Houston Nutt Press Conference: 11.15

Nov. 15, 2010

Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt met with the media on Monday and discussed the Rebels' game at Tennessee and the upcoming tangle with LSU in Baton Rouge.

Opening Comments:

"Lets go back and talk about the start of the year, this season has not gone like we had planned for it to. It all started with that first game. With the amount of players we lost this year, we all knew that this would be a difficult year. But, what we didn't plan on was three knee surgeries, four concussions and losing a leader like Kentrell Lockett. I just want to remind our fans that it had been 50 years since Ole Miss won back-to-back January 1 bowl games. I'm excited that we have 12 freshmen playing. I am excited about the future. I know in my heart, now more than ever, that we can get to Atlanta. I know we can, because I know that we can recruit here; we have proven that our last two seasons. What we didn't plan on was our first game and a few others putting us in a tailspin. It's my fault. We were not as ready as we should have been, but I see a lot of hope. I am excited about these next two games. I remember the day I got here; I didn't see any life or hope. I do not want that to come back on our guys now. We have two games left, and a lot of these guys have been doing great things for the past couple of years.

It is easy to dwell on the negative. It is easy to sit up on the 50-yard line and point out the bad and embarrassing. I was the first one to say Saturday was embarrassing. If you think that you are hurting, you should be in my shoes. I am sick to my stomach when I think about the Tennessee game, because we planned on winning that game. Do you think that Florida or Georgia is happy? In this league, the greatest league in America, there will be a year where things just don't go right. But, it is not all gloom and doom. That is the difficult thing about the world we live in; I have 18 and 19 year old players who believe everything they hear outside these walls. I have to turn the negative around to positive inside these walls. It is all about this family, this football family, and we have some outstanding recruits. Recruiting is still going good. The last two signing classes have been very good, and I think this one will be the best yet.

I planned on having seven wins at this point in the season, six at the worst. The bottom line is that we are not there, but I am not going to allow my players to be gloom and doom. They need to remember that they have been a part of something great. It was not too long ago when everyone was patting them on the back for winning back-to-back Cotton Bowls. I just want to tell our fans that there are good things getting ready to happen. I want to tell our players that also and to keep their heads up. The good thing about football is that it teaches you all that you need to know about life. There is no sin in getting knocked down; the sin is when you stay down. I want to make sure that our coaches are going as hard as we can with all of our energy and effort. We need to make sure the players are taking the correct step, the proper stance, and the perfect read. They do not need to play tight; they need to turn it loose. If you look at our best games, we have turned it loose. It has always been that way with us.

We are getting ready to play one of the best teams in America, LSU. LSU has one of the finest defenses I have ever seen. It starts with their front, their front is outstanding. They are big, huge, fast, and give up very few points. They have real speed from the front to the backers to the back ends. Offensively they have weapons at the wideout and they have a good offensive line. They also have good special teams. We are playing the No. 5 team in the nation. We have to get ready."

On LSU Defense:

"They always look the same every time you see them in warm-ups. You always turn your heads in warm-ups, because they can scare you before a game. They look good filling out their uniforms. When you look at Drake Nevis, their linemen, linebackers, Kelvin Sheppard and Karnell Hatcher; they are all great players that will run around and strike you. Patrick Peterson is a great punt returner and kick returner, and if you throw the ball around him he is going to catch it."

On the team's morale:

"I know our fans feel bad, but I wish they could see how our players feel. I wish they could see how our coaches feel, they are all sick to their stomachs. You can multiply how a fan feels by 99 and that is how a coach feels because we eat, sleep and breathe football. This isn't what we had planned so it hurts. We don't have ocean front property and hobbies; what we do have is this football team. But, I don't like condolences and feeling sorry. We have too good of a program going for that. That is not what we wanted to happen Saturday, that is not what we want to represent. It is hard to explain when we have a linebacker in perfect position, the ball gets tipped up and the other team's receiver catches it at a dead run through two of our safeties for 80 yards. It's very hard to explain that away. I just want our players to forget about that and go play, don't put their heads down. It doesn't do anybody good to listen to negativity. I am the only one who can remind them of the good things they have done. I know the work these guys put in, and we hold them to a high standard. We probably were not as good as everyone thought we should have been on defense. Let's just be honest about it. We were really counting on our defense to handle everything. When we took Lockett out of the equation, it was a double blow. He is a leader and an instant pass rusher; he provides the pressure that you need in this league. When I look at what we have with Charles Sawyer, Mike Mary, Jeff Scott and Cameron Whigham and our new offensive line, I get excited. I feel a lot of hope and our players have to feel it too. The way you spell fun is W-I-N, and we have to get to that point again."

On a small senior class:

"I am not blaming anything on the previous staff; I appreciate all the players that I inherited. The players that Ed Orgeron recruited were very good players. They did a good job at getting Peria Jerry, Jerrell Powe. Michael Wallace, Shay Hodge and guys like them in here. But, the bottom line is that they didn't know how to win and they were used to losing. I don't ever want to go back to that point. Don't ever get used to losing, don't ever get to the point where it is a little bit easier to let go of the rope. You play as good as your senior class. When they play their best is when you win the most games. When you go back to the first year I was here, our senior class was phenomenal. Michael Oher was playing at his best. Peria Jerry was an awesome and violent player. Michael Wallace was playing at the top of his game. Your seniors are your leaders, the owners of the team and the motor that drives it. We have very few numbers of those guys now. We are missing our best one, Kentrell Lockett.

On Jason Jones:

"Jason Jones might not be measurable in height, weight, and speed, but he makes up for it with heart. He plays hard and gets turnovers for us. The turnovers that we get, he gets most of them. I appreciate his attitude and his heart."

On Jerrell Powe returning next year:

"Jerrell and I have talked a long time about this. I am all for a young man going pro. If you have finished your third year and are a first rounder, I want you to go. There is not a job out there that will pay you as much. But if you're not ready, you should come back and better yourself."

On team injuries:

"Charles Sawyer did not practice Sunday, we are hoping he gets to practice Tuesday. His sprained MCL is still pretty sore. Jesse Grandy practiced but was limited; he couldn't move his shoulder all the way around. Ja-Mes Logan has a stressed achilles tendon. Everyone else is back out there.

On Brandon Bolden:

"Brandon has played his heart out every game. He is a guy who takes the ball, takes the punishment and pounding and then goes and covers a kick. He does it all with a lot of energy. I am excited about Brandon and hope he gets more yardage. He has been playing hard and taking care of the ball for us."

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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