Q&A With Head Football Coach Jason Candle

Jason Candle was named MAC Coach of the Year in 2017.

3/18/2018 1:04:00 PM | Football

The defending MAC Champion Toledo Rockets open their spring practice season this week. Third-year head coach Jason Candle gives his assessment of the team going into the spring.

Q: They say it's harder to stay at the top than it is to get to the top. Coming off a MAC Championship season, how do you maintain that high level of performance from your team?

Candle: We don't judge our success on whether we win a championship or not. Our success is based on how we perform each and every day. That will always be the standard here. We have very high expectations in this building. We have very high expectations for our senior leadership. How they carry themselves on and off the field filters down to the rest of our team. It's a long process to even have a chance to play for a championship, and we are certainly a long way away from that right now. But I'm pleased with how we are doing to this point. We are doing a good job of honing in on the details that lead to success. Our guys are coming together as a team. At this point of the year, that's all you can really ask for.

Q: So the process stays the same, no matter what happened the year before?

Candle: The only difference is we understand what the end result can look like. I think that helps from the players' perspective, and even the coaches' perspective. It validates why we are doing things the way we do them. The challenge now is no longer trying to validate your process but to truly understand it. We need to find out what the heartbeat of this team is going to be because this is going to be a totally different team from last year. Even though we have good players coming back it's a new year and a new opportunity for a lot of people.

Q: What are your goals heading into spring practice? Is there anything different from year's past?

Candle: We're a very young team. We're back to square one in a lot of fundamentals. We're just trying to hone in on that so we can see growth from an individual perspective and also from a unit perspective, and ultimately as a team. It starts from the roots and grows from there. You have to make sure you have the right foundation in place so in the end it looks like what you planned it to be. If we don't take care of business in the off-season, we won't have a chance to be successful when it matters.

Q: How is the battle for the starting quarterback position evolving? What are you looking for this spring?

Candle: We have a few guys who are really capable of leading this team. The number-one characteristic I'm looking for in a quarterback is the ability to make the other 10 guys around him better. Whichever player we feel gives us the chance to do that will be our guy. There is a lot of evaluation time between now and then, a lot of things that can happen. One thing those guys can't get caught up in is what the depth chart looks like, or what a rep chart looks like. They just have to stay in the moment and be the best player they can be.

Q: Two of your leading quarterback candidates are Mitchell Guadagni and Eli Peters. What are the individual characteristics of those two players?

Candle: They were recruited off of the same rubric as all our quarterbacks. They have to be good decision-makers, be accurate with the football and make the throws we ask them to make in our offense. And as I mentioned before, they have to make the other 10 guys around them better at all times. It's our job as coaches to develop them into a finished product that leads this football team.

Q: A big plus for either one of them is the players around them. If you look at the receivers, running backs and linemen, you will have a lot of experience surrounding a new quarterback. That's got to be a big help for them.

Candle: I think it's always been that way here. We will always have skilled players on our team that can score from anywhere. We have a lot of proven players with team speed, and play-making ability. Last year, we had a veteran quarterback who helped pull them through at times. Now, can they return the favor in certain situations? We also don't want our players getting caught up in worrying about the first few days of practice if our offense doesn't look like it did last year. That doesn't matter. It's just about getting better each and every day, and finding a way to get them the football so they can be successful.

Q: At wide receiver, you have three all-league players—Cody Thompson, Diontae Johnson and Jon'Vea Johnson— who have each caught at least 10 touchdowns in a season at some point in their career. Talk about what this means to the offense.

Candle: That is a really solid group. That's a group that should be at the forefront of our success. Their challenge will be a little different than in years past. They've garnered so much individual attention in the past. Now the challenge is to come together and help take this team to its limits. We have three tremendous playmakers back in Cody, Diontae and Jon'Vea. But there are also four or five other guys who are waiting in the wings to show what they've got. Danzel McKinley-Lewis, Desmond Phillips, Andrew Davis, Bryce Mitchell, Nick Kovacs, Neru N'shaka are all guys who could play a big role for us. It's a highly competitive group; reps are at a premium. They are pushing each other, which will ultimately benefit us.

Q: Senior Cody Thompson missed most the season due to a leg injury. What's his status for the spring?

Candle: We'll be smart with Cody this spring and make sure he's ready to go this fall when it matters. He's itching to get back out there. He will be out there when we need him to be. He's been everything you want in a senior captain in the off-season. He's done a great job of pushing the limits on his rehab. He's earned a tremendous amount of respect from our team due to his work ethic.

Q: The running back position looks well-stocked again his year.

Candle: It will be another year of intense competition in the running back room. Our guys buy into what it takes to be a good teammate. I think our running backs typify that. That's a very selfless group. They look out for one another and help each other. We're excited about Coach (Kerry) Dixon coming on and being able to help with the growth and development of those guys. I think he's a huge plus for us. We also have Javon Ringer on our staff, who has played in the NFL and done a really good job of mentoring some of our guys, as well. It's a tight-knit group with a lot of talent. Shakif Seymour and Art Thompkins have had the most success so far. Then you have Nevone McCrimmon, Nick Sims and Ronnie Jones, who is moving over to running back from defensive back this spring. I have very high expectations for our running backs this year.

Q: On the offensive line you have five or six guys who have played quite a bit. That's a good start at building your o-line this year.

Candle: The foundation of our offense starts with the offensive line. We dealt with a few season-ending injuries last year to guys like Yazeed Atariwa and Brandon Heidecker. That's unfortunate but we'll get some of those guys back. Plus, those injuries allowed other players to gain valuable experience. So it's about finding the right five who play the best together, as well as a couple of reliable backup guys who can come in whenever they're needed. We're searching for the right combination throughout the spring and summer. We are still a long ways away from what the line will look like when we kick off against VMI on September 1st. But we have good reasons to be optimistic.

Q: Switching to defense, on the defensive line you lost a lot of key players but have lots of new ones ready to step in, I would imagine.

Candle: Again, that goes to the difference between a good team and good program. Good teams don't necessarily recover from the loss of good players. Good programs do. They have good players waiting patiently, waiting to show what they can do. That's the case with our defensive line. We have some young guys who are ready to take the big stage. We get (senior defensive end) Tuzar Skipper back from injury last year. He'll be a big plus. (Junior) Nate Childress has been a very solid player for us at tackle. We're looking for him to take the next step and have a big year for us. And obviously we're excited for the young guys coming up, as well.

Q: Same question for the linebackers. You have seniors Tyler Taafe and Richard Olekanma back but obviously you will need others to step up.

Candle: We showed our depth at linebacker last year. A lot of guys played a lot of snaps. Tyler and Rich had the most snaps but we have a lot of young guys coming along who have done a great job this off-season. (Tight end) Jordan Fisher is going to practice at linebacker this spring. He's done a good job embracing that role.

Q: The secondary is probably your most experienced defensive group. How do you assess their potential?

Candle: There is a core of juniors and seniors—guys like DeDarallo Blue, Kahlil Robinson, Josh Teachey, Ka'dar Hollman, Marcus Whitfield—who have played a lot of football for us. Then there is the next tier of guys who have shown they can play, too. Guys like Justin Clark, Tycen Anderson, Sam Womack, Keelen Roberts. We are waiting to see if they can be every-down type of players. Spring practice will benefit that group and tell us more about who's ready for more playing time. Certainly I think these guys will be pushing the guys ahead of them at the top of the list.

Q: On special teams, senior Jameson Vest had a fine year at placekicker. I'm sure you want more of the same from him, if not more.

Candle: Jameson has become a very fine placekicker. He works really hard at it. The time he has spent developing his skills is second to none. I think he's brought (sophomore punter) Bailey Flint along with him. Bailey is now in his second year as our punter. We are expecting a very high level of production from both of those guys. In our kickoff and punt return area, we have a lot of talented guys to choose from. Diontae Johnson and Desmond Phillips handled most of the kickoffs last year, and Danzel McKinley-Lewis is back at punt returner.