WATCH: State offensive line coach Will Friend searching for consistency up front
Following Tuesday’s practice, Mississippi State offensive line coach Will Friend met with the media to discuss his position group. Overall, Friend is still looking for consistency in the trenches and hopes to see that this Saturday against Western Michigan:
Q: Where do you feel like the offensive line is at this point?
Friend: We’ve got a lot to improve on. We’ve got to continue to get better, targeting the right people. Those issues that come up and create some negative things so that’s something we got to do better. That’s something the guys understand and we’re working on right now. We’ve got to improve a bunch.
Q: Your thoughts on Western Michigan’s defense?
Friend: Very talented. They create a lot of issues being able to blend their fronts and do it in a lot of different varieties. They’ve got two or three guys that are really good football players. They create havoc for the other team. They play extremely hard. We’re going to have to be ready to go because they play hard, they play fast, and they create issues schematically that can be problems. So, you have to be on top of your game to be able to handle it.
Q: What needs to happen Saturday for you to feel better about the line in the run game and the pass game?
Friend: We’d like to be able to do both things in one game. We haven’t been able to put it together in one football game to be complete. Go back to work, continue to work. When you’re multiple, you’ve got to be able to do more than one thing. We must improve that part.
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Q: So far, has anyone stood out to you on the offensive line?
Friend: One of the problems we have is everybody has taken some turns in being pretty good at times. Consistency has been an issue. We’ve got to improve that. The plays have been cut down so much in college football now, if you’re not efficient and not playing clean and consistent, the game has changed and it’s over. You have to be able to start out fast and be consistent throughout a game. We’ve got to improve that as a group.
Q: Woody Marks has run the ball well this year and Jeffery Pittman is getting better each game at running back. Your thoughts on those guys?
Friend: They’ve done a good job. Those kids play hard and they’re good players. Coach (Tony) Hughes and Coach (Greg) Knox do a great job with those kids. Not only as runners, but they’re good blockers too. Good team players. All of them – Woody, Pit and Seth (Davis) – go down the list, they all have done some good things when given the opportunity.
