Marcus Banks, State secondary prepping for KJ Jefferson and Arkansas offense
Mississippi State returned to the practice fields this week after a much-needed bye week. After practice, senior safety Marcus Banks met with the media to discuss Saturday’s foe in Arkansas along with the team’s mindset going into the second half of the schedule:
Q: How was it to get back on the practice fields (Monday)?
Banks: It feels good to have your body freshened up and finally get back to football. Getting prepared for Arkansas and get it going with your teammates.
Q: What are your thoughts on Arkansas so far?
Banks: They have a great team. They have explosive players on offense, a great quarterback. They have a great overall team. They’ve been playing good this past few games. We have a tough challenge coming in.
Q: After looking back on the issues in the secondary, anything stand out to you?
Banks: We have to get better as a whole team. We have things we have to clean up as a secondary, on offense and on special teams, and on defense.
Q: Are the veterans putting a chip on their shoulder to get things going in the second half of the season?
Banks: It can be frustrating losing games. All of us as veterans are frustrated. We have to keep focused and get better every day at practice.
Q: What have you seen from Corey Ellington the past couple of games?
Banks: He’s improving. He’s definitely stepped up and was ready when his number was called. He has been productive for the defense.
Q: What keeps the team focused and together during the recent struggles?
Banks: Just don’t panic. This is a competitive league, guys are going to make plays on us. Just have to stay locked in and trust each other as teammates.
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Q: How has the preparation this week for Arkansas been?
Banks: That’s been our main focus, being able to start faster in games. We’ve been outscored 31-0 in the first half, so we have to emulate that in practice…quick practices, not a slow start. Not being focused on the individual warming up and stuff, just getting to football as soon as we can. That’s what we’ve been focusing on.
Q: What gives you confidence that the defense can turn things around moving forward?
Banks: I’ve seen it at practice. We’ve been focusing on starting early. You can feel the different energy. You can feel that people are frustrated with the losses we’ve been taking. We have to put our foot down and say we’re tired of losing. We have to come together and make that big step the second half of the season.
Q: Your thoughts on freshman Isaac Smith and his development?
Banks: He’s definitely been growing every day at practice. He’s been maturing, getting more comfortable with the defense. He’s been out there flying around, making plays. He just has to keep preparing and be ready when his number is called.
Q: You face a different kind of quarterback this week in KJ Jefferson. What makes him so special?
Banks: He’s been playing in the league for a minute now. He can make the right reads. He can make the right throws. He can beat you through the air and he can beat you on the run. We’ve faced familiar quarterbacks, but he’s a different one. He’s very skilled at what he does. A bigger body, so we have to make sure we tackle well in the back end.
