HBCU Pride Meets SEC Power: SWAC COACH GETS REAL | HBCUGameDay.com

Thursday night a golden opportunity to uh showcase your brand and play on a big stage Arkansas game just talk about uh offense defense and special teams and just going in well obviously for us uh just kind of like you heard some coaches say what you playing a bigger opponent obviously man you're G to be some man men down uh you know we got 63 scholarships they got 85 uh but we're excited about the opportunity uh you know with our offense we got a new offensive coordinated that came in so we excited to see how we look uh we got some returning starters back uh that played last year uh ready to take that next jump uh defensively we got some really good players that came back uh from last year's defense and hopefully we'll be able to grow and make improvements in that unit and obviously you know um we had a second Team all uh preseason swag punter back hopefully we don't have to use him uh very much as we did last year but um again we feel good about our football team everybody first game of the year right uh but we're excited and as I told our kids and I told the coaches this one game won't Define us one way or another uh obviously you don't want to play a sec opponent first game of the year but that's the hand that we've been dealt and uh so our kids are excited about the opportunity to go out there and showcase our brand thank you coach have a blessed week yes sir you too next question goes to Tanner Spearman coach up your week off to a good start um obviously you would be in Arkansas just going to be the second ever meeting between these schools of course Arkansas for a long time didn't play in state opponents now that they do and you have a chance to be a part of this matchup for you as an Arkansas native what does it mean to you to to see this match up and be a part of it when it wasn't possible for such a long time well obviously that is the excitement just to be able to say you playing the best team in the state and you get a chance to go out there and and kind of see where you are where you measure up and so that is the exciting part about it obviously for our f base is important to them uh you know I think some of them have expectation uh that we're going to go in we're going to score 100 points and we're going to shut him down uh and obviously I want him to keep that confidence and I want him to expect uh great things from us uh but um we're just trying to go in there and shorten the game uh and make us some plays early uh to put a little pressure on them and then we know where the thing kind of get a little jumble is when you start playing o line dline play and they kind of wear on you but again we're excited about the opportunity and I'm glad everybody throughout the state again you say it's the only second time we played them and um I know our players are excited about the opportunity to be to measure up and to see where they stack up with a great up team like that coach if I could follow up on that obviously last year we saw UAP women's basketball go to fiful and win we saw the baseball team play very well against a top two ranked team have you guys talked to your players about those games at all to say hey U athletes can play with these guys in fatball no I mean that don't have anything to do with us uh honestly you know when I was at uh University Louis Monroe was nlu we beat Mississippi State when they had Eric mole uh we went to Kentucky and beat uh Tim cou so I mean it doesn't really matter it's football at the end of the day I got to do my 111 and so yeah you can look at how the basketball team beat him but that don't really got nothing to do with us it's football all right it's 11 men against 11 men uh and now uh at the end of the day you're talking about 60 Minutes you gotta look that man in the eye for 60 minutes and whoop him time and time again so we're excited about that opportunity and as I told our players want to take one play at a time want to play as hard as you can for as long as you can don't ever quit and at the end of the day uh I told our players this and I told our coaches I just want you to be a to look at the guy in front of you and let him know hey it's a battle and you ain't gonna beat me one onone and so that's where the team game comes in so we got a lot of kids that feel like they can play uh big time football so they'll get that opportunity uh but again you know everybody David and goli whatever it is what it is it's football at the end of the day Ball's gonna get spotted and our young men have an opportunity to go out there and show everybody what they can do on National stage and we're excited about that thanks C next question goes to Doc Holiday good morning coach how you doing today hey how you doing doc I'm doing good I'm doing good uh prior to this game you named Maki hains as your starting quarterback uh will you be playing multiple uh QBs in this game just to test do a litmus test for the upcoming season no I mean ma Hain won the starting job uh he won a starting job last year and the only reason that we had multiple quarterbacks and and I didn't let you guys know Mai got hurt and so uh he was never fully healthy after the first game of the year so it looks like we were playing musical Cher playing musical chair the young man couldn't do what he needed to do obviously you saw him the last game of the year uh he can run he can throw the football uh he's a really good football player and so um sometimes kind of gla has half empty half full so on the outside looks like oh they just playing quarterbacks well no he had injuries and uh so now he's fully healthy and when the kid is fully healthy he can play he's one of the best quarterbacks in this conference I believe he's one of the best quarterbacks in the nation uh he was a fourstar kid for a reason and so hopefully we can keep him upright uh and let the man uh do what he do we got a really good offensive system in place uh we got some really good weapons that he'll be able to uh use to his advantage and so we're excited about him uh and excited about our offense as we move forward throughout this year and follow question playing on a Thursday night is a short week uh how are you getting your guys mentally prepared uh for this game right here well it's the first game of the year uh the game was supposed to be on Saturday but they changed it u i mean that's out of our control but it is what it is I mean we just starts today's our first day of class so that's a good thing we only got uh two days of class and then we drive up the road to go play the game so at the end of the day man what's Thursday night Wednesday it don't really matter it's football all you do is you count backwards right make sure you get get the kids a day off you out a Tuesday practice Wednesday Thursday it all adds up right and again they exed because now uh you don't really got a lot of school workor because it's just the first couple days of school so they can go out and relax and play the game of football not worried about having to turn in assignments right all right thank you co good luck appreciate it we'll take one final question from Kendrick Marshall yeah coach um earlier you mentioned it wasn't exactly ideal for you guys to start the season against um Arkansas even though they are inate opponent why is that trepidation there about playing an SEC team for the first game of the Season not any I'm just saying like when you play on a team that has 85 scholarships okay it's do the math they got 85 we got 63 we brought in 50 new players okay they got their same team all right they've had their players the entire summer okay we didn't have our players the entire summer so it's it's not ideal right but it's football we ain't gonna complain about it I'm just asking uh you know like if I had my way I'd like to play the second game it ain't my choice okay we don't really care spot the ball let's play so uh you ask the question that's the answer for it um but our young men are excited about the opportunity we need these kind of games all right it helps us financially it it helps us do the things that we need to do as a university so we're excited about it um and again um I would always like a warm-up game before you play the best opponent right so that's that's that's my hesitation but guess what Thursday night August 29th 6:32 p.m. when the ball kick off the Golden lines will be out there on the field and we're excited to play as a quick followup um coach how much input or control would you would you like to have over your preseason schedule moving forward I don't any over it okay I coach football that's the ad's job Vice Chancellor ad Robson he does a great job so let's make that let's get that out of the way okay I don't want any uh uh input into the schedule okay wherever he tell me to play is what we gonna play our kids don't care all right I would like to have get uh to be able to play a smaller school then play a bigger school because it's the first game in because we got so many new guys that's only reason I said that so let's just get that out of the way so we're on the same page all appreciate it coach coaches always we appreciate your time and good luck this week appreciate it uh great job fam you and uh good luck to everybody this weekend appreciate it coach