On a long, productive day of interviews, we talked to Jack Curtis briefly after McMillan, Dauphine and Wright and before Fritz.
What has Patrick Johnson done to improve so much this year?
"When we recruited him last year, we didn't really know what position he was going to play. He was an athlete who could play tight end for us or defensive end, but when he got here, he was really forced due to a lack of depth to play an inside, interior line position, a four technique. It's really a big man's game in there and he was 240 or 250, that range, but he was tough. I think that year of him being in the trenches in a lot of ways was good for him because he learned how to play really tough, play with hands defeating blocks. And then when we moved him to outside linebacker, we still keep him in to rush a bunch, but he's really 250, 255 now and is really a physical player out there. That experience he got of being inside was really good. Being with coach Peoples, him training him how to use his hands and play blocks inside really helped him on the outside."
He talked about learning the technique a little better.
"The funny thing is that in that position, how young we are, he's the most experienced guy we have, and he has a spring and a fall under his belt and not completely a fall under his belt, so he's really still learning the position himself. And then we've got two true freshmen playing behind him getting some reps in there, and so he's the guy they're looking up to and he's developing his game still. The one thing that makes Pat able to make a lot of plays--he's got a lot of talent but he plays extremely hard and is really a tough kid who plays physical."
What is your assessment of South Florida's offense?
"Last year they were very explosive. They don't have quite the explosiveness with the quarterback (Quinton Flowers) in the run game like they had last year. A lot of times we had plays on but we just couldn't tackle him. They throw the ball better than they did, and they have a lot of the same receivers and the same running backs, so they are still extremely talented and explosive. They do it a little bit different way. They don't use it as much with the quarterback's feet. He hurt a few teams with it, but he's hurting them more with his arm and running the offense, and they have some really tall, big receivers out there."
Your defense is third in the AAC in fewest yards allowed during league games. How close are they to being where you want them to be?
"Well, two more spots closer. To get to No. 1 is where we want to be, and I'm going to give credit where credit's due. Last week we played pretty well on defense, but we were out there very few snaps. We played a total of 62 snaps. Our offense kept the ball, and that's the best defense you can be in. It's hard to win, especially in the American Conference, playing these types of teams and playing 90 snaps. That's too many opportunities for them. We cut it a third (against Tulsa). You play that few snaps, you've got a chance to win the game."
How fast paces is South Florida's no huddle?
"They are a little bit faster. We study this stuff and have some analytics on it. They are a little bit faster than what Tulsa was, so at times they can go extremely fast. They don't do it all the time, but they are going to do it on first down and on short-yardage situations. It depends on how the game is going. If you're playing well and stopping them on defense, they don't go as fast, but when they start rolling, it's breakneck speed."
But it's not Wake Forest fast?
"No, maybe not quite that fast. I haven't seen where Wake Forest is now, but that was tough, especially in the first game of the year. We're seeing these games and are adjusting to it. We've done things in our scheme to help us line up quicker and with our calls and all those things, so we're hoping that shows up on Saturday."
What has Patrick Johnson done to improve so much this year?
"When we recruited him last year, we didn't really know what position he was going to play. He was an athlete who could play tight end for us or defensive end, but when he got here, he was really forced due to a lack of depth to play an inside, interior line position, a four technique. It's really a big man's game in there and he was 240 or 250, that range, but he was tough. I think that year of him being in the trenches in a lot of ways was good for him because he learned how to play really tough, play with hands defeating blocks. And then when we moved him to outside linebacker, we still keep him in to rush a bunch, but he's really 250, 255 now and is really a physical player out there. That experience he got of being inside was really good. Being with coach Peoples, him training him how to use his hands and play blocks inside really helped him on the outside."
He talked about learning the technique a little better.
"The funny thing is that in that position, how young we are, he's the most experienced guy we have, and he has a spring and a fall under his belt and not completely a fall under his belt, so he's really still learning the position himself. And then we've got two true freshmen playing behind him getting some reps in there, and so he's the guy they're looking up to and he's developing his game still. The one thing that makes Pat able to make a lot of plays--he's got a lot of talent but he plays extremely hard and is really a tough kid who plays physical."
What is your assessment of South Florida's offense?
"Last year they were very explosive. They don't have quite the explosiveness with the quarterback (Quinton Flowers) in the run game like they had last year. A lot of times we had plays on but we just couldn't tackle him. They throw the ball better than they did, and they have a lot of the same receivers and the same running backs, so they are still extremely talented and explosive. They do it a little bit different way. They don't use it as much with the quarterback's feet. He hurt a few teams with it, but he's hurting them more with his arm and running the offense, and they have some really tall, big receivers out there."
Your defense is third in the AAC in fewest yards allowed during league games. How close are they to being where you want them to be?
"Well, two more spots closer. To get to No. 1 is where we want to be, and I'm going to give credit where credit's due. Last week we played pretty well on defense, but we were out there very few snaps. We played a total of 62 snaps. Our offense kept the ball, and that's the best defense you can be in. It's hard to win, especially in the American Conference, playing these types of teams and playing 90 snaps. That's too many opportunities for them. We cut it a third (against Tulsa). You play that few snaps, you've got a chance to win the game."
How fast paces is South Florida's no huddle?
"They are a little bit faster. We study this stuff and have some analytics on it. They are a little bit faster than what Tulsa was, so at times they can go extremely fast. They don't do it all the time, but they are going to do it on first down and on short-yardage situations. It depends on how the game is going. If you're playing well and stopping them on defense, they don't go as fast, but when they start rolling, it's breakneck speed."
But it's not Wake Forest fast?
"No, maybe not quite that fast. I haven't seen where Wake Forest is now, but that was tough, especially in the first game of the year. We're seeing these games and are adjusting to it. We've done things in our scheme to help us line up quicker and with our calls and all those things, so we're hoping that shows up on Saturday."