Dino's Game 7 Press Conference for Wake

[OrangeXtreme]

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Dino Babers starts his Monday presser early. He reiterates that he thought his team's effort was better against Clemson than Liberty. "I didn't feel like we were totally mismatched on the effort part of it."

"Taj is okay. I saw him in the team meeting yesterday. Seems like he's in good spirits. I was excited to see Anthony Queeley and how he played against Clemson."

Babers on the young players stepping up vs. Clemson: "I was really proud of how they played. I thought they competed a lot more than they did the week before. I told them they'd get a chance to tackle some 1st round #NFLDraft picks, and I told them to bring them down."

Babers on what the difference was between Clemson performance vs. the week before against Liberty: "Sometimes I think I have the craziest profession. They played really well against Clemson and not so much the week before. We don't want to be inconsistent. We're trying."

Babers on QB JaCobian Morgan getting some run late against Clemson: "I wanted to get him out there and get a taste of it. Even with 19k in the house at Clemson, that's the most fans our freshmen have ever played in front of before."

Babers with more on QB Morgan: "We're going to put our best guys out there. There will come a point in the games where we'll get some of our younger guys out there and see how they do."

Asked again about QBs, Babers said "there's something to be said" for scarring young players by throwing them out there too early. Said it's important that those guys are mentally ready, and that they can physically protect themselves.

Babers on the rise of CB Garrett Williams and the stellar performance he had vs. Clemson: "He walked in as if he was going to be a Week 1 starter. His dad told me was gonna be there. I said we'll see. And what do you know, there he is. A guy who can be here 4 more years."

Babers on Wake Forest DE Carlos 'Boogie' Basham and what they're going up against this week: "Basham had a chance to make some money last year, I'm sure he had to turn it down. That's going to be a tough matchup this weekend."

Babers on his young DB's vs. Clemson: "Ja'Had Carter and Robert Hanna are growing up back there. I think when you get a testament by fire so to speak, they'll understand how hard they need to train in the off-season so they can be outstanding next year."

Babers on why Andre Cisco was so great at Syracuse: "He was constantly training his body as a professional, mentally and physically. If you're watching Andre Cisco, it's going to make you a better football player."

Babers with an injury update on RB Sean Tucker: "I don't have an update yet. Our doctor will get off his other job and comes by late Monday. I won't have an injury update on him until later on today."

Babers on why Tucker's been so good early on: "I think of my dad and how he used to say Jim Brown was so great, and that was long before I coached at Syracuse. With Sean, the first guy doesn't bring him down. All the good RB's, the first guy doesn't bring them down."

Babers on how he's recruited here at Syracuse, when asked to give his own appraisal on how he's done: "Recruiting is such a turkey shoot. Hardest thing is opening a guy up and seeing what kind of heart he has. That's the one thing we're not able to do in recruiting."

Babers with more on recruiting: "The more survivors that you have, that have that "it" thing that you can't put a price on, those are the guys who end up playing. I love how in the Super Bowl they mention how many "stars" each guy had. If you can measure that, let me know."

Babers with more on recruiting, on Robert Griffin III when he was at Baylor: "Texas turned him down, Oklahoma turned him down because he said he wanted to play QB. So he went to Baylor [via Houston] and gets drafted in the first round...as a quarterback. It's recruiting."

Babers continues on recruiting: "Recruiting isn't who you don't get, it's about who you do get. I can't get mad that the girl wanted to marry the other guy. I need to be focused on who comes here and plays for us."

Babers gives an assessment on Wake Forest and DE Carlos 'Boogie' Basham: "You know, there are guys out there who are dinosaurs, and then there's Godzilla. Basham is Godzilla. He's just a monster out there. I don't know how you block him. We're in for a great matchup."

Babers on Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson: "I was lucky enough to follow him at Bowling Green. He's a great coach and look up to him. As for my time at Bowling Green, I'll always look back fondly on my time there. I think of how we went 3-1 against Big Ten teams."

Babers when asked about his philosophy on 4th down and whether to go for it: "Unpredictable."

/End

 

[LeMoyneCuse]

Babers on how he's recruited here at Syracuse, when asked to give his own appraisal on how he's done: "Recruiting is such a turkey shoot. Hardest thing is opening a guy up and seeing what kind of heart he has. That's the one thing we're not able to do in recruiting."

This is not a statement I want to hear from the head coach, especially in a place as hard to recruit as SU.

 

[Trueblue25]

Feel like Clawson’s not as gracious in his comments on Babers.

 

[PatMark]

This is not a statement I want to hear from the head coach, especially in a place as hard to recruit as SU.

This is what happens when you are recruiting off highlight tapes and not digging deep enough which is what those built out recruiting departments other teams have are able to do. That is what those recruiting staffers are responsible for. Watching game tapes and looking for "red flags" or good intangibles. Those recruiting staffers also need to be keeping an ear to the ground with regards to the guys you are looking to bring in. Talk to opposing high school coaches in the area. There are plenty of ways to get a better idea of what kind of player you are getting. You don't need to open up his chest, Dino.

 

[PhatOrange]

Crossroad game this weekend if we still want to salvage the season.

 

[PhatOrange]

This is what happens when you are recruiting off highlight tapes and not digging deep enough which is what those built out recruiting departments other teams have are able to do. That is what those recruiting staffers are responsible for. Watching game tapes and looking for "red flags" or good intangibles. Those recruiting staffers also need to be keeping an ear to the ground with regards to the guys you are looking to bring in. Talk to opposing high school coaches in the area. There are plenty of ways to get a better idea of what kind of player you are getting. You don't need to open up his chest, Dino.

He’s simply saying you can’t measure heart and he’s right, you can’t.

When a kid is the best player on the team, in the league, in the section, and an all-stater, everyone is going to say how great he is. No one is going to know what’s in his heart and how hard he’ll work when everyone around him is also a star and the playing field is even.

2 things you can’t measure, what’s between the ears and what’s in the heart.

 

[PatMark]

He’s simply saying you can’t measure heart and he’s right, you can’t.

When a kid is the best player on the team, in the league, in the section, and an all-stater, everyone is going to say how great he is. No one is going to know what’s in his heart and how hard he’ll work when everyone around him is also a star and the playing field is even.

2 things you can’t measure, what’s between the ears and what’s in the heart.

You're right you can't tangibly measure these things but you can absolutely find red flags. When kinds visit, most teams do O/D position meetings to gauge a sense of learning ability - you can also get an idea on this by looking at a transcript. You can find out a lot about a kid's heart when you watch game tape. Is he blocking when he knows he isn't getting the ball, etc...Look at DK Metcalf last night. That play is measurable heart.

 

[FloridaFan]

The thing that bothered me the most was the doctor comment. “Our doctor gets off his other job and will be around Monday.” Wtfff

 

[cuse10]

Asked again about QBs, Babers said "there's something to be said" for scarring young players by throwing them out there too early. Said it's important that those guys are mentally ready, and that they can physically protect themselves.

I said this verbatim in another thread about the QB situation. For all of the physical tools one may have, once you destroy someone's confidence, it's tough to build it back.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

The thing that bothered me the most was the doctor comment. “Our doctor gets off his other job and will be around Monday.” Wtfff

Our Orthopedic guy (Battaglia) has a full time practice, and he's one of the best in the city.

All the specialists report to the head team doctor, who meets with Dino on Monday afternoon.

 

[cuse10]

This is not a statement I want to hear from the head coach, especially in a place as hard to recruit as SU.

It's pretty straightforward. Does he have any dog in him or not? It's one of those things you can't see on film. As PhatOrange said, all of these kids were great in high school. When it doesn't go well for them, how do they respond?

 

[FloridaFan]

Our Orthopedic guy (Battaglia) has a full time practice, and he's one of the best in the city.

Should we not have him on full time though? I imagine having 100 kids beating each other up would have a full time doctor

 

[721Comstock]

Should we not have him on full time though? I imagine having 100 kids beating each other up would have a full time doctor

You'd imagine incorrectly.

Maybe a Bama or Clemson does that sorta thing, but your run of the mill P5 program cant afford that kinda cheddar to keep a full-time Dr (who is worth having) on staff.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Should we not have him on full time though? I imagine having 100 kids beating each other up would have a full time doctor

That's what the full time training staff handles.

If we get into MRI's and X-Rays and bones and torn ligaments, we call in the specialists.

 

[LeMoyneCuse]

It's pretty straightforward. Does he have any dog in him or not? It's one of those things you can't see on film. As PhatOrange said, all of these kids were great in high school. When it doesn't go well for them, how do they respond?

Other programs, including those with geographic limitations, don't seem to have a problem with this "turkey shoot."

 

[SuFTW]

Should we not have him on full time though? I imagine having 100 kids beating each other up would have a full time doctor

That’s not enough work to keep up his skills.

 

[721Comstock]

Other programs, including those with geographic limitations, don't seem to have a problem with this "turkey shoot."

Sure they do.

Remember when FSU had basically no P5 quality O-Linemen? Right after Jimbo left?
We trucked them 30-7. First win over FSU in 52 years.

Or how about Maryland was playing a LB at QB, because all of the other four QB's were out for the season with injuries?

Sh't can happen to almost any program, at any time.

You can only have so many guys on the roster at each position, and if you're unfortunate enough to incur a rash of injuries at one specific position (like, say, O Line for Syracuse the past 2 seasons), then it can have a HUGE impact on your overall team success.

 

[cuse10]

Sure they do.

Remember when FSU had basically no P5 quality O-Linemen? Right after Jimbo left?
We trucked them 30-7. First win over FSU in 52 years.

Or how about Maryland was playing a LB at QB, because all of the other four QB's were out for the season with injuries?

Sh't can happen to almost any program, at any time.

You can only have so many guys on the roster at each position, and if you're unfortunate enough to incur a rash of injuries at one specific position (like, say, O Line for Syracuse the past 2 seasons), then it can have a HUGE impact on your overall team success.

Florida State STILL doesn't have an offensive line FYI.

 

[LeMoyneCuse]

Sure they do.

Remember when FSU had basically no P5 quality O-Linemen? Right after Jimbo left?
We trucked them 30-7. First win over FSU in 52 years.

Or how about Maryland was playing a LB at QB, because all of the other four QB's were out for the season with injuries?

Sh't can happen to almost any program, at any time.

You can only have so many guys on the roster at each position, and if you're unfortunate enough to incur a rash of injuries at one specific position (like, say, O Line for Syracuse the past 2 seasons), then it can have a HUGE impact on your overall team success.

A) I'm not an idiot and understand that anyone can miss in college football and injuries are a thing.
B) Wisconsin always has an incredible offensive line, Pitt always has a really good DL, BC always seems to have obnoxious bowling balls for running backs. Sure, they all have flaws and weaknesses elsewhere, but seem to find gems year over year at similar positions.
C) Our coach coming out and saying that all you can do is guess is not a reassuring statement when the recruiting hasn't been that strong.

 

[kuethstheman]

Other programs, including those with geographic limitations, don't seem to have a problem with this "turkey shoot."

Sure they do. Some programs have more problems with it than others. At different times than others.

 

[LeMoyneCuse]

Sure they do. Some programs have more problems with it than others. At different times than others.

See answer above.

 

[721Comstock]

A) I'm not an idiot and understand that anyone can miss in college football and injuries are a thing.
B) Wisconsin always has an incredible offensive line, Pitt always has a really good DL, BC always seems to have obnoxious bowling balls for running backs. Sure, they all have flaws and weaknesses elsewhere, but seem to find gems year over year at similar positions.
C) Our coach coming out and saying that all you can do is guess is not a reassuring statement when the recruiting hasn't been that strong.

Well, really the only areas our 'crootin hasn't been great is:
O-Line (this is more due to injuries than misses)
QB - haven't been able to land a viable backup/competition for TDV
DT - we struggle getting large humans, and usually have to grow them ourselves, which takes time.

That said - we've addressed nearly ALL of those areas with the incoming class.

And, given the number of underclassmen playing - and playing WELL - we've been doing something right the past 2 years, even if the rankings #'s don't agree.

Next year's class looks to be our best in a very long time.

Those 3 programs you list have had fairly consistent success for a while. They go to bowl games on the regular.
We haven't.
One breeds the other. We're not there yet.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Felt like this had a bit more substance than we usually get.

 

[TheCusian]

This is not a statement I want to hear from the head coach, especially in a place as hard to recruit as SU.

It's true at every school with every recruit. The biggest difference is that the 5* and 4* have more eyeballs on them and tend to be surer bets. But even sure bets in recruiting fail from time to time.