University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Coach Harris Talks About the Second Day of Fall Camp
8/12/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
Coach Harris Talks About the Second Day of Fall Camp
8/12/2003
Walt Harris Quotes
On practice so far:
?I?d say we?re doing pretty good. It?s only the second day and the first five days we?re just installing 95 percent of everything we do and then we?ll go back and wear pads and become better technicians and execute better.?
On any surprises seen so far in practice:
?No, we don?t like to make evaluations without pads. The game?s not played in shorts.?
On running back Brandon Miree:
?He?s earned the spot (of running back). He?s been a tremendous leader for us and we think he will play a tremendous part in the game. It?s up to the linemen, the fullbacks and the tight ends to make that happen.?
On the new practice format:
?No, I don?t like it, but I don?t think that matters much.?
On the loss of linebacker Gerald Hayes:
?We lost Gerald Hayes and he was a four-year starter and an outstanding player. He?s one of the highest players we?ve had drafted along with Hank Poteat, Kevan Barlow and Antonio Bryant. He always came to practice with the worry of someone getting better than him, so he always set an example. I know Lewis Moore will be great. He had an excellent summer school and we?re always looking for signs that a guy?s making a move. He did a real nice job over the summer and I?m very proud of him. He?s got all the talent to be a good football player and to take that leadership role.?
On evaluating players? positions:
?It?s hard to say. What?s hard is that we?re instilling so much in the players and a confused football player isn?t an aggressive football player. And it?s hard to be aggressive when you don?t have pads on and you?re not sure what route to run and what covers you?re in. So we?re a long way from making those decisions.?
On Luke Getsy?s strengths as a quarterback:
?He?s a football player and that?s what those guys have to be. Even though we teach them to be very disciplined, they have to be able to play the game. I think he?s exemplified a lot of that. He?s had an advantage over a lot of high school quarterbacks because he threw the ball a lot. To learn to play that position involves repetition. I think he?ll improve in a game situation. He just needs to work on improving his throwing ability and making better decisions.?
On defensive players who need to step up this year:
?I think we?re looking for Malcolm Postell to be a player for us. He played quite a bit considering he was behind an outstanding player. We lost some grit, some talented players like Brian Beinecke and Brian Guzek. They may not have gotten the headlines like Torrie Cox and Gerald Hayes, but those guys were outstanding football players.?
On Josh Lay?s development as a corner:
?I think he?s becoming more mature and I think he?s doing what he?s supposed to be doing on and off the field. He?s doing the things he?s expected to do and that carries onto the football field. We?re looking forward to watching him.?
