Sept. 1, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - On Tuesday afternoon, UCF head coach George O'Leary met with a large media contingent for his first weekly press conference of the season to discuss Saturday's season opener against Samford at 7:30 p.m. at Bright House Networks Stadium.
During the press conference, O'Leary spoke about what he has seen from Samford, first-year offensive coordinator Charlie Taaffe and the progress of quarterback Rob Calabrese, among other topics.
On what he hopes to see from the offense:
"Consistency and uniformity out there. We want to move the ball consistently and pretty much do what they have been doing since the preseason started. We want to have consistency in both the run and the passing game. There are people on our offense that have big play potential, but I think the biggest change I have seen with the offense is the players that came back from injury. With Ross, Guyton, Aiken and Rabazinski coming back, that is big when you have four guys that didn't play much the year before back that have made big plays in the past."
On Samford:
"It is a team that was in a lot of games last year and has a lot of people back on offense. They have a good running back #24 [Chris Evans] and his backup #30 [Alex Barnett]. They are both good running backs. Their quarterback #10 [Dustin Taliaferro] I think was the freshman player of the year last season. Then they have a bunch of good receivers back, #6 [Riley Hawkins], #4 [Brock Johnson] and #7 [DeMarcus Covington]. They all can go and get the ball and have big play potential. Again, they will run some power, some finesse game and some play-action game. They get the ball out pretty quick. The first game is always when you look for their adjustments on the sideline. That helps that we have experience back on defense because you can make adjustments on the sideline, and they have probably seen everything in the years they have been there. That is one thing that is a positive. Defensively, Samford has eight starters back and is pretty much an eight-man front team that plays a variety of coverages. If I was playing us, I would make us throw the ball, and I am sure that is what their intentions will be."
On first-year offensive coordinator Charlie Taaffe:
"I said when I hired Charlie that there were a lot of applicants, but I was looking for someone that had a background in a lot of different things. I think you have to be able to do a lot of different things as an offensive coordinator. Charlie has had a world of experience with a lot of different things, whether it is the drop back game, the option game, the power game or the finesse game. That is what I was looking for, someone who could mold his thoughts to the personnel we had here."
On the progress of quarterback Rob Calabrese:
"I think he is a lot more confident in what he is doing. I thought he was probably the MVP during spring football had we voted for an MVP. As far as the guy who is most improved and probably did the most things to get better, and I think he has carried that over to his summer and the preseason. He has more command on the field. Sometimes he is his worst enemy because he tries to think through too many things and not let the flow of the game take place. I have been very pleased with him and what he has done. I think he understands more what is going on and more than anything is seeing coverage. That is what he didn't see as well last year. Good quarterbacks read defenders not receivers."
On getting to play against another team after hitting each other all preseason:
"I am sure they are tired of hitting each other. I think as a coach you are always happy to get into game week because that is the phone of the coaching I think. Preseason and spring ball it is just practice, practice, practice to get better, but once you get into game week that is when everybody has a sense of urgency and passion that this is the week. Nobody is really putting up with mistakes. You get a chance to game plan, put the playbook to use. I think the players are tired of hitting each other, plus after awhile they know what is going on pretty much and what they need to do out there, offensively and defensively."
On the value of fifth-year seniors Hogue and Ross:
"Well you cant replace experience so I think that is the big thing that they bring. They have a poise and experience about themselves. We probably have about four or five freshmen that will travel and may see some playing time, so Ross and Hogue are more of the calming influence on those guys."
On the improvement of the offensive line:
"I think there is a vast improvement there from a size and movement standpoint at the line of scrimmage. They have gone against some pretty good people on the other side that have had their day. I think that the offensive line has come out and done some pretty good things on certain days against them. I think they have improved from a standpoint of line calls, from a standpoint of protection and just finishing plays. I think that is the toughest thing to get linemen to get done."
Season tickets and single-game tickets for the Samford game are currently available. To order season tickets, or to learn more about attending games at Bright House Networks Stadium, call 407-UCF-1000.
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