Quick Hits: Texas Tech coaches share thoughts during Tech Media Days

The RRS staff is here at The Jones for Tech Media Days. We sit down with each coach to talk about their units, season outlook, potential top performers, and much more. Below is a quick recap of our conversation with each of the coaches.

-Morris said you can't have enough experienced players and they have a lot.

-Starting 3 seniors and a junior with the junior being the best of the bunch.

-Depth might be an issue but they have about 9-10 guys that they are comfortable with.

-Excited to have his receivers "developed now" there is a lot of trust between him and his group due to many of them being around for 3-4 years.

-"Team Chemistry is at an all-time high right now." "Stronger bond throughout the team than he has ever seen." Guys will be playing for each other and playing for Texas Tech.

-With Nic at the helm, they don't practice the scramble drill as much. Offense will look like it did 3-4 years ago. More timing as opposed to broken down plays that ended up "being fun to watch."

-Nic will rely more on his brains than his legs. Nic throws the ball really well but nobody can throw like Patrick Mahomes.

-They will also rely a little bit more on the running game than in the past with Nic at the helm.

-Coach Jones and coach Juluke get along really well. If Morris can't find Juluke, he is usually in Jones' offense and vice versa. They are always working late at night to make the run game that much better. They have added a lot to the run game and they put in a lot of work.

-Keke Coutee can be really good....

-Morris loves Xavier Martin's raw athletic ability. He can play...but will he be tough enough? Time will tell. He has all the intangibles to be a guy. "Smart as all get out." and knows the offense. Morris said he will put Martin in with the 2s and see what he can do.

-Kingsbury giving Morris the ability to script it all and call the offense. Kingsbury will be with the offense every other day with Kingsbury having more "hands on" with the defense.

-Want to get back to the basics with the run game -- won't to run zone better, inside zone and outside zone. Have also looked at other offenses to see how they use their personnel. Super athletic tackles and will use them differently than year's past.

-Excited to get back to Lubbock. Been trying to get back since 2008.

-Have already studied the first four opponents and their tendencies. Have definitely put the work in. They HAVE to get better than last season but have put in a lot of work.

-Experience was the biggest issue last year. Now they are more experienced.

-Focusing more on being a cohesive unit with no weak links. Last year may have had 3 guys doing it right and 2 doing it wrong. That won't work. To correct this, they do tons of walk throughs, over and over again.

-Spends more time with the center and is the guy who he trusts the most and gets after. He needs the whole OL to trust the center to get the right calls and be the guy on the OL.

-Paul Stawarz has come out of his shell now that they are expecting him to be a leader. He wants to be technical and wants to do exactly what you teach him.

-Will start Madison Akamnonu and Jack Anderson at guard first and then will try the grad transfers. Won't play favorites...will play the five best guys.

-Loves the grad transfers more than JUCOs. More experience.

-Biggest difference from last year's run game is that they have simplified it all. They will run 6 zone concepts and will rock it. "You will see improvement."

-Loves his two tackles. Feels confident in Bruffy and Steele. Expects a great camp and great season.

-The future is bright with all the young guys they have brought in. Jones would have chosen those guys anywhere he went. Deaton is at center and is your future there. Jack is the alpha and they keep him reeled in.

-Jack Anderson thinks "He is God's gift to football." so he has had some humbling experiences. They love him, though, and he separates himself by wanting to be the best.

-The big things is that Jones wants them to stay together. They will break him down, but they will do what they can to keep them together through the adversity.

-Spring ball got off to a good start. Guys bought into his philosophy right away. They respect him, respect Gibbs and he has a good group.

-Mentioned freshmen Nelson Mbanasor and Tyler Carr as standout guys as freshmen.

-Clean slate in spring ball and evaluated them. Each practice he graded their film and had interviews with each one at the end of the spring and told them what he wanted from them as they headed into the summer and into the fall.

-Most improved: Kolin Hill. Mos consistent: Broderick Washington.

-Zach Barnes stood out as a guy who can get after the QB.

-Projects Eli Howard to be a big contributor.

-"Broderick can be a force against offensive lines this upcoming season." "He carries himself well and comes with the right mentality every day." Challenges himself every day and acts like a senior. Excited to have two more years with him. He can get after the QB, too.

-Broderick and Mych Thomas can move between nose and tackle. Some guys will be strictly nose or tackle. Houston Miller will play tackle and strongside DE and is very coachable. JJ Watt body-type.

-Views Zach Barnes as a legitimate threat for opposing offenses.

-Not opposed to stunting more or stunting less, it's just whatever they decide.

-Lonzell won starting rush end job following the spring but it starts over in fall ball. Kolin Hill won't give up. There is no telling how good he can be due to his athleticism.

-How his unit "responds" is what he is really looking for.

-A lot of new faces and a lot of guys Lubbock will have to get used to seeing. "You will have to get your program out."

-Having new guys and experienced guys all on the same page is important. They have all kinds of outings to get the unit closer together. The things outside the field house is just as important to build the group.

-The new JUCO guys had to learn what it was like to "earn the double T" the new guys never had the Double T. The new guys want to do it the right way but they also don't know "the old way" they want to make a name for themselves.

-All the DBs add to the competition...not just among the secondary but also among the WRs.

-Scott tries to divy up the reps and runs out of reps which makes each rep much more valuable. With so little reps to go around, it just adds to the competition.

-All Adrian Frye knows how to do is "go" he is very humble but very hungry. If he carries that attitude, he will be a big contributor going forward.

-DJ understands that "we have to get the job done." He knows that when he steps on the field, his name is on that work. Coach Scott's name is on the on the field product. DJPB has taken pride in that. He has taken pride in the on-field product.

-The five years have gone fast so far. Excited for the third year continuity on defense.

-Biggest emphasis heading into this season : Defensive takeaways and running the ball. Two biggest issues wanting to fix.

-The players have really taken a liking to Juluke and Jones' run game changes. Expects big things from the RBs this year.

-Haven't had the luxury of an identity and a culture on defense a la Phil Bennett or K-State's DC. Has seen big strides in that aspect from the spring.

-Dakota Allen has been a model citizen as they expected. They knew the type of man he was. They feel like he will be a great testimony for the younger players.

-No one does it better as a program than the New England Patriots. Visited to get an overall comprehensive view of their program.

-The offense operating at peak capacity will be quick. Quick reads with a solid run game. He expects the offense at a very high level with experience across the board.

-Was in Zach kittley's offense every day since he walked on. Prepared like he was a started last year. Had a lot of "starting QB time" than people expect.

-Would compare the offense to the BJ Symons' years. Expects a monster year from Nic.

-Didn't get Justin Stockton "started" last year but that's on Kliff.

-Linebacker group is a lot different than last year. They aren't little babies going to go play grown men. They have a lot more depth and they know what is going on. Can jump in and out of coverages and get into scheme...no more having to worry about the basics. They know.

-Dakota Allen has always been a great young man. Spav's biggest message is to just be himself. Be positive. Address the issues as a leader. He is the oldest LB in his group. With age comes maturity. He is a huge resource for the linebacker room. His guidance and leadership will be huge.

-Allen and Brooks can be "really good" Allen is instinctive in the box and Brooks can overlap. They will play off of each other really well. Will put pressure on them to be the leaders.

-Brooks -- health-wise -- is on track. Has done a great job in the offseason and is "full go"

-Hinton has had a lot of pressure with a lot of ups and downs. He has gotten much more consistent on the field and off the field. He will make a run.

-Spav loves the depth and the competition. First year where they will have to go into a room and choose who will travel with the team. It's not a matter of if you are on the team, you go now.

-Loves Riko Jeffers' big body. They look like Big 12 LBs and now need them to play like it. Jeffers came in at 247 and they had to put him on the weight management program. Will be fun and will get a lot of snaps. "We are going to put his nose out there."

-Looking forward to year three. First two years weren't good enough, the product wasn't good enough. The biggest thing in year three is consistency across the board. "You'll see a better looking defense than what I've put out there."

-Has never taken him three years for a defensive turnaround. It was a learning process. If you love what you do, you put your head down and go. You grind it out to make the proper changes and adjustments. Looking forward to this team and even having Kingsbury around.

-They have a lot more quality depth this year.

-Having Allen back takes a lot of pressure off of Brooks which will make him a better player. They have depth at LB and have guys who can tackle Big 12 RBs. They have erasers at linebacker and in the secondary. Jah'Shawn Johnson made some huge tackles last year...more than Gibbs thought he did.

-"Our secondary will look like a Big 12 secondary."

-Recruiting JUCOs is a slippery slope, especially if you are playing bad defense. They better find guys who can be good players and teammates on and off the field. "We hit a home run with our JUCO guys." In the past they had JUCO guys who weren't good players or good guys.

-Allen is a very smart individual period. He is a smart football player and is back to where he was, if not better. His body has transformed and he takes care of it.

-Gibbs felt like his LB unit had a very good spring...and that was even without Allen and Brooks.

-They have the ability to "play big or play small" with a guy like Kolin Hill who can play rush end or defensive end.

-"I'm surprised y'all didn't ask about the pass rush. I'm a little disappointed."