Antonio Shelton | Defensive Tackle
Q. Just looking back on Saturday, post-halftime, the way the team responded, especially on offense with Sean Clifford, did that prove something to you about this program, considering how many first-year contributors are on the field this year?
AS: It wasn't anything that I was surprised about. You know, just going against the offense every day in camp, and working out with everybody in the summer, it wasn't something that was like completely unexpected or anything like that. I just think in that first half, we just didn't play up to the standard that we set for ourselves on both sides of the ball.
I think second half, we just came in, like we calmed down and went out there and did what we were supposed to do.
Q. James Franklin had mentioned the stress of you guys wanting to be better on third down as a defense. How much have you guys emphasized that in practice this week, and I guess continuing on with practice this week, how much is that going to factor into what you guys are preparing?
AS: A big part of getting off the field on third down is how you play on first and second.
So when the offense is in a more manageable situation, like third and three, third and four, they usually stick to their bread and butter plays, which is plays that they run most often, which most of the time is running the ball.
Felt like we just have to play a little bit better on first and second down so the quarterbacks, when the offensive coordinators are a little bit more uncomfortable, you know, they might have to hold the ball a little longer. Gives the secondary more time to cover. Gives us more time to get there.
Q. After the game on Saturday, I asked about PJ Mustipher, and [Coach Franklin] called him a "coach's dream." What have you seen that maybe fits that description and additionally, how has he pushed you and what kind of leadership qualities has he shown as a sophomore?
ANTONIO SHELTON: You know, the jump that P has taken from last year to this year, is like really cool to see. Because first of all, it's very hard to play as a true freshman, as a defensive tackle at this school and in this conference.
So I think what P is he took his work ethic to a whole other level in the summer and the spring. I think that's what Coach means on that. His effort is consistent. He's going to play a hundred miles an hour from the snap to the whistle. He's very physical.
He's always willing to learn. He gels very well with everybody else. He's like a really big like jolly type of dude. He's like Santa Claus. You'll hear him before you see him. He'll just come in the room yelling, "way to go, PJ!"
He's a great guy. I'm really glad I'm able to play with him. And far as him like pushing me, he pushes me to be, the best player that I can be this camp just because the competition in the room, we always talk about it, is incredible. It's like at any point, anybody can get replaced and the thing that I think with our defensive line is there's not really like a two-deep. It's like 1A, 1B. Anybody at any time could come in and make a play. So I think PJ adds a really big piece to that.
Q. When you guys go through the process of making adjustments on the sideline, can you take us through that process? What are you guys telling coach [Sean] Spencer? What are you telling that guy who is the 1B going in there, how does that kind of information flow work between series?
AS: Well, we'll come out and most of the time guys will be like, "alright, how are they playing?" because what you've seen on film, especially earlier in the season, might not be exactly what's going on out there. So it's like, "Well, what type of guy is he? How is he setting? What's his hand placement like?" things like that.
When it comes to telling Coach Spence, this is how they are blocking this play, maybe this might work because they are doing this, they are not doing what they showed on film, most of the time the coaches will have questions, like if a play got out, like what happened on the back side of this, or did somebody not do this -- it's just real basic communication.
Q. You watched a lot of film and talk to a lot of coaches and get prepared; how long does it take to realize what you're looking at on the field?
AS: That's a pretty good question. You're really not going to get too many plays out of too many different people, like most offenses, pretty much follow -- not follow, but you're only going to get a certain amount of plays but it's just a matter of recognizing like what formation equals what.
Everybody has a tell. It's just trying to find it, like pre snap reads, things like that. If an O-lineman is lighter on his hands, it's probably a pass. Or if he's looking one way, you're probably getting a certain type of block.
Usually for me, start watching film on Mondays, just because Sunday we do game corrections from the previous Saturday. So on Monday, probably by about Thursday, I'll have a really good grasp of what's going on.
Q. How does playing that Buffalo game last week, where you saw a lot of rushing plays on first and second down, help you prepare for a team like Pitt where over the past couple years has been a big rushing attack team?
AS: I mean, playing in the Big Ten East, you're used to people running the ball. You play teams like Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, and we played Wisconsin last year. Like that's all they do is run the ball. I think that it definitely helped us out in the sense that, you know, just kind of knowing what to expect a little bit more. The level of competition was raised a little bit.
So it's kind of like, okay, I guess now it's really time to like -- it's time to play football now, like real football now, you know what I mean.
Q. Maybe I'm taking this out of context, but you Tweeted after the game Saturday and it sounded like some fans were giving you a hard time. Do you guys use that as motivation? What does that criticism do for you personally and the defense?
AS: Hopefully I prefaced everything as politely and correctly as I could. It's kind of hard to tell over the internet and how people read what you say.
First things first, we appreciate everybody that comes out and supports us because, as a player, when you sit back and you really think, 'these people are here to watch me play a game,' it's pretty cool. There are schools, even within this conference, or schools around the country that just don't have that. They don't have consistently over a hundred thousand people. So we appreciate everybody that comes and everybody that watches at home and everybody that supports us.
But what I was saying, is that it's that time of year where everybody thinks that they know what's going on on the football field. To a certain degree, if you've never played college football at a Division I level, or if you never played professional football, to an extent you kind of can't talk about certain things. Like, I'd like to think I don't talk about certain things I don't know about. I'm not a rocket scientist, so if the space shuttle doesn't do "whatever," I'm not like, "oh, they should have done this."
And I understand this is football and not rocket science, but what I was saying was, at a certain point there was a fan, and I don't know him, yelling at one of my teammates – I'm not going to say who – but I figured he knew him, so he was just trying to get his attention. Then my teammate turned around, and it was clear that he did not know this dude. And [the fan] is just trying to tell him how to play football as if we don't have a coaching staff that's doing that already, and as if he's not an adult, a young man who has dedicated his life to this. It's like, you can't tell me how to play football, you know what I mean.
Those are the type of things I was trying to say. Don't be disrespectful. Like you think we come out here in this stadium and we're like, hey, let's lose today?
Like we practiced all week, watched all this film and did all this studying on these people and put in all this work during summer and during camp -- let's just go out here and lose, we don't care about the trophy, you know what I mean. It's just kind of weird.
That same dude might have been out here in the South Tunnel after the game looking for an autograph for his kid or a picture for him. It's kind of weird. It's like, please come out here, be respectful to us. We appreciate the support, but the disrespect and all that type of stuff is just not needed.
Q. When Coach Franklin mentioned that you changed signals when John Petrishen left, how long does that take and have you ever had to do that before?
AS: It's probably going to be a little bit of an adjustment, but that's just to make sure everybody gets used to it. It shouldn't be too crazy, as long as everybody's locked in on it.
Q. Do you have any kind of interest in the historical significance between Penn State and Pitt? Do you or your teammates even look at something like that? How does the coaching staff relay that to you?
AS: I'm not from here, so I don't really know. I mean, it's cool. An in-state game like this is cool.
What we tried to just do approach everything the same way. It's one game at a time. Our goal is to be 1-0 at the end of the game on Saturday. Some people will make this game a bigger deal than what it is.
Not to say that we're taking Pitt lightly at all -- we treat every opponent the same. We treat Buffalo like we did Idaho. We're to go to treat Pitt like we did Buffalo. We treat everybody the same way. Our process doesn't deviate because once you do that, you start making mistakes and in this era of college football, you can't afford to make mistakes new want to win.
So yeah, me, I'm from Ohio, so I don't really know too much about the history, I guess you could say.
Q. What challenges does the Pitt offense present to your defense?
AS: Well, I think they are a very sound offensive line. They are very well-coached. They have a new offensive coordinator this year -- the offensive line, as well, but I feel like they have good leadership at their center who is the oldest guy on the line. They are going to run the ball and run the ball well, how they usually do.
They are going to try to dominate us between the tackles and that's just something that we're going to have to prepare for and hopefully shut down.
Q. What did you see out of Caedan Wallace preseason? I know at this point you are probably not going up against him a lot -- but to come up against him with that size and sort of thing what does he bring to the table?
AS: So funny story about Caedan. Anybody in here familiar with Pokemon at all? So y'all remember Squirtle, and he evolves and his last form is like Blastoise, the big turtle with the cannons coming out his back? That's what Caedan is built like -- and I tell him that, he's just like all back, you know what I mean. So he's a young guy. He makes young guy mistakes but he's willing to learn from those mistakes and he's willing to take coaching and he works really hard. So I feel like Caedan's future is very bright, as long as he sticks to the formula.
Q. Are you guys encouraged not to get into debates with the fans in the stands? I'm sure it's difficult to turn the other cheek, but what is the protocol in that? Because I can't imagine that's a debate that you're going to win.
AS: Yeah, just like you said, it's a debate we're probably just not going to win. It's not really like a huge deal. It's just every now and again, you catch somebody -- you're going to have somebody saying something that's disrespectful. But at the end of the day, we've got a game to play so it's like, well, if they said that, that's how they feel.
Now they are sitting down and it's second down now, so it's like, whatever. Playing any sport, it's just something that you have to deal with, like especially a place like Iowa -- all right, so if this is where the bench is, the banner is where their bleachers start.
So it's like, they can hear -- like you can hear these people. Or you can turn around and be like, "Yo, what's up." Like immediately have a personal conversation with these people. It's something that you just learn to deal with.
I don't know why it struck such a nerve with me on Saturday. It just did. I don't know why.
Q. The disco ball in the locker room, how did that start? Do you have any idea who started it and what's the response been?
AS: We walked in there on Saturday, for the Idaho game and it was just there. I was like, 'oh.' Like every year now, something is added to the locker room. Coach Franklin has TVs in there and Friday at the hotel he puts up two words that kind of like describe the program or just like words that he thinks it's important that we focus on.
So the words will be up there. That was new. And then last year, we got like 1-0 on the door, like coming out, which is cool, as well. I just walked in there and I'm like, oh, we got lights in here, like really trying to kick it after we win. It's like, cool, turn the music on. It messed me up because when we came in and the music was on, the light weren't on and I'm like what's going on -- and everybody saw the video and turn the music back on -- you know what I mean, it was cool.
Q. You had a firm grasp of who the quarterback is going to be for Pitt with [Kenny] Pickett, and last week you had a first-time starter, not much tape available and Idaho, you had two quarterbacks. How does it compare, facing a guy you have a lot of film on, and what do you see from Pickett that presents some problems or issues?
AS: Having more film on anybody that you play -- it just helps because you know their tendencies, what they are going to do against pressure. Little tendencies, like when he does this. It's really simple football stuff, you know, that you can pick up on on film that you have on somebody; the easier it is to, you know, play full speed and just trust your keys.
Q. You mentioned not growing up and not being around the Penn State match-up from an historical standpoint, but being around the program the last couple years, how would you describe the atmosphere around Heinz Field and has it lived up to the expectation?
AS: It's always a great atmosphere. People in the State of Pennsylvania care about football, which it's always cool to play in a pro stadium, like, 'oh, this is kind of tight.'
I mean, nothing compares to Beaver Stadium because of the sheer size and magnitude, but it's always cool to play in a pro stadium, especially when it's like extremely loud like how it's been in previous years; the scenery in Pittsburgh is cool because you're right there on the water, things like that. It's a cool game to always play in.
Nick Bowers | Tight End
Q. You've been around for a minute, how long does it take for what you see on film and talk to coaches about to be something that you recognize as it's happening on the field?
NB: I think it depends on how much time you put in on your own. You have to put in a lot of extra time besides the time with the coaches. You have to put in a lot of hours outside going in with your teammates watching film and breaking it down, but I mean, once you get the gist of it, it doesn't take that long.
Q. Was there a moment, maybe not a specific moment, but over the course of the time you've been here where you feel like I'm officially confident about all this?
NB: I couldn't really pinpoint a time, but you just kind of know how to prepare. I think you don't really understand how much you need to prepare for games once you figure it out from older guys. You know you have to come in -- high expectation on the time you put in, but you need to figure it out.
Q. What challenges does the defense present to the offense?
NB: They are a very physical team. They are well-coached. They play hard. They play fast. You know, they are an ACC team. They are a good team, yeah.
Q. Could you talk about the dynamic of having originally planned to play at Pitt, and then coming here and do you still get it from friends and others back home?
NB: Yeah, where I come from, you're either a Pitt or you're a Penn State fan. When I made that transition from Pitt to Penn State, the coaching staff changed, and I thought I made a great relationship with [James] Franklin, so that's why I made the flip.
But you know, I think I'm trying to figure out if I got those people to flip from Pitt to Penn State -- I'm hoping I did, and worked with quite a few of them -- last year, a lot of them come to the games now.
Q. How many guys do you know on the Pitt team and is there discussion at all during a week like this?
NB: Yeah, I used to know a lot more, but I don't really keep in touch with a couple of them. I played against Tre Tipton in high school, and so I haven't really talked to him in a while, but I talked to him in the beginning of the process and obviously a couple of the players, but not really, no.
Q. What's it been like for to you watch the development of Pat Freiermuth? What appreciation do you have for his physical skills?
NB: When he got here, we knew he was a special player. He was very mature. He does everything right. Pat's one of those guys that works extremely hard. Spent a lot of time off the field and I think coaches knows that, but he makes blocks, he runs, catch the ball. He's a very well-rounded tight end.
Q. You knew John Petrishen, he was on the team, on the practice field in August, and now he is a member of the Pitt Panthers program. Is he somebody you keep in communication with, and was that a strange transition, because Franklin said they had to go back to the drawing board with their signals because he knew them all.
NB: Yeah, lived about 30 minutes apart from each other back home. When we got recruited we stayed in touch. He's one of my best friends, so obviously I keep in touch with him.
I don't think anyone on the team was mad at him. I wasn't mad at him. He had to do what's best for him. You know, things happen.
Q. Along those same lines, when it comes to changing signals, how much did that process work in terms of how time consuming is it? Is it confusing at all? Have you done it before?
NB: I think we've done it before. It's not really a challenge. I mean, you know, get to come in and work every single day and you're expected to know those signals, so it's up to you if you want to play or not, so it's your choice.
I think you pick it up pretty quickly. You kind of get the gist from the other signals, but I mean, for the most part, it's just about your preparation and yeah, basically, if you don't want to prepare -- but I think all the guys, they do a good job of preparing on their own time and coaches will give us those signals and you're just expected to know them when you come into practice today.
Q. You mentioned what the programs mean to people back home. Probably not growing up with as many Pitt/Penn State games, but what have you noticed the last few years in the environments and what are you expecting this weekend?
NB: Yeah, I think the fans do a good job of packing the stadium. I mean, this is my first time getting to play in this game. So I haven't really gotten to experience that whole effect. I'm pretty excited for Saturday.
Q. We've had a chance to speak with you about Sean Clifford in the past but now a couple games in, three touchdowns in the second half when you were facing a deficit, what have you learned about him through 120 minutes of football?
NB: Sean has similar traits -- he's a guy that prepares very hard. He comes in -- tries to come in with different positions to help them with different things and different schemes. He's been preparing like he's a starter for the past two years. We've noticed that. For us, like even in spring ball, the past couple years, we knew that Sean was going to be special, and the last couple games, he's really getting in a rhythm. Everyone on the team supports Sean and we're excited.
Q. Comparing him to Trace [McSorley] -- a lot of times you've turned to Trace when it's a dire situation or you're down. How did Sean respond in that way, not just what we saw in the first half with him?
NB: Yeah, we voted Sean captain for a reason. He's a great leader on and off the field. Before the games, he really brings offense together and gives us that game day speech to get us going.
With Sean, he's a great captain. He does everything right. He's someone a lot of guys look up to.
Q. One more sophomore captain question. Pat Freiermuth, Franklin used the term, he's aligned with the coaching staff, feels like he's an extension of the staff on the field. Impressive for a sophomore. How do you see that playing out?
NB: Yeah, Pat, I would agree with that a lot. You'd see him in practice, he takes a lot of extra time with the young guys. He is a young guy but he has experience like he's an older guy. Younger guys have questions about schemes with the offense, he does a good job of stepping aside and helping them learn things like that, so I think that's where that aligns right there.
