Transcript provided by VRBO Citrus Bowl
JOSH GATTIS: Obviously, heading into the Citrus Bowl, we’re really excited for the opportunity that we have to play the University of Alabama. We understand the challenge that we have in front of us and our guys have had a great week of preparation and preparing for this opportunity.
Q. Josh, do you sense this Alabama defense is vulnerable?
JOSH GATTIS: This defense is very talented. Coach Saban and Coach Golding have done a really good job putting together this defense facing some of the challenges that they’ve had this year as far as injuries.
But they played pretty good throughout the year. You know, you look at them, one of the things that stands out is they’re second in the country in turnover margin, so obviously creating turnovers but also offensively for them doing a really good job of maintaining the football. So they present a number of different challenges that we have been preparing for and we’re looking forward to the battle.
Q. Josh, what has this year been like for you, I mean, just going from Alabama to Michigan, being a first-time offensive coordinator? Can you just describe what this year’s been like?
JOSH GATTIS: This year’s been awesome. I get a chance to work with, you know, some fabulous young men that are here today to represent us. And, you know, the support that I’ve gotten from our players, the support I’ve gotten from our coaches, it’s been amazing. So it’s really living out my dream. I’m honored to be here at the University of Michigan to be able to lead these young men and continue moving the needle forward as we continue moving on.
Q. For Shea, you played at Alabama one time. What do you remember about that experience?
SHEA PATTERSON: It didn’t exactly go my way. I just remember going and playing in that game as a freshman, as a completely different player back then, and I was just happy to get the experience.
Q. Josh, what do you think down the stretch of this regular season clicked for this offense?
JOSH GATTIS: When you look at the first six games, you know, there’s a lot of positives. There’s some negatives in there. But when you look at the first six games, there was 13 turnovers, I want to say. And so, you know, that wouldn’t put you in the top of the country in any category from that standpoint. Then you look at our last six, I want to say we were in the top five or 10 in the country as far as in turnovers, not that you’re ranking at that point, but we only had three turnovers from the last six games on.
So when you’re extending drives, you’re not turning a football over, you’re able to put points on the board and continue those drives, I think it’s a credit to our players. They continue to put their head down, focus on the fundamentals, techniques, and details. And, you know, they did an unbelievable job. Ultimately, it comes down to our guys, when you look at some of the big wins that we’ve had, and it’s a tribute to those guys. They took those games over and really took ownership of it.
Q. Josh, how much has your familiarity with the Alabama offense helped your defense this week? How much have you been kind of poking your head into that room a little bit and giving them some insight?
JOSH GATTIS: Yeah, I think it always helps, obviously, going against us. But they’re different. We’re different. Obviously, there’s a little of similarities in what we do offensively. You know, I think they’ve done a really good job adapting and adjusting the offense from previously being there. And, you know, they’ve got good players. They’ve got good coaches. Steve Sarkisian has done a really good job for them offensively. And so Coach Brown does an amazing job, you know, in battling us. And that’s one thing that’s led us to get better, is going against our defense each and every day. You know, I think that’s one of the things that really attributes to our success, is we go against one of the best defenses in the country. So Coach Brown’s done a phenomenal job with our defensive unit, preparing them, but also preparing us for the challenges that we’ll face.
Q. This is for Ben and Shea. Ben, who’s the best defensive lineman from a rush standpoint? And then, Shea, what’s different about Alabama’s pressure?
BEN BREDESON: I wouldn’t put a name on that. I mean, they’ve got an outstanding defensive front. You know, it’s going to be one of the best that we’ve seen all year. Thankfully, just the way that the Big Ten worked out, we’ve had some outstanding defensive ends, interior D-linemen all year to help us get ready for this game. You know, we’ve had our fair share of battles with different teams we’ve played throughout the season. So we’re really looking forward to the challenge the Alabama defensive front brings. I think we match up really well and it’s going to be a good battle.
Q. Shea, you said you’re a different player than you were the first time you played Alabama. Four coordinators later, how has your game evolved? And, Josh, if you could speak to how Shea has evolved this season.
SHEA PATTERSON: Yeah. Completely different. I was watching film my freshman and sophomore year and it’s just — I mean, it’s completely different and…
JOSH GATTIS: I’ll go to battle with this guy any day of the week. This is Sugar Shea Patterson right here.
Just to see his confidence throughout the year continue to rise each and every week, his preparation, his performance. You know, obviously, statistically he did some pretty amazing things throughout the year as far as a number of 300-yard passing games. But I think there was some adversity that we faced offensively. And I think Shea is one of the leaders and Ben is one of the leaders that really took ownership of it. And no one put their head down. They continued to fight and continued to push through, and that’s a testament to their character.
You know, there was a point in the year when a lot of people were saying, give up and quit. ‘Hey, this isn’t working. This isn’t this.’ But none of our kids believed that because they truly knew who we were in practice, they knew who we were in practice, who we were in games. And it was a testament to their character, to fight through everything.
So I couldn’t be more proud of Shea and Ben, both of these guys. But specifically when you see Shea, this guy’s a player, man. He’s been playing at an extreme high level for us and he’s been the leader of our offense, leader of our team. And, like I said, I’ll go to battle with him any day out of the week versus any team in the country.
Q. Josh, what have you learned in our first year as a play caller, whether that’s Xs and Os or communication and getting through to your guys?
JOSH GATTIS: You know, I would say, when you first take over a job, the only thing that ever comes to mind is all the positive things. You know, you obviously think about, ‘OK, all the things positive, all the scoring, the touchdowns.’ You never really set the standard as far as thinking about the negative things as far as the adversity you may face.
And, you know, we can laugh about it now. Our first play of the season ended with a fumble. So when you’re sitting there on your first play call, the first thing that happens and the next thing you know, the ball’s on the ground, you’ve got to learn how to deal with adversity. So I think that was the unique thing.
But I think, really, the thing that really inspired me and inspired our offense is I knew that I could look in the eyes of our young men each and every week and they never lost faith. They never lost confidence. And when your players play for you and they play for each other, good things are going to ultimately end up happening. That’s my trust in them and belief in them but, most importantly, I think their trust in their coaches, their trust in their teammates, their trust in Coach Harbaugh.
We’ve got a great culture within our team, within our offense, and we’re really proud of everything that we’ve accomplished. We’re proud of each other but we’re not done. We’ve got a great opportunity ahead of us to really end the season the way we want to.
Q. Shea, what was the turning point here for you this season where the offense started to click for you and the team?
SHEA PATTERSON: I mean, anytime [you have a] new offense and Coach Gattis had to come in and adjust to new players and we had to learn new schemes, there’s going to be some growing pains. But I know in the end — right now it’s going really well.
Q. Coach, you worked with DeVonta Smith last year. He had somewhat of a breakout year this year. Was that something you saw coming from him?
JOSH GATTIS: Absolutely. DeVonta Smith is a great player. He’s a great young man. He’s a student of the game. Constantly we spend time in the offense. I told people after the season last year, had he not gotten hurt and faced some of the injuries he faced towards the end of the year, that a lot of people would have been talking about him as much as some of the other guys in the room.
That’s a very talented room of receivers. They’re great young men. And just a lot of credit to those guys. I have so much respect for those guys: DeVonta, Jerry, Henry, and — I’m leaving out a guy — Jaylen Waddle. Sorry. I forget the names real quick, thinking of my own guys. They’re all talented, very talented young men but even better people.
And so I think it’s a testament to them and their character and obviously their development. I think they’ve really kind established themselves and I just got tremendous amount of respect for those guys. Yeah.
Q. Josh, what’s the greatest thing that you learned being an offensive coordinator versus a position coach? Is there something when you take that next step that you really kind of start to understand even more so regarding the offense?
JOSH GATTIS: I’ll tell you, the thing that you really learn the most is every play call, every play lives with you past that play. And, you know, as a position coach, you can kind of go to bed at night and wake up the next morning after a game ready to move on. As a coordinator, you don’t sleep at night. Whether it’s good or bad, you’re always going back through processing every game, every call and trying to evaluate how you can put your kids in a better position, how you can put your team in a better position.
So, you know, that’s a little bit from my mindset. It kind of drives me crazy from that standpoint, in a good way, not in a negative way. But the brain just never stops thinking how you can help these young men and help put them in a position to be successful.
Q. Josh, with early signees like Blake Corum, getting a few practices in with you guys last week, how beneficial is that for them and what was your impressions of him during those practices?
JOSH GATTIS: I think it was very beneficial from a team chemistry standpoint, just mixing those guys in, you know, kind of getting them around some of their teammates, and really kind of showing those guys how we practice and the culture that we have in practice. There wasn’t a ton of work that they could do, obviously. We were focused on our opponent coming up and moving along in our game preparations. But very, very pleased.
You know, offensively we had Zac Zinter and then we had Blake Corum there early and really pleased with both of those young men and what they displayed. Blake’s got a unique ability to be explosive with the ball in his hands and we’re excited about him. But, you know, we’re going to welcome those guys back in January and they’re going to have to really get back to work. It’s going to be a different set and it’s going to be a different team. It’s going to be new opportunities and new challenges, and so we look forward to welcoming those guys on campus.
But, first and foremost, we’ve got to take care of the job that we’ve got at hand with this game.
Q. Nico Collins is a Birmingham guy. Has he talked at all about this game meaning anything more to him, just being from Alabama?
JOSH GATTIS: You don’t need to talk about motivation for this game. I think all of our guys are excited. This is the most important game for us because it’s our last game. It’s our last game as a team for this 2019 year. This is our last game for our seniors. These young men that sit up here, that we want to make sure that we leave these guys out the right way.
So, obviously, there’s going to be some chip on some guys’ shoulders. You know, Nico, being from Birmingham and obviously his familiarity with the program, Nico stayed steady in his preparation.
You know, the thing we don’t want to do is make it different than any other approach that we’ve had all year long, and so we’ve got to stay within the framework of how we prepare each and every game and each and every week and continue on focus on the things we need to focus on and make sure that, you know, we’re as prepared as we can be for when we take the field.