Ladell Betts 9-20-23
Iowa RB Coach
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 OK, we'll go right into questions.
00:02 Alright, hi Liddell, good morning.
00:05 Questions for coach bets.
00:09 First question is from John
00:11 Steffi from the Gazette.
00:12 Hey Liddell, how's it going?
00:14 Good, how are you?
00:16 I'm good, thanks.
00:17 Wanted to ask you about the two freshmen,
00:19 Camari and Terrell.
00:20 What stood out to you
00:21 since they got on campus
00:23 and what do you think their role could be
00:24 once Caleb and Jazz come back?
00:26 Well, I'll start with the first
00:29 part of that question, which is
00:30 what I think of those guys.
00:32 I mean, they've come in
00:33 with a lot of maturity,
00:34 especially for some young guys.
00:35 They jumped right in
00:38 in terms of the offseason program
00:39 with the summer workouts
00:40 and all that kind of stuff.
00:41 And actually, Terrell got here
00:42 back in January, so he's been here
00:45 a little bit longer than Camari.
00:46 So he had a little bit
00:47 lay of the land, so to speak,
00:49 before we got to the fall camp.
00:50 But those guys have done a good job
00:51 in terms of maturity,
00:52 in terms of showing up on time,
00:54 paying attention to meetings.
00:55 And that's that's what you love
00:57 to see out of young guys.
00:59 But you don't always know
00:59 if you're going to get that
01:00 until you start coaching.
01:01 So they've done a good job there.
01:02 And then on top of that,
01:04 as far as athletically,
01:05 I mean, they're both talented,
01:06 very different players.
01:09 Camari is more of a natural
01:10 tailback, per se,
01:12 because that's what he's always played.
01:13 TJ is a little bit
01:15 jack of all trades.
01:16 He's played receiver, you know, slot.
01:18 He's played quarterback.
01:19 He's played running back.
01:20 So he's got a pretty
01:21 broad skill set returner.
01:23 So they're different in that regard.
01:25 But yeah, so that's kind of how they
01:27 how they fit in.
01:28 So to speak, how they made the transition.
01:30 But as far as what
01:31 that what their role would be
01:32 when Caleb and Jazz get back,
01:34 I mean, that's to be determined.
01:36 Who knows?
01:37 One, you never know
01:38 how long an injury can last.
01:40 You hope it's only a week or so.
01:42 But we don't we have no idea.
01:44 So I just try to tell those guys,
01:46 hey, stay ready.
01:46 And I think they've done
01:47 a good job with that.
01:48 And I try to tell the entire room
01:49 to stay ready, because as you can see,
01:51 it's been different people every week,
01:52 but they're ready.
01:54 And we'll cross that bridge
01:55 as far as roles
01:56 when those other guys do return.
01:58 Our next question is from Scott Dockerman.
02:00 Yeah, Liddell, I've been
02:02 really fascinated watching
02:03 the way you guys have run
02:05 the ball this year,
02:05 and partly because of schematics
02:08 when you have,
02:09 you know, a lot of it
02:11 seems like a lot of gap
02:12 and a lot of counter versus the past
02:15 where I was just kind of dabbled in.
02:17 You know, how does that,
02:19 you think, emphasize
02:20 some of the runners on your roster
02:23 and then why they've been so successful
02:25 and running that scheme?
02:27 I think it's twofold.
02:28 I think I think it emphasizes
02:30 the type of lineman that we have to
02:33 aggressive guys
02:35 that like to pull and hit.
02:36 I think we have those guys
02:37 that want to do that on offense
02:39 and line, and it's something
02:40 that we tried to work on a lot
02:41 back in the spring.
02:42 Try to add that to our arsenal
02:44 as far as the run game
02:45 so we so we could have it in the fall.
02:47 And I think you're starting to see
02:47 some of those dividends pay off.
02:49 And then when you talk
02:50 about the back specifically,
02:51 I'm partial to downhill runners,
02:54 I think because I was one myself.
02:57 So on the recruiting trail,
02:59 I think when I what
03:00 what I gravitate to is guys
03:02 that really like to attack,
03:03 attack, attack, attack the defense.
03:05 And I think that's what you're seeing
03:06 out of our runners
03:07 or guys that are getting downhill
03:09 and trying to trying to be aggressive
03:10 with the defense.
03:11 Next question is from Chad Lystico.
03:15 Hey, good morning, Liddell.
03:17 College or pro,
03:19 what's the craziest environment
03:21 you've ever played in and
03:22 and how do you communicate
03:25 to young freshmen going into
03:27 to this what to expect on Saturday?
03:29 Good question.
03:31 College or pro.
03:32 I'd say in college,
03:34 you know, it's always tough
03:35 when you go over to Iowa State
03:36 just to the heated rivalry.
03:38 But I've also been up to Penn State
03:39 back in 2000.
03:40 We were fortunate enough
03:42 to get out of there with the
03:43 with the win and overtime.
03:45 That was that was a pretty
03:47 pretty crazy environment.
03:48 But when I think of the pros,
03:49 I think of places like, you know,
03:50 Dallas, just because of the rivalry
03:52 between us and Washington
03:53 or Washington and Dallas at the time.
03:56 Philly, the Philly fans
03:57 are always pretty brutal.
03:58 So I played in a few venues
04:00 that get a little loud
04:01 and a little crazy.
04:01 And so if I'm yes,
04:04 yeah, I mean, obviously Kamari,
04:07 Terrell going into this
04:08 crazy environment as true freshman,
04:10 how do you kind of communicate
04:11 your experience to them
04:12 and help relax them going into
04:15 to this huge stage?
04:16 Well, it's hard to really
04:20 put into words how that
04:22 and what that environment
04:23 is going to feel like
04:23 until they get there.
04:24 So you try to talk to them about it.
04:26 And I know Coach Farris
04:27 has done the same thing.
04:27 He's been talking to our players all week
04:29 because we have a number of players
04:31 that have never played up there before.
04:32 So it's going to be a new environment
04:35 for not just the backs,
04:36 but more than a few people on the team.
04:38 But until they actually
04:39 get in that environment
04:40 and feel it for themselves,
04:41 they won't really know
04:43 what we're trying to
04:44 communicate to them.
04:45 But the only thing
04:46 I really try to make sure
04:47 that I'm getting across to my players
04:48 is make sure you take care
04:50 of the details now.
04:51 Get all those eyes
04:53 dotted, all the T's crossed,
04:55 because if you don't have a good sense,
04:57 a good feel for the game plan now
04:58 in front of 100000 people
05:00 is not the time
05:01 to be trying to figure it out.
05:01 So I just try to make sure that, listen,
05:04 lock in and practice.
05:05 Make sure you get
05:05 all those things ironed out
05:07 so that when you get into that stadium
05:08 and it's loud at the end of day,
05:10 it's just it's just treating like practice,
05:12 just people watching.
05:13 All right, next question
05:15 is from Adam Jacoby.
05:17 Sorry, I was on mute.
05:23 Coach Betts, how are you today?
05:24 Good, how are you?
05:25 I'm doing well, thank you.
05:26 So going back to last week,
05:30 specifically the touchdown
05:32 that LeSean Williams
05:33 scored on that screen pass.
05:34 One, is there anything
05:36 that really sort of stood out
05:37 to you on the play,
05:38 whether it's something
05:39 that LeSean did or anybody else
05:42 in the play?
05:42 And then is that indicative
05:45 in any way of the growth
05:47 that he's made from last season
05:48 to this season?
05:49 Just his ability to make that play.
05:52 Is that something
05:52 that's new this year?
05:53 Great question, actually,
05:55 as you as you ask that question,
05:57 I'm kind of thinking back
05:58 to a moment last year
05:59 where we had a screen call.
06:02 I think it was the first
06:03 or second game.
06:03 I can't remember.
06:04 And it was LeSean that was in there
06:05 and his guy blitzed.
06:07 And he didn't he didn't quite see it
06:09 at the time to know to bluff that guy
06:12 and then slip him to get out,
06:13 not to get in too much of the schematics.
06:15 But the exact same scenario
06:16 came up this past Saturday
06:18 where his guy in protection is blitzing
06:21 and LeSean now a year later
06:23 has enough wherewithal to understand,
06:25 hey, I need to go set this guy, bluff him,
06:27 make him think that we're actually
06:28 trying to pass the ball downfield
06:30 and then slip him out to the flats.
06:32 And that's exactly what happened.
06:33 It was a great play call,
06:34 great execution by the guys.
06:36 And, you know, now it's him
06:38 and Logan Jones running down
06:39 the sideline by themselves.
06:41 So it was a well executed play.
06:42 Well, well, well timed call play
06:45 because they were blitzing, too.
06:46 So, you know, you always want to get
06:48 a screen to a blitz
06:48 and it worked out great.
06:51 Awesome, thank you.
06:52 The next question is from David Eichol.
06:55 Hello, Dale, appreciate you taking the time
06:58 out of your busy schedule,
06:59 just thinking back to, you know,
07:02 going back to the running backs
07:03 and going into this type of environment.
07:05 How do you balance coaching those guys up
07:07 to kind of calm their nerves?
07:09 How much do you let their teammates
07:11 kind of do that for them?
07:12 And how much of it do you just kind of
07:14 let them kind of figure it out on their own?
07:16 How do you kind of balance doing that?
07:19 I don't try to hype or overhype
07:21 the moment that will be on Saturday night.
07:23 I mean, it's going to be
07:24 a loud environment.
07:25 It's going to be a lot of energy.
07:28 It's going to be crazy.
07:29 A wide out everything, you know,
07:31 night game, primetime, all of that.
07:34 I don't want to overhype it
07:35 because I don't want to make those guys
07:37 any more anxious or nervous
07:39 than what they may already naturally feel.
07:41 So you address it at the front end of the week.
07:44 And then after that, I just tell them,
07:45 hey, focus on what you need to do
07:47 in terms of practice.
07:48 Going back to what I said earlier,
07:49 which is the details,
07:50 because those are what
07:51 those are what's really going to carry you
07:53 throughout the night when you're tired,
07:55 when it's third and short,
07:57 when it's, you know, fourth quarter,
07:59 tie ball, whatever the situation may be.
08:00 You have to go back and rest
08:02 on those fundamentals
08:03 and not get caught up in the environment.
08:05 And they have to figure that out for themselves
08:06 once they get into the game.
08:08 Next question is from Tyler Tashman.
08:12 Hey, coach, I hope you're doing well
08:16 with Kamari and Terrell.
08:18 Just what do you remember
08:19 about recruiting each one of them
08:21 and kind of what stood out
08:22 initially about him?
08:24 Well, with Kamari, Kamari
08:27 is kind of down in my
08:28 in my recruiting area of Florida.
08:30 Actually, he's in Coach Hodges area.
08:32 That's on the other side of the state.
08:33 But we both have some familiar
08:35 ties down in that area.
08:36 So with Kamari, I knew a bunch of people
08:38 or a bunch of coaches in the area
08:40 that knew of him personally
08:41 and had played against him.
08:43 And everyone spoke highly
08:44 about his character,
08:45 his running style.
08:46 And once I got a chance
08:47 to see him in practice,
08:48 everything that people
08:49 had kind of advertised,
08:50 it stood out to me.
08:51 So for me, he was
08:54 he was a bit of a no brainer.
08:55 He's not the biggest kid,
08:56 but he runs hard.
08:58 He's extremely talented
08:59 and a little bit different with Terrell.
09:02 Terrell, we kind of came
09:03 stumbled upon later.
09:04 It's not that I didn't know about him,
09:06 but he was already
09:07 verbally committed to Purdue.
09:08 And then when things kind of went south
09:11 to Purdue, coaching changed
09:12 and all that stuff,
09:13 I kind of reached back out to him,
09:15 followed up, and that's kind of
09:16 where his recruiting.
09:17 So his recruiting was a little bit
09:18 later in the process than than Kamari's.
09:21 But once I watched the tape
09:22 and I saw that he had
09:23 such a broad skill set,
09:24 you know, with running receiver,
09:26 quarterback, running back,
09:28 I knew he kind of fit
09:30 something different
09:30 that we didn't have in the room.
09:31 I felt like at the moment,
09:33 which is a guy that could do
09:34 a little bit of everything.
09:35 And that was that was what drew me to him.
09:37 All right, coach, next question
09:40 is from Elliott Clough.
09:45 Hey, Coach Betts.
09:46 So obviously the run game
09:50 wasn't as maybe as productive
09:52 as you guys would have liked
09:53 in those first two games.
09:54 And then obviously LeSean
09:56 has this big game
09:57 and two freshmen come in
09:59 and are productive
10:00 on on this last Saturday.
10:02 Obviously, Western
10:04 Michigan and Penn State
10:05 are two different,
10:06 very different opponents.
10:08 I guess, how do you take that momentum
10:11 or what you I guess
10:13 what did you see up front
10:14 that that was working so well
10:16 for the offensive line
10:17 and made things work for your guys?
10:19 And how do you take that
10:20 into Penn State?
10:22 As far as the guys up front,
10:24 I think the confidence
10:25 is growing with those guys.
10:26 They have a year under their belt.
10:28 A lot of those guys
10:28 are returning starters
10:30 and coach Barnett
10:32 is doing a great job with them.
10:33 And I think we just had a good game
10:34 plan coming into the past
10:35 week for that team.
10:36 And those guys just jelled
10:38 and just rolled them out of there.
10:40 I think we have an aggressive line
10:42 that doesn't mind hitting people.
10:43 And that's not something
10:44 that you can always say
10:45 about each line every year
10:47 is that we do have a bunch of guys
10:48 that are willing to put their shoulder
10:49 pads and helmets on people.
10:50 And when you have a line like that,
10:52 sometimes you got to let them roll.
10:53 And I think we did that last week
10:54 and we try and to your point,
10:56 we understand Penn State
10:58 and Western Michigan
10:58 are two or two different teams.
11:00 I'm not that's no knock
11:01 on on Western Michigan or anything,
11:03 but Penn State is ranked
11:05 where they are for a reason.
11:06 And we don't take that lightly.
11:07 But we also feel like
11:09 we're quite capable
11:10 of getting the job done if need be.
11:12 Right next question
11:13 is from Chad Lystico.
11:14 Looked like Jazz Patterson
11:18 was doing really, really nice job
11:20 as a third down back.
11:21 I guess I would say
11:23 obviously you lose that with LeSean
11:25 kind of be your main blocking back.
11:27 And how about those
11:27 the two true freshman?
11:29 Are they is one or one or the other
11:31 may be acclimating to that
11:33 that blocking back role as needed?
11:35 I think, well, I've
11:38 tried to get both of them
11:38 reps in those scenarios,
11:40 because anybody can be hurt
11:42 or down at any given moment.
11:44 But to go back
11:45 to the beginning of your question,
11:46 LeSean is a guy that has experience
11:49 in that role,
11:49 really first, second and third down.
11:51 So he would be the first candidate
11:53 in that situation.
11:54 But with the other two,
11:56 I don't really see one
11:57 is ahead of the other one
11:59 in terms of third down.
11:59 I think they're both capable.
12:01 We've worked long and hard,
12:02 especially back during training camp.
12:04 We did one on ones with linebackers
12:06 with and pass protection
12:07 probably more more often
12:10 than they wanted to at times.
12:11 But it's to build for these moments.
12:13 So they're all capable of doing it.
12:14 Next question is from Scott Docterman.
12:18 Yeah, I wanted to just ask you
12:20 kind of that fine line of emphasizing
12:24 the really important
12:25 fundamental parts of this game,
12:27 you know, where the small security,
12:29 especially at a place like Penn State,
12:30 you don't know how many possessions
12:31 are going to get
12:32 and how the how important
12:34 each possession is,
12:35 but then not have them
12:37 overthink those moments
12:38 and just play freely.
12:40 How do you approach those two scenarios
12:43 just to make sure that mentally
12:45 they understand the importance of it,
12:46 but they don't make it
12:48 get into their head at the wrong time?
12:50 I don't think it really.
12:52 I mean, just from my experience
12:53 working with these guys,
12:54 I don't really think it gets into their head
12:56 in terms of the reminders
12:58 about ball security,
12:58 because I do that during the game.
12:59 Sometimes if I see the ball
13:01 sometimes getting loose
13:02 or what I perceive as being loose,
13:04 I'll yell at them out
13:06 on while they're on the field.
13:07 Hey, and I'll give them this sign.
13:08 And they know what I'm talking about.
13:09 So I'm always trying
13:11 to preach that to them,
13:12 because especially on the road,
13:13 you just can't afford turnovers.
13:15 And we don't want to do anything
13:16 that's self inflicting.
13:17 If they if they get the ball
13:19 out of our hands,
13:19 it needs to be a heck of a play by them,
13:21 not something that we did carelessly
13:23 and just reemphasizing that.
13:25 I don't think it
13:26 I don't think it puts any more
13:27 anxiety on those guys,
13:28 because that's what we preach
13:30 every day anyway, is to is ball security,
13:32 whether it's the backs,
13:33 quarterbacks, receivers,
13:34 everyone's getting that same
13:35 reinforcements every day.
13:38 All right, next question
13:39 is from Cooper Worth.
13:40 Hey, Coach, I know you said
13:43 the success in the run game
13:44 was due to the aggressiveness
13:46 and confidence of the offensive line.
13:48 That's what I'm just curious about
13:50 your impressions with right tackle
13:52 Jennings Ducker and how he's played so far.
13:54 And if you think he fits that bill.
13:56 I think Jennings has done great.
13:58 I think it's been a good transition
14:00 for him going to tackle.
14:01 You know, you just never know how
14:03 how how things are going to unfold
14:04 when somebody goes to a new spot
14:05 or new position, but he
14:07 it's just like a glove to me
14:09 when I watch him play.
14:10 He's got good athleticism.
14:12 He's huge.
14:12 I mean, you walk by him.
14:13 He's a mammoth of a young man,
14:16 but he's soldered in really well.
14:18 And I think he's having
14:18 a good year so far.
14:19 And we just need to keep building on that.
14:21 Keep instilling confidence in these guys
14:23 and week after week.
14:25 We know every team presents a challenge,
14:27 but we know we're capable
14:28 of meeting that challenge.
14:29 All right, Coach,
14:32 it looks like the last question
14:33 will be from Dargan Southerd.
14:35 Yeah, I know you guys
14:37 preach obviously next main in
14:39 and know you're one snap away
14:41 from from being in there
14:43 if you're not playing,
14:44 particularly at the running back position
14:46 where the physicality
14:48 nature is certainly there.
14:50 But when it plays out this
14:51 dramatically as it has
14:53 over the last couple of weeks,
14:55 you know, even a veteran like
14:56 the Sean who had one carry at Iowa State
15:00 and now he's, you know,
15:01 at the top of the chain
15:03 going into this trip.
15:05 When it plays out like that,
15:06 how much does that,
15:07 you know, really hammer home
15:08 to everybody in the room that,
15:10 you know, things can change abruptly
15:12 and everybody has to be ready to adjust,
15:15 you know, week to week even.
15:17 Well, you just said it yourself.
15:19 It becomes a reality.
15:20 It's no more.
15:21 It's no longer a talking point.
15:23 It's a reality.
15:24 And as much as you can try to preach
15:27 that to someone,
15:27 reality is the best
15:30 is the best lesson.
15:31 It's the best teacher.
15:32 And they're facing it right now.
15:34 And I said all along,
15:35 I remember doing interviews,
15:36 I think back when we had media day
15:37 and someone asked me about,
15:38 you know, feature back
15:39 and how do you do the carries?
15:40 And I said, listen,
15:41 you need multiple backs
15:43 because the season is long.
15:44 It's a grueling position.
15:45 You just never know.
15:46 And I've always told the guys that
15:48 and whether they sometimes hear it.
15:50 And, you know, you know,
15:51 it's natural when you're
15:52 the third or fourth guy
15:53 to kind of feel like,
15:54 do they believe in me or whatever?
15:55 But understanding that, hey,
15:58 your time can come any given moment.
15:59 And I think they're all living
16:00 that reality right now is
16:01 that's why you always have to work
16:03 no matter where you are on the depth
16:04 chart or where you think
16:05 you are on the depth chart.
16:06 You have to work,
16:07 because if your number is called,
16:09 you don't want to be the guy
16:10 that wasn't ready
16:11 because you were too busy sulking
16:13 or caught up in your feelings
16:14 about not getting playing time.
16:15 It could have been easy for Le'Shawn
16:17 to feel some type of way
16:19 after only getting one
16:20 carry against Iowa State.
16:21 And he and I talked to him
16:22 and I said, hey, don't you know,
16:24 you never know.
16:25 Next week could be your week.
16:26 And sure enough, it was his week.
16:27 And that's it's a life
16:29 lesson for all of them.
16:30 And I think they I think it's good
16:31 for the younger guys to see that, too,
16:32 is never take any any rep
16:35 and practice, never take
16:35 any situation for granted,
16:36 because you could be the next guy in.
16:38 All right, thank you very much.
16:41 Appreciate your time
16:42 this morning, Liddell.
16:43 Thank you. Have a good day.
16:45 Appreciate it.
16:46 Thanks, Liddell.
16:47 Thank you.
16:47 [BLANK_AUDIO]