The following are live, paraphrased notes from Texas A&M's weekly press conference. Videos of the interviews will be added to the story after they are rendered.
• We'll start the game with the same lineup on the OL. Carson Green played a lot for us as a young guy. We've had some injuries in there. It's game 12. We're trying to be consistent with what we're doing. We're only playing six or seven guys. What you have to do as a coach is decide if a healthy guy who's gone through practice gives you a better chance of success. It depends on the injury. We haven't been shuffling guys in recent weeks. We want to be able to run it more. Looking at the end of the game, what we did was extrememly conservative. We ran the clock and eliminated their timeouts. We made it a touchdown game. Everyone wants to be aggressive, but I made that decision. Nick Starkel doesn't have much game experience. We tried to put the ball in the hands of experienced guys. We wanted them to finish the game. We weren't able to score a touchdown, but I think we got confidence out of the way we finished the game.
• You saw both teams go up and down the field in the first half. The adjustments that were made and the communication at halftime – the results say a lot about our defensive coaches. We've grown a lot after losing one of our better players at the beginning of the year. Derrick Tucker is the biggest development story right now. He missed all of camp after surgery and has grown. It takes time to do things like that, but we've certainly improved on defense.
• LSU is pretty good at stopping the pass, too. They're a good defense. It's the same story every week in this league. We either talk more about Kellen or Nick, but our success isn't just based on them. It's based on the ability of the OL to block people, which has been inconsistent, and the ability of our guys on the perimeter to make plays. When we do that, we've won. It's not just the QB. The guys on the perimeter have to make plays. They did that the other night. When they don't do that, we aren't successful. It helps take pressure off the QB.
• Targeting is about player safety. I think when the rule changed to being able to review the call and call it from the booth – I'll never back away from protecting players. Things have happened. We know what's going on with concussion protocol. I'll say this though, things look different in slow motion than in real time – positively and negatively. That's how it works. It's a severe penalty. In some situations, if it's a close call, it's one thing. Sometimes it's necessary. It's changed a lot of things. It's changed tackling and special teams. There were a lot of dangerous plays. We teach our guys the strike zone. that's what you're aiming for, armpit to knee. Above that, it'll be called every time. The players have difficulty because that area changes within a couple feet of contact. With Fuller, it was a shoulder, but he came up through the helmet. That'll be called every time.
• I don't know why we haven't beaten LSU. Every game is different. Each game has a different reason. The bottom line is we haven't won. There won't be one reason to point out for all the games. It's the results that matter. My tenure would be viewed differently if I won against other teams too. It doesn't come down to one team or one game. At this point of the year, you don't worry about things like that. You have games to play. You try to win. You reflect after the season.
• I don't live my life by broad, general statements. I came to Texas A&M to win football games. What we do and how we've done it has been the right way. It will continue to be the right way. I'm in the process of working on winning this week. What this team has done is focus on what's important in this building. As a coach or as a player, you can't worry about what people say. What you can worry about is the response of your team and how they perform. That's where my focus is right now.
• Justin Dunning had about three good weeks. You saw him in the rotation with the DEs. He tweaked his knee and was really worried. We were really worried too after what he's been through. You get sick when he's grabbing his knee. Talking to him at halftime, he said, "I'm alright." He's not done for the year and can maybe play this weekend. He's been a fabulous team player and example for everybody. I wouldn't think any less of him if he didn't play. We gave him time to figure it out, and I'm glad we did. He's been a great example due to his work ethic and positive nature. He's helped us at defensive end. I don't think he'd ever been in a 3-point stance before fall camp.
• I do expect to be the head coach next year. Why wouldn't I? I haven't heard otherwise.
• LSU utilizes a lot of motion to get you out of your gaps and change your fits. DJ Shark has blazing speed. They've got real speed on the perimeter and a big, strong offensive line. With those two backs, they've generated a really good running game. They get behind folks with their speed on the perimeter. Matt Canada stretches to out to make space for those two running backs. They've been successful doing that.
