Dontae Manning Previews Boise State Matchup

Senior cornerback Dontae Manning recorded four tackles in Oregon’s Week 1 win over the Idaho Vandals. He met with reporters following Tuesday’s practice in Eugene.

Below you’ll find a complete transcription of his press conference and some analysis.

Question: After watching the tape on Sunday how do you guys feel you’re prepared going into this second week?

Manning: “We went to go see the doctor. We’re just ready to go out and perform and kind of let the world know what we’ve been working on.”

Question: What’d the doctor say?

Manning: “The doctor didn’t really like what he saw. We’re just gonna correct it, get back in there and take it to the practice field.”

Question: What were the things for you guys defensively Dontae that were an issue?

Manning: “Just being able to communicate solid through, making sure that we all got the same call and able to play the same call. Just being able to tackle and just make sure we’re all around the ball.”

Question: What do you guys think you did well? Because the defense for the most part held its own.

Manning: “I think we came out there with the energy that we said we were gonna come out with. Nobody felt like they were jittery or scared or anything. I feel like we perfectly executed what we thought we were gonna do as far as attacking the ball as much as we did. We would like to get some of those, but we did great on attacking the ball.”

Question: Dan said Boise’s running back might be the best he’s coached against since coming here. What have you seen on film that makes him a player like that?

Manning: “He’s a real stocky back. He can move in space. Just real nice.”

Question: How important is pre-snap communication gonna be for you this week? Dan talked about they just do a lot of motions, a lot of checks and stuff.

Manning: “It’s gonna be real crucial. Just being able to know what call you’re in before pre-snap and then post-snap, knowing if the call changed or not. So just making sure that the defense is on one page is gonna be real critical this week.”

Question: What have you seen from their quarterback on film that you’re keying on this week?

Manning: “He’s a pretty good quarterback. Able to make those shots and when it’s a fake able to carry those fakes out real nice. He can rally the team. So the team is behind him. He’s a pretty real good quarterback.”

Question: Kind of a rotation at corner. What was that like coming in and out so frequently?

Manning: “Just making sure that everybody can get their rhythm in a game. Making sure that nobody’s too late in the game to find their rythm. Just making sure everybody’s juiced up and kind of got the blood flowing.”

Torres’ Take

It’s now or never for Manning. It’s now year five at Oregon and he’s a solid rotational piece at corner. I’m not sure if he’ll be a lockdown option at this point, but if he can be a reliable option for Rashad Wadood and Chris Hampton, I think you’ll take that.

I could see Manning losing some snaps to Nikko Reed this year after he grabbed an interception against Idaho. I hope he continues to elevate his game and find more ways to make an impact in his final year of college football. Even if he doesn’t make a massive impact on the field, I think he still has a lot of value mentoring the promising young talent the Ducks have a cornerback.