Indiana University Athletics
Quoted: at Rutgers
10/19/2022 2:00:00 PM | Football
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – As a trip to Rutgers awaits the Indiana football program in Week 8 of the 2022 season, Indiana defensive coordinator Chad Wilt and offensive coordinator Walt Bell talked to the media, while student-athletes Aaron Casey, Bryant Fitzgerald, Josh Henderson and Emery Simmons each talked with IUHoosiers.com's Austin Render in front of the noon kickoff on Saturday (Oct. 22) on Big Ten Network.
Below is a partial transcript of the coordinators press conferences, while video of the full media sessions can be found near the top of this story or at IUHoosiers.com/watch.
Chad Wilt | Defensive Coordinator
On the defenses adjustments without Cam Jones on the field…
CW: My son sprained his foot the other day, guess who sent my son a picture and little video to help put his mind at ease at the doctor? Cam's dealing with a foot, my five year old is dealing with a foot, and there is Cam Jones sending my wife a little video. What a guy that young man is!
To your point, you can't just go plug and play. It's not possible. A lot of guys had to step up and we've seen it. Matt Hohlt: increased role. Aaron Casey, too. Aaron was producing, but now you're communication, command, the leadership, it's not going to be one guy that has to go do all. If each guy has to pick up their load, their share and go get the job done and we're seeing guys do that. But we need to see more guys step up and do that. We need to pick up more loads and we didn't do that where we needed to and that cost us the ability to win a football game where we needed to at the linebacker position.
On the secondary…
CW: First thing is communication. We need to make sure all 11 guys that are playing are on the same page. Whether that's how we're playing in combination routes, how we're playing formation things, communication. Then it goes into execution. Execution of assignments, communication, how we play in this particular alignment and then it's the execution of fundamentals and technique.
We need to keep working on all three of those areas. Communication, execution, and execution of fundamentals. We're going to keep challenging these guys on and continue to step up and grow up and go do what we know we're capable of doing. There are guys back there with experience and know what they're doing. Watching film this morning, the technique on a man-to-man assignment, one time he does it, the other he doesn't. Need the consistency. When he did it, "boom", play over, play done, route over, eliminated. When he didn't do it, catch. So, it's there. The kids know it, they see it, and we have to keep reinforce it. It's on the coaches to get them to consistently do that and execute.
On preparing for Rutgers and an unknown at quarterback…
CW: I really believe it goes back to the individual techniques and assignments of jobs. If I'm a defensive end and the tackle does this, I do that. If my tackle does that, I do this. If I get this adjustment or formation on the backend we know this is our check, we know this is our call.
We need our guys to know what their base rules are, and if we can be great at our base rules then we can handle whatever else they throw at you from the kitchen sink. I think it's really just going back to saying, "hey I'm a linebacker this is my key, my key does this, that's my reaction." Whatever, the game plan is we'll figure that out as the game goes on, that's our jobs as coaches, what are the things they're showing us, the tendencies within the game.
We have a system of how we do that, and I like our system within the game of how we go about identifying the tendencies, whether that's down and distance or formations or personnel tendencies we have a good system for that. Then turn that around and echo that back, communicate that back to the guys on the sideline and bench. Here are the rules, and the keys, trust your rules, and trust your keys. That's really what you build off on when getting the unknowns.
Walt Bell | Offensive Coordinator
On Emery Simmons growing role…
WB: For Emery, the biggest thing is taking advantage of opportunities. We knew coming into the year him and D.J [Matthews Jr.] were splitting a lot of reps because D.J. was coming off the knee [injury] at the time, so they kind of played 50/50 up until D.J. got beat up a little bit. Emery has had to play a bunch of plays and he has done a really nice job. That's the biggest thing. He's a young man who prepares. If you just see the notes he took in meetings, he prepares the right way and put himself in a position to make the most of his opportunity and couldn't be happier for him because he's a great kid.
On if eliminating mistakes will lead to more wins…
WB: I think last week is a perfect example. We talked about it this morning and it's nothing that Connor [Bazelak] hasn't heard but we had two drops, couple throw aways, a 50/50 ball interception -- right choice to make, put the ball up and get your one-on-one.
First play of the game we got what we wanted, had an open guy, and missed. Legitimately, could have been 34 or 35 of 41, which would have been a really special day. That's the nature of the quarterback position, nobody cares. People are going to remember those two throws and that's the nature of coaching and playing the quarterback position.
More than anything else those are the things the kids see. First play of the game, not what you want. Work our way right down the field [later in the game], then had a penalty that puts us in a second-and-21 and we had to settle for a field goal. Right now, there is just a little too much error at critical times and when you're in the Big Ten playing high-level football whether it be the NFL, SEC, Big Ten, that game is going to be defined by somewhere in between four and eight plays and you never know which one it's going be.
You need to make your fair share of them if you're going win the game. We had opportunities to win the game up until the onside kick that we didn't get. Especially after the tip ball, things are going our way at that point. Our kids have been unbelievably resilient to this point, and we're going do everything we can to this point and continue to fight and prepare until this next one.
On Rod Carey…
WB: Number one, he is a really good coach and has done a phenomenal job everywhere that he has been. In just the very limited interactions, because he was helping Coach [Tom] Allen on defense and those guys early in the year, but you know as former head coaches we have had some conversations from time to time, whether that be funny or not so funny. He and I have a shared bond in that, but now having the chance to be with him for an extended amount of time on a daily basis, he's a great coach, great human being, and has a great rapport of the staff and the players. He's done a great job, but we still have a lot of football left to play.
Below is a partial transcript of the coordinators press conferences, while video of the full media sessions can be found near the top of this story or at IUHoosiers.com/watch.
Chad Wilt | Defensive Coordinator
On the defenses adjustments without Cam Jones on the field…
CW: My son sprained his foot the other day, guess who sent my son a picture and little video to help put his mind at ease at the doctor? Cam's dealing with a foot, my five year old is dealing with a foot, and there is Cam Jones sending my wife a little video. What a guy that young man is!
To your point, you can't just go plug and play. It's not possible. A lot of guys had to step up and we've seen it. Matt Hohlt: increased role. Aaron Casey, too. Aaron was producing, but now you're communication, command, the leadership, it's not going to be one guy that has to go do all. If each guy has to pick up their load, their share and go get the job done and we're seeing guys do that. But we need to see more guys step up and do that. We need to pick up more loads and we didn't do that where we needed to and that cost us the ability to win a football game where we needed to at the linebacker position.
On the secondary…
CW: First thing is communication. We need to make sure all 11 guys that are playing are on the same page. Whether that's how we're playing in combination routes, how we're playing formation things, communication. Then it goes into execution. Execution of assignments, communication, how we play in this particular alignment and then it's the execution of fundamentals and technique.
We need to keep working on all three of those areas. Communication, execution, and execution of fundamentals. We're going to keep challenging these guys on and continue to step up and grow up and go do what we know we're capable of doing. There are guys back there with experience and know what they're doing. Watching film this morning, the technique on a man-to-man assignment, one time he does it, the other he doesn't. Need the consistency. When he did it, "boom", play over, play done, route over, eliminated. When he didn't do it, catch. So, it's there. The kids know it, they see it, and we have to keep reinforce it. It's on the coaches to get them to consistently do that and execute.
On preparing for Rutgers and an unknown at quarterback…
CW: I really believe it goes back to the individual techniques and assignments of jobs. If I'm a defensive end and the tackle does this, I do that. If my tackle does that, I do this. If I get this adjustment or formation on the backend we know this is our check, we know this is our call.
We need our guys to know what their base rules are, and if we can be great at our base rules then we can handle whatever else they throw at you from the kitchen sink. I think it's really just going back to saying, "hey I'm a linebacker this is my key, my key does this, that's my reaction." Whatever, the game plan is we'll figure that out as the game goes on, that's our jobs as coaches, what are the things they're showing us, the tendencies within the game.
We have a system of how we do that, and I like our system within the game of how we go about identifying the tendencies, whether that's down and distance or formations or personnel tendencies we have a good system for that. Then turn that around and echo that back, communicate that back to the guys on the sideline and bench. Here are the rules, and the keys, trust your rules, and trust your keys. That's really what you build off on when getting the unknowns.
Walt Bell | Offensive Coordinator
On Emery Simmons growing role…
WB: For Emery, the biggest thing is taking advantage of opportunities. We knew coming into the year him and D.J [Matthews Jr.] were splitting a lot of reps because D.J. was coming off the knee [injury] at the time, so they kind of played 50/50 up until D.J. got beat up a little bit. Emery has had to play a bunch of plays and he has done a really nice job. That's the biggest thing. He's a young man who prepares. If you just see the notes he took in meetings, he prepares the right way and put himself in a position to make the most of his opportunity and couldn't be happier for him because he's a great kid.
On if eliminating mistakes will lead to more wins…
WB: I think last week is a perfect example. We talked about it this morning and it's nothing that Connor [Bazelak] hasn't heard but we had two drops, couple throw aways, a 50/50 ball interception -- right choice to make, put the ball up and get your one-on-one.
First play of the game we got what we wanted, had an open guy, and missed. Legitimately, could have been 34 or 35 of 41, which would have been a really special day. That's the nature of the quarterback position, nobody cares. People are going to remember those two throws and that's the nature of coaching and playing the quarterback position.
More than anything else those are the things the kids see. First play of the game, not what you want. Work our way right down the field [later in the game], then had a penalty that puts us in a second-and-21 and we had to settle for a field goal. Right now, there is just a little too much error at critical times and when you're in the Big Ten playing high-level football whether it be the NFL, SEC, Big Ten, that game is going to be defined by somewhere in between four and eight plays and you never know which one it's going be.
You need to make your fair share of them if you're going win the game. We had opportunities to win the game up until the onside kick that we didn't get. Especially after the tip ball, things are going our way at that point. Our kids have been unbelievably resilient to this point, and we're going do everything we can to this point and continue to fight and prepare until this next one.
On Rod Carey…
WB: Number one, he is a really good coach and has done a phenomenal job everywhere that he has been. In just the very limited interactions, because he was helping Coach [Tom] Allen on defense and those guys early in the year, but you know as former head coaches we have had some conversations from time to time, whether that be funny or not so funny. He and I have a shared bond in that, but now having the chance to be with him for an extended amount of time on a daily basis, he's a great coach, great human being, and has a great rapport of the staff and the players. He's done a great job, but we still have a lot of football left to play.
Players Mentioned
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WR
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