Larry Coker Quotes (157 Quotes)

Kyle practiced some and threw the ball pretty well. I feel like he'll be fine. I was encouraged by what I saw today.

I think we're better than we're playing. What that potential is, I don't know. I think our receivers are good enough. We're not playing as well as we can and I think we've got to give them more opportunities to get them in the flow and get them playing better.

We don't condone it, but it happened. Is there a concern Yes, there is a concern. People are going to think what they think. But the reality is, I know the players we have, I know the character we have. We're recruiting the right people.

It sets you back a lot. When you don't practice, you don't get better. Willie has a lot of ability. He needs to get schooled in the defensive scheme.

He got beat a couple of times.

Definitely some things have been improved. But without question, we've got a lot we can work on and we've got to get a lot better to be the team that we want to be.

They have to have the ability, ... but we really do help develop our players to the max.

Will (Phillips) make mistakes I'm sure he will. But he's a guy that is also a big playmaker and may make (opponents) make some mistakes also.

It was a good finish for us. This has been an outstanding spring. We'll have a good finish tomorrow in the annual spring game, and hopefully everybody will stay healthy. Everybody has a good attitude and they're ready for Saturday.

I don't think we have slipped talent-wise. I think we're talented enough to play with anybody. But I do sense our guys are not happy, not satisfied, and they shouldn't be, with last season. There really was some embarrassment there for all of us. No doubt

Maybe it was Florida State's time. I think we had the better team, but I think they played better.

The defense kept giving us opportunities to win the game. We just couldn't get it done.

We believe Devin would be better served by staying in school and finishing his degree and becoming more proficient as a football player. But we respect his decision.

Sometimes you don't get the catches because you don't get the opportunities, ... We've got to get more balls their way. There doesn't have to be any big, intricate, huge things downfield. Just get it in their hands. And once we get the ball in their hands, we've got to make some big plays with it.

I felt that it was the right decision to allow Willie into the University of Miami. I feel even more strongly about that now.

What I like is that early in the season we have a difficult schedule, and that has not been the case the last few years. That allows the fans to get involved early, and it's a great motivating factor for our team.

We miss Ryan, but we have players who can step up.

I think we are unique, ... If I'm a kid I'd say 'Let's see, I've got great weather, great facilities, I've got a chance to play in the NFL and I am going to graduate and I've got a chance to play for the national championship.'

The bowl loss changed a lot. It's one thing to lose, but we didn't expect to lose the way we did. We knew we'd have to make some midcourse adjustments, and then we knew we'd have to recruit harder.

That probably is accurate . . . We're going to miss Anthony Reddick,

It seems like three years to the players.

This is a private, in-house matter and I will have no further comment. We will now move forward with our preparations for the Georgia Tech game on Saturday.

It's flashy and I know there will be a lot of talk and it has probably been on TV a few times and all that,

It firing the assistants was a tough decision. We did it quick. We decided to go in another direction and move forward. We had an excellent recruiting class and good spring practice.

They're starting to play with a lot of confidence. I think we have enough talent there to be good. Are we ready for Florida State No. But we don't play Florida State right away, so we have a little time and we need a little time.

That's exactly the way I saw it. He didn't play much. Football is such a team game. How the quarterback does depends on if players help out and make good receptions. And the offensive line has to help him out.

Sometimes it comes to you, and sometimes it doesn't. But I don't think there's a weakness at middle linebacker.

We're not a finished product yet by any stretch of the imagination at quarterback. But I think again, if we handle it properly, we can build on it with the players we have.

We could have won all those eight games. If we look at it overall, we're 53-8 in five years. That's an enviable place to be. ... Without a question, where we are and what we've done is something to be proud of. But as coaches you always look at those eight. Those are the ones that stand out, and it's always going to be that way. The fans look at the eight, but coaches are worse than fans because we can't go home at night and forget about them.

But I think he knows now that he still has things to learn.

For me, it's definitely personally a very tough decision. But it's a decision I think had to be made. ... We have high standards here, high standards are set and I think we have to work hard to live up to those standards.

Santa delivered a huge package under the tree and we may expand his package a little bit.

You can see where the officials (on the field) can miss it. I think it probably took a little longer than most cases because it was a very close call.

Talent wise, I don't have any complaints about that. I think our talent level is good. If we lose a game, it won't be because of talent. We're not going away, people know that.

I'm really excited about Sinorice, ... probably faster than Santana, and I think the thing I see is he has a lot of maturity. Sinorice is one of the leaders. ... I think one thing he has to do to somewhat equal his brother is we have to get him the football. I think we do that and we'll see some really special things of him.

I would have liked to have seen them play better, to be honest. The first-team defensive line won that battle, and they've done that their share of the time.

The decision was mine. Mine alone.

With several Hurricanes sustaining injuries in the season opener at Florida State, including sophomore safety Anthony Reddick's season-ending knee injury, Coker finally had good news to offer heading into Saturday's game. Junior defensive tackle Baraka Atkins (knee), who saw limited time in practice on Tuesday, should be on the field against Clemson this weekend. We definitely expect (Atkins) to play, ... He's much, much better. It's just a situation where we don't want to set him back.

I don't know if there was any central theme or message. I didn't pay much attention to things like we were going to lose the class and all these things. I went into a home upbeat and positive and knew what I had to sell. I know we're going in the right direction.

This was not because of one game. That was a very disappointing game, but we evaluate continuously. When things don't go well, you evaluate and make changes that have to be made.

He's really stepped his game up and developed a lot of confidence, and he's getting a lot of confidence in himself of being able to really contribute and being a marquee player for us.

Having these players come back is a tremendous advantage because they know what it's all about. They know how painful it is to lose. They know how great it is to win at the University of Miami.

A fifth-year senior quarterback cannot give the opponent a touchdown before the half. That's totally a foolish play we can't have.

If a player wants to be the man, this might not be the place for him. It's very competitive here that's one thing the NFL people like so much, ... You tend to reach your potential here more often than in other places, no doubt about it.

I don't think it's a big deal. It's not like he missed two days and we're getting ready to play a game tomorrow.

There's going to be some good battles, good competition.

We're doing a much better job of getting the ball out of the quarterbacks hands and putting the receivers in position to make plays.

It is very important. It's something that we like to have and would like to continue. It is a badge of honor. It's something you like to sell. I'll be surprised if we don't have a first-rounder this year.

The defense did dominate, and I think we have an opportunity to be an outstanding defensive team. We ran the ball a little better today than we have in the spring, but we didn't pass and catch the ball very well. That was the big thing today. Our defense had a great day today.

You don't do the things they are doing allowing nine points a game without being a tremendous defense. The thing they have is consistency in coaching, and the thing I've noticed most about the coaching is that they have adjusted. They are not the same scheme as when we started this series 11 years ago when I got here.