BYU Football Game Week – No. 13 Kansas State – BYU Athletics – Official Athletics Site

“I'm glad we're 3-0 here and I'm excited for this challenge. Being on the road the last few weeks has been great, we've been able to see our fans in both Dallas and Laramie, but I'm really excited to be home for this game. We open conference play against Kansas State, a talented team. I'm excited for the matchup, they're a high-level team and well-coached, I have a lot of respect for this program.

When you look at the connections, BYU has LaVell Edwards and Kansas State has Bill Snyder. The story behind both programs, I think, is a cool story and I have a lot of respect for Chris Klieman and what he does as a head coach. He's a good friend, I met him and his wife Rhonda at the Nike retreat with the coaches and we built a connection. I always knew about him as a coach, saw what he did, what he did at North Dakota State and I have a ton of respect for what he did there and what he does at Kansas State. I really admire what he does and getting to know him personally, he's a great person. I look forward to seeing him in our friendship, but this will be a game, our team against theirs, and I'm excited for the matchup. He's hired a good coaching staff, like Matt Wells, who's on his staff, guys I know from before, and Mike Tuiasosopo is there as well.

They've done a great job with their team this year. They're a very dangerous team, I think they play great on defense and offense, and they're great on special teams as well. I've talked about how well coached they are, but they also have a lot of talent. This is going to be a real test for us, they're one of the teams that are considered favorites to win this conference and highly ranked, so we're excited about the matchup. I'm excited about the opportunities we have to learn more about ourselves, our program and how we've progressed. I feel like we've made a lot of progress this season, especially compared to last season, so I'm really excited for this game. It's going to be a lot of fun at home, I know there's a lot of excitement about the uniforms, but I just want to get to the game.”

To limited third-down conversions
“I'm concerned about the points on the scoreboard and I know we're leaving some points on the field so let's get some more conversions, keep the drives going and get the ball in the end zone. I'm not so worried about the last two weeks, I just want us to do better this week. We know how to fix the problem so we'll work on it and hopefully be better this weekend. I mean, look at our fourth down conversions so let's just treat third down like fourth down and I think we'll be fine.”

On the difference between this year's and last year's 3-0 teams
“I have a good feeling about the team. I think people can see that we are a different team than last year's team and we're going to continue to work on that. We're 3-0 and we're doing some good things. I think a lot of people want to focus on the negative, but we're going to get better and I like to praise the things we've already accomplished as a team.”

About balancing the little things and playing simply
“I think the goal is just to be consistent. In these games, when you put all the little things together, you can see if you have the upper hand or not. For example, we had an early turnover (at Wyoming), but after that we controlled the football, so it's a matter of timing as well. When all those factors come together, that's what wins or loses the game. To do that, we have to be consistent, play brand new downs and have a short memory on a lot of things. Luckily, we had a close game at SMU last week, so when we put all our situational football stuff together in fall camp and practice, it's nice to see our guys go out and make plays and make them work. That's how we're going to get things in order and get better at things like tackling, inducing turnovers and third-down conversions.”

In defense of mobile quarterbacks
“Avery (Johnson, TCU QB) is a dynamic runner. They have the ability to just call QB runs and he can take a little gap and make it a big play. He's super athletic so he can create on his feet in the passing game as well, he can create more time in the pocket and he's always a threat when he runs and hurts you that way. He's a complete player when it comes to quarterback and when you look at different types of threats, he's got a lot of weapons. He's also a tough guy and I think he's got a great handle on the offense. They've done a great job of setting him up for success, but he can do everything you want a quarterback to do. I was really impressed with him on film.”

How ready are the younger students for Big 12 play?
“They'll be ready. I think they have a role and a lot of them will have to take on some responsibilities depending on the matchups. I'm happy with how they've come out. Obviously, I wasn't happy with the drive in the Wyoming game when we gave up those points and a lot of yards, but that's what we needed. We needed those guys to get that valuable experience and it was worth the sacrifice of yards and even some points in the game last week. I think it'll pay off in games like this this weekend. This is going to be a great atmosphere and a great game; everyone wants to be there. We feel like we have more than we've ever had. We had to test some of our depth at the running back position and I think we'll be in a good position. We knew this was going to be a fierce, physical game and I feel good about our position and I feel good about our talent, especially with the new freshmen, there's a lot of talent there.”

On the difference between quarterback Jake Retzlaff's four games last year and the three games this year
“He seems more comfortable, not only with the scheme but with the play on the field and being a starter. He's starting to settle in a little bit. As a quarterback at BYU, you get a lot of attention, for better or for worse. When things aren't going well, everyone's mad at the quarterback, but on the other hand, he gets a lot of credit when things are going well, and that's part of being a quarterback here. Efficiency on offense is on everybody, everybody has to do their part to help the quarterback make the right decisions. We need Jake to be at his best, but I like his comfort level and that he's feeling a little more settled. I think we'll be in a good place with him there. He's doing great everything we're asking of him right now. It's not perfect, but there are very few quarterbacks that are playing perfect football right now. He's improving, understanding and learning, and that's what I love about it. Last year I think he was in a really tough spot because we had to spend a lot of reps on Kedon (Slovis), but now we're in a position where he's the one doing the majority of the reps and that means he's getting the majority of the learning, which will be helpful for us.

On the possibility of playing a night game at LaVell Edwards Stadium against a ranked opponent
“I want to show off our fans. That's a big part of our program and the athletic department here, our fans are going to pack the house. You saw our game against Southern Illinois, it was a packed house. There's a lot of energy already leading up to this game just because our fans are great, but we knew Kansas State had a good team coming back and well coached and they're going to be ready for this game. I'm excited to play our best game this weekend. As long as we continue to progress and get better, I want us to take a big step towards improving from last Saturday to this Saturday against Kansas State. It's a tough task and a difficult team, but man, it's going to be a lot of fun and I want our guys to enjoy it. It's going to be a great opportunity for us.”