Quoted: Preseason Camp – Oct. 9
10/9/2020 1:13:00 PM | Football
Below are partial transcripts of Zoom press conference of Indiana tight ends coach Kevin Wright, tight end Peyton Hendershot and tight end Matt Bjorson on Friday, Oct. 9.
Tight Ends Coach Kevin Wright
Q. On what Peyton Hendershot needs to do to get to the next level…
WRIGHT: It seems like I have been working with Peyton forever because this has been an extended fall camp. I think the first thing he had to do was get healthy, and he has worked really hard to get in the best shape of his life, from a physical standpoint. I think right now he is working on every aspect. I think he has got to get a little bit better in every aspect from run blocking to pass pro. He catches the ball and he has really good ball skills. That is something that I think has always stood out with him. But I have seen the gradual increase in his ability to block, to pass pro, to block inline and to block on the perimeter. Just be a complete player. We watch a lot of NFL tape as we are breaking things down, so I think he has a goal and he sees what it takes. He is working awful hard toward that.
Q. On the learning curve of a first-year coach…
WRIGHT: That is a good question. Coach Jason Jones and I talk about this all the time; I think two different times we got to four practices. We got to four practices in spring and we got to four practices in the fall before we had to shut it down. We did not know what happened after practice four. We knew on paper but just going out and seeing it so it has been a little bit different than your normal learning curve. Usually we would go through the whole install in the spring and then come right back in the fall and go through your whole install. It has just been a little bit more chopped up. I think that from my standpoint, it has been really good for me getting to know the players, getting to know the coaches and getting to know the system. We have had probably one of the longest fall camps on record. It has just been a little bit different than usual. We have done situational football more than what we usually would have the opportunity to do, which I think helps. So, I am excited really to get to the point where we start game-planning and start paring down a little bit.
Q. On AJ Barner and Khameron Taylor.…
WRIGHT: We talk about building the room. From day one we have talked about how we would need to be able to play five different guys on any given Saturday. Everyone in the room knows that and I think that has really helped our room. AJ is an offensive guy with a defensive mentality. His physical skillset, he is 6'6, 240 pounds and he is nowhere close to where he will be from a strength and bulk standpoint. He is very aggressive in the run game, very coachable, very smart kid. He did not play a lot of tight end in high school, so we really wondered about his ball skills. But he has shown tremendous ball skills, especially in the red zone. He is a big target in the red zone. He has good body control and he has been coachable. He has some veteran guys in Peyton Hendershot and Matt Bjorson that he is able to learn from. When I am not specifically coaching him, he is able to go to them on the sideline and get their help. I think that has really helped his learning curve. He has a chance to be a really good football player for us and in the Big Ten. Khameron has dealt with some injury issues. We know it is going to be a long season, we do not want to push certain things, so we are just trying to get him to the point where he can contribute. He is a big body. When he lines up out there it almost looks like an extra offensive lineman in an 80s jersey. I know what he brings to the table, so it is just a matter of getting everyone healthy and rolling through to get to game week. It is going to be a nine-week season and everyone is going to have to contribute in some way.
TE Peyton Hendershot
Q. On improvements to get to the next level…
HENDERSHOT: I need to be a technician. I think I have the tools to make it to the next level, but I need to be better in my run-blocking and pass-blocking technique. I need to clean up all of the little details because that it was really matters. That will allow me to take that next step and growth to become a better player.
Q. On offseason incident…
HENDERSHOT: I cannot explain how disappointed I was in myself. I think it is crazy that in this world if you do not humble yourself, God will. After the bowl game when I broke the record for tight end receptions and yards, I was at the highest point of my life and within two months I was at the lowest part of my life. It is crazy how life can hit you. I saw my life, my future, my career flash in front of me. I never wanted to be in that position again, so I have worked every day to better myself as a man and a human being. I am always hard on Matt [Bjorson], and his is the greatest guy ever and the best guy you could have in your tight end room, and I am making a conscious effort to be nicer to him. Sometimes I am playing around, but I am working on being an all-around nicer guy.
Q. On what he learned after the incident…
HENDERSHOT: I want to say, I made a huge mistake. I am sorry to all of the people that were involved. Everyone that I let down, I feel horrible and so remorseful about it. There are so many people that have helped me get to where I am in my life and I feel like that was a letdown to all of them. They all believed in me. I am taking classes every week and I have learned a lot from that. I am responsible for everything in my life. It is not that God did this to me, someone else did this, I am responsible for my own actions, my own chaos in my life. I have been able to realize it and take care of the everyday things in my life.
TE Matt Bjorson
Q. On being more involved in the passing game…
BJORSON: This offseason, with a lot of the time off, I have taken the time to really change my body. I have gotten faster and think I could go out and make the plays on the outside instead of always staying inside the box. Whenever the team needs me, I will be able to go out and play.
Q. On the body change…
BJORSON: I am down to 240 pounds now. I was playing at 250 last year and will be at 240 this year. I dropped a lot of body fat. Coach Aaron Wellman really helped me with that. My speed and quickness both went up. I am playing with a better body position and will be able to play all over the field, special teams, offense, wherever they need me.
Q. On the tight end utilization under Offensive Coordinator Nick Sheridan…
BJORSON: I believe that the tight end position has the most depth on the team. We have four or five guys that can make plays no matter when they get on the field. Having two big bodies in there is better than one. We run a lot of two-tight end sets. We are able to get a lot of people open. We can run
Tight Ends Coach Kevin Wright
Q. On what Peyton Hendershot needs to do to get to the next level…
WRIGHT: It seems like I have been working with Peyton forever because this has been an extended fall camp. I think the first thing he had to do was get healthy, and he has worked really hard to get in the best shape of his life, from a physical standpoint. I think right now he is working on every aspect. I think he has got to get a little bit better in every aspect from run blocking to pass pro. He catches the ball and he has really good ball skills. That is something that I think has always stood out with him. But I have seen the gradual increase in his ability to block, to pass pro, to block inline and to block on the perimeter. Just be a complete player. We watch a lot of NFL tape as we are breaking things down, so I think he has a goal and he sees what it takes. He is working awful hard toward that.
Q. On the learning curve of a first-year coach…
WRIGHT: That is a good question. Coach Jason Jones and I talk about this all the time; I think two different times we got to four practices. We got to four practices in spring and we got to four practices in the fall before we had to shut it down. We did not know what happened after practice four. We knew on paper but just going out and seeing it so it has been a little bit different than your normal learning curve. Usually we would go through the whole install in the spring and then come right back in the fall and go through your whole install. It has just been a little bit more chopped up. I think that from my standpoint, it has been really good for me getting to know the players, getting to know the coaches and getting to know the system. We have had probably one of the longest fall camps on record. It has just been a little bit different than usual. We have done situational football more than what we usually would have the opportunity to do, which I think helps. So, I am excited really to get to the point where we start game-planning and start paring down a little bit.
Q. On AJ Barner and Khameron Taylor.…
WRIGHT: We talk about building the room. From day one we have talked about how we would need to be able to play five different guys on any given Saturday. Everyone in the room knows that and I think that has really helped our room. AJ is an offensive guy with a defensive mentality. His physical skillset, he is 6'6, 240 pounds and he is nowhere close to where he will be from a strength and bulk standpoint. He is very aggressive in the run game, very coachable, very smart kid. He did not play a lot of tight end in high school, so we really wondered about his ball skills. But he has shown tremendous ball skills, especially in the red zone. He is a big target in the red zone. He has good body control and he has been coachable. He has some veteran guys in Peyton Hendershot and Matt Bjorson that he is able to learn from. When I am not specifically coaching him, he is able to go to them on the sideline and get their help. I think that has really helped his learning curve. He has a chance to be a really good football player for us and in the Big Ten. Khameron has dealt with some injury issues. We know it is going to be a long season, we do not want to push certain things, so we are just trying to get him to the point where he can contribute. He is a big body. When he lines up out there it almost looks like an extra offensive lineman in an 80s jersey. I know what he brings to the table, so it is just a matter of getting everyone healthy and rolling through to get to game week. It is going to be a nine-week season and everyone is going to have to contribute in some way.
TE Peyton Hendershot
Q. On improvements to get to the next level…
HENDERSHOT: I need to be a technician. I think I have the tools to make it to the next level, but I need to be better in my run-blocking and pass-blocking technique. I need to clean up all of the little details because that it was really matters. That will allow me to take that next step and growth to become a better player.
Q. On offseason incident…
HENDERSHOT: I cannot explain how disappointed I was in myself. I think it is crazy that in this world if you do not humble yourself, God will. After the bowl game when I broke the record for tight end receptions and yards, I was at the highest point of my life and within two months I was at the lowest part of my life. It is crazy how life can hit you. I saw my life, my future, my career flash in front of me. I never wanted to be in that position again, so I have worked every day to better myself as a man and a human being. I am always hard on Matt [Bjorson], and his is the greatest guy ever and the best guy you could have in your tight end room, and I am making a conscious effort to be nicer to him. Sometimes I am playing around, but I am working on being an all-around nicer guy.
Q. On what he learned after the incident…
HENDERSHOT: I want to say, I made a huge mistake. I am sorry to all of the people that were involved. Everyone that I let down, I feel horrible and so remorseful about it. There are so many people that have helped me get to where I am in my life and I feel like that was a letdown to all of them. They all believed in me. I am taking classes every week and I have learned a lot from that. I am responsible for everything in my life. It is not that God did this to me, someone else did this, I am responsible for my own actions, my own chaos in my life. I have been able to realize it and take care of the everyday things in my life.
TE Matt Bjorson
Q. On being more involved in the passing game…
BJORSON: This offseason, with a lot of the time off, I have taken the time to really change my body. I have gotten faster and think I could go out and make the plays on the outside instead of always staying inside the box. Whenever the team needs me, I will be able to go out and play.
Q. On the body change…
BJORSON: I am down to 240 pounds now. I was playing at 250 last year and will be at 240 this year. I dropped a lot of body fat. Coach Aaron Wellman really helped me with that. My speed and quickness both went up. I am playing with a better body position and will be able to play all over the field, special teams, offense, wherever they need me.
Q. On the tight end utilization under Offensive Coordinator Nick Sheridan…
BJORSON: I believe that the tight end position has the most depth on the team. We have four or five guys that can make plays no matter when they get on the field. Having two big bodies in there is better than one. We run a lot of two-tight end sets. We are able to get a lot of people open. We can run
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