June 12, 2009
University Park, Pa; - Coach Joe Paterno
What are your thoughts on the fantasy camp?
These guys will always remember this. They'll tell their kids and their grandkids. They'll lie about how good they were and the whole bit, that Paterno was out there and he wanted to recruit me after they saw me. They'll have fun.
What are your thoughts on adding a 12th team to the Big Ten?
I just think we ought to have 12 teams. I hate to see the Big Ten sitting around while we're watching everybody else. I just think that there's so much media interest and fan interest for the SEC Championship and the Big 12 Championship while we're just sitting around. I think 12 teams would be the answer. In all fairness, I said something about the problem with the scheduling and [Big Ten Commisioner] Jim Delany took it on himself to look into it. He's looking into it and whatever Jim comes up with will be good for the conference.
What teams could be a good fit for the Big Ten?
I want an Eastern team. The reason I'm interested in an Eastern team is because of the TV market in New York City. It would be a big thing with 50 million people. It would help with recruiting, exposure, and all those kind of things.
How are you feeling, physically?
I feel great. I didn't miss any time at spring practice. I didn't have to have a motor cart or anything like that. I get a little tired quicker. I need a good summer where I just do a lot more walking because my legs get a little tired on me. Other than that, I'm fine.
Thoughts on the long layoff after the regular season before the bowl games?
I think it hurts. How much, I couldn't give you a quantitative figure on it. Quality-wise, it's a disadvantage for us.
Thougts on the returnees for the upcoming season?
We have a lot of solid kids who are working hard. I don't have any problems. We had a great semester academically and they're doing a good job this summer. I think we have some good kids and can be a solid football team. I don't know if we're good enough; that's debatable, but I think we'll be solid.
Thoughts on Sean Lee and the qualities that make him a leader?
Sean is a natural leader; Daryll (Clark) is the same way. He wants to lead and wants to be involved with it. He leads the pack. Sean is anxious to get going. He's a heck of a football player, he really is.
Talk about the importance of summer workouts
There's an old saying that championships aren't won on the field, they're just played on the field. We have a good winter program, we had a good spring practice, and now we're looking forward to having a good summer. I'm excited. I'm not the kind of guy who likes to say hey, "we're going to do this or we're going to do that." We've got to do it. We're going to be a good football team.
What was your reaction from the BCS Congressional hearings?
I really don't pay that much attention. They're going to do what they're going to do. I don't like the BCS situation; I've said that 1,000 times. We need to figure out a way to have a good playoff. My problem is that there are a lot of ifs, ands, and buts so I have not had time to sit down and develop a plan. I just think we ought to develop a situation where we have eight teams to play then four then two then go from there. There are a lot of implications if we do that.
I don't know what the TV or money situations are. We're all fighting right now to try and make sure we don't have to drop sports because of the pressure on us. We've got to sell about 800,000 tickets next year in eight games and we raised ticket prices because of the fact that we need to take care of other sports through football. I don't like the idea of the BCS. I've felt I'll go to my grave thinking I've had four or five national championship teams and got voted out of two or three of them.
Thoughts on whether or not the recession has impacted the program
It doesn't seem like it has yet. Our ticket sales are good. Our advanced ticket sales are as good as they've ever been. Don't take that for gospel, check that with [Athletic Director] Tim Curley and the athletic department. But I talk to him every once in a while if there's something we should be doing, but I think we're in good shape. That's one year, but how long is this [recession] going to happen? How long are people going to be cutting out car dealerships and people losing jobs? You don't really know, but right now it doesn't look like it's going to be bad (for Penn State Athletics).
Comment on Daryll Clark and Sean Lee as captains
They're both natural leaders. In fact, there are two or three other guys who would've made good captains. I think we're in good position. We've got to get some young guys better. I'm a little concerned about a couple people in the secondary and a little concerned about a couple people on the offensive line, but that's what we get paid for. We've got to coach. If we get that done and don't get any more injuries, we have a chance to be very good.
What can you do during the summer to help players prepare?
We do what we can legally. I met with [the team] a couple weeks ago to talk about the academic side of things. Individually, I've talked to some of the kids to say it's an important summer for you and for you to make this football team, you've got to turn it up. We stay close and the position coaches stay close, too.
Senior Quarterback Daryll Clark and Senior Linebacker Sean Lee 2009 Co-Captains
Clark on the importance of this time of year in preparing for the season
The most important thing is to keep everybody on the same page. I think Sean and I, along with some other guys who haven't been named captains, we consider ourselves leaders, have done a good job of bringing along the younger guys that have to step up this year in order for us to win football games. It's been going well since spring ball. If we keep that going into August's preseason camp, we'll be fine.
Lee on what the summer means for players conditioning
Physically, guys make huge progressions through the summer. I think it's along this time that we workout consistently together and the work is probably toughest of all. Come July, we'll be up three times a week at 5:00, running at 6:00 a.m.. Guys athletically can take a big jump now. Guys who physically might not be strong enough can get ready for the season.
Clark on what he expects out of Lee in his return to the field
A lot of plays being made on the defensive side; that's for sure. With him being gone last year, it was unfortunate, but him helping as a coach was good for us. Just to have him back with healthy knees and everything [is exciting]; he's looking very good during these workouts that we've had. I just can't wait to see him in pads, other than at a photo shoot or something like that, actually going against another team. It will be good to have him back.
Lee on how his teammates contributed in his absence last season
You saw how guys stepped up. We're the captains of this team, but it's pretty easy to be leaders with the type of guys we have. You saw that leadership come through, especially at the linebacker position last year, where guys like Navarro Bowman and Josh Hull stepped up.
Lee on the difference between coaching and playing
Now you can start leading by example during the workouts. Before, when a guy was running and he's to the point of almost puking, you can't really yell at him because you're not in the workouts with him. Now, you can get him going and bring guys together. You're not as much out of the loop.
Clark on the team's high preseason ranking in preview publications.
I try to stay away from that stuff. I hear about it all the time - phone calls, people from home talking about it. It's real nice to be predicted so high and see your picture in the book, but none of it matters if you're not winning football games. This is what these workouts and everything we're doing to get ready for the season is all about. The words written in a book don't mean a thing if you're not putting the pads on and getting the job done.
Clark on the importance of freshman quarterback Kevin Newsome's development this summer
It's going to be really important. I think he's matured as fast as we wanted him to. He's just getting better each and every day. The workouts, as far as running and lifting, he's been coming along very strong. He's been asking a lot of questions, which is one key that you need to be a good quarterback at this level. A lot has been asked from the coaches for him to come along, but he has to grow up faster than everyone else, God forbid I get hurt and he has to step in. With everything going as well as it is right now, there's not a doubt I have in my mind if I happen to get hurt, he would be able to fit the mold. But, I don't want to rule out Matt McGloin because he showed a lot for us in spring ball. Those guys will be really competing for that backup spot, so we'll see how that all folds out.
Lee on how he handles his emotions in preparing for the season
Whenever I look at the magazines or anything college football, thinking about the season, I get hyped up, worked up, adrenaline starts pumping. Sometimes, if College Football Live (ESPN) is on, I have to change the channel because my adrenaline starts running so much. You can put your emotions into these workouts and go full-go non-stop right now, knowing that you're getting yourself ready for the season.
Clark on who's been stepping up
A.J. Wallace has really stepped up. He's really been working hard in the weight room. He's been in first place in almost all of the runs and all of the sprints. As far as defense goes, he's another guy that we need to step up for us. Knowledge Timmons is doing really well, too.
As far as the younger guys, Gerald Hodges has been doing well. Offensively, the offensive line as a whole is doing really well. Johnnie Troutman is a guy that we need to really step up; he's doing really well with the conditioning. Our wideouts -- Graham Zug, Derek Moye, James McDonald, Pat Mauti, Brett Brackett -- all these guys have been working really hard because they know what type of shoes they have to fill. They understand the responsibility that they have to uphold to win football games and make plays for us. As a whole, this whole team knows what we have to do. Sean and I along with a lot of other leaders on this team are doing what we have to do get everyone on the same page so everyone knows what it takes to win.
Lee on Jerome Hayes
Jerome Hayes is a guy who is now running with us, going full-speed. He's had two ACL injuries; I think he's been an inspiration for all the guys because he's pretty much full-go right now. That's a long injury to go through, two of them, and be fighting right now. He's done a great job for us.
Lee on Navorro Bowman
Bowman will be fine; he's a really good kid and a great football player. If you come to workouts, he's always working hard. He's always up in the front, always leading. He'll be ready to go come the season. He'll be playing for us. He's going to be the same great player he always is.
Lee on the importance of getting pressure on the quarterback to take pressure off a new secondary
As a defense, we always have to work together. Linebackers feed off the defensive line. The secondary feeds off the defensive line. We feed off the secondary. We feel confident in the guys we have back there; we definitely have the athletes, it's just guys that need some experience. There's no doubt they're going to make some mistakes; you have to make some mistakes to become a better football player. The attitude they have is that they're going to go out and go hard every day and try not to make mistakes and get better. Athletically, they're fine. It's just a matter of time until they are really good football players.
Clark on what guys like Knowledge Timmons and A.J Wallace have done to get better
Just a lot of work on their own, along with Rich Gardner, a guy who used to play here. Getting these guys together with all their DB drills, they've been doing a lot of extra work and they've been a lot more vocal than they used to be in the past. I think those guys know that we need them to make plays for us this year. Their work ethic has stepped up ten times.
Clark on how his mindset has changed from this time last year
It's changed a little bit. At this point now, I know that I'm going to be the starter. Up until now (June) last year, I didn't know. I was working to try and get the starting job. I don't want to say it's a comfort level, but it's just something I don't have to worry about. Now, I just have to worry about getting this offense together to where we need to be to win football games. Whether it be watching films, doing extra things with the wideouts, which is what we're doing each and every week. All those things that I did with Derrick (Williams), Deon (Butler), and Jordan (Norwood) last year is what I'm doing with the new guys now. It's very important that we get the timing down now so we don't have to worry about it for pre-season camp. At that point, all I have to worry about it blitz schemes, protections, and things like that. Those things carry you the entire season.
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Lee on Stephfon Green and how he's looked in his rehab from an ankle injury
I saw him Tuesday afternoon and he was working agility ladders. He looks great. I keep telling him he looks 100 percent. There are some things that I think he doesn't feel comfortable doing, but whenever I see him, his feet look great, He looks like he's not limping at all. He looks like he's ready to go.
Clark on Stephfon Greenbr> They're taking it easy, not bringing him full head of steam yet. Come time for football, when we put the pads on the ball, he'll be ready.
Lee on what areas Stephfon Green has looked hesitant in
Just coming back and going full go. With any injury, you haven't done it in how long? I'd see him go half speed and then he realized he felt good and that he'd be doing it. He looked really good.
Lee on a guy that might surprise some people
I like Derek Moye. He's a guy who is talented. He's tall, he's fast, he has a great work ethic and he has a great attitude. I'm looking for big things from him.
Clark on his potential breakout player
I'd have to agree with Sean. Chaz Powell as well has been really working hard for us this summer. I can't stress enough that these guys really know what the opportunity is that lies ahead for them and that they have to do a certain amount of work for us to be successful on the offensive side. Those are our guys and they have to make plays for us.
Clark on if Chaz Powell will be used in the same role as Derrick Williams
I think so. I think we're going to use him just as we did Derrick. He's proven to us now that we can do it with every single workout that we've been through. I think they've got the same speed. Chaz is really quick; he can make you miss in the open field - tools that you need to be a wide receiver. I don't think there's going to be any problem with him learning as you go along. Your athletic ability will take you through that. As long as we all stay in the playbook and just focus on each game we have, we'll definitely be alright. I'm very excited for the season.
Lee on the summer commitment
I know most of the guys have been here every summer session. That goes about May 18 to August 3, then you're here for camp, so we're here year-around. I feel that the summer workouts are the toughest, but it's good because it gets you ready for the season. Come August, you are completely physically ready to play football. It builds your confidence and obviously builds you up physically.
Lee on how he coped not playing last year
It was tough on me. Right off the bat when I was injured, I knew my season was done, but I said, `I need to get over this as soon as possible.' The way I coped with it was trying to help some of the younger guys. If I would have been moping and feeling sorry for myself about not playing, that would have made it worse. I took the attitude that I would go out and help the team as much as possible and that made me get over it a lot easier.
Lee on if there were any times he wanted to go onto the field
[It happened] a ton of times, more when we weren't playing well. When we were playing well, it was great, but whenever you saw a play that you thought you could've made and it went for a long gain, that's when you wanted to be on the field. That's when it was very frustrating.
Clark on the incoming freshmen and how to quickly integrate them into the program
We see how they work out first; see where their head is and talk to them. I feel as a quarterback, you have to make yourself available to each and every player. It's going to be important to those guys that I do that. Just see where their head is, see how hard they work. If there's a problem here or there, pull them aside and talk to them and see what's going on with them. Just do what you can, push them as hard as you can. Make them realize that you're here for them but at the same time, you have to work for us because we need everyone. There are a lot of guys in that freshman class who may be a huge asset to this team, so once they get here, it's full head of steam for those guys. We're going to push them, but we'll let them know that we're here for them. This is one big family.
Lee on the chances of reaching the National Championship game
We've got to go undefeated first. We played Akron my sophomore year and that was a tough game. It's the same coaching staff; they're going to have tough players. That's going to be a tough game. We have to concentrate game by game by game. You can't get into schedule things because that's not how you win football games. That's not how you go through a long season. If you start looking ahead, you're going to get bitten. All of us have the attitude that we're just going to control what we can control, prepare for each game as much as we can, and not worry about the stuff we can't control.
Clark on the schedule
Everyone is looking ahead to the Big Ten opener. I'm the first to say that we're going against two good MAC teams, Akron and Temple. We play Syracuse as well. Those teams always play us hard, especially Temple; we struggled against them in the first half last season. We're not going to take any of those teams lightly. It's a big time spoiler if we're not able to take care of the job before we get to Iowa. We're very excited about that game, but first things first. We don't play Iowa on September 5; we play Akron. The schedule is not soft. The teams are there for a reason. We just go out and play and win football games, simple as that.
Lee on the schedule
We see these teams as tough opponents. The Big Ten is always tough, it's always a bunch of tough games. We're not concerned with that because a lot of that we can't control. We can only control going out and playing as well as we can.
And we're not mentioned in the national title run if we don't win every game. You have to be perfect. That's something we stress in workouts. One play could have made the difference in the Iowa game last year. That comes down to one step. Games are decided by such little things, so that's why we concentrate on always being focused in workouts.
Lee on any potential pressure for setting the tone and making plays
I know as a defense, we want to go out and be playmakers. We want to not only stop the offense, but we want to get the ball and we want to score points. That's the attitude I have and that's the attitude everybody needs to have. That's the attitude we try to push on everybody. Like I said, the defense works together. If you have a guy who is out there just trying to make the average play, you're just going to be a good team. I always say a pass breakup is good and you're going to be a good team. An interception is great and you're going to be a great team. That's the difference; the little plays like that could be the difference in the game and that's what separates a good team from a great team.
Clark on the pressure
I think the pressure is there a little bit, but it's not pressure that we can't handle. Last year helped us out a lot... for me personally, because I didn't have to do it all myself. I won't have to do it all myself this year either. We have tons of talent around us. This past season helped me out because I know what type of situations we may face and how to handle them. You can only get better as a football team going through everything. Once it's done, everything falls into place. Pressure is always there, but it's nothing that we can't handle.
Clark on Andrew Quarless and how he's tried to prove himself
I know one thing -- he rings my phone off the hook to throw extra all the time. He's a beast in the weight room, he's first in the runs, and he does a good job of getting himself open in the drill sixes that we've been running against the defense. The attitude is way different. He's way attentive. He's paying attention to meetings big time with Bill Kenney. ( ) has been giving me good feedback as well. I think he knows that this is his last hurrah. He's going to go after it, definitely.
Clark on the potential for freshmen to come in with a big head
This is why I say that when they come in, you see where their head is. You can tell by the way they work. To feel that I did all this in high school, I was successful here, it's going to happen up at the collegiate level, that's not going to happen. There's going to be a workout where they get their head cracked to the point where they're throwing up, it's welcome to the Big Ten, welcome to Penn State...what happened in high school is not going to happen here. You will have to work extra to get the things done.
We may not have that. We may have a lot of modest guys, but we may have a couple that think they're up here when everyone is down here. The reality check sets in for everyone that has that mindset. We'll see; they haven't gotten here yet.
Lee on the potential for freshmen to come in with a big head
I don't mind a guy having a lot of confidence if he's willing to work and understands what it takes to win football games. If a guy comes in and works hard all the time and knows what it takes to win, but is confident with himself, I'm all for that.
Lee on what position he will play
I don't think we'll know until towards camp. I've played all three in the past, so we'll see come camp. I know I'm ready to play any position. I've played the outside position, the strong side, and some middle also in drill sets.
Clark on watching film of Big Ten defenses this summer
I've been watching the defenses maybe once or twice a week, but I've really been critiquing myself as far as footwork and things like that. This period right now is a time for me to get myself fundamentally sound with all of my mechanics. Some plays I get lazy with my play actions, my follow-throughs, things like that. I want to be so crisp that I can complete passes in my sleep. Sometimes I watch film, especially against Indiana last year, when a blitz would come, I would rush the pass and the ball would go right in the dirt because my feet weren't ready. That's the stuff that I'm watching and taking notes about, small things that make the difference between a completed pass and a ball thrown right into the dirt.
Clark on his typical day during the summer
Let's take today. Tuesdays and Thursdays are our run days so we're running at 6:00 in the morning. I go and eat and at around 12:30 or 1:00, I'm here watching some film and just dissecting each and every game that we played last season. At around 4:30 or 5:00, we get together with those guys on the defense and we have drill six. If some guys aren't available to have drill six, I will just work on the timing with the wideouts. That's how it usually goes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. On Wednesdays, I'm usually working on footwork and regular throws on my own.
Lee on what he learned as a part-time coach
When looking at the Big Ten teams, now, when you see them and come back into a game playing against them, it's almost like you know all their looks. You know how we played it in the years past. The many ways we played it, the different defenses we played to the point when you start explaining to someone the defense or how to play a certain play, you start to learn it better in your head. Come August, I feel playing certain plays will come back a lot quicker. I haven't played in a while; I haven't played in a year. I think the learning curve of coming back will be a lot quicker because of how much time I spent watching (tape).
Lee on his duties as a coach last year
If anything, I would say, "I'd play a play like this, why don't you try this, or I would key this." Most of the stuff comes from Coach Vanderlinden; he's an unbelievable coach who's been successful everywhere he's been. A lot of that comes from him, but at the same time, just through experience, I've learned certain ways to play things that I try to suggest.
Lee on his typical day during the summer
It's pretty much the same as Daryll. What's tough for me now is when it comes to critiquing myself, I've seen all the film from two years ago. I've watched it during the season to the point where I've maybe seen it too much. Now it would be more just watching film, watching certain teams we're going to play. We're just starting to get the Akron tape in. I'll probably start looking at that as soon as I can, probably early next week. That's just getting the looks in your head and start going through basic reads.
Lee on a possible burnout factor during the summer
We can take vacations. I've always said that the sooner you see this as more as a job or an internship, the more you're going to like it. There are going to be certain things that aren't always going to be fun that you have to do to have success. The sooner you get over the fact that you will be here a lot if you want to be successful, the better off you're going to be.
Clark on if he has set any personal goals for this season
No, not really. There was talk back at home about Heisman this, Heisman that. It's an honor to be mentioned among those guys who are Heisman hopefuls at the beginning of the season, but all it takes is one bad game and you're out of the running, period. When you start to worry about, "I need to have this many yards or this many touchdowns or completions," that's when the progress of your team starts to be affected, then you start messing up and you wind up losing a football game. My main focus is this football team and this offense and how much we need to work this off-season to get ready for this football season. I don't worry about anything like that. What happens, happens and hopefully it's all good.
Clark on if the Rose Bowl loss has served as motivation
Absolutely. Obviously, we want to get back there for the national title. It's even more frustrating after watching the film and looking at all the missed opportunities that we had. We did a lot of things in that game that we didn't do all year. We failed to convert on third down during that whole second quarter. We didn't convert on third and one, third and two, and that hurt us. It just makes you mad because we're better than that. A couple plays here that we would've made and we would've been in that football game, so I understand completely what Joe (Paterno) is saying when he says that. It's been motivation. Hopefully, we can play USC again out there. We want to play the best if they happen to be the best this year, as long as we make it out there. We have to win every football game. There's not a doubt that we can do it. It's just that game and the way we played serves to be motivation to get back there again because we can play so much better.