Jeff Monken Press Conference Quotes: Buffalo

WEST POINT, N.Y. – Army West Point football head coach Jeff Monken met with members of the local media on Tuesday afternoon for his weekly press conference inside Nowak Auditorium.

The Black Knights are preparing for their second game of the 2017 season as Buffalo is set to travel to Michie Stadium for a noon kickoff Saturday.

(Ref.: opening statement)
"Good afternoon everybody. I am proud of our team for their effort on Friday. I thought our guys played really hard and at times played well. There are a lot of things we were able to dissect out of the film to see where we have improvements to make. Overall, I thought our guys played well and were very prepared and the coaching staff did a nice job getting them ready for game one.

"In game one, I think everyone is excited to play, emotion is high and intensity is high and we will need a lot more of that this week as we face a team that defeated us a year ago in a very tough hard fought football game. Going into overtime last year like we did and lose was just gut wrenching. Buffalo has a lot of guys back from that team a year ago and we do too. I'm sure it will be a great football game. They are a very well coached team and I am very impressed watching them on film.

"They have a really good secondary who is very athletic and that is kind of the first thing we look at in terms of our offense. Those guys that are out on the perimeter are often very difficult to block because they are one-on-one blocks. There aren't any combo blocks and we aren't in close quarters like we are up front, we have to get blocks in space. That will be a challenge for us.

"Their linebacker getting 20 tackles out at Minnesota last weekend...that was a lot of tackles. Offensively, their quarterback is a load. That guy is big, has a great arm, and he will bring the confidence from last year to this game. He can really throw it and has a great release. You can get around him and run into him, but he is strong enough to break tackles and get away. We have plenty to prepare for, but I'm glad we have an extra day going into this game. Hopefully we will be ready for what I know is going to be a great test on Saturday."

(Ref.: on stressing the importance of home field advantage)
"That's a pride they need to have. They're the ones who set the goals, not me. I hope that it is a source of pride for the guys on our team and it will be meaningful to play at home; and it should. Playing at home is a big deal, and so is winning at home. This is a great stadium, and there's been a lot of great teams to play here before us, and to live up to that legacy and history of those teams is quite a responsibility. So, I hope our guys will take great pride in playing at home and winning in Michie Stadium."

(Ref.: on Jaylon McClinton's progress)
"I thought Jaylon played really well. I think having had the opportunity to start the last third of the season last year at corner, when we lost Marcus [Hyatt] to the knee injury, really helped him mature and helped him gain some confidence. He is just getting a better idea of the defense and how to play. And being a year bigger and more physical, I think he's only going to get better. I don't think he's playing his best football yet. I really believe he's going to get better. I hope he will and I am excited about him."

(Ref.: on Buffalo and their starters)
"I think if you look at what they did against Minnesota last week. There's a Big Ten team that has been to multiple bowl games in a row. Buffalo has good players, and to see them play so well defensively against Minnesota I'm sure was very encouraging for them.

"Although they didn't score the number of points that I'm sure they would've liked, they did a good job moving the ball. I'm very impressed with their quarterback and skill players from a year ago and their ability to make plays. That last drive against us was purely them willing it to happen. They've returned a lot of the same guys this year, which is pretty scary."

(Ref.: on (Blake) Wilson and how he has improved and the confidence he gained from making a field goal in Friday's opener against Fordham)
"I think he has improved tremendously over the off season. His confidence, having kicked in games a year ago, just having the whole offseason to prepare and ready himself to be the starting kicker. He didn't come into last year as the starting kicker, he was probably just glad to be on the team. We cut him after his freshman year and he spent a year away from the program, so he's only been with us since spring ball before the 2016 season. So, I think he's done a great job and he's practiced his craft with great intensity and detail. He's watched a lot of film and has taken coaching advice. I think Coach (Sean) Saturnio has done a really good job with him."

"I think it was good for him to get up there and hit one in game one. I think anytime you make a kick like that, it helps and just reassures you that you're doing the right things to prepare. I didn't have any doubt that he was going to make it. I think it was a field goal that was certainly within his range, in watching him over the last year and a half, he's got the ability to hit. If we put him out there, he's got a chance to make the kick. If he doesn't have a chance to make the kick, we aren't going to put him out there."

(Ref.: on finishing the game out, especially in the fourth quarter)
"That's kind of an internal challenge we have as a team is to try and win the fourth quarter no matter what has happened in the first three. What you've got to do is put yourself in position in the fourth quarter to win it. You can't not play the first three and then go into the fourth quarter and hope to win the game. It doesn't happen very often. But there is a lot of pride in finishing the game strong and I think that it goes beyond just the fourth quarter of the game. It's finishing every play, every drive, and finishing everything we do. The drills we do out on the practice field to finish and do our best until the whistle blows and that's the mentality we want them to have.

"To win on Saturday, it's going to take a good 60-minute effort not a good 15-minute effort in the fourth quarter. So hopefully our guys will be prepared right from the get-go. And then, if that's what it takes, win the fourth quarter, which is what we didn't last year. And give them credit, we had a 14-point lead and they scored the last 17 points of the game and beat us."

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Jeff Monken Press Conference Quotes: Buffalo

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