Transcript: Everything Zach Arnett Said After Mississippi State's Final Fall Scrimmage
The transition into a new era continues for Mississippi State football as the Bulldogs wrapped up with their final fall scrimmage ahead of the 2023 season last week.
While there are a lot of question marks surrounding the squad under a new coaching staff and with a changed roster, there's also a sense of optimism in what the team has put out on the practice field.
Here's a look at everything MSU head coach Zach Arnett had to say after the team's final scrimmage:
Question: "It seems like y'all are having a good meal after this scrimmage?"
Zach Arnett: "That's why we kept them on the other side of the building, so with the way the wind is blowing it wouldn't get to us while we were trying to get our work done. But we are excited for it. The Beef Cattle Association does this every year for both schools and it's a great deal."
Q: "What were your thoughts about today's scrimmage?"
Arnett: "It was good. Obviously, we didn't get in as many plays as last week. I probably should've done that last week and we went over and we played longer than we should have. So there's some guys that got their fill last week that didn't get as many reps today. Today was a little shorter and got more of the developmental younger guys to get out there to play some football. But it was good and both sides had some success."
"There's obviously some things that are problematic for us that we have to get addressed or else they are going to cost us football games. Balls on the ground, running backs putting the ball on the ground, not a clean exchange between the quarterback and running back. That's sloppy football and we can not have that."
"We've got to tackle better. There were some runs today that were through us like a knife through warm butter. We didn't tackle well today and again, it's a lot of those developmental guys. They tell us they should be playing and wonder why they're not working with the 1s. We've played some live scrimmage and we'll have some good tape to evaluate now and talk to them about it on Monday."
Q: "You have a veteran team on both sides of the ball. But with classes now in session and having to do that and practice, how different was that for the younger guys this week?"
Arnett: "Yeah that made a change. It's been that way every year I've coached no matter where I've been. Once you go from training camp mode where all day you got them and it's just football, and then you transition to school and that first day of practice. We gave them off the first day of classes. But on Thursday we didn't have our best practice. So obviously we got to get in that routine because that is a reality."
"You're a student athlete and you got to go to class first and then you got to come and do your football job. It is the exact same thing for your opponent and whoever does it best is usually the best prepared on Saturday going into the game."
Q: "Coach Kevin Barbay was just talking about the emotions that he coaches with. Was that part of the interview process and did you know that when you were interviewing him?"
Arnett: "Nah, I don't ask for a Knute Rockne speech in the interview process."
Q: "I know you still have to watch the film. But did any guys stand out today off the top of your head?"
Arnett: "I think it was the second scrimmage in a row where I thought Seth Davis might be our most elusive ball carrier. You look at Deuce Vaughn who was at Kansas State and is now with the (Dallas) Cowboys and he has kind of gone viral with what he's doing. Seth has kind of looked like for us. He's a little smaller in stature. He's muscled up but he is smaller in stature. He can hide behind those linemen at times and see the seam and slip through there."
"He does a really nice job. There's really never square contact on him. There are always glancing blows and he's done some nice things. I was happy with that. The offensive line did a better job coming off the ball today and creating movement."
"Will (Rogers) is Will, obviously. He brings a calm and poise over the whole offense when he is out there directing it and saw some good things. I got to dig into the defensive film. There were quite a few of those guys that we know (what they can do), guys like Bookie (Watson), Jett (Johnson), (Jaden) Crumedy, Pick (Nathan Pickering). Those guys we've been coaching them for three years and they've played in every game for three years. We severely limited their reps today because frankly, they don't need it. We got to keep them conditioned and in game shape. But I have to watch the defense a little closer and highlight some things."
Q: "Back to Seth Davis , he was used to running between the tackles in high school. How did that experience help him to transition to this program?"
Arnett: "Oh he comes from a great program, obviously. Getting him in early and enrolled was huge and going through spring practice. I talked about that the last time I did this about how much further ahead those guys who enrolled in the spring are. He's done a great job and I am really excited about his future. That has added even more depth to our running back room."
Q: "Coach Barbay talked about his relationship with Will Rogers and how they are able to finish each other's sentences. Did you have that kind of relationship with Bookie and Jett and does Coach (Matt) Brock have that kind of relationship with them, too?"
Arnett: "Nah, Bookie (Watson) and Jett (Johnson) are convinced that their ideas are all better than mine. I'm glad that our quarterback and offensive coordinator are that way. The defensive side, you just want mean, angry, nasty guys on defense."
