Head Coach Dino Babers Transcript
Head Coach Dino Babers
Introductory Press Conference
Monday, Dec. 7, 2015
Opening Statement:
“First of all, I would like to thank Chancellor Syverud and his wife Dr. Chen, my ex-president, President Ellen Mazey from BGSU, as well as my old Athletics Director Chris Kingston, along with my family and the BGSU football team. Without them, this would not be possible. They played fantastic for me for two years. I would be a mess if I didn’t thank my wife Susan – my oldest daughter Breeahnah Lee, in South Korea, my second daughter, Tasha Marie, along with Jazzmin, from College Station, Texas, and Paris Capri, who will soon be attending Syracuse University. Thank you.
“There are some coaching mentors who I would like to acknowledge. Homer Smith – a man who was an offensive coordinator and Hall of Famer who spent a lot of time at the University of Alabama and UCLA. He had a great impact on my life. He recently passed away from cancer not that long ago, but I am in constant contact with Cathy Smith, his wife. Without his influence on me, I would probably not be standing here. I have to throw kudos out to my college coach, Dick Tomey – a Hall of Fame coach. He taught me all about the little things. The discipline, paying attention and being consistently good, not occasionally great, and understanding that you have to make sure that there is a physical part of this game that you can’t let go away just because of some of the things that you do. You have to embrace the physical part of it and our football team here at Syracuse will. Last, but not least, a man who had a huge impact on my life – Art Briles from Baylor University, affectionately known as Grandpa – although he looks like he is about 20 years old. He taught a different style of football to me. It was a situation where he told me just let it simmer, put it in the crock pot, and let it simmer. Don’t think much about it and I promise you after a year or two, it will change the way you think. Art, you were absolutely right. Thank you so much.
“Why Syracuse? – Why NOT Syracuse? Why NOT? Tell me. You tell me why not. The tradition here is unbelievable. Unbelievable. We are talking about 44. We are talking about Jim Brown, Ernie Davis and Floyd Little. Heck, I know a 39 – Larry Csonka. The tradition here is unbelievable and the fan support – we need to give them what they deserve. And that is what I came here to do. This is a destination job for me. I promise you this – I was born in Honolulu. I started school in Norfolk, Virginia. I graduated high school from San Diego, California and I've lived everywhere in between. My dad was 21 years Navy. He is buried in the national cemetery in Houston next to his brother. I’ve been north. I’ve been south. I have actually not been to the state of New York except to play the University at Buffalo. But me moving around is not a handicap. It’s a blessing. I’ve had the opportunity to meet and greet a lot of different people in this great nation of ours. I am hoping that I can be embraced in the city (of Syracuse) and state of New York because I really believe that special things are going to happen here.
“This is a move of faith – belief without evidence. I really believe that we are going to start something that people are going to be talking about for a long, long time. What do you expect off the football field? We will be involved in the community. These young men are already stellar academically. This academic institution of Syracuse is unmatched. With the academics, why can’t we go out and get the best players in the country? And, we start right here in the state of New York and we spirograph out. We are going to work our way out and go wherever we need to be to make Syracuse great.
"On the football field … Stay with me ... I know some of you guys are on your camera ... Close your eyes for me ... Stay with me ... Close your eyes. I’m not going to keep talking unless your eyes are closed. Trust that your iPad is going to stay on. Close your eyes for me. Close your eyes and visualize this. You’re in the Carrier Dome. The house is filled. The feeling is electric. The noise is deafening. You have a defense that is relentless. You have a special teams that has been well-coached. You have an offense that will not huddle and you have a game that is faster than you’ve ever seen on turf. Open your eyes … That is going to be a reality. That is going to be Syracuse football. Thank you.”
On the significance of Pearl Harbor Day, being the son of a Navy man:
"It had major significance. We were talking about it on the jet on our way over here. One of the things that I shared with Floyd (Little) in the back room is when I was at the University of Hawai'i – Schofield Barracks and along with Hickam Air Force Base – when you go on those bases in Hawai'i, the warehouses and the hangars still have the machine gun bullets from the Japanese planes and, obviously, they cleaned all that stuff up, but they left those bullet holes in those warehouses and hangars to remind all of the military men to always stay alert. It can happen again. When you are over there and see the top of some of the ships that were sunk and you can still see the oil leaking up from that date – you realize how real that really was. That will always be a big day in the life of any military man and military dependent – which I am. I take a lot of pride in remembering that stuff because I am kind of a history buff.”
On recruiting the northeast and if that has any impact in putting together a staff:
“The staff – If you hire good recruiters, they can recruit anywhere. We will have representation from the northeast, but again, I think anytime that you are recruiting around any great academic institution – you need to start in your backyard. We need to take care of the state of New York. We need to get over to New Jersey. We need to start to work to Philly. We need to shoot down that corridor – Pittsburgh, Chicago, Detroit, and then we have to head back down and take care of Florida and cross our T’s and dot our I’s. We are always going to start close to home and work our way out.”
On what he knows about the current team:
“The current team – I’ve looked at some individuals. I haven’t really had the opportunity over the season to watch another university. But, (Director of Athletics) Mark (Coyle) has filled me in on some things. I’ve had some coaches doing some homework assignments on certain things to make sure that we have the right ingredients that fit. One thing that I have always prided myself on is that I am a movie buff. If I am not doing football, I watch movies. That is what I do. I watch good movies. I watch bad movies. Whatever is the best movie house around here and the lights go down and you say, ‘Hey Coach Babers, are you in here?’ there is a very good chance that I might say, 'Yes.' One of the movies that will always grab me is Apollo 13. You know when the carbon dioxide was going up and all they had was this box of stuff – and they came in and threw the box on the table and said, ‘What is that stuff?’ They said, 'Well that is what they got up there and we need to figure out how to get that carbon dioxide down.' I take great pride in coming into a football team and looking at the ‘stuff’ and finding out a way to make it successful. I really take a lot of pride in that and I don’t see why it should be any different than any other place I’ve been.”
On his offensive philosophy and the Carrier Dome:
"I just don’t want to talk about the offensive philosophy – I want to talk about the team philosophy. We are going to play at a very quick rate. The team will be conditioned differently than it’s ever been conditioned before. This is a total program-type thing. It’s not just doing one thing. So, it’s defensively and special teams. It’s the way we lift. It’s the way we condition. It’s the way we play. Because of our accelerated play on all three different phases, I think it is going to help us gain an advantage. We can’t take away from the gift of the Carrier Dome and the electricity that we can provide in there and advantage of selling that place out. Having the noise level so high that the other team’s offense can’t operate and can't hear the snap count. This is going to take an entire Syracuse nation to get this thing done and we have to all be in. But, if we have faith – belief without evidence – if we have faith in each other, you can fill it up and we will do our part to find a way to win. I can’t see any reason to why we can’t be at the top of the ACC.”
On the most successful way to play defense and what he looks for in a defensive coordinator:
“First of all, right now, I have a defensive coordinator. Hopefully, I can keep him. I think it changes. It really does. I have been a part of two different styles since I’ve been a head coach. I have been a part of the blitz, get after them style and then I have been a part of the Tampa 2, sit back, four-man rush – let the guys play style. Both styles have been successful with the type of offense that we will play. I think the main point is, and this is not to pigeon-hole anyone, to find out exactly what our resources are and what our players can do and make sure we do what they are best at it. We will then recruit and figure out down the road. We are looking for early success.”
On if he will re-recruit players committed to Bowling Green:
“You know, it’s kind of taboo to recruit guys who you have already recruited. If they decommit, that is one thing, but if they are committed to Bowling Green, I can tell you that I won’t. I will not go after them.”
On what he sees in Syracuse:
“I look around and I see fantastic facilities. I look around and see a private institution with outstanding academics. The scholarship says student-athlete. If we can provide a fantastic education for the student and then we can go out as a staff and pick the right kind of athletes who can help us win I don’t understand why it can’t be a marriage. I really think that we have a gift to be able to have our own dome up north and to grab the community at a time like this and let them be part of a change. This is something that they will never forget for the rest of their lives. I hate to talk about another university, but I was on the rebuilding team of Baylor University with 33 years without going to a bowl game when Art Briles went there. I was on the ground with him when we started at that program. And he kept saying the same thing, 'When we win, they will come. If we win, they’ll come. But, we have to do our part.' That is exactly what I and my staff plan to do.”
On the Syracuse football facility:
“I have no issues with it whatsoever. I think I can recruit very effectively here.”
On how many Bowling Green assistant coaches he might bring with him:
“I want to bring all the good ones.”
On whether or not he can win a fifth straight conference title competing in the ACC Atlantic Division:
"All those titles that we’ve won, 4-for-4, we never started with that. I think you need to start with the team. We find out what is going on with the team and then we start moving people around because we have a very unique style and we have to have men in that room who are unselfish. Guys who are willing to think more about the team than themselves. Normally, most college football teams have enough guys that you can win. It is whether they are unselfish of not, that they will be going to the right spots, that we can win as a team, as a university and as a community. I am excited at looking into that room and getting to meet these young men later and finding out exactly where they want to go with this.”
On if Bowling Green being in a bowl game hinders the opportunity to start recruiting right away:
“Well, no not at all. We are going to have coaches here recruiting at the end of today. You just haven’t seen them yet. They are on the launching pad ready to go.”
Introductory Press Conference
Monday, Dec. 7, 2015
Opening Statement:
“First of all, I would like to thank Chancellor Syverud and his wife Dr. Chen, my ex-president, President Ellen Mazey from BGSU, as well as my old Athletics Director Chris Kingston, along with my family and the BGSU football team. Without them, this would not be possible. They played fantastic for me for two years. I would be a mess if I didn’t thank my wife Susan – my oldest daughter Breeahnah Lee, in South Korea, my second daughter, Tasha Marie, along with Jazzmin, from College Station, Texas, and Paris Capri, who will soon be attending Syracuse University. Thank you.
“There are some coaching mentors who I would like to acknowledge. Homer Smith – a man who was an offensive coordinator and Hall of Famer who spent a lot of time at the University of Alabama and UCLA. He had a great impact on my life. He recently passed away from cancer not that long ago, but I am in constant contact with Cathy Smith, his wife. Without his influence on me, I would probably not be standing here. I have to throw kudos out to my college coach, Dick Tomey – a Hall of Fame coach. He taught me all about the little things. The discipline, paying attention and being consistently good, not occasionally great, and understanding that you have to make sure that there is a physical part of this game that you can’t let go away just because of some of the things that you do. You have to embrace the physical part of it and our football team here at Syracuse will. Last, but not least, a man who had a huge impact on my life – Art Briles from Baylor University, affectionately known as Grandpa – although he looks like he is about 20 years old. He taught a different style of football to me. It was a situation where he told me just let it simmer, put it in the crock pot, and let it simmer. Don’t think much about it and I promise you after a year or two, it will change the way you think. Art, you were absolutely right. Thank you so much.
“Why Syracuse? – Why NOT Syracuse? Why NOT? Tell me. You tell me why not. The tradition here is unbelievable. Unbelievable. We are talking about 44. We are talking about Jim Brown, Ernie Davis and Floyd Little. Heck, I know a 39 – Larry Csonka. The tradition here is unbelievable and the fan support – we need to give them what they deserve. And that is what I came here to do. This is a destination job for me. I promise you this – I was born in Honolulu. I started school in Norfolk, Virginia. I graduated high school from San Diego, California and I've lived everywhere in between. My dad was 21 years Navy. He is buried in the national cemetery in Houston next to his brother. I’ve been north. I’ve been south. I have actually not been to the state of New York except to play the University at Buffalo. But me moving around is not a handicap. It’s a blessing. I’ve had the opportunity to meet and greet a lot of different people in this great nation of ours. I am hoping that I can be embraced in the city (of Syracuse) and state of New York because I really believe that special things are going to happen here.
“This is a move of faith – belief without evidence. I really believe that we are going to start something that people are going to be talking about for a long, long time. What do you expect off the football field? We will be involved in the community. These young men are already stellar academically. This academic institution of Syracuse is unmatched. With the academics, why can’t we go out and get the best players in the country? And, we start right here in the state of New York and we spirograph out. We are going to work our way out and go wherever we need to be to make Syracuse great.
"On the football field … Stay with me ... I know some of you guys are on your camera ... Close your eyes for me ... Stay with me ... Close your eyes. I’m not going to keep talking unless your eyes are closed. Trust that your iPad is going to stay on. Close your eyes for me. Close your eyes and visualize this. You’re in the Carrier Dome. The house is filled. The feeling is electric. The noise is deafening. You have a defense that is relentless. You have a special teams that has been well-coached. You have an offense that will not huddle and you have a game that is faster than you’ve ever seen on turf. Open your eyes … That is going to be a reality. That is going to be Syracuse football. Thank you.”
On the significance of Pearl Harbor Day, being the son of a Navy man:
"It had major significance. We were talking about it on the jet on our way over here. One of the things that I shared with Floyd (Little) in the back room is when I was at the University of Hawai'i – Schofield Barracks and along with Hickam Air Force Base – when you go on those bases in Hawai'i, the warehouses and the hangars still have the machine gun bullets from the Japanese planes and, obviously, they cleaned all that stuff up, but they left those bullet holes in those warehouses and hangars to remind all of the military men to always stay alert. It can happen again. When you are over there and see the top of some of the ships that were sunk and you can still see the oil leaking up from that date – you realize how real that really was. That will always be a big day in the life of any military man and military dependent – which I am. I take a lot of pride in remembering that stuff because I am kind of a history buff.”
On recruiting the northeast and if that has any impact in putting together a staff:
“The staff – If you hire good recruiters, they can recruit anywhere. We will have representation from the northeast, but again, I think anytime that you are recruiting around any great academic institution – you need to start in your backyard. We need to take care of the state of New York. We need to get over to New Jersey. We need to start to work to Philly. We need to shoot down that corridor – Pittsburgh, Chicago, Detroit, and then we have to head back down and take care of Florida and cross our T’s and dot our I’s. We are always going to start close to home and work our way out.”
On what he knows about the current team:
“The current team – I’ve looked at some individuals. I haven’t really had the opportunity over the season to watch another university. But, (Director of Athletics) Mark (Coyle) has filled me in on some things. I’ve had some coaches doing some homework assignments on certain things to make sure that we have the right ingredients that fit. One thing that I have always prided myself on is that I am a movie buff. If I am not doing football, I watch movies. That is what I do. I watch good movies. I watch bad movies. Whatever is the best movie house around here and the lights go down and you say, ‘Hey Coach Babers, are you in here?’ there is a very good chance that I might say, 'Yes.' One of the movies that will always grab me is Apollo 13. You know when the carbon dioxide was going up and all they had was this box of stuff – and they came in and threw the box on the table and said, ‘What is that stuff?’ They said, 'Well that is what they got up there and we need to figure out how to get that carbon dioxide down.' I take great pride in coming into a football team and looking at the ‘stuff’ and finding out a way to make it successful. I really take a lot of pride in that and I don’t see why it should be any different than any other place I’ve been.”
On his offensive philosophy and the Carrier Dome:
"I just don’t want to talk about the offensive philosophy – I want to talk about the team philosophy. We are going to play at a very quick rate. The team will be conditioned differently than it’s ever been conditioned before. This is a total program-type thing. It’s not just doing one thing. So, it’s defensively and special teams. It’s the way we lift. It’s the way we condition. It’s the way we play. Because of our accelerated play on all three different phases, I think it is going to help us gain an advantage. We can’t take away from the gift of the Carrier Dome and the electricity that we can provide in there and advantage of selling that place out. Having the noise level so high that the other team’s offense can’t operate and can't hear the snap count. This is going to take an entire Syracuse nation to get this thing done and we have to all be in. But, if we have faith – belief without evidence – if we have faith in each other, you can fill it up and we will do our part to find a way to win. I can’t see any reason to why we can’t be at the top of the ACC.”
On the most successful way to play defense and what he looks for in a defensive coordinator:
“First of all, right now, I have a defensive coordinator. Hopefully, I can keep him. I think it changes. It really does. I have been a part of two different styles since I’ve been a head coach. I have been a part of the blitz, get after them style and then I have been a part of the Tampa 2, sit back, four-man rush – let the guys play style. Both styles have been successful with the type of offense that we will play. I think the main point is, and this is not to pigeon-hole anyone, to find out exactly what our resources are and what our players can do and make sure we do what they are best at it. We will then recruit and figure out down the road. We are looking for early success.”
On if he will re-recruit players committed to Bowling Green:
“You know, it’s kind of taboo to recruit guys who you have already recruited. If they decommit, that is one thing, but if they are committed to Bowling Green, I can tell you that I won’t. I will not go after them.”
On what he sees in Syracuse:
“I look around and I see fantastic facilities. I look around and see a private institution with outstanding academics. The scholarship says student-athlete. If we can provide a fantastic education for the student and then we can go out as a staff and pick the right kind of athletes who can help us win I don’t understand why it can’t be a marriage. I really think that we have a gift to be able to have our own dome up north and to grab the community at a time like this and let them be part of a change. This is something that they will never forget for the rest of their lives. I hate to talk about another university, but I was on the rebuilding team of Baylor University with 33 years without going to a bowl game when Art Briles went there. I was on the ground with him when we started at that program. And he kept saying the same thing, 'When we win, they will come. If we win, they’ll come. But, we have to do our part.' That is exactly what I and my staff plan to do.”
On the Syracuse football facility:
“I have no issues with it whatsoever. I think I can recruit very effectively here.”
On how many Bowling Green assistant coaches he might bring with him:
“I want to bring all the good ones.”
On whether or not he can win a fifth straight conference title competing in the ACC Atlantic Division:
"All those titles that we’ve won, 4-for-4, we never started with that. I think you need to start with the team. We find out what is going on with the team and then we start moving people around because we have a very unique style and we have to have men in that room who are unselfish. Guys who are willing to think more about the team than themselves. Normally, most college football teams have enough guys that you can win. It is whether they are unselfish of not, that they will be going to the right spots, that we can win as a team, as a university and as a community. I am excited at looking into that room and getting to meet these young men later and finding out exactly where they want to go with this.”
On if Bowling Green being in a bowl game hinders the opportunity to start recruiting right away:
“Well, no not at all. We are going to have coaches here recruiting at the end of today. You just haven’t seen them yet. They are on the launching pad ready to go.”
