Indiana University Athletics
Head Coach Terry Hoeppner's Season-Ending Press Conference
11/21/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 21, 2006
Head coach Terry Hoeppner sat down with the media on Tuesday, Nov. 21, to discuss his thoughts on the end of the season.
Opening Statement:
"We have seven coaches on the road recruiting. The feelings right now are a sense of withdraw. We get in such a routine, and there's comfort in it. Once the season starts, you're pretty well programmed into what you do. In my program, we're getting ready to practice here shortly, and obviously, we're not. There's an emptiness, a void, so you fill it with working on recruiting and talking on the phone with the staff who's on the road. They're all over the place right now, mostly following up with the players we've identified and have been actively recruiting and have set official visits with and want to firm those up. We have a number of commitments, we'll make contact with them. I'm restricted, I can have contact with a recruit one time off our campus. The staff will be in and out next week. We have our first big recruiting weekend on Dec. 1, and decide where I can be best utilized. If we're recruiting two guys from the same school, we've got to plan it so that I can make the home visits sometime during that same calendar day. I'll be busy and be gone quite a bit. Before finals, I also will meet with all our players, and I'll do that after the spring and after the season. That's how you fill that void. The sense of withdraw doesn't last very long because the season's just begun once the season is over. Recruiting season never stops. It's truly become a year-round proposition. Unfortunately we've become like basketball coaches in that we now recruit all summer too.
"We're going to get together with the returning team next Monday when they get back and give them the plan for the winter. We'll start winter ball when we return second semester, Jan. 9. Spring practice will start the Tuesday after Spring Break (March 20). I'm looking forward to getting back together with them. We were hoping that the banquet on Sunday was going to be a big celebration, but we still honored the seniors, and it was a great chance to honor the guys. It's important to me that we continue to develop support with our students, our fan base and our season ticket holders. It's also important that spirit is alive and well within the returning players and coaches. I've met with several players this morning who are finishing up with classes on their way out for Thanksgiving break. That's good news that they're excited. That's encouraging to me, and it will motivate me until we get back with them."
On the recruiting class:
"Right now we're looking at a class of 18-20, because there's inevitably some attrition. That number is always fluid until you get finals in and after my meetings with the players. It will be at least 18. We've already got a number of commitments. It changes day-to-day, hour-to-hour and minute-to-minute. We're excited about the guys who have committed to us. February 7, 2007 is signing day. That's why I would be in favor of an early signing date for football. It's been brought up, but it's never seemed to gain much traction. Junior college kids can sign in December. There's a break over the holidays where you can't go out and recruit. There's a natural line there. Why not have that as an early signing date? I don't see how it would change much with recruiting. It would lock up some of the kids who have made commitments. It really doesn't stop, it's year round."
On the specific areas the team needs to work on:
"We gave up too many points on defense. I think the way we played the last game will really give us something to build on. What we didn't do is score enough points on defense. They talk about special teams yardage as being hidden yardage. Those kind of yards and points are really significant. The number one goal on defense is to score. We have a lot of guys back, and I think some of the young guys who didn't play very much will contribute. We can get better everywhere. We're going to be very young on the offensive line. I said at practice, in using them as an example of a high-powered offense on a national level, that our scout team has to be the USC of scout teams, because they are good. And they got better as the year went on as did that young offensive line playing on the scout team. Ben Chappell at quarterback, Terrance Turner, who didn't play this year as a wide receiver, but was simply outstanding, and others. What we saw on Saturday from our offense, I really think we can build on that, and we've got to learn to hang on to the football. I don't think I've ever had a team lose that many fumbles in a game. That's just not acceptable. Special teams, we're improved, but we need to find a punter. We were playing a lot of young guys on special teams too, so that will pay great dividends. We put a lot of emphasis on it, and it paid off. It became a little frustrating in that teams tried to get around kicking deep to us on kickoffs. That's why this winter will be really important. We've laid a foundation in a lot of areas, but there's so much to do that at this point, we've just gotten a taste, and we ought to really be hungry now."
On James Hardy returning to the team:
"Yes, I expect James to be back next year. We've actually talked about it. I was just with him in the office before I came over here. He stopped in, he's leaving for thanksgiving this afternoon, and stopped by. We talked about a lot of things. We had talked about it before."
On Ben Chappell:
"Ben Chappell is the most improved guy who was redshirted. He physically changed dramatically in the weight room. That carries over. He had a quick release but it got quicker. He had a strong arm but it got stronger. He improved his agility. He gave us a great look as a scout team quarterback. It was really impressive. Ben's a competitor. Ben is confident, very intelligent. I'll challenge him, but I won't have to challenge him much, to go compete for the quarterback job. No one is given anything. That's a question that will play itself out through the winter and spring."
On the emotions of last season:
"In some ways, it was a roller coaster, but in some ways it was also very uplifting. I said it after the first one and probably times two or three after the second one, it's been great for our family. We're very close to the point where one of our daughters and her family moved here. I predicted it. In some ways it's been very calming and smooth, and I think it probably comes from my perspective on things. You never accept defeat, but I truly didn't get too carried away with the big wins that we had, and didn't get too disconsolate. The most frustrating one was Saturday because it was the last game. Seeing the seniors in the locker room, anyone would have been moved by that. They put so much into it and it was so important to them. All the rest of us will wait till next year, and they can't say that. In some ways, this has been, personally, a very satisfying year. The support, the opportunities it's given me, the support I've had from so many people. The players, the IU community, the Bloomington community, the state of Indiana, it happens every day. The overwhelming support and enthusiasm from fans. Did we accomplish everything that we could have? No. But we've affected a lot of people, we've laid a foundation, and the spirit is great, not only with the team, but within the Hoosier Nation. I will return next year, and for as long as they'll keep me around here. Within reason, I'm not going to try to break Joe Paterno's longevity record for coaching."
