Hugh Freeze Weekly Press ConferenceFreeze Recaps Arkansas Game, Looks Ahead to Saturday’s Matchup at No. 23 LSU
Ole Miss Football Head Coach Hugh Freeze met with the media on Monday recapping Saturday’s game at Arkansas, and previewed this Saturday’s rivalry game at No. 23 LSU (8 p.m., ESPN).
Opening Statement...
“Another SEC road game week, which is a rival game with LSU down in Baton Rouge. This one I know means a lot to our people. We will educate our young kids on the history of it this week and hopefully get them prepared to go and play in another hostile environment and to play better than we did last week. Last week was frustrating. We talked about chances to make plays that have a direct outcome on the game that we failed to make, or making a call that would have been better in a certain situation. We all have those and we all have to improve ourselves this week as we get ready for an LSU team that is super talented. They have, in the last few weeks, offensively put up a lot of big numbers, 600 and something yards, 400 or so in the other and I think just 44 plays. We all know the talent that they have at receiver and they are utilizing that now. At running back, they are always special there. Offensive line wise they are good and the quarterback is making great decisions. They are doing a really nice job there defensively and they have always been one of the best in the country and continue to be that. I think we are playing one of the better teams in the country this Saturday night and it is a great opportunity. We will have to show a lot of resolve with the way the world works now around athletic programs that are this magnitude where the expectations are high. There are always a lot of things that you have to handle and manage that have a direct impact on the way your kids prepare and perform. We’ve got a lot of work to do this week and resolve will be tested and shown, but we are excited about going to play LSU.”
On his relationships with LSU interim head coach Ed Orgeron…
“I have reached out to him several times (while he was at) at USC when he got the interim there and then here when he did. We spoke last week actually about some things that were going on and everyone comes up with their own opinions, but I am so indebted to coach Orgeron. I have great respect for him and everything that he has meant to my career. He gave me an opportunity just to come here and be in an off the field position, and to learn from him in recruiting and the things that I watched him do and how persistent, and how he did his things with great passion. I learned a lot from him and I am very indebted for the opportunity and the time I had and the opportunities he gave me. I really don’t know my career does what it does without the opportunity that he gave me. The opportunities that he has had at USC and then here, I think he has approached it differently. When I talked to him now he seems a bit different about his approach and I think it is working for him. It was no surprise that the kids are playing well under him right now, so I am very indebted to him.”
On injury issues or mental issues with the team…
“I think he (Stringfellow) is healthy. A.J. (Brown) has a little tweak in his knee that he has to play with the rest of the year. I can’t put my hand on it. Our receivers have played extremely well and it just happened that we had critical drops at really difficult times. It wasn’t just one or two guys, it was several. I wish I could put my hand on it. If you had to say it was a lack of concentration, things just happen like that sometimes. There are drops that occur, but over the course of the season that has a been a big strength of our team. They were not happy after the game and if we are going to compete against LSU Saturday night those guys are going to have to play well and I think they know that.”
On miscommunication between Chad Kelly and receivers…
“There were two blown routes. Some of the throws might have happened under distress where it might have looked. Chad kind of thought on one route that we were running something different, just kind of lost it on that deal. There were two that should have been runbacks and we didn’t get those done.”
On what Ed Orgeron is doing differently during this interim than in the past…
“Well, they are playing with great passion and that is not something that they haven’t done I don’t think, but offensively they are different right now. They are very multiple. They give you a lot of different sets, staying balanced, using the skill at receiver; whether it is through speed sweeps or quick throws or shots down the field. Their run game has always been good and still is, but defensively they are what they have been. A little different system with a different coordinator, but athletically they have been the same they have always been. I know what I hear and read, I can’t speak because I am not in their offices day to day, but he has shortened practices and their kids are looking like they are having a lot of fun. Whatever he is doing is working, they have played two games and looked really good in them.”
On why Ole Miss teams in the past under Ed Orgeron were not more successful…
“People are not patient. I really think that we had recruited well under Ed here and it was close to turning a corner. Hindsight is 20/20 and who knows what decisions were made. I am not second guessing any of those, I am just saying if you look at the athletes that Ed and his staff, our staff, had brought in, we thought we were really close. We didn’t win enough games that last year to satisfy everyone and the change was made. I would say in talking to Ed and listening to his interviews, he learned some things too, we all do. I learn stuff every year. He has continued to do that and continued to put himself in situation again and there’s people, obviously, that believe in him to give him the opportunities that he has right now. I think he is doing some good things that are working.”
Ole Miss Football Head Coach Hugh Freeze met with the media on Monday recapping Saturday’s game at Arkansas, and previewed this Saturday’s rivalry game at No. 23 LSU (8 p.m., ESPN).
Opening Statement...
“Another SEC road game week, which is a rival game with LSU down in Baton Rouge. This one I know means a lot to our people. We will educate our young kids on the history of it this week and hopefully get them prepared to go and play in another hostile environment and to play better than we did last week. Last week was frustrating. We talked about chances to make plays that have a direct outcome on the game that we failed to make, or making a call that would have been better in a certain situation. We all have those and we all have to improve ourselves this week as we get ready for an LSU team that is super talented. They have, in the last few weeks, offensively put up a lot of big numbers, 600 and something yards, 400 or so in the other and I think just 44 plays. We all know the talent that they have at receiver and they are utilizing that now. At running back, they are always special there. Offensive line wise they are good and the quarterback is making great decisions. They are doing a really nice job there defensively and they have always been one of the best in the country and continue to be that. I think we are playing one of the better teams in the country this Saturday night and it is a great opportunity. We will have to show a lot of resolve with the way the world works now around athletic programs that are this magnitude where the expectations are high. There are always a lot of things that you have to handle and manage that have a direct impact on the way your kids prepare and perform. We’ve got a lot of work to do this week and resolve will be tested and shown, but we are excited about going to play LSU.”
On his relationships with LSU interim head coach Ed Orgeron…
“I have reached out to him several times (while he was at) at USC when he got the interim there and then here when he did. We spoke last week actually about some things that were going on and everyone comes up with their own opinions, but I am so indebted to coach Orgeron. I have great respect for him and everything that he has meant to my career. He gave me an opportunity just to come here and be in an off the field position, and to learn from him in recruiting and the things that I watched him do and how persistent, and how he did his things with great passion. I learned a lot from him and I am very indebted for the opportunity and the time I had and the opportunities he gave me. I really don’t know my career does what it does without the opportunity that he gave me. The opportunities that he has had at USC and then here, I think he has approached it differently. When I talked to him now he seems a bit different about his approach and I think it is working for him. It was no surprise that the kids are playing well under him right now, so I am very indebted to him.”
On injury issues or mental issues with the team…
“I think he (Stringfellow) is healthy. A.J. (Brown) has a little tweak in his knee that he has to play with the rest of the year. I can’t put my hand on it. Our receivers have played extremely well and it just happened that we had critical drops at really difficult times. It wasn’t just one or two guys, it was several. I wish I could put my hand on it. If you had to say it was a lack of concentration, things just happen like that sometimes. There are drops that occur, but over the course of the season that has a been a big strength of our team. They were not happy after the game and if we are going to compete against LSU Saturday night those guys are going to have to play well and I think they know that.”
On miscommunication between Chad Kelly and receivers…
“There were two blown routes. Some of the throws might have happened under distress where it might have looked. Chad kind of thought on one route that we were running something different, just kind of lost it on that deal. There were two that should have been runbacks and we didn’t get those done.”
On what Ed Orgeron is doing differently during this interim than in the past…
“Well, they are playing with great passion and that is not something that they haven’t done I don’t think, but offensively they are different right now. They are very multiple. They give you a lot of different sets, staying balanced, using the skill at receiver; whether it is through speed sweeps or quick throws or shots down the field. Their run game has always been good and still is, but defensively they are what they have been. A little different system with a different coordinator, but athletically they have been the same they have always been. I know what I hear and read, I can’t speak because I am not in their offices day to day, but he has shortened practices and their kids are looking like they are having a lot of fun. Whatever he is doing is working, they have played two games and looked really good in them.”
On why Ole Miss teams in the past under Ed Orgeron were not more successful…
“People are not patient. I really think that we had recruited well under Ed here and it was close to turning a corner. Hindsight is 20/20 and who knows what decisions were made. I am not second guessing any of those, I am just saying if you look at the athletes that Ed and his staff, our staff, had brought in, we thought we were really close. We didn’t win enough games that last year to satisfy everyone and the change was made. I would say in talking to Ed and listening to his interviews, he learned some things too, we all do. I learn stuff every year. He has continued to do that and continued to put himself in situation again and there’s people, obviously, that believe in him to give him the opportunities that he has right now. I think he is doing some good things that are working.”
