Transcription
Yeah, well, I think that, um, I couldn't be prouder of a bunch of guys on a team that has come so far, uh, from where we were second, third game of the season. Uh, I think this is a great example for a lot of people who want to be successful in terms of the perseverance that these guys showed, the character that they had to overcome adversity, the resiliency that they played with, and they're truly a team. Uh, everybody's together. Every, everybody trusts and respects the principles and values of the organization, of the program, and buy into them. They're all responsible for their own self-determination, which means they can go do their job. Um, so I couldn't be prouder of a bunch of guys, the progress that we made, the way we compete.
You know, Georgia has got an outstanding team, outstanding team. And I think our team wanted to prove all year, uh, there was a lot of naysayers early in the year, so we wanted to show people, uh, what we could accomplish and what we could do. Uh, there wasn't a better stage to do it to play the number one team in the country who had won 29 games in a row. Uh, and because that's the endpoint, uh, that says you really got where you wanted to go. You were able to go out there and compete, uh, in a game, play for 60 minutes, uh, which it took all 60 minutes, and to win the SEC Championship, which is, in my opinion, really, really significant. Um, it means a lot to me. This is a tough conference. Um, I mean, we have like five teams that are ranked in the top 15. Um, and we got to play each other, and I think we played four out of the five.
So, um, I know you're going to ask me, so I might as well just get to it. Um, because, you know, having anticipation is something that's important to being a good coach. Not that I think I'm a good coach, but the message that I would send is, we won the SEC. You know, we beat the number one team in the country, which everybody thought on the committee was the number one team in the country, and they won 29 straight games. So if we needed to do something to pass the eye test, I guess that probably contributed to it significantly. And if you really want the four best teams to compete, um, the four most deserving teams that have progressed throughout the season, you know, we're not the same team we were when we played Texas. We're not the same team that when we played South Florida. So I don't think we should be considered as that team right now. And I think people should look at the whole body of work in terms of what the team was able to accomplish and what they were able to do. And I think this team is one of the four best teams and one of the teams that's deserving to be in the playoff. And we'll take questions if you would again raise your hand.
Second row, second. Uh, Nick, you obviously made your case for the playoff. What, I mean, what would you, what would your response be if the committee disagrees?
I've disagreed with them before. I disagreed last year. So I respect them. I know they have a tough job. I know there's a lot of good teams. But I'm just speaking up for our guys on our team who have busted their butt all year long to accomplish what they've accomplished, and I think that needs to be recognized.
Right here for Jaylen. Um, coach has been very complimentary of your season and your progression. What can you say about his coaching job? People are saying one of the best years he's had as a coach.
The biggest thing as players, um, that we can do best is be coachable. Um, Coach Savin, the biggest thing I want to do is be a sponge for all information, um, because at the end of the day, all of our coaches are pushing us to be successful. Um, and to speak about our coaching staff, man, they push us every single day. And we set short-term goals and long-term goals before the season even started. And the big thing we, we, we had to do as players, be coachable, be receptive to all coaching, and just try and find new ways to improve and get 1% better each and every day. I, I think you, our coaches did a fantastic job with these players, fantastic job of helping guys develop and improve. Um, and I really appreciate our staff of people who contributed to the success of this team. It's not about me, it's about everybody on the team who contributed to the success of this team, players and coaches alike.
Back here in the middle. Jaylen, you guys get the ball back. They had just cut it to 20 to 17. All the momentum was on Georgia's side. Place is going nuts. What's going through your mind? How do you stay calm in that moment to, to engineer that drive to score again?
Singular focus. That's the biggest model, um, that we had going into the game. Is all about singular focus and doing our job. Um, it's all about response. You know, and the biggest thing that we have on this team that contributes to any success is the family acronym: Forget About Me, I Love You. And, uh, I think we do a really good job with that. And, and it was all about singular focus, um, each and every drive.
Back here, uh, for Dallas. I mean, what has it meant for you to have Coach Steel as a defensive coordinator? I know you mentioned him back in the summer, but what, what has he brought this team from start to finish having Coach Steel in here?
You know, just, uh, the main thing that Coach Steel has, you know, instilling this is just holding us accountable every day in practice, you know, having the right practice habits, and, you know, just, uh, going about practice how you play. So, you know, uh, you know, everything that we do, uh, before the games and everything, you know, it's just all a display of what we do in practice. So, you know, you just practice how you play.
Question for Coach Sabin. When Georgia played Georgia Tech last week, Tech got a couple of touchdowns on a fake toss with the quarterback cutting it up the middle, just like the play Jaylen ran at the end to kill the clock. Anything from that game scouting-wise leads you to believe that that play would be successful?
Well, um, I can't say that exactly came from that game, but, you know, we watch almost every game a team plays the whole season, and you're always looking for things that people had success against them, things that created issues for them. So, um, and that's something that I think our offensive staff did a really good job of to have some of those plays in the bag when we needed to take the air out of it at the end of the game and not give them the ball back.
Right here, Nick. A year from now, the likes of Georgia and Alabama, even Texas, will be playing for seating, probably in this type of game, maybe even for a buy. Can this moment ever be like this where it's so intense, so much on the line? I know the SEC championship's important, but we're kind of at the end of an era tonight.
Yeah, well, I've been through a few of these eras where we didn't have a national championship game where two teams played. Now four teams have been playing. Now 12 teams are going to play. So, um, but I think when we have 12 teams, you all still make a case for 12 more. That's kind of your job. So, uh, just like the basketball tournament, I mean, how many teams they put in, 68, and then you have a two-hour show on who else should have got in or who got in it shouldn't have. I mean, that's always going to be, that's part of it. That's what you do to create interest, which I appreciate. You. Yeah, but there's one other thing I want to mention. I appreciate we had two Hail Mary drives in this game. All right, that this guy contributed to, and some receivers made some great catches, right before the half, scoring right before the half, and when they got 20 to 17, which you've already mentioned, that was a great drive and a necessary drive, no doubt, but a great drive, a lot of plays made in those, those two drives.
Back here, uh, for Coach Sabin, what can you tell us about the status of Kool-Aid and also just please assess the play of the secondary today?
Uh, other than the one big play that we gave up, uh, um, we didn't play well early. You know, the first drive, we were sort of out of sorts. We settled down and played pretty well. We gave up the one big play over on their sidelines, which led to a field goal, and then we got really bad field position on the punt return. Wasn't very good punt. Guy did a good job. They put two returners back so they could get the ball fielded, and they hit us. Um, so I thought they did a pretty good job. I think Georgia has got a really good quarterback and really skilled guys, and I thought they did a pretty good job of limiting their big plays. Kool-Aid, Kool-Aid has a concussion, so he goes in concussion protocol. We'll figure out how bad it is, how long it takes, when we clear. I mean, all the testing mechanisms that we have right now, uh, are really beneficial to players not getting multiple concussions. So, uh, hopefully we'll do our medical staff has always done a really good job of protecting the players when these things occur.
Coach, uh, couple of weeks ago, you said this team had been taking years off of your life. The last couple of weeks, have they done anything to help you find the Fountain of Youth, especially with tonight's win?
You know how tired I am right now? I mean, I'm happy as hell we won. My speech in the locker room after the game was one word: Celebrate. And I had just enough left in me to do the dance, just enough.
Right here, Jaylen. This team is, has been talked about today, has improved so much as a season. I know you guys felt like people would kick you to the curb. Now that you've completed the regular season, to won the SEC title, do you still feel like that, some of that doubt out there?
The biggest thing about this team is we know there's unfinished business. Um, all we want to do is improve and get 1% better each and every day. Um, but we do have to acknowledge the journey we've been on. And I, I can do only, uh, be just complimentary of the guys in the locker room because at the end of the day, when people doubt us, we continue to work hard. Um, we just trust in the coaching staff that continues to push us each and every day. Um, we have a good leader like Dallas right here next to me, uh, that pushes our offense, um, as we compete on the practice field. So there's a lot of elements that, um, allows our team to keep on pushing towards, um, the final step. But we know we're near the finish line. We're constantly trying to get better.
Coach, and for Jaylen, Isaiah Bond had four of his five catches on that last touchdown drive. Just talk about the way that he's been so clutched this entire year, specifically against Auburn, of course, tonight. Go ahead, Jay.
Well, it contributes to practice habits. When you practice well at practice, we implement different things that you can do in the game. So I think that's the biggest thing that correlates to the game is how well he practices. Um, he plays with a lot of, um, speed, and then also he does well with the game plan. So, um, Coach Rees, just game plans very well with IB, and he continues to just work hard. So he's a great resource for our offense to keep us going. I, he's been great all year, and I think the one word that I would say is he's very consistent in practice as well as the game. And if you're a quarterback, you want to be able to trust your guys that they're going to go run the right route at the right depth at the right time and show up in the right place. And I think he, he does a great job of that, and he's got great speed. So, um, you know, that's always helpful for Dallas and Jaylen.
What would be your message to the committee about why he deserves to be in the playoff? Or do you kind of let what you did on the field do the talking?
I mean, honestly, like I don't really like to talk too much, so like I just like to perform on the field. And, you know, we clearly had a very good game tonight, very big win. But, you know, we just let our play do, do the talking for ourselves. So I got something to say. Georgia, number one, right? You beat the number one team. What does that consider us? What does that consider us? But at the end of the day, you know, that's out of our reach. But the biggest thing we got to do is trust the process, keep getting better. But we beat the best team in the nation considerably. So, uh, what do y'all consider us?
Rank. Coach Sabin, two questions if I could. Can we see the dance? One. And two, the, uh, play of Trey Amos and the opportunity that he had?
Yeah, well, he's been playing for us all year. Uh, Trey's been playing in dime all year long, uh, and we consider him a starter when we move Terry on to Star and play him on third down. And he's done a really good job, and he did a really good job tonight. Um, so he's been playing for us all year, but we have a lot of confidence in him. And, you know, he, he did, he did a really good job tonight. So, and I can't remember two questions at a time. See, oh, no, it's bad. It's bad. I mean, ask them. It's bad.
We sat in here two years ago and he talked about yummy rat poison. Just how does it taste this year? And also, has there been a value to kind of letting those external factors get into the team? And you talk about naysayers and doubt, and it seems to have motivated them.
Well, I, I think that that's an interesting point that you bring up because one of the motivating factors for this team all year long is they wanted to prove who they were because of the criticism that they got. All right. Now, this valid, validates winning the SEC, beating Georgia, beating the number one team, kind of validates who they are. So then the next challenge is, is how do you deal with success? How do you deal with success? And, um, that'll be the next challenge for this team, uh, because I think I agree with, you know, Jaylen, that we should acknowledge the fact and celebrate the fact that we won the SEC Championship. That's significant. And, um, but now, if we have an opportunity to do something else, what's going to be our internal motivation to want to continue to be successful?
Front, coach, you, uh, discussed the, uh, value of the tight end and that matchup. What did you do today to minimize number 19, Brock Bowers of Georgia?
Well, after the first drive, you know, we played almost all split safeties. And, uh, the one McConkey caught to the one-yard line, we were in middle of the field coverage. Middle of the field coverage didn't do us much good today. That's what we played like in that first drive. So we played split safeties the whole time. Now, when you do that, you get more guys, somebody under them, somebody over them, somebody banging on them, um, and you're not covering them one-on-one. But to do that, you got to be able to stop the run. And our guys did a really good job with all that split safety stuff of stopping the run today, so we could play it. Because we went into the game thinking we couldn't play it, but after the first drive, I said, can't get any worse, let's just start playing it. Because that was the plan, that was the plan that we wanted to take them away, and the guys did a good job of executing it.
One last question from anyone. Oh, okay. I'm sorry, back there. Hi, coach. Could you speak a little bit about the progression of Emanuel Henderson as a player over this year?
Emanuel, um, has really developed nicely as a receiver. He's got great speed. Um, he really didn't play that position in high school, so sometimes it takes those guys a little longer to develop, you know, the confidence, the skill set. But he has done a phenomenal job. He's been a good special teams player for us. He got hurt early in the season, so he missed some time, or he'd have been a much more significant, would have made a much more significant impact, I think, this year. Uh, but he's been very valuable for us all year long.
Coach and players, congratulations. Thank you for attending and appreciate everybody being here. Thank you. And, um, you know, I do appreciate what you all do. Um, you create a lot of interest. I know sometimes I get criticized for being a guy that doesn't like, like the press, but I really do like you. I like what you do. Um, and I, you, you do a lot to give our players a lot of positive self-gratification, and you also, um, create a lot of interest in our game, and I think that's important. So thank you for that.