(Notes and quotes from the 2002 SEC Football Media Days held recently at the Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover, Ala.)
- Tennessee junior quarterback Casey Clausen failed to make either the first or second team when the 2002 Preseason All-SEC squad was announced.
Florida¹s Rex Grossman made the first team and Ole Miss¹ Eli Manning was the
second-team quarterback.
In two seasons as a starter, Clausen has guided the Vols to a 17-3 record,
including four fourth-quarter comebacks during the 2001 season and six for his career.
"I plan to do my talking on the field," Clausen said. "I just want to be the guy who takes us down the field when the game is on the line. I want to make the plays."
Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer believes Clausen, Grossman and Manning all deserve Heisman Trophy consideration. Clausen's numbers after two seasons are nearly identical to those of former
Vol quarterback Peyton Manning, who went on to become the Vols' all-time
leading passer.
"When you have a veteran quarterback, it¹s a good place to start," Fulmer
said. "Casey Clausen is an exceptional player who has a lot of outstanding wins under his belt already.
"Midseason or so last year, he really took off as a football player. He sees
the field extremely well and can make all the throws. I think this will be a
big year for him. We¹ve just got to keep him healthy."
- Tennessee senior linebacker Eddie Moore talked about his recovery from
shoulder surgery.
"The shoulder is fine," he said. "I had a great rehab. I'm just working
with the trainers. I got back a lot quicker than people thought I would."
- Alabama football coach Dennis Franchione likes the attitude and chemistry of his football team. As he prepares to enter his second season in
Tuscaloosa, Franchione said the recent NCAA sanctions will make the Crimson Tide even stronger.
"Year two is much more comfortable in so many ways from year one,"
Franchione said. "I feel like this is my team right now, and that¹s a nice
feeling. The first year stuff is behind us. I know our personnel better, and they know our system and our expectations, our practice regimen.
"We¹ve been in full cycle. It sets the table to have a chance to improve.
Year one was about putting substance issues back in place. Trust,
accountability and a team that is together. We made a lot of progress."
- Alabama quarterback Tyler Watts on the NCAA sanctions.
"Alabama has got a bad name, but it's nothing we have control over," he
said. "We represent the university the best way we can represent it.
"I had a great ¹99 season with winning the SEC championship. It's been an up and down career and I have wonderful memories and also memories that I would like to forget."
- Arkansas split end George Wilson on the competition for the championship
of the SEC West Division.
"I think this year's race is no different than last year," Wilson said.
"You can¹t tell until the last week or two. We were 1-3 going into LSU and
yet were still in contention at the end. It just shows you how competitive
the division is. There¹s no drop off after the first one or two teams. We
have to treat every game like it¹s an important one."
- Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville on the quarterback battle between Jason
Campbell and Daniel Cobb.
"I¹m excited about this year," Tuberville said. "The quarterbacks have worked hard. We have no clue who the quarterback will be. One thing I told them the last few weeks is I'm looking for leadership. Both have the same athletic qualities, both have had good times and bad times.
"We need to find someone to be more consistent. This year we have a better
supporting cast around them, a better group of running backs, tight ends and
wide receivers. It will be easier for a quarterback to be successful."
- New Florida coach Ron Zook on Grossman's bid for the Heisman Trophy.
"I don't think I have to worry about that," Zook said. "We have had a
couple of Heisman trophies and (Assistant Athletic Director for
Communications) Norm Carlson knows how to handle that, so it's not Rex's
concern either. He came back to Florida because he thought we had a chance to be a good football team.
"If we do the things you have to do to win, the exposure we get in this
conference allows him to have the opportunity. It¹s not a lot of special
things that have to be done."
Said Grossman, "It would be fun to win the Heisman, but it¹s not on the top of my goal list. I¹d like to win games. Just winning the SEC is on the top of my goal list."
- Georgia coach Mark Richt on who will be the Bulldogs' starting
quarterback.
"Offensively, we¹ve got David Greene, without a question is our starting
quarterback," Richt said. "He did a fantastic job as a freshman. D.J.
Shockey is a guy who proved to me and the staff that he¹s a very talented
guy, a guy who has a chance to do great things for us. We'll play D.J. in every ballgame, how well he does will decide on how much more playing time he'll get."
Richt coached quarterbacks at Florida State who were in the same class or
near the same class.
"Peter Tom Willis and Chip Ferguson, roommates, teammates, competed against
each other their entire careers," Richt said. "If we get a couple of guys that like each other, respect each other's ability, it goes a long way in keeping the camp from becoming divided."
- Kentucky coach Guy Morriss on the NCAA sanctions and the difficulty of the UK job.
"Everybody talks about sanctions and all the stuff going on," Morriss said.
"Can't control it anyway so we don't waste a lot of time worrying about it.
If you're an outside observer, all you¹ve been hearing about is the negative stuff going on and how all Kentucky football is gloom and doom.
"Obviously, we don't feel that way. We feel Kentucky football is in as good a shape as it's been in a long time. We just hired a new athletic director (Mitch Barnhart) and we were glad to see that happen. Obviously, Kentucky is a good academic school. There's a lot of things we can sell that are very good at Kentucky. I tend to overlook the negative things."
Morriss on quarterback Jared Lorenzen, who has battled a weight problem during his career with the Wildcats.
"Jared really doesn't go up and down," Morriss said. "He kind of stays
about the same. I really stopped making an issue out of the weight. I want him to continue to bring his weight down, but I have shifted gears to just get him in the best shape that we possibly can."
- LSU running back LaBrandon Toefield on quarterback Matt Mauch taking over
for Rohan Davey.
"We are probably going to be more of a run team as opposed to last year when we were more pass than run," Toefield said. "But it is just going to be until Matt gets that confidence that he can lead us and play in the SEC. I think that he will eventually get that and be able to lead us.
"Matt is doing pretty good. Right now he is organizing a little 7-on-7 every
now and then. A lot of guys now are starting to really listen to him and do all the things he says. As far as Rohan, when he talked everyone listened. That is the only way we are going to have to think about ourselves when we go into camp."
- Per a request from Archie Manning, no publicity will come out of Ole Miss
promoting quarterback Eli Manning for the Heisman Trophy. Still, coach David
Cutliffe discussed the Heisman during media days.
"The Heisman is not an award won by a campaign," Cutliffe said. "He is
certainly a great football player, at his position he is as good as there is
in the country. I couldn't ask for anything more.
"If our team responds and has a great year, and if our quarterback plays the
way he expects to play, he could be a candidate for many individual awards.
He is capable of doing some things that Peyton did, he just hasn't done them yet."
- Mississippi State coach Jackie Sherrill on the NCAA investigation in
Starkville.
"I'm not going to jump off a 50-foot cliff because somebody is coming in to
talk to our players," Sherrill said. "I know how I've conducted myself and how I've operated. If there are any issues we will correct them and deal with them and move on.
"They are going to play football at LSU, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and
Arkansas in front of packed houses this fall. Players aren't concerned about that (NCAA). Ya'll (media) are concerned about that."
- Coach Lou Holtz on the expectations this year at South Carolina.
"As long as I've been in this game, I've never had a team I've known less
about," Holtz said. "Look at what we lost from last year. I say how in the
world are we going to possibly replace that. Then when I look at players coming back I get excited, though they haven¹t proved themselves.
"Our players have great expectations, but at the same time, I don't know. I
like the attitude. I like the chemistry. I like the way they work. I have no idea what to expect."
- New coach Bobby Johnson on going from Division I-AA Furman to Division I-A Vanderbilt.
"The biggest adjustment for me are events like this, a lot more demands on your time outside of football," Johnson said. "I¹m still trying to make that (adjustment) and get through that, other than that, you run practice the same way, dissect film the same way, so I don't think it's that big of an adjustment.
"Obviously, when you start playing teams with those athletes we have to
compete against, that will be an adjustment. We¹re in transition, like
Vanderbilt has been in transition many times over the years."