Ball State University Athletics
Ball State Football Weekly News Conference Quotes, September 14: Game 3 at Liberty
Mike Uremovich
Opening Statement: "Obviously, the team is excited for the opportunity. Liberty is one of the premier group-of-six programs in the country, from facilities to resources to fan support. It's a big-time environment. Coach Chadwell has done a really good job there. Obviously, he was [Paul Bryant Group of Five] coach of the year in 2024. I think they were in the Bahamas Bowl not too long ago [2024], so it'll be a big challenge for us on special teams. They have two dynamic returners, No. 10 [Jon Monteiro] and No. 2 [Makai Jackson]. They're both really explosive offensively. They've got really talented running backs. They run hard. They're always one of the nation's leaders in rushing yards. They run hard. The center [Aaron Fenimore] might be the best lineman we've seen so far this year. Defensively, No. 1, the middle linebacker, [Derrell Farrar] makes plays in the run game and makes plays in the pass game. They're really physical on defense, which you would expect because they run the ball so much that they get to see it in spring ball and training camp and all that. It'll be a big challenge for us to go on the road, and we're excited to get going."
Q: "You're still seeking your first win on the road at Ball State. What do you guys need to do to go ahead and kind of get over those road demons?"
A: "The only road game we can affect right now is the one we're playing. Everything that happened before and after really doesn't matter. It's just focusing on Liberty. Obviously, they're a big challenge schematically and personnel-wise, I mean, they have really good players all over the place. We need to have a good plan, and our coaches are upstairs meeting on it right now, and we'll work into the night tonight, present it to the players tomorrow and then hopefully have a good week of practice. I really feel like we play how we practice, and we need to have a good week of practice. We've got to be assignment sound against these guys because there is an option element to their offense, and there's motion and misdirection, and a bunch of different things that are eye candy to get you to be undisciplined on defense. We have to have really good eye discipline on defense."
Q: "What does Liberty do differently that you might not have seen in the first two games of this season?"
A: "They're a run-heavy team. Now they can throw the ball, and they have good receivers, and the quarterback play. With what they do, you have to sell out to stop the run at times, so you're going to get a lot of one-on-ones and in coverage. What they do differently is the the eye candy with the orbit motions and all of the misdirection stuff to run the ball, but it also sets up play-action passing game for them and and really triple-option looks."
Q: "The run defense has been a strength of this team. How do you plan to keep that going?"
A: "We've got to keep getting better, and obviously, I like our defensive line, and they're going to be extremely important this week. We're going to try to play 12 guys again to keep them fresh. [Liberty] wants to run the ball, they want to set up their play-action passes and they want to hold the ball. They're going to huddle up and get lined up and try to knock you off the ball and get huddled up again. It's a challenge because if you don't stop them and allow them to continue, just get 5, 6 or 7 yards a clip, your offense is going to be on the sideline for it might be eight minutes of game clock, but it's going to be 12 to 15 minutes of sitting there, and you know it's hard to get into rhythm offensively."
Q: "You mentioned Makai Jackson, whose had several explosive plays to start the season. What do you need to do to stop him?"
A: "We've got to know where he's at first of all, and he's a dynamic returner. He's obviously a good offensive player, but we've got to know where he's at, and we've got to make sure that we have somebody over the top of him. He's going to catch passes. We just can't let him take that and make it a touchdown. We've got to get him down."
Q: "How do you go about cleaning up some of the offensive struggles?"
A: "Obviously, you've got to address it first, and you've got to look as a coach. Am I giving them enough time in the huddle with the play call, or we asking them to do something that they can't do, and we can't do those things anymore. But, you know, the two back-to-back illegal formations we weren't lined up in, one of them's a little challenging, but one of them was day one camp stuff that we've got to know. We've got to get lined up correctly in that formation. The other one, you know, I look at always starting with myself first, and that was a new set where we were kind of unbalanced. I had people off the ball, and we probably should have practiced it some more. Honestly, if we didn't get it right in the game, then I didn't do a good enough job coaching it."
Q: "How do you feel like Liberty is personnel-wise on defense?"
A: "I think that their defense, at every position, they don't have a guy that's undersized. I mean, they all look the part. They all can run, and they're all very physical. We're going to have to pick our spots in the run game, and when we run it, we have to be efficient with it. We need to have positive plays because you do not want to be behind the sticks against them."
Q: "What are the keys to a Ball State win on Saturday?"
A: "Well, the first one starts off with turnovers. We can't turn the ball over. Like I just said, [Liberty's] going to try to hold on to the ball. If we're turning the ball over and giving them more possessions, that's not going to be a good outcome for us. Then, we have to limit the explosive plays. Their backs are really good and they run really hard and they're going to gain yards. We have to get them on the ground. We've got to have 11 hats to the ball, so if we do miss a tackle, which we will, there's another guy there to get the guy on the ground because they are physical runners. They break tackles and they are all capable of scoring a touchdown from 70 yards out, so we have to get them down."
Q: "Is there going to continue to be movement on the offensive line?"
A: "There will be. We have a bunch of guys that we like up there, so we've talked all along, we'll rotate guys at that position. We also do have a couple guys that are out with injuries. They still should be out for a few more weeks here, so it'll be the same six or seven guys you've seen playing. It's just how much they play and how we rotate is dependent on how we practice."
TJ Horton
Q: "How are you feeling after a great rushing performance versus Stony Brook?"
A: "First off, I just want to thank God. Without him, I wouldn't be able to do it. I also want to thank my offensive line and receivers for blocking for me and doing their jobs. I'm not worried about the other games. I'm just trying to move onto the next week."
Q: "What have you seen from Liberty's defense that stands out to you?
A: "I know their corners is good and they have solid backers, so we just gotta work on that during practice because they play very very hard."
Q: "What do you and Jalen Bonds need to do to keep the good performances going on the road?"
A: "We've just got to keep on practicing hard because last week we had a very solid week of practice, so we've just got to keep that going. We'll focus on the smaller details and things like that."
Q: "What did the win over Stony Brook do for this team's confidence, and how can you carry that momentum into this game?"
A: "I would say that win did nothing because we're gonna have the same confidence going into every game. We're a solid team and honor, but and I guess you could say we're gonna have the same thing. We're going to have the same mindset going into every game."
Q: "How have you liked running behind the offensive line so far?"
A: "They're a good O-line for sure. One thing about them is if they make a bad play, they are not going to get down about it, so that's a great thing."
Q: "What has it been like to wait your turn and finally get a change as a starter here at Ball State?"
A: "My dad always said the cream is always going to rise to the top. It was good to be able to sit back and learn behind players. They've been very good to me. It's been a good ride."
Q: "What has it been like to see Jalen Bonds continue to take his game to the next level?"
A: "Seeing [Bonds] rise is great. He's got three year left, and he's going to be a great player. Just seeing him as a rookie and how he's grown is really good to see."
Q: "What do you guys need to change going into Liberty to get that first road win this week?"
A: "Just keep our confidence up. We're not really worried about what happened in the past. This is a new team this year, so we're just worried about what's going on now and what's going on inside this facility only."
Layton Starks
Q: "What has it been like to step into your role as a starter this year?"
A: "It feels good with coach Siwicki's style of playing. We have 14 players that play on the D-line, so he keeps up pretty fresh. With that being our little motto, we have to stay fresh. We've got to go out there and play with heart. We have a good D-line team, so playing hard is a really big part for me to go and get the win."
Q: "What have you seen from Liberty's offense that has stood out to you so far?"
A: "[Liberty] is a very run-heavy team. I feel like that comes with the D-line first. With a team that's running the ball, you really have to pay attention to the little details. The little details will give you everything. We've just got to focus, practice hard and they're going to give us all the little details."
Q: "What do you need to do against Liberty to shut them out all four quarters of the game?"
A: "I feel like if we play how we've been playing these last two games, we're gonna be all right. Our defense is pretty solid. I don't have any big worries about the run game. When we played the No. 1 team in the nation [Ohio State], we did well the whole game. I'm not really worried about it."
Q: "What can the defense improve on and how can you clean up those mistakes?"
A: "Just the little things, like missing assignments. I feel like those little things can get fixed easily, playing a better team. Stony Brook was kind of lackadaisical with their offense. We just need to focus more. We need to be able to play our game. It's just what we say: attack, finish and reload. We just need to keep on playing our game."
Q: "What has it been like to wait your turn and get an opportunity this year?"
A: "I've just been learning. We had Nathan Voorhis last year, and I learned a lot from him. I was with him a lot of the time, playing football here. He went to the league [NFL], so I text him all the time and he makes sure to keep me on top of things."
Q: "Liberty's had several explosive plays in the first two games. What do you guys need to do to limit those?"
A: "Like I said, just play our game. We're not we're not really worried about the run game. We see how good our defensive line is. All we've got to do is play our game. We're going to be straight."
Mike Uremovich
Opening Statement: "Obviously, the team is excited for the opportunity. Liberty is one of the premier group-of-six programs in the country, from facilities to resources to fan support. It's a big-time environment. Coach Chadwell has done a really good job there. Obviously, he was [Paul Bryant Group of Five] coach of the year in 2024. I think they were in the Bahamas Bowl not too long ago [2024], so it'll be a big challenge for us on special teams. They have two dynamic returners, No. 10 [Jon Monteiro] and No. 2 [Makai Jackson]. They're both really explosive offensively. They've got really talented running backs. They run hard. They're always one of the nation's leaders in rushing yards. They run hard. The center [Aaron Fenimore] might be the best lineman we've seen so far this year. Defensively, No. 1, the middle linebacker, [Derrell Farrar] makes plays in the run game and makes plays in the pass game. They're really physical on defense, which you would expect because they run the ball so much that they get to see it in spring ball and training camp and all that. It'll be a big challenge for us to go on the road, and we're excited to get going."
Q: "You're still seeking your first win on the road at Ball State. What do you guys need to do to go ahead and kind of get over those road demons?"
A: "The only road game we can affect right now is the one we're playing. Everything that happened before and after really doesn't matter. It's just focusing on Liberty. Obviously, they're a big challenge schematically and personnel-wise, I mean, they have really good players all over the place. We need to have a good plan, and our coaches are upstairs meeting on it right now, and we'll work into the night tonight, present it to the players tomorrow and then hopefully have a good week of practice. I really feel like we play how we practice, and we need to have a good week of practice. We've got to be assignment sound against these guys because there is an option element to their offense, and there's motion and misdirection, and a bunch of different things that are eye candy to get you to be undisciplined on defense. We have to have really good eye discipline on defense."
Q: "What does Liberty do differently that you might not have seen in the first two games of this season?"
A: "They're a run-heavy team. Now they can throw the ball, and they have good receivers, and the quarterback play. With what they do, you have to sell out to stop the run at times, so you're going to get a lot of one-on-ones and in coverage. What they do differently is the the eye candy with the orbit motions and all of the misdirection stuff to run the ball, but it also sets up play-action passing game for them and and really triple-option looks."
Q: "The run defense has been a strength of this team. How do you plan to keep that going?"
A: "We've got to keep getting better, and obviously, I like our defensive line, and they're going to be extremely important this week. We're going to try to play 12 guys again to keep them fresh. [Liberty] wants to run the ball, they want to set up their play-action passes and they want to hold the ball. They're going to huddle up and get lined up and try to knock you off the ball and get huddled up again. It's a challenge because if you don't stop them and allow them to continue, just get 5, 6 or 7 yards a clip, your offense is going to be on the sideline for it might be eight minutes of game clock, but it's going to be 12 to 15 minutes of sitting there, and you know it's hard to get into rhythm offensively."
Q: "You mentioned Makai Jackson, whose had several explosive plays to start the season. What do you need to do to stop him?"
A: "We've got to know where he's at first of all, and he's a dynamic returner. He's obviously a good offensive player, but we've got to know where he's at, and we've got to make sure that we have somebody over the top of him. He's going to catch passes. We just can't let him take that and make it a touchdown. We've got to get him down."
Q: "How do you go about cleaning up some of the offensive struggles?"
A: "Obviously, you've got to address it first, and you've got to look as a coach. Am I giving them enough time in the huddle with the play call, or we asking them to do something that they can't do, and we can't do those things anymore. But, you know, the two back-to-back illegal formations we weren't lined up in, one of them's a little challenging, but one of them was day one camp stuff that we've got to know. We've got to get lined up correctly in that formation. The other one, you know, I look at always starting with myself first, and that was a new set where we were kind of unbalanced. I had people off the ball, and we probably should have practiced it some more. Honestly, if we didn't get it right in the game, then I didn't do a good enough job coaching it."
Q: "How do you feel like Liberty is personnel-wise on defense?"
A: "I think that their defense, at every position, they don't have a guy that's undersized. I mean, they all look the part. They all can run, and they're all very physical. We're going to have to pick our spots in the run game, and when we run it, we have to be efficient with it. We need to have positive plays because you do not want to be behind the sticks against them."
Q: "What are the keys to a Ball State win on Saturday?"
A: "Well, the first one starts off with turnovers. We can't turn the ball over. Like I just said, [Liberty's] going to try to hold on to the ball. If we're turning the ball over and giving them more possessions, that's not going to be a good outcome for us. Then, we have to limit the explosive plays. Their backs are really good and they run really hard and they're going to gain yards. We have to get them on the ground. We've got to have 11 hats to the ball, so if we do miss a tackle, which we will, there's another guy there to get the guy on the ground because they are physical runners. They break tackles and they are all capable of scoring a touchdown from 70 yards out, so we have to get them down."
Q: "Is there going to continue to be movement on the offensive line?"
A: "There will be. We have a bunch of guys that we like up there, so we've talked all along, we'll rotate guys at that position. We also do have a couple guys that are out with injuries. They still should be out for a few more weeks here, so it'll be the same six or seven guys you've seen playing. It's just how much they play and how we rotate is dependent on how we practice."
TJ Horton
Q: "How are you feeling after a great rushing performance versus Stony Brook?"
A: "First off, I just want to thank God. Without him, I wouldn't be able to do it. I also want to thank my offensive line and receivers for blocking for me and doing their jobs. I'm not worried about the other games. I'm just trying to move onto the next week."
Q: "What have you seen from Liberty's defense that stands out to you?
A: "I know their corners is good and they have solid backers, so we just gotta work on that during practice because they play very very hard."
Q: "What do you and Jalen Bonds need to do to keep the good performances going on the road?"
A: "We've just got to keep on practicing hard because last week we had a very solid week of practice, so we've just got to keep that going. We'll focus on the smaller details and things like that."
Q: "What did the win over Stony Brook do for this team's confidence, and how can you carry that momentum into this game?"
A: "I would say that win did nothing because we're gonna have the same confidence going into every game. We're a solid team and honor, but and I guess you could say we're gonna have the same thing. We're going to have the same mindset going into every game."
Q: "How have you liked running behind the offensive line so far?"
A: "They're a good O-line for sure. One thing about them is if they make a bad play, they are not going to get down about it, so that's a great thing."
Q: "What has it been like to wait your turn and finally get a change as a starter here at Ball State?"
A: "My dad always said the cream is always going to rise to the top. It was good to be able to sit back and learn behind players. They've been very good to me. It's been a good ride."
Q: "What has it been like to see Jalen Bonds continue to take his game to the next level?"
A: "Seeing [Bonds] rise is great. He's got three year left, and he's going to be a great player. Just seeing him as a rookie and how he's grown is really good to see."
Q: "What do you guys need to change going into Liberty to get that first road win this week?"
A: "Just keep our confidence up. We're not really worried about what happened in the past. This is a new team this year, so we're just worried about what's going on now and what's going on inside this facility only."
Layton Starks
Q: "What has it been like to step into your role as a starter this year?"
A: "It feels good with coach Siwicki's style of playing. We have 14 players that play on the D-line, so he keeps up pretty fresh. With that being our little motto, we have to stay fresh. We've got to go out there and play with heart. We have a good D-line team, so playing hard is a really big part for me to go and get the win."
Q: "What have you seen from Liberty's offense that has stood out to you so far?"
A: "[Liberty] is a very run-heavy team. I feel like that comes with the D-line first. With a team that's running the ball, you really have to pay attention to the little details. The little details will give you everything. We've just got to focus, practice hard and they're going to give us all the little details."
Q: "What do you need to do against Liberty to shut them out all four quarters of the game?"
A: "I feel like if we play how we've been playing these last two games, we're gonna be all right. Our defense is pretty solid. I don't have any big worries about the run game. When we played the No. 1 team in the nation [Ohio State], we did well the whole game. I'm not really worried about it."
Q: "What can the defense improve on and how can you clean up those mistakes?"
A: "Just the little things, like missing assignments. I feel like those little things can get fixed easily, playing a better team. Stony Brook was kind of lackadaisical with their offense. We just need to focus more. We need to be able to play our game. It's just what we say: attack, finish and reload. We just need to keep on playing our game."
Q: "What has it been like to wait your turn and get an opportunity this year?"
A: "I've just been learning. We had Nathan Voorhis last year, and I learned a lot from him. I was with him a lot of the time, playing football here. He went to the league [NFL], so I text him all the time and he makes sure to keep me on top of things."
Q: "Liberty's had several explosive plays in the first two games. What do you guys need to do to limit those?"
A: "Like I said, just play our game. We're not we're not really worried about the run game. We see how good our defensive line is. All we've got to do is play our game. We're going to be straight."