Everything Star Thomas Said Ahead Of Matchup Against Arkansas

Tennessee running back Star Thomas talked to the media on Tuesday in preparation for the game coming up against Arkansas. Here is everything he had to say.

On how the bye week helped him from a physical standpoint…

“I mean, it's helped a lot. Just get my body right. Going to treatment and that stuff. Getting a hot tub. Just getting a Norma Tech boost. Getting my legs back underneath me. Still had a couple of bruises and stuff. Just try to work those out this week. Took this week right here to get those out.”

On what he wants to be better at moving forward….

“All around just being a better back. I look at a lot of things from how I approach a certain run, certain blocks, and how to approach them. Not saying that I get bull rush, but like how to block a bull rush, if it's time to cut or if it's time to stay up and block. A lot of things I pay attention to. Like I watch film hard and critique myself hard about how to go about the game, especially because I know the work that I put in on the week about how to go into the game. So I try to, like, be perfect after, you know, after the game. I know ain't no game you won't ever be perfect.”

On whether he watched games on Saturday….

“I watched a lot of games with my family and my daughter, and stuff. We brought the TV outside sitting under the car porch, watched all the college games, kind of got like a good glimpse of from a fan perspective watching football, seeing how games really you know what I'm saying played and stuff because you know Saturdays we don't get a chance to watch them a lot because we so locked in on what we're doing.”

On if he watched Duke vs California….

“No, I had to end up going to sleep. I didn't pay attention to them, but I woke up, and I seen they had won.”

On how the running back room can be more effective the rest of the way in the SEC…

“I feel like we just got to let the game just come to us. We put in so much work during the week, and we're over-excited to make a play because, like, knowing the work that we put in during the week, we just want to, like, make a play so bad. Overall, I say, we've been doing a good job. I feel like we should all let the game just come to us.”

On if he feels things loosening up as the game goes on with shots down the field by Joey Aguilar…

“Yes, sir. He made it really easy. Just being back there, you see, like starting the game off, you know how teams are, they're aggressive, trying to stop the run and stuff. When you have a quarterback like that who can push the ball downfield, and you have receivers like our receivers, they can go get it. I mean, he's putting the ball in the perfect spot every time. Like it ain't too many throws where you see that he is completely off or that he ain't in sync with the receivers. I mean, that makes everything easy for us, too.”

On the running back rotation and if that makes them press more with reps being split….

“No, I don't think that makes us press a lot. I just feel like we go so hard like during the week, as in our preparation and stuff. Like, we are constantly in the facility every day, and it's just like, when we get the time we feel like we should just make a play, but overall, I don't think we just want to like make a play that bad, but we want to make a play like we want the game to like be in our hands.”

On the Arkansas changes and their defense….

“Just from watching the film last year about how they played us. They played us down in the three-down a lot. I mean, that's what we're prepping for them to come out and play us in that. We know it's gonna be some changes, but that’s what we we expecting them to come out and play us in.”

On Thomas feels like he needs to work on the second part of the year….

“I'm very hard on myself. I say everything, like, because I know this is my last year, and I know that I have to put a lot of great stuff out there on film to even have a shot. Which is not saying I won't get a shot, but like my mindset, I just feel like there is a lot more improvement that I can work on myself because I strive for greatness every day.”

On if he got a chance to get good home cooking and gumbo rice….

“During the season, I tried to limit myself on a little diet, man. So I wasn’t trying to go too crazy. I had a little bit of greenings and stuff. That right there, I will never get tired of that.”

On who has better food, the 337 or the 504…

“I gotta go with the 504 with that one. The 337 does have some good food, though. I mean, everywhere you go in Louisiana, you're gonna come across some good food.”

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