July 6, 2011
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By John Denton
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - UCFAthletics.com writer John Denton continues his Q&A session with head coach George O'Leary, and in part two the C-USA Coach of the Year discusses national rankings, the defense, Jeff Godfrey and the trio of running backs.
Check out part two below. The full story will be featured in the 2011 edition of the Knights Insider UCF College Football Preview magazine which is set to be available later this summer.
Part one can be found at: Q&A I
- QUESTION: You finished last season ranked No. 20 in the USA TODAY/ESPN poll and No. 21 in the AP poll. What would it mean to the program to open this season in the national rankings? And could this team become a BCS-buster a la Boise State and TCU?
COACH O'LEARY: ``I think we legitimized ourselves last year by getting up to 20 and 21. We should get some recognition this year. But I've never really been a big believer in the Top 25. I've always thought there should just be a Top 10. There are so many mistakes made in the Top 25. And if you're not listed initially in the Top 25 it's very hard to get there. Sometimes it's hard to get people out of there with two and three losses. I think they should have a Top 10 early and a Top 25 after the first month is over. That would be a lot more accurate and more beneficial to the non-qualifying schools.''
QUESTION: New defensive coordinator John Skladany is quite familiar with the defense, having worked with the linebackers last season. How do you think the defense will change with coach Skladany taking over for Dave Huxtable?
COACH O'LEARY: ``Dave Huxtable did an outstanding job, but we're pretty well set in how we do things defensively. John will have his own tweaks in things he wants to do and what he believes in, but we're not going to venture too far from what we've been successful with doing. Dave did an outstanding job of having us in the right situation at the right time and giving us the opportunities to make big plays. That's what I've always thought a good defense coordinator does - he puts kids in the right position to make big plays. Personnel is critical on our defense, but John will tweak it and put his touch on things. But I'm in all of the meetings and there's a lot of different ways to stop people and I understand that.''
QUESTION: You went into spring drills saying that quarterback Jeff Godfrey needed to develop more pocket presence and a greater ability to read defenses. How did he fare and where will he be better after a spectacular freshman season?
COACH O'LEARY: ``First of all, for a true freshman (last season) he's different and we could see that early on. I thought what he did as a true freshman, it was really outstanding.
``But when you have a chance to watch the (video) cutups from the game you see so many more things that he could do that we didn't take advantage of from open receivers to plays down the field. The two things that he had to improve on were his pocket presence and reading coverage. The pocket presence got a lot better and he understood protections and where his windows of opportunity were. He got a lot better at hanging in there and not just bailing every time there was some pressure. He was stepping up and throwing and that's what you want. And he's starting to understand coverage better and not throwing into coverage as much. Those are the two areas where we needed to see improvement and he did.''
QUESTION: You have three proven running backs returning in Latavius Murray, Brynn Harvey and Ronnie Weaver. How will you rotate the three of them and can you work two of them onto the field at a time to make the offense even more diverse?
COACH O'LEARY: ``I think they all have special things that they do. I think the best vision guy is Brynn Harvey because like any good running back that I've ever been around, they cut in the hole and not before it. That's where Ronnie and Latavius both started getting a lot better last season as it went along. Before they were cutting three and four yards before the hole and any good linebacker can scrape over and make that play. Brynn gets up into the line, has good vision and makes the cutbacks.
``But all three of them bring something different to the table and they all three can pass protect, which is the No. 1 thing that I look at so that they can stay on the field. If they can't do that they can't play. And I always say that the more versatile that you are the more chances that you will get to play. We'll utilize all three of them and I think all three brings something that maybe the other ones don't bring.''
UCF 2011 football season ticket packages can be purchased or renewed online at UCFAthletics.com or by calling the UCF Athletics Ticket Office at (407) 823-1000. Home games include Charleston Southern [Champions UKNIGHT (Sept. 3)], Boston College [Hall of Fame Weekend (Sept. 10)], Marshall (Oct. 8), Memphis [Alumni UKNIGHT - Homecoming 2011 (Oct. 29)], Tulsa (Nov. 5) and UTEP [Senior Day (Nov. 26)]. Should UCF host the C-USA Championship Game for the fourth time in seven years, it would be played on Saturday, Dec. 3 and season ticket holders will receive the first shot at the best seats.
John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFAthletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.