Sept. 28, 2004

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Below is a transcript of a question-and-answer session with Samford head coach Bill Gray on Tuesday. Samford practiced for two and a half hours on the practice fields on campus Tuesday afternoon. The team will practice again on Wednesday at 3:45 p.m. at the Samford practice fields.

WHAT DOES THE TEAM HAVE TO DO TO BOUNCE BACK AFTER LAST WEEK'S LOSS? "We have to be resilient and put it behind us. We have to look at the task at hand. We are 0-1, we have lost one conference game, and that has to be our mindset. Our mindset can't be what has happened in the past, we have to focus on this opponent. We have to try to come back after a defeat, win one at home and defeat the preseason number one team in the conference. There are a lot of reasons to work hard this week, and the main one is that this team is tied with us in the conference race. So, we have to go play ball and see what happens from there. Last week's game was not a make-or-break game in the conference. It was a tough loss. We made enough plays to win the game, but we also made enough mistakes to lose the game."

TALK ABOUT THE GAME Ray Nelson HAD AGAINST SOUTHEAST MISSOURI, SETTING A SAMFORD RECORD FOR TOTAL YARDS. "That was one of the best games you will ever see from a quarterback statistics-wise. He played well enough to win the football game. And, we had others on the team that played well enough to win the game, but we had some that didn't play well enough to win. Because we came away three points short doesn't take away from the performance he had. He played with a lot of emotion. He played with as spirited an attitude as I have seen since he has been here. It was inspiring to his teammates and to the coaches to watch him. It was just a great, great performance."

HAVE YOU TAKEN ANYTHING FROM LAST YEAR'S GAME AT EASTERN KENTUCKY THAT WILL HELP THE TEAM IN THIS YEAR'S GAME? "That is what being in a conference is all about. You go back and remember things that went well or went badly the year before. You compare personnel and schemes from the two years. It will be a good test for us, and we are definitely glad that the game is at home. We just have to take care of business in the conference at home. Last year, we weren't very good at home in conference games, so this is a big challenge for us."

WHAT ARE YOUR IMPRESSIONS FROM WHAT YOU HAVE SEEN OF EASTERN KENTUCKY ON FILM? "They are a team that, a lot like us, is not where they want to be. They have played a tough schedule, and they fell last week in their conference opener. So, they need to get back on track as well. Offensively, they like to run the football, and right now are being forced to run the ball because of the injuries to their starter at quarterback. He may or may not be back this week, but we have to plan for either one of them to play. But, they have gotten a lot more comfortable with the younger quarterback in there. They have a tailback, C.J. Hudson, who we have played against since he was a freshman and he does a good job. Their offensive line is starting to gel. They feel like they have a great group of receivers as well. Offensively, they have a lot of balance. Defensively, they return about half of their starters. They are an aggressive defense and will go to the football. They play a good, sound game of football. Last year, for us, it was a struggle to move the football on them. And in the kicking game, they have some guys who have been consistent. They are a very good football team.