Oct. 13, 2004

WSSU Weekly Football Press Conference Quotes And Notes (October 13th, 2004)
North Carolina Central (5-2, 3-1 CIAA) Vs. Winston-Salem State (2-5, 2-2 CIAA)

Rams vs. Eagles...The matchup between the Rams and Eagles marks the eighth game for both teams in 2004. The Eagles enter the contest with a 3-1 CIAA record and a 5-2 mark overall. They are coming into the game riding a one-game losing streak as they were defeated by the two-time defending CIAA Champion Broncos of Fayetteville State University last weekend by the score of 17-7. The Rams are entering the contest sporting their worst record since 1975 as they are 2-5 overall and 2-2 in the CIAA. WSSU won a 31-21 decision last weekend over the Blue Bears of Livingstone College at Bowman-Gray Stadium as the Rams broke a two-game losing streak. WSSU looks to extend their win streak over the Eagles to seven games and will put a six-year win streak on the line.

The Series...The Rams will return to action this Saturday, October 16th, 2004 as they will begin the first of three consecutive road games to close out the 2004 football season. The Rams are 6-0 in the last six years versus the Eagles and have not lost to NCCU since the 1997 season. WSSU has posted an all-time mark versus North Carolina Central University of 20-17 (since 1946).

Fun Facts and Numbers... The largest WSSU win over NCCU was by 47 points, a 47-0 victory that came last season (2003). The largest Eagle win was by 57 points, by the score of 63-6 during the 1969 season. WSSU's longest win streak versus the Eagles is 6 games from 1989 to 1994 and from 1997 to present while the Eagles' streak of wins tops out at nine straight games most recently from the 1946 season to 1976. Current WSSU head coach Kermit Blount has posted an 8-3 record versus North Carolina Central since taking over as head coach in 1993.

The Last Meeting In Brief...The last meeting between the two teams came during the 2003 season with the Rams earning the win by the score of 47-0 in Winston-Salem, NC on October 25th, 2003. In that contest, the Rams dismantled the Eagles with 494 yards of total offense en route to the easy victory that was shown live on Black Entertainment Television. Running back Martin Hicks racked up a season-high 204 yards on 17 carries averaging over 10-yards per carry.

TV Coverage...There is no television coverage for this contest versus the Eagles of North Carolina Central. Barring a berth in the CIAA Championship game on November 6th, the Rams will not appear on television again this season.

Radio Coverage...This weekend's contest will be available to listeners in the greater Winston-Salem area on WSNC, FM 90.5 with George Croom, Al Roseboro, Ted Fichiolas and Sam Harley calling all the action as well as nationally on the internet at www.wssu.edu by clicking on the link: "Listen to WSNC."

Live Statistical Broadcast Online...Can't make it to the game, but want to keep tabs on what the Rams are doing as it happens? Then log on to the official live statistical broadcast of the game on GAMETRACKER. The contest between the Rams and the Eagles will mark the sixth game that takes advantage of the Rams' enhanced partnership with College Sports Online as WSSU became the 72nd (out of 102 current partners) NCAA member school to use the GAMETRACKER software that enables a live statistical broadcast of the entire game to be seen on the World Wide Web. To access the GAMETRACKER software, fans may visit the Official Website of WSSU Athletics at www.wssurams.com, accessing the football schedule page and clicking on the GAMETRACKER link to view the action.

Quotes:

WSSU Linebacker Tony Robinson
It appears that the aggressiveness the defense has adopted, especially the linebackers, seems to be paying off, would you agree?
We all say that we are going to impose our will upon the offense, and that is our goal. It's the "hit stick" mentality on Madden 2005. It is the R3 button on the PS2. That is what we are trying to do. Just go out there and cover our assignments and try to make it difficult for other teams.

Do you think that the younger players are finally coming around? Learning the system? Has the aggressiveness permeated to all those guys, and helped to shut down the run?
It's been the same all year. I think that nothing has changed, but that the guys are getting more comfortable with it, and now, in the 7th, or 8th ball game, I think that it is coming easier for the guys, especially the younger guys.

Are you getting more comfortable in using the leadership ability that you have?
I have always been comfortable, and I think that I'm not necessarily the leader, but we are a total system, on the same page, and so we all lead at one time or another. The guys pick up for one another, and support one another.

The tough schedule you played, how much has that helped to prepare the team for now?
It definitely has prepared us. They were all different teams, and great at different things. The differences and how good they did it, it has helped to prepare us. Now that we come down to the end, we have seen most things. There isn't much that we haven't seen. So we definitely better prepared and more focused.

Have you guys, as a team, figured out a way to get into the face of Central's (North Carolina Central University) quarterback and put some pressure on them? They do like to throw the ball.
We do the same things that many other teams do. We bring in three or four guys at times to confuse the lineman. That is how we got some bad throws and sacks last week. Nothing is changing in terms of the system, I just that that we are getting better at it.

I know you guys look at the film, and I see that NCCU is pretty much 50-50 with the run and pass. Do you look to key on their two receiving threats?
No, as a linebacker, I think that you need to try to deny the run immediately. Not allow the run to set up the pass. If you don't take the running game out of it, you are in for a long day. So we need to make them one-dimensional and force the pass. Like I said, it is all about trying to impose our will on the other team.

Head Coach Kermit Blount:
How are we physically in terms of the match-up with NCCU?
I think that we match up well. I think that we have matched up well with everyone that we have played. They [NCCU] are going to try to throw and try to run as well. I know that we need to play field position in certain aspects of the game. I think that we match up very well all around. We would like to think, with our team speed on offense, that we match up well against their defense and may be able to do a few things, especially with our running game. It is not mystery that we like to run. We have the two top running backs in the conference, so we feel we have the ability to perhaps dictate the pace of the game.

Do you think that [Brandon] Hussey, with his speed, after facing Fayetteville State's excellent special teams, that he will be better off? How much leeway will he have back there?
He has all the leeway that he needs. Coaches need to understand that, and I try hard to keep that in my mind, and need to know that sometimes it may look that he is undisciplined, but that is his strong suit. He has the green light to try and make plays. He is the type of guy that can make plays and make things happen. So we are going to give him the opportunity to try and generate something good for us.

Coming off an important 31-21 win last weekend over Livingstone, how much does that boost the team's confidence?
I think that it helped a great deal. We needed to play a pretty solid game against Livingstone, because they are far better than their record indicates, and last Saturday our kids did that. We shut Livingstone down in the first half, and in the second half, we were able to accomplish some things in the second half on offense. I think that we did a great thing. That game last Saturday is the kind of game, the kind of boost that we needed early on and we didn't get.

What's it going to take to win on Saturday against North Carolina Central?
Well, I think that this Central team is a very good team. In fact, I know they are a good football team. But at the same time, we need to remember that we are a lot better than our 2-5 record indicates. We are going to have to go out and play with intensity for four quarters, and we have to not turn the ball over and take care of the little details, in being able to stay with coverages, and play assignment football in the secondary, and try to take advantage of our run game on offense. I think that will be a key in the ball game for us.

Having so much success in the recent years [six straight wins] help with your mindset in preparation, and help the team with confidence?
No, not at all. What happened last year was just that...last year. This is a new year, and this Central team is a lot better football team than they were last year and they were in the same situation that we are in this year that their record last year was not indicative of how good a football team that they really were. They will try to use last years game as a motivational factor I am sure, but we have to be ready for a team that is as good as they are, and those early-season games for us will help us to be ready.

You have had what has been judged as the 8th most difficult schedule in Division II, how much has that helped your team?
I think that we schedule that way every year, and have since I have been here [1993], and I think that it is a plus for us, because we get a chance to play tough non-conference games against some of the nation's best teams, and it helps to prepare us play the teams in our conference, and we have not been as successful in our conference as we had really wanted to be at this point, as we felt that we should have beaten Bowie State and beaten Fayetteville State, but we didn't. I think that the only game we didn't play well in was the contest against Tusculum. So, I think that the schedule, and the strength is a big plus for us as a teaching tool and really helps our program.