Quick-Hitters: Brian Kelly On Florida State, Jack Coan, Leadership
Game week is here.
Notre Dame heads to Florida State Sunday night to open its 2021 season. Head coach Brian Kelly opened game week with the first of his weekly Monday press conferences and spoke with reporters for about 30 minutes.
Kelly confirmed junior linebacker Marist Liufau will miss the season due to an ankle injury suffered in last week’s practice. It happened during the live scrimmage portion. Otherwise, Notre Dame heads into its opener without major injuries to starters or contributors.
Here are some of the other topics Kelly addressed.
On Florida State's Quarterbacks
“A team we got to see last year and we earned a lot of respect for them, especially Jordan Travis. The way he played against us, his toughness, his grit. He’s an extremely talented offensive player. He can run the football, get the ball and push it downfield.
“McKenzie Milton, we all know about his accolades [at UCF] and what he’s capable of doing. We have to prepare for both quarterbacks. A running quarterback and a quarterback who can throw the football at a high, high level.”
On Playing In Florida State’s Home Environment
“We address it prior. We show them what it’s going to be like at Florida State and present to them, ‘Where are you going to be when that horse runs on the field? Where are you going to be with all that excitement, the chop and all that?’ You have to get into your optimal zone. We spent a few team meetings already showing them the entrance, the tight locker room and how difficult it is in that environment so they can prepare themselves.
The No. 1 [hindrance] to peak performance is distractions. It’s getting those distractions out of the way so they can meet their peak performance.”
On Travel Logistics And COVID Complications
“We have to keep COVID as part of this. I would caution everybody that there are going to be unavailable players like we had last year. We’re going to go on the field and you’ll go, ‘Where is No. 26 or 32 or 57?’ We can’t comment on them, but you’ll be able to deduce what that is. COVID has not gone away. There will be those situations.
“We’re still taking COVID precautions. Many of our players are in single rooms. We won’t eat on the flight. We’re going to leave late Saturday and get in Saturday night. Are we 100 percent where we were last year? No. But we are hybrid and moving toward needing more restrictions.”
On DE Isaiah Foskey
“He’s definitely feeling much more comfortable on a day-to-day basis with the defensive structure, what he’s asked to do, his workload, all those things. He continues to grow as a football player. He has not reached his ceiling. We all know what his physical ability is now. It’s outstanding. His football ability continues to grow and I’m excited to watch him play.”
On Jack Coan’s Practice Performances Since Being Named The Starter
“He has been really good. He has been what he has been. That’s the nice part about it. He’s the same guy every day. You don’t go to practice and go, ‘Who’s that guy?’ He’s so consistent in terms of who he is and his makeup, his preparation. He has even improved since the spring in the more detailed areas we’ve asked him to. That’s the mark of a very good quarterback.
On Being Impressed With Notre Dame’s Leaders
“It’s the way they handle themselves when we throw them a curve or do something that’s not part of the routine. It’s easy for everyone in the locker room to start mumbling and grumbling, ‘Why are we doing this? Why is Coach doing this?’ They’re a great voice to go, ‘Relax, this is why we’re doing this. This is what Coach is doing.’
“They have just been really good at communicating and clearing up any squabbles in the sandbox. We have a good communication system down where they’ll come to me and say, ‘Coach, what do you think of this? Can you make this adjustment?’ What I’ve asked them to do is be great communicators, and they’ve done a nice job of it.”
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