Do you have other people that you can lean on? Do you reach out to, you know, to, to people that were kind of in that coaching tree, or is this one of those you just kinda go with the gut feeling and, and you kinda tap into what you think the team needs?

A combination, I thi- I think, of all of that 'cause I, I don't think anybody's probably more aware of what our team is, needs, are, you know, like, like all those things, probably than me because I'm in it every day.

Um, I think it gives you quick areas right now to attack, but I've certainly reached out and, and, um, seek some advice.

And everybody in some...

in, like, people that care or people that you care about, they, they want to be able to provide solutions, but they don't always necessarily know, "Hey, what c- what can I do to help or how can I give you some assistance?" So there hasn't been a lot of time for me to say, "Okay, that didn't go the way we wanted to do.

Let me call, you know, Coach Smart, Coach Saban.

Let me go down my, my bucket list," 'cause the more time I spend talking on the phone to somebody else, it means I'm not solving the problems that are right in front of me, if that makes sense.

... do you have history with him, and, and what are the hallmarks of his offenses?

Do you have other people that you can lean on? Do you reach out to, you know, to, to people that were kind of in that coaching tree? Or is this one of those you just kind of go with the gut feeling and, and you kind of tap into what you think the team needs?

A combination, I think, I think of all that, 'cause I, I don't think anybody's probably more aware of what our team is, needs, are, you know, like, like all those things probably to me because I'm in it every day.

Um, I think it gives you quick areas right now to attack, but I've certainly reached out and, and, um, seek some advice.

And everybody in some...

in, like, people that care, people that you care about, they, they want to be able to provide solutions, but they don't always necessarily know, "Hey, what c- what can I do to help or how can I give you some assistance?" So there hasn't been a lot of time for me to say, "Okay, that didn't go the way we wanted to do.

Let me call, you know, Coach Smart, Coach Saban.

Let me go down my, my bucket list." 'Cause the more time I spend talking on the phone to somebody else, it means I'm not solving the problems that are right in front of me, if that makes sense.

... do you have history with him, and, and what are the hallmarks of his offenses?

Do you have other people that you can lean on? Do you reach out to, you know, to, to people that were kind of in that coaching tree? Or is this one of those you just kind of go with the gut feeling and, and you kinda tap into what you think the team needs?

A combination I think, I think of all of that, 'cause I, I don't think anybody's probably more aware of what our team is, needs, are, you know, like, like all those things, probably to me because I'm in it every day.

Um, I think it gives you quick areas right now to attack, but I've certainly reached out and, and, um, seek some advice.

And everybody in some...

in like people that care or people that you care about, they, they want to be able to provide solutions, but they don't always necessarily know, "Hey, what c- what can I do to help or how can I give you some assistance?" So there hasn't been a lot of time for me to say, "Okay, that didn't go the way we wanted to do.

Let me call, you know, Coach Smart, Coach Saban.

Let me go down my, my bucket list." 'Cause the more time I spend talking on the phone to somebody else, it means I'm not solving the problems that are right in front of me, if that makes sense.

... do you have history with him and, and what are the hallmarks of his offenses?

Uh, in what ways? Like, what, what did you take from your time with him?

I mean, our first initial connection is probably just the fact that he was from, you know, kind of the Midwest and I, same as me.

I mean, he'd spent some time in, in some similar stomping grounds and, uh, I've always had an admiration for coaches that are able to have success for that long, uh, of time.

You know, like, the game changes over time, and there's probably been more drastic changes lately, uh, than ever.

But for Dana to be the coach that he's been and the person he's been for as long as he's been is super impressive.

Um, you know, to operate at that level, um, you know, and, and then to do it where he's done it.

You know, it's just, it speaks volumes about him.

W- i- are, is the, does the media make too much of that? Uh, what is that like? And w- if it is a factor, where does it hit a team hardest when you're going three time zones?

Uh, in what ways? Like, w- what did you take from your time with him?

I mean, our first initial connection is probably just the fact that he was from, you know, kind of the Midwest, and I, same as me.

I mean, he'd spent some time in, in some similar stomping grounds.

And, uh, I've always had an admiration for coaches that are able to have success for that long, uh, of time.

You know, like, the game changes over time, and there's probably been more drastic changes lately, uh, than ever.

But for Dana to be the coach that he's been and the person he's been for as long as he's been is super impressive, um, you know, to operate at that level.

Um, you know, and, and then to do it where he's done it.

W- i- or is the, does the media make too much of that? Uh, what is that like? And w- if it is a factor, where does it hit a team hardest when you're going three time zones?

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?

I, I think that probably plays both ways.

You know, like last week we played against coaches that have been here before.

When we played UCLA, we played against coaches that have been here before.

It makes you change your terminology.

Like, you're gonna change the names of calls.

Stuff before that might've been a run for us is maybe now a pass.

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?

And o- obviously you guys dropped the, the Oklahoma State game, but what changed in the process or in, with the team, the mentality or whatever from Oklahoma State, or even from Boise State to Oklahoma State to the USC game?

Yeah.

I think it was a real wake-up call for us that, that we've got a lot of steps to take to become the team that we wanna become.

And even today, we're not remotely close to what we need to be.

There's a lot of things that we have to do a lot better.

And I think our guys realize that the way you accomplish that is the work you do, you know, in between game day to game day.

And, uh, the work has been at another level, you know, since that game.

What did you mean by that?

How much poise did he show you in staying within himself and executing in a really emotionally charged environment?

Yeah, I thought Dylan did an outstanding job.

In fact, I showed the team this morning, you know, everybody wants a bigger role.

They, they...

Dylan's a competitor.

He wants to be out there.

He's prepared as if he was gonna be out there.

What do you make of the turnaround Bob has already pulled off in Westwood with the 4 and 0 Bruins? And then what are your early thoughts on that matchup?

How much poise did he show you in staying within himself and executing in a really emotionally charged environment?

Yeah.

I thought Dylan did an outstanding job.

In fact, I showed the team this morning.

You know, everybody wants a bigger role.

They would, they ...

Dylan's a competitor.

What do you make of the turnaround Bob has already pulled off in Westwood with the 4 and 0 Bruins? And then what are your early thoughts on that matchup?

Who's your accountant? You ask.

I mean, you ask.

You ask consistently people throughout the program, hey, where can I be better? Where can I improve? Don't sugarcoat it.

You know, if I do a talk in front of our players or our team, I'm asking somebody to count how many times I say the word right.

That's my easy one that I say right all the time when I'm communicating.

Tell me that.

Hold me to a higher standard.

or is that strictly numbers? How do you do that stuff?

Look at Notre Dame a couple of years ago, made it all the way to the title game after losing to Northern Illinois.

Yeah, I mean, I think we showed some examples of our team of that exact thing.

Obviously, it's a wake-up call for us early, and we 100% felt like this is a game that we needed to win, right? And we feel like that with every game that we step into.

I don't know how far looking ahead.

I think what we did more than anything is stop looking ahead and start looking at what's right in front of us, Barron.

You know, our guys knew, OK, there's things that we can fix.

There's things that we can attack.

How did you all handle that internally? And do you agree with what everybody was saying?

Deante, is he okay? Is he gonna be okay? I, I, that's obviously what I think everyone's, uh, worried about right now.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Thank God that, you know, um, obviously it's a very serious concussion.

It's one that, you know, that we wanna use.

And, and I wanna thank the medical s- our medical staff and USC's medical staff for everybody operating, um, with an abundance of caution.

You know, was able to get, go through some scans and evaluate that, um, n- right now, nothing more than a concussion.

Coach, so what does, what does this, what does this bye week look like? What's the schedule to make sure that everybody's legs are, are, are ready for what is going to be just a, a, a, a hurtling down the train tracks finish here to, to the rest of the season?

How is Dante doing, and can you tell me a little bit about Raiola stepping in there and playing incredibly well, maybe the best we've seen him play in some time for your squad?

squad?Yeah.

Um, D- Dante's, you know, in recovery mode.

Uh, was able to get s- scans and identify that it was a concussion, and obviously a really serious one.

So it's one of those situations now where we gotta protect the player from himself.

I'm sure he's anxious to get back out on the field.

Uh, but wanna make sure we go through that process and make sure that he's healthy.

Undefeated

Look at Notre Dame a couple years ago, made it all the way to the title game after losing to Northern Illinois.

Yeah, I mean, I think we showed some examples of our team of that exact thing.

Obviously, it's a wake-up call for us early, and we 100% felt like this is a game that we needed to win, right? And we feel like that with every game that we step into.

I don't know how far looking ahead.

I think what we did more than anything is stop looking ahead and start looking at what's right in front of us, Barron.

You know, our guys knew, OK, there's things that we can fix.

There's things that we can attack.

How did you all handle that internally? And do you agree with what everybody was saying?

Look at Notre Dame a couple years ago, made it all the way to the title game after losing to Northern Illinois.

Yeah, I mean, I think we showed some examples of our team of that exact thing.

Obviously, it's a wake-up call for us early, and we 100% felt like this is a game that we needed to win, right? And we feel like that with every game that we step into.

I don't know how far looking ahead.

I think what we did more than anything is stop looking ahead and start looking at what's right in front of us, Barron.

You know, our guys knew, OK, there's things that we can fix.

There's things that we can attack.

But it was the whole ordeal with Dante tipping plays, right? But before they were run, how did you all handle that internally? And do you agree with what everybody was saying?

If he doesn't react like that, if there isn't a celebration, do you have the same exact reaction to what happened?

You know, the celebration didn't factor in.

You're concerned about your player.

And I agree with you, Dave, in some ways, bang, bang play.

But there's a difference in leading and launching for, you know, a quarterback.

And, you know, in my mind, you teach all these guys to be careful around quarterbacks at all times.

Could the slide have happened earlier? Absolutely.

What was the response after the game in that locker room, and do you think that it can be something that y'all can build on going forward?

[laughs]

We had a crappy game.

You know, we didn't play well, and we gotta learn from it.

But that doesn't change, like, everything that you do and everything that you attack.

It's a new team.

It's a new season.

Does it make people rethink, "Hey, maybe we shouldn't anoint a team before the season starts?" Yeah.

How do you get that, that front four especially home and, and, and kind of clicking on all cylinders here?

It's like you're a victim of your own

success.

Every question you guys are asking is like, wow, how do I say this? You guys lost.

Do you sleep at night? Like, no, I don't sleep at night.

Like, have I lost some weight? Yeah.

But guess what? When we won, I lose some weight.

I don't sleep at night.

How do you get that front four, especially home and kind of clicking on all cylinders here?

It's like you're a victim of your own

success.

Every question you guys are asking is like, wow, how do I say this? You guys lost.

Do you sleep at night? Like, no, I don't sleep at night.

Like, have I lost some weight? Yeah.

But guess what? When we won, I lose some weight.

I don't sleep at night.

How do you get your front? How close are you to this front, which came in, obviously, again, with a lot of hype and some NFL bodies and quite hasn't been there? How do you get that front four, especially home and kind of clicking on all cylinders here?

So is it equating to offenses that are harder to stop? Is that a thing? Are offenses becoming more complex in college football these days?

I think a lot of things have changed in the last few years.

Certainly there's some complexities with offense, but I think they've also become much more aggressive.

When I first got here, I think it was kind of like a little – weird or off-guard that people went for it so much on fourth down.

I think analytics has a little bit to play with it.

We were certainly a team that was aggressive in that.

Now there's a lot of teams in college football that are a little bit more aggressive on fourth down.

You have a guy, I know that, but is he on the headset? How do you guys operate that?

So is it equating to offenses that are harder to stop? Is that a thing? Are offenses becoming more complex in college football these days? I

think a lot of things have changed in the last few years.

Certainly there's some complexities with offense, but I think they've also become much more aggressive.

When I first got here, I think it was kind of like a little – weird or off-guard that people went for it so much on fourth down.

I think analytics has a little bit to play with it.

We were certainly a team that was aggressive in that.

Now there's a lot of teams in college football that are a little bit more aggressive on fourth down.

You have a guy, I know that, but is he on the headset? How do you guys operate that?

So is it equating to offenses that are harder to stop? Is that a thing? Are offenses becoming more complex in college football these days?

I think a lot of things have changed in the last few years.

Certainly there's some complexities with offense, but I think they've also become much more aggressive.

When I first got here, I think it was kind of like a little – weird or off guard that people went for it so much on fourth down um i think analytics has a little bit to play with it that you know we were certainly a team that was aggressive in that now there's a lot of teams in college football they're a little bit more aggressive on fourth down they maybe treat third down a little bit more like second second five where it's a little bit different mindset so you see drives that get put together that are you know eight nine, 10 play drives where people are staying on the field, um, especially on fourth and short where they wouldn't have in the past.

And that's changed things, you know, because there are, there's less drives in college football.

So making sure that you maximize every drive tournament points, I think it's, it's become a premium.

You have a guy, I know that, but is he on the headset? Like how do, how do you guys operate that?

Yeah, I mean, we kind of make decisions within the week of what do we feel like will be a goal on certain areas of the field.

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?

I, I think that probably plays both ways.

You know, like last week we played against coaches that have been here before.

When we played UCLA, we played against coaches that have been here before.

It makes you change your terminology.

Like you're gonna change the names of calls.

Step before that might have been a run for us is maybe now a pass.

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?

I, I think that probably plays both ways.

You know, like last week we played against coaches that have been here before.

When we played UCLA, we played against coaches that have been here before.

It makes you change your terminology.

Like, you're gonna change the names of calls.

Stuff before that might have been a run for us is maybe now a pass.

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?

I, I think that probably plays both ways.

You know, like, last week we played against coaches that have been here before.

When we played UCLA, we played against coaches that have been here before.

It makes you change your terminology.

Like, you're gonna change the names of calls.

Stuff before that might've been a run for us is maybe now a pass.

Does having knowledge of Ohio State's running back coach give you any sort of advantage this week?