Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Coach Kill Names Williams Starting QB
09/03/2001 | 12:00:00 | Football
Sept. 3, 2001
CARBONDALE, Ill. -
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Preview of the SEMO game...
"SEMO is a much better football team than they were last year. Coach Billings is in his second year and they understand his scheme of offense and defense much better. They really should have won the game on Saturday (at Eastern Michigan). They had the game won and let it slip away from them. We expect them to be very aggressive on defense. They've shown a lot of zone blitz in the past. Offensively, they're going to spread the field. They're very similar to us in that they're playing a lot of young players. If there's an advantage for SEMO, number one they played game one. In college football, you improve more from week one to week two than any other time of the year. Number two, they've been in the same system for a year. But we knew that going in. I guess our advantage is that we have an extra week of preparation, and hopefully that will help us."
On Madei Williams...
"Williams will be our starter Saturday. The biggest thing with Madei is his athleticism. Probably how successful he will be on Saturday is Kevin Kobe. Kevin has been great for Madei. He's taught Madei all the things Kevin had to learn in the spring. It's very, very difficult for a quarterback to get caught up on what we're doing in a system in three and half weeks. So Kevin Kobe is probably the biggest key on our football team right now. He's thrown his ego aside and approached it that he's in this thing for the team. He's probably done a better job of coaching Madei than I have or Coach (Pat) Poore.
"Madei's our starting quarterback. There's no quarterback controversy. Kevin knows his role, and it's a very important role. We're in good shape at that position."
On last year's SEMO game...
"I can't control what happened in the past. I'm more worried about our football team being ready to play. The revenge factor lasts about 10 seconds, in my opinion. The biggest thing we need to do is focus in on what we're supposed to do on the football field. That's what we've talked about."
Is the team ready for Saturday?
"Sooner or later you just have to get out there and see what you've got. It seems like we've been practicing for a long time. Sooner or later you've got to throw them out there and find out where you're at. Last week, we would not have been ready to play a college football game. This week, we'll be as close as we can be to being ready."
"The biggest thing I have to do is stay at an even keel. If you're way up here or way down there, you're going to have a problem. We have to be realistic about where our program is at, and we've talked to our youngsters about where we're at. We've got to stay on an even keel. We've got to get better each week. Are we going to have some trials and errors? You bet. This thing isn't going to be easy. The questions are easy right now because we haven't played a game. There are going to be tough questions, there are going to be problems, that's just the way it is. I think as long as I can stay on an even keel, that's the key to our success. If our youngsters see the head coach go south, then we're in trouble. I have a challenge ahead of me mentally."
Other Press Conference Notes: QB Joel Sambursky will travel with the team as the third quarterback, but Coach Kill hopes to redshirt him...WR Mark Shasteen will be fitted for a playing cast on Thursday, but is still questionable for Saturday...WR Nick Wafford re-injured his collarbone, it is not broken, but he can't lift his arms over his head...True freshman WR Justin George is expected to see action...Coach Kill says the offensive plays are scripted in the beginning of the game.
