Sept. 13, 2006

Offensive Coordinator Dave Baldwin
What impresses you the most when you watch Pitt's defense on film?
"I'm impressed with Pitt's overall team speed. I think they run well at every position, and they all run to the ball. The defensive ends are fast, and the linebackers run extremely well. One of the linebackers played in the secondary last year. They're taking guys and moving them down because of speed, not because they're huge or big, but because they run really well."

Talk about the impact of middle linebacker H.B. Blades on Pitt's defense:
"He's very comparable to the linebackers that played in the Big Ten a year ago. I don't know if there's any better that I've seen than (former Ohio State All-American) A.J. Hawk, but H.B. Blades is in the category of great linebackers. He makes plays because he's in the right position. He's what I consider one of the Big Ten-type linebackers of a year ago. He's of that caliber."

Talk about cornerback Darrelle Revis, who is considered to be one of the nation's top players at his position:
"I think Darrelle Revis has returned two picks for touchdowns already this season. He's their cover corner and plays the field side. He's going to always be exposed to the wide side because he has great recovery speed. He's a gambler, like all great cornerbacks are. He likes to gamble and go get the football. He's not afraid. If he gets beat, he just goes to the next play. Revis provides the personality in the secondary. He's got the traits of a special player."

How important is it for MSU to be balanced on Saturday and not become one-dimensional on offense?
"It just depends what Pitt wants to do. If they want to make us one-dimensional and keep letting us do something and not take it away, we'll continue to do that. I think it is important that we run the football and try to establish something to keep their true nickel, dime defensive backs off the field. We must have success on first down because that can dictate the entire tempo of the game."

From week one to week two, what were you pleased with the most in terms of progress on offense?
"I thought we were much more physical along the offensive line. We were better in our techniques and our assignments. If you're going to play this game, you have to be physical. I think we advanced most from a physical standpoint."

What have you seen in Drew Stanton's development as a quarterback from last year to this year?
"His decision-making has really improved. I think Dan Enos has done a nice job in allowing him to go through his reads, but understand not to force a throw even if it means throwing the ball out of bounds. A year ago, I think Drew felt he had to do everything. Dan has convinced him that we have plenty of playmakers, on the outside at receiver positions and in the backfield at running back. Drew doesn't have to make every play but when things do break down, he needs to get what he can with his legs and get down."

How important is it to have the three-headed attack at running back?
"I think it's hugely important because in a single-back offense, I don't think one back can take the punishment that he's going to take for 65 or 70 plays. Two guys can do it and if a second guy gets nicked, we need to have a third guy ready to play. That's exactly what happened to us last week. The third guy played an important role against Eastern Michigan. It's important that A.J. Jimmerson produce when given an opportunity. We really like the three-headed attack at running back."

Coming off his record-setting performance (school-record 14 receptions against Eastern Michigan), talk about Matt Trannon's development:
"Matt Trannon was dominant against Notre Dame a year ago too, but it's everybody's expectation that he put up numbers like that every week. This offense doesn't have a single go-to guy. The playmakers vary from week to week. Our plan is to get everybody at least 40 catches.

"Matt's been productive over the last two years. I really liked his growth last year and in the first two games this season. If Matt continues to make strides, he's going to be a great one. But don't expect him to make 14 catches every week because we're not going to go to him in that kind of manner. We're going to go to Jerramy Scott or Kerry Reed. We're going to spread it around."

How much has Kerry Reed progressed from a year ago?
"Kerry Reed has been the most consistent guy from that receiving corps this year: on his assignments, on his catching and on his route-running. He has progressed unbelievably. We are very pleased with how he's played and how he's progressed. He hasn't gotten a lot of balls, but he has done everything we've asked of him. It'll turn in the opponent's coverages soon and he'll start to get balls. He's really come a long way in a very short period of time."

Defensive Coordinator Chris Smeland
Talk about Pitt quarterback Tyler Palko:
"At this point, it seems like he's making good decisions. Tyler Palko's only thrown one pick and it looked like the receiver made the wrong read; and Tyler zoned in on throwing to a spot and the receiver went the opposite way. He's only been sacked once, so he's been making good decisions, getting the ball off quickly or scrambling when he needs to. He does a lot of checking for them at the line of scrimmage, trying to put them in the right play and that's what you'd expect from a senior."

On the Pitt offense taking on Tyler Palko's personality:
"He's a blue-collar young man. I went in and visited with Tyler when he was in high school and we were down in Louisville one spring. Even when he was a high school senior, he had that same kind of personality. He's a tough kid. He's going to run it up in there. When he threw the one interception, he's the guy that made the tackle to prevent a touchdown. The offense feeds off him, no question."

On defending split end Derek Kinder:
"Pitt has two receivers, Derek Kinder and Oderick Turner, averaging more than 35 yards per catch. Turner has three receptions and two of those have gone for touchdowns. Kinder has 249 receiving yards while averaging nearly 36 yards per catch, so he is a big play kind of athlete."

The Pittsburgh media has labeled the Pitt offense as one dimensional, so do you expect the Panthers to attempt to establish the running game?
"I think in both of its games, Pitt came out early and tried to run the ball. They threw their play-action pass, caught a break here and there, got a big play and got into the end zone. It looks like they're just doing what they do best: a little bit of everything."

Talk about the importance of limiting the number of big plays the Pitt offense produces:
"We have to take the big play away from Pitt and hope that we will be able to keep them out of the end zone."