Indiana University Athletics
Jason Jones, Brandon Shelby Zoom Press Conference Transcript & Video
5/20/2020 3:43:00 PM | Football
Cornerbacks Coach Brandon Shelby
Q: On if he's had anything odd happen on the recruiting trail…
SHELBY: It's definitely new times and new ways of communicating. Recruiting has definitely taken a different turn from what the usual spin is. Nothing really new though. These young people, they are so inclined to technology. They've adjusted very well to Zoom and Zoom meetings. We're always kind of FaceTiming anyway. I think the biggest thing for them is we've got a lot more time on our hands at the house, so we bug them a lot more than we did maybe in the past. With the new rules allowing to call and FaceTime really is unprecedented this time of year, because typically you only get one phone call from April 15 to May 31. They've opened it up now to where we can communicate with them all the time. It's really been different, but you have to adjust. Nothing really quirky. This is how they communicate. Very rarely do young people really just sit and talk on the phone like we do. They FaceTime one another, which is crazy to me because you'll be sitting in the house and all of a sudden, a recruit just wants to FaceTime you and see. You'll see him run into a different room and make sure everybody is decent. But at the end of the day that's the craziest thing that's been going on.
Q: On how excited he is for Reese Taylor's future…
SHELBY: Reese brings some intangible things that a lot of people can't do. Very rarely do you see a guy that can go from playing offense and then six months later transition to a corner and really be effective. He got injured early on in training camp. It prevented him from taking off. But the one thing you see from him is you see a tough guy who understands football. He's a good leader because he communicated as a quarterback. Pure respect because not only does he back it up on the field, he has the name, the clout that goes along with it. He's been a guy that's kind of always been in the limelight. He likes competition, he's a tough guy and what I saw last year, we had four practices before spring break (around when the pandemic hit) but he is ready to take off and be a focal point in the secondary. Right now, we got three guys where if we had to play tomorrow, I feel comfortable with going out and playing, helping us continue the path that we're on from last year. I'm very excited about Reese Taylor. The big thing is he has to make sure he does a great job of keeping his body healthy. Throughout the season he had several little lingering things that happened out of nowhere. They just kind of kept him out of taking that next step. I think with a year of playing corner, he's going to have a summer of learning the playbook and not just learning what corners do, but start to figure out what everybody is doing and where everybody goes. When you yell out a check, what does that mean to everybody else. I think he's ready to take that step and I'm expecting him to.
Q: On his confidence in the cornerbacks…
SHELBY: We surely have a great foundation. The way it stands is that the best people are going to play. That could change from week to week. I told that to our guys last week. Tiawan Mullen had his name in the paper and on the Internet, but he knows this, if he doesn't prepare in the right way and in the right manner that has helped him obtain this success then he has an opportunity to lose his job. Just like he came in last season and performed at a high level and took someone's job. He has to understand that the same thing that helped elevate him could also be his destruction if he doesn't do the little things it takes to prepare. But to answer your question, we have a great foundation. We have some guys that have been on the football field, they know the checks, they know what it takes to win in the Big Ten. But also, too, iron sharpens iron and those young guys who are coming in, they know that if they come in and push these guys and they're the better player they're going to play. It keeps those guys sharp that are here to keep that competitive edge. That's how I've always been. That's what I always do. I like competition. I'm very, very satisfied with where we are going to start come the fall.
Q: On how Tiawan Mullen can improve this year…
SHELBY: I think the great thing about Tiawan, he comes from a football family. He was able to do it because he loves the game. He has some siblings, he has one that's older that plays for the Raiders and a younger one that's going to be really, really good and it's a competitive family. So, growing up I think he had that deal where 'I want to be the best Mullen out there'. Each of them possessed skills that allowed them to be successful thus far. Ultimately, down in Florida, football is kind of at a different level. He started at a young age from a high school where he was well coached and the competition was at a point where he had to adjust a little bit, but he was able to jump right in and do what he needed to do. That allowed him to play as a true freshman, along with his football IQ. To take the next step I think ultimately, he needs to learn the game of football in a way that, understand how coordinators think, understand what the whole playbook encompasses. All those guys are kind of in the same group. When you look at Jaylin, Reese and Tiawan, I teach a lot of these guys to study pictures, and when you see a picture you make this check. A lot of times they don't know what this check means to everybody else. So, for him to take the next step, he needs to understand that when I say this check it makes the D-line do this, this tells the linebacker to do this. That way it can encompass the whole defense. When you're a true freshman you have to break it down. You can't give them the whole cow. You have to teach them, step by step by step. And now I think he's at the point where he wants it, and he needs to learn overall. Linebacker fits, D-line play. I think that's how he makes it to the next level. When it comes to just corner, I think it's just studying film, studying his opponent, understanding what we do throughout the week as coaches, what those reports mean and how to read them. Right now, during this time we're taking time as a team to teach, not only him but all those guys what reports mean and how they dissect that to help them out at their position. That's what he needs to do to take the next step, and that's what we've been working on during this time at home and these Zoom meetings.
Q: On what the cornerbacks need to work on to take it to another level..
SHELBY: We need to do a better job of, when we have an opportunity to get an interception, make that defining play, to make it. I even go back to that Purdue game. Tiawan Mullen had a really good game, but he also missed a lot of open field tackles. I think that when its third and whatever, and they throw a ball out to the flat and he's in great position, we need to make that tackle. Or when the ball hits our hands, to make a big-time interception. We need game-changing plays. I think that's the next thing that we need to take that next step of being in the upper echelon of the league week in and week out. Those are things that I'm just pushing those guys to do.
Safeties Coach Jason Jones
Q: On how you are trying to get to know the kids…
JONES: When I first got here, one of the things that I did, I brought each guy in and set up an individual meeting with these guys. We sat down and tried to get to know them as a person just outside of football. Even though we only had four practices, I was still able to spend one-on-one time with them. Once I went through the whole group, then we had a second meeting where we just sat down and just talked. I've had several occasions while everyone was in town to sit down and meet with them and we were constantly talking to them every day on the phone and things like that. Still building those relationships.
Q: On your thoughts about your guys after those four practices…
JONES: I'm pleased with the guys I have in the room. I think the staff has done a good job of just recruiting and bringing in the right guys we need to run this system. Those four days it was a short spring but I did get to see an athletic group of guys. The biggest thing that I'm stressing with them is to just be the quarterback. The safeties in this defense, those are the guys that make the checks and get everybody lined up and just talking to Coach Shelby earlier, it's their job to communicate to the corners, huskies and things like that to make sure everybody's on the same page. What I'm trying to get those guys to be is just be the quarterback and be more vocal. Some guys are more vocal than others. Just like Devon (Matthews). He's not a vocal leader. He's one of those guys that sort of leads by example. I'm trying to get him to come out of his shell. Everyone, they look up to him, but I'm trying to get him to be that more vocal guy and to be the leader of the group and things like that and to make more plays. We had opportunities to make more plays in those four practices. We had opportunities to make plays. We got to take advantage of the opportunity when we have it, when we have a chance to make those plays.
Q: On the diversity of the defense with guys switching and playing different positions…
JONES: I think it actually helps them because when like Jamar (Johnson), Jamar was a husky for us, the husky. The husky most of the time plays aligned to the field. He's always working with the field corner and the rover and we moved him to free safety, so now he's on the other side of the defense. He's working with the sting linebacker and the boundary corner and things like that. I think it expands his football IQ and it helps him to understand the defense as a whole. Now, still some learning to be done because it's a new position, but I think it's going to be really good for him down the road. That's because it's going to help him get a better understanding of the defense. When you understand the defense, you know there's times when I can be aggressive. I can take a chance. I can jump this route or right now I'm in man-to-man, we're blitzing, I can't be as aggressive. I have to make sure that if I drive on this route, I have to be 100 percent that it's going to be a pass breakup or an interception or I'm going to tackle this guy because if I miss the tackle, it could be a touchdown. I think that's going to help him. You know Raheem (Layne), safety, he's smart. In this defense, our corners, we ask them to play a lot of press man. It's tough. They have a tough job because every snap is playing press man and you are just racing that guy outside. Moving him back to safety where he's now more involved in the scheme and the courage aspect in making checks, he's picked up on it really well. He's put his time in. Even before we all left campus, he was swinging by my office and we would meet and watch tape and things like that. I'm pleased with both of those guys. Still have some work to do, but I think it's going to be really good for the team down the road.
Q: On how have you been working with Brandon Shelby and Kasey Teegardin…
JONES: It's been really good. Being a new guy coming in, you're trying to get a feel for the guys in your room and also the guys that are players in the secondary. What's their strengths and what's their weaknesses and things like that. Brandon and Kasey, they've been great. They, for the most part, have just welcomed me with open arms. I can pick up the phone and call either one of them. They'll help me. I actually enjoy it. It's like three guys functioning as one. In the back end, we're the 4-2-5, so we have five DBs playing at the same time. I think what's going to help us take that next step from being good to great is now we have more eyes on those guys. Now we can actually watch the little things. I think between the three of us, nobody has an ego, so if I see something that the husky did, I may let Kasey know. If Kasey sees something that the safety did, he'll let me know. Vice versa with Shelby. It's been good. It's been really great.
Q: On previous working experience with Coach Allen…
JONES: Coach Allen and I, we actually met, it was in 2012. At the time I was at Oklahoma State and Coach Allen was at Ole Miss. We both recruited, we had the same area in Dallas, Texas. We were out watching a spring practice and we met each other. The next year the secondary job opened at Ole Miss. Coach Allen told Coach Freeze about me. I came in and interviewed and we ended up working together at Ole Miss. Enjoyed working with him. We recruited together. The Dallas area we tag-teamed on some guys. Worked really well and ended up getting some really good players for us at Ole Miss. Anyone who has worked with Coach Allen, the one thing that everybody says is that he hasn't changed. The person that he was as a position coach is that same guy even though he is the head coach. He has more on his plate. He hasn't changed. I think the thing that in recruiting that's really helping us in recruiting with the parents and recruits when they get the chance to talk to him on the phone or we've been doing Zoom meetings with recruits and things like that. The thing that the parents and recruits fall in love with is that he's a genuine guy. They know that he truly cares about their son and it's more than just football. That's why recruiting is taking off and we're having the success that we're having. That's his thing. He's not trying to be somebody that he's not. He's just Coach Allen. The recruits love it and the moms and dads love it. It's been great.
Q: On if he's had anything odd happen on the recruiting trail…
SHELBY: It's definitely new times and new ways of communicating. Recruiting has definitely taken a different turn from what the usual spin is. Nothing really new though. These young people, they are so inclined to technology. They've adjusted very well to Zoom and Zoom meetings. We're always kind of FaceTiming anyway. I think the biggest thing for them is we've got a lot more time on our hands at the house, so we bug them a lot more than we did maybe in the past. With the new rules allowing to call and FaceTime really is unprecedented this time of year, because typically you only get one phone call from April 15 to May 31. They've opened it up now to where we can communicate with them all the time. It's really been different, but you have to adjust. Nothing really quirky. This is how they communicate. Very rarely do young people really just sit and talk on the phone like we do. They FaceTime one another, which is crazy to me because you'll be sitting in the house and all of a sudden, a recruit just wants to FaceTime you and see. You'll see him run into a different room and make sure everybody is decent. But at the end of the day that's the craziest thing that's been going on.
Q: On how excited he is for Reese Taylor's future…
SHELBY: Reese brings some intangible things that a lot of people can't do. Very rarely do you see a guy that can go from playing offense and then six months later transition to a corner and really be effective. He got injured early on in training camp. It prevented him from taking off. But the one thing you see from him is you see a tough guy who understands football. He's a good leader because he communicated as a quarterback. Pure respect because not only does he back it up on the field, he has the name, the clout that goes along with it. He's been a guy that's kind of always been in the limelight. He likes competition, he's a tough guy and what I saw last year, we had four practices before spring break (around when the pandemic hit) but he is ready to take off and be a focal point in the secondary. Right now, we got three guys where if we had to play tomorrow, I feel comfortable with going out and playing, helping us continue the path that we're on from last year. I'm very excited about Reese Taylor. The big thing is he has to make sure he does a great job of keeping his body healthy. Throughout the season he had several little lingering things that happened out of nowhere. They just kind of kept him out of taking that next step. I think with a year of playing corner, he's going to have a summer of learning the playbook and not just learning what corners do, but start to figure out what everybody is doing and where everybody goes. When you yell out a check, what does that mean to everybody else. I think he's ready to take that step and I'm expecting him to.
Q: On his confidence in the cornerbacks…
SHELBY: We surely have a great foundation. The way it stands is that the best people are going to play. That could change from week to week. I told that to our guys last week. Tiawan Mullen had his name in the paper and on the Internet, but he knows this, if he doesn't prepare in the right way and in the right manner that has helped him obtain this success then he has an opportunity to lose his job. Just like he came in last season and performed at a high level and took someone's job. He has to understand that the same thing that helped elevate him could also be his destruction if he doesn't do the little things it takes to prepare. But to answer your question, we have a great foundation. We have some guys that have been on the football field, they know the checks, they know what it takes to win in the Big Ten. But also, too, iron sharpens iron and those young guys who are coming in, they know that if they come in and push these guys and they're the better player they're going to play. It keeps those guys sharp that are here to keep that competitive edge. That's how I've always been. That's what I always do. I like competition. I'm very, very satisfied with where we are going to start come the fall.
Q: On how Tiawan Mullen can improve this year…
SHELBY: I think the great thing about Tiawan, he comes from a football family. He was able to do it because he loves the game. He has some siblings, he has one that's older that plays for the Raiders and a younger one that's going to be really, really good and it's a competitive family. So, growing up I think he had that deal where 'I want to be the best Mullen out there'. Each of them possessed skills that allowed them to be successful thus far. Ultimately, down in Florida, football is kind of at a different level. He started at a young age from a high school where he was well coached and the competition was at a point where he had to adjust a little bit, but he was able to jump right in and do what he needed to do. That allowed him to play as a true freshman, along with his football IQ. To take the next step I think ultimately, he needs to learn the game of football in a way that, understand how coordinators think, understand what the whole playbook encompasses. All those guys are kind of in the same group. When you look at Jaylin, Reese and Tiawan, I teach a lot of these guys to study pictures, and when you see a picture you make this check. A lot of times they don't know what this check means to everybody else. So, for him to take the next step, he needs to understand that when I say this check it makes the D-line do this, this tells the linebacker to do this. That way it can encompass the whole defense. When you're a true freshman you have to break it down. You can't give them the whole cow. You have to teach them, step by step by step. And now I think he's at the point where he wants it, and he needs to learn overall. Linebacker fits, D-line play. I think that's how he makes it to the next level. When it comes to just corner, I think it's just studying film, studying his opponent, understanding what we do throughout the week as coaches, what those reports mean and how to read them. Right now, during this time we're taking time as a team to teach, not only him but all those guys what reports mean and how they dissect that to help them out at their position. That's what he needs to do to take the next step, and that's what we've been working on during this time at home and these Zoom meetings.
Q: On what the cornerbacks need to work on to take it to another level..
SHELBY: We need to do a better job of, when we have an opportunity to get an interception, make that defining play, to make it. I even go back to that Purdue game. Tiawan Mullen had a really good game, but he also missed a lot of open field tackles. I think that when its third and whatever, and they throw a ball out to the flat and he's in great position, we need to make that tackle. Or when the ball hits our hands, to make a big-time interception. We need game-changing plays. I think that's the next thing that we need to take that next step of being in the upper echelon of the league week in and week out. Those are things that I'm just pushing those guys to do.
Safeties Coach Jason Jones
Q: On how you are trying to get to know the kids…
JONES: When I first got here, one of the things that I did, I brought each guy in and set up an individual meeting with these guys. We sat down and tried to get to know them as a person just outside of football. Even though we only had four practices, I was still able to spend one-on-one time with them. Once I went through the whole group, then we had a second meeting where we just sat down and just talked. I've had several occasions while everyone was in town to sit down and meet with them and we were constantly talking to them every day on the phone and things like that. Still building those relationships.
Q: On your thoughts about your guys after those four practices…
JONES: I'm pleased with the guys I have in the room. I think the staff has done a good job of just recruiting and bringing in the right guys we need to run this system. Those four days it was a short spring but I did get to see an athletic group of guys. The biggest thing that I'm stressing with them is to just be the quarterback. The safeties in this defense, those are the guys that make the checks and get everybody lined up and just talking to Coach Shelby earlier, it's their job to communicate to the corners, huskies and things like that to make sure everybody's on the same page. What I'm trying to get those guys to be is just be the quarterback and be more vocal. Some guys are more vocal than others. Just like Devon (Matthews). He's not a vocal leader. He's one of those guys that sort of leads by example. I'm trying to get him to come out of his shell. Everyone, they look up to him, but I'm trying to get him to be that more vocal guy and to be the leader of the group and things like that and to make more plays. We had opportunities to make more plays in those four practices. We had opportunities to make plays. We got to take advantage of the opportunity when we have it, when we have a chance to make those plays.
Q: On the diversity of the defense with guys switching and playing different positions…
JONES: I think it actually helps them because when like Jamar (Johnson), Jamar was a husky for us, the husky. The husky most of the time plays aligned to the field. He's always working with the field corner and the rover and we moved him to free safety, so now he's on the other side of the defense. He's working with the sting linebacker and the boundary corner and things like that. I think it expands his football IQ and it helps him to understand the defense as a whole. Now, still some learning to be done because it's a new position, but I think it's going to be really good for him down the road. That's because it's going to help him get a better understanding of the defense. When you understand the defense, you know there's times when I can be aggressive. I can take a chance. I can jump this route or right now I'm in man-to-man, we're blitzing, I can't be as aggressive. I have to make sure that if I drive on this route, I have to be 100 percent that it's going to be a pass breakup or an interception or I'm going to tackle this guy because if I miss the tackle, it could be a touchdown. I think that's going to help him. You know Raheem (Layne), safety, he's smart. In this defense, our corners, we ask them to play a lot of press man. It's tough. They have a tough job because every snap is playing press man and you are just racing that guy outside. Moving him back to safety where he's now more involved in the scheme and the courage aspect in making checks, he's picked up on it really well. He's put his time in. Even before we all left campus, he was swinging by my office and we would meet and watch tape and things like that. I'm pleased with both of those guys. Still have some work to do, but I think it's going to be really good for the team down the road.
Q: On how have you been working with Brandon Shelby and Kasey Teegardin…
JONES: It's been really good. Being a new guy coming in, you're trying to get a feel for the guys in your room and also the guys that are players in the secondary. What's their strengths and what's their weaknesses and things like that. Brandon and Kasey, they've been great. They, for the most part, have just welcomed me with open arms. I can pick up the phone and call either one of them. They'll help me. I actually enjoy it. It's like three guys functioning as one. In the back end, we're the 4-2-5, so we have five DBs playing at the same time. I think what's going to help us take that next step from being good to great is now we have more eyes on those guys. Now we can actually watch the little things. I think between the three of us, nobody has an ego, so if I see something that the husky did, I may let Kasey know. If Kasey sees something that the safety did, he'll let me know. Vice versa with Shelby. It's been good. It's been really great.
Q: On previous working experience with Coach Allen…
JONES: Coach Allen and I, we actually met, it was in 2012. At the time I was at Oklahoma State and Coach Allen was at Ole Miss. We both recruited, we had the same area in Dallas, Texas. We were out watching a spring practice and we met each other. The next year the secondary job opened at Ole Miss. Coach Allen told Coach Freeze about me. I came in and interviewed and we ended up working together at Ole Miss. Enjoyed working with him. We recruited together. The Dallas area we tag-teamed on some guys. Worked really well and ended up getting some really good players for us at Ole Miss. Anyone who has worked with Coach Allen, the one thing that everybody says is that he hasn't changed. The person that he was as a position coach is that same guy even though he is the head coach. He has more on his plate. He hasn't changed. I think the thing that in recruiting that's really helping us in recruiting with the parents and recruits when they get the chance to talk to him on the phone or we've been doing Zoom meetings with recruits and things like that. The thing that the parents and recruits fall in love with is that he's a genuine guy. They know that he truly cares about their son and it's more than just football. That's why recruiting is taking off and we're having the success that we're having. That's his thing. He's not trying to be somebody that he's not. He's just Coach Allen. The recruits love it and the moms and dads love it. It's been great.
Players Mentioned
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