On the defense's improvement since last season:
"I think their attitude is probably the biggest thing. Not that last year's attitude was bad, but these guys have the hunger and confidence that they're going to get the job done... They've got a chance to be much better... They're starting to feel they can play better."
On the importance of fan support:
"I could sense our players feeding off the fans that were present... The fact that after they went over to the band, as is tradition, that they went over to thank the students, I think that is a huge factor because it starts more of a family, 'we're-in-this-together' attitude."
"I thought the players felt appreciated and the students felt appreciated, and when those two combine, the energy of all those 18-22 year-olds, it will help them both go farther thatn they thought they could before."
