What Steele, defenders are saying

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What Kevin Steele, Auburn defenders said before Peach Bowl

Updated 8:55 AM; Posted 7:19 AM

By Josh Bean

jbean@al.com

Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele, linebackers Deshaun Davis and Tre' Williams, safeties Tray Matthews and Stephen Roberts and defensive lineman Dontavius Russell held a press conference Friday morning to look ahead to the Peach Bowl.

Central Florida offensive coordinator Troy Walters and five players, including quarterback McKenzie Milton, are also scheduled to meet with media members.

Below is a transcript of Auburn's remarks.

KEVIN STEELE: First, we'd like to say thanks to the Peach Bowl Committee and the City of Atlanta. This is obviously -- the history of this Bowl game and the folks that cover Auburn understand this, it's 38 years. I've been here before. I actually coached in this game when it was in the old Braves Fulton County Stadium. The history of this bowl is special. We're excited about being here, of course, with the opponent we have, undefeated Central Florida team that is a very, very good football team. We are excited about the opportunity to have -- to go and compete against a great football team.

THE MODERATOR: Tre', for your opening statement, I would love to get your thoughts on the MLK visit last night, what that experience was like for you.

TRE' WILLIAMS: It was very inspirational. You know, it was crazy, just learning from it, back in grade school, middle school, high school, things like that, and just reading from it, from a book and everything, having teachers teach about it.

But it's very different to actually hear the true experience of people who actually dealt with it and actually put up with it and actually made a change in the world. That admired a lot of us and it made us look into ourselves to see how can we make a difference in our community by playing football or even how we treat people on a daily basis.

THE MODERATOR: Well said. Thanks for that.

Q. Obviously you've coached in the State of Florida and you know the type of talent and speed that's in the State of Florida. Are you surprised that UCF has been able to rise like it has, being a non-Power Five team?
KEVIN STEELE: No, not at all. The high school talent in the State of Florida, the high school coaching availability to athletes in terms of -- particularly in the skilled area, the defensive backs, the wide receivers, running backs, a lot of speed in the state.

So not at all. And I mean, you know, Coach O'Leary did a great job, went to the Fiesta Bowl, so when Scott came in, you know, everybody knew there was talent at Central Florida. So he's put a good staff together and the product has come to fruition in a big way.

So no, not surprised at all.

Q. Coach Steele, what are your thoughts just on McKenzie Milton and when you watch the film, what is it that he does that has led to his success this season?
KEVIN STEELE: Well, obviously there's guys that play the game in terms of the system.

He's a guy that has the ability, because of his athleticism, and just the moxie that he has and the way he plays the game to keep and extend plays and kind of make the second half of a play. He can turn plays that you look like has stopped and into the second half of the play, kind of -- and I say this in a positive way, not a negative way -- almost like you used to play games in the backyard with kids and running around in a touch football game where you could just run around and make plays. He's one of those guys that if you play touch football in the backyard, which I don't know if kids do -- do y'all still do that?

TRE' WILLIAMS: We still do that.

KEVIN STEELE: We used to do that. At the end of the day, he's a guy that nobody could get on the ground and is always making plays.

THE MODERATOR: Tre', how are you at backyard touch football?

TRE' WILLIAMS: I ain't that fast. I just let everyone else run the ball. I just try to make a lot of tackles.

THE MODERATOR: Keep working hard, Buddy. We'll get you there.

Q. You mentioned the speed that Central Florida has. They have scored a ton of points. How do you go about neutralizing their speed?
KEVIN STEELE: Well, the game's about us. Obviously everybody we played had 11 guys on the field, and they lined up in a formations. We had motions and shifts. The field is the same width, same length every game. It's about our execution, our focus and doing the things that we're required to do. Be where you're supposed to be. We're not going to ask anybody -- there's no defense we have where we're going to ask guys to take two gaps. We're not going to ask guys to cover two men. We're not going to ask guys to be responsible for two zones. Just do your job and execute.

And so that's really what it boils down to. It's about us.

Q. Tre', the UCF team doesn't give up a lot of sacks and you guys are good at sacking the quarterback. What has shown up on film and how do you plan to attack their offensive line?
TRE' WILLIAMS: Like Coach just said, it's all about us and how we execute. Coach Steele is going to put us in the right position, and it's just our job to do our job. You know, we had a lot of success, like you said, with the D-Line. We have great defensive linemen and we depend on them every play, and they always do their job. We're just here to back them up.

Q. Obviously you guys have seen the comments made by Adrian Killins about the SEC has not seen the speed that UCF has. How taken aback were you with those comments and was that maybe something to wake you guys up after losing in the SEC Championship Game?
TRE' WILLIAMS: No, not really. We don't really pay attention to anything said in the media. We just focus on preparation, you know, doing our job. We know who we have and we know what we can do. We're just going to prepare for the game and during -- like I said, Coach Steele is going to put us in the right position and we're going to make a play.

Q. You coaches have a way of reminding players --
KEVIN STEELE: They are coachable. They are coachable.

Q. Is that something you would use in a bulletin-board type setting? Do you still have bulletin boards?
KEVIN STEELE: No, we don't. We text them (laughter).

I actually have somebody do it for me but that's another story.

No, in this day and age with social media, and we're so equipped, I mean, there's a lot of things out there about everything. Some of it, you don't even know if it's true or not.

So we're conditioned now; the whole process is built to focus on our job, our responsibility, what we control. And the external factors, the distractions, whatever they may be, we spend a lot of time on making sure that that does not get into the meeting room, the practice field, the locker room. And so it's not -- it's not really that hard any more in terms of trying to keep everybody focused that way. They -- they are pretty coachable that way.

Q. We hear all the time, Coach Steele talks all the time about focusing on yourself. How much has that helped the last couple of years, knowing that, hey, it's just about what you guys do and kind of handling what you can control?
TRE' WILLIAMS: When you try to put too much focus on the other team or any opponent you play, you know, you don't really get the opportunity to do your job the best way you can.

So as soon as Coach Steele got here, that's the first thing he put in. Like focus on yourselves. Like focus on your technique, your job, and just the defense in general, like everybody's execution and you'll be fine. If you start focusing on what your opponent is doing, you'll get out of your gap or your technique won't be right and things like that. He emphasizes that every day. Just do your job and focus on yourself and we'll be all right.

Q. Coach, you say you have someone text the players. Are you tech-savvy?
KEVIN STEELE: I am, but I wouldn't say -- compared to Tre', no, I'm not. I can get the message across if I need to.

But yes, I just normally hand it out. I've got a little guy that's been with me at a couple stops and I just hand it to him sitting beside me and say, hey text Tre' and tell him this.

I don't really want to talk about that because if my wife figures out that I'm tech-savvy then she'll start texting me and we don't want to go there.

THE MODERATOR: She's not going to hear it from us, I promise.

Q. Coach Frost talks about the size differential in running backs and you guys Kerryon Johnson in practice. What stands out other than, hey, these guys are a little smaller than what you guys see on a daily basis speed-wise and with the offense that UCF runs?
KEVIN STEELE: Well, obviously the spread offense is everywhere now. We see it on the practice field. There's little nuances. This is obviously more the Chip Kelly, Oregon style. But there's a lot of similarities in that.

In terms of the players, they come in all shapes and sizes. I mean, in the course of a year, you're going to see every kind of running back from small, quick, to big, powerful.

So it's built -- there are certain things that make it a little more difficult with different guys, and obviously we're well aware of that, the quickness and the ability to make people miss in a very close area. But it's not -- it still comes back to applying technique and being responsible and accountable to your job. You can't just get into defending one guy. There's a lot of space out there.

Q. You guys were one win away from playing in the College Football Playoff semifinal. Has there been any let-up at all in the team from being disappointed in not getting that opportunity, and how hard is it to make that transition when you have that right in your sights to getting transitioned to play in a big marquis game like the Peach Bowl?
KEVIN STEELE: I think externally -- and I don't want to get into a lecture about the philosophy on that -- but the playoffs has changed the external mentality. So the fans, maybe the media -- I don't know that; you'll have to speak for yourself. All the shift goes, if you don't make the Final four, then it's a bad year or you didn't accomplish what you -- and that's not -- that's not the way it's built internally. It's one game at a time, one play at a time. Play like a champion. Be the best you can be on the next play.

If the game doesn't work out, then you go the next week and do it again.

There's a lot of things this team can accomplish. I mean, all the way, I could give you a litany of them, a list of things.

For an example, we have the opportunity to win 11 games. That will be the seventh time in the history of the school. These guys have an opportunity to -- I think, in the history of college football, we have an opportunity to beat three 9-0 or better teams in the same year. I don't think that's ever been done.

And so there's a lot of positives. But what it really boils down to is when you're dealing with guys that are highly competitive and are committed to excellence, and committed to the process of being the best they can be, every play, the work ethic and the challenge of being the best you can be internally is controlled by that. Not what Bowl game you're in or you're in the playoffs or you didn't win the SEC Championship. That's not how it's built. And so it's a drastic difference from what is viewed externally and what happens internally.

Q. Did you know Scott Frost when you coached at Nebraska and what did you learn under Tom Osborne at Nebraska?
KEVIN STEELE: I did know Scott. We recruited Scott when I was there. We had, I think Tommie was the quarterback at that time, Frazier, and he was a young quarterback. Scott went to Stanford, was there I think one year and then came back home. Scott's dad, mom, both coaches in Nebraska. So yes, I did know him, and when he came back, I was still there. Yes, I did know him.

Coach Osborne, we don't have enough time. It's more of a book than a press conference on what you learn from Coach Osborne. There's not a day that went by that you didn't learn something from Coach. Unbelievable man, great teacher, but I think probably the biggest thing was he had an uncanny ability to make every person in the room every day, every time he saw you, feel like you were the most important person in the world, and that brings the best out of people. Very uplifting guy.

THE MODERATOR: We'll just go down the line here with an opening statement, and I would love for you guys to talk about your experience so far in bowl week, how is that for you guys, and what happened at Andretti, Deshaun? You guys came up a little short there.

DESHAUN DAVIS: I think I was cheated in my race. But we had a great experience at the bowl so far. There's been a lot of competition. They told us when we first got here, six out of the seven times they have been doing the competition, the team has won, so that's something that really stood out to us. We are not taking these competitions lightly, but this is a game that we are really preparing for, really juiced up about.

I know a lot of buzz has been going around that this is a game that we're probably not going to get up for, but we've got a lot to play for; our 11th win, ending the season on the right note. They mentioned to us that we'll be the first team in college football to beat three 9-0 teams that were undefeated, so that's something that we're looking forward to, also. Like I said, we had a great experience here and just ready to play the game.

THE MODERATOR: Tray, you guys came storming back in the baseball competition last night to tie it 1-1. The winner has won the bowl game six out of seven times. Was that important for your momentum this week?

TRAY MATTHEWS: Yeah, it was important. We had to get things back on track. So I'm very pleased with the team's effort yesterday. You know, I think we have a few more things we have to do and hopefully we can finish this thing off right and get a W in all the columns and win the game. That's our mind-set to compete on everything we do and finish with a win.

THE MODERATOR: Dontavius, talk about your experience at the Martin Luther King Center yesterday, and what that meant and what type of bowl week experience that was for your team.

DONTAVIUS RUSSELL: I think it was real beneficial for our team to be able to go and see where a lot of things started as far as -- especially for us, we wouldn't be able to play in this situation that we're in without their influence. Being able to meet those different types of movers and shakers and actually in person to shake their hands, I think was real beneficial. It's all history like they was saying earlier, and it was really important to follow that and see that.

THE MODERATOR: What did you take away from the Martin Luther King visit last night?

STEPHEN ROBERTS: I took away the leadership the guys showed us. That's one thing our coaches built on us is leadership and to hear from them guys, different strategies of leadership was big for me and my standpoint; for my group of guys here, leadership, as well. It's been big for us. They taught us about how you don't have to be a vocal leader. You can be a leader that's all about action. Different leaderships that you can use.

Q. For Deshaun, you said you guys are really pumped up for this game, but immediately after the SEC Championship Game loss, did the senior leaders or the leadership of the team have to sort of give everybody a pep talk and say, we still have something to play for? How did that work?
DESHAUN DAVIS: Yeah, that was definitely one of the things that we had to do. Of course, you know, we took a tough loss in the SEC Championship, and we knew that it was an opportunity to play for the Playoffs and potentially a National Championship. It was definitely a slump that we had to get over.

But us as leaders, I feel like we did a great job. What we did, we let our team be sad for a minute, let them get the taste in their mouth so the guys that come next year, they know how it feels. But at the same time, we knew we had a game to play in, and if we were to come out saying -- UCF wouldn't care. They'd still come out and step on our throat and we knew that.

It was definitely a thing that we had to get our team pumped up, but every since week we've been having practices, we had great practices, had great energy, and we're actually flying around to the ball. Offense is making plays and I feel like we're ready to play. We'll see Monday.

Q. For everybody but Deshaun, to follow up on that, what are you most excited about with this game and how do you -- how do you get yourself excited, despite what he said; that you guys missed out on the Playoff?
STEPHEN ROBERTS: I don't think it's really much excitement. It's us going out and doing a job as a team. They are going to give their all. They are a very explosive offense and they can move the ball really well. Just us, come out as a team and play as a defense is our main goal. We take every game as important. That's one thing we're built on.

Q. What are you most excited about in the game and how do you get yourself up for the game, knowing how close you guys were to the College Football Playoff?
DONTAVIUS RUSSELL: I think everyone is always excited for the next opportunity to play and go out and perform. I don't really think it was much of having to get ourselves ready to play in this game because I feel like we're always prepared to play in the next game. I just think, like I said, whenever you are able to go out and play a game, you always want to perform well. At least for myself, that's how I get ready it play in each game.

TRAY MATTHEWS: Just piggybacking off what they said, it's not hard to get up for any kind of game when you're playing college football. Especially in our shoes and how our coaches are. Coach Steele always says, you know, doesn't matter who we play, when we play, where we play, we're always going to get after it. Doesn't matter if we're playing a middle school team; we're going to be ready to play and have a lot of fun out there. That's just our mind-set in general.

Q. You guys talked about the motivation. Does it help when there's the numbers out there of, hey, number one in the offense and scoring, they are undefeated; does that help to motivate?
DESHAUN DAVIS: It does, but at the same time, it doesn't. I say that because you know, when you see all those statistics and you see all those numbers, like number one offense and they are scoring these many points or these many yards, it's kind of a challenge. You accept it as a challenge. But by those guys saying at Auburn, especially on defense, we have a standard that we play to and no matter who we play, what their numbers are, we have execution-wise a goal that we set each and every game that we want to reach.

Like I say, those numbers, they kind of give you motivation but at the end of the day, we're going to be who we are no matter who we play.

Q. There's been a little bit of talk from their running back, Adrian Killins, talking about Auburn has not seen the speed that he brings. Did you see that, and what were your thoughts on some of the things that the UCF players have said coming in?
DONTAVIUS RUSSELL: Oh, yeah, I saw it but it's not really something that we overly thought about. I just think that everybody is going to have their opinion and they are welcome to it. But for us, we have played teams with speed and we also have speed of our own on our own team.

DONTAVIUS RUSSELL: For us, we have speed of our own, so I don't think it's anything we really thought about after we saw those comments.

Q. Just for anybody, what makes UCF's offense so good? Is it speed or the concepts? Are the concepts unique to anything you've seen before?
DESHAUN DAVIS: Yeah, I could answer that. I could say their concept is very unique. I know in the running game, they do a lot of misdirections, they do a lot of things to get your eyes running and to get their speed to the edge. They really do have some fast guys, but I think their concept is kind of, you know, what gives you a problem.

Even in the passing game, they do a lot of switch routes and things in the secondary to get your eyes and also get you tangled up looking at one guy when they really want to hit another one. Their coach does a really good job. He run concepts to attack the holes that you have in your defense. He's a very smart offensive coordinator and me just watching film, I respect their game and I respect his mindset as a coach.

We know we have a challenge in front of us and it's a challenge that we have accepted. You know, I feel like we're prepared.

TRAY MATTHEWS: They do a lot of unique things as far as receiver, like Deshaun said, they do a lot of pick routes. Your eyes got to be on point and got to be in the right spot. And they do a lot of roll-out routes where you have to be in a lot of combo situations where you have to trade off man.

They just have a lot of speed, and the quarterback is definitely a dynamic player. He's kind of a small guy, but he plays like he's, you know, a big guy, 6-3. And he has a great arm. He's elusive. We have to contain him and keep him in the pocket for the most part.

DONTAVIUS RUSSELL: I think the offense plays to their strengths and that's what everybody tries to do. I think we'll have to do the same, like play to our strength and see just how the game goes. That's just the main thing I think about it.

STEPHEN ROBERTS: Like Tray was saying, offense, they are very explosive. Especially from the receiver standpoint, they have a lot of route concepts that's very new. But I think it's nothing we haven't seen before as a secondary. That's one thing we took seriously this week and we take seriously every week, just doing our job and just executing.

So that's one thing, our defensive coordinator, Coach Steele told us, always tell us, do your job, no matter what time you play, when you play, who you play, just do your job.

Q. You've probably answered this question a bunch, but talk about your decision to come back for your fifth year and kind of what went into that for you?
DONTAVIUS RUSSELL: For me, the narrative of college football is always you're a student-athlete first. I didn't want that narrative to change for me given the success and how I've played at Auburn. One of the most important things for me is to complete my degree and that's something I really wanted to do. The only way that I can do that now, and you've got to think which reward comes first. I think the degree is what comes first, and that's what I'm trying to accomplish with coming back.

UCF RB: 'Auburn hasn't seen any speed like we have'

UCF running back Adrian Killins believes Auburn is in for a "rude awakening" when the two teams meet in the Peach Bowl.

What did Central Florida say?

8:43 AM, High praise: Central QB McKenzie Milton and offensive coordinator Troy Walters aid Auburn is the best defense they've played this season.

Milton called Auburn's defense "physical" and "nasty."

It's going to be a tough challenge, but I think we're up to it," Milton said.

8:38 PM, Staff changes: This is the last game for Central Florida coach Scott Forst, who is heading to Nebraska, and his staff. "Really hasn't skipped a beat," Central Florida offensive coordinator Troy Walters said.

QB McKenzie Milton said the current coaching staff has been recruiting "into the wee hours for Nebraska" and still has concentrated on preparing to play Auburn.

"It's been a special ride with them and we want to finish it the right way," Milton said.

8:34 AM, Chasing perfection: Central Florida QB McKenzie Milton said team understands that team still has shot at a perfect season. "I'm just excited to get after it."

Central Florida offensive coordinator Troy Walters said the coaching staff has been "100 percent committed" to the 2017 team and that the team wants to "finish what we started."

8:32 AM, We're back: Central Florida offensive coordinator Troy Walters and QB McKenzie Milton are here.

"Can't wait for Monday for the game to come," Walters said.

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At the risk of being excommunicated...Steele sounds like Saban with less condescension. I like how he and his D approach big games.

 

Hope the O comes to play, the D will be ready!