Utah State head coach Gary Andersen addresses the media about the 2012 USU football signing class.


USU HEAD COACH GARY ANDERSEN:


OPENING STATEMENT:


“First of all, we would like to welcome the 15 young men that signed with us today to our family, it is great to have them with us. As was mentioned we do have some additions with some walk-on young men that have been awarded scholarships and obviously some missionary kids. It’s a great day, it kind of went how we thought it would. If I have to review just in a nutshell, very quickly, this recruiting schedule went all the way down to the last minute, did we get everybody that we wanted? No, but, I think if we look at ourselves, the other people we recruited against, other schools, whether it was BCS schools or teams in different conferences, the level of competition went up again for us and it’s continued to do that every single year. I felt that the coaches reacted reasonably well to that, we can learn from this recruiting process we just went through without question and be better in certain areas but overall it was highly competitive.”


“I thought that our young men in the program, when the kids came in for trips on the weekends did an outstanding job of representing our program, representing Cache Valley and letting people again completely understand really what we are about. We are not in the business to change for young men, we are in this business to change young men’s lives in a positive direction and get them a degree, socially put them in a position to grow and develop from young men into men and then to obviously play quality football. That will always be our vision through our recruiting plan and the recruiting years.”


“If you break down the class, obviously always a heavy emphasis in the state of Utah, it was an interesting year in the state of Utah, you always like to say we have more, I don’t know if I will be happy and say that we got everybody that we wanted from the state of Utah. That is not the case, but I think that it is a solid class in the state of Utah, especially if you look at the returning missionaries that are back and you look at the young men that are in our program that were walk-ons that have been awarded and those kids are getting scholarships, so in my mind they are just like a young man that is in this signing class, as we continue to make that a major emphasis in our program.”


“We ventured out, again had some success in Florida, that was great to see, we are very happy with those two young men. We had a couple of young men late in the process that we did not end up getting from Florida, but I think that our name continues to grow and is becoming more valued as the young men in our program have success and we are very excited about the two young men that we got. Throughout California, again we had some success, we will always be heavy in that area and it was good to us. We will continue to fight those fights within California; Arizona was very good again and we did get some outside relationships all the way into Milwaukee. Coach Busch did a nice job of getting up there and communicating with a young man and a former acquaintance he had from coaching that really helped us get another quality young man from there.”


“It was a great day overall, I think that the cycle went well for us overall in bringing quality young men into the program. We still have four more to go, so this recruiting class is not done, we have two more on offense and two more on defense. We will still look for a possibility on offense of a quarterback, it does not have to be, it is not easy to recruit a quarterback when you have a freshman like Chuckie Keeton and the future is solidified obviously for years to come. We will look and see where that goes, but obviously Jeff Manning comes back off of a mission and is a true freshman. We will continue to look into that, if there is a freshman there this year, we will take him and if not, we may push that back to the next year. We’re still looking for a running back, looking for a defensive end and then a difference maker on the defensive side of the ball is the tab for that other spot, it could be any position just depending on best available.”


“We’re excited about these young men, I want to point out five of the former walk-on young men that have earned scholarships for us, they are important to this program and Utah kids are very important. We are 50 plus kids in the program from the state of Utah and the five men, McKade Brady, Jefferson Court, B.J. Larsen, Brad Theurer and Zach Vigil are all young men that came in here as walk-ons and are now our scholarship players. Congratulations to them and their families, they have worked very hard and they deserve it and they deserve to be recognized for that.”


“It is great to have the three missionaries back, Eric (Berntson) has come back and done a nice job. He is in the weight room working hard for us. Jeff (Manning) is back in the weight room doing a nice job, working hard for us and Travis Parrish is the third young man that has come back and done a tremendous job. It is great to have those three Utah return missionaries back in our program. Excited about those young men. That is really what I have got for you.”


DO YOU SEE ANYONE OF THESE PLAYERS COMING IN AS AN “IMPACT” PLAYER?


“There are a few kids and we look at the junior college young men, first of all one thing I should mention is Alex Wheat has three years left to play, he is a junior college player but he does have three years left to play. If I just go down the list to a few of those junior college kids, Devonta Glover-Wright, or Tay is what he will be known as from this point on is what he prefers, he is a tremendous, tremendous athlete. He played some quarterback, there is a chance with Jeff (Manning) being a true freshman just back off his mission that Tay may be a third quarterback for us next year. He has versatility similar to what Stanley Morrison did, but that will not be his major position, he will be a corner back, he is a very gifted returner also. So I would expect him to have an immediate impact. Jordan Jenkins is already in our program, a young man from St. Louis, Coach Busch recruited him and he is here as a wide receiver and we expect him to play. Dwayne Lorick is another young man that we expect to come in here and play, he is a physical specimen, he is 6-5, 230 pounds and he runs really well. If you just watch his highlight tape, he will wow you. He is a special young man and the key is to get those young men through school and have them finish and take care of them that way. I would fully expect those young men to come in, Bill Vavau is another young man that we would ask to come in and Patrick Ward was also a lineman that we asked to come in and to compete. A lot of that will have to do with the timing of them getting on campus. Lastly would be Alex Wheat, another wide receiver, a junior college player, he is going to be three for three but we are going ask him to come in and compete and play right away. Now, how much do they play? That ball is in their court but, all of those junior college kids we have asked to come in and to compete.”


IS THERE SOMETHING ON FILM THAT IMPRESSED YOU THE MOST WHEN WATCHING THESE GUYS?


“Yes, overall athleticism. Without question, I think if you look at this crew, even from the offensive lineman Patrick Ward is a very gifted athletic offensive tackle at the junior college level and Bill Vavau plays three different positions. (Jake) Simonich runs very well for an offensive lineman when you break those kids down. Logan (Malihifi’ou) who is now currently in the program, those are all very athletic offensive linemen. From there, the skill just continues to get better, I was very impressed with the athleticism, the speed that these young men show on tape and their ability to change directions. One thing I’d say that really jumps out at me with this class is overall athleticism.”


WHAT IMPRESSED YOU THE MOST WITH THESE KIDS?


“Let me answer that by saying this, we have developed ourselves as a program to where we ask our young men to when they on trips, to understand who we are and enjoy their experience and their time in Logan, but also it is a job interview for those kids. The thing that is most impressive for these 15 that we actually got and signed today is how prepared and how excited that they were to wrap their arms around Cache Valley, Utah State University and what Logan as a city is truly about. I think our coaches did a tremendous job of prepping them and again understanding that this is who we are, this is what we are about and you need to be prepared to be very happy that you are in this environment. You are very lucky to be in this environment and those 15 kids were unbelievably excited about the opportunities that they had to move forward in life socially, academically and athletically and they knew that this atmosphere was best for them. There are three or four kids that we brought on trips this year in which that was not the case, there were a couple of young men where our players actually came back and said ‘Coach this might not be the best fit for that kid,’ I think that that is a big statement for the young men in our program to be able to make that statement and it is also and area that we can learn as recruiting coaches and I can learn as a head coach to continuously work to develop the plan to prepare the young men to walk into Logan.”



HOW DID THE BOWL GAME APPEARANCE HELP WITH RECRUITING?


“I believe that it was a very big impact initially when we got into homes and it shows people that we are making strides, we are playing big time Division I football now and we are playing games that are meaningful late in the season, we are competing for championships and we are playing in bowl games. It is a big step in the right direction for us, again you walk in and that Utah State logo is something that people are used to seeing and there were two instances this last season I would look back and constantly heard while I was on the road, and I am not out there nearly as much as the assistant coaches, was really simply the Auburn game and the bowl game. It is a big step in the right direction as far as getting ourselves out there and letting people understand the quality of football that we do play. It is amazing how visible you do become as a community and as a university through those simple commercials that are on during those game when you are on national television. Thirdly would be the Friday night BYU game when we have the center of attention of the nation, if you are going to watch football that night you are watching that game.”


DID YOU HAVE TO FIGHT FOR ANY OF THESE PLAYERS TO THE BITTER END TO SWAY THEM?


“Yes, quite a few of them. If I just go down this list, Delroy Hamilton has four or five teams come in these last two weeks and really jump in and say hey give us a chance to take some shots at you here. Dwayne Lorick was continually recruited through out this whole process. Bill Vavau he was always solid, he committed to us almost a year ago now, but be continually had people all over him. Alex Wheat and it is an interesting story, Ta (Glover-Wright) and Alex Wheat are actually roommates now, came from a long ways away to meet each other and they are finishing up at a Kansas junior college but they are roommates and as people went through the process other coaching staffs found where those two kids were, one kid played junior college in California, one kid played junior college in Arizona and now all of the sudden there they sit in Hutchinson, Kansas, which is not a natural stopping point for airplanes, so you have to find your way there but to find those two guys together and as roommates was a great advantage for us early but as that process went on people started to find out where they were and tried to get access to those kids and tried to sway them but they both held tight. There was a number of recruiting battles that went down to as I said even until last night and didn’t win them all. We lost one last night at 10:30, we lost one late and it was unfortunate but it is what is.”


HOW DID YOU OPEN UP THIS FLORIDA PIPELINE TO BE ABLE TO GET KIDS TO PLAY HERE?


“Cory Raymond started it without question. Cory came in and talked with me about the possibility of going to Florida and I had never recruited there before, so I just listened and Cory was very comfortable and confident that he could go in and get something started there and he absolutely did and that first class that he got out of there was a quality class and those kids have done a great job for us. Now the success of those young men on the field, the success of those young men off the field basically put (Bruce) Jojo (Natson) and and Delroy (Hamilton) in a situation this year to where they were very excited, committed early and hung tough with Utah State in a highly competitive recruiting environment as time went on. Cory started it and I think Javon (Bouknight) has done a tremendous job of maintaining it and we will next year have two coaches in the state of Florida, not just one.”


IS TAVARREON DICKERSON RELATED TO ERIC DICKERSON?


“Not that I know of. He is going to be his own Dickerson. You will get a good look at him in spring ball.”


IS THERE ANYONE ON THIS LIST THAT WILL RED-SHIRT OR GREY-SHIRT OR GO ON A MISSION?


“DJ (Nelson) will go on a mission, so DJ is a mission guy right out of the gate. We are good to go with that one. Other than that all of these young men should be with us, I don’t see any grey-shirts out of them, there may be a couple of grey-shirts as we move forward through this process but right now they are not on this sheet. I feel good about these kids. Andrew Chen, he may end up being a grey-shirt, it just depends. We want to do what is best for him. He is an offensive lineman that is a tremendous player, he is that typical multi-sport athlete in high school, a year off for him might be the best thing to grow and develop, but we will see. He is the only other possibility of a grey-shirt, not a mission.”


NO SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYERS, DO YOU FEEL SATISFIED WITH THAT YOU CURRENTLY HAVE ON ROSTER?


“I do. Spring ball will have a lot to do with this, typically kickers are a little bit different as you recruit, we will not slam the door on the possibility of bring in a kicker, there is some good kickers in the future, in state that we feel very good about and are excited about the opportunity to recruit them and see where it goes. For next year, I want to continue to take a long hard look at that, we all know that we had our up’s and down’s last year in that area and in special teams and we are looking to solidify that. To say that we won’t have a new kicker, I cannot say that. We are recruiting everything right now but I am interested to see how these young men grow and develop and fight themselves through spring ball. We will continue to find the best available, I would love to find a kickoff guy that can kick the ball into the end zone consistently and as you watch college football that is not an easy thing, not many teams can do that but we would sure like to find that guy.”


IMPACT OF NEW DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR DAVE ARANDA ON RECRUITING TRAIL:


“It was a little bit tough for him to get involved, I think the best days there are ahead for sure. When young men came in on their trips he was able to get with the commits on the defensive end of the ball. He brings a very stabilizing force to our coaching staff. He’s well-centered, he’s well-traveled. He understands the ins and outs and the ups and downs of recruiting. His defenses speak for themselves with their numbers. The effect he had was very positive, but minimal because of the time frame.”


ON “JOJO” (NATSON) AND HIS SMALL 145-POUND SIZE:


“That’s probably cheating, he’s probably not that heavy to be honest with you. He’s like Stanley (Morrison), he’s always going to be. But he’s fast and again, like Stanley in his confidence and the excitement he brings into the room. He’s an electrifying young man on and off the field. He’s going to be little and skinny and unassuming when you see him, but when the ball is in his hands, it’s different. Hopefully we can get him up to 145 by the time he gets here, he probably weighs that with a soaking wet down jacket on.”


ANY UPDATE ON MATT AUSTIN?


“We have not heard anything, still waiting on that. We are very optimistic that will take place though.”


ON LATE SIGNING WOULD PLAYERS LIKE REUBEN THOMAS OR PAUL PIUKALA, GUYS THAT HAVE BEEN ON RADAR BEFORE, BE IN THE MIX?


“Those two young men will not be signing. Where that all sits I don’t know for sure. The guys you’re going to see are Michael Oknokwo, those type of young men. If we sit back and look at the kids we’ve recruited late here, we’ve had great success. I feel like we’re going to be able to reach out. There are a lot of stories out there across the nation of why a young man didn’t sign or why all of a sudden he busted out a test score that he needed, or he went to a junior college but decided he only wants to play one year. We will recruit as hard as we’ve recruited all year long for the next four or five weeks as well as recruit hard during spring ball. We practice every other day, and that’s so we can keep recruiting and fill those four spots with quality young players.”


WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES IN RECRUITING IN UTAH:


“It’s highly competitive. We’re going to get into every fight in the state that there is. There’s a couple of those that the young men were highly recruited and they opted to go elsewhere, but we’ve got to continue to break down those barriers to get in to those homes and win consistently. We were right there at the end with three or four young men, and when you’re talking it’s BYU and Utah that you’re fighting against. Those are two very established programs and we’re continuing to be there. Young men are right there with us to the end, and some choose us, others don’t. That’s a big focus, to establish relationships early and be with the proper people as we go through the process. Our coaches are doing a good job, I think the in-state coaches believe in us. You’re never going to make everyone happy in-state because everyone thinks that they have a bunch of players and it’s hard for some people to accept it. I feel good about what we’re doing in-state, but I’ll never be satisfied with the number we have. I’d like it to be more, but it’s moving in the right direction.”


ON JASON FANAIKA LEAVING THE PROGRAM:


“Yes, he has. Jason is deciding what’s next in his life. That’s really all I’ve got on that. I guess Jason will have to move on. A year ago he was preparing to go on a mission, and he’s not with us now. I don’t know what his next step is, but I’ll support him and I wish him all the best. I have much love for him and his family and they know that, but right now the timing isn’t right at Utah State.”


ON RECRUITING AREAS AND PRODUCTIVITY AND COMPARING WITH THE PAST RECRUITING CLASSES:


“At the end, you’re always responsible for your area, and as a recruiting coach, your productivity. I say it time and time again that the two most important things you do in the program are number one, take care of your kids in the program. Number two, is recruit. That’s it. The best coaches in America can have bad players and you’ve got no chance, and that’s a fact. The discipline level and the high character of kids you want to achieve, is never perfect, but we work hard at that. Those are the two most important things you do. We sat down this morning and evaluated each coach on his productivity over the last two years. Then we looked over each area and asked where we were being the most productive and tried to understand why we were being more productive here and maybe less productive there. We’ll come back on Monday morning and set our recruiting areas for this year and as we move forward, based on that. We will put two coaches in the state of Florida.”


IS THE RECRUITING COORDINATOR STILL COACH WELLS?


“Coach Wells and Coach Tuiaki split that last year, but now it’s going to be Coach Tuiaki and Coach Busch. With Coach Wells moving over and running the offense, there’s not enough time to do that as well. We believe in having two coordinators in that area. One kind of handles the incoming information, the other handles the outgoing information. There’s a lot that goes into that, but those two will handle it and do a great job.”


ON HAVING MORE DEPTH:


“If there’s one spot I’m worried about, the depth of the offensive line is the exact same spot I was worried about last year. Our numbers there are not tremendous, but getting better. It’s a big spring for the Whimpey boys (Kyle and Kevin), it’s a big spring for Jorden Mattinson, Taani Fisilau, young men that are in our program that are going to be asked to step up. Our depth we obviously went out and got Logan (Malohifo’ou), got Patrick (Ward), got Bill (Vavau). We felt like we needed a couple JC guys, a couple young guys and then another long, tall, developmental kid. If you look at those four offensive lineman, two that we need to play next year, two that can develop, but it’s still a concern for me. Depth at the running back position, on paper doesn’t worry me, but the lack of experience at that position does worry me. I feel like the defensive line depth is OK, but I’d like to see some separation between the ones and the twos. I like our depth at linebacker, but I don’t like the lack of experience with Kyle (Gallagher) and Bobby (Wagner) both being gone. We can go on and on with that, but number one focus is offensive line and number two would be running backs.”


ON PROGRESS OF GUYS WHO MISSED LAST YEAR - BRYCE WALKER, BRYAN SUITE AND GAVIN JONES:


“Bryce Walker is 100 percent. He’s doing a great job, not wearing a brace, he’s at full-scale workouts and will be 100 percent for spring ball, as is Bryan Suite. His shoulder seems to be completely healed, he’s doing a great job and I’m very excited to see him get out and compete. I think he’ll be at a very high level. Gavin Jones is also fully recovered. He’s been a little bit under the weather for the last three or four days, but he’ll be back and I expect him to have a good spring as well. I feel very good about these young men walking into spring. Right now we’re healthy. I stutter a little bit there because it scares me to say that word, but we’re healthy.”



ON BOBBY WAGNER’S PERFORMANCE IN THE SENIOR BOWL:


“That one makes me smile. Bobby had a great day. He was so excited. He called me during that week just happy and saying ‘Hey Coach, I’m doing really good’ and I just said ‘Bobby, that’s no surprise to me. You’re a good player and I told you the next step wasn’t as big as some kids make it be.’ He felt like he practiced well, he felt like his interviews went well, he felt like he competed at a high level and got into the game. When an opportunity presented itself he made plays just like Bobby always does. To get an MVP award in that game is something very special for us as a school and it’s very special for Bobby. We’ll make sure we get that up on the walls. He called me again after the game and was just very, very happy. We wish him nothing but the best. I’m sure his stock went up in that football game.”


ON SPRING BALL:


“It’s six weeks away. Starting next Monday we have five more training weeks, then spring break. The spring game is April 28. The schedule is a little bit different this year. We’ll practice on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday this year except for the spring game. Tuesdays and Thursdays we’ll practice at 6:15 in the morning, then we’ll practice on Friday afternoons. Those will be our scrimmages and our big, physical practices.”




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