RUSTON, La. - Louisiana Tech head football coach Skip Holtz and select student-athletes spoke with the media Monday in advance of the team's upcoming Homecoming game against North Texas, which is set for 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston.

Head Coach Skip Holtz

"I cannot start without thanking all of the fans that showed up, especially the band. What a difference it made. I never once felt like we were in an away game environment. We got off the bus and the band was playing our fight song. I want to thank the band and the cheerleaders, as well as the fans that were able to come to the game. They definitely made a difference for us as a football team."

"I have great respect for David Bailiff as a friend and as a competitive coach. He is going through a lot of injuries right now, but I think he has a really good football team. We feel very honored to have the opportunity to go on the road and win. It is never easy to win on the road in a conference game. The weather held off and we were able to get it done."

"I think we are getting better. We played hard. The thing I was more impressed with is that we played smart. We played intelligent football. In a game your team really wants to win, sometimes it is about just playing hard. We have made some strides as this year has gone on, in some of the decisions we are making. We limited Rice to big plays and we created some big plays. Our red zone was very productive. Our third down percentages were some of the best on the season. The kicking game was really solid. I just thought this team followed the plan."

"Defensively, Kentrell Brice was our MVP defensively. I thought he had one of his best games so far this year. The senior leadership back there is really standing out. They are doing some very good things. We only gave up two big plays for 60 yards and no touchdowns. They have been scoring over 30 points a game and we held them to 10 points until the final drive when our twos went in. I thought our defense played a really good football game. Their quarterback scrambled so much because our secondary did such a good job that there was nowhere to throw the ball. They had a seasoned quarterback back there that is not going to put the ball in danger. He was going to tuck it and run before he put it up for grabs. Once he pulled that ball down, he was looking for holes. He is a great athlete. We were able to live with that. Sometimes, that is what good quarterbacks are going to get against you. It was probably our best team defensive game. There is not one guy where you can say, `Wow, he had all of these tackles.' It was not a great stat game for any one guy. When you looked at that film, guys are doing their job. They are where they are supposed to be. They are giving up their individuality. It is not about making the play. It is about doing their job. I was really proud to see the way our defense played."

"I would say the same thing offensively. There were a lot of positives. We had zero turnovers and 4-for-4 on touchdowns in the red zone. We were 50 percent on third down, but probably better than that. I got greedy on a third and one and took a deep shot. It probably was not a smart call. The players executed and they were focused. I thought the difference in this game was the way we started. We came out and scored 14 points on our first two drives. At the beginning of the third quarter we took the opening drive and went down and scored. You also look at the way we finished each half. I though Jeff [Driskel] and the offense orchestrated a great two-minute drive, to go down the field and put another touchdown up. Something we have had problems with the past few years is being able to run the ball when everyone in the stadium knows you are going to run it. We were able to get another onside kick. I just think there were a lot of positive things going on with our offense. We got the ball and were able to run out a four-minute drive and finish out the game. That is something we have done a couple times this year. The difference in that game was the way we started and finished each half."

"Upfront, it was one of our better games even though Jeff got hit twice. He took a couple sacks, but I thought one of them was on him. I thought our offensive line played one of its better games. The obvious thing when you look at the numbers is that Kenneth Dixon rushed for just under 100 yards. Carlos [Henderson] and Trent [Taylor] both went over 100 yards. Jeff threw for over 300 yards. We had some great individual efforts from some of our skill players."

"On special teams, I thought we had our best game. We set up three scores and had a kickoff return with Carlos Henderson who went past the 50 and set up a score. We had two punts downed inside the 12-yard line. The defense was able to get a stop and they had to punt the ball, which gave us positive field position. There were just a lot of good things in this game, especially when you are playing a team as good as Rice. That was a place we have never won and it was a conference game. I am really proud of the way this football team played."

"It was a great win and I am proud of these players and what they were able to do. They have an incredibly unselfish attitude right now. You get that win, come home and get ready for your next conference game. We are excited to come and play on Homecoming in front of our home crowd."

"We have North Texas and we have to stay focused. We have to find a way to win one game this week. I know everyone from the outside looks at the record at 1-7, but the other 1-7 team in our league, UTSA, is a team that we had to kick a field goal against on the last play of the game. They just beat UTSA. UTSA has one of the better defensive lines in the league, yet North Texas found a way to have two guys rush for over 100 yards. I know a lot of guys on the staff including Mike Canales, the acting head coach. I have known him for a long time and have great respect for him. He has a great offensive mind and is a great offensive coordinator, as well as quarterback coach. I think he does a great job. Chris Cosh, their defensive coordinator, and I have coached together on two different occasions. I have great respect for him. Kevin Patrick, their defensive line coach, and I coached together at South Florida. Both Mike Grant and Mike Simmonds I have known for a very long time. They are all very good coaches. This is a really well-coached football team. I am not trying to build up a sleeping giant, but I do think they have done a great job. Since some of the changes have been made three games ago, I think you are starting to see a different North Texas team. Those guys have done a great job of keeping all of the oars in the water and keeping everyone in the boat to make sure that thing continues to go forward. I think they have really done a nice job."

"On offense, they had not scored 30 all year and then in two of the last three games, they have scored 28 and 30. They are getting better. They made some changes to the offense including quarterback. They have a very athletic quarterback. He is the most athletic quarterback we have played to date. He has played in three games and rushed for over 100 yards in two of the three games. He is a really dynamic football player with the ball under his arm. They have a tailback that is third or fourth in the conference, rushing for over 100 yards a game. They are second in the league in rushing and doing it with a two-headed monster. Their wide receiver, Carlos Harris, already has 48 catches so far this season. He is a very dynamic football player. Their offensive line is big and playing well together."

"Defensively, they have made a lot of changes. They are very multiple. They give you a lot of looks. They have changed their coverages up. We took our cut-ups from last year and threw them out. They are running something completely different. Their safeties are very involved with the running game. Both of their safeties are their leading tacklers. They are a physical bunch with how they play. They have really good speed at corner. I think they are playing really hard right now. There is a strong buy-in factor that you can see with this football team."

"They have also made some changes with their special teams. They have a new punt returner in Tre Johnson. He is averaging 11 yards a try. He is very explosive and very dynamic. He has been back there the past couple of weeks. They have a punter who is not just on the Ray Guy Award Watch List, he is a nominee. He has ten kicks over 50 yards, averaging 44 yards a punt. Everyone wants to look at their record and say this is going to be a cakewalk. We do not have that luxury. We are watching the film and we are preparing to play a football team that is going to come in here with a chip on their shoulder. They can put a feather in their cap. I think their staff is doing a good job of keeping everything together. We just have to be prepared and get focused. We have to find a way to go 1-0. That is the goal this week."

On Jaylon Ferguson:

"Having a guy rush the passer makes a difference. [Vontarrius] Dora played one of his best games, although statistically he was not all over the stat sheet. I think Jaylon is really playing solid. He is making a huge impact right now. He is leading us in sacks and he has only started three or four games. He is disruptive. He does not always do what he is supposed to do; sometimes he is ready, fire, aim. At the same point in time, when he is going, he gets there in a hurry. He has a long body and can make a lot of plays. For a redshirt freshman, he is making a huge impact on the defense."

On teams responding to a midseason coaching change:

"Sometimes when things are not going the way you want them to, players are looking to embrace something that is new. I think Mike Canales and Chris Cosh have done a great job. When you have change like that in the middle of the year, it can go one of two ways. It is either going to tear you apart or pull you closer together. I am seeing a football team that is playing with a whole new passion and a whole new energy. They are playing with a new confidence. They have changed some personnel and schematically and the players have really bought in. Right now you are seeing it in their attitude and the way they are playing."

"I think you can take stats and throw them out of the window this game because you are looking at a team that for the first six games gave up some really lopsided numbers. It really skews the statistics. What we have done as a staff is really broken it down over the past three games. In the past three games, they have played two of the best teams on the other side in Marshall and Western Kentucky. They got beat by 25, then 17 and then won a close game against UTSA. That confidence with them is building. We have broken it down since the staff change and quarterback change. It does not do you any good to watch some of the film from earlier in the season. You have film from the last three games. That is what we are looking at statistically. I do think there is enough of a difference that the first six games really do not matter."

On Tech's linebacker depth:

"We have one less than we had coming in. I do not know yet who will start. We are going to have to move the pawns around a little bit. We will have to put the pieces together and find the best combination. You have the guys who have played a backup role. With [Michael] Mims out and Nick Thomason out for right now, we do not know who will start. Brandon Durman will be in the race, as well as Russell Farris and [Dae'von] Washington. There will be a number of guys."

On the offensive line:

"We have been fortunate to have the same lineup since the first game. Eight games ago we have to move David Mahaffey to center. He was our fourth center. We had to start O'Shea Dugas and I do not know that was the way we wanted to go into the opening conference game with Western Kentucky, but that is what we had. Since then, we have been able to have that same starting lineup. Those same guys have been able to play. I even think a couple of guys like [Deontae] McCrady, Shane Carpenter and others are getting better. The consistency and having the opportunity for them to gel and start to play together has helped. The offensive line has to play together like they are all attached at the hip. They all have to move in unison together in one direction. When we first put Mahaffey in, it was like we had five guys moving in five different directions. Somebody tried to identify the front and make the calls, yet it was the first game he had ever played the position. I look at where we were eight weeks ago and where we are now and we are a much better offensive line. Everyone is really starting to come together a little bit."

QB Jeff Driskel

On having fun:

"Winning is always fun. Enjoying the process is the best thing I have gotten out of this year. It is a great group of guys. We have a great coaching staff. It is easy to come to work every day and enjoy the process."

On Trent Taylor:

"Like you said, he is always open, so he is going to get a lot of targets. It is weird. If you throw the ball behind him, he can stop and turn his body and make it look like a good throw. Sometimes if I put the ball behind him, he makes it look good. He has great body control and great hands. He always gets yards after the catch. I do not have enough good things to say about Trent. He is over 1,000 yards this year through nine games, which is incredible. He is having a great year and that is just something we expect. He can make a guy miss and duck under tackles. He is dynamic with the ball in his hands and very shifty. He is a guy that will continue to get the ball a lot."

On being comfortable with receivers:

"I think since the beginning of the year I have been comfortable. That goes back to the spring and getting to know the offense and receivers. This summer was huge. I was able to see who comes out of their hips on their breaks. I was able to know the speed of each receiver and knowing what each receiver is good at. I continue to get more comfortable each week, but since the beginning of the year I have been comfortable with them. As any season goes, you are going to get better and more comfortable every game."

On North Texas film:

"I have not gotten a chance to watch a lot of tape, but one thing I have noticed is that they are doing more things on defense since the coaching change. They were more four-down and quarter based. You know where they are going to be. Now they are getting into some three-down fronts and moving guys around. They are trying to give the offense more looks and try to confuse the quarterback. I think they are playing hard. I think they are coming off a week where they beat a good UTSA team. We have a big challenge ahead of us. We know that we cannot overlook anyone because anybody can be anybody on any given day."

On preparing for North Texas:

"You have to prepare like you would for anyone else. We are going to come in, watch the tape, practice hard and work hard. We will listen to the coaches and it will be the same old. It is the same thing over and over again. Coach always said it was a faceless opponent. That is how we are going to attack this week, just like any other week."

S Kentrell Brice

On the secondary taking criticism:

"We accept and embrace the criticism because we always want to be the best that we can be. We come in each and every week and we work hard and prepare each week on the practice field to ensure that we can be the best that we can be on any given Saturday."

On noticing any differences of North Texas following its coaching change:

"They changed their quarterback. They went with a senior, the most experienced guy who knew what to do and what not to do. He is a more athletic guy so you have to look at the quarterback run game where he can get outside the pocket and scramble. We have to really hone in and focus on the little details and make sure we execute the game plan that we have in place."

On Rice's quarterback being able to run for positive yardage:

"It was probably miscommunication. The defensive lineman may have been seeing something different than he thought he saw and then the quarterback just got outside of the pocket. I am pretty sure we will have that fixed this weekend."

On comparing the running ability of North Texas's quarterback to Rice's quarterback:

"He is probably as elusive, or maybe a little bit more. He is a great quarterback."

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