WATCH: Chip Kelly Talks Pac-12 QBs, Getting Ready for UCLA-Stanford
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UCLA football coach Chip Kelly spoke to the media ahead of Wednesday morning's practice session at Wasserman Football Center. Kelly talked about the current landscape of quarterbacks in the Pac-12, what makes Tanner McKee difficult to go against, how Stanford's defense has improved in recent weeks, Mo Osling's growth over the years, veterans holding the Bruins accountable, what goes into fourth down decisions and how the team adjusts its schedule to account for night games.
Stanford has done more slow mesh this year, what have you seen out of their offense?
Um, I think, obviously, really well-coached, David is one of the top coaches in college football. Quarterback is outstanding, one of the top quarterbacks that we'll face. I think that's the one thing about this year in the Pac-12 is there's some really, really good quarterbacks. We faced one last week, Utah's got a great one, Penix's got a great one, Dorian's playing really well, Caleb Williams is playing really well. So, but I think it starts with Tanner, he's a really good decision maker. He has three huge targets on the outside that can go up and get the football. They throw some contested balls and those guys go get it, so it's a handful cause of the weapons that they have at receiver. And if you're in coverage a lot, trying to take those guys away, then they can hurt you in the run game and I think Tanner's making really good decisions, especially in their run game and their RPOs.
Has Stanford changed anything defensively that let them have more success defensively the past few weeks?
Yeah, I think their last three games – Oregon State, at Notre Dame and then last week against Arizona State – I thought their defense played outstanding and is really flying around on the defensive side of the ball. They're really good in coverage, they're always close to receivers all the time, you don't see wide open guys on film when you're watching Stanford play and I think their linebackers are really tough, physical and active guys. So they have played really well, especially in the last three games, but I thought they've played pretty well during – I thought they played most of their games pretty good on the defensive side of the ball.
How has the team responded through two days of training?
They've been great. You know, they were great first meeting Monday morning. Obviously, it's a long season, you play 12 games, you only get 12 opportunities and you can't let one game equal two games. And what I mean by that is if you get beat once, you can't let that team beat you again. I think sometimes that's your attitude is your feeling sorry for yourself, but we don't get that around here. We also have great leadership with our older players – the Blaylocks, the Dorians, the Bobos, the Mo Oslings – those guys have been great, you know? So it starts with them, their energy and juice that they brought on Monday was really good to see. And our three big work days during the week are Monday, Tuesday Wednesday, so we gotta continue what we did on Monday and Tuesday into today.
Obviously don't want your free safety to have to make so many tackles, but what have you seen from Mo Osling?
Yeah, just great, great fits in the run game. Really and active kid, he's such a studier of game tape, film, that he's got a really good feel of what offenses are gonna try to do to attack defenses, and knows when we're in certain defenses what we're probably gonna get attacked with. He did a really good job tackling, he's done, he's really – I think the one thing about him is not only did he have 17 tackles, I'm not sure he had any missed tackles either. So he's really sure in tackling, he's done a great job, for a veteran like Mo, to come back and to provide that stability and that support from the free safety position has been really important for us on the defensive side of the ball.
Osling's growth? Been here pretty much longer than anybody
Yeah, been here longer than me. So yeah, Mo's great, I think everything you want from a student-athlete – he's got an undergrad degree, will have a graduate degree, has done everything right since we've been here. Really is a great leader for the young guys for how to do it. He's not a screamer or a yeller, but when he takes a guy aside as says 'Hey, this is why we do this.' He walks the walk before he talks the talk, so Mo's been outstanding for us this year.
How dialed in has the defense been as a whole? Habits and behaviors that you've liked?
They've been good. I think this is a really, really good practice team and they've done a great job all season long and through last spring of being dialed in and understanding what we have to do when we get out here on the practice field. So I don't think there's been anything different this week as opposed to any other weeks. They've been really consistent in terms of their preparation.
Easier on the coaching staff when guys like Dorian or Mo are holding players accountable, talk about their role in a loss?
Well that's what it's like for everybody. I think everybody, you know, takes a part when you have a win and everybody takes a part when you have a loss, and that's coaches and players included. So this isn't a finger-pointing operation, everybody takes responsibility for what their part of the win is and everybody takes responsibility for what their part in the loss is. So I think that's inherent throughout the program from everybody. I think when you have leaders that embody that, then that's what kinda makes that easier, but that's something that you preach as a coach every single day. It's all of us, we do everything as a collective. We win as a team and we lose as a team, and so we gotta take responsibility. The first way to correct a mistake is you gotta own the mistake. I think our guys have done that and done a really good job of it and will continue to grow and learn.
Any thought to go for it on 4th-and-5 against Oregon when you took the field goal?
Yeah, there was, but just the numbers will tell you that the chance to convert there wasn't as high as what I thought it was to get the – and at that point in time, you just wanna get points, so.
Score and time play into those decisions in the second half, but are they a factor in the first half?
It all plays into it. There's a concept where you are first quarter, second quarter, third quarter, fourth quarter. It always plays into every decision that you make, so time of game always makes a decision, is a factor in terms of what we're making a decision on, where we're gonna go or not go.
Do you see any benefits to playing late night games?
I see zero benefit. Television, money, that's it.
What don't you like about it?
Cause you wanna wake up, you want to play. And you don't want to sit around and wait all day to do something that you train yourself that you want to do. You're a competitor, you want to get up and you want to play football. The benefit is just the financial benefit because it's on TV, but I don't think any player or any coach wants to – 'Hey, what do you want to do tomorrow? Well let's sit around all day and do something tomorrow night.' Like, that's not what competitors want to do, they want to play.
Does that change your schedule or preparation?
Yeah, our preparation on Saturday is always contingent upon what time the kick time is. So we have wake up time, shake out and all those different things, they're all contingent upon when the kick is and all that stuff, that's all dialed in. So once we get the kick time then we just slot it into what our schedule is, how many hours before the game do we eat so we have the proper amount of time to digest, what time do we do shake out, what time do we eat breakfast – all that stuff is all factored in, so.
Assessment on the cornerbacks to this point?
The cornerbacks?
Yeah, your corners?
Yeah, I think they've done a really good job. You know, I think Devin and Kirk and Jaylin Davies has played a little bit out there, Azizi's out there when we're not in nickel. I really like the group, I think we have depth there. We've got some length there, they're taller, longer. But they're really competitive, knowing the two young guys – Humph and Kirk – and then you put Jaylin in there, cause Azizi has played, he's an older player, he's a transfer. But those three guys, I think, have done a really good job on the perimeter for us.
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