Quoted: Preseason Camp – Oct. 6
10/6/2020 12:27:00 PM | Football
Below are partial transcripts of Zoom press conferences with Indiana associate head coach/running backs coach Mike Hart, RB Stevie Scott III and RB Sampson James on Tuesday, Oct. 6.
Associate Head Coach Mike Hart
Q. On Sampson James deciding to come back…
HART: We are really happy Sampson James stayed. I think that when you are close to people for a long time and something happens, sometimes they make an irrational decision. He wanted to be here, he is a great kid and he is all in. He has been busting his tail to get ready. As far as the depth of our room, obviously, with Sampson, Stevie Scott III, David Ellis moving over, Tim Baldwin Jr. and Ahrod Llyod, I think, as far as a group, it is the most sound group we have had since I have been here. They are talented and they love ball. I feel really comfortable with them out there. Stevie and Sampson have both started games, but Sampson still has not played a lot of football, to be quite honest with you. He played at Purdue and against Tennessee last year. That is really it. Besides that, he did not have many carries throughout the season, so he is still improving every day. I am excited about the group that we have, a really strong group, really fun group to be around and coach.
Q. On the utilization of the depth…
HART: I think that is all up to Coach Nick Sheridan. The more we run the ball the more guys are going to get touches. I think you roll with the hot hand. I think we have a couple guys that can start in there, and they are all going to play, so we will see how it goes. It is how we practice, they all practice, so they are all going to play and we will see what happens as we go. As long as we run the ball, I mean if there are only 15 carries in the game it is hard to say someone is going to get seven and seven. But if you run the ball 25 or 30 times, you can go 20 and 10 or 15 and 15. If you only run the ball 15 times per game, you are not going to be able to do seven and seven. Guys cannot get into a flow that way. We will see what Coach Sheridan wants to do this year.
Q. On David Ellis…
HART: David is a really explosive athlete. He played receiver last year, but we recruited him originally as a running back. He came here to play running back. He played in the slot last year and now we are going to let him play some tailback. You can just utilize him in multiple ways. We are really excited about him, he is special. He can catch the ball, he can run the ball, he is six-foot 210 pounds, so he is a big receiver and is a solid sized running back. We are excited about him and looking forward to using him on the field this year.
RB Stevie Scott III
Q. On health and areas to improve heading into the season…
SCOTT: Physically, I feel as though my body is in shape. We got a new strength staff during the offseason and I feel that they have been helping the whole team get better. They have improved every day on the little things to help our bodies stay healthy and to be physical players. For me, I want to improve on my breakaway ability, getting through the line of scrimmage and creating bigger plays for the offense.
Q. On a featured role in the offense…
SCOTT: I am definitely excited to be a big part of the offense. I am going into every practice with the mindset to be great and helping others to be the best versions of themselves. It is a great feeling to go out every day and practice. Being able to play football again is a blessing and we are trying to not take it for granted. I try to go out there every day and get the team riled up, getting everyone prepared and get everyone ready to get their mindsets right and focus on the good things.
Q. On the roller coaster offseason…
SCOTT: It was a lot of mixed emotions at first from everyone on the team. We went from not knowing if we were going to have a season, especially for our seniors. We took it as, we needed to stay ready for any time. We kept preparing and kept getting better. We built our team chemistry off the field as well as on the field. We were throwing routes, doing all of the little things that will help us be a better team. We have football back now, we got back to work and we are really excited to get this season back and rolling.
RB Sampson James
Q. On how it feels to get back on field after the roller coaster offseason…
JAMES: It feels good. It feels great actually because throughout that time, we weren't around our teammates for a long period, so the whole process feels good to just be back with the guys. Other guys are excited to just be around each other. I feel like we have great energy every day and that's what pushes us to become better. I'm definitely excited that's everybody's back, the rotation and everything we were doing before.
Q. On how the last two games of 2019 have served as motivation for this season…
JAMES: It served as great motivation. Having an opportunity to start two games, I feel like the game speed is a lot slower. I'm starting to see stuff faster, quicker. I feel like I'm adjusting to the game, but it's definitely pushed me to work even harder so I can play more and eliminate any kind of weaknesses. Those two opportunities at the end of the season definitely pushed me and were on my mind this whole offseason.
Q. On his relationship with Senior Assistant Athletic Director for Football Performance Aaron Wellman…
JAMES: I love Coach Wellman. I love Coach Wellman and his staff. I feel great, my body feels great. I haven't had really any injuries. I'm loving everything they are doing in there. I think they are very knowledgeable; they always explain why we are doing something, which I feel helps a lot of my teammates. Great staff, no complaints at all. I love Coach Wellman, he's a great leader.
Associate Head Coach Mike Hart
Q. On Sampson James deciding to come back…
HART: We are really happy Sampson James stayed. I think that when you are close to people for a long time and something happens, sometimes they make an irrational decision. He wanted to be here, he is a great kid and he is all in. He has been busting his tail to get ready. As far as the depth of our room, obviously, with Sampson, Stevie Scott III, David Ellis moving over, Tim Baldwin Jr. and Ahrod Llyod, I think, as far as a group, it is the most sound group we have had since I have been here. They are talented and they love ball. I feel really comfortable with them out there. Stevie and Sampson have both started games, but Sampson still has not played a lot of football, to be quite honest with you. He played at Purdue and against Tennessee last year. That is really it. Besides that, he did not have many carries throughout the season, so he is still improving every day. I am excited about the group that we have, a really strong group, really fun group to be around and coach.
Q. On the utilization of the depth…
HART: I think that is all up to Coach Nick Sheridan. The more we run the ball the more guys are going to get touches. I think you roll with the hot hand. I think we have a couple guys that can start in there, and they are all going to play, so we will see how it goes. It is how we practice, they all practice, so they are all going to play and we will see what happens as we go. As long as we run the ball, I mean if there are only 15 carries in the game it is hard to say someone is going to get seven and seven. But if you run the ball 25 or 30 times, you can go 20 and 10 or 15 and 15. If you only run the ball 15 times per game, you are not going to be able to do seven and seven. Guys cannot get into a flow that way. We will see what Coach Sheridan wants to do this year.
Q. On David Ellis…
HART: David is a really explosive athlete. He played receiver last year, but we recruited him originally as a running back. He came here to play running back. He played in the slot last year and now we are going to let him play some tailback. You can just utilize him in multiple ways. We are really excited about him, he is special. He can catch the ball, he can run the ball, he is six-foot 210 pounds, so he is a big receiver and is a solid sized running back. We are excited about him and looking forward to using him on the field this year.
RB Stevie Scott III
Q. On health and areas to improve heading into the season…
SCOTT: Physically, I feel as though my body is in shape. We got a new strength staff during the offseason and I feel that they have been helping the whole team get better. They have improved every day on the little things to help our bodies stay healthy and to be physical players. For me, I want to improve on my breakaway ability, getting through the line of scrimmage and creating bigger plays for the offense.
Q. On a featured role in the offense…
SCOTT: I am definitely excited to be a big part of the offense. I am going into every practice with the mindset to be great and helping others to be the best versions of themselves. It is a great feeling to go out every day and practice. Being able to play football again is a blessing and we are trying to not take it for granted. I try to go out there every day and get the team riled up, getting everyone prepared and get everyone ready to get their mindsets right and focus on the good things.
Q. On the roller coaster offseason…
SCOTT: It was a lot of mixed emotions at first from everyone on the team. We went from not knowing if we were going to have a season, especially for our seniors. We took it as, we needed to stay ready for any time. We kept preparing and kept getting better. We built our team chemistry off the field as well as on the field. We were throwing routes, doing all of the little things that will help us be a better team. We have football back now, we got back to work and we are really excited to get this season back and rolling.
RB Sampson James
Q. On how it feels to get back on field after the roller coaster offseason…
JAMES: It feels good. It feels great actually because throughout that time, we weren't around our teammates for a long period, so the whole process feels good to just be back with the guys. Other guys are excited to just be around each other. I feel like we have great energy every day and that's what pushes us to become better. I'm definitely excited that's everybody's back, the rotation and everything we were doing before.
Q. On how the last two games of 2019 have served as motivation for this season…
JAMES: It served as great motivation. Having an opportunity to start two games, I feel like the game speed is a lot slower. I'm starting to see stuff faster, quicker. I feel like I'm adjusting to the game, but it's definitely pushed me to work even harder so I can play more and eliminate any kind of weaknesses. Those two opportunities at the end of the season definitely pushed me and were on my mind this whole offseason.
Q. On his relationship with Senior Assistant Athletic Director for Football Performance Aaron Wellman…
JAMES: I love Coach Wellman. I love Coach Wellman and his staff. I feel great, my body feels great. I haven't had really any injuries. I'm loving everything they are doing in there. I think they are very knowledgeable; they always explain why we are doing something, which I feel helps a lot of my teammates. Great staff, no complaints at all. I love Coach Wellman, he's a great leader.
Players Mentioned
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