Following head coach Dabo Swinney’s meeting with the media Tuesday, ahead of the Tigers’ trip to face NC State, two additional players met with the media to preview Saturday’s matchup, some the issues that have plagued the offense and their expectations for the rest of the season.
What We Heard
Beaux Collins
- On red zone issues and feeling pressure: “That definitely crosses our mind.”
- “We definitely need one game where we put it all together. It has been a long season trying to get all 11 guys on the same page but once we do I feel like it is going to be special.”
- “It is definitely disappointing seeing some of the critical mistakes. It is frustrating to see guys making simple mistakes. Details matter. Turnovers are a huge part of the game. The margin is a huge part of the game.”
- “We still have a lot of confidence in ourselves. We are just trying to figure out the disconnect from practice to game days.”
- On freshman Ronan Hanafin: “I have seen a guy that goes out there and busts his tail every day. He has definitely shown flashes of being special without the ball (on special teams).”
- On Adam Randall: “I really think it is confidence and coming off the injury.
- On Troy Stellato: “He is more hungry than ever.
- On losing at NC State in 2021: “This time going up there if we have the right edge I feel like we will come out on top for sure.”
- Young guys that stand out to Collins: Khalil Barnes, Olsen Patt Henry, Peter Woods and Tyler Brown.
- On his big catch against Miami: “It felt great. This season hasn’t gone statistacially the way I planned. Just creating those plays, being more consistent is what I have been working on the past few weeks.”
- On getting tripped up: “It’s tough. You just got to get back up. But it was a big play. It was 3rd and 10.”
- Randall said inconsistency in practice and games has kept him off the field. He said he and Cade Klubnik have just felt “off” at times.
- “Me not having a spring and me having to learn the offense in camp, I felt like I was in my head.”
- “I see us doing it every day in practice and now its getting it to translate to the field. It is about us getting out of our own way.”
- “I feel the best that I have felt since I got here.”
- “Sophomore year in high school I was in the same situtaion. Dealt with injuries in high school. Like my dad said we have been here before and I know eventually I will come out alright.”
- “Turnovers are killing us right now. Just got to hold on to the ball, especially at the goal line.”
- On getting back mentally after the injuries: “Getting back into the mindset can take a while. Just having that competive nature on Saturday, going out there and attacking. It is just rhytm and timimg. A lot of precision that goes into this game.” Said he dealt with lower extremity injuries and shoulder injuries in high school. “It is the mentality that counts.”
- “We got to continue to keep showing up every day. Keep working on the turnovers. If we can win the margin in the rest of these games, we will go 5-0. I can tell you that.”
- Randall said it is “great” to have his brother on the team. “This is one of his last years playing football and I am glad we got to do it together.”
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