Nov. 23, 2009

Opening Statement
COACH WEST: We have made a commitment to our football team to finish. That is what we are going to do. We are going to do everything we can to make the best showing possible for this university at Tulsa. I do think there are some valuable lessons being learned by some young people, and I think that's a good thing. Whether it is easy or hard, you have to finish what you started. This week will obviously be an abbreviated week. This would be a good week not to be the travel team. It is going to be really short since we didn't practice yesterday and we don't have a chance to practice today. It is going to be a really short week starting on Wednesday. We will make it work.

Injury-wise, (Marcus) Ball played against Houston so he should be okay. I don't know that we will get anybody back. I was hopeful we would get Greg Jackson back, but I don't think that is going to happen. He is still really weak with his shoulder. This week is going to be a lot like last week with the injury situation. We will make the best of it and see what we can get done.

Q: Is Tulsa similar to the Houston team you saw last weekend?
COACH WEST: They're different. Tulsa would like to be more of a running team, obviously, compared to Houston. They've had games where they have become a passing team. I think they believe in this quarterback (G.J. Kinne) throwing the ball. I think by trade they would rather be a team that runs the ball. I would anticipate that they will focus on the run, even though with our injuries in the secondary they might try to exploit us a little bit.

Defensively, they are what they have been. They are what Todd (Graham) always has been. They are a 3-3 team. They are going to bring four, five or six guys on any given play. They are a team that likes to put pressure on the quarterback.

Their schedule was not set up for a perfect ending either. They've lost some games, but you have to look at who they have lost to. Starting with their game against Boise State, they've had to face some tough teams. They were up nine with 25 seconds left against Houston. They (Tulsa) have a really good team.

Q: About the team's effort at the end of the season
COACH WEST: Winning is really hard. I don't think sometimes people realize how hard it is to win in this business. Every week is hard. I think our guys are trying. I watched the game tape from the Houston game really hard. I told them yesterday that I studied all three phases of the tape on Sunday. I wanted to see if any of the guys have given up and really aren't trying hard. That isn't happening.

Do we emotionally have the edge? No. These are kids. They are worried about who is going to be the new head coach. Is their focus right now just the Tulsa game? No. I understand that. I just want to finish this thing with some class.

I'll brag on our coaches. I told our coaches it is not a choice whether or not you want to finish this thing; it is an obligation. I think Memphis has been good to our assistant coaches and they have a job. Obviously they are worried about their future as well.

We weren't very good on defense against Houston, but that didn't have anything to do with not trying. They were covering their guys. There are other guys in this league that have had a hard time covering Houston's players. Oklahoma State had a hard time covering Houston's guys. Texas Tech had a hard time covering their guys. The hard thing is coaching, and knowing that edge isn't there. You have to have that edge, but I think our players will go rally and play hard against Tulsa. I don't think I'm being stupid saying that.

Q: Plans for the Tulsa game
COACH WEST: I think we have a pretty good running game. We may have to change a bit defensively because we just can't cover people right now. We might look at some different things on defense.