Texas offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert addressed the media on Tuesday night, and here are the highlights from his press conference:
- Gilbert said freshman center Zach Shackelford is healthy right now: “He’s good.”
- When asked about the impact Baylor had on him as a coach, Gilbert said, “It’s not so much Baylor. It’s Art Briles. Just my past with him, being able to (work with him) as a young football coach, be with him, learn from him, and obviously be within that tree has been a huge part of where I’ve been at, and places I’ve been in my coaching career.”
- Here is Gilbert’s explanation when asked how he’s crafted his own offensive identity: “I think any time in your career, with whatever you’re doing, when you’re around really good people who are highly successful that have been a lot of places, what you do is just try to take the really good from them and learn, and anything that maybe doesn’t work. You’re just watching and absorbing the whole time you’re with those kind of coaches, and those kind of people. You’re just trying to figure out what’s going to work best for you, and the way you’re going to do it when you get an opportunity. The thing is within whatever you’re doing, once you decide to do that, you still have to figure out how to do that your way. You’re not like any other individual, so what works for them doesn’t always work for you. You try to pull the really good, you put all of those things in a book, and you go back down and revert back to those things and try to take your path as closely as you can.”
- In addition, here is Gilbert’s response when asked about Baylor critics who claim Texas hired an offensive coordinator to copy its system: “When you’re on a tree, I’ve been at other places where we ran this offense. It’s going on in a couple of places in the nation right now. Just fortunate to have some knowledge about it, and being able to do something and take it in its own style.”
- Gilbert has shared his expertise with Baylor’s offense to the defensive staff this week. He said that occurs weekly with staff members who are knowledgeable about an upcoming opponent.
- Texas has not been able to capitalize enough off turnovers in the past two games, and Gilbert said it’s just an area they have to improve. He said the focus going into this week has been on “us” and getting “us” better at fundamentals and technique.
- Gilbert was asked about Kai Locksley’s announcement (via Twitter) that he received a full release from Texas. The offensive coordinator was asked how he intended to replace Locksley, and Gilbert, who was a little thrown off by the question, said there are plenty of guys doing a good job right now.
- The way receiver John Burt can get back on the field is by continuing to get healthy, according to Gilbert. Burt injured his hand in the season opener. Gilbert said Burt needs to get his thumb and hips healthy. The hip injury was not something Gilbert mentioned in previous press conferences.
- Gilbert knows this is a game where his team might need to score a lot of points, and said they need to be on their A game, productive and execute on a high level.
- Here was Gilbert’s response when asked if Kyle Porter needs to step up and fill Chris Warren’s void: “That’s comparing apples to oranges. Chris Warren is a special running back. When that guy went down, what you just rattled off [366 yards and three touchdowns] was in three games. That kid is a special running back. That’s a hard replacement for a true freshman, for a guy who is a sophomore now, who is a really, really talented kid. What we expect, and what we want from that next guy is just production ... that’s a hard guy to replace, especially with a true freshman. What we want to do is be productive, lean on 33 (D’Onta Foreman) and find other ways to get some yards.”
- Gilbert said freshman center Zach Shackelford is healthy right now: “He’s good.”
- When asked about the impact Baylor had on him as a coach, Gilbert said, “It’s not so much Baylor. It’s Art Briles. Just my past with him, being able to (work with him) as a young football coach, be with him, learn from him, and obviously be within that tree has been a huge part of where I’ve been at, and places I’ve been in my coaching career.”
- Here is Gilbert’s explanation when asked how he’s crafted his own offensive identity: “I think any time in your career, with whatever you’re doing, when you’re around really good people who are highly successful that have been a lot of places, what you do is just try to take the really good from them and learn, and anything that maybe doesn’t work. You’re just watching and absorbing the whole time you’re with those kind of coaches, and those kind of people. You’re just trying to figure out what’s going to work best for you, and the way you’re going to do it when you get an opportunity. The thing is within whatever you’re doing, once you decide to do that, you still have to figure out how to do that your way. You’re not like any other individual, so what works for them doesn’t always work for you. You try to pull the really good, you put all of those things in a book, and you go back down and revert back to those things and try to take your path as closely as you can.”
- In addition, here is Gilbert’s response when asked about Baylor critics who claim Texas hired an offensive coordinator to copy its system: “When you’re on a tree, I’ve been at other places where we ran this offense. It’s going on in a couple of places in the nation right now. Just fortunate to have some knowledge about it, and being able to do something and take it in its own style.”
- Gilbert has shared his expertise with Baylor’s offense to the defensive staff this week. He said that occurs weekly with staff members who are knowledgeable about an upcoming opponent.
- Texas has not been able to capitalize enough off turnovers in the past two games, and Gilbert said it’s just an area they have to improve. He said the focus going into this week has been on “us” and getting “us” better at fundamentals and technique.
- Gilbert was asked about Kai Locksley’s announcement (via Twitter) that he received a full release from Texas. The offensive coordinator was asked how he intended to replace Locksley, and Gilbert, who was a little thrown off by the question, said there are plenty of guys doing a good job right now.
- The way receiver John Burt can get back on the field is by continuing to get healthy, according to Gilbert. Burt injured his hand in the season opener. Gilbert said Burt needs to get his thumb and hips healthy. The hip injury was not something Gilbert mentioned in previous press conferences.
- Gilbert knows this is a game where his team might need to score a lot of points, and said they need to be on their A game, productive and execute on a high level.
- Here was Gilbert’s response when asked if Kyle Porter needs to step up and fill Chris Warren’s void: “That’s comparing apples to oranges. Chris Warren is a special running back. When that guy went down, what you just rattled off [366 yards and three touchdowns] was in three games. That kid is a special running back. That’s a hard replacement for a true freshman, for a guy who is a sophomore now, who is a really, really talented kid. What we expect, and what we want from that next guy is just production ... that’s a hard guy to replace, especially with a true freshman. What we want to do is be productive, lean on 33 (D’Onta Foreman) and find other ways to get some yards.”
