Notre Dame Week Press Conference: Mike Elko

um thank you guys for coming out uh it's finally here you know it's what I told the guys this morning it's you spent an awful lot of time to get ready for game week and now game week is finally upon us and so uh we're excited we're excited for this week we're excited for this opportunity I think we've had a really really good fall Camp uh happy with the progress that we've made across the board happy with where our team is from a health standpoint going into this week to get ready for this opener I think we've gotten a lot done in terms of becoming more physical getting better improving but also you know getting our guys to this week healthy and ready to roll and so uh excited with how that all worked out I think from our standpoint our focus is real simple you know we want to be able to go out and play our best football Saturday night and you know what we talk to our guys about I think this is really important when you're playing a game like this uh the focus has to be on all the little details from today through Saturday that give us the opportunity to go out Saturday night and perform like we want to and the challenge I laid on them was go out there every day and outwork Notre Dame you know someone on Monday is going to prepare better than the other team someone on Tuesday is going to prepare better someone's going to hydrate better someone's going to eat better uh all those little things you can do to give yourself an advantage to go out Saturday night and be successful we have to do because you can't over prepare that's not something that exists you can't be too ready for the opener and so um that's the challenge you know we've got to go out have a great week of practice um we had a good Monday morning this morning as we switched to kind of a morning schedule so we got our Monday morning in this morning um you we got three more days to go out and and prepare and practice and we'll go out Saturday and really be fired Up For What should be a tremendous Saturday afternoon in Brian College Station with ESPN game day here and then an electric Saturday night in Kyle Field um as we transition to Notre Dame and and just kind of talking about them and their team uh obviously a lot of respect for for Marcus Freeman uh him and I have known each other for a long time going back to our days in in the Mac uh when he was at Kent State and I was at Bowling Green and we would cross paths and recruiting and so um defensive guys tend to follow each other uh in this profession and so you know certainly have watched him and watched his defense over the years and he's a tremendous head coach uh offensively last year they were the seventh ranked scoring offense in the country they went out in the offseason they hired Mike Den Brock who was the leader of the number one total offense end scoring offense in the country and so we expect them to be uh extremely prolific on that side of the ball uh it starts with the quarterback who I have some familiarity with obviously Riley Leonard and and everything that he brings to the table but a true D threat dual threat quarterback I think who can hurt you both with his arm and with his legs and so he presents a huge challenge uh in the back field they have always had a lot of running backs and always been able to roll through guys Jeremiah Love steps in this year to be the the guy but um you know we anticipate that being a group of guys that roll back there like it kind of always has been uh similar to us they've kind of revamped the wide receiver room a little bit with some guys that have have really stepped up in their program uh with with some additions of transfers and so uh I think one of the unique things as you're watching film on openers you're you're watching film from about eight different colleges uh as you get ready for this offense you know you got Duke film on there you got FIU film on there you got Clemson film on there you got Notre Dame film you got LSU film it's just it's one of the unique things about going through these openers and then um you know at tight end Mitchell Evans is a kid that I have a lot respect for he really had a huge game in Durham last year against us a Duke and uh really a dual threat kid can can hurt you in the Run game but could really get open and separate in the past game and um you know their offensive line has been kind of the the blood of their program forever uh the lifeline of their program forever and so we certainly expect them to come out and be really competitive on that area of the field as well um defensively they were Elite last year they were a top 10 defense and scoring in Total Defense they bring back a huge part of that group uh I think on the defensive front is where it starts and um certainly Howard cross being a New Jersey guy um kind of always gains some respect for me but uh he plays the game the way you want to him and Riley Mills kind of anchor the center of that defense uh the other guy on the edge who who people haven't talked about as much RJ openin is also a kid who started for me two years a Duke uh really electric pass rusher and brings a lot of value in that area they've kind of revamped the linebacker group but Jack Kaiser will kind of anchor that and uh Jack's been around for a long time played a lot of football uh we kind of recruited him for a little bit when I was here as a defensive coordinator and so um have been familiar with him for a long time he's a great player uh and then I think they're really Elite in the secondary I think Benjamin Morrison's one of the best uh Corners in the country uh and then I think Xavier Watts was an allamerican last year and is really a ball Hawk and can go out and find the ball and so it's a big challenge it's a challenge that we'll be ready for and we'll be excited for and uh from there I'll kind of open it up to questions down front Brent you said defensive guys t to follow each other when you were a young person I know you played on that side of the ball but when did you start really developing that passion for defense and then realizing hey I might be coaching the side of ball as well yeah it's funny so my first job I actually got hired to be the ga coaching wide receivers at Stonybrook uh and I went out there and then right before the season started they were like yeah you're going to coach linebackers it was literally about a week before the season started and so uh I've been on the defensive side of the ball my whole career um and so I think that's probably where you know just kind of was what it was by Nature uh I think probably going through it um always kind of you know the coolness of being the offens coordinator and designing the plays and the schemes and all of that stuff I think probably as a younger kid was more where I felt like it was going to go but as I actually got into coaching it just kind of was defense the whole way through second row on the left Alex and then David I guess it's just kind of the nature of where college football's at now but how interesting is it that you know you are facing your quarterback from last year here in the the season opener and you said a guy you're pretty familiar with um yeah I think it's it's you know interesting and weird and uh not really something I want to do and U but at the end of the day it's kind of part of the game and so um you obviously got a tremendous amount of respect for who he is not just as a player but also as a young man and his family and all of that and so um you know it'll be three hours competing against each other and the rest of the year rooting for them second row on the right David and then Olan you alluded to it a moment ago but just how difficult has your job become and all coaches in college football with all these changes where you are looking at eight different types of film it's hard to predict what Den Brock wants to do with Riley and as you get ready for this one yeah I think in an opener it's it's always challenging I think you've got to you know create a plan on both sides of the ball that has enough versatility because you know you're going to have to adapt you know you you can't walk into you you go into week 10 and you can kind of talk in certainties um you go into week one and you're really not talking any certainties you know everything you're talking is I think maybe uh could look like this you know you do the best you can to to come up with the best guesses you can make on what it will be and what it'll be about but I think you have to be very flexible with the plans you create because you got to be ready to adjust and the whole opener is about adjustments and and what you can do and what you can adjust on the fly to give yourself the best opportunity as the game goes on to kind of feel how it's going uh and be able to have practice enough and be prepared enough that you can go in the direction you need to go to be successful second row on the right Olen then we'll go to the left yeah Mike in you're uh season at Notre Dame did you ever get the sense that when you're playing a team that it it meant the part of the SEC phrase it meant more you know to that team when they were playing Notre Dame that that that was like their biggest game or is that Mystique thing maybe a little over uh over buil well man that's a loaded question OB because I don't know I don't know that I can answer that one right um I have a lot of respect for the brand that Notre Dame is I think it's an iconic brand I think it's recognizable across the country for sure um you know I don't know that I don't know that for us this is necessarily tremendous excitement because it's Notre Dame I think it's tremendous excitement because we're playing a national brand who's ranked seventh in the country in our home opener with a lot of eyes on the game and so I think from that perspective that's kind of how I think it's viewed front left ceas and then Battalion right next actually my my question is along that same line your time at Notre Dame what impressed you most about their program we hear a lot about Notre Dame but you were there fan base the program what what impressed you most when you left their took from that yeah I I think just the history and tradition around it I think being a sports fan growing up being a kid who has always followed college football uh you know it's one of those programs that when you walk in the building there's there's so much history and tradition in that building um you know when you're seeing the four horsemen and you're seeing some of the old Heisman Trophy winners and some of the old memories um it is it's one of the more tradition Rich programs in the country say on the left front row balion hi Mr oo I'm Shelina sa with the Battalion and I I know you mentioned that Notre Dame was part of the top 10 defense last year so going based off of that how is offense going to implement all three backs against one of the better run defenses in college football yeah I I think that'll be one of the challenges within this game I think they don't give you a lot of soft surfaces to run the football I think we're going to have to to find some we're going to have to make some with our offensive line we're going to have to make some with our tailbacks we've challenged them that that's going to be the game a little bit um you know some teams play you in these soft boxes where you have a lot of run angles Notre Dame won't for the majority of the night and so uh we're gonna have to get creative in how we we create opportunities for our backs to get up get some space and get going they're growing right Christie so since you've been hired you've spent months putting together your team getting it ready talking about the team now that it's you know almost your official debut as the coach what are what are your feelings and emotions how how are you feeling this week now that it's here yeah Pro so it's funny I I was thinking back back through this a little bit I there will be a moment walking down the tunnel for sure where it hits you um kind of where you are and where you've gotten to in life I think that will certainly be a little bit of a surreal feeling following the drums down the tunnel onto Kyle Field for the first time outside of that it's really you're just focused on helping these guys get the result that they want right it's about trying to find every angle you can every every little detail you can to pour into this game plan to give them the best chance to be successful and you really don't have a lot of time as a coach to just kind of sit back and think about those types of things it's literally just head down and and go um but I'd be lying if I didn't say there'll be something a little special when you're walking down the tunnel for the first time third r on the left Mark coach you were talking about Riley and and playing him and the offense that they've implemented obviously it's going to be really different from what you guys had to do he G with knowing his instincts and what he likes to do is that still something that is an asset to you as you go into game planning uh no I I would I would argue that he has more of an upper hand than than we do because he's probably a little bit more familiar with this defense than most quarterbacks we play and um not that it's the exact defense we ran at Duke it's obviously Blended together with with what we've done and with what coach baitman brings to the table but um I think I think we don't have a ton of comfort as a program going against this offense you know we haven't defended it for a single snap I think two years going against some version of this defense that's similar to what he'll see Saturday night um probably gives him a little bit more of an advantage than it does us our right side coach chip Mike what are what are the pluses and the minuses of playing a season opener against a top 10 caliber team yeah I think the pluses are U the attention you have of your players for the last eight months I think um when you have this type of game the sense of urgency you have in a preparation standpoint the sense of urgency we had in training camp um you know You' like to say that's because of the coaches but I I I'm certain that the the opener plays a huge role in that and then we did we had a really good training camp I thought the kids were really locked in and focused and um I think that's that's probably the pluses of it obviously you know the negative of it is it's an opener and and um you know when you have an opener and you're playing a game that that's going to be very competitive there's not tremendous margins and um you know you're going to have to come out of the tunnel opening night and and execute at a really high level you're going to have to play penalty free football you're going have to play turnover free football you're not going to have a lot of time to ease into this new program these new systems that were running um you're going to have to go out there opening night and they're going to have to be firing on all cylinders and so um you know that is obviously the challenge we had to take on and I think we've done it to the best of our ability coach back behind the lights on the left Tyler Co coach during Camp you know you talked about you know the defensive line of this team and the offensive line that has you know had to you know maybe play catch up um on their side they've had a lot of injuries offensive line their defensive line has been been a strength for them last year so so how much I guess are those matchups on the lines of scrimmage going to be you know critical in in this game yeah I think they're critical in every game I think you know the way you control the line of scrimmage dictates game Flow so much um you know if you can if you can win the line of scrimmage on defense and affect the quarterback and limit the running game uh you put the the other team behind the eightball and put them in situations where they're very uncomfortable and they have to play faster than they want to I think offensively if we can control the line of scrimmage and create clean pockets for Connor and and create running lanes for our backs I think that makes the game really easy and makes game Flow really easy and so I don't know that it's any more or less in the opener than it is every week I think we've got to be a team that that establishes the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and I think in this one um certainly that'll play a huge role in dictating the outcome of the game for sure back behind the lights on the right Ben coach uh just want to ask about uh college game tank coming to town like what that means for you guys you know I know you're focused on the game but uh kind of going off of that that as well I know you've talked about you know substance over style in terms of how you message your program out there wonder how you try to find the balance between you know still promoting and marketing your program to the you know the best you can especially with an opportunity like this while still you know not maybe getting into the superficial stuff and you know staying on message so to speak yeah I think you could Market your program in substance you know I think if you look at what we're doing on social media right now we've been significantly more active there's been more posts I think there's been more creative content going out um that's all intentional I think marketing our program is something you have to do in this day and age of college football because you recruiting is still the lifeblood of what you're doing and recruits live on social media and so that's a very intentional piece of our program I don't know that that that goes in line with substance it's just what you're marketing and what we're marketing this program to be about um you know and then when you have college Gam day coming to campus I think you're talking about uh significant eyes turning to College Station you know they're going to see agie park for the first time you know there's going to be millions of people looking at Kyle Field in their living room on Saturday morning as they get ready for the first weekend of college football uh that's a tremendous opportunity for our program and for the marketing of our program and so yeah I don't I would never mistake us for not trying to Market our program at a really high level I just think you can Market substance and I think that's what we try to do second row on the right Carter and then Travis hey Mike uh I'm wondering how uh USS Notre Dame's offensive line and and maybe there's a challenge evaluating a group that has six combined starts among them yeah I I I think about it probably a little different than you guys from this perspective I just think you Notre Dame is recruited offensive line really really well for a really long time and if they have young kids that have entered Ed into the starting lineup uh it probably means they're NFL draft picks um you know and so when you say you know he's a freshman starting on the offensive line at Notre Dame my gut would be if you went back and researched that that would end with he got drafted in the first round significantly more often than not and so um you know I think the six starts you know maybe is a concern for them to some degree just in the opener but um I'm sure these young kids that they're putting out there for the first time are extremely talented and that's why they've won the starting jobs that they've won and so that's certainly how we're preparing we're preparing for a typical Notre Dame offensive lineman that's going to be really big and really talented and and try to control the line of scrimmage I think they've been a finalist for the Joe Moore award more than they haven't in the last eight years and so um yeah I would just imagine they've got some really talented young kids playing down front Travis you'll wrap us up mik coming out of fall Camp uh how how healthy are you is there any body you expect to to miss or be limited other than Reuben no I think Ruben's our only guy I think everybody else was at practice this morning rolling and uh yeah a couple kids with Nicks and bruises but nothing that's holding them back or holding them out of practice so yeah it was a really successful fall Camp from that perspective and when you look at wide receivers does it behoove an offense to have a guy who is the the guy the number one or or is it better to have it spread across or does that not really matter when you look at at that from wide receiver perspective um yeah I I think it's obviously nice to have a guy who's a number one because that means you've got a guy that that commands attention and and you know I we'll find out Saturday night but I believe we have that um and then if that guy commands attention then that creates opportunities for other people if if they don't give him the respect he deserves or or leave him more single cover then he can take over a game and I think that's that's the benefit of having a number one but you need more than that um because if it's just one and it's just one guy that becomes a little bit too easy uh for teams to take away and so um you know I think our wide receiver group is real excited to go out there Saturday night and kind of show what they've become and so we're excited to watch them do it