MOBILE, Ala. – South Alabama football head coach Kane Wommack, offensive coordinator Major Applewhite, defensive coordinator Corey Batoon, along with student-athletes La'Damian Webb, Carter Bradley and Jaden Voisin met with the media Monday for the program's weekly press conference.

Below are highlights from the session.

Head Coach Kane Wommack
- Opening Statement:
"Saturday was a great road win for our team. In the past, our program has struggled getting on a plane and executing at a high level consistently on the road, especially going against a team which has really established their program with physicality and toughness like Central Michigan. To beat a team at their own game and just the way that we were able to play physically at the line of scrimmage and control that aspect on both sides of the ball for the entirety of the game allowed us to do some things in the passing game offensively. It also allowed us to play very fast on the backend defensively, and I certainly thought our special teams showed up and made a play to immediately get the ball back for our offense, so that we could continue our momentum [after our second score].
"I think we are improving in a lot of areas, particularly on the offensive line. We've had a number of guys over the last two weeks who have gotten to play and we feel like we have more depth at that position. We are certainly more talented and have a better understanding of what we are trying to accomplish. Match that with the running back corps, which is headlined by La'Damian Webb, and we're doing some very good things there. 
"I was very impressed with [quarterback] Carter Bradley and the steps he took forward from game one to game two. I thought he was more in sync with what we were trying to accomplish with our game plan. He did a really good job of managing our offense, and also took advantage of some opportunities that [CMU] gave him to showcase his talent, which is quite vast.
"Like I said, I think we're moving in the right direction, but certainly I feel that our best football is ahead of us when you peel back the layers and watch the film of the things we need to get corrected moving forward."

- On what it's like to see the game plan executed early on the way it was on Saturday:
 "You look at the way we were able to come out efficiently on offense and move the ball down the field. We're second in the country right now in time of possession, and you don't do those things if a couple of things don't happen; one you're not able to run the football effectively and if you're not efficient with your drives. That means that you're staying on schedule on first second downs and getting yourself in third-and-manageable situations. 
"You also have a defense that was able to get the ball back for our offense very quickly. They were 0-for-7 on third down in the first half and really struggled to get a first down for a majority of the first three quarters, outside of a couple of big plays that we gave up. Those are some of the things we need to get cleaned up immediately in order to get to where we want to be defensively. We had a couple of 'bad eyes' early in the game that gave them an opportunity to score, but I felt the response from our sideline was tremendous. To watch some of the guys like Carter Bradley, who is starting to establish himself as a vocal leader on our team, along with James Jackson, La'Damian Webb on offense and defensive players like 'Q' [Quintin] Wilfawn and 'Bubba' [Wy'Kevious] Thomas, James Miller and Jalen Jordan, I feel like we have a group of guys who are just resetting the expectation of this program. That is starting to show up on our sideline on game days to this point."

- On what he can take from the road success from the CMU game heading into the UCLA game:
 "There's an expectation of physicality that we bring to the table every day. I think our guys feel comfortable adjusting to the speed on game day. We have quite a bit of speed in practice that we go against every day in practice, so our guys are adjusting to that well on game days. This is now two weeks in a row where we've faced a defense that has come out in a different defensive look that we've anticipated based on what they had shown on film. It was really exciting to watch Carter, along with [offensive coordinator] Major [Applewhite] adjust to some of those things. From a run game standpoint, I thought we did a little bit better job of adjusting to some of the things that we wanted to do in the run game. We'll continue to work on those things as we move forward."

- On Central Michigan going for it on fourth down in the first half:
 "I think [CMU head coach Jim McElwain] felt the momentum shift and that probably part of the mindset of going for it on fourth down, particularly earlier than they had done against Oklahoma State. The analytics tell you when you're down 24 points, especially in the second quarter, that you're going to have to start becoming more aggressive. It was pretty fun to watch our defense in those situations where we held them to 1-of-4 on fourth downs and stifled them on third down. You're able to do that because you're able to execute situationally and then also because we were able to get them behind the chains on first and second down. They were never able to establish a run game."

- On being able to balance the experience of this upcoming trip with the knowledge that there is a job to do:
 "When you go on the road to a place that you aren't accustomed to in any fashion, it's going to be a different environment. That's what was exciting about this past weekend. We have to take some of that momentum into this week. Certainly, Mount Pleasant [Mich,] and Los Angeles [Calif.] are very different places, but ultimately the expectation is to just do your job on the road. I feel going out [to UCLA] a day early gives us the opportunity to do some of the 'site-seeing' things. We're going to let our guys see the Pacific Ocean and let them tour the Rose Bowl a day early so that they get a feel for what that's going to look like. We're going to give them a chance to get some of those types of things out of their system, so that by the time we get to Friday, we're really operating with a 'business as usual mindset'. We're fortunate to be a morning practice team, so on Thursday before we leave, we're going to be able to get all the normal things done, so that it's an easy transition of travel."

- On keeping the players focused Saturday after getting out to the 31-7 lead:
 "I think this program hasn't established itself consistently enough on level yet to where our guys are comfortable with what we do in one, two or three quarters, or a half for that matter. I feel our guys are getting a taste of what it feels like to physically dominate someone, to out-execute someone, and I feel I saw a group in the second half that continued to strive to better themselves and our team. You get off to a lead and it's easy to take your foot off the gas, but the way Major was calling things offensively and the aggressiveness our defense was playing with [was good to see]. We didn't score as much in the second half, and in the fourth quarter we rotated some guys and gave up some plays, but in the third quarter, we came out humming and that was encouraging to see."

- On the success of the Sun Belt teams on Saturday:
 "I thought it was a tremendous effort by our league. You look at what Marshall, App State and Georgia Southern were able to accomplish. Some of those coaches are friends and guys I've grown to respect. We've talked about it a lot, but the Sun Belt Conference is working to establish itself as the premier conference in Group of 5 football right now, and it's pretty hard to argue that there is anyone else at the Group of 5 level playing any better. Hopefully as we continue to navigate through this non-conference schedule, we'll be able to showcase what our league is about."

- On if he utilizes what another team in the Sun Belt did heading into a game against a Power 5 opponent:
 "I like our matchup this week. I like the demeanor of our team and our program, along with the talent and depth we bring in certain areas. We talk about 'expectation' being more powerful than 'belief'. What I mean by that is 'belief' is something that Disney sports movies are made out of; believing you can be in a situation and accomplishing that situation. Expecting to be in big moments and producing in big moments is what we're going to be more focused on this week. I don't really want to point to what this team did, you can do this too. I don't think that's needed. We have what we have and I feel our best is good enough to go compete with anyone I see on our schedule this season."

- On his biggest concern personnel wise from what he's seen on film from UCLA:
 "When you look at their defense, they have some guys up front who are very 'twitchy' in terms of their pass rush. We have to win our one-on-one matchups. We have to be smart about putting ourselves in position to protect Carter, so that we can do some of the dynamic things that we do in the passing game. From a defensive standpoint, you have a very experienced quarterback in Dorian Thompson-Robinson. What he's been able to accomplish with his feet is certainly something. We cannot allow him to take over the game and extend plays and drives with his feet. 
"Zach Charbonnet, their running back, has tremendously improved from where he was when he was at Michigan. We went against him my last year at Indiana and watching him from that point to where he is now, I feel he's done a tremendous job. Hats off to [UCLA head coach] Chip Kelly and his staff for maximizing him. He's a down-hill, decisive back who has some real speed. Those two guys out of the backfield are ones that we need to limit."

Offensive Coordinator Major Applewhite
- On what he saw on the Central Michigan film:
"I saw our guys playing really hard. I really liked their focus for 60 minutes. I thought they understood some of the situations that they were going to be in, and we try to take pride in that. I thought they executed in those situations. There's certainly things that we can clean up that we are going to clean up. Just the standard of where we want to be as an offense, we just need to continue to strive and stay focused on how each and every one of us can get better at our jobs."

- On the execution:
"It's one of those deals where you're just pleased for the players themselves to see them have their success because they're executing. It's continuing to believe and buy into the details and things that we're teaching each and every day. And we need to continue to improve our teaching and play calling, and continue to put our guys in good situations."

- On UCLA's defense:
"They have tremendous length, size, speed and are long at corner and up front. They run really well and can play man coverage. They play with good eyes; I think they have their eyes in the right place, and are seeing the right things. I think it's going to be a great challenge for us. They've given up 10 [points] and seven, and one of those touchdowns was off of a blocked punt so they're not giving up many points."

Defensive Coordinator Corey Batoon
- On what he saw from Central Michigan: 
"I thought we executed at a pretty high rate, especially up front. I thought we controlled the line of scrimmage with the defensive line. I felt like our linebackers were able to play downhill. That was a good tailback, very prolific rushing offense, and to go and knock it out like that and be 30 yards going into the fourth quarter, it's a testament to the kids and their ability to go out and execute. I was really happy with the physicality we played with upfront and being able to get a good back to the ground. It was really good to see."

- On jumping to a 31-7 lead: 
"You're just playing the game as it flows. Thirty-one points, you know they [Central Michigan] was looking for ways to adjust, and they did. They made some nice adjustments late in the second half, kind of got out of the run game, and started throwing it. It was a great opportunity for us to play. Everybody that got on the bus and traveled played. That's going to help us pay dividends moving forward. We got a chance to empty the benches in the first two weeks and really reward guys who have busted it out here on the practice field. It's also shown us things we need to improve on, with some of those players in particular and then some schematically. We probably didn't spend enough time on the open pictures, it's hard to cover all the bases. Those are some things we are putting on tape right now to go back and clean up. The overall execution and effort, how hard and how physical we played, made me very happy with that." 

- On Jamar Richardson: 
"Playing opposite of [Darrell] Luter [Jr.], you're going to get a lot of opportunities. First play of the game he dropped an interception; I thought he was in a really good position. The underneath defenders did a nice job. We had a good pocket collapse. With a shorter quarterback, he had a hard time seeing and floated the ball a little bit, and that was a missed opportunity. We've got to take advantage of that. We have dropped three interceptions in the first two games that hit us right in the hands. We work just about as hard as anybody spending time after practice. Coach [Dwike] Wilson does a great job with our turnover circuits and take away circuits and ball drills and jugs, we've just got to take it to the grass. It can't just be something that we do on the practice field. We got to start making those plays when it counts." 

- On the challenges of UCLA: 
"Tempo is one of the bigger things that they do and we struggled with that last week. It's a great opportunity for us to continue to work on the things that we're putting on tape that we need to be able to take care of. They have some dynamic playmakers; the running back is a really good player who has improved a ton. I love his short quickness. He was always a very physical back, he's got great contact balance. He brings dimension, he's the type of tailback we have not seen up to this point. We will have our work cut out for us there. Dorian Thompson-Robinson is a very explosive kid, he's similar to ULM's quarterback in terms of his ability, athleticism, his ability to make the throws down the field and extend those throws with his legs. He's a very dynamic player that has played in that system now going on his fourth year. They also brought in some big pieces on the outside. [Jake Bobo] is a very sure-handed receiver and their slot receiver is similar to the guys we have seen; kind of that dynamic punt returner skill type. They've got some weapons and they do a great job with their tempo to get the ball into those playmakers hands." 

Running back La'Damian Webb
- On his big run against Central Michigan:
"You are always itching to have one like that, but I'm just happy to help the team in any way I can."

- On the feeling he gets when there is nobody left in front of him:
"It's a pretty awesome feeling. If there's nobody in front of me, that means it's a touchdown! As long as you don't get caught from behind, it is pretty awesome."

- On the performance of the offense and the confidence the players have in one another:
"We are getting more and more comfortable with each other each week as we go on. Our offensive line is doing a great job, Carter [Bradley] keeps making the right calls and Coach Applewhite keeps putting us in situations to win."

- On what it will be like to play in the Rose Bowl:
"It's a first-time experience for me. I think there will be a lot of excitement and everybody will have chills. But, we are going there to do one thing only and that's to win."

Quarterback Carter Bradley
- On what went well in the game against Central Michigan:
"There's a lot of good that you can take from the game, but there is also a lot of things that we need to work on. I need to be better with deep-ball accuracy. I was aggressive, I just need to be more accurate in that aspect. I think the offensive line and the running backs played well along with the guys on the outside."

- On the play-calling of offensive coordinator Major Applewhite:
"He's up here from sunrise to sunset and sometimes even past that. He does a great job of getting the quarterback room ready with the guys around us. He sets the tone for the week on what we need to do. He does an unbelievable job of getting us ready for the game."

- On his mindset going into the game against UCLA:
"It's the same as every other week. We're going up against another team and the next one is always the biggest one. I'm excited to go into this week with these guys on a roll. It's a new week with a new opportunity. We're excited and we're ready to go."

- On why the offense is performing so well right now:
"I think Coach Applewhite has been doing an amazing job at getting us prepared week to week. And all the things we did during the summer. We've been doing this since January going through OTAs, weekly install and you're just starting to see things start to click, and it's exciting."

- On playing in the Rose Bowl:
"It will be cool and definitely a good experience. I'll probably tell my kids about it one day, but right now it's just another game."

Safety Jaden Voisin
- On the Central Michigan game: 
"Going into the game, we knew it was going to be a physical game. Playing in the game, we felt like we were the more dominant team, and watching the film, I definitely think we were more physical than them."

- On being up 31-7 midway through the second quarter: 
"I think that shows all our preparation for the game and how everything was just executing. We were just playing how we know we can play." 

- On if it's tough to stay focused being up that much: 
"I think it made us more focused because it's showing our work. I think we were more focused for sure." 

- On the biggest challenge they will face this week: 
"They are a good team. They've got a good quarterback and a good running back. Just containing the quarterback because he's a runner, I think that will be the biggest challenge. Also flying that distance to LA, but I think it's a good thing we are going early so we can be fresh when we get there."

- On the penalties: 
"I think it's we're being aggressive but also we need to keep our heads sometimes and just be smarter and execute." 

- On going to Los Angeles and playing in the Rose Bowl: 
"I think it's going to be awesome. You don't get to go to LA every day, so I think that will be a good experience." 

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