BOBCAT COACH ROB ASH
You say every game is must-win, do you change your message this week?
RA: No. Really, it doesn’t change. We do the same routine every week. We know we’ve got to focus on this game, we know we’ve got to win this game. There really isn’t any change. I’ve never met a game that I didn’t think we had to win. As a coach, it probably means less to us than it does to people trying to analyze the big picture. It’s a game, and you go into that game knowing you have to win. You prepare for it the same way.
Does the defensive game plan change against such a pass-heavy offense?
RA: I know as we evaluate them we think they’re going to be a lot more difficult to stop than the last couple years. That’s a complement to the diversification they’ve put into the offense. They run the ball better. Actually, the fact that they’ve changed quarterbacks some presents us with issues because the two quarterbacks have different styles. They’re much more balanced, and that will be more difficult, certainly in terms of preparation.
Portland State has suffered personnel losses, how have they handled that?
RA: I think it’s probably true all the way across the board in all of Division I football. You can look at every program from Oklahoma all the way down to all of us, any of them, probably at all levels, it’s a rugged, physical game, there’s a lot of guys playing so there’s a lot of circumstances that come up. We try not to belabor the point. They’ll play hard, the guys that are out there will play hard. I try not to get too focused on personnel, more on scheme, design, and just the mentality of the team.
How much does the scheme and design change without Mouse Davis?
RA: it’s a lot different, totally different. Mouse was a system guy, he was a run-and-shoot guy and he was a purist about it, so you got the package, you got the run-and-shoot package. We knew what it was, it was still tough to defend, and they put up an astronomical number of points. Like I said, without Mouse there now, in some ways it’s more difficult to defend because it’s diversified and there’s a lot of variety to it, more run game. And in some ways the opposite is true, because they knew their system so well, even though we kind of had an idea, they just executed so well in the run-and-shoot. So it’s kind of a mixed bag whether it’s easier or harder, but I think the preparation’s more difficult because there’s more to it.
Can you put your finger on a reason for the team’s road success?
RA: I’ve thought about it, and I really don’t know that there’s any magic to it. I do like the fact that when we travel together there’s kind of a focus about the game, we can get everybody away from all the distractions of home on a Friday. Saturday morning you’re in the hotel together. There’s more of a feeling of togetherness. But our guys are motivated and they feel focused when they play at home, as well. I think a lot of it had to do with timing. Our Big Sky season started with those two games on the road and we circled those two big games at Northern Colorado and Weber, even though they were on the road, as being really critical games for us, so (maybe) there was some kind of edge there for us. We were also coming off our bye week. There’s a lot of things that could have gone into it. The game at Eastern, we played well but we didn’t win. So I can’t really chalk that one up, either.
Do you see more run from Portland State this year?
RA: Definitely, they’re more committed to the running game and they’ve got more diversity in the running game. They’re actually doing some quarterback run game, which is not part of the run-and-shoot. Again, that makes it more diversified and more difficult for us. We can’t just tee off and go pass rush. We have to be a little more concerned about the coverage package because run support has to be factored in every time they call a play.
You have some Oregon guys in the program now where before you didn’t. Talk about the role the transfers played in helping bring Oregon guys to the program.
RA: The transfers have been big, but one of Montana State’s great all-time players was Travis Lulay from Oregon, and Tyler followed him… The transfers have been big, and I think the fact that they know each other has helped them get along with each other and with the team. But I’m not trying to build the program with transfers, either. These guys have been important, but in an ideal world we’d bring high school guys. We were happy to get two high school guys this year out of the Portland area, Gianni Carter and Killian Fitzpatrick. Coach McEndoo’s going to recruit (the area) hard, we’re going to go to some high school games Friday night, and we think it’s a good football area that we’re going to try to utilize as part of our recruiting base.
How excited were you for the defense to score on Saturday?
RA: Thrilled, especially the timing of it, it couldn’t have been better. We were struggling a little bit, we were a little flat, we had a couple turnovers ourselves, and the defense came up with a big play. It was very reminiscent of what had happened in the first two years here when the defense frequently, routinely almost, provided a spark. It was great to see that again. I hope it is a springboard now, and it kind of was a springboard in the game, to be honest, because after the fumble right away came the interception by Retoriano, two back-to-back plays that led to scores, and hopefully it’ll be something we can build on. And continue to see.
Brad Daly played well, will he see more time at defensive end?
RA: Brad’s role depends more on the health of other guys that are ahead of him on the depth chart – Dane Fletcher, Chase Gazzerro, Jeff Price, those guys. If they continue to be out then Brad will play more, and when they come back the Brad’s time will be reduced a little bit. I thought he did a great job, and even when those guys do come back we’ve got to consider putting him on the field.
How nice is it to have a guy that is that versatile?
RA: He did a great job filling a void for us, because John Laidet and Dustin O’Connell have been playing very well at defensive end, Caleb Schreibeis is coming on a little bit, but nobody can play an entire game and be at their absolute best and the rotation just wasn’t possible for us with all the injuries. Brad gave us a chance to get those guys off the field. He produced well while he was there, but more important they got that much-needed rest so their production could go up, too.
Talk about Drew Hubel, who’s a little bit under the radar in this league.
RA: I think he’s outstanding. He’s done a good job throughout his career, he has a great arm, and he’s put up record numbers of completions and points in the system that they’re in. I have great respect for him, and I know every time we play them I’ve never felt safe because they can put points up on the board faster than any team I’ve ever played against. Drew’s a big reason for that.
What is the health report?
RA: Fletcher’s still doubtful for this week, although we’re going to do some more tests later in the week. We’ll see what happens there. We’re keeping our fingers crossed. Gazzerro is still doubtful with his ankle. Joel Fuller had a good workout yesterday, and may be able to play. Leo Davis is going to be able to practice maybe a little bit this week, but he’ll probably be in a backup role maybe on Saturday. He probably won’t be ready to play, mostly because he’ll not be able to practice. Ryan Cerise injured his knee in this game, and he won’t play this weekend. So that puts a little pressure on us in the interior defensive line positions.
Will Christian Keli’i get more time this week?
RA: Christian will have to come back up. We took him off the travel squad for a couple weeks and that really was a healthy thing for him, improving his academic work. But he’s got his feet on the ground now, and with Cerise’s injury we’ll bring him back up probably travel him this week.
BOBCAT CORNERBACK KEVIN RETORIANO
What’s the mindset now with a three-game season ahead of you?
KR: Obviously just win out. Our backs are against the wall right now, we know we have to win out, and obviously just take one game at a time. Hopefully if everything happens right we’ll get into the post-season.
How exciting is it to go against a team as pass-oriented as Portland State?
KR: I’m more excited than ever. I haven’t been getting a lot of plays coming my way, and just watching film they love to throw the ball. Hopefully knowing they love to do that I’ll get some more plays coming at us. The secondary, we’ve already talked about it. We know … that they’re going to challenge us, and we’re up to it.
How tough is it when a majority of the passes do not come to your side of the field?
KR: It’s tough to get used to. It’s a tough thing to (explain). When you do get the plays coming to you, you have to make them, obviously. You can’t mess up.
Have you been surprised by the play of Darius Jones?
KR: Not really. I knew he had it from when he got here. I knew he could do anything. He’s definitely a smart football player. He knows what he’s doing out there. For me, being in there and watching film with him, and being out there all the time with him on the field, it doesn’t really surprise me how well he’s doing.
Why has the team had so much success on the road?
KR: I don’t know what it is, but for some reason this year we love going on the road, we love beating teams in their own house. I don’t know what it is. Maybe we have a different mentality this year, I don’t know. For some reason the team just gets real psyched up to play on the road. It gets us excited on the road knowing we’re going into someone else’s place and that we have the confidence to beat them.
What do you expect from Portland State?
KR: Definitely for them to pass the ball. They might change quarterbacks around just to change looks on us. They do what they’ve always done in the past, they motion a guy around, see if we’re in man or zone, then based off of that look they know what they’re doing.
Is it nice to have the no-defensive-touchdowns stat off your back?
KR: Yeah, definitely. I was hoping it would be me to get that ball, but I was hoping we’d at least get one this year, and hopefully there’ll be more to come.
Was it also nice to force that first turnover in a while?
KR: It was real nice. I have been thinking about it a lot, I would be lying if I didn’t tell you that. It’s like once that guy threw that ball my eyes got this big. I knew I had to make the catch.
Coach Ash said it was one of your best games at corner, do you feel that way about your progress?
KR: Yeah, definitely. They didn’t do too much on offense so you could kind of get a feel for what they were doing, and definitely my run reads and pass reads, it seemed like everything was on that game.
What’s the atmosphere like at the stadium in Portland?
KR: It’s kind of different. The fans are way far away from you, I think they’ve got a big baseball wall behind us. It’s different because the fans aren’t close to you, but still we’ve got to go in there and have our intensity up and play hard.
BOBCAT DEFENSIVE END JOHN LAIDET (from Bonanza, OR) Was it fun to have that kind of game?
JL: It’s nice to see what we can do when we put everything together and play outstanding as a unit, the whole team. Offense really had an outstanding game, defense did a great job, as well. It’s good to have that type of game in this stretch of the season.
Playing with a lot of guys banged up still, how well have guys like yourself and O’Connell stepped up?
JL: We know what we have to do, we have to suck it up. When we don’t have other guys in there we just have to do the job that those guys would have done if they were in there. It’s not an excuse if we mess up, we’re just as valuable as they are. We’ve had other guys step up, like Brad Daly and (Caleb) Schreibeis when we’ve needed a break, so our whole unit’s done a good job filling in.
What’s the mentality on the team with only three games left?
JL: The end of the season, you have to win, if you do (win out) you’re in the post-season. We have to do what we have to do, that’s the mentality we have to have going in to every game, that we’re not going to lose. I think this team’s going to do a good job showing people that when we have pressure on us we’re going to do what we have to do to come up with a win.
Has Dane been a presence even while he’s been out?
JL: His tenacity and his desire to play the game are just unmatched. He’s a great leader for us on the field and he’s a great leader when he’s not on the field. He does his part for us, helping us out, giving us pointers, he’s on the sideline for us coaching us up when Coach Beck has to go do other things. He’s just a great leader and we’ll be lucky when we get him back.
Why has the team had so much success on the road this year?
JL: I don’t know, maybe just the mentality of going to someone else’s house, this is their house, we have to win and show what we can do on the road. Road warriors, I guess.
How much does the game plan change this week against a team that passes so much?
JL: As a D-line we have to be able to get after the quarterback, help our secondary out, take pressure off of them. Portland State shows a little more run than it has in the past, so we’ll have to take that into account, but they’re a pass-oriented offense. It will take an overall effort to get to that quarterback and cause havoc from all of us. The secondary’s going to do their job, we just have to help them out.
If you had the chance, where would you go first in Portland?
JL: I’ve actually never been to Portland. (laughter) I mean, I’ve been through it, but I haven’t been, like, around, so I don’t know. Do they have a zoo or something or a good burger place or something like that? (more laughter)
Have you ever been to PGE before?
JL: No, I’ve never seen the facility. It’ll be a new experience for me.
How far is it from Bonanza?
JL: It’s about six hours. We’re right on the border with California, so it’s a ways.
BOBCAT RECEIVER ELVIS AKPLA (from Portland’s Lincoln High) Let’s get this out of the way, have you ever been to Portland?
EA: (laughs) Yeah, I’ve been there several times.
How does it feel to be heading back to Portland?
EA: It feels good. This is going to be the first game I play in college in Oregon. A lot of family and friends are going to come see me play. It feels good to go back.
Talk about the mentality of knowing you can’t lose another game?
EA: I think it just brings out the best of our team. Honestly, I feel like every game that we’ve played I feel like we’ve had that mentality from the get-go, so I don’t think it’ll change too much. We’ll come in focused and ready to play.
What’s it like as a receiver having to adjust to a new quarterback during a game?
EA: It’s not that much of an adjustment. Me and all the other receivers, we go in every play and do our job and if we run our routes (correctly) the ball will come to us regardless of who’s at quarterback.
Is there a different style between Mark and Cody?
EA: Cody’s a little more vocal, I guess, and Mark just kind of leads by his example. They both throw the ball pretty well, they both make pretty good decisions, so it’s not that much of a difference.
Any idea why the team plays so well on the road?
EA: I think the road games just bring our team closer because it’s just us, there’s no fans or anything. We just need to have each others’ backs, and I think that really helps us be even more focuses than a home game, and that’s why we’ve been successful on the road.
What’s the feeling of the offense going into this game?
EA: We definitely have to score. We felt that way when we played Eastern, also. As this season has progressed we’ve gotten better every game. I think this is a big week for the offense and I think we’re up for the challenge.
Have you ever thought about what it would be like to play in Jerry Glanville’s run-and-shoot offense?
EA: Yeah, I thought about it when I was deciding where to go after Oregon, but Montana State’s just a better fit for me. But I have thought about it.