• last year
Cade Klubnik apologizes to local media.
Transcript
00:00 Thanks for taking time for us, leaving us off today.
00:02 Player wise is quarterback Cade Clubman.
00:04 You'll go ahead and question when you're ready.
00:06 It's a four-on-four football team.
00:11 You are what you are.
00:14 Does it help that there's some added juice
00:16 of Notre Dame coming to town this weekend
00:18 back at home after being on the road
00:21 for the last four weeks, whatever it is,
00:23 that there's a little juice to it?
00:26 Yeah.
00:28 First of all, I just want to say I appreciate
00:29 y'all understanding, not doing media post-game.
00:33 Just wanted to be there for my teammates.
00:34 And I knew I was going to end up coming in today.
00:38 So appreciate y'all understanding that.
00:41 But yeah, I mean, obviously very excited for the game
00:44 and getting to be in Death Valley again.
00:46 And that's going to be awesome.
00:48 And obviously a great opponent coming in.
00:51 And it's going to be a really fun game.
00:53 I think Coach Reed said there should be no trouble
00:56 being motivated just because last year we
00:57 put the tape off.
00:59 How much is that motivation for you guys?
01:02 Yeah.
01:04 I mean, obviously huge motivation.
01:06 If this team isn't motivated, then, you know,
01:13 I don't know, we're crazy.
01:14 Just obviously we're motivated,
01:16 and we're ready for whatever comes into Death Valley.
01:21 And we're excited,
01:24 and we'll just continue to put one foot
01:26 in front of any other.
01:28 I don't guess you've been able to really meet
01:29 as a team or as units yet.
01:32 So what was it like Saturday in the locker room?
01:35 You wanted to be there for your teammates,
01:36 and we understand that.
01:38 What was it like in that locker room?
01:40 What was said?
01:43 Really proud of the way we finished.
01:44 You know, wish that we would have kind of
01:46 had a higher intensity in the first half.
01:48 And, you know, we would like to not be 17,
01:54 down 17 points for our intensity
01:57 to really get hot as an offense.
01:59 So really would have liked that, kind of spoke on that.
02:04 But, you know, we never quit until the very last play,
02:07 and, you know, really proud of that.
02:09 There's not many teams that would fight
02:12 until the end like we did.
02:13 And, you know, I think that there's a lot of teams
02:19 that, you know, would have kind of looked up the scoreboard,
02:21 going to the fourth quarter, down what we were,
02:24 and would have just kind of gave up and lost hope.
02:27 But we never did that, and really proud of those guys.
02:31 Slow starts are kind of a trend this year.
02:35 You said intensity, I guess, was the issue Saturday.
02:38 Is that the common thread beyond that?
02:43 Um, I mean, I hadn't really, you know,
02:47 kind of came in to Monday meeting or Sunday
02:53 ever looking back at a game, thinking that was the reason.
02:57 But, you know, just kind of looking back at this one,
03:00 I realized, you know, not that our intensity is low,
03:02 but just, you know, I would, you know, one goal --
03:05 I mean, we have goals as an offense,
03:07 you know, in certain games, you know,
03:09 certain goals we want to reach every game.
03:10 And one goal that I would, you know, I love is,
03:13 I would love to start, you know, the first drive of the game
03:18 with the first drive of the second half.
03:19 I would love to get points on the board every single time.
03:23 And I don't think that we've done that
03:25 other than the FAU game.
03:27 So that's one goal that I think that we need to get better at,
03:31 is just, you know, coming out hot and --
03:35 not that you need to change anything.
03:36 You don't need to do anything crazy,
03:38 but just, you know, set the tone early in the game.
03:41 Um, you know, I know we were playing FAU
03:45 and, you know, obviously a good program,
03:47 but, you know, they're -- yeah.
03:49 But, you know, that's the most points
03:51 we've scored in a game this year.
03:53 And you correlate that back to,
03:56 all right, well, we scored the first drive of the game.
03:58 You know, just what kind of tone does that set
04:01 for the rest of the game as an offense
04:02 and the confidence that that brings us is huge.
04:05 I mean, you know, and we had a --
04:09 honestly, a really good first drive in this past game.
04:12 It just -- a penalty just held us back, you know.
04:14 I mean, Troy was going to go a long way right there,
04:17 and it's, you know, it's a tough spot for Bo, just --
04:20 but, you know, just got to find a way
04:22 to kind of get points early in the game
04:24 to kind of get the tone set.
04:25 After that last play Saturday,
04:30 you went over to Coach Sweeney
04:31 and what you guys were having a fairly,
04:34 you know, good conversation.
04:36 What's that like?
04:37 You know, you obviously want to win.
04:39 He wants to win.
04:40 Can you say, you know, what's said there in that moment
04:43 to competitors?
04:45 Yeah.
04:48 You know, I've --
04:52 what he's done for a long time now is win,
04:57 and for a long time,
04:59 that's kind of all I've done is just win, you know,
05:01 and we kind of spoke on that, and we kind of spoke on,
05:07 you know, we're not used to losing,
05:09 and he said something, and he said --
05:13 and we're still never -- we're never going to get used to it.
05:16 We're never going to get used to that,
05:17 and I think that people who love to win
05:21 will never get used to losing because they hate losing,
05:25 so every time that a loss happens,
05:27 they don't grow numb to it.
05:29 It hits them as much as they did the first time,
05:32 so that's something that I'll never --
05:34 I'll never let become numb to me is a loss.
05:38 I feel the same in this one
05:41 than I did the first one of the year,
05:43 and I don't -- you know, I'm just continually coming back
05:48 to work every single week,
05:49 and this team is coming back to work every single week,
05:51 and, you know, just got to keep fighting.
05:57 It's not the record that we want or the record that,
06:00 you know, I saw us having coming in this year,
06:03 anybody saw us having coming in this year,
06:04 but we just continue to put our head down
06:09 and come back to work every single week and keep fighting
06:11 and not give up and, you know,
06:14 continue to keep our eyes on this program
06:18 and just staying inside out.
06:21 You know how you feel after a loss,
06:23 and you say that you never are going to be numb to it.
06:26 Is the challenge the collective group
06:31 not getting to that point in your mind?
06:35 Yeah, I mean, I think that could be part of it.
06:38 You know, it's just, you know, not --
06:42 This is a winning program at the end of the day,
06:45 so, you know, when we have a record like we have,
06:50 nobody's used to it,
06:51 so it's learning how to handle that,
06:53 and I would much rather be at a winning program
06:57 than a losing program, so, you know, I'm --
07:00 you know, I'm not going anywhere.
07:02 I'm sticking to -- I'm sticking to this place,
07:04 and, you know, I trust everybody here,
07:07 and I trust Coach Sweeney with, you know,
07:10 earlier on in his career, he had some ups and downs,
07:12 but, you know, look what he did after that,
07:14 so we're just going to create momentum
07:19 and just continue to put our head down and work.
07:22 I think it was last week, Coach, when you said, like,
07:24 we're being catered, and I look at this year and say,
07:26 "Wow, this is just a crazy year, a lot of crazy stuff."
07:28 Yeah.
07:30 How meaningful has it been how he's stuck behind you
07:32 as a coach despite, you know, because of growing pains,
07:35 you know, I mean, how he's backed you, I guess?
07:39 What was that? Sorry.
07:40 I guess in terms of how he's backed you
07:41 through the "growing pains,"
07:43 I mean, how meaningful has that been?
07:45 Oh, yeah. Yeah.
07:48 You know, super meaningful. I mean, yeah.
07:49 It's been a crazy year.
07:52 You know, it's been a crazy year,
07:54 and so many just wild plays where it's just a few plays
07:59 where it's just, like, what, you know?
08:02 You know, obviously a few more earlier in the season,
08:04 but even this past two games, and so, you know,
08:13 I mean, I'm just super thankful to have a coach,
08:14 you know, who trusts in me, and I trust in him a lot,
08:17 and I know that he knows that, but, you know,
08:22 just super proud of the guys and how they just kept battling,
08:25 but definitely thankful for him.
08:27 It would have been a challenge sort of being a leader
08:34 and being a starting quarterback your first season,
08:36 even if you all are winning.
08:39 What have you learned about leadership
08:42 just in your shoes when things are going sour?
08:45 Because like you said, you've never had to lead amid losing.
08:50 Yeah. That's a really good question.
08:53 Yeah, I mean, I think about that a lot, too,
08:55 is, like, you know, how --
08:58 I don't think I would be able to be as good of a leader
09:00 if we were 8-0 right now,
09:02 so I think this might be the best thing.
09:04 You know, I've kind of been saying it all year,
09:05 but this could be the best thing for me
09:06 and for this team and for the players on this team,
09:10 so I'm just getting to step up
09:12 to another level of being a leader,
09:15 but I remember one of my older mentors,
09:17 you know, kind of coming in this year,
09:20 you know, something we had talked about
09:21 is just continually being a bigger leader in this program,
09:27 and, you know, as many of you all know,
09:29 I'm very strong in my faith, and, you know,
09:31 we look to, you know, well, how should you lead?
09:34 Well, you know, we look at the greatest leader ever,
09:36 who is Jesus, and he tells us, you know,
09:39 kind of, "All is joy, my brothers,
09:40 when you meet trials of various kinds,
09:42 for you know that these tests of your faith
09:44 produce steadfastness,
09:46 and let steadfastness have its full effect,
09:48 and you may be perfect and complete,"
09:52 and I've just been leaning on that more than anything,
09:56 is when we meet these trials and we go through these times,
09:59 like my happiness might go up and down,
10:02 but, like, this game,
10:04 like it's never going to bring my joy up or down.
10:07 I get to walk in this building,
10:09 and I always get to have a smile on my face,
10:12 so, you know, I think that that's truly what being a leader
10:17 is, is having the joy of walking in this program
10:20 and just getting to be that every day for somebody else.
10:25 What about learning,
10:26 knowing what to say to teammates, what not to say?
10:30 Yeah.
10:31 Through the course of all that.
10:32 Just continue to encourage more than anything.
10:34 It's just encouraging guys, and, you know,
10:38 there's times where coaches need to coach
10:39 and really get on guys,
10:41 but, you know, as players, there's times for that, too,
10:43 but more than anything, and this week,
10:45 it's just encouraging guys.
10:46 You know, we don't need to ever be pointing fingers
10:48 or putting guys down or anything like that.
10:52 It's just continually just encouraging guys
10:54 and knowing that, you know, I've got full trust in them,
10:57 which I do, and I never say something just to say it,
11:01 so, you know, just continue to be there for them
11:03 and just be a leader and, you know, be excited for this week.
11:09 Being kind of the leader and the voice of the offense
11:16 and, you know, wanting to start fast,
11:20 do you ever want to go to the coaches and go,
11:22 "Hey, you know what? We need to open this thing up.
11:25 Let's run reverses and flickers and quarterbacks
11:30 and just anything to try and get it opened up"?
11:33 Yeah.
11:35 You know.
11:37 Yeah, I mean, I think there would be a time and place
11:39 for that, but, yeah, for sure.
11:43 I mean, there's definitely a time and place for that
11:45 to kind of get some, you know, fun plays in there,
11:48 to just kind of do something out of the ordinary, right,
11:52 to just kind of get the things going.
11:54 Definitely understand that.
11:55 I think there's times and places for that where that's needed,
11:59 but, you know, I think that I trust the coaches with that,
12:02 and, I mean, I really do.
12:04 I mean, I don't know.
12:05 You know, I really do just trust the coaches with that,
12:07 and I try to give my input when it's needed,
12:11 but, you know, there's a reason that Coach Sweeney is who he is
12:15 and Coach Riley is who he is,
12:19 and, you know, I put my input here and there,
12:22 but I really trust who they are,
12:23 and I'm continuing to learn the game as well,
12:24 so, you know, it just goes --
12:28 Honestly, our biggest thing is we just got to do
12:29 the little things.
12:31 It's not that we're not making the big plays.
12:33 It's that, you know,
12:37 you know, it's just getting the right signals right,
12:39 you know, certain little things,
12:41 just, you know, just finishing little things
12:46 that, you know, just got to get better at.
12:49 It's just the simple things, so.
12:52 You guys are 16th nationally in first downs.
12:56 Does that maybe point to the need for some explosives
13:02 so it's not having to piece it down the field
13:06 and therefore opening yourself up for possible mistakes?
13:09 If you have, like, a 50- or 60-yarder,
13:10 then how much would that help open things up?
13:14 You know, I mean, in my eyes,
13:19 I feel like, you know, first downs are the name of the game.
13:22 It's about moving the chains.
13:25 I mean, that's what my job is as quarterbacks,
13:27 is, you know, everybody wants to throw --
13:31 You know, high school, everybody wants to throw
13:33 60-, 70-yard touchdowns,
13:36 but, you know, you get to the next level
13:38 and you realize, all right,
13:39 that's not always going to be there every time I drop back.
13:42 I can't just sit back there and wait all day
13:44 and just throw it down the field every single time.
13:46 You know, it's about managing the game.
13:47 All right, we're second and nine.
13:51 You know, it would be nice to kind of get a 12-yard dig
13:53 in there to get the -- All right, well,
13:54 they're dropping back.
13:56 Let's just take the five-yard hit.
13:57 Let's go get six yards and put us in a manageable,
13:59 you know, third and two, third and three situation.
14:02 So it's really just about managing the game
14:04 and trying to manage to get first downs.
14:08 So, you know, I mean, obviously, I think that, you know,
14:11 we could have a few here and there,
14:13 but, you know, it's done that needs to be forced
14:16 and just when opportunities come,
14:20 especially in this last game, you know,
14:21 the defense that they play, it's --
14:23 You know, it can be tough sometimes
14:25 to take big shots on them, and so, you know, we've --
14:29 You know, I think that we've done a good job
14:31 of taking opportunities when they're there,
14:32 and so, yeah, I mean, yeah.
14:36 All right, we're second and nine.
14:38 Seems like there's been a lot of those.
14:40 What's your sort of --
14:42 Do you have a diagnosis of first-down performance,
14:44 like, just from y'all's study?
14:49 I don't really have a comment on that.
14:50 I mean, I don't really --
14:53 I don't really think that's a huge thing
14:55 for us that we're focusing on.
14:57 Any questions for Kane from Zoom?
15:01 Anybody else in the room?
15:05 All right. Appreciate y'all.