Sept. 16, 2008

Head Coach Art Briles
Opening Statement:
"I appreciate everyone being here today. We felt like we played well last week; both sides of the ball and special teams. I think the difference in the ballgame was five turnovers to none. Our kicking game was extremely good; we had only a couple breakdowns and covered well. As far as UConn, we are anxious to get up there and get on the road in a good environment. We will have some venues on the road in the Big 12 that will be loud and packed and that is a good situation that we are getting into in a non-conference game. We are ready to go up there and get after it."

On what makes a good road team...
"That is something I started to evaluate about eight years ago because if you're going to be a good football team, you have to be a tough road team. That is what we are going to stress and that is what we are going to be at Baylor, a tough road team. I think you band together as a team and you rely on each other, you support each other and you fight hard for each other. When you get out there on the road, there will be a little section of Baylor people and the rest is going to be everyone else. From that standpoint you have to pull everyone together. Honestly, I love being at home but there is something about going on the road and having everyone wanting you not to do well and then having the opportunity to do well in those environments. It's very inspiring and challenging. I like it and our team will like it. We are anxious and ready to get on the road and face the world."

On the importance of Baylor's kicking game and field position ...
"It's the difference in the ballgame when you turn the ball over or when they turn the ball over and you get a short field and go score. Like we've always said, field position, turnovers and momentum, if you win those things you are able to win a football game. We were able to do that the other night and especially against Northwestern State. We had some other good opportunities we just didn't take care of them from an offense standpoint. As long as we keep doing that, we will have some happy locker rooms. Right now our guys are confident, focused and energized."

On Baylor's offense...
"I think we are still a work in progress. I think as we get to know each other a little better and understand our personnel, we may be able to hang our hat on something. Right now we are still searching what fits everyone on the field best. The thing that helps us from an offensive and defensive standpoint is that we are really playing well up front on both sides of the ball. If we continue to do that, we can find a niche offensively and we will keep great turnovers from the defensive standpoint. It all starts up front."

On UConn running back Donald Brown...
"He is an extremely gifted back. The thing that I see on tape when I watch him is that he has great balance, good vision and explosive. His lateral movement is very good. He is going to be a guy that our defense will be anxious to get on the field with because it will be a good test for us."

On the past weekend and Hurricane Ike...
"I have a lot of people down there that I have been in contact with. Fortunately everyone is safe, so that is a good thing. There are still a lot down there without electricity and things along those lines. The thing about people in south Texas is that they are pretty resilient. They have to deal with those hurricanes once or twice a year. They understand they are coming. You load up, deal with it and go again. Everyone I know is okay and doing well.

On having a full week to prepare for the Huskies...
"Having a full week of practice after playing Friday really turned out great. That was our thing going into the game last week; if we could take care of business and get a good win it would put us on the equal week. It was a good fortune for us without a doubt because we were able to start on Connecticut last Saturday."

On the UConn coaching staff... "
You are looking at guys who were Big East co-champs last year, 9-4. They knocked off South Florida so they have done an outstanding job. I think it is his 10th or 11th season there. He has been there awhile and had that same staff intact for awhile. They have upgraded their facility. All their facilities are very new if not brand new. They are getting some good people, recruiting the state of Florida hard and getting some good east coast players. They are doing a good job recruiting."

On Baylor's improvement...
"The thing I am most proud of is that we are learning to play fast, and that is what we are really stressing and taking a hold of. We want to be known as a fast, physical football team with discipline and intelligence. We look for effort and speed, and when you play with great effort and speed you have a chance to have a good football player."

On the game being on ESPN2...
"Every game is important and they are all big games. It doesn't matter when you're playing, who you're playing or whether it is on television or not. Every time you step on the field you have a chance to prove yourself as a player, a team and a program and that is what we want to do. We are in the process of doing it. When people talk about Baylor football, we want them to talk about it with respect and the only way we are going to get that is if we do things the proper way. We are going to take full advantage of these chances we have in the upcoming weeks."

On Baylor's running game...
"The running game all starts up front. We were able to dominate up front. We played physical, fast and intense and we had good tempo. When you have those things working in your favor, you have a chance to rush the ball up and down the field. Jay (Finley) did not surprise me when he did that well. I compared Jay to Donald Brown up at UConn, he has good stride and lateral movement and he's a tough guy with the football in his hand."

On encouragement and leadership from upperclassmen...
"They all have to work well together and those guys that have had good experience have done a good job for us as far as leading and practicing hard. Every time we recruit a player, I find out how he practices. You practice more than you play and if you practice hard you play well. The older guys have really practiced hard and are really teaching the younger guys how to practice hard and prepare, and then it turns into performance on game day. We don't feel that we have arrived, we have a long way to go, but the encouraging part is that we're climbing and that is what you have to keep doing. We have been really pleased with the guard play; we have some guys who are fighting hard, scrambling, working and being good teammates and playing very unselfishly which is what you have to have at every position on the field."

On preparing for Robert Griffin's first away game...
"We are working on a silent count on offense and we will have some crowd noise in practice today, tomorrow and Thursday. Other than tha,t we just have to be us. We have to be Baylor and we have to take care of ourselves. We are going to play our game and we are not going to change what we do. We have to do what we do and do it really well. We are going to go up there and expect to come home with a win."

On UConn's defense...
"They are good, very good. They gave up one touchdown in three games and they gave it up last week when they were ahead 45-3. They have eight of eleven returning starters. A lot of their guys have played in some big games and had success. From our offensive standpoint it is a great chance for our guys to match what we do against what they do. Match our people against their people and match our desires against their desires."

On the offense's success taking pressure off of the defense...
"Every time you step on the field you have pressure to perform. They have done a good job of performing when the time is right by providing turnovers and making stops and plays for the offense. I'm not saying that the offense has taken any pressure off the defense at all. I think it is the other way around. I think the defense has given a lot of opportunities for the oefense to make plays. Collectively as a group, we saw and talked about it the other day I could see that our defense is really starting to gel as a unit. They are starting to rely on each other, help each other and they are really playing with a lot of confidence. We were really confident going into the Washington State game by the way they had practiced. We could tell that they are growing and getting better and that they are ready. Same thing this week, we are going into this game where the offense is good, they are very structured offensively and their quarterback had his best half of football he has had since he has been at UConn. That to me is a great chance for us to challenge ourselves and see what we can do."

Senior Dwain Crawford
On the first road game...
"It's a new environment, especially after being at home the first three weeks, so getting on the road we have new guys that have never travelled before. It's going to be a long plane ride for us, so just getting adjusted and acclimated to the climate is important."

On playing a different team...
"It's going to be different since we've never played them before, but playing a new team in the Big East is going to be exciting."

Senior Vincent Rhodes
On the team's confidence level...
"Right now our confidence may be at an all time high. Getting two wins with the new coaches and news system, we feel pretty good."

On the first road game...
"It's pretty fun because you get to see all the guys that have never flown before getting nervous. Once we get there we really get a chance to see who the real fans are."

Freshman Robert Griffin
On the team's confidence level...
"We do have a high confidence right now, but we haven't taken down any of the big ones yet. The next one will be UConn, so we'll just have to execute."

On the first road game...
"If I could play all the games at home I would love that, but unfortunately that's not the case. I think being a freshman, it will be a hostile environment. But other than that we just have to go out there and execute because it's just another football game."

On playing on ESPN2...
It doesn't bother me too much. We get the TV timeouts so that will be nice to get a little extra rest, but it doesn't bother me to play on TV."

Junior Joe Pawelek
On where the team is right now...
"Having that first week loss but then two victories, I think as a whole we're feeling pretty good and we have some momentum."

On the first road trip...
"Taking that road trip is a little different in terms of bringing some of those young guys .Some of the older senior guys have to really step up. It's a change, getting on the airplane and having different times of meeting and change in time zones."

On playing on ESPN2...
"You come to college football looking for those opportunities, and we'll have to come in and have a good week of preparation."