Live Chat with Coach Joseph from Feb. 11
2/11/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Loading Please Wait...
Moderator: Thanks for the great questions today, guys. If you have suggestions for future chats, please e-mail them to info@msubobcats.com.
See you next time!
updated: 12:23 pm
Noah Joseph: Thanks for all the great questions! I'm looking forward to next season and building on our 7-5 year.
I think we have a lot of pieces in place to have a great season.
updated: 12:22 pm
Steve - Helena: How is Leo Davis doing? Will he be in the rotation at D-tackle this year?
NJ: He's doing OK. He had off-season knee surgery, a minor scope, but he's fully cleared to do everything. He's a guy that put on a lot of weight quickly and it took him a while for his body to adjust to that. For us to be where we want to be this fall we need him to be in the rotation, and we need him to prove in spring practice that we can count on him in the rotation.
updated: 12:20 pm
Steve - Helena: How does Brian Bignell fit into the potential rotation at D-Line this year?
NJ: He'll be an end, and he can play either the end or bandit spot for us. We'd like to get some production out of him. He redshirted last year and he's a little light still, so he's working hard to get stronger and bigger, but we're anxious to see both he and Caleb Schreibeis this spring to see if either can seperate and get into the rotation.
updated: 12:19 pm
Curtis - Wolf Creek: Will the MSU offensive line be/play at a heavier weight then last year? Ditto the Tight Ends. Thanks.
NJ: Thanks for the question from Wolf Creek, our first ever! That's the plan. I think the O-line has had a great off-season, watching them in the weight room the little chance I have. The thing you have to be careful about is whether it's sloppy weight or good weight, and it looks like lean muscle mass. With the tight ends, I know we'd like them to be heavier, so we're trying to help Schreibeis and Begger put on some good weight, and our two young guys, Foster and Steiner, are working hard and look good at this time.
updated: 12:17 pm
CS - Bozeman: Do you expect that all the incoming freshmen will redshirt in the fall?
NJ: No, I don't. When you look at wide receiver and D-line, there's not a lot of depth there, so you'd think that one or two of those guys would have the opportunity to come in and play. Otherwise, Coach Ash's philosophy is that we evaluate everyone who comes in, and the ones who are ready to play will play unless they're adamant about not playing their first year.
updated: 12:15 pm
BH - Helena: any word on the status of guys recovering from injuries last season and off-season surgeries?
NJ: DeSean Thomas and Dane Fletcher will miss all of spring ball, for sure. They both seem to be doing great in rehab, seeing them in the weight room. I think the goal for both of those guys would be to have them cleared for full go by August 1st, right before we start two-a-days. Iddins and Kempt are both progressing well. The tough thing for them is that they'll both be out there for spring practice, but right now it looks like they won't be able to be out there for 11-on-11 stuff, just one-on-ones and 7-on-7 drills, where there's no chance of anyone getting near them.
updated: 12:13 pm
Steve - Billings: Do you feel like you got the best recruits from Montana vs what the Griz got. Who did you miss out on to them that diapoints you.
NJ: We feel really good about our evaluations. From the guys that they sign and the guys that we signed, we had everyone in camp last summer and had position coaches with the chance to work them out. Only time will tell how our evaluation process was vs. how they evaluated, but we feel very good about the in-state players that we signed. With the limited scholarship money we had we couldn't go after every player we liked, we had to pick and choose, and a lot of that had to do with position and need.
updated: 12:07 pm
Steve - Helena: This year we targetted D-Linemen and Wide Receivers. Is there already an identified position that we are targetting for the 2010 class? Or is it too early to tell.
NJ: We'll look to definitely take a running back or two, and be heavy on the O-line. Depending on how our young linebackers play this year, we might have to over-sign a linebacker next year.
updated: 12:05 pm
CS - Bozeman: What does the conference race look like to you next year?
NJ: Obviously you always have to start with Montana at the top, but it's scary a little bit when you look at Weber State and Eastern Washington. Weber returns their quarterback and running back, both all-conference and all-American guys. They do lose some guys up front. Eastern Washington has their stars returning, and they're always tough. Top to bottom, the league is tough. Sac State and NAU both have a lot of players back, and Sac State ended up playing very well at the end of the year. But, besides us, in the top three I think you have to look at Montana and Weber State and Eastern Washington at the top of the league.
updated: 11:58 am
Steve - Helena: what is winter conditioning like for the Defensive Backfield? When do they start, and what do they do?
NJ: We started right after they got back from Christmas vacation. They're on the normal strength program, lifting four days a week and running Mondays and Thursdays. The big advantage we have right now is the field turf. They're working seven-on-seven two days a week against the offense. Some of our senior leaders are getting the guys together and working on fundamental drills that we need to improve this spring. The turf has been huge, because it's good footing and we have field markings on there all the time. Our facilities people are doing a great job keeping the snow cleared off so we can get on there and use it.
updated: 11:54 am
BS - Lewistown: How are off-season workouts goings?
NJ:They're going good. Most of us have been on the road recruiting so we haven't gotten a great deal of time with the kids. It's been mostly Coach Samuelson, our strength coach, working a lot on speed development. The next couple of weeks we'll work on toughness and leadership development with all the coaches there.
updated: 11:50 am
Steve - Helena: How much attention do you pay to scout.com and rivals.com? Do they ever bring your attention to players that may be under-recruited, or who your competition for a player may be?
NJ: I don't pay a lot of attention to them. I trust my own evaluations. I trust high school coaches and my evaluation of tapes. What I do rely on those services for is to get a better feeling for what kids are thinking. A lot of times kids will tell you what they think they want to hear, and if there's an article written about someone by an un-biased source you can get a better idea of what's on their mind. Also, if a kid gets dropped late by a bigger school a lot of times you can find out pretty quick on those sites. That lets you go back in on good players.
updated: 11:48 am
BP: How would you rank Chrisitian Kelli'i versus the other defensive tackles that MSU was recruiting?
NJ: I think the thing that stands out about Christian is his size. Some of those other guys who we were projecting as inside guys were at 240, so they had to develop. With Christian's frame, we're not worried about that. Christian is at 290, so we think he can come in and play right away.
updated: 11:45 am
BP: Is the relative inexperience at the cornerback position a concern for the coaches going into the next year?
NJ:It is a little bit when you consider you're opening up in East Lansing, Michigan, but at the same time the guys that are going to be competing for the open spot have played in big games and played a lot of football in their careers. One thing Coach Marshall is really good at, if we have a younger guy, is protecting him a little bit and not hanging him out to dry.
updated: 11:44 am
Steve, Helena: Looks like a great recruiting class. Congratulations to you and all the coaches. Who do you see starting in the secondary this year? Specifically at corner? Any chance of one/two of the new recruits getting some playing time?
NJ:I think all three of those new guys are going to have a chance to come in and help us out. Obviously we're a little thin at corner with three scholarship guys. Chris Wilson is a physical freak who has all the ability to help out. He can really run, and you can't teach and coach that. Darius Jones has great skill, and the ability to open his hips and accelerate. Joel Fuller at safety has the ability to help us out, he can really run down the field and hit you. All three of those guys are planning on being here most of the summer so they'll be familiar with our program and their teammates so when they enter fall camp they'll have the chance to compete.
updated: 11:43 am
BP: Who do the coaches see competing for the starting cornerback and nickle positions opposite Cory Nicol? Has there been any thought to shifting Arnold Briggs from safety back to the cornerback position?
NJ:Again, we're trying to get the top four guys on the field. To me, Zach Coleman and James Andrews are the two that will battle for the corner spot opposite Nicol, and for the nickel spot there are guys that can move in there and play. Mike Rider, Beau Watkins and Jordan Craney are guys that can handle that. We'd like to leave James and Zach out of it so they can master the corner.
updated: 11:40 am
TS – Helena: First, excellent job recruiting, coach! Overall the defense looks like it will be very strong again this year. The secondary lost quite a few players (Lewis, Taylor, and Brown) and you didn't go the JC route this year as you've done in the past. Obviously you feel confident in the players you have back there. I figure Retoriano and Nicol have spots locked up, so can you comment on who you think the top contenders will be for the open spots?
NJ:Thank you. I feel real good about Briggs coming back. We're watching cut-ups right now, and you can see how much better he got and how much more confidence he played with as the season went along. We have some good players that can help us in guys that were backups last year. It will be interesting to see how James Andrews and Zach Coleman can help us. They are young players we are excited about. Obviously with Briggs moving to safety we like him there, but we're committed to having the best four guys on the field, so if we see a move that helps us do that we'll find a way to get the best four out there.
updated: 11:39 am
BP: If MSU does well this spring in regards to the APR will the Cats finally be out of the hole or are we in for another year limited scholarships?
NJ: We're hoping next year that we will not have any penalties, and that we will be back to 63. The bad part is that because of the timing, we won't know until right around signing day what our numbers will look like.
updated: 11:36 am
TS – Helena: What would you say a good won-lost percentage is in battling other teams for players? What would you guess your won-lost percentage was this year? Did the positives out weigh the negatives in those battles?
NJ: Typically, for every recruit you want to sign you offer three kids. We did not get to that number. We signed 16 guys or so, and we brought in 30 kids, so we offered about two-to-one for what we ended up getting. We feel really good about our numbers. We got beat on one kid strictly for distance, he didn't want to come this far from home. Some of it might be style of play. You might have a receiver go to the place he thinks he might catch the most passes, so you have to sell him that if he comes here you're going to get him the football.
updated: 11:35 am
David - Bozeman: When does your recruiting start after signing day, and how much time do you spend out of state during the summer months to recruit?
NJ:We have started already. The Friday after signing day we received information for the 2010 class, and got that to the coaches and got them working on it. When you're out in January and you don't have as many high schools and kids to see you check the top schools for the juniors they have. In the summer, it's mostly area recruiters keeping in contact with their top players, whether it's e-mails or writing notes. We can't call players during the summer.
updated: 11:33 am
Good morning! Coach Josheph has arrived, fresh from breaking down film with the defensive coaching staff.
Let's roll...
updated: 11:31 am
Moderator: Thanks for the great questions today, guys. If you have suggestions for future chats, please e-mail them to info@msubobcats.com.
See you next time!
updated: 12:23 pm
Noah Joseph: Thanks for all the great questions! I'm looking forward to next season and building on our 7-5 year.
I think we have a lot of pieces in place to have a great season.
updated: 12:22 pm
Steve - Helena: How is Leo Davis doing? Will he be in the rotation at D-tackle this year?
NJ: He's doing OK. He had off-season knee surgery, a minor scope, but he's fully cleared to do everything. He's a guy that put on a lot of weight quickly and it took him a while for his body to adjust to that. For us to be where we want to be this fall we need him to be in the rotation, and we need him to prove in spring practice that we can count on him in the rotation.
updated: 12:20 pm
Steve - Helena: How does Brian Bignell fit into the potential rotation at D-Line this year?
NJ: He'll be an end, and he can play either the end or bandit spot for us. We'd like to get some production out of him. He redshirted last year and he's a little light still, so he's working hard to get stronger and bigger, but we're anxious to see both he and Caleb Schreibeis this spring to see if either can seperate and get into the rotation.
updated: 12:19 pm
Curtis - Wolf Creek: Will the MSU offensive line be/play at a heavier weight then last year? Ditto the Tight Ends. Thanks.
NJ: Thanks for the question from Wolf Creek, our first ever! That's the plan. I think the O-line has had a great off-season, watching them in the weight room the little chance I have. The thing you have to be careful about is whether it's sloppy weight or good weight, and it looks like lean muscle mass. With the tight ends, I know we'd like them to be heavier, so we're trying to help Schreibeis and Begger put on some good weight, and our two young guys, Foster and Steiner, are working hard and look good at this time.
updated: 12:17 pm
CS - Bozeman: Do you expect that all the incoming freshmen will redshirt in the fall?
NJ: No, I don't. When you look at wide receiver and D-line, there's not a lot of depth there, so you'd think that one or two of those guys would have the opportunity to come in and play. Otherwise, Coach Ash's philosophy is that we evaluate everyone who comes in, and the ones who are ready to play will play unless they're adamant about not playing their first year.
updated: 12:15 pm
BH - Helena: any word on the status of guys recovering from injuries last season and off-season surgeries?
NJ: DeSean Thomas and Dane Fletcher will miss all of spring ball, for sure. They both seem to be doing great in rehab, seeing them in the weight room. I think the goal for both of those guys would be to have them cleared for full go by August 1st, right before we start two-a-days. Iddins and Kempt are both progressing well. The tough thing for them is that they'll both be out there for spring practice, but right now it looks like they won't be able to be out there for 11-on-11 stuff, just one-on-ones and 7-on-7 drills, where there's no chance of anyone getting near them.
updated: 12:13 pm
Steve - Billings: Do you feel like you got the best recruits from Montana vs what the Griz got. Who did you miss out on to them that diapoints you.
NJ: We feel really good about our evaluations. From the guys that they sign and the guys that we signed, we had everyone in camp last summer and had position coaches with the chance to work them out. Only time will tell how our evaluation process was vs. how they evaluated, but we feel very good about the in-state players that we signed. With the limited scholarship money we had we couldn't go after every player we liked, we had to pick and choose, and a lot of that had to do with position and need.
updated: 12:07 pm
Steve - Helena: This year we targetted D-Linemen and Wide Receivers. Is there already an identified position that we are targetting for the 2010 class? Or is it too early to tell.
NJ: We'll look to definitely take a running back or two, and be heavy on the O-line. Depending on how our young linebackers play this year, we might have to over-sign a linebacker next year.
updated: 12:05 pm
CS - Bozeman: What does the conference race look like to you next year?
NJ: Obviously you always have to start with Montana at the top, but it's scary a little bit when you look at Weber State and Eastern Washington. Weber returns their quarterback and running back, both all-conference and all-American guys. They do lose some guys up front. Eastern Washington has their stars returning, and they're always tough. Top to bottom, the league is tough. Sac State and NAU both have a lot of players back, and Sac State ended up playing very well at the end of the year. But, besides us, in the top three I think you have to look at Montana and Weber State and Eastern Washington at the top of the league.
updated: 11:58 am
Steve - Helena: what is winter conditioning like for the Defensive Backfield? When do they start, and what do they do?
NJ: We started right after they got back from Christmas vacation. They're on the normal strength program, lifting four days a week and running Mondays and Thursdays. The big advantage we have right now is the field turf. They're working seven-on-seven two days a week against the offense. Some of our senior leaders are getting the guys together and working on fundamental drills that we need to improve this spring. The turf has been huge, because it's good footing and we have field markings on there all the time. Our facilities people are doing a great job keeping the snow cleared off so we can get on there and use it.
updated: 11:54 am
BS - Lewistown: How are off-season workouts goings?
NJ:They're going good. Most of us have been on the road recruiting so we haven't gotten a great deal of time with the kids. It's been mostly Coach Samuelson, our strength coach, working a lot on speed development. The next couple of weeks we'll work on toughness and leadership development with all the coaches there.
updated: 11:50 am
Steve - Helena: How much attention do you pay to scout.com and rivals.com? Do they ever bring your attention to players that may be under-recruited, or who your competition for a player may be?
NJ: I don't pay a lot of attention to them. I trust my own evaluations. I trust high school coaches and my evaluation of tapes. What I do rely on those services for is to get a better feeling for what kids are thinking. A lot of times kids will tell you what they think they want to hear, and if there's an article written about someone by an un-biased source you can get a better idea of what's on their mind. Also, if a kid gets dropped late by a bigger school a lot of times you can find out pretty quick on those sites. That lets you go back in on good players.
updated: 11:48 am
BP: How would you rank Chrisitian Kelli'i versus the other defensive tackles that MSU was recruiting?
NJ: I think the thing that stands out about Christian is his size. Some of those other guys who we were projecting as inside guys were at 240, so they had to develop. With Christian's frame, we're not worried about that. Christian is at 290, so we think he can come in and play right away.
updated: 11:45 am
BP: Is the relative inexperience at the cornerback position a concern for the coaches going into the next year?
NJ:It is a little bit when you consider you're opening up in East Lansing, Michigan, but at the same time the guys that are going to be competing for the open spot have played in big games and played a lot of football in their careers. One thing Coach Marshall is really good at, if we have a younger guy, is protecting him a little bit and not hanging him out to dry.
updated: 11:44 am
Steve, Helena: Looks like a great recruiting class. Congratulations to you and all the coaches. Who do you see starting in the secondary this year? Specifically at corner? Any chance of one/two of the new recruits getting some playing time?
NJ:I think all three of those new guys are going to have a chance to come in and help us out. Obviously we're a little thin at corner with three scholarship guys. Chris Wilson is a physical freak who has all the ability to help out. He can really run, and you can't teach and coach that. Darius Jones has great skill, and the ability to open his hips and accelerate. Joel Fuller at safety has the ability to help us out, he can really run down the field and hit you. All three of those guys are planning on being here most of the summer so they'll be familiar with our program and their teammates so when they enter fall camp they'll have the chance to compete.
updated: 11:43 am
BP: Who do the coaches see competing for the starting cornerback and nickle positions opposite Cory Nicol? Has there been any thought to shifting Arnold Briggs from safety back to the cornerback position?
NJ:Again, we're trying to get the top four guys on the field. To me, Zach Coleman and James Andrews are the two that will battle for the corner spot opposite Nicol, and for the nickel spot there are guys that can move in there and play. Mike Rider, Beau Watkins and Jordan Craney are guys that can handle that. We'd like to leave James and Zach out of it so they can master the corner.
updated: 11:40 am
TS – Helena: First, excellent job recruiting, coach! Overall the defense looks like it will be very strong again this year. The secondary lost quite a few players (Lewis, Taylor, and Brown) and you didn't go the JC route this year as you've done in the past. Obviously you feel confident in the players you have back there. I figure Retoriano and Nicol have spots locked up, so can you comment on who you think the top contenders will be for the open spots?
NJ:Thank you. I feel real good about Briggs coming back. We're watching cut-ups right now, and you can see how much better he got and how much more confidence he played with as the season went along. We have some good players that can help us in guys that were backups last year. It will be interesting to see how James Andrews and Zach Coleman can help us. They are young players we are excited about. Obviously with Briggs moving to safety we like him there, but we're committed to having the best four guys on the field, so if we see a move that helps us do that we'll find a way to get the best four out there.
updated: 11:39 am
BP: If MSU does well this spring in regards to the APR will the Cats finally be out of the hole or are we in for another year limited scholarships?
NJ: We're hoping next year that we will not have any penalties, and that we will be back to 63. The bad part is that because of the timing, we won't know until right around signing day what our numbers will look like.
updated: 11:36 am
TS – Helena: What would you say a good won-lost percentage is in battling other teams for players? What would you guess your won-lost percentage was this year? Did the positives out weigh the negatives in those battles?
NJ: Typically, for every recruit you want to sign you offer three kids. We did not get to that number. We signed 16 guys or so, and we brought in 30 kids, so we offered about two-to-one for what we ended up getting. We feel really good about our numbers. We got beat on one kid strictly for distance, he didn't want to come this far from home. Some of it might be style of play. You might have a receiver go to the place he thinks he might catch the most passes, so you have to sell him that if he comes here you're going to get him the football.
updated: 11:35 am
David - Bozeman: When does your recruiting start after signing day, and how much time do you spend out of state during the summer months to recruit?
NJ:We have started already. The Friday after signing day we received information for the 2010 class, and got that to the coaches and got them working on it. When you're out in January and you don't have as many high schools and kids to see you check the top schools for the juniors they have. In the summer, it's mostly area recruiters keeping in contact with their top players, whether it's e-mails or writing notes. We can't call players during the summer.
updated: 11:33 am
Good morning! Coach Josheph has arrived, fresh from breaking down film with the defensive coaching staff.
Let's roll...
updated: 11:31 am
Wednesday, June 10
Friday, March 27
Monday, March 23
Friday, March 13
