Indiana University Athletics
Mike Hart, Stevie Scott III Zoom Press Conference Transcript & Video
5/13/2020 1:32:00 PM | Football
Associate Head Coach/Running Backs Mike Hart
Opening Statement…
HART: I want to start out by saying that our thoughts and prayers are with Cam Wilson and his family. That was a tragic event and something you can't foresee, so our prayers are with him during these times, and obviously we're doing everything we can as a staff to reach out to him, his brother and sister to help during this time.
Q: On Sampson James' offseason...
HART: I think we always go into the offseason trying to get better. We all have to get better. Stevie has to get better, Sampson needs to get better. We have Tim Baldwin here who needs to get better. Ahrod Lloyd played a lot toward the end of last year, he needs to get better. So, from a competition standpoint our guys know they need to get better, and it's clear that whoever the best player is will play. With Stevie and Sampson, I think the one thing you know is that you have two guys that can really play at a high level. That gives you some security and that also makes everyone else work harder to get on the field. The main thing with Sampson is that he needs to stay healthy. That comes into the offseason. Last year when he came in, he was hurt from high school so that set him back a little bit and he didn't get a spring. He just needs to keep his body healthy. All these guys. If you can't be on the field you can't bring any value from the standpoint of game days on Saturday. We just need to do the best to keep these guys healthy and get them through a whole Big Ten season.
Q: On David Ellis switching to running back…
HART: David's one of the best athletes on the team. I think if you ask anybody, they'll tell you that. As you know, he's the starting kickoff returner. He played a lot of slot last year and in the backfield. He's just a guy that we're going to see what he can do. He played running back in high school, was recruited as a running back/athlete. We 're going to get him on the field whereever we need him. He's one of the best athletes on the team, dangerous kickoff returner, a big kid, he's 5-11, 210 pounds. He's got some speed as you can see from the Penn State game when he caught that quick screen to the boundary and took it for about 70 (yards). He's an explosive play guy that we need to find a way to get the ball to in whatever way we can.
Q: On how he feels they can improve the run game…
HART: I think it comes down to a lot of things. First and foremost, we have to do our job in the backfield and tell these guys, if it's a block for zero you got to get three. If it's a block for five you've got to get eight, and that just comes with yards after contact. Less running downhill, running the correct paths, running the correct reads and doing those things. Holistically as an offense that comes down to play calling, blocking up front, where to do things necessary to move the sticks. Each game plan is going to be different. Some teams are better at stopping the run, so we need to pass. If you look at the Michigan State game last year, Whop Philyor had 10 to 14 catches. Some of those were called runs, but they gave us the pass with their RPOs. You guys heard a lot about RPOs. As a staff we called a lot more runs, but we give what the defense dictates. If you're getting one yard a run, that's third and eight, that's not good offense. We need to stay ahead of the sticks and get three, four yards a run so we're at second and six, third and two, and that helps you run the ball more. And the game dictates it, what's going on, what's the score. Because if the score gets like playing Ohio State last year where its 21-7 and you're running down the clock, you have to throw the ball to move the ball. So, we need to stay ahead of the sticks on offense. We need to control what we need to control and as long as we're scoring, we can stick with the game plan, which is to run the ball. We wanted to run the ball last year, the year before that. That comes down to controlling the clock and we have some really good running backs. As a staff, we need to come up with a great game plan in the run game. When you see that second and 10, it's hard to run another run play when you're trying to get to third and four. We just have to do those things as a staff, stay on schedule and score points and you can run the ball a lot better. We have the guys to do it, we have the offensive line to do it. We have a lot of guys that have played. Even Mackenzie Nworah, he played a lot in the past. The O-line is good enough, the running backs are good enough. It comes down to us, the staff, in putting in the correct game plan to get these guys where they need to go and utilize their talents.
Q: On tweaks to this year's offense…
HART: First of all, I think Nick Sheridan is doing a great job. He took the bull by the horns and ran with it. He's going to be a great coordinator this year for us. He's a great leader and I'm happy to work for him and with him. He's a guy that is really, really smart and really understands the game. So, I think any offseason you go back and look at what did we do good or bad, what runs worked, what runs didn't work, why did they work, why didn't they work? Was it the RB making the wrong read? Was the scheme incorrect? When you look at those things that's how you get better. You study teams that really ran the ball well last year against good teams. Anybody can run the ball against those that aren't that great. But what did you do when you played Ohio State, Michigan State, Michigan defense, Penn State defense, who had success against them in the run game and how did they do it within our scheme? So, what do we need to do to complement those plays and what are our guys best suited to do. It comes back down to personnel again and how do we put our guys in position to have success. Is it outside zone, is it inside zone, is it power? What are we best at and how can we do it and how can we match those plays up with the pass? I think if you look at the offseason those are studies we've been doing and continue to do on a daily basis, which has been really good sitting down to watch film because we're not out recruiting. So, it really helps us as far as what we need to do to take the next step and be able to run the ball better. We always tell our players they need to get better every day. If you don't get better somebody's going to take your job. Same thing as coaches, right? If we don't try to get better every day we're not going to be here long, somebody's going to come take our job. So, we're trying our best to put our guys in the best position possible. That comes down to schemes, and film study and evaluating what we did in the past.
Q: On what he's looking for in growth for Stevie Scott III…
HART: One thing he really worked on this past season was catching the ball as I was on him about it as a freshman. He's a guy that wants to be on the field every down. He wants to be a third-down back. He wants to be the guy split out. So that's something he's taken and ran with in trying to get better. I think everything can get better in his game. He grew from when he was a freshman, just knowledge of football. He's grown, he's a smart kid. He caught some big passes for us last year, so he has that skillset that he's continuing to develop. Overall everything, like the YAC yards, making the safety miss, making the big plays, which he continues to work on. We emphasize it in practice with the drills we do. To get to where he wants to get to and be the player he wants to be, everything needs to continue to develop. Hopefully he's doing that right now, we'll see when he gets back. He's a kid that I know loves football and wants to be a great player, play in the NFL one day. Just continue to work on the little things, reads, defensive scheme, where should the ball go, who's blocking who. Just develop his knowledge of the game. He knows who to line up with ,so he knows who the unblocked defender is, and he can be ready to make that guy miss.
RB Stevie Scott III
Q: On his goals this season…
SCOTT III: Really just going through practice. Going through the motion and getting repetition every day and just trying to get better. Just working on trying to protect the QB and just run the ball. Just trying to be aggressive and trying to help the team make plays. Really just focusing on ourselves and building up that team chemistry that we need that will help us move forward.
Q: On the challenges of finding a new routine…
SCOTT III: It's definitely kind of a challenge, but like Coach Hart said, this is really preparing us for the NFL. Me and my teammates have been getting together and working out. Just building that team chemistry and trying to get better. Also, just been working with my father and building that bond lately. Me and him have been working out and just talking over a lot of things. You know how that goes.
Q: On how much contact he has with his teammates during this pandemic…
SCOTT III: We stay in contact a lot. It's a lot of love on the team, so we all check in on each other and see how we are doing. Make sure we are staying on top of what we have to do. Make sure we stay in the business.
Q: On his daily routine…
SCOTT III: I've been doing a lot of core workouts. Trying to build that inner strength up. Weights are good and all, but if you have that core strength, that's really powerful. That's your inner stuff. That's all muscle. That's all yourself. Really, just doing core strength and going to the field. Doing field work. Trying to get my footwork right. Just going over the little things. Just trying to better myself.
Opening Statement…
HART: I want to start out by saying that our thoughts and prayers are with Cam Wilson and his family. That was a tragic event and something you can't foresee, so our prayers are with him during these times, and obviously we're doing everything we can as a staff to reach out to him, his brother and sister to help during this time.
Q: On Sampson James' offseason...
HART: I think we always go into the offseason trying to get better. We all have to get better. Stevie has to get better, Sampson needs to get better. We have Tim Baldwin here who needs to get better. Ahrod Lloyd played a lot toward the end of last year, he needs to get better. So, from a competition standpoint our guys know they need to get better, and it's clear that whoever the best player is will play. With Stevie and Sampson, I think the one thing you know is that you have two guys that can really play at a high level. That gives you some security and that also makes everyone else work harder to get on the field. The main thing with Sampson is that he needs to stay healthy. That comes into the offseason. Last year when he came in, he was hurt from high school so that set him back a little bit and he didn't get a spring. He just needs to keep his body healthy. All these guys. If you can't be on the field you can't bring any value from the standpoint of game days on Saturday. We just need to do the best to keep these guys healthy and get them through a whole Big Ten season.
Q: On David Ellis switching to running back…
HART: David's one of the best athletes on the team. I think if you ask anybody, they'll tell you that. As you know, he's the starting kickoff returner. He played a lot of slot last year and in the backfield. He's just a guy that we're going to see what he can do. He played running back in high school, was recruited as a running back/athlete. We 're going to get him on the field whereever we need him. He's one of the best athletes on the team, dangerous kickoff returner, a big kid, he's 5-11, 210 pounds. He's got some speed as you can see from the Penn State game when he caught that quick screen to the boundary and took it for about 70 (yards). He's an explosive play guy that we need to find a way to get the ball to in whatever way we can.
Q: On how he feels they can improve the run game…
HART: I think it comes down to a lot of things. First and foremost, we have to do our job in the backfield and tell these guys, if it's a block for zero you got to get three. If it's a block for five you've got to get eight, and that just comes with yards after contact. Less running downhill, running the correct paths, running the correct reads and doing those things. Holistically as an offense that comes down to play calling, blocking up front, where to do things necessary to move the sticks. Each game plan is going to be different. Some teams are better at stopping the run, so we need to pass. If you look at the Michigan State game last year, Whop Philyor had 10 to 14 catches. Some of those were called runs, but they gave us the pass with their RPOs. You guys heard a lot about RPOs. As a staff we called a lot more runs, but we give what the defense dictates. If you're getting one yard a run, that's third and eight, that's not good offense. We need to stay ahead of the sticks and get three, four yards a run so we're at second and six, third and two, and that helps you run the ball more. And the game dictates it, what's going on, what's the score. Because if the score gets like playing Ohio State last year where its 21-7 and you're running down the clock, you have to throw the ball to move the ball. So, we need to stay ahead of the sticks on offense. We need to control what we need to control and as long as we're scoring, we can stick with the game plan, which is to run the ball. We wanted to run the ball last year, the year before that. That comes down to controlling the clock and we have some really good running backs. As a staff, we need to come up with a great game plan in the run game. When you see that second and 10, it's hard to run another run play when you're trying to get to third and four. We just have to do those things as a staff, stay on schedule and score points and you can run the ball a lot better. We have the guys to do it, we have the offensive line to do it. We have a lot of guys that have played. Even Mackenzie Nworah, he played a lot in the past. The O-line is good enough, the running backs are good enough. It comes down to us, the staff, in putting in the correct game plan to get these guys where they need to go and utilize their talents.
Q: On tweaks to this year's offense…
HART: First of all, I think Nick Sheridan is doing a great job. He took the bull by the horns and ran with it. He's going to be a great coordinator this year for us. He's a great leader and I'm happy to work for him and with him. He's a guy that is really, really smart and really understands the game. So, I think any offseason you go back and look at what did we do good or bad, what runs worked, what runs didn't work, why did they work, why didn't they work? Was it the RB making the wrong read? Was the scheme incorrect? When you look at those things that's how you get better. You study teams that really ran the ball well last year against good teams. Anybody can run the ball against those that aren't that great. But what did you do when you played Ohio State, Michigan State, Michigan defense, Penn State defense, who had success against them in the run game and how did they do it within our scheme? So, what do we need to do to complement those plays and what are our guys best suited to do. It comes back down to personnel again and how do we put our guys in position to have success. Is it outside zone, is it inside zone, is it power? What are we best at and how can we do it and how can we match those plays up with the pass? I think if you look at the offseason those are studies we've been doing and continue to do on a daily basis, which has been really good sitting down to watch film because we're not out recruiting. So, it really helps us as far as what we need to do to take the next step and be able to run the ball better. We always tell our players they need to get better every day. If you don't get better somebody's going to take your job. Same thing as coaches, right? If we don't try to get better every day we're not going to be here long, somebody's going to come take our job. So, we're trying our best to put our guys in the best position possible. That comes down to schemes, and film study and evaluating what we did in the past.
Q: On what he's looking for in growth for Stevie Scott III…
HART: One thing he really worked on this past season was catching the ball as I was on him about it as a freshman. He's a guy that wants to be on the field every down. He wants to be a third-down back. He wants to be the guy split out. So that's something he's taken and ran with in trying to get better. I think everything can get better in his game. He grew from when he was a freshman, just knowledge of football. He's grown, he's a smart kid. He caught some big passes for us last year, so he has that skillset that he's continuing to develop. Overall everything, like the YAC yards, making the safety miss, making the big plays, which he continues to work on. We emphasize it in practice with the drills we do. To get to where he wants to get to and be the player he wants to be, everything needs to continue to develop. Hopefully he's doing that right now, we'll see when he gets back. He's a kid that I know loves football and wants to be a great player, play in the NFL one day. Just continue to work on the little things, reads, defensive scheme, where should the ball go, who's blocking who. Just develop his knowledge of the game. He knows who to line up with ,so he knows who the unblocked defender is, and he can be ready to make that guy miss.
RB Stevie Scott III
Q: On his goals this season…
SCOTT III: Really just going through practice. Going through the motion and getting repetition every day and just trying to get better. Just working on trying to protect the QB and just run the ball. Just trying to be aggressive and trying to help the team make plays. Really just focusing on ourselves and building up that team chemistry that we need that will help us move forward.
Q: On the challenges of finding a new routine…
SCOTT III: It's definitely kind of a challenge, but like Coach Hart said, this is really preparing us for the NFL. Me and my teammates have been getting together and working out. Just building that team chemistry and trying to get better. Also, just been working with my father and building that bond lately. Me and him have been working out and just talking over a lot of things. You know how that goes.
Q: On how much contact he has with his teammates during this pandemic…
SCOTT III: We stay in contact a lot. It's a lot of love on the team, so we all check in on each other and see how we are doing. Make sure we are staying on top of what we have to do. Make sure we stay in the business.
Q: On his daily routine…
SCOTT III: I've been doing a lot of core workouts. Trying to build that inner strength up. Weights are good and all, but if you have that core strength, that's really powerful. That's your inner stuff. That's all muscle. That's all yourself. Really, just doing core strength and going to the field. Doing field work. Trying to get my footwork right. Just going over the little things. Just trying to better myself.
Players Mentioned
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RB
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WR
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