The local media spoke with offensive players after practice on Monday to recap West Virginia, the first practice of the week, and look ahead to Oklahoma...
WR CAM BATSON
-Batson was asked what Kingsbury's message was to the team on Monday after the blowout loss to West Virginia on Saturday afternoon:
"That we got our butts kicked. That we really need to get some things going. He was very unhappy with the film. We all were obviously unhappy with the film after seeing the game and how we played. He was definitely a lot meaner than he has been. He's really focused, I should say. He's definitely focused on this second half of the season."
-The receiver was also asked about Kingsbury's demeanor at practice today, if he was maybe more emotional today than he's been in the past:
"Definitely. I wouldn't say just emotional, but he's definitely focused. He knows we have a tough opponent coming in and that we have to get everything done in order to beat this opponent. Everything has to be about crossing your Ts and dotting your Is."
-I asked Batson what he thought this team had to do in order to turn the corner and take a step forward. His answer:
"We definitely have to cut out penalties. We have to be more physical in all aspects of the game, whether it's the line or receivers out blocking. It's really just a mentality. You have to go out there with it each and every day, and then whenever game time hits, you can't let those lights get the best of you."
-And seeing as he's an Oklahoma native, games against the Sooners definitely hold a little more meaning to him than some of the other contests on the schedule:
"It definitely does. Those guys passed up on me when I was in high school. They came and watched me play, said I was too small. Texas Tech gave me an opportunity, so it's time for me to show those guys what I'm really made of."
OL PAUL STAWARZ
-Stawarz, when asked about how the Monday practice went, summed things up shortly:
"We got after it. That's all I've got to say about that. We were working today," he said. "Staying focused. They're pushing us a lot harder. Practice is revved up a little bit. That itself and and staying focused."
"Physicality. It was very physical."
"We have to clean some stuff as an offense, me personally. We just got after it."
-The O-lineman reiterated what Batson said about Coach Kingsbury's message to the team on Monday:
"He was disappointed in us. We keep beating ourselves. West Virginia is a great team, great defense, but we're a lot better than what we showed in that game. We just have to clean some stuff up."
-O-line coach Lee Hays obviously wasn't happy with his unit's performance, either:
"He's disappointed about the penalties. That's what we have to clean up the most right now. It's just stupid mistakes that us as an O-line need to really focus on."
-And as of today, Stawarz believes things will move in the right direction as far as cleaning up the sloppy play:
"I think everyone is taking the right steps to clean things up. I think it'll be different. I definitely think so."