Postgame: (Kentucky) Shane Beamer News Conference 09/07/24

uh first of all best of luck to coach stops and his program um I told him after the game and it's the truth that you know we knew coming in here that we had to be really good to beat a team and a program like his uh am men respect for the way they do things and how well coached they are um as well having said that what a team win for our football program um offense defense special teams talk about gritty you talk about tough you talk about competitive um we showed it all today uh we said coming on the road you've got to have great toughness check you've got to have great physicality check uh when adversity hits you got to have great composure check and then great togetherness and we showed that uh as well and we talked about getting that ball getting the game into the fourth quarter and finding a way to win it and we absolutely did uh you know I love you guys I think you're fantastic what that the jobs you do but frankly there were some really false and lazy narratives out there guys this week there was P perception coming out of that Old Dominion game and I get it it wasn't great nobody thought we were going to win four games but not just you guys everybody out there I get it um that's why the the line that's I pay attention to gambling lines but that's why the line continued to get bigger this week I think for Kentucky as the week went I apologize if I just like completely violated all protocols commissioner sanki but um there wasn't a lot of belief in this program or in this team coming in here to be able to do what we just did against a really good team that has a veteran defense I think 10 returning starters great players high draft picks talented receivers um but I told our team on Tuesday that there was you know there's perception and there's reality and the reality was we got a good football team reality is that we played really good defense against Old Dominion last week reality is we started three true freshman on offense last week and a red shirt freshman quarterback and they would continue to get better reality is that we're really good on special teams and we got a big time punter as uh we showed today and and ultimately reality is we got great belief uh the 74 young men that came up here the coaches and staff this isn't like some surprise we truly you know expected to win this football game knew it was going to take a lot knew it was going to take all of us all 74 and and um we certainly were able to to get it done what a win and and a lot of work to do nobody's sitting here anointing us right now there's a lot to clean up and we can play so much better and that's what I just told you know the team in there as well we uh you know we scored 31 points told the team on Tuesday that nobody in this game the winning team has never scored has not scored more than 24 points outside of Co um the 2020 years since I think 2015 or 16 and we got 31 and all three phases contributed to it so really proud of the guys in our program so happy for the older guys in our program that have been around here for a while a lot of these guys you know a couple years ago when I came up here I talked about it that it wasn't lost on me that this game up here in 2020 was the night that coach Tanner called me and and said to me after we made small talk for two or three minutes um finally said are you ready to do this meaning offered me the job and um you know Justin King sent me a text before the game with a picture of the spot that he was standing at in 2020 when he got word the alert that I've been named the head coach at South Carolina and um that was a great memory for me and for him and we came up here two years ago and that was a huge win for our program that night and then to be able to come up here in 2024 on national television first SEC game we're 1 and0 we're at top the SEC standings and um it's a great statement win for our program right now and lot to build up on as well we got to be a lot better we got a big challenge next week with LSU but just so happy for the guys in that locker room I'm sure you guys can hear them through the walls we're having a heck of a celebration and as we should that's a great win and and uh against a really good team and our guys have worked really really hard questions have you seen a game since you've been do you not know that David always gets the first question in here go ahead I'm just messing I'll give you two David your time in Columbia though two this is a two-parter Shane I guess is this the best that you Senor team play on both sides of the line of scrimmage but also was this the most physical game that's a physical Kentucky team yeah and and I got the perception that you guys just kept pounding pounding pounding and their will broke I've never seen that out of a scoop yeah I don't know if if about their will Breaking or anything I know that I'll put our physicality up against anybody and um our toughness up against anybody we knew that it was going to we sit all week that this is going to be a street fight that was the exact words that we used with our team it ain't going to be pretty when you play these these guys and there's going to be some ugly runs and they're going to make some plays which they certainly did today and uh we needed to be gritty and physical and tough and composed and fight through you know the adversity but there's no question about it you know there's a lot of talk um about kuy's defensive line and and front seven and rightfully so zero is going to play in the NFL for a long time 13s a really good pass rusher 54 and two are great linebackers our defense is pretty good too now and they was a lot to talk about our front seven one a talk a lot to talk about our defensive line and um you know we uh uh that group is is really really good up front and they're they're veteran we weren't Kentucky didn't wasn't the only veteran defense out there today we got a bunch of guys that have played a lot of football for as well and um you know perception of our defense we played pretty is is maybe not reality we've played pretty good defense now here going back to last season and I'm sure you guys are aware we've won five out of our last six games here at South Carolina and and uh I know the easy it's easy to say well you won the games you were supposed to win you beat the teams you were supposed to beat five out of six is still five out of six and and that's what excites me as we're just scratching the surface of how how good we can be are you ready to hang your hat and say that's your team's identity Street Fighters uh hell yeah um yeah I mean if somebody said that about us at the end of the season that we're a bunch of Fighters and tough and gritty absolutely do I want it to be ugly at all times no I mean would I like to be better than uh well we were 12 or 16 throwing the football that's pretty Dam good um would I like to run the ball for more than 86 yards and throw it for more than 166 absolutely but one thing about us is we're going to continue to get better on offense and we're good on special teams we're going to continue to get better on defense we played a lot of young guys out there you know you guys Fred Johnson got out there and played some today in our three down package and and um um you know had some young DBS in there vicari Swain played more today so we'll continue to get better in all three phases Shane lar obviously bang up first of all second just what was the decision making like to just keep sending him back in there and saying it's going to come it's going to come even though the passing was kind of spotty perect um just we have great belief in him um that what kind of player he he is and the guys in that locker room know that and and believe in him they believe in Robbie Ashford proud proud of Robbie coming in there in a situation and being composed and poised and and then when lenorris went back in and he you know and Robbie came out when Lenor through the interception I mean one of the first people up to him is is Robbie encouraging him so I just I love that room uh he got banged up a little bit on that first drive I think when we threw the touchdown and uh took him back in here just kind of worked on it a little bit and got him where he felt like he could go back out there but there was never a question of not sending him back out there he's a you know we had a great week of practice throwing the football I felt like and we got better in the passing game this week and and it was good to see some of our guys make plays uh in the passing game the way the def defense really seemed to pressure Vander Griff taking out the passing game was that was that something you guys knew you could exploit today or what was kind of the uh idea going into it um first of all we're really good up front on defense and um we knew that you know I'll put our front seven up against anybody and so we knew that we were going to be able to you know generate some pressure on the uh on the quarterback and and starts anytime you play these guys anytime play any game it always starts with you know stopping the run but we needed to control the line of scrimmage we felt good about our ability up front on defense to be able to u to be able to do that Jack and then certainly you know Brock is a really good quarterback Vander Griff and and uh I've talked about how hard we recruited him at Oklahoma he's a talented guy but this was his first SEC start too and ain't just Lenor sers that's a Young quarterback you know Brock may have been in college for a long time but outside of the Georgia defense that he faced in practice every day he's never played against a defense like ours in a game as the starting quarterback so we really just wanted to you know uh just give him a lot of different looks and uh really do a good job of disguising coverages and and just staying on the attack and they make they make it tough on you because they shift they motion they give you a lot of unusual formations uh so that's one thing we talked about in our staff meeting this morning with the staff that I told Clayton like don't let the shifts and motions and all that what they do offensively take away our aggressiveness like we need to be on the attack from the get-go and and we absolutely U absolutely were and made it you know really really really tough on them to to uh to do things holding wow 183 yards of offense so great job you uh Molly McGrath one of the things that you were calling the defense they get the promotion toity absolutely no last week it was Debo he was uh uh Target all last week as Old Dominion had a all- American linebacker and Conference Player of the Year and and certainly my target this week was our defense because all the talk was about kuy's dline and rightfully so I mean they're really good and and Walker's a great player but um I was in Boogie and Tonka and and TJ's ear um the entire week so yeah they definitely get a promotion to uh to Varsity as well you mentioned those like you know the The Lazy narrative you mentioned the betting line like how much did you find things this week to use as motivation I really didn't have to like I never once I promise I never once mentioned the line to them you know that we're underdogs I never Ed the word Underdog I everything with me was just you know confidence about what we're about to about to do and you better come in here with confidence you know to do what we did but I never once mention we're underdogs I never once mentioned the beding line um you know I know the narratives man Shane on social media and he's looking at what people are saying about him not really but I mean I don't like go live in a hole either during the week either or in a cave like I know coaches say that but you can't hurt I mean I went I got up early this morning and went for a run like I always do on game day and I came in I'm like I'm going to watch SEC network a little bit there's somebody on SEC network I love you Chris doring um CD is my guy but he's talking about how just I think the words he used was our offensive line was terrible last week they weren't were they did they do some good things yeah if you take the some of the sacks out of it we ran for over 200 yards last week you know we're not a terrible defensive line so just stuff like that you know I I you can't help but maybe if if you're watching television or whatever hear stuff and if I hear a little bit of it you know your players are as well so just really the thing that I tried to do this week Jordan was just you know show them we did some really good things against Old Dominion was it good enough no absolutely not and we have a higher expectation standard and the players knew that I didn't have to say anything I mean they had a we had a team before the team meeting on Tuesday I think Debo got them together and made sure they understood that look what Saturday night wasn't the standard that we played with but also understanding we played a lot of young guys and we're only going to continue to get better offensively and we're going to continue to lean on our defense and and there was great confidence coming in here there's no question about it um our guys had a lot of belief about what we were about to to do and and um and great belief in in one another this combination of um Canard and Stewart pass rush coming off the edge I mean that's I think nine sacks as a defense in first two games just what what can you where is this going to go with these two guys you think if they stay healthy and continue to improve yeah I like the depth in there and the fact that we have more than two um and then the fact that teams are going to have to be concerned about Dylan and Kyle and the rest of our edges well great you know we got three defensive tack multiple defensive tackles three that returned from last year then we've added some guys uh also it helps feel in that you don't have to always pressure to bring pressure meaning bring a linebacker which we did some of that today plenty don't get me wrong but um we can be even more disruptive and we don't always have to bring pressure in order to uh in order to do it so it's uh we've got some guys that can rush the passer we have more I've been saying it all along we've got depth and athleticism up front and and it we made it really tough one them I mean there was that one Series where they were coming out of our tunnel over here and they just continued to go backwards and it was holding penalty after holding penalty after holding penalty which I mean that's uh a great confidence boost when you're standing on the sideline and you realize that they can't block you and um and that's a good offensive line I mean the two tackles are really good players 54 was at Tennessee last year and did a good job against us and and then the the interior guys they have played a lot of football here at Kentucky so that wasn't like some you know chump offensive line that's a really good offensive line and and uh you know credit to our guys up front offensively but especially being able to run the ball too against a good defensive front I feel like a common word you guys use to describe with Norris is consistent yes it's about his demeanor but also his play making too how are you seeing him through two games one being an SEC game now deal with those inconsistent moments fight through adversity obviously an injury was a part but just either practice or just that um consistent you know he doesn't get too high too low and and sometimes I wonder like what's really going on inside his head but you know his teammates have his back and that's what we talked about before the game at the hotel is just have each other's backs today and it's not going to be pretty we're going to make some mistakes and when we do the other side of the ball offense defense special teams got to pick each other up and that's what they did great job by our defense when he threw that interception coming out there and holding them to a field goal I believe on that series and um you know so that's what it's got to be we moner own defense has put the ball down and we put them in a tough POS tough situation and they went out there and got a stop but lenorris is is confident and and you know I hate it you know some of those uh one of the sacks today we we got beat I they had the two in a row right there I think it was the third quarter maybe but you know had two in a row where we got beat think the tight end got beat one time and then there was another time we had a fiveman protection and they brought six and lenorris has got to be able to get rid of the ball there you know so he'll continue to get better from that standpoint but he's gritty he's tough and when something bad happens it's when he threw the interception it wasn't like coming off the side coming off the field and wide eyes and rattled he's just very poised and knew what he did wrong and it's just play the next play you know just like we talk about all the time your wide receivers you talked a lot of last week about you know to be better both you know pass catching and blocking what was your assessment today and especially Mao Bennett what does he do for an offense how does he open things up for you yeah maeso is a competitor um you know it was great to see him credit lenorris I mean that's what he can do he can he can uh extend plays which he did on a couple of those big throws um and maio is a competitor that did some made some did some really good things for sure um today and and you know I told those receivers at halftime I think at halftime I think we had 21 plays at halftime so I think the receivers are looking around like what the heck and I had to remind them like guys we only played 21 plays fellas you know so it ain't like we've played a bunch of plays and had opportunities to throw but I told those receivers at halftime like we're not going to be able to go out here and just run the ball 30 times in the second half and go home we're going to have to make some plays in the passing game and we felt confident doing that and uh those guys did you know to L Norris for scrambling and being able to create some plays and make plays downfield huge play in the game was I don't even remember if we got points but it seems like it was a big play in the game where we went for the fourth down or Faked like we were going forward and Brady hunt came in there and did a great job on that little thing to draw them off sides and can't remember if we got points out of that or not but just huh got a touch down there Perfect all right so um but just stuff like that was a big play the fourth down it was the fourth down stop where we I think we didn't get much out of it or maybe held them to a field goal when they went for it would love to create you know get a touchdown there but uh yeah receivers we got a good group in there and they'll continue to get uh they'll continue to get better I like that group I like the progress they made this week and we'll continue to uh to lean on them and Michael Smith you saw him com in there him and Josh Simon both and make some catches and they uh their weapons in the passing game also take two more John Ted on a little bit butris put the ball on the ground a little bit is that something talk about it seemed like and also it seemed like he was feeling the rush a little bit better in the second the wide receivers tight made you settled seemed yeah I think so um um feeling ball security absolutely is a premium we've got to do a better job with that without a doubt the way we hold it if we're going to run the quarterback I mean a couple times he got hit when he didn't see the guy coming and we were supposed to be protected uh the one the first one over there in the third quarter I believe we should have been protected tight end just got beat and then um the other one like I said he got hit where he should have gotten rid of the ball quicker and we just got to continue to coach him up on that but I thought he was poised and settled in for sure he kept his eyes downfield and stepped up in the pocket and got hit a couple times we've got to prevent that but uh he scrambled out of the pocket and made some plays and wasn't afraid to run it when he when he needed to uh to run it what was the second part I'm sorry John just seen the better yeah I think so yeah saw the field and and uh you know Kentucky again they do a great job defensively and they make things really really tough and and they take away things and they Brad Brad their defensive coordinator does an awesome job coach stops obviously as a defensive guy so I thought Lenoris did a good job of kind of taking what was there and and obviously when we got into the fourth quarter and we were in in really good control of the game we talked about let's really be smart with the football right here and let's not put anything in Jeopardy and they're going to have a hard time moving the ball at all against our defense so let's just make sure that we're smart and and uh I thought you know I wish we had been able to finish that last drive a little bit better we had some penalties and and didn't execute quite like I I wanted to but um was a good third quarter for us for sure want to go back to that fourth down that you alluded to earlier Brady goes in motion does the the hard count to drama one what goes into a decision like that at that juncture of the game and two you feel like that might have been a turning point for you guys to be able to get points out that I think it was huge yeah absolutely like every every play is a big play in this game just because it's typically been a low-scoring game and it's a defensive slugfest I mean that first half we probably set off both teams probably set offensive football back a little bit because it was ugly I mean they had very few yards of offense and we had 20 plays you know but any so any being able to stay on the field and be aggressive um was uh something that we needed to be able to do and it absolutely was a big play and what goes into it it's something that we've worked going back to preseason camp and and uh when it was fourth down I just said to Dow let's run you know whatever we call it let's just take a look at that and see if we can get them to jump and and we were able to and and that was uh that I mean two short yardage situations one where we were able to get a fourth we were able to get a conversion and then to be able to stop them on a fourth and short when everybody knows they're about to run right at you was really two really big plays in this game in my opinion all right thank you guys