Oct. 21, 2008
Watch Coach Long’s Press Conference
New Mexico Head Coach Rocky Long
(on the Air Force offense):
“The most interesting thing is that last year they ran some triple option, but it was a very small portion of their offense. The first four or five weeks of the (2008) season that was the case. The last two weeks they’ve changed quarterbacks and now 60 or 70 percent of their offense is option plays – not all triple option plays, but option plays. So getting ready for them is a whole lot like it used to be. It’s impossible to get ready for a triple option team in a week and obviously that means it’s even worse if we only have two days to get ready. The reason is that when you run the triple option, you don’t block everybody. You eliminate people by them making their choices – by who takes the fullback, who takes the quarterback, who goes to the pitch. So you have three extra blockers, so to speak, so there’s a lot of double teams and stuff going on on the field because you don’t have to block everybody.”
(on how the Lobos’ season has progressed):
“I was happy with the way the players responded (last week against San Diego State) because I was concerned that they were so disappointed from the week before that they might not be mentally and emotionally ready, but they were. We’re a much better football team right now than we were the first two weeks of the season. If we weren’t so beat up and hurt we might be a lot better than we are. Half our starters are playing hurt, but our team is better than it was the first three weeks of the season, even with a bunch of guys hurt.”
(on Air Force’s physical toughness):
“They’re like all Air Force teams. They execute really well, they don’t make mental mistakes, they play hard to the end, and they’re tough and physical. They are like every Air Force team we’ve ever played against. That’s why they are one of the better teams in the league because they play like that.”
(on the Lobos’ quarterback rotation):
“I thought our quarterbacks threw the ball well last week. I thought that was Brad Gruner’s best game so far and he’s played a lot of football now. He ought to start feeling comfortable and getting better. I think Brad Gruner is the starting quarterback. I don’t think you will see all year long equal playing time (between Gruner and Tate Smith). I think the quarterbacks are used in specific situations. Tate Smith comes in with a specific package that is different from what Gruner runs, but Gruner has a lot more playing experience now so Brad’s package is a lot bigger and more varied.”