On if he has given a lot of thought to his role as Associate AD at
the University after he is done coaching:
"Now, no. What I'm trying to do is be the best coach I can be for as long
as I enjoy it and as long as my health is good. That's really where my heart
mind and soul is."
On if he agrees with Barry Alvarez's idea about the Big Ten creating
a rule that no team misses playing both Michigan and Ohio State in the same
season:
"I'm seldom without an opinion, but I would really have to look at that
and give it some thought. I've just tried to convince myself ever since I became
a head coach to really not worry about the schedule. It's one of those things
that you cant do anything about. Barry happens to be in a position to have some
influence from the standpoint that he is an AD. I do think that if you look
at history, those programs (Michigan and Ohio State) are normally up there.
If you don't play them both…I think history would say that it would be
an advantage. But history can change. I think it's an interesting thought. Over
time, however, there's nobody in the conference that some years doesn't have
a better schedule. "
On how the Big Ten matches up with the other conferences:
"I don't think we've ever lost any prestige. There's nobody out there
as a coach that wins every game, so you're going to take some criticism. It's
part of the game. I think that's true for conferences as well. I think when
you look at intercollegiate athletics, especially football, to judge them, you
have to take into consideration that we're dealing with universities. So it's
not just about winning. It's about all of those other issues that go into what
sports should be about. I think we can be very proud, for the most part, of
the way we conduct football in this conference. The way we play the game. I
think it's almost impossible to be accurate in assessing the conferences' strengths
and weaknesses unless there's head to head competition. I think we've done ok
in the bowl games. I know this…over a period of time there is not a better
conference than the Big Ten. I don't say were the best. That's my opinion."
On if having so many good teams in the conference can sometimes hurt
how the it is viewed since they beat up on one another:
"I think that's exactly why there's that perception out there at times.
I don't think until you've really been around this conference that you can understand
the toll that the week to week competition takes. I don't know how many conference
games they play in the Big 12 and the SEC, but here when you're playing eight
conference games…and beginning next year it's going to be eight consecutive
conference games…that's a challenge. You're not going to have people every
year that go through that kind of a schedule undefeated. But when you do, you're
going to have a chance to win the national championship. That's the way is should
be."
On the Field Turf in Michigan Stadium has lived up to expectations:
"I think it has. The truth is, in a perfect world we'd like to have grass
because I think it's the best surface. We've tried that and we just couldn't
get it to work. I do think what we have now is the best available. I have to
believe, based on the developments that have been made in that field, that it
will continue to get better and better down the road."
On Breaston's injuries last year:
"I think anytime you're a competitive athlete, one of the most difficult
things you're confronted with is the recognition that very often you're not
going to be 100%. That's certainly true in football. You're always going to
have some nagging things. And it's how you deal with them. Just the discipline
it takes to get treatment everyday because that takes time. It take time that
you'd rather be doing something else. But if you're not disciplined in the way
you rehab your injures, they get worse. There are a lot things there. It's a
challenge because some guys are great until they get hurt. And once they get
hurt, now their ability to compete is really limited. Some guys you don't notice
hardly at all because they have a threshold for dealing with discomfort that
some other people don't have. So there are a lot of issues there."
On if he thinks Breaston is stronger after dealing with adversity:
"I think going through it, the frustration of it, I think it makes you
appreciate when you do get a chance to play. I think it's the recognition that
you only have so many opportunities as a college athlete to compete. You don't
get any of them back. There's a clock, and when that clock runs out, you're
done. Depending on what your goals are, those are all things that come into
play."
On the 12th game:
"The 12th game is a fact of life. We're going to play a 12th game. But
my major issue is that somewhere down the road here, a lot of these same people
that voted for the 12th game are going to have an opportunity to vote again
for a 13th game. My belief is that anybody that supports another game, whenever
it comes, is betraying the concept of the student athlete. We've played 12 games
before. It's here and I'm not going to have anything more about that. I'm not
going to change anything I did say. But when they get ready to go to the next
game…any president, or AD, or commissioner, or coach that supports that,
in my judgment, is not taking into consideration what the student athlete goes
through. If and when that happens, they should be."
On the differing personalities of Steve Breaston and Braylon Edwards
and if he appreciates those differences:
"Absolutely. Let me say that I loved coaching Braylon Edwards. I don't
say that it was always easy for either one of us, but what I loved about Braylon
is that he loved to win. He loved to compete, and I respect people who are always
trying to be the best they can be. You could never accuse Braylon of doing anything
less than his best. And he was fun to be around, for the most part. Of course,
I'm not the easiest guy to get along with either. But I enjoy Steve Breaston
because he is a guy with enormous abilities, and yet he does not have a big
ego. I've watched Tom Brady, for example, have as much success as anyone in
the United States…and I don't think he changed a bit. And I don't think
Steve Breaston will change either…at least in a negative way. But he's
fun. I think it's the differences that you appreciate as a coach."
On is Steve Breaston is a special player:
He's one of those guys. Braylon would do some things. Anthony Carter, I can
remember when I first came to Michigan, he would catch the football on the sidelines
and everybody in the stadium would decide to stand up because they wouldn't
want to miss what was about to happen. I think Steve Breaston has the ability
to electrify people because he has such unusual abilities. He's fun in practice
because he does some things in practice. When you can impress the players, you
know that it's something special…and he is something special."
On replay:
"I think replay has been a great success. I think you always have to keep
in mind as we go forward that it is not an NFL system that is going to correct
every play. It is designed to make sure that plays that can change the outcome
of the game…we can change. I'm sure that as we go forward, there are going
to be some controversial plays. There are going to be some issues where maybe
something goes wrong with it. It's not a perfect system. I think we've had a
very good beginning and hopefully it will continue to be that. "