Coaches Quotations | Page 8

Mats' credentials speak for itself. He's reached out to the high school coaches and he made it clear right away that he wasn't intending to step on anyone's toes. It's good for the kids in the community to have choices for their summer basketball.

Mark has a great reputation for developing players and forming relationships with players. He has good character, and other coaches that I have spoken with have nothing but high praise for Mark. His familiarity with Frank and the offense here will help with the transition, and we can be better faster because of his knowledge.

Marcus Slaughter and Brandon Heath. Those are the guys coaches have talked about, and the ones we have to be most concerned of.

Marcus Banks had three years here, to play, and he had three coaches (Jim O'Brien, John Carroll, Doc Rivers) that weren't real excited about him. I think Marcus is a good player, but I don't think (there was) impatience, certainly not like a Joe Johnson or Chauncey Billups situation, you know, rookie players that were very high (draft) picks.

Marshall has transformed himself. He put on 20 pounds in the offseason and became a lot stronger. And our coaches are putting him in the position to be successful.

I wish I had done a better job of that. But I got so focused on certain things - that I had to go get this guy, this guy - I didn't do as good a job. One thing I've done here, I've had a chance to see some of the coaches I didn't get back to, and I apologized.

I worked hard on not getting the holding penalties. A lot of times I thought I had good coverage on Rogers, No. It ain't about who starts. The coaches . . . they kind of stuck by me. I wasn't doing a bad job until I gave up that big play.

I worked at two other schools where I came on where the coaching staff was there, and it kind of had a system. And some coaches are more flexible than others, and they weren't too flexible, and that was fine. The change that takes place (for a new program) over the first couple years is great. And after that, hopefully you'll have your good traditions set in place.

I was very impressed with Billy Napier when he worked on our staff in 2003 and 2004. He will be among the youngest full-time coaches in Division I next year, and I look at that as a strong asset. He was a big reason South Carolina State had a very successful season, especially on the offensive side of the ball. He will also be an asset to us in recruiting.

I was valet-parking every night. When it's all said and done, I was glad I was a walk-on. That made me work harder. That made me want to beat the scholarship player. I wanted to prove wrong all of the coaches who wouldn't give me a scholarship.

I was hoping the coaches would call the play, and they called it. It's been wonderful. It's been a great day, a great game and a great finish.

I was hoping the coaches would call that play and they called it. It was magical the way it happened.

I was honored to be named Coach of the Year. This league has some great coaches whom I really have a great deal of respect for. It is nice to have your peers honor you in that manner. However, the honor really belongs to the team. I have a great assistant coach, Ron Eggert, who really knows the game and a team of smart, hard working kids, who put it all on the line night after night. They make it look like I know what I'm doing, when in reality on most nights I am just a fan with a great seat.

I was getting a little tired at first. It's going good now. Both coaches are doing good with it. I appreciate that.

I was extremely disappointed Brittany Wilkins was not an all-conference player. And I will mention it to the coaches in our league.

I think if you watch the aggressive way Urban Meyer coaches on the sidelines during a game, and watch his wife in the stands, you know they're not going to take no for answer from a recruit. I think his persona has a lot to do with his recruiting.

It feels great. I need to thank the coaches for the extra work they've put in and my teammates for their help.

It feels great. A lot of hard work scouting, preparing and watching film, but more importantly there is a lot of good coaches out there that don't have a group like I have. If you don't have kids like I have this year, there is no way we could be doing the things we're doing now.

It feels good to extend my contract here. From the coaches to the front office, they are the coolest people I have been around since becoming a pro-football player.

It feels good. Last year we were one-and-done, but I think right now we developed some toughness that we don't want to lose. The coaches keep putting it in our heads that we're champions, play like champions.

It feels good being a part of this team. My teammates and coaches have been behind me all year.

It feels good anytime you beat Texas and Tennessee. Wins over those great coaches are very special.

It felt good to be back out there. It felt like my first game in college again. I asked the coach if I could go another inning, but since that was the most pitches I have thrown since a few weeks before the season, the coaches said they didn't want to push me back too fast.

It feels really good right now. To be honest, we're not focusing on the NCAA Tournament right now. The coaches haven't even talked about it. We're just taking it game by game.

I think she works so hard at being a coach and puts forth so much effort. Most of all she has a lot of confidence in us. I think a lot of coaches lack that confidence in their players, but she knew we could beat that team, no matter how good or bad they were, and no matter who we went up against. That is a really special quality in a coach and it's hard to find.

I think people will understand that when we go in together, they will understand what it really is all about. A few years ago ... there were rule changes that were made to make the game aesthetically better and to make the game more team oriented, not as individually oriented. I think the reward that the coaches gave our players kind of signified a little bit maybe that's the way our league is going.

I think rivalries don't just happen anymore. They've got to be created on the floor. I think a couple coaches could get together and manipulate the situation but that would be short-lived. I think what happens on the floor creates the rivalry: a buzzer-beater, a double-overtime game, a couple games down to the wire.

I think Rick is one of the most, if not the most respected coaches in the league. So, for us to come in here after losing the last three years to them was huge. We're playing well and we just can't let the team slip.

I think coaching has a lot to do with it. I think we have very good coaches here who, for some reason, know how to pick players and coach them at quarterback.

I think coaches tend to make more out of that than the wrestlers do. If you are a good, sound, fundamental wrestler it isn't going to matter how many times you wrestle someone. Sometimes matches can go back-and-forth when the kids are more even, but if you're better, you'll win.

I think coaches now look for great character. I feel what I have done in the past has helped me.

I think most people that have been involved in athletics would point somewhere down the line to some coaches that affected them positively. I was very fortunate, I had many coaches that affected me positively.

I think once our new coaches get established they are going to be comforted by their level of dedication and loyalty and work ethic to not only North but the kids in their program.

I think of myself as a second-year player. Then again, I didn't play much quarterback at all last year. Am I a second- or first-year player? I don't know how the coaches view me, but I expect a lot of myself. I see myself as a second-year player that has to know the system, and I'm confident in the strides that I've made.

It drives coaches crazy because there's no predicting that stuff, ... That's why I have no hair. ... This is a nice win, but it's one win.

I tell a lot of girls not to have the surgery. Some coaches will pull the scholarships of injured players. I want my girls to know their scholarships will always be here.

I think I'm talented enough, ... I've got the players around me; we've got good coaches and a good defense. There's no reason it shouldn't happen.

I think I'm a smarter player. The experience has helped with that. I feel like I'm getting coached. Not taking anything away from my past coaches but NFL football is a totally different thing than college or anything (beforehand).

I think he's one of the great young coaches in lacrosse because of his great work ethic and because he has a great rapport with the players. I think we're lucky both ways.

I think he's looking forward to this next journey, which all football coaches go through. It's that time of the year, and as a football coach you always have to say your next job is going to be your best job.

I think he's tough-minded and competitive. A lot of coaches overlook that when they're evaluating players. He's also unselfish.

I think he's really beginning to catch a lot of eyes out there. He's just a little raw right now, because he's never had an experienced quarterbacks coach work with him. But you don't get the kind of interest he is if teams aren't liking what they see and what they hear about him. He's obviously impressed the scouts, and the teams are sending coaches to check him out.

I think he'll do fine. His confidence and poise will be fine. Those are things we as coaches have to help him with this week. I'm confident in his abilities. Our coaches are confident in him and I know our players will be confident in him.

I think he's becoming a leader. He's just doing what the coaches ask him to do. I just think he's trying to get the offense down right now. Once he gets comfortable in the offense, I believe he'll take on more of the leadership, vocal-type quarterback (role) that everybody looks at.

I think he's a special player, ... so I think we'll probably give him more than a lot of coaches will with a rookie quarterback.

I think he definitely takes it up another level as far as intensity on the field. We've had some good football coaches here, and they've all had their strengths. One of his strengths is his intensity.

I think he will be one of the highest paid coaches in the conference. Right now he's in the middle of the pack with his salary. If we're going to have a program that aspires to be one of the top three or four programs in the league on a regular, consistent basis that comes at a cost. That's the direction we'll probably need to continue to head.

I think going to Mankato this weekend, we have to play 120 minutes. We're going to have to play disciplined and we're going to have to do the little things well. I think if we do that, obviously as coaches and players we'll be pleased, and I think we'll end up seeing the results we want to see.

I think from talking to a lot of coaches, I'd say there's a pretty good chance of three going and a possibility of four. Just from talking to coaches. But you've had a lot of coaches say they would vote for five. Whether five could make it would be tough. Even if four makes it -- even three -- when you don't have any of them voted in by the fans, that's pretty unbelievable.

I think, for the most part, our coaches do a great job of teaching and we spend a lot of time on it in practice, at least a little bit of it every day so it stays with us. I think it shows we're a close team because we can count on each other and we know our teammates are going to be there on help side.

It could potentially make it difficult for a lot of different reasons. Mostly logistics and coordination and organization. But I think all the coaches here have been around and can handle their teams.

It depends on how the day goes and what those coaches and teams are focusing on. Our guys that are in there definitely have a shot to move up.

It definitely gives you a lot of confidence when you are getting the ball. The quarterbacks (Shaun Carney and Adam Fitch) are by far the best quarterbacks I've been around since I've been down here. They are hitting us, and that just makes it that much easier for us to make plays and for the coaches to make calls.

I think it will help increase the interest level. Also as coaches it will give us more places to practice.

I think it would be a waste. Why would you do that? The coach had nothing to do with dropped balls, missed tackles or nothing like that. Everyone just has to get on the same page. This is the best team I've been on. All we have to do is just get it right. We could bring in 10 new coaches, but 10 new coaches aren't going to do anything for nobody if all the players aren't on the same page.

I think it would be a popular decision, but I don't think in the long term it's a good decision for what's best for England and English football. I think in the long term it sends out the wrong message from the Football Association to English coaches and the ramifications will be seen in the years ahead.

I think Marc Crawford is one of the best coaches in the NHL. It doesn't mean we're not going to evaluate all the elements of our organization, including the coaching staff.

I think I've got kind of a worn-out team. We were just flat-out beat. I just don't think we had anything left in us. That Thursday-Saturday noon thing was a joke in my mind and I think most coaches would agree with me. I turned down going to the NBA. I didn't think I'd have back-to-backs (here).

I think I've been playing a lot because I'm working hard in practice and the coaches noticed.

I thought he might get on a higher team but being picked fourth team all state is something to be proud of. Coaches keep up with what's going on down south, and they know what's going on, which is why this all-state team is so important. It seems to get the most respect. I just wish more people had been able to see him play.

I thought Mario deserved third team, and I thought Russell (Robinson) deserved honorable mention, but there's a lot of other coaches that say the same thing about their players. Brandon certainly played at a certain level and led us from start to finish. He's deserving of that.

I thought long and hard about that. Why am I in the business? I'm in the business to coach kids. All kids. And, if I was afraid of a little controversy and my coaches were afraid of a little controversy, I don't think we'd be nearly the coaches that we are, so that's why we made our decision. He chose us. We didn't choose him. He decided to come to Gilmer and we're going to coach him just like we would coach any other kid.

I thought he would give us a fresh and different approach to the game. Almost all the other candidates were women's coaches coming from the game the way I had seen it.

I thought it looked like we had a couple of weeks off for a majority of the time. It's a matter of executing from a timeout to the floor. It's a matter of paying attention to detail, and as a unit that's obviously something coaches want their team to continue to get better and better at as the year goes on, especially with the slate we have ahead of us.

I thought I personally played very well, ... Our coaches kept saying that our goal going into this weekend was that we shouldn't just try to compete with the teams there, but that we should be able to win. I think we represented ourselves well.

I thought it would be great to have a couple of pitching coaches on the staff.

I think they're looking to seat more people. Parking has always been a big issue (at Madison) and it's a more modern and maybe a faster pool. The coaches association of Wisconsin was trying to address those issues and with this pool being built I think it addresses those things.

Johns experience as a college and NFL running back, as well as the coaches he has both played for and coached with, makes him an ideal person to coach our backfield. He has been successful coaching both NFL and college running backs. We are very fortunate to have him join us.

Just knowing the coaches have confidence in me, that's the biggest thing

Just keep doing your thing. But, if they ask you to play wide receiver or defensive back, just get involved with players and coaches who can help you the most.

I think this was a good step for him. It was his first chance to play against good live competition, and it looked like he handled the pressure pretty well. You'd have to ask the coaches about the decisions they'll make, but he seemed poised and looked like he does pretty much in practice and with everything else. You're happy to see you got a guy who is pretty much what you expected.

I'm smart enough to know that he has an arm to make throws that Kyle Orton couldn't make and the (Bears) coaches feel more comfortable with him back there so they're going to open up the offense a little bit more. With Rex being healthy that offense is more open. They're taking more chances going down the field.

I'm sure coaches frown upon (a journeyman) a little bit, and you're always asked about it because they think you're maybe a bad seed or a bad person or not a team guy.

Management has given us a real fighting chance here to have a real good team. And it's our job now, coaches and players together, to try and put this thing together.

Man, this was big. It was emotion. It wasn't boasting. That's my role on my team. My team, my coaches put that confidence in me.

Me hitting that shot was more about confidence because my coaches and teammates have been getting up on me about shooting the ball. It just hyped us all up because I haven't been shooting at least from outside range and I've been driving a lot.

We needed a win to pick our confidence level back up heading into the conference schedule. We got a lot of it back tonight. Our offensive line was opening holes that our coaches could run through.

We'll also have a panel of some of our current players. The coaches leave the room and the players and their parents can ask questions.

The athlete makes himself, the coach doesn't make the athlete.

The Academy is a great way to improve yourself and your game. Our goal is to challenge each player to be the best she can be, on and off the field. We have coaches that will push you out of your comfort zone while interacting with you in a positive way. At the end of the camp, we want you to be more... more educated on the game, more confident in yourself and more inspired to play your best. We welcome players of all abilities to come and join us for some great soccer and some great fun!

The $6,000 payment was a blatant violation. The circumstances surrounding this violation are especially troubling because the former coaches concealed the cash payment from administrators at the institution for over five years.

The argument about the system is out there and that's probably good. We did what we could, impressing the people in the AP poll and the coaches who felt free to vote.

The argument about the system is out there and that's probably good, ... We did what we could, impressing the people in the AP poll and the coaches who felt free to vote.

The area has many facilities, coaches and good weather year-round. Year after year the level of players gets stronger.

The assistant coaches will have to get them going at the beginning of the season. I can't drive for a while or lift anything for a while.

The assistant coaches are getting these guys ready on game day. There's nothing complicated about the whole thing. We're playing longer and harder right now.

The American Baseball Coaches Association started All-American honors in that year. That was also the first year of the College World Series.

That was the kind of do-or-die games that the fans love. But for coaches and players, that was a tough game.

That was something very special to me. The parents and coaches really appreciated that. From the standpoint of a person, you're not going to find anyone better.

That way when it's time to hit the ground once the season is over, you're already off and running. The timing is never ideal in a coaching change. I talked to former coaches, NFL GMs, television folks. I picked people's brains and checked out the Internet to find out as much as I could. Indiana has time to do that. I didn't talk to any school or coaches but did hire a consultant to gauge the interest for us.

That was a really huge statement. It's a mirror image of what the men have on their side. The administration moved out and the coaches moved in. It's not the office - it's the message that sent.

That's the lure of this tournament. It's bad for coaches -- what Lute feels right now is terrible. But it's great for the fans.

That's the kind of kid he is. He wouldn't think something like that would be possible for him. He doesn't understand how other coaches felt about him. It's a credit to the kid. I don't think he realizes some of the things he does sometimes.

That's the hard part. With the distance they did us a disadvantage. Here we are getting home (last night) at 7:30 at night, and we are going to have to leave (tomorrow). That's tough to turn around with cheerleaders and players and coaches and the bands, the pep bands and the administration.

That's what happens when things are not going the way you're hoping. The coaches are trying to shake things up to get us going.

That's what coaches do, teach. If you can't teach, you can't coach. And these guys have done an excellent job since they've been here.

That's the way it is in practice. Every time he misses a 3-pointer, the coaches keep passing it to him until he makes it. We want him to keep shooting.

That's up to Scott and the way he wants to go. I know he'd like to have a younger guy. But John's a good football coach. He's probably one of the best defensive line coaches I've been around. But that's really Scott's call.

I was proud of the coaches and the adjustments they made. I was proud of the character the players showed. They could have easily gone in the tank and they didn't do that. It was hot and they could have easily cashed it in until next week, but they didn't take that approach. They battled through and were tired. They pushed each other and trusted the adjustments the coaches made.

I was ready. I didn't know if I would play. I was feeling sick all day and the coaches knew that. When Coach called my name, I kind of froze.