Steven Gonzalez | Offensive Line
Q. Coach Franklin was just talking about how this team has really grown since your first year here and some of the guys who are kind of holdovers from that group like yourself, fifth year. I had a chance to talk to Garrett Taylor after the game, and he said in year five, he feels like there's never been more of a complete buy-in in the program than there is right now. How does that work considering how young so much of the roster is and how have you seen it develop, and is it a sentiment you would agree with?
SG: I think it's just something we've been building over the years. You know, since I've been here since my freshman year, it kind of felt like some guys like were kind of close-knit, some guys weren't. And I think every year since then, everyone has gotten really close-knit. Everybody talks to each other and everyone is part of the team and together, and there's a lot of chemistry.
I just think year by year, it's slowly been growing, and I think there's been a lot of buy-in from obviously the young players but also the older players.
Q. One note that Franklin did make about the young players is there is sometimes a sense of you guys don't quite understand what it took to get to this point where Top 10 is expected and championship expectations are here, whereas when you got here it was a different scenario. How do you guys kind of make sure that that mentality is engrained within those younger players who are coming in with a different understanding of Penn State than the one that you encountered?
SG: We just kind of try to tell them a little bit about our past and the things we went through as freshmen, and we kind of said how different the program has been since then and how much it's changed, and how much I feel close-knit that we all are together. I think we just try to remind them and try to kind of just give them some background information on that, and they obviously listen, they understand and obviously they buy in.
Q. Are you a fan of College GameDay?
SG: When I get to watch it. I'm normally busy getting ready for the game.
Q. I'm curious if you have maybe a favorite sign or something you've seen or favorite part of that show that you might like?
SG: I don't even remember. I think -- was it a couple years ago, Ohio State, someone said that Saquon [Barkley] likes to kick dogs. I think that was pretty funny. I thought that was ridiculous, but it was funny. It made me laugh when I had seen it. But yeah, like I said, I'm normally getting ready for a game, so by the time I'm able to actually sit down and watch it, like I'm not able to watch it. It's off the air already.
Q. Going back to Michigan in '16, was that kind of a low moment for you guys?
SG: Yeah, I think we're just two great programs, two great teams. Obviously both teams are really well-coached, and we just go back and forth. But I think that year in '16 after that game, I think it kind of like opened our eyes, like hey, we need to continue to buy in more now than ever no matter what the situation, what's going on. Like we need to continue to buy in, and obviously that worked out for us, and it's continually been working out for us.
Q. For someone who hasn't been to the white out before, how would you describe it to someone who's never seen it?
SG: It's college football at its finest. For some people, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. So for me to have it, going on my fifth year having it, it's a blessing, and it's like one of those things you -- like I said, once in a lifetime. To me it's kind of the same experience I had with the Rose Bowl. Not many people are able to say that they've been to a Rose Bowl. I think it's one of those things where you can only experience it once. If you're able to experience it more, then that's awesome. But it's college football at its finest, to be honest.
Q. Do you remember was your first time seeing the white out?
SG: I think I was supposed to go to the white out the year that we won in four overtimes and I wasn't able to make that trip because I think I had a high school game or something, so I was a little upset that I missed that game. But I think my first white out was my freshman year, to be honest. I remember seeing it on TV, obviously seeing it on the internet, but I think my first actual being in the stadium during a white-out was my freshman year.
Q. What's impressed you about Rasheed Walker and how good do you think he can be long-term?
SG: I think he'll be really good long-term. He has obviously the physical traits along with the mental traits to be a very successful player in the future. But I think for this year -- right now and through the first six games, I think he's slowly improved every game. I think the first game obviously for every guy that makes his first start is always a little tough and it's always a little challenging.
But I think you can see -- throughout every week, throughout every film week after we play the game and we watch it the next day, you can see that he's gradually improving, and obviously physical traits are always going to be there. He's always going to be athletic, he's always going to be long. So I just think the improvement mentally is the big piece of him that's -- I can personally see him improving in.
Q. How do you see that?
SG: Obviously less mental mistakes when we're grading film. But yeah, I mean, like I said, things like that you can kind of see throughout the weeks. He's had less and less of those, and he's been improving, and it's been impressive to watch. He played really well last week I thought against Iowa.
Q. Noah Cain is a physical runner and Pat Freiermuth was saying Saturday night it took a while to fully appreciate him since you guys aren't going live in practice and that physicality isn't always on display. When is the first time that you realized Noah was going to be something special for you guys, and what's it like blocking for a guy who can eat up yards like he can?
SG: We always knew all four of those guys in the running back room were special. They all have their individual traits that makes them special. For Noah specifically, I mean, just -- I remember seeing him in spring ball and in camp. He was just very downhill. He would hit -- the minute he sees the hole, he hits it. He's very downhill. And I think what impressed me the most was seeing him in the games and things like that, seeing when he's running, he can take multiple guys with him and just drag them. I thought that was pretty impressive for a guy his size. I mean, I don't know, I've never seen that like in person. So to see that with him, I mean, it makes you want to block more and it makes you want to block longer to the whistle. And you can obviously see in the film, a lot of us when we see him dragging a couple guys, we try to help him out and push him, and it's impressive to watch. He's been really playing well.
Q. Just the running game and in general, James Franklin was saying earlier that you guys reached a critical point with being able to have such an effective four-minute offense. How much better is that now compared to where it's been in the past? And just how much, I guess, of a boost does that give you guys moving forward knowing you've kind of got that to hang your hat on?
SG: It gives us a pretty big boost. We work on that every week in practice, every Tuesday, Wednesday, we work on situations like that, like two-minute, four-minute. We work on those critical game situations where we need to be prepared if we ever see that in a game. You know, it's kind of like second nature to us, to be honest.
Q. Does anything surprise you about Sean Clifford through six games? I know you probably had expectations for him, but the two turnovers or something that stand out from our perspective. But what have you seen in terms of his mentality, going on the road, encouraging his teammates?
SG: I think the thing that stands out to me is his confidence. It grows every week. You can tell from Idaho he was a little nervous, obviously. Every quarterback that's starting in his first game for an elite college program will feel that way. So I mean, for him to just kind of grow his confidence and to raise his skill level every week has just been really impressive to watch, and he's been playing really well, and we're obviously going to do our job and block our best so that he can do his job well.
Q. Where is Michal Menet compared to where he was last year as a first-time starter, and when you see him to your side, how much is he handling business, game in, game out right now?
SG: He handles his business all the time throughout the week, in practice, and off the field, getting in the tubs, watching film. I just think it's hats off to him for his work ethic and kind of how he handles the week leading up to the game. And I think that's kind of what's been setting him apart from, I guess, any other, I guess, competitors you could say. I think that's just kind of been setting him apart from other guys, that his work ethic throughout the week has just been really impressive to watch.
PJ Mustipher | Defensive Tackle
Q. I just want to ask you about the white out first off. For people who have never experienced that before, how would you describe it?
PM: It's going to be tough for people who haven't experienced it to describe it, but it's like a sea of white, just everybody is wearing white. Everybody is really loud. And for me, that really helps. And for this defense, that really helps because you can't hear anybody next to you, in front of you or behind you. So I would describe it like that.
Q. How do you guys adjust your communication for that, because you've got to audible, you've got to change, you've got to talk to each other, but you're on the field during a time when no one can hear each other?
PM: I think we work on it throughout the week. We're used to that loud environment when we're playing in Beaver Stadium, so I think we're just communicating. You can always give hand signals to the guy next to you. That's what we do on the defensive line. If you don't get the call, you just signal over to your brother. But in Beaver Stadium, we're used to that crowd being with us, so we just prepare throughout the week with being together, just doing it each and every time. If you don't get it, just look over to your brother, and it's really as simple as that.
Q. In the preseason everybody says that somebody is going to be good or that a unit is going to be good. How nice has it been for this defense to be pretty much as good as advertised right out of the blocks?
PM: I mean, when you put in the work all off-season, you know it's definitely nice to have something to show for it. And I think coming into the season, we wanted to be the best defense in the country. That's the type of work we did all off-season together. It wasn't just one unit, it was all the units coming together, making that decision, and then going out and executing during the off-season. You know, it's definitely paid dividends so far in the season, and we're just going to continue to grow each week.
Q. When you're not starting a game, what are you doing early on? Are you looking out on the field at specific things, or what's kind of going through your head?
PM: Yeah, you're definitely watching when those guys are out there. But I think the most important part is when the starters come off the field, you're asking what are you seeing, what is the offense doing? So when your chance is to go out there, you know what you're going to get from the offensive line. I think that's the biggest part. When they come off the field, you're asking them what they're seeing so you're prepared to go out there.
Q. With the number of D-tackles and D-ends you're rotating, do you get a sense that the other offensive line is kind of getting tired as the game is going along? How much of an advantage is that?
PM: Oh, it's a huge advantage. Our room is deep, but coming here, [defensive line coach Sean] Spencer always said what makes Penn State's defensive line unit so special is that we're able to rotate, and that's what we do each week. As the game goes on, the guys -- you definitely start to see the offensive line wearing down, and we're just continuing to rotate, and we're so fresh because we have so many guys that can rotate and that can go in there and do the job.
Q. How does the coaching staff kind of get you to buy in to maybe not necessarily being a starter, or is it just a matter of you're getting so many reps that it doesn't matter?
PM: I think that's who we are. Whether we're starting or not, we're always going to prepare like we're the starter. Each of us wants to be great, and each of us has to be great in order for this unit as a whole to be great. Whether we're starting or not, the guys in this room, we want to execute to perfection ourselves because that's what we know it takes to be great as a unit.
Q. Can you kind of take me through the dog tag ceremony, how it works? What's the atmosphere like when you guys do it?
PM: I mean, [defensive backs coach Terry] Smith always talks about brotherhood, and I think that's what the dog tag ceremony embodies. It was definitely great that the fans during the HBO documentary were able to see that because not too many people know we do that. We were all in the hotel, Coach Spencer goes around with the key chains, and we just all have our key chains in there with our nicknames on there. So we pick it out, we tell who it is, what we picked, and then we hug our brother. It's just a unique thing that we do, and it just goes to show you that this brotherhood is so strong.
Q. Are you wearing that during the game or is it in the locker room, or where does it actually go?
PM: You can wear it during the game, but the thing was with me for last year, it got pulled off during the games and it broke. So I don't wear it, I just keep it in my locker before the game. But I wear it during the week and before the game, so yeah.
Q. Coach Franklin mentioned that Rob Windsor talked to you guys Friday night about his message, kind of filled with gratitude. What do you remember about what Rob said?
PM: Rob's journey was unique. Me coming here last year, I was able to play, I had early success. But for Rob, he didn't have that early success. He had to go through the redshirt year. He had to go through the hardships of not playing, because when you're not playing it is tough to watch the team. But Rob said that he had to overcome a lot of things, and what made him so special is that he realized that he had to overcome things and he was willing to sacrifice to get where he's at today. So it was just special.
I think the most important thing out of that was that he sacrificed and then the next day he was able to go out there and perform the way he did. So I thought that was truly like special for him.
Q. Can you tell us a little bit about his personality because he was in that postgame interview and some people get a sense for it. He told us this off-season, big expectations for himself, not just this year but for next spring with the NFL Draft. He kind of laid that all on the line. Is he as confident as he appears to be on the daily, and how does that kind of resonate with your group?
PM: Yeah, he's confident because he's willing to put the work in. Rob is always talking to me as a younger guy about sacrificing. He sacrifices daily. Like each day, whether we're out -- for instance, we could be out at lunch, and when go to this place where we get burgers. And I'll get the burger, but he'll get the one with the lettuce on it, know what I mean? Like it's a healthier option because he says like that's the key to success, and that's what's going to take you from good to great.
So, you know, each day he's working on his craft, he's working on being better off the field, whether it's stretching, eating right, and that goes a long way to what he's able to do on the field. And that's why he's able to have that confidence. Rob is a unique guy all around.
Q. Sticking with some of the veterans in the locker room, I heard from Robert [Windsor] and Garrett Taylor, they feel like the buy-in is at a different level than where it's been. You seem to notice that just two years on campus? But for the younger guys that weren't a part of the earlier struggles that there were, how do you kind of find that common place where you're all coming in seeing a different program, a top 10 program? How do you meet in the middle in terms of your mentalities?
PM: Well, it starts in the off-season, and it starts when we all come together in those player-led meetings. We all as a unit, offense and defense, made up our mind that we want to be great. Losing, it sucks, point blank, period. We lost some games that we felt we should have won last year, and we made up our mind that that wasn't going to be the case this year. We had a lot of time to really understand who we wanted to be as a team, and I think we talked about it all off-season. And then we went out and did it, like I said, this off-season. I think that's the most important part. We all bought in, and we were like, look, we're all here, we're all going to do this and we're all going to be great, so I think that's what we did.
Q. There were some times last year, some of the losses where the defense was able to come out and make a stop after the offense couldn't run the clock out. How rewarding is it to stand on the sideline and watch Noah Cain do exactly what you would probably hate to see coming from the other side of the field, and what does it do for this team to have that kind of closer?
PM: Yeah, well, we always have our offense's back, whether we have to go out there and make a play for them, because we know they're going to do it vice versa. But on Saturday, just to see Noah go out there and just carry that ball and just keep pounding that defense, pounding that defense, it gives us a little bit of a break to catch our wind and stuff like that. But he eventually scored, and we were thrilled about that. But whether we have to go out there or not, each unit has the other's back.
Q. Carl Ohlson is a guy who's meeting with you guys pretty regularly. Is there something that he's said that's stuck with you or resonated with you at all?
PM: Carl always talks about what are you doing when you're not on the field, and I think that's what I just talked about. What can you be doing to better the team when you're not on the field? And I think when the offense comes off the field, whether it's good or bad, you've got to be supporting those guys. You've got to be helping them get through whatever they're going through, whether it's good or bad. So he always talks about that, and I think that's a message that definitely resonates with me. Because when I see Cliff [quarterback Sean Clifford] running off the field and I'm going on, I'm always dabbing him up, making sure like, look, we've got to go to the next play whether you scored or whether you didn't. So I think that's a huge part of what Carl tells us throughout the week.
Q. So body language matters then?
PM: Oh, yeah, body language definitely matters because you have to have that next-play mentality. And if you don't, you're going to get stuck in the past and then you're not going to be able to move forward. That's a huge part of what Coach teaches us and a huge part of what Carl [Ohlson] tells us.
Q. Just curious, looking at the Michigan film early this week, what do they do that maybe is a little bit different from what you guys have seen this season? What's the big thing you guys have to be aware of when you face the Wolverines?
PM: Oh, yeah, I told the defensive line, I told Coach that this is going to be our biggest test in the interior. They have three guys in that middle who are very good football players. You know, they're downhill blockers. They want to get on you, and they want to drive you down the field. There's no blocking to shield you off from the gap. They want to take you and drive you down the field. They're physical, and they're violent. It's going to be a great test for our interior but all across the board. They have a very good line, and we saw that last year. I was able to watch film from this year, their last couple games, and I was able to watch the film last year. These guys, they're a great offensive line, and I can't wait for that challenge.
Q. Even if you don't have a lot of time to watch College GameDay, do you have maybe a favorite sign or something you've seen, whether it be on the internet somewhere or anything that sticks out to you?
PM: I don't have a favorite sign, but I'll tell you this: Growing up, I grew up watching College GameDay, so I was one of those people who woke up at like eight, nine in the morning when everybody was still asleep just to be able to watch College GameDay because I thought it was so unique how they would go around to each different place, and you could see the different environments and atmospheres that they were at. And I would watch it until noon when it ended and the games started to go. I love College GameDay, and it's going to be great for this university and the students that they come here this week. I don't have a favorite sign, but I love College GameDay as a whole and what they do.
Q. Can you believe for the last couple years you've been at a school where College GameDay was? Does it kind of resonate with you?
PM: Yeah, it does resonate with me because this is why I came here. I came to play in the big games. I came to play in an environment that people want to come to, such as College Gameday. They love it here. So that's why I came to Penn State, and yeah, it's definitely a shocker, but at the same time, this is what we came here to do.
