.png&type=webp)
University of Massachusets Athletics
Mark Whipple Quotes From MAC Weekly Teleconference (Oct. 6)
October 06, 2014 | Football
Whipple's MAC Weekly Teleconference (Oct. 6)
AMHERST, Mass. - University of Massachusetts football head coach Mark Whipple participated in the weekly MAC teleconference on Monday morning. During the conversation, Whipple discussed the tough loss suffered at Miami, how he hopes to motivate the squad to bounce back from the defeat and what he sees in the Minutemen's next opponent, Kent State. Read a transcription of the teleconference below:
On the 42-21 loss at Miami (Ohio):
"We played good in the first half and then the offense turned the ball over in the second half. Credit Chuck (Martin) and the Miami staff - they did a great job with their kids. They made one more play. We are a little closer. We missed an extra point and it really came down to that. We have improved weekly and we need to take another step this week as we get ready for an impressive Kent State team."
On growth of the team and what he saw from the Minutemen at Miami (Ohio):
"We ran the ball better than we have all year. We made a couple plays on special teams. On the kickoff return we forced a turnover and the offense complemented it with a couple scores. On defense, Miami's skill guys made a couple plays and [quarterback Andrew] Hendrix played really well. We were overmatched a bit on that side. There were a lot of good things, a lot more good than bad. We are just looking to make that one play. Time ran out on us. We needed a couple more seconds on the clock."
On the challenges Kent State will present:
"With people outside the league, it's my first time around, the schedules mask the kind of football teams you have, statistically and record-wise when you are playing Ohio State or Virginia. Kent State played well last week and they have played well in all their games. We don't have the guys on defense Northern Illinois does and Kent State has a chance to win the game at the end. I'm impressed with their explosiveness on offense and their skill guys. They have a great tight end with an offensive line that allows them to run the ball. On defense they are aggressive. [Nate] Holley makes every single tackle imaginable, I think he ranks No. 1 or No. 2 in the country. Their guys up front can rush the passer so we have our work cut out for us. We have to go on the road and just make one more play. Our focus is just to try and get better every day."
On what the team, and Blake Frohnapfel in particular, has learned from the first two MAC games:
"He has thrown for almost 1,000 yards in those two games with nine touchdowns and then he comes in and asks, "What else can I do to help this team win?" I don't know if I have had anybody throw for that many touchdowns in two weeks and then keep looking for a way to get the team a win. He would just as soon win a game 7-6 or 2-0, but I am getting to know him better and he is getting to know the players better. We are trying to use our talents and move people around to try and get matchups. He has taken advantage of it. We just have to have another good week of practice. He is healthy. We wouldn't like to throw it that many times but when you run that many plays in the last couple weeks you have a lot of good things happen and then some thing bad things. We just have to learn to finish. Time ran out on him. We just needed a couple more seconds. He did a great job in the two-minute drill. He will bounce back and we expect another good performance from him."
On how he will get the team to bounce back after losing the lead against Miami (Ohio):
"Once again it's learning to play with the lead. We turned the ball over - they took it away. Miami did a great job. It's not something that has happened around here, a four-minute offense. We need to work on those things and take care of the football better. In situation football, we need to be a little bit better in techniques on the defensive side of the football. It's a work in progress. A good thing is our guys probably had their best Sunday yesterday. They worked their tails off last night and our young guys did a lot of good things so we just have to key it back up and get ready to go. Our guys did that last night and we are excited to get going at practice tomorrow."