On players standing out through opening week of camp:
Yeah, I think through the first seven days we’ve really put together some pretty impressive individuals performances. And really collectively as a group those guys have come out pretty strong. But, offensively, Allen (Lazard), Mike Warren, Joel Lanning, those guys, competing at a pretty high level. Really every day giving great effort. But even some young guys (are) coming through and starting to show up. In the running back room, Kene Nwangwu and David Montgomery. Out at wide receiver, Deshaunte Jones has had a really good camp. Newcomer Marchie Murdock, really impressive camp. And Trever Ryen competing right now at a high level, too. So a lot of guys, bg performances so far, just going to see if they can consistently do that here the next few weeks.
On several M receivers providing options at that position:
It is; it’s going to be fun. They all bring a little bit different things to the table. Trever is a lot more of a down the hill, down the field, can really take you north and south and really stretch the field. You’ve got Marchie who’s big, physical, can help as a blocker, can really do some good things with the ball in his hands. Deshaunte’s smooth, he’s a really smooth customer out there. Finds spaces and voids and the kid’s got fantastic hands, especially for a young man who was a quarterback the last couple of years in high school.
On what Iowa State looks for in the M position and its receivers:
At the end of the day we’re looking for a guy that can make plays for us. For us, that’s a guy, maybe he’s catching bubbles. Maybe he’s a guy that we’re hitting on a reverse or handing a jet sweep to and maybe it’s a guy that we want to attack down the field and use to win big on a post or a corner, some of those things. Help us stretch the field. So like I said, we’ve got some really talented guys that kind of fit that position right now. Depending on who’s in, we may use that position just a little bit differently.
On getting Lazard to the 1,000-yard level as a receiver:
I think for him it’s going to be a day-to-day process and if he comes in and attacks and approaches every single day and every single game, one at a time, and really goes out there and perfects his craft in the fine details, the kid’s going to be just fine. He’s really, again, a guy that’s pretty dominant when you talk about playing on the outside and some of those balls down the sidelines and giving him a chance to high point the ball and really play through defenders. That’s what he does really, really well. Now we’ve just got to work on some of the little things. Cutting in and out of slants, really extending to the catch on those balls and on the curls. He’s progressing really well, we’re really happy with him now. There’s no doubt about it. If you look at what we’ve done statistically in this system, we’ve had a thousand-yard receiver for the last seven years. So if he continues to progress I certainly would imagine that’s going to be an area that he can accomplish.
On what Lazard is like in the position room:
The one thing that’s fun with Allen is he embraces being challenged. I don’t get in there and tell him how great he is every single day and all those things. He and I both have a goal for him and that’s each day, like I said, advance his game and really take that next step. But the kid takes great notes. He’s a great leader in that room. He’s not a real vocal guy all the time but he leads by example. And he’s a guy that kind of corral the rest of the group, make sure those guys know what’s going on. He does a really good job of leading the rest of the group. That’s one of that qualities that I’ve really appreciated about him from the spring to now. He’s really kind of taken and developed that role.
On using Lazard in different receiver positions and roles:
I think that’s part of the development for him right now. We are, we’ve going to have to put him around. We can’t line up every single week and let people know, hey, that’s where Allen Lazard’s going to be and this is how we’re going to cover him. We’re going to put defenses in a bind. We’re going to get in different personnel packages and maybe sometimes he’s playing the M position or sometimes he’s playing out at Z. Whatever it might be. We motion him around or hide him within motion. So there’s a lot of different things we can do and certainly something that we’ve always specialized (in) really is our philosophy offensively: players, formations, plays. Finding our best players and lining them up in places they can be successful and make plays for us.
On the progress of Hakeem Butler in pre-season camp:
Hakeem’s a young pup but I’ll tell you this: he has got great talent and potential. The one thing I can tell you about Hakeem is he really, really loves the sport of football. And he brings a great energy every single day. He’s a guy that has great physical attributes. He’s long, he’s rangy, he can run and really cover a lot of group when he takes off. We’ve just got to work on consistently making those catches and using some of those physical attributes to his advantage.
On converted QB Darius Lee-Campbell’s camp so far:
Darius is a guy that probably through the first seven, eight practices – however many we’ve been through – probably has the most explosive plays out of the group. He kind of quietly just emerges time and time again and I have been very happy with Darius so far. He’s another big physical guy. That’s the one thing that’s exciting about this group across the board. We’ve got some big guys out there. And so they become mismatch issues. They also become great blockers out around the perimeter. But really happy with him right now.
On Lee-Campbell’s hands as a relatively new receiver:
Again, another area where I think he’s really developed this off-season. We got him on the JUGS machine a bunch this summer; we worked drills with him every single day. But he really does have pretty natural hands. You look at our room, we’ve got a couple of high school quarterbacks in there. But those guys do catch the ball really well. He’s a guy that really is strong at the catch point and I think that is what has allowed him to kind of take some of those next steps to emerge as a guy that can really be a contributor for us.
On Dondre Daley taking a step forward this season:
Dondre’s a guy that has had some ups and downs until this fall camp, but he’s been very consistent this fall. A guy that really can utilize his speed, stretch the field for us. A guy that’s probably the loosest of the group, can get in and out of routes, can separate, is a good double move guy. A guy that you can really take advantage of speed on go routes and post routes. But you’ll see a lot of Dondre. He’s really had a boost of confidence so far this camp. He’s had a couple of good days that have really gotten him going.
Yeah, I think through the first seven days we’ve really put together some pretty impressive individuals performances. And really collectively as a group those guys have come out pretty strong. But, offensively, Allen (Lazard), Mike Warren, Joel Lanning, those guys, competing at a pretty high level. Really every day giving great effort. But even some young guys (are) coming through and starting to show up. In the running back room, Kene Nwangwu and David Montgomery. Out at wide receiver, Deshaunte Jones has had a really good camp. Newcomer Marchie Murdock, really impressive camp. And Trever Ryen competing right now at a high level, too. So a lot of guys, bg performances so far, just going to see if they can consistently do that here the next few weeks.
On several M receivers providing options at that position:
It is; it’s going to be fun. They all bring a little bit different things to the table. Trever is a lot more of a down the hill, down the field, can really take you north and south and really stretch the field. You’ve got Marchie who’s big, physical, can help as a blocker, can really do some good things with the ball in his hands. Deshaunte’s smooth, he’s a really smooth customer out there. Finds spaces and voids and the kid’s got fantastic hands, especially for a young man who was a quarterback the last couple of years in high school.
On what Iowa State looks for in the M position and its receivers:
At the end of the day we’re looking for a guy that can make plays for us. For us, that’s a guy, maybe he’s catching bubbles. Maybe he’s a guy that we’re hitting on a reverse or handing a jet sweep to and maybe it’s a guy that we want to attack down the field and use to win big on a post or a corner, some of those things. Help us stretch the field. So like I said, we’ve got some really talented guys that kind of fit that position right now. Depending on who’s in, we may use that position just a little bit differently.
On getting Lazard to the 1,000-yard level as a receiver:
I think for him it’s going to be a day-to-day process and if he comes in and attacks and approaches every single day and every single game, one at a time, and really goes out there and perfects his craft in the fine details, the kid’s going to be just fine. He’s really, again, a guy that’s pretty dominant when you talk about playing on the outside and some of those balls down the sidelines and giving him a chance to high point the ball and really play through defenders. That’s what he does really, really well. Now we’ve just got to work on some of the little things. Cutting in and out of slants, really extending to the catch on those balls and on the curls. He’s progressing really well, we’re really happy with him now. There’s no doubt about it. If you look at what we’ve done statistically in this system, we’ve had a thousand-yard receiver for the last seven years. So if he continues to progress I certainly would imagine that’s going to be an area that he can accomplish.
On what Lazard is like in the position room:
The one thing that’s fun with Allen is he embraces being challenged. I don’t get in there and tell him how great he is every single day and all those things. He and I both have a goal for him and that’s each day, like I said, advance his game and really take that next step. But the kid takes great notes. He’s a great leader in that room. He’s not a real vocal guy all the time but he leads by example. And he’s a guy that kind of corral the rest of the group, make sure those guys know what’s going on. He does a really good job of leading the rest of the group. That’s one of that qualities that I’ve really appreciated about him from the spring to now. He’s really kind of taken and developed that role.
On using Lazard in different receiver positions and roles:
I think that’s part of the development for him right now. We are, we’ve going to have to put him around. We can’t line up every single week and let people know, hey, that’s where Allen Lazard’s going to be and this is how we’re going to cover him. We’re going to put defenses in a bind. We’re going to get in different personnel packages and maybe sometimes he’s playing the M position or sometimes he’s playing out at Z. Whatever it might be. We motion him around or hide him within motion. So there’s a lot of different things we can do and certainly something that we’ve always specialized (in) really is our philosophy offensively: players, formations, plays. Finding our best players and lining them up in places they can be successful and make plays for us.
On the progress of Hakeem Butler in pre-season camp:
Hakeem’s a young pup but I’ll tell you this: he has got great talent and potential. The one thing I can tell you about Hakeem is he really, really loves the sport of football. And he brings a great energy every single day. He’s a guy that has great physical attributes. He’s long, he’s rangy, he can run and really cover a lot of group when he takes off. We’ve just got to work on consistently making those catches and using some of those physical attributes to his advantage.
On converted QB Darius Lee-Campbell’s camp so far:
Darius is a guy that probably through the first seven, eight practices – however many we’ve been through – probably has the most explosive plays out of the group. He kind of quietly just emerges time and time again and I have been very happy with Darius so far. He’s another big physical guy. That’s the one thing that’s exciting about this group across the board. We’ve got some big guys out there. And so they become mismatch issues. They also become great blockers out around the perimeter. But really happy with him right now.
On Lee-Campbell’s hands as a relatively new receiver:
Again, another area where I think he’s really developed this off-season. We got him on the JUGS machine a bunch this summer; we worked drills with him every single day. But he really does have pretty natural hands. You look at our room, we’ve got a couple of high school quarterbacks in there. But those guys do catch the ball really well. He’s a guy that really is strong at the catch point and I think that is what has allowed him to kind of take some of those next steps to emerge as a guy that can really be a contributor for us.
On Dondre Daley taking a step forward this season:
Dondre’s a guy that has had some ups and downs until this fall camp, but he’s been very consistent this fall. A guy that really can utilize his speed, stretch the field for us. A guy that’s probably the loosest of the group, can get in and out of routes, can separate, is a good double move guy. A guy that you can really take advantage of speed on go routes and post routes. But you’ll see a lot of Dondre. He’s really had a boost of confidence so far this camp. He’s had a couple of good days that have really gotten him going.
