OPENING STATEMENT
Good afternoon, appreciate you guys being here. We're going on our 13th practice today. And we've made a lot of progress from the first practice through the 12th, still developing our depth. Who is going to be the first team, who is going to be the back up guys.
But right now we've got three more practices to go, and we've can accomplish a lot in the next three days if our guys focus.
And I guess after that I'll just open it up for questions.
Q. Where do you feel like you've improved the most this spring defensively?
COACH PARKER: I think there's ‑‑ I think moving the line backers around, moving Bo Bower back inside and Ben Niemann coming up, and I think the linebacker group is working well. Josey Jewell went back to mike as a full‑time guy, which he can play both. I think the depth at the linebackers really helped. I think our defensive ends have really improved through Drew Ott and Nate Meier. Both of them did a great job. Matt Nelson has really made a lot of improvements as he developed as a freshman and he's just getting bigger and stronger, and we're really pleased with the way he's making progress.
And Jaleel Johnson inside, he's made a step forward. And Bazata, I think he's done a good job and I think they're all moving forward a little bit. I think that linebackers are getting in the pieces of learning how to do it, moving Bo back from outside to inside. It's not easy to do, it's different reads. And your keys are different. So he's really developed over the last couple of weeks. We're happy with that.
Q. What did the defense learn coming off the Tennessee game?
COACH PARKER: What we learned? Obviously we didn't show up. I think obviously we're prepared, and there's times when we're in position to make plays and we didn't make it. And then just tumbled there. Kind of reminded me a little bit of what happened in the Northwestern game a little bit when we started out and it was like 21‑0 in the first quarter. 21 or 28‑ nothing, and then it snowballed on us a little bit. Defensively there it was the other way around.
Q. When you say you didn't show up, how do you explain that?
COACH PARKER: Well, we just didn't play Iowa football the way we were used to playing since I've been here. Making good tackles, and we were in position at at times and we just didn't make it. A credit to them, they made some plays. But just nothing that we're used to playing, given the big plays. And we've got to concentrate and focus a little bit better doing the play and being in tuned to what is going on.
Q. Your perimeter defense, you guys had some struggles there last year, everyone kind of jumped the scheme, you guys are doing the same stuff, just trying to get better?
COACH PARKER: I think a lot of people tried to attack us from the perimeter because it's hard to them guys to run up inside. They do different things to try to affect you, and try to stretch you out a little bit more and we've just got to be better prepared and have some answers for that. And I think we worked on that.
But I think it all starts with fundamentals, and that's what we've been working on, and I think playing a lot of basic defense, running the ball, make sure you've got your eyes where they need to be and read your keys, and I think that's the goal of everybody on the field. It's hard to play without your eyes if you don't really use them, and what information they're giving you.
Q. How did that motivate you in the off season, leaving a bad taste in guys mouths coming back?
COACH PARKER: I don't think we approach things differently. We're going to be coaching the way we coached for the last 16 years. Is it disappointing? Does it hurt? For a while, yeah. But you have to get back up and get back after it and start coaching the guys the way we've always coached them. I think guys are more involved. I think the players are more involved and in tune to what they have to do. I don't think you change the way you coach. I'm not going to change the way I did it, my approach. You always look the a your scheme. Is your scheme good? What's the breakdown? There are some things we've got to fix.
Q. Would you say that the Nebraska game was guys in certain positions, first year freshmen?
COACH PARKER: You know, I think some other guys that didn't make plays in the game, too, but it's hard for a young buy. And obviously those guys got a year experience on them, going into their second really full season. So I think that experience is going to help them and they'll be prepared for the game and going to a bowl game, you're sitting there playing, it's hard for these kids. But I think as they grow, you've got to move on and build from it and learn from it.
Q. Tennessee and Minnesota blocking a little differently than they had previous game. Minnesota was a little more downhill team, but they went outside and Tennessee seemed to be more in and out. Did you think they saw something in your speed or your personnel that allowed them to go on the perimeter more?
COACH PARKER: I think there's a lot of people, that you go back to four or five years ago, Michigan was doing the same thing to us with the quarterbacks that they had. They were trying to reach the perimeter more instead of running inside. And I think they're trying to give you misdirection keys and stuff like that. And sometimes they're not even blocking certain guys, trying to just get outside and trying to out run you. You have to prepare for it and what you're going to see. And I think we've improved on that. I'm happy with what direction we're going in right now.
Q. Talking about increased pace, how do you stress that?
COACH PARKER: Well, it really comes down to basics. Football is a simple game. You have to make sure you get lined up, you get a good stance, your linemen, your keys. And you go through your read progression. The most important thing to me is effort to the ball. And everybody says what kind of effort do you take?
You've got to make sure when you're tracking a guy that you have your eyes on him to track him and you've got to read his body language and see if he's going to cut back or what direction he's going. Just because you're just running and is taking off running and don't have your eyes on him a lot of times our guys get in you believe electric. You can see it. They just take off, they run. And they lose the ball. And most importantly is the guy with the ball, how do you attack them.
I think we emphasize, one thing I'm looking for, I want to see effort. I don't care if you make a mistake, you have a bad alignment. That stuff is going to happen, you get blocked, but what's your effort at the end of the play as you're running to the ball, that's what it's going to come down to.
Q. Was that more executing?
COACH PARKER: I think it's a combination of both. I can't say we were loafing out there. I didn't see that. I didn't see the effort. Not that I did see the effort, they hit us on some plays and got up and then started snowballing little bit.
Good afternoon, appreciate you guys being here. We're going on our 13th practice today. And we've made a lot of progress from the first practice through the 12th, still developing our depth. Who is going to be the first team, who is going to be the back up guys.
But right now we've got three more practices to go, and we've can accomplish a lot in the next three days if our guys focus.
And I guess after that I'll just open it up for questions.
Q. Where do you feel like you've improved the most this spring defensively?
COACH PARKER: I think there's ‑‑ I think moving the line backers around, moving Bo Bower back inside and Ben Niemann coming up, and I think the linebacker group is working well. Josey Jewell went back to mike as a full‑time guy, which he can play both. I think the depth at the linebackers really helped. I think our defensive ends have really improved through Drew Ott and Nate Meier. Both of them did a great job. Matt Nelson has really made a lot of improvements as he developed as a freshman and he's just getting bigger and stronger, and we're really pleased with the way he's making progress.
And Jaleel Johnson inside, he's made a step forward. And Bazata, I think he's done a good job and I think they're all moving forward a little bit. I think that linebackers are getting in the pieces of learning how to do it, moving Bo back from outside to inside. It's not easy to do, it's different reads. And your keys are different. So he's really developed over the last couple of weeks. We're happy with that.
Q. What did the defense learn coming off the Tennessee game?
COACH PARKER: What we learned? Obviously we didn't show up. I think obviously we're prepared, and there's times when we're in position to make plays and we didn't make it. And then just tumbled there. Kind of reminded me a little bit of what happened in the Northwestern game a little bit when we started out and it was like 21‑0 in the first quarter. 21 or 28‑ nothing, and then it snowballed on us a little bit. Defensively there it was the other way around.
Q. When you say you didn't show up, how do you explain that?
COACH PARKER: Well, we just didn't play Iowa football the way we were used to playing since I've been here. Making good tackles, and we were in position at at times and we just didn't make it. A credit to them, they made some plays. But just nothing that we're used to playing, given the big plays. And we've got to concentrate and focus a little bit better doing the play and being in tuned to what is going on.
Q. Your perimeter defense, you guys had some struggles there last year, everyone kind of jumped the scheme, you guys are doing the same stuff, just trying to get better?
COACH PARKER: I think a lot of people tried to attack us from the perimeter because it's hard to them guys to run up inside. They do different things to try to affect you, and try to stretch you out a little bit more and we've just got to be better prepared and have some answers for that. And I think we worked on that.
But I think it all starts with fundamentals, and that's what we've been working on, and I think playing a lot of basic defense, running the ball, make sure you've got your eyes where they need to be and read your keys, and I think that's the goal of everybody on the field. It's hard to play without your eyes if you don't really use them, and what information they're giving you.
Q. How did that motivate you in the off season, leaving a bad taste in guys mouths coming back?
COACH PARKER: I don't think we approach things differently. We're going to be coaching the way we coached for the last 16 years. Is it disappointing? Does it hurt? For a while, yeah. But you have to get back up and get back after it and start coaching the guys the way we've always coached them. I think guys are more involved. I think the players are more involved and in tune to what they have to do. I don't think you change the way you coach. I'm not going to change the way I did it, my approach. You always look the a your scheme. Is your scheme good? What's the breakdown? There are some things we've got to fix.
Q. Would you say that the Nebraska game was guys in certain positions, first year freshmen?
COACH PARKER: You know, I think some other guys that didn't make plays in the game, too, but it's hard for a young buy. And obviously those guys got a year experience on them, going into their second really full season. So I think that experience is going to help them and they'll be prepared for the game and going to a bowl game, you're sitting there playing, it's hard for these kids. But I think as they grow, you've got to move on and build from it and learn from it.
Q. Tennessee and Minnesota blocking a little differently than they had previous game. Minnesota was a little more downhill team, but they went outside and Tennessee seemed to be more in and out. Did you think they saw something in your speed or your personnel that allowed them to go on the perimeter more?
COACH PARKER: I think there's a lot of people, that you go back to four or five years ago, Michigan was doing the same thing to us with the quarterbacks that they had. They were trying to reach the perimeter more instead of running inside. And I think they're trying to give you misdirection keys and stuff like that. And sometimes they're not even blocking certain guys, trying to just get outside and trying to out run you. You have to prepare for it and what you're going to see. And I think we've improved on that. I'm happy with what direction we're going in right now.
Q. Talking about increased pace, how do you stress that?
COACH PARKER: Well, it really comes down to basics. Football is a simple game. You have to make sure you get lined up, you get a good stance, your linemen, your keys. And you go through your read progression. The most important thing to me is effort to the ball. And everybody says what kind of effort do you take?
You've got to make sure when you're tracking a guy that you have your eyes on him to track him and you've got to read his body language and see if he's going to cut back or what direction he's going. Just because you're just running and is taking off running and don't have your eyes on him a lot of times our guys get in you believe electric. You can see it. They just take off, they run. And they lose the ball. And most importantly is the guy with the ball, how do you attack them.
I think we emphasize, one thing I'm looking for, I want to see effort. I don't care if you make a mistake, you have a bad alignment. That stuff is going to happen, you get blocked, but what's your effort at the end of the play as you're running to the ball, that's what it's going to come down to.
Q. Was that more executing?
COACH PARKER: I think it's a combination of both. I can't say we were loafing out there. I didn't see that. I didn't see the effort. Not that I did see the effort, they hit us on some plays and got up and then started snowballing little bit.
