Like Everyone Else, MTS Looking for Improvement

Here is some of the teleconference from Middle Tennessee Coach Rick Stockstill, which took place just minutes ago. The Sun Belt Conference has a loyal and dedicated crop of beat writers. Some were introduced by first name only on the call, which makes it an intimate affair.

Here’s Stockstill:

Question from the Daily News Journal: You have said you have seen your most improvement in Game 2 and Game 3 of the year, why is that?

Stockstill: “That is the course of college football. You find out more about your team in the first game than you do through August practices, where so many things are structured through your practices. With us, playing so many young guys, you find out what they can and can’t do, and you start to develop a plan around that. Everyone in the country will be better this week than last week. They have been out there in live situations. You don’t have coaches running behind you in the game, making sure you do this and do that. Hopefully we will improve.”

Question from Adam Sparks: With those young players, is it more of a physical adjustment, getting used to speed of the game, or more of a mental thing?

“I think it is a combination of both. We played 13 guys on Saturday that had never played a down of college football. You don’t want to overload them mentally where they are thinking too much and they can’t use their natural athletic ability to play. It doesn’t mean, they just played one game they are ready for X, Y and Z when it should be E, F, G. You take it step by step each game. The more they can show they can handle, the more you give them. The worst thing you can do is overload a player. You heard it all your life, and it’s a cliché, but it’s not what we know, it’s what they know.”

Question: Your offense has always made a big improvement from Week One to Week 2. Is there any common denominator in there?

“Each game is different, each season is different, and you find out more about your team. We have been able to improve through the course of the year as you find out more about your team.”

The teleconference was then rather abruptly cut off because the Sun Belt moderator said there were no further questions.