Q & A With Head Coach Tom Amstutz
7/20/2005 12:00:00 PM | Football
July 20, 2005
With the opening of training camp just around the corner, Head Coach Tom Amstutz is busily preparing for his fifth season at the Toledo helm. Expectations for his team are high. The defending MAC champions have 14 starters back, including quarterback Bruce Gradkowski, the only player in the history of Division I football to complete 70 percent of his passes in more than one season.
Assistant athletic director Paul Helgren recently spoke with Amstutz.
In four years your teams have been to three bowl games, won two MAC Championship Games and three MAC West Division titles. What's left to accomplish?
Amstutz: I don't look at it that way. I look at each season as a new challenge. Each season is a clean slate. We always have high expectations. We have a tradition of winning here but that doesn't assure us of even one victory next year. We start right from the basics in the spring and work toward reaching the highest level we can achieve. Once again, our goals are a West Division title, the MAC Championship title and a bowl game. We have a lot of work to do before we can accomplish any of that.
How do you evaluate the team coming into training camp next month?
Amstutz: We have a good solid core of our football team coming back. We'll have more new people at wide receiver than at any other position, two new starters on the offensive line and a couple of new starters on defense. But otherwise we're pretty well intact. We also have new leadership, new coaches in key positions. I'm very excited about getting back to work and helping our team to reach its goals this fall.
What changes will we see with two new coordinators on the staff, John Shannon at offensive coordinator and Tim Rose at defensive coordinator?
Amstutz: Offensively, we will have less of a transition. John has been an integral part of our staff for the past two seasons as the receivers coach, so there won't be many changes there. There will be some new wrinkles and some new looks, but we will use the same basic system we have used in the last four years. It's a great advantage for our offense knowing we are using the same fundamental system we had last year.
Then on the other side of the ball, you have a brand new person coming in as defensive coordinator. What do you know about Tim Rose?
Amstutz: Tim has a lot of experience in college coaching and a lot of experience in the MAC. He was a head coach at Miami and led his team to a championship. He knows what it takes to win a championship in this league. He's coached on every level of college football and has a reputation of improving the defense wherever he goes. He has a lot of energy and radiates a positive feeling to the players and other coaches. He's a fiery coach who will bring a lot to our program.Our players really like his style. He's very aggressive but very positive at the same time.
How will the defense change under Rose?
Amstutz: We'll take some of what we've used in the past and add in new looks and new wrinkles. We want to get our best players on the field, and it gives us flexibility in the things we can do. I feel like we will have a flexible, multi-dimensional defense. I feel our defense will be our most improved area this year. We have a lot of players returning who played well last year. I think Tim Rose will make a difference. He brings some new looks and new thoughts on defense.
You mentioned that you have some new receivers to work into the rotation. It has to mean a lot to the new receivers to have a quarterback with Bruce Gradkowski's experience and accomplishments.
Amstutz: Bruce will always provide great leadership for our football team. When he takes the field for practice, it's clear he's there to try to get better. His work ethic and enthusiasm is contagious for our football team. If I could have any one player back who was a good player, it would be the quarterback. Next it would be the inside linebackers. We have all three of those positions back this year with excellent players.
You have excellent depth at running back but it's hard to say who will be carrying the ball for you this fall, isn't it?
Amstutz: That position will be very interesting this season. We will rotate the playing time and see who rises to the top. However, we expect that we will have more than one running back that can help our football team.
Last year proved that you really need depth at running back.
Amstutz: You do. You need fresh legs during the game, and you need to be able to overcome injuries at that position. There's no such thing as having too many good running backs.
What do you expect out of your seniors, Trinity Dawson and Quinton Broussard?
Amstutz: Number one, I expect them to be leaders. They have been successful in our program and both have leadership qualities. We expect them to be ready for the best years of their careers. They both had excellent springs.
Scooter McDOugle had knee surgery following the MAC Championship Game. What is his status?
Amstutz: He will be continuing his rehabilitation process. He was a special talent for us down the stretch and in the Championship Game. He will be working hard to get back on the field.
And you still have Jalen Parmele, who made significant contributions as a true freshman last year.
Amstutz: Yes. He's a young talent who got a chance to play toward the end of the season. He had big games against Northern Illinois and Bowling Green. He looked very good this spring. Also, we have a redshirt freshman, Richard Davis, who also had a great spring. He did a great job on the scout team last year. He has four years to show us what he can do.
You are losing a lot at wide receiver, including the school's all-time leading receiver in Lance Moore. Any concerns?
Amstutz: We have a group of receivers with good skills. They will also have the advantage of having a veteran quarterback to get them the ball. Steve Odom has been in the shadow of Lance Moore, but he's caught over 100 passes in the past two years. Now is his turn to step up and take a leadership role. He has great leadership style. I'm confident he will be a good leader for our receiving corps. Andrew Hawkins stood out this spring. He can make plays. We also have some young talent that will need to step up, players like sophomores David Washington and Trumaine Smith. Lance's brother, Nick Moore, sat out his freshman year. We were really impressed with Nick last year. All three of those players are big, athletic targets.
How is the tight end position shaping up?
Amstutz: Both Chris Hopkins and Josh Powell had excellent springs. They were as big a positive surprise as we had on our team this spring. Both showed they can be used as weapons in our offense. Andrew Clarke has received an injury hardship year from the NCAA. He's in a wait-and-see situation. He would be a bonus if is healthy.
You're losing a great player from the offensive line, four-time All-MAC tackle Nick Kaczur. How much will you miss him?
Amstutz: Nick was a great player, but we feel (sophomore tackle) John Greco is picking up where Kaczur left off. John started at tackle as a freshman, just like Nick. So he will be a four-year starter. He was outstanding as a freshman, much better than we expected. We feel he and (sophomore guard) David Perkins will both grow a lot after starting as freshmen. We're moving those two to the left side of the line, where you want your most reliable players. Our other returning starter is senior guard Chris Wakeman. We expect him to be a leader out there. Several players on the offensive line made good progress this spring. I thought (center) Hassan Adebesin may have made the biggest strides. Jerry Aguwa is another one who made great improvements, as did Jesse Anderson. We also have Greg Luna and Sean Zabinski at tackle. Andrew Decker, a redshirt freshman, should compete for playing time at center.
Switching to defense, let's look at your defensive line. They were very young last year but by the end of the season it looked like they may have grown up a bit.
Amstutz: We were young. Except for Phil Alexander, the entire line was made up of freshmen and sophomores. Those players are all back and should be that much more improved this season. Tyree Pollard, Patrick Clark and J.P. Bekasiak all had solid springs. We also have Bernard Faithful, Sean Williamson, Shaun Fitzgibbons and Seth Thitoff, all of whom saw action last year. So there are seven guys with playing experience we are counting on to improve the defensive line.
Linebacker should be one of your strengths this year.
Amstutz: We have the most experience and depth than at any position on the football team. We have two outstanding players at the interior linebacker spots, Anthony Jordan and David Thomas. Both of them could be All-MAC players this year. At outside linebacker, Mike Alston and Steven Morrison are back. They both played very well in backup roles last year. And Mike Chamberlain, a junior college transfer who redshirted last year, should compete for a starting position.
A couple of years ago you had an inside linebacker tandem of Tom Ward and David Gardner that really led your defense. Now you have Jordan and Thomas. Do you like have having your best leaders right in the middle of the defense?
Amstutz: Yes. They are the heart and soul of our defense. That's where it all begins, at that inside linebacker spot. It's critical for us that they show good leadership. We expect it.
You have a lot of depth in the secondary, as well.
Amstutz: Keon Jackson, who made All-MAC at rover last year, should be our senior leader in the secondary at "cat"safety. We also have our first- and second-string cornerbacks returning: Nigel Morris, Antonio Malone, Bo Martin and Jason Flowers. Tyrell Herbert will be our free safety. He surprised me a little bit this spring. He stepped up and was a natural fit at the free safety position. That was a real concern coming into the spring, but I feel as confident about him as any player on our team after watching him during spring ball. We also have Greg Hay and Brandon Alexander as backups at safety, who both played a little bit last year.
Your kicking game should be pretty solid again.
Amstutz: Yes, we have all three of our kickers back, punter Brett Kern, Jason Robbins, who will do the field goals and extra points, and Mike Krispinsky, who will handle the kickoffs. We filled a key position on special teams when we signed long snapper Jeremy Mack out of Greenwood, IN. We plan on having him start at long snapper from day one. For our returns, we once again will count on Steve Odom, as well as Andrew Hawkins, Jalen Parmele and Nigel Morris.
How would you assess your schedule?
Amstutz: It's very challenging. We will be playing one of the best teams in the country in Fresno State, on their home field. But it's nice to open the season at home this year. We love to play in the Glass Bowl. I also like the fact that we will be on national TV at least four times.
