On the Road Again: Aggies talk two sets of Tigers

Kevin Sumlin

On going from 'close' to over the hump...

Sumlin: "We're new to this league and finding out where we are from a competitive and talent standpoint. Where we are from a depth standpoint in relationship to the elite teams in this league. When you talk about elite teams in the SEC, you're talking about elite teams in the country. When you're on that stage and out on the field, you're comparing yourselves to the best teams in the nation.

"There are a number of things we can do. We need to deal with our current situation with our players, where they are physically and mentally. We're playing schemes that will give us a chance to win. We've got to execute to close out those ballgames, which we haven't done. That's a combination of experience and some other things. The second thing is to develop depth and increase your talent level in recruiting.

"That's the situation now, trying to win those games for the seniors on this team, develop the mindset for how to do that, and recruiting and raising your talent level and the depth of the talent level to those type of teams."

On the team's effort against LSU...

Sumlin: "Effort has not been an issue with this team. One thing I've been impressed with has been the energy level. Nobody can argue they've been a flat team. They've played hard and been ready to go. Defensively, we only let a few plays out. Against a great team, that happens. A long run, that was really a physical situation up front. The catch before the half, that was a great play by them.

"If you look at what we did defensively and physically, we crowded the line of scrimmage — I thought we had to do that to defend the run — Coach Snyder had a great game plan, we covered some deep balls, got lucky on a few others. Our defensive game plan was good and we executed well, it's just consistency. (LSU's) a good team. We're making strides defensively. I think coming into the season, the big question was one, how can you improve the defense, and two, are you going to get manhandled in this league.

"Our defense has done a nice job of mixing things up and creating a mindset about the line of scrimmage and done a nice job particularly in games like that where teams were trying to hammer it at us. Our defensive staff's doing a nice job."

On Damontre Moore's success...

Sumlin: "Damontre has always been a talented guy. The biggest difference for him has been he's grown up and matured. You see that with a lot of players in a lot of positions. Talent is one thing; consistency comes with growing up and the ability to deal with success and failure, the ability to play through pain, being able to extend yourself even when you're tired.

"There were a number of times, based on video and talking with Damontre, where he came out of the game last year. We talked preseason about being able to play 30-40 snaps a game at his best. The conditioning has improved. He's played better. Every snap but three this week, when he was hurt. The only play he didn't play the week before was when his helmet came off and he tried to put it back on real quick, but they saw it. He played almost every play in a game that was a sideline-to-sideline game.

"He's always been a pass-rusher, always had the talent to do that, but he's become a complete player, chasing balls sideline-to-sideline, maintaining his gap integrity instead of doing his own thing. And making plays downfield. He wants to get an interception and we say, 'Why don't you just sack people? Handle that. (Chuckles.) The light came on, and when it does, you see consistency. That's part of growing up."

On the turnovers...

Sumlin: "Ben Malena has run over people many times and taken care of the ball. Mike Evans has caught that ball several times, maybe even in the same game. He took his eyes off it. There's a number of things, but we also haven't gotten a lot of turnovers the last couple weeks. We've got to create turnovers. We've been solid, but we didn't create turnovers and we turned the ball over. If it was just one thing, it'd probably be easy to fix.

"And I'll say, with a team of that speed and that caliber, when a ball bounces up somewhere, there's a good chance they'll get it because of their athleticism. I've talked about it since I got here — the biggest stat is turnover margin. The combined record out of the national top-10 in turnover margin might have three losses. That's a major step."

On adjustments coming from C-USA to the SEC...

Sumlin: "There's been a number of things we've adjusted because of new staff, new team, new relationships, new travel. It's been everything. There are a lot of things that are different for me personally, but I think for our staff it's probably been easier because everybody's new. That probably doesn't make any sense to you guys, but we all got here and nobody had been here before but me and B.J. Anderson.

"Moving into the league, the transition was probably a bit different for us because we weren't in the Big 12 with the same guys. We were all coming from different teams. The staff is different, the players are different, we're in a different league. And that's probably why the energy level has been easier to maintain, we're going to places these guys have never been. (Auburn's) Jordan-Hare is a great stadium. Guys have been eager to get to these places because they just haven't been there.

"I used to get a lot of advice at Houston. Since I got this job, I don't get a lot of advice anymore. Funny how that happens (grin). A lot of those guys are in this league. This time of year, everybody's got their own problems. I would say that this league is very, very strong and very, very competitive. And it's very competitive not just on Saturday. People are finding out that it's competitive year-round.

"What I'm getting at is recruiting. The coaches in this league are extremely aggressive on the football field and in recruiting. Aggressive's probably not the right word, but competitive is. There are some very talented guys in this league and there's some very good coaching."

On whether conditioning has been a big part of the success...

Sumlin: "I've only been here this year, so we don't know anything different. We only know one way to do things. You'd have to ask the players that."

On whether Auburn is dangerous...

Sumlin: "It's kind of the same thing as Arkansas. They've gotten rolling and they have some talented players that it looks like have said, 'We've had enough.' Auburn's in the same situation. They're two years off a national championship, had three straight top-10 recruiting classes. They're a storied program in college football; they have tradition and pride; they're playing at home; and we're going to get their best shot.

"A wounded animal is sometimes the most dangeorus. These guys have a lot of pride, they've got really good players and, being at home, we're going to have to get over there and play our very best."

On being from Alabama...

Sumlin: "It means I have a lot more ticket requests. My grandmother is there, 97 (years old). My dad goes from Indianapolis to there. We have family there. We'll be playing in the state of Alabama a couple times, so we try to take care of everybody. It's a good thing. For our players, it's exciting to go to new places and see things. I think that has kind of helped our energy level. At least, I've kind of preached to enjoy that.

"They're seeing things as seniors they've never gotten to see, instead of going to places they've been the last three years. We're trying to make the most of that."

On playing on the road...

Sumlin: "We've got a way we do things in travel. From a record standpoint it's been pretty successful of a road routine. We don't do anything to change that (during the three-game swing). The change comes this time of year with how you practice. It's a delicate, fine line. Nobody's 100 percent in the country right now if they're playing at a high level. Guys are beat up. You can't go overboard, you've got to get your team to the field fresh.

"That's our biggest challenge this time of year. I don't like to use a lot of Mike Leach's statements, but he says all the time that the most exciting team this time of year wins. That's true. Because you're in a grind. To keep that excitement and pep in their step, you have to do things in practice to help them out."

On how the O-line performed against LSU's tough D-line...

Sumlin: "You can tell pre-game when you look up and see a lot of NFL logos, there's probably some good prospects on the field. For what we ask our offense to do, it was a really good football game. We've got to get better, we know that, but you come out of that game saying that not at any point did we get manhandled like people thought would happen to us this whole year.

"Players are disappointed and they understand the challenge. We need to play better. LSU has great players, and they're well-coached. Our offensive line did a good enough job to give us a chance to win."

On getting Taylor Bertolet on track...

Sumlin: "Do you play golf? If you do, you know there can be subtle things. The slightest thing can make a difference. Some days you go out there and can't do any wrong, and you can work in some things and corrections. Sometimes it's mental. We're working through that. (Bertolet's) an extremely talented guy. No one cares more about it than he does.

"You look at where we are right now with some of the critical errors that happened in a big game like that, and you've got redshirt freshmen out there. Turnovers, bobbled balls, missed field goals ... those guys have one thing in common. We're not going to give up on them. They've continued to get better, and because of that, we'll keep working with all of them. They have one thing in common, they're all redshirt freshmen."

On Auburn WR Emory Blake...

Sumlin: "He's a guy that, when we were at Houston, we bugged to come to Houston. He's Jeff Blake's kid. We recruited him hard at Houston and he stopped in at junior day, then I never saw him again. That was five years ago. There's been a couple guys like that, guys from the LSU game that came up that I hadn't seen since junior days.

"(Blake) has played on a national championship team. Big, athletic player. Good kid. Great student-athlete, great representative for them, and I wish him all the best — except for this Saturday. He knows that. He's a guy we have to pay attention to."

On Auburn's running backs...

Sumlin: "They're extremely explosive. They've had three top-10 recruiting classes in a row. They can really do it. They're wire-to-wire running backs and they're not little. Just like anything else, you prepare for it but you hope they don't get on track this weekend. We'll see if we can disrupt them. We've got to continue to tackle well. Last week, we tackled better than we have all year long, even on the perimeter.

"We did well and we tackled a lot better against LSU than we did against La Tech or Ole Miss. We've got to continue to work the tackling, and we've done that the last couple weeks. We've got to continue to create turnovers defensively, and we've got to continue to take care of the ball offensively. If we do that, we can be pretty good."

On taking LSU to a five-point final...

Sumlin: "There's no moral victories in this league. There's nothing to that. What you can take from that is the internalization in your program. The style of play you have, the execution and the depth and talent level. That's what you take from that game."

Kliff Kingsbury

On what A&M would do differently...

Kingsbury: "Just not turn the ball over. The effort was outstanding. The defense just kept giving us the ball back to try and win the game and we didn't move the ball. That was disappointing."

On letting the reins out with Johnny Manziel...

Kingsbury: "It's all part of growing with him. Two of the interceptions weren't his fault. One of them was a great play on the ball, you're going to get that with a team like that. I never tell him to stop trying to get the ball downfield. (The deep interception) was a miscommunication, and that happens"

On comparisons between Manziel and Brett Favre...

Kingsbury: "The competitiveness. Watching both of those guys and how they love the game, yeah."

On Manziel's growth...

Kingsbury: "You learn from every rep, at this point. This is game seven and he didn't play the whole game in three of them, so every live snap will mean experience."

On the good SEC secondaries...

Kingsbury: "It's just an adjustment period. In the Big 12 they'll back off of you and you get open in zones; here, they make you earn every chance you get. We have to accept that every week they'll come down and get in your face and you've got to man up and get open."

On how LSU improved throughout the game...

Kingsbury: "I think we had a good scheme in the beginning, but we missed some plays and turned the ball over, and they took advantage. Give them credit."

On Ben Malena and where he's been getting better...

Kingsbury: "Same deal with the reps. He was a guy that hadn't played a ton either, but the O-line was giving him some good blocks. That's the biggest thing."

On Kevin Sumlin the man...

Kingsbury: "The way he treats his players and coaches, you never see him belittling anyone in front of their peers. He gives respect to everyone at a level that's refreshing at this position."

On Auburn's defense...

Kingsbury: "They've been put in some tough spots this season with their offense putting them in a bad position, but they're a solid defense. It'll be a challenge."

Mark Snyder

On A&M's physicality...

Snyder: "Very pleased. I was a bit worried after seeing what they did to South Carolina, but I was impressed with how our guys held up."

On the rotation at corner and De'Vante Harris not playing much...

Snyder: "It was just the ebb and flow of that game, and Deshazor Everett set the tone for us in that ballgame, no doubt. On that toss sweep, he set the tone. With how he and Dustin (Harris) were playing, we didn't want to rock the boat."

On LSU taking advantage of turnovers and whether the players did anything different...

Snyder: "It's a mindset. We work on sudden change and obviously I need to work on sudden change more. If you want to talk about something negative, sudden change. Great defenses take the field with an attitude after sudden change."

On Alonzo Williams taking off the redshirt...

Snyder: "We think Alonzo is going to be a great player down the road. We need to start playing our young guys and what better game to put their feet to the fire than against LSU? We didn't play him very much, but he did well. It was good for his confidence."

On Michael Richardson...

Snyder: "He made a rookie mistake, but he'll get better. He played well. He's played well. He had a significant role when they went to their big package."

On Julien Obioha...

Snyder: "He's really playing well, playing with some confidence. He's going to be a real good player around here. Real good."

On Kevin Sumlin...

Snyder: "He's a great guy, good family man, the total package. We've kind of grown up through this (transition) together, and I have the utmost respect for him."

On Damontre Moore...

Snyder: "He's become a complete player. Not only is he rushing the quarterback, which we knew he could do. He's chasing the football, taking on blocks, tackling with a purpose. He ran on one toss sweep to the sideline and smacked the running back. And to play as many plays (as he has) ... that's impressive."

On not creating turnovers...

Snyder: "It was the ebb and flow of the game, but that was another disappointing thing. We have got to create turnovers. That's what LSU does, they play great defense and don't turn it over. But if they don't turn it over, you have to take it away. We talked about defensive takeaways. You have to take the football away in this league."

On Auburn...

Snyder: "They're a very talented group. A bit young, but very talented. At home, at night, we're expecting their best."

On how the A&M linebackers played...

Snyder: "Very well. Those four, the linebackers and safety, did a great job of building a wall. I was very impressed with their play."

Uzoma Nwachukwu

On what LSU's secondary was able to do...

Nwachukwu: "They did a good job of adjusting and disguising and making sure that even with a guy scrambling around, there weren't many open spots for him to throw it. They did a good job just running with the football. I think it was just about the same (amount of being open)."

On whether the team's two losses being to top-10 teams matters...

Nwachukwu: "I think at the end of the day, it's about wins and losses. So it's hard to find positives. You have things to correct and things you can get a whole lot better at. If we do correct these things, we can beat just about anybody. We just can't beat ourselves and turn the ball over as much as we do. Fix those things and we'll be a great team."

On catching Auburn at a weird time and whether it makes the Tigers dangerous...

Nwachukwu: "Of course. And they're a very talented team. It's not like they don't have the athletes or the coaching there. I think that gives them more of an edge to go out there and perform well. We just have to bring it on a week-to-week basis. That's just how every team works."

On why there are day games here and night games on the road...

Nwachukwu: "I don't know (chuckle). I'm trying to figure it out."

On the Auburn defense...

Nwachukwu: "They have some great defensive backs, they're very sound back there, very athletic. You can tell they have an edge. It's the strength of their team, so it should be a good matchup."

Nwachukwu: "If you look on the film, they're there to make plays. You can tell it's a national title-caliber team."

On playing three straight tough road games...

Nwachukwu: "That's just what you're dealt. You have to put it in a positive light and we're accepting that challenge. It should be fun."

On how he'd advise not overlooking Auburn as a senior...

Nwachukwu: "It just comes down to, great teams have to win in October. They have to make these long stretches where all these games are important. You can't look over one practice, one play in the game, anything. Every game is so crucial, thinking about where you want to be later in the season. Making sure you stay focused. And it goes by so fast that you could just miss one little play and it could change everything. One moment could change everything. Just telling them you can't not focus for one second, because it goes too fast."

Nwachukwu: "He hasn't told us that yet. But now I'm going to ask him about it, see what he says."

Jonathan Stewart

On how impressed he's been with Damontre Moore's play...

Stewart: "Everybody's been impressed. They haven't really been able to block him the whole season. Off the field, in the classroom and things like that, he's more mature. In the locker room he's still the same old person. That's where we do our camaraderie. It's a brotherhood; we just hang out.

On whether he's the best defensive lineman in the SEC...

Stewart: "Yeah. That's how he's been playing."

On catching Auburn at a weird time and whether it makes the Tigers more dangerous...

Stewart: "From the little bit we've watched on film, we know they have a very dangerous offense. They have a lot of athletes and they try to get them in space."

Stewart: "He went over a couple plays that probably cost us the game. When it comes to a talent level like LSU and A&M, it comes down to a couple plays. We have to move on to the next week. We have Auburn, and a lot of season left."

Stewart: "We do everything the same, meals, everything. (Sumlin) doesn't change anything. You can hear the music he plays at practice (chuckle). So no opposing team's fight song or anything like that."

On curfew on the road...

Stewart: "Uh... 10:30, 11, something like that, somewhere around there. I just go up to my room and watch TV. I'm already asleep, so I'm not sure. I try to get as much sleep as I can before game day."

On how the D-line played against LSU...

Stewart: "They played very good. They've been playing great all season. I have a lot of confidence in them as a defensive line. They don't have a lot of size or depth but they go out there and fight the entire game. The effort they give is remarkable. I'm confident that as a defense we'll bounce back this week. (Around) 250 rushing yards is nothing near what we try to give up. We'll try to get it back to Texas A&M's standard."

Steven Terrell

On being a senior and not overlooking a one-win team...

Terrell: "You've just got to stay focused. Every game we see as the most important. The next game. It's a marathon. You've got to fix the mistakes from last game and make sure you don't make the same mistakes. Especially in this league, you can't overlook anybody. Every team is good. This team has a lot of talent; some things haven't went their way, but you can't overlook any team."

On going from a national title to 1-6 in two years...

Terrell: "When you lose a player like Cam Newton, that can change a team. But they still have the talent. Running backs, receivers, things like that. They have the talent, things just haven't gone their way. One of these games, it's going to click — and you have to be prepared for that."

On Sumlin making the team comfortable on the road...

Terrell: "On the road it's kind of a different environment because you're on your own, without your fans or anything like that. He does a good job of keeping everybody focused. It is just another game and we treat everything the same. So I don't know if there's anything special about road games, but he does a good job of making sure we stay focused and on task."

On how good the Aggies really are, two losses to top-10 teams...

Terrell: "I think we can be a great team. When you come out of losses, the things you try to be positive about, especially on defense ... we played pretty good, but there were about four plays where you had everybody doing the right thing and one person messing up. That's how big plays are made. Once we get everybody doing the same thing, we'll be there. It's better than three or four guys messing up.

"We've got to get everybody doing their job. Once we do, we'll be great. We haven't had a game yet where offense, defense and special teams were all there. It's always the little things that can change games in big ways. Penalties, little things like that. Ten people doing the right thing and one person messing up or missing an assignment can change the game. It was only about four plays like that, but that's the difference."

On playing at home during the day and at night on the road...

Terrell: "I don't really think about that. We just go out and play whenever."

On getting fewer penalties...

Terrell: "Our third-down numbers were good. But the thing is, there were penalties. You've got to come down on penalties in general, but the biggest thing is penalties in critical situations, like on third down. We addressed that yesterday. On defense, third down is the 'money down.' That's what we call it."