Morriss Comments From Big 12 Teleconference
4/23/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
April 23, 2003
Reviewing the spring:
We made a little bit of progress. I think when we went down there that there were some problems. We pretty much feel like we have a handle on it and we're moving in the right direction to get those problems corrected. It took us some time this spring just to get our kids in good enough shape so that we can start getting some work out of them. I think any time there is a transition, like a new staff, and the length that it took, some of the kids fell through the cracks. We had to get after them pretty hard this spring just to get them back on track in the weight room, conditioning and so forth, but as far as next year goes, it's going to be an interesting year. We aren't blessed with a lot of depth, our numbers are down right now, and we are a little bit out of balance, but again we knew those things coming in here. We are just going to try to be as competitive as we can be, play as hard as can for as long as we can and kind of see what happens. I feel like we have a good plan, we're going to get this thing corrected, put this plan in place, stay true to it and let it work for us.
There has been a problem with Big 12 quality on the team. How do you plan on competing when you don't have enough quality players across the board?
Morriss: That's a good question. It's hard. I think what we have to do is just try to pump some confidence back into our kids and try to make them overachievers these next couple seasons and do the best that we can until we can start recruiting some better players into Baylor. It's a real slow process to do that. It's just going to have to be a patient process. I think that one of the strengths of this staff is that we have been pretty good at evaluating talent. I think the good thing about making the move from Kentucky to Baylor is obviously that we are in the best recruiting state in America, so that's going to help us. There are plenty of Division I prospects out there, so we are going to try to find our 20-to-25 of them and see if we can get them to come to Baylor. It is tough when you are undermanned. Like I said, our numbers are down some and a little bit out of balance. I think everybody at Baylor understands that it is going to be a slow process. From the administrative standpoint, they have been very committed to the long haul and they understand that's what it is going to take. We just have to do our part to go out there and sign better kids.
When you talk about out of balance, does that mean junior, senior, freshman classes or in terms of positions?
Morriss: Our upper classes are larger than our freshman class. But balance also refers to we don't have enough offensive linemen and a few too many defensive backs, so we are going to try to get those numbers back in line. We would always like to take 15 or 16 offensive linemen. We went into spring practice with only eight of them. Of those eight, six of them were scholarship linemen, so we have to get those numbers back aligned.
How much confidence do you have knowing that you guys (new coaching staff) are coming in together and you were able to orchestrate a kind of similar turnaround in another tough conference?
Morriss: It gives us a lot of confidence, because first of all it helps us hit the ground running, because we all knew each other and I didn't have to waste anytime putting a staff together, so that kind of springboarded us into the tail end of last year's recruiting season. But the fact that we have been through this once before, had things going in the right direction up in Kentucky, that will obviously help. I think we have a good mix of veterans on our coaching staff and some young guys that do a great job recruiting. I think the biggest turnaround for us is going to have to be the talent level that we can attract to Baylor. We just have to get us a different level of kids to come here to be able to compete, and I think we have a good package to sell here at Baylor. We're in a real fertile recruiting state so we feel pretty good about that.
Is there anyone that surprised you this spring and played really well for you?
Morriss: I think the biggest surprise, and I'm not sure if we thought it was a surprise or not, was Willie Andrews, a kid from Longview. I tell you what, he's going to be a big time player for us. We could use some more like him, but I think he was a surprise. That was really about it. We had two or three more kids that had good springs, but you can go back and look at them from last year. Khari Long would be an example; he's a pretty good player at defensive end, but I thought Willie was our most pleasant surprise we had.
A final call on the academic guys...
Morriss: As of right now, they are back in the weight room, and we have our fingers crossed for their grades right now.
Obviously one of the keys at Kentucky was having a good RB, a good kicking game, and a QB that can perform. Will Aaron (Karas) need a lot of help there at the QB position?
Morriss: Obviously we need to put as many good players around him as we can find. We need an offensive line up in front of him to protect him. Hopefully we can develop a running game to take pressure off of them. We have got to do a good job on game day of preparing him to make sure the package is cut down for the amount he can handle, that he is comfortable with and that he can take command of, and then help him manage a game. We will know a lot more after two-a-days and know how much he can handle and absorb as we keep on added stuff; give him a simple audible system, the right checks, and that kind of stuff. We'll teach him how to manage the clock, help him with play calling, substitutions and make sure everyone around him knows their stuff. Everybody has to do their share to help him because obviously as the trigger man goes, so goes our team.
What about the attitude of the players when you came in, and how has it changed?
Morriss: The attitude was kind of what we expected after inheriting a bunch of men who have not had a lot of success. They really did not know what to think about us, and we did not know them very well. It has started to change a little bit. The more we are around each other and they get to know us better, I think it is going to change even more. We are a very positive staff. Our guys know how to walk the walk. It is not something where we just talk about it. Yeah, the attitude is getting better.
What would be a success for you next year?
Morriss: I think the goal right now is to go out and be as competitive as we possibly can. We want to be in the game and have a chance to win in the fourth quarter. I can't predict any number of wins or losses, we just want to be able to compete and not be blown out by halftime. I think the early part of the schedule will help that if we can manage to get off to a good start. That is obviously going to be the key, and then the kids will start to fell better about themselves.
