Quick Notes: Dabo Swinney's Texas A&M press conference

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We were on campus for Dabo Swinney’s Tuesday press conference. A few quick notes from the head coach as he previewed the Aggies:

Excited about the week and happy about starting off with a win in conference play last week.

Very impressed with Texas A&M even if it was only one game. Studied them this summer and noticed that every game last year they got better and better.

Kellen Mond is bigger, faster, stronger, smarter, and more confident than he was last year. He can make some killer throws on the move outside of the pocket. Last four minutes of the third quarter and all of the fourth quarter, we couldn’t stop him. We grew a lot from that game. Hopefully our experience on the backend this year will pay off.

They will get off the bus throwing the football down the field this year… that’s what Jimbo Fisher has always done.

Texas A&M has a mountain of men up front. Their No. 3 is going to remind you of our No. 3 (Xavier Thomas). Excited to see how the team is going to respond to a group like this. They are definitely one of the best teams in the country. It is a great opportunity for us to grow our team. Win or lose, we are going to get better.

We were fortunate to win the game last year, but that game helped us grow up.

We just weren’t very smart on the backend last year. Were great for three quarters but then we just lost our mind. There were some plays that we didn’t have anyone in the zip code. We were very young this time last year. The back seven that we have this year we think is a strength for us. 

Our corners are going to have to win some matchups. Our confidence is good. This is a good challenge. It all starts with being able to hold up the run defense. Play-action will open up the passing game under Fisher’s offense.

Missed tackles in the first game from the linebackers came from it being the first game. The Intensity of the moment got the best of them. We left some meat on the bone, but were positioned well. Thought the group got better as the game went on.

First time he met Jimbo Fisher was on the recruiting trail when the two were in their 20s. Always got along with him. Really a working relationship, but when the two became head coaches they got to become friends on a different level.

Nyles Pinckney, Jordan Williams, and Tyler Davis have all separated themselves at defensive tackle. The five defensive ends are strength in numbers.

All four of our safeties are starters. Nolan Turner was almost player of the game and played great. All four of them are interchangeable and support each other. A huge blessing for us. Nolan and Denzel - two guys that weren’t offered D1 scholarships. Evaluation and development to the Nth degree.

Doesn’t have to go out and look for bulletin board material. The players give it to him easily. I don’t have to say anything. Players will come up to me and say, “coach, did you see that?” and i’ll say “oh yeah, I saw that...”

We’ve also got more notes and the full video available here.