Nevada football head coach Jeff Choate talks upcoming season from the Mountain West Media Days

[Music] uh just tell me what have you liked out of your guys um now that summer workouts are in full swing I mean what progress have you seen in the way yeah well I think that a lot of these guys bodies have changed dramatically and I think that's twofold obviously I have a lot of confidence in Jason lcow our strength coach and his ability to to get the programming right um but I also think you got to combine that with uh uh the commitment that we've made to nutrition hiring Britney Peta uh having her be consistent with the meals the meal prep pre-workout post workout nutrition um snack bags to to go like the investment that the athletic department has made in nutrition for football I think the combination of kind of changing the stimulus in the weight room with new strength coach and staff and uh the access and education to the nutrition have dramatically changed these guys' bodies it's been a demanding summer and they've responded well just uh you know we talked to you at the softball game but I mean as far as after the spring game we hadn't really talked too much so when you went back and watched that film I mean kind of what did you see out of that and just spring as a whole yeah well I think if those that know me know that I'm not a huge fan of spring football as it currently exists in college football and I think that's where for me that was a necessary evil you know we have 27 guys that left the program after the spring game so we're not even the same roster that we were uh but we had to go through that we had to go through that kind of hey who who's bought in who's not bought in who fits into the system that we're running now who doesn't uh and though you know kind of ripped the Band-Aid off and then when guys showed up on May 20th for our summer program that was the team that we had and that's who we were going to roll with and so um I think that was what it showed us is the guys that are really committed wanted to be at Nevada and um obviously me being a few places over the years I have deep ties in relationships with coaches around the country and a lot of players too that potentially were in the in the portal and uh I think we were able to upgrade our talent at several positions um even late in the game yeah could you just talk about some of those new additions that you have brought on this off season and uh new guys like uh I would say that since since the second transfer portal uh Charles Brown and Jaden Smith wide receivers one from Texas State one from Tarleton both were originally with me at Montana State I think those guys add tremendous value in depth for us and experience at the wide receiver position um Savon red who played running back at at the University of Texas is is kind of an athlete he was originally signed as a wide receiver and then played some running back and Wildcat quarterback and he brings kind of an xfactor for us there um I think you know um we've got a an offensive lineman that just will be joining our program shortly Dylan Lopez from Oregon State University defensively uh Chris Ross an interior D linan from the University of Texas that played a significant role in our first four games at Texas last year and so those are kind of maybe the primary guys that are kind of late additions to the roster um but there's a ton more you know brought in a lot of high school players that were that were uh that were signed early and and so it's going to be it's going to be an Evol solution but I'm I'm excited about kind of seeing these guys do their thing yeah Henry said yesterday that there's 2.5 is on the weight racks in the weight room as a a reminder um you know that's what the sports books projected you guys to win that was the over under I mean where did you come up with that and how does you hope that motivates well that's that's Loco's deal I told him I said you go ahead and pour all the gas on the fire you want there um we'll turn this flicker into a flame pretty soon and so I'll just uh you know I mean you know I don't I don't I don't need to talk about it I mean the kids are going to see it and they're going to you know that's we'll pull that out when we need to pull it out but by and large I like our guys to focus on themselves you know I mean we're not going to beat anybody by talking about it we're going to beat any beat people by working hard and being more disciplined and structured in our approach and uh and playing with toughness and tenacity what do you hope this group can show to the nation this season that this wasn't the program that went two and 10 back toback here well it's not I mean that's the reality of it the past is the past and we've got an opportunity we got a fresh late we got a tremendous competitive schedule and we've got a I mean it's an unbelievable opportunity in front of us right now and it's kind of been one of the things that you know I've talked about a number of times today is this is going to be the easiest head coaching job ever because nobody has any expectations so we can just let it rip every day like you know I don't need to worry about whether to go for it on fourth down hey should we fake the punt yeah 100% we should and so there you go when you when you're playing us know that we're going to empty your we're going to empty the clip every single day and so from that perspective I've been on both sides of this that when there's low expectations it's actually easier to go coach and uh and and then when you're when you're at the top when they're selecting you at the top the pressure is on you from day one and there's different you can equate that differently obviously but um I think it's going to be a blast man I mean I think these kids are going to shock some people and and uh our staff has built the right way they're mature guys that you know we're not we know we're not going to wave a w magic wand and fix this it's going to be work it's going to be consistency it's going to be discipline it's going to be structure uh it's going to be staying the course when things get difficult not trying to reinvent the wheel every week you know believe in what we're doing and do it well over time do you feel like maybe that was somewhat of a similar approach when you were at Montana state that you were trying to rebuild that program too yeah I think I think year one I remember telling those guys that uh I said I think here's here's the harsh reality is year one we're probably going to lose big and year two we're going to we're going to lose small and then we're going to win small and then we're going to win big and it kind of went that way I think this is a little bit different in that the transfer portal was not available to us then um and so I think you can microwave this process a little bit and uh but I know there's going to be days we're not going to be we're not going to be an elite program overnight you know we it's going to be about how we play in November you know we've got these extra games to play we've got five non-conference games we should identify who we are what we do well what we don't do well um play to our strengths and and that's our job as coaches is once we get to League Play you know we should have a pretty good idea who we we are what we do well and then build the game plan around that week in and week out what are the benefits to getting that extra game yeah you have to start Camp a week earlier but what are what are the benefits of I think there's a couple of things that come to mind for me a program that hasn't been to a bowl game in a number of years you're going to guarantee yourself 13 games and you don't get better playing football by not playing football and so um giving us extra practice time giving us an opportunity to compete I also think there's a lot of value in that particular game because it's going to be a preseason top 25 team in SMU coming to Macky and we've got an opportunity to go put our best foot forward against an elite opponent early on and hopefully Captivate the interest of our fan base and pack the stadium I mean that's that's the drive for 25 that's what we're trying to do is get people back in Mackey experience what that's like get excited about about Wolfpack football again and then the last thing is we're going to have a national audience there too because I think there I think it's uh Notre Dames playing someone in Ireland or whatever they've got that zero week game and other than that and there are other multiple other zero week games but the only one of any import is going to be the SMU Nevada game so that's the game that's going to have the eyeballs on it and so I think that's a really cool opportunity for our University and our community to Showcase what we have sounds like the guy said the the competition during their player Le workouts is already heating up I mean to hear that you know I don't know what conversations you've had with them but how exciting is that I kind of check in every day and you know it's one of those you know I only missed probably four prps uh and uh those are always the ones where something happens I can remember my first year at Montana State I'd be up to Lake in C Lane I'd have to drive back because we were having fist fights you know in the locker room I'm like well I haven't had to do that so that's positive um but uh the other day I asked Bel how it when he's like oh coach we we shredded the defense today and then I'm like Henry had' it go he's like oh no they did no we got after you know so everybody's got their own perspective but I think that building confidence is a part of that and and their confidence and their ability to lead and do it without the coaches there and I think they all feel really good about that right now which is a positive yeah why is that important to you knowing that you have players who because you win in the locker room first you know I'm not going to be there all the time the other coaches aren't going to be there all the time I mean the culture of your organization is not what's written on the walls it's not the slogans in the locker room it's what's spoken in the Halls it's what's done when when nobody's around and I think that's the that's when you know you're getting it right is when the kids are hand handling that and like they they ran the softball game like I showed up to one of the practices but kilum was the guy that put that whole thing together he was the manager built the rosters they selected the uniforms like they they took ownership over that and and those are the things that you're looking for you know from a leadership standpoint is okay are they are they talking about it or are they walking the walk right now you know and these guys have I think have done a good job of accepting their level of responsibility and stepping into their roles yeah tell me about the quarterback battle and what you've liked out of you know Brendan AJ chubba yeah those it's going to be interesting all I I see a lot of those I mean I've seen not very much of the stuff but you know you get to watch them and then you talk to them and you talk to I always talk to the receivers who's spinning it good you know and you know Cortez he's like oh because he said it kind of like that he's like a gosh AJ had a good day then Brennan had a good day then chubba had a good day then rby had a good day like these guys are all competing really really closely with one another and that's going to be the most important thing for us to watch early on in Fall Camp because I think we got to give it about two weeks and then we got to make a decision and we got to roll forward with that because you know the days are going to be long but the time's going to be short and then that gives us that week and then a game week to get ready to go yeah because how important then is that continuity once you do settle on a quarterback yeah throughout and it might be multiple you know the one thing I will say is we do have five non-conference games and if I feel like it's it's close enough that hey we need to let both of these guys continue to kind of figure this out we'll do that yeah what are the biggest things that you're looking for aside from analyzing the quarterback battle in that role but just when fall Camp does come around tight end will be interesting to watch you know with Ki moving on um to kind of see how Andrew Sava U and jaay Henry the the two transfers how they come in how some of the young guys develop I think that's going to be a position of interest to watch um running back is so deep and experienced so that's going to be a fun position to watch because I think there's some Flex guys like Ashton Hayes and I mentioned Savon that guys that could play the slot that could give us kind of some flex and in how we approach things formally and so that I think those two positions on the offensive side will be interesting to watch interior dline we've got some true freshman guys that are probably going to have to play for us but um you know Jason Douglas and and David pay and Z Zaden Wallace are three guys that are going to be in the mix which one of those guys or multiple guys emerge and guys that we can count on for down so I think that's a position to kind of keep an eye on um and then safety I think there's going to be really good competition at safety as well matat luic is he here with you guys yet or he will be in Reno on the 17th um had a series of tests on July okay and uh and so he'll he'll be with us to start fall camp and he's been working remotely he got the green light from his doctors to to you know move to Reno and and and see what happens and so he's uh he's you know we're very thankful that this has worked out the way it has for him and his family and his health and we're excited to have him there CU what's that been like have there still been more stuff over I guess Zoom just with coaches you guys with the players really right now no he well I mean he can meet with the players but um most of what it has been done is is just you know making sure they get the Playbook done correctly do our installs um script the prps different different things of that nature but it's been a lot of that virtual communication stuff that's been going on yeah well I think the identity is going to be an ongoing process as I mentioned you know we've got these five preseason games and we're just trying to lay this out and get this to where it needs to be and we'll know who a lot more about who we are when we get to that first bye after the Eastern Washington game prior to our San Jose State League opener and so the identity piece I can say hey I want to be this but we got to let this play out and see who are we really going to be some of that's going to be the quarterback decision for example um some of that's going to be how some of these interior dine and develop and mature so I think that part of it is is uh is important for us to understand that this isn't going to be hey immediately this is I can sit here and say this is what I want well you know coaching is taking what you have and making the most out of it right and so that's what the the identity piece is going to be a little bit of a work in progress the character piece I Define two different ways there's two types of character in my opinion there's personal character which is the man that you are outside the white lines and there's competitive character and that's the man that you are inside the White Lines uh I feel like we've got really good personal character on our roster I don't know what our competitive character is I haven't gone to war with these guys yet and so I want to identify what their competitive character is in that opener against SMU how do these guys respond when when things go well and how do they respond when things aren't going well and quite honestly I'm more interested in how they respond when they're not going well will uh and so those are going to be things that you know like not just me but there's seven other guys that are going through the same thing right in this conference right now you know I I I think that uh you could ask the same question to every one of the seven new head coaches and in a lot of ways we're going to say the same thing which is it's an unknown um we know what we want we know how to get it there what the how quickly that thing's going to turn I don't know lot went yeah well Player Development is kind of falls into four buckets the way I look at it one is tactical development that's the job of the coordinator teaching the game of football and we have our football 101 that we do they this is what we call for ations this is what this split would would indicate this is what this call means in our defense our offense in the kicking game then there's technical development and that's the job of the position coach being an expert at the techniques that it's going to be required for your position right then there's physical development and that's the strength and conditioning coach that's the trainer that's the nutritionist and then their psychological development that's my job well the faster you develop kids that means you're hitting all four areas you're not just focused on tactical and neglecting technical or physical or psychological you're not just hitting on physical and Technical and neglecting tactical and psychological if that makes sense and so having a having a really directed approach to being intentional about hey this is how we're going to bring you along and then letting them know the process is underway and this is what this aspect looks like and this is what this aspect looks like and so I think being really intentional about the process is what makes a difference and how quickly you can develop individuals and how you kind of worked out OB I it's different everywhere loc the school to the community how is theun support team whatever pass forward just I think one of the Hallmarks of the the Reno community in general is there's an expectation that people do give back to the community regardless of whether they're being compensated or not our our student athletes are going to be present in the community doing community service activities right and so that's just a that's the price of admission in that Community which I think is one of the best things about that place and so that part of it being said monetarily there's there's opportunities for guys there are some individual corporations that have engaged with student athletes they're they're they're doing really well and then there's the collective side of it right and so there's there's different pieces to this there's what are you pursuing on your own building your brand creating relationships that are going to last beyond the game and then over here you've got okay okay what is the what is the collective able to do to build a roster okay obviously I'm focused over here I've got to build a roster we have other people that are helping these guys build that brand and and identify businesses that they can engage with and so we're I think our platform if I I'm guessing on this a little bit but I would say we're probably middle of the road in the Mountain West right now in terms of what our resources are within iil um and that's a vast improvement from where it was when I got there the alumni a lot alumni yeah well we do have a significant number of former players that have either currently on NFL rosters or played significant reps in the NFL and so um I had lunch with brenon Marshall when I was down here in Vegas recruiting back in January Virgil Green is on our staff um you know Romeo was back not too long ago and it's uh you know like you think about Joel bonio gave a million dollar gift the guy's a seven time all pro right there's kids come back players come back to that Community because that community supported them and I think that's very special and unique and so um you know we obviously reach out to all of our alumni not just the ones that played in the NFL and want to encourage them to come back to their University and be a part of what we're trying to build in the football program but it's always special when you have somebody that's been able to achieve that highest level and uh and know that that was the place the platform that gave them an opportunity I mean Johnny's Italian is pretty special I'd give that one i' I'd give that one an A+ uh there's tons of Italian joint really um you know and and that's and there's great pizza in that town too wild garlic uh there's just some different there's some little and Reno is a cool place man it's like a totally different vibe than Vegas but it's got a lot of really good food places um Lou bass Corner can't go wrong there but you know I can go on and on there's a lot of good spots OB situation last year isn't what anybody what was yeah I think I think Stephanie wanted somebody that had been a head coach before and that had the experience in building the program and so I think that was important um I think she wanted somebody that was going to be pretty transparent and honest and uh not afraid to get their hands dirty and wasn't you know wasn't afraid of a challenge and so I think that's kind of where that piece came in and I think that's where I was a good fit well I think I know that Nevada is getting a better version of Jeff Cho than Montana state did um because they gave me the opportunity to learn and grow and you're always going to gain a lot of experience in that role and uh there's really no preparation for it you know being an offensive or defensive coordinator or special teams coordinator that doesn't prepare you to be a head coach I think there's an assumption that it does but not everybody's cut out to for this job and this role and um I think the one thing I that I learned is that not everything is an emergency you know just every time a guy gets a parking ticket the fire alarm did not get pulled and so to you know be able to have a little bit temper myself a little bit have a little bit more and composure and uh and you know recognize the difference between problems and real problems if that makes sense and I think that helps me to be more consistent in my Approach with players and get better responses from them obviously um I don't know I think everybody's experience is different you know you think about like I mean obviously you got Ken who's been a head coach forever and you got at bronos who's had a lot of head coaching experience I'm kind of in the middle there and then there's guys that haven't done it at all and so that's uh like I said it'll be interesting to see how they adapt to those challenges and manage their time that's a big one you know you figure out how to say no eventually and then get a little bit of your life back um but I think that's uh the cool thing to me about being a head coach there's a lot of negatives quite honestly like you don't coach football anymore I mean you become more of a CEO in a lot of ways but the impact that you're able to have on a larger number of people is unique and um while you can have that impact within your room I could impact 12 or 15 linebackers and 40 45 guys on defense I can't do 120 plus the support staff plus the mentoring the young coaches and providing those opportunities and there's something special and unique about being able to create those opportunities for kids like it's a cool thing to walk into a house that a young man is that nobody's ever gone to college in that kid's house and say we're going to pay for your college education and that has the ability to change not just that young man's life but his family and his future family's life like there's something really cool about that and we sometimes we lose track of that but that's one of my that's one of the best parts of the job for me and so it's kind of cool I all Romeo and Cole came to visit last I mean was that first time that you met the two of them yeah it was yeah um so Cole actually has the same agent as Troy Anderson who played for me at Montana State and so they swapped stories about me and so yeah but yeah they were they were awesome guys I mean I really enjoyed my time with them and uh look for for to seeing them continue to have success in the NFL and come on back to Reno whenever they need to yeah I mean just how nice is that to be able to welcome them back as if you know you did Coach them like just to be able to walk and hopefully they felt that way like they felt like you know hey this is doesn't have to be awkward or weird like you know I'm just the guy sitting in that chair this is your place and so that's kind of how I approached it with him did you talk about the offensive line a little bit and just the strides that you've seen out of them this Summer yeah I think the whole thing about that group is being cohesive and getting Five Guys even if it's just stepping right and stepping left do it together do it in unison do it aggressively and fast and um coach Armstrong is an excellent teacher and I think that the guys have really responded to him and I can see the growth in that unit I saw it throughout Spring ball I mean I think I think we're gonna by the end of the year I think that's going to be one of the strengths of our team I really do know you touched on it a little bit before but just um with the 2.5 wins but the you know being picked to finish last and not a player on the preseason pool I mean yeah does anybody know what my roster looks like I mean I haven't seen any of these people in Reno so you know like the only one I'd say is like Keaton Crawford would have been a first team would have been a first team all special teams guy in the SEC this year that's tells me there's I'm not putting much stock into this they haven't really done their homework on our roster uh I don't think they've really done their homework on me you know uh you know so that's that's what that tells me you know is you know I don't have a lot of I'm not putting a lot lot of stock into that you know and at the end of the day there's you know you got to start somewhere and as I mentioned earlier great we got nothing to lose let's go and so you know this is this is a heck of a spot to be in man you know there's there's pressure that goes with being pick first you know we don't have that pressure but how do you feel like too like that energy you can just rub that onto the rest of the guys that hey we have nothing to lose we're going to go out there and we're going to show what we're capable of there is no pressure and not let that I guess that culture or that energy surround I'm not going to have to because they're going to watch NSN tonight and you're going to tell them no it's uh no I think that I I talked about being consistent earlier and I think my messaging has always been pretty consistent you know number one it starts with us um and and you know individually it starts with you but it's not about you it's about the organization and the greater good and our guys recognizing what we have to do to be good and uh and making those personal sacrifices to do that and so um what I tell them this all the time what other people think of us is not n of our damn business it's not if we spend time worrying about what you think about me what what you I mean I'm going to be miserable and I'm not going to let somebody else determine my happiness and I'm certainly not going to let somebody else determine the happiness of our organization so uh these kids are going to know that we care about them that we believe in them and uh we're g to play free and loose and like I said I think we'll be a dangerous unit yeah you guys obviously with Brendan quarterback um he's OB shown a lot of flashes throughout his couple years in col he's played a bunch of different coordinators bun of consist what do you feel like about what Matt brings is going to be able to unlock him maybe a little bit and really try to find that consistency that been lacking yeah I think you know stability and consistency I mean he went through I guess two quarterback coaches before the season started in Nevada last year from what I understand so that was a little bit unsettling and I think that's the whole thing is like Hey we're not going to put this on your shoulders you don't have to go win this game all right you just operate deliver make good decisions with the football utilize your athleticism create a little bit off schedule here and there and take care of the football if every Drive ends in a kick we're going to be just fine buddy and I think that knowing that as a head coach I'm going to have his back in that regard and I'm not going to put him In Harm's Way a whole lot uh try to protect him and uh and I think we've got guys the other thing that's going to bring the best out of them is the competition in our room is exceptional with chubba and uh and AJ and Anthony griggsby in there so I feel like we do have good depth in that position and so um I think that you know he's going to he's the ker rise man you know the guy that's going to be the guy that's going to be the guy but he certainly has all the tools and I think a lot of it is more about confidence than it is ability do you see those have you seen those flashes so far in your your time with him 100% whether it's even seven on seven stuff or just kind of random drills just kind of seeing the real Flash no you can see it every single day I mean he when he's confident knows where to go with the football he he's a really e he's an excellent passer um but he's got the X Factor too he can create off schedule he can make plays with his legs and he is fast I mean like he's a problem in the plus one run game and so um I think he's got that chubba has a lot of the same types of qualities AJ's more of a conventional dropb guy but he's also you know that guy that's going to process and get the ball out and know where to go you obviously have a lot of history in this com well experience in it coaching in for a long time but how much just bring in a guy like Matt who obviously just the luic name is has a lot of weight in his conference how much are you going to lead on him and I'll just kind of allow him to do what he does best on the off side the ball your first year well I can't coach every position on the field and that's why you hire good people around you because I've tried that actually I tried that my first year in Montana State it didn't work out real well um Matt is a guy that I've known for a long time and uh this is going to be basically a commercial for Western Montana college right now but Matt and I went to school at Western Montana College together our offensive line coach Brian Armstrong he's a Western Montana college guy so we were all there I'm a little older but we were all there about the same time and uh I think that the cool thing is there's a lot of trust there's a lot of there's a lot of water under that bridge between myself and Matt and Brian and the trust that I have in Bryan's ability to put together the Run game David Gilbertson our quarterback coach to manage with Matt in the past game and Matt's ability to blend the two I think that's what he's going to bring to the table and that's the guy's a football junkie I mean that's all he does is ball and uh you know he's been a part of some really explosive outfits and I think we're lucky to have him timeo they were a long time ago so yeah I mean I thinking 2011 was my last season I that's it's like an eternity in this profession it's like seven jobs for me um but those were a lot of fond memories too so you know when uh when that job was open there was there was quite a bit of support for you from the hunter whites in the world on social media yeah Hunter probably probably buried my opportunity there you know candidly I mean you know nobody's GNA listen to Hunter right no um I you know here's the thing this game at the end of the day is all about relationships and it did mean a lot to me that young men that had a strong part in their life that they were saying No this is a guy that we know what he's capable of doing and uh and I've got that same kind of support from some of the transfers that have come to Nevada like hey just you know just trust this guy he's GNA he knows what he's doing and he cares about you and you know he's going to have his way of doing it but you know I mean some of the guys I was really hard on some of those I was a young coach back then and so that meant I had a hot temper and you know you kind of approach things a little bit differently than you do especially after I coached my own kid that tempered me a little bit uh but yeah I was great group of guys I me whether that's you know Winston Venable or Billy W or hunter or Brad elen or Aaron tus go down the list of the guys right I think to ask me about that is you mention these are guys coach a long time ago so now they're taking what you taught them into real life and having that perspective so the fact that they're coming back years later in doing that I me that's what this is all about right y so I don't you still talk with those guys even after all oh yeah yeah yeah no I mean that wasn't about that wasn't about whatever boyy state wanted to do wasn't about my relationship with George ioka my relationship with George ioka was built on Foundation of of trust and and honesty and mentorship and all those things and I I love George and I'll Love George till the day I die you know so that's that has nothing to do with what color jersey you're wearing you number how close you guys I talk to him probably once a month yeah yeah I mean I shoot I worked for Chris for eight years six at boisee and two at Washington so yeah definitely a mentor of mine what perspective can he offer now he on the outside back I think less and less as he gets further away from the game if I'm being honest with you uh because the game has evolved so much in the short amount of time that he's been out of it you know like what's he going to tell me about nil except for that he doesn't like it or whatever you know so I don't need somebody else tell me they don't like nil um but as as far as the leadership lessons uh and the culture building stuff that's Timeless Jeff you got a couple of wam guys on your staff right now James priceis Bartlett talk about them a little bit why you have them on your staff what you like about them well okay so JP is the only guy that I didn't know the only one and so he's there because Matt luic was like this guy is a sharp young coach and we need him luic stuck up for him yeah well they because he GA to Kansas and Matt got to know him then and so yeah so yeah that's something when you got a A luic sticking up for a Wyoming guy yeah so uh anyway that's uh that's kind of how that one evolved and then Tevis I recruited and coached Tevis at the University of Washington and then when he was breaking into coaching I hired him as my ga at Texas and so that's kind of where that tie in came yeah than you yeah my pleasure what about I mean when you're Cho to leave a place like Texas in I mean and you're looking at head coaching jobs obviously the opportunity out but what are you evu at specific jobs and plac that's obviously got to be tough to give up when you're playoff last year in Texas obviously potential to go back again this year yeah I don't look in the rearview mirror a whole lot um I'd spend a lot of time doing that if I did here's the thing at my age and my experience in football has been the the one thing that you're trying to gain is a little bit of control control is more important than money control is more important than what logos on your leel you know that's that's the stuff that I pay attention to and then the other thing that I pay attention to is impact right and I kind of spoke about this earlier a little bit was you know being in a place where I can have the greatest impact on the greatest number of human beings like that's the Legacy that I'm shooting for you know because I don't have 30 years left in this game um so you know being able to set my hey yeah that's that's I got to work it's going to be a grind but you know what guys I'm leaving this day and I'll be back this day and you know I I have control over that at least right and then to to know that you're having an impact on on not just not just the players but the assistant coaches is you know he talked about t i mean t is a guy that I've mentored in the profession and create an opportunity for him to grow and um that's kind of a cool piece of it too so that's what matters the most to me know family my brother was the 5 Asic coach of the year two years ago you know so for real though yeah yeah are you forward to that trip back this year I you know I've got to ask that question obviously a number of times today I I mean I guess it'll so far away for me to even think about yeah I'm sure it'll it'll hit me when I'm there but i' I've coached there on the other sideline before whether it was at Utah State or Washington and so um you know it's a cool place with a lot of great memories and so you know sure it'll be a fun fun night are you they've already been just FYI that happened a long time ago so yeah that's uh I know still a sore spot and I had to live through that with Kyle so you know nobody knows that more than I do what you enjoy most um you know just creating opportunities you know building a staff the day-to-day challenges like look think being able to think not just like okay what's my install tomorrow or what drills am I going to run or what are we doing here it's like okay you know what does our January schedule look like in 2025 how can we reinvent the wheel and do something that different in terms of how we're approaching this or where do we get our roster just right where can I invest our resources to maximize what we're trying to do here at Nevada and so I really like the big picture thinking what would Define a successful season in your eyes this year I've had that question a number of times today and I think you know if you walk into our facility on on the ground floor there's a there's a pyramid at the top of the pyramid it says most improved team in the FBS and really that means that what's our record at the end right and so we say Hey you know we were two win team last year and you're a six win team a seven win team an eight- win team I don't know what that number is but that's that's what success is going to look like to me talk about kind of around about he guys on the outside spoke him last year I was like man you look smart he was lucky out did how when it comes to he was on I think it's easier does that it's gotten harder you know they the rules the the way the rules have evolved they keep changing the calendar thinking it's going to make a difference in a positive way but they haven't ever factored in that you're also adding in all these other recruiting elements of the the transfer portal going off twice a year and you know you just can't get away like you used to be able to when I worked for Chris we had five weeks off one week in the office and you got a month off every year it was the best job in America and we were going to win 90% of our games so like you know like like was unbelievable right and then uh you know when you're especially year one's always going to be hard drinking out of a fire hose trying to get all the stuff done get the thing off the ground so that's always going to be a challenge um but the the the work life balance piece has gotten more difficult in my opinion um in spite of what everybody's saying about how they're trying to fix the calendar that it's just they it's the layers that they've added and I think their intent is good but it's not working right now can you tell me a little bit about whates no we do some different stuff but you got to get in the program man you know I can't give you all my secrets but uh no we'll we'll do a variety of stuff you know um doesn't say he loves it yeah no I think that I think that and we'll continue to do that I engage with a guy named Phil cornu who's got a company called stonewater training and um he's an elite guy in terms of leadership and culture building and the guy that I've engaged with for a while and he is kind of the guru behind a lot of that stuff and it's a lot of it's military based type stuff um but there's there's a real intent behind it in terms of stretching these guys to grow and uh he does a lot of out like classroom stuff with him as well that I think it kind of layers on top of that yeah anything worth doing is always going to be hard man I can't pick of one thing in my life that was easy that I brag about not one you know so it's the it's it's the difficult things it's the calluses on your hands that you take pride in and that you reflect on and uh so I'm I'm pretty sure it's going to be the same way with this group on that note Henry said yesterday he didn't even know some of his teammates names last year yeah it's good to see like but now this year you know with these Wednesdays I guess how important is that to you knowing how much your guys are truly getting out of what you're trying to do outside of the field well I think it enhances their experience in a number of ways right because they're you know football locker room is a very diverse place in fact I would I venture to Guess that our locker room is the most diverse place in Northern Nevada right and um you know we're about a third Polynesian about a third African-American about a third Caucasian right and in a couple other you know ethnicities here and there where else are you going to have that and so easy to live in your comfort zone but when you do this kind of homogeneous mixing of groups and say that's that's how you're going to operate well you're never going to get tight so you got to kind of mix up the mix them up and hey intentionally this is going to be a racially diverse group and these guys are going to come from different parts of the country and now they've got to sit in a room and have a conversation and get to know one another and then we're going to take them out we're going to put them in some stress and see how they respond and put this guy in a leadership role and everybody else has to be subordinate and follow the rules and and you kind of learn a lot about their ability to interact and they gain a certain level of respect you know like Matthew kilum is our kicker and he's you know everybody's gonna have this stigma and they're gonna oh you know whatever but that guy's one of the best leaders we have and that came out of some of the things that we were doing in the offseason where he was put into these leadership roles and he had no problems stepping forward and assuming that Manel and everybody kind of shut up when he talked and I was like all right this guy's got something you know and so that's where you find those things out by doing these things by doing some organic work that way I'm curious I guess going back to last year went in Texas what was uh what was your impression of EV in that game first timebody seen him play at that level sure couldn't really you didn't know what to expect no but I I I mean I thought I thought they were gonna I I thought they were going to win Mountain West I just thought they were playing really really well early in the season and uh you know they're offensively they were so committed to that wide Zone scheme and they had the right backs and then I think the one kid like went yeah ended up going to the portal or something number seven uh on offense yeah on offense anyway well they had a little little scat back that scored the long touchdown yeah so but I mean like so like I thought they had something going there and they had a gritty gritty tough quarterback and so veteran on defense I mean what they have like eight or nine sixth year seniors on that roster and so yeah I was really impressed with um how they competed I actually had a conversation with Coach B before the I was like how long you going to do this you know because we're old FCS guys so we can we can shop it up about that and he's like oh I got three or four more years left in me like come on bro what was was going through your head when uh Harris broke off like 65 y touchdown first quarter yeah our true freshman inside linebacker Misfit a basic Zone play and he got an ear full on the sideline and probably woke us up to be honest H with you so but yeah I thought they competed really really well I really was impressed with the team going into the game I thought they were going to you know some injuries and some weird stuff that happens but they kind of you know didn't didn't finish the year the way they wanted to but I've always had a lot of respect for that program yeah you bet did your Fone coaching in the FCS level I loved it yeah I loved it it's uh it's very unique you learn a lot about roster management um finan yeah exactly you kind of get creative about how you juggle things and you know you you know figure out how to you know turn water into wine as I used to say and uh that's there's there's a unique challenge in that but the playoff system is really cool you know um uh because there was so much turnover and things like that you people and a lot of people the league are talking about the problem of schools coming in poaching players and everything how do you avoid that how do you well you're not going to avoid it I think you've got to build the best culture you can and you've got to have the resources to retain your best players I mean that's essentially what it comes down to and you're still going to recognize that there's going to be times where somebody's going to have a bigger bank roll than you do and that's just the reality of it um if that opportunity is worthwhile for that young man and it's going to be life-changing for them it's going to be hard for me to say don't do it you know and so that's what our our job is to do is build a great culture that they want to stay around they want to be around and provide enough resources to take care of the top guys on a roster it seems as long as it's a quter it's fine like if a guy finishes his career or or ends the season with you and then decides to enter the quarter that's one but it seems a lot of times now people are being talked to while they're still with you that I don't know I don't know I don't think we have police in general that do that so um that's going to be a difficult task I think uh you kind of got to rely on the Integrity of the individuals involved and a lot of times this isn't other coaches that are doing this this is Street agents or them reaching out to High School coaches gauging interest saying hey did you know I've had a conversation with University ex coach and they'd be interested in you and you know I mean I think yeah you gotta let him play out the season and see where it ends you have a lot of quarterbacks there you Nar down we have a good idea of kind of what our what our rotation is going to be when we get to the fall and um fall camp but uh but it's going to be an open competition any I think about you know get through that first real scrimmage of fall Camp try to go about two weeks and then make a decision when you look at obviously had head coaching experience but talk you know knowing what you don't know kind of having to deal with that having to fight through what you don't know to still coach your team how does that work when it comes to your St be like offensive coordinators down to how do you them even you know not um in terms of the aspirations to become a head coach or just in general no just do the best job they can in their yeah well I think number one you it's incumbent upon the leader of the organization to be clear concise and repetitive about the expectations and I think a lot of times people skip the step of defining roles and so defining that role for that individual this is what I expect from you this is what I need from you that helps lead to the other conversations of how I get them better you know we can reference hey you know I need you to be an elite recruiter in your position this is what I think that looks like let's talk about the job that you're doing in recruiting right so you have those sidebar conversations or um we talked about improving your your communication patterns in your meetings and I'll sit in a meeting and I'll take notes and I'll give them that feedback and then that's how you're trying to coach your coaches if you will and so I think that's uh does that answer your question yeah yeah okay I know this is a little ways away but have you even spoke with the guys about the Fremont Cannon and the UNLV rivalry we talk about it probably every day in some way shape or form how important is that to you I think that's everything to Northern Nevada you know they definitely feel some type of way about there there's a tilted tilted view in the state of Nevada and you know you get a feel for that when you come down here obviously and I think Barry and his staff have done a Fant fantastic job I think they've really committed to being good in football which they hadn't done for a long time and you see the result do you talk about your relationship with Coach odm I don't really have a relation I mean you know like it's not I think people may see it as adversarial I have a lot of respect for coach odm and the job that he's done and I I kind of like his coaching style and his demeanor you know and uh I think we probably have a lot more in common than we have different uh but you know we'll probably jab at each other a little bit here and there in a good-natured way coach I was a able to see the way that you approach in state rivalries first hand back in Montana um where you get that fire that you're continuing to bring into youram you know honestly I would say this you've seen the Ted lasso episode curious where he's playing he's playing darts you know are you curious or judgmental I think a lot of people are judgmental about me because I played small college football and I was a high school coach and you know so I kind of have that chip on my shoulder so you know are you curious or judgmental and so that's kind of where I get that that edge for for myself and um when I saw that I was like okay that's that that resonates with me a little bit but I maybe that's that helps explain it like you know I mean I've been on underestimated I think my whole life right and I think that if you look at my my career and you look at the track record all I've done is win that's all I've done and so what are you basing this on are you curious or are you judgmental and that's kind of how I look at it and so if you're not going to recognize the work that I put in then I'm gonna have to show you one of my favorite um quotes that I've kind of taken with me past covering you your people um and that how you know on that note just what is your uh what's your program like like what's all the people that are making up your program this year what's well hopefully they're all team players um they're people that I know and trust that's what I like to surround myself with and that they know me they know my strengths my weaknesses they know my you know they know like Garrett will know a certain look and he'll turn the other way you know and so that's just the way it's going to be and uh but I think that they they can appreciate and respect that about me is I I think I'm pretty consistent you know like my wife tells me you know you're a jerk but you're an equal opportunity jerk and so uh that's that's that's what I try to be consistent and who I am and have high expectations hold myself to those high expectations and uh and push people like nobody gets into this to be average you know nobody does and it's so easy to fall into that average mentality and so you know I need people pushing and driving me and I see my job is to push another and drive other people around me famous Alum cernick engaged with at all you know I've I've reached out to to Colin in a in a couple of different ways and uh you know I think there there's going to be a right time for him to be celebrated again at the University in NADA and I think that's going to be his choice that's going to be on his timeline and so we look forward to that day now there there's going to be some folks that are probably going to argue with you on most famous Alum though so you know you got to keep that in mind I mean Nate Burleson you know hey I mean 13 years in the NFL he's got a pretty successful journalism career you know coach Al did some decent things up there and he's a unar grad so yeah so anyway but yeah you know uh the door will always be open at the University of Nevada for coling