Football C-USA Media Day Summary

[Sean_Williams]

Summarizing what Western Kentucky head coach Tyson Helton, quarterback Austin Reed, and linebacker JaQues Evans said during C-USA Media Day on Tuesday...

Will add full transcript in a few

Tyson Helton:

- Really excited about the upcoming season and the new C-USA
- Always been blessed at WKU to have record-setting quarterbacks and NFL quarterbacks
- Build everything around the quarterback, then build inside and out with the offensive and defensive line
- Got to have a high-caliber QB to pull the trigger to win ball games
- Have not made it easy on Austin, but he's earned everything he's got
- Austin has always embraced competition or adversity
- Doesn't worry about the amount of teams in the conference, thinks there will be a lot of parody in C-USA this year
- Thinks some of the new football teams will give everyone a run for their money
- Doesn't get into the preseason hype with his team
- Team understands what they are capable of achieving
- Try to keep a chip on our shoulder above everything, our guys embrace that

Austin Reed:

- Really excited to be chosen as Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, but you have to go out there and earn it. More concerned with postseason awards
- Nice to not be in a quarterback competition and just be able to dive into your game and getting the team ready to win. Just trying to win as many games as possible
- Prides himself on being able to run the ball
- Lost 10 pounds this offseason, says it was bad weight and wants to be faster
- Wants to put WKU in the best position to win, make the right checks, and have complete control of the offense
- Super close with Coach (Drew) Hollingshead and excited for what he can do for the offense this upcoming season
- Open with Coach Helton on entering the transfer portal and ultimately decided to come back to WKU
- Has the upmost respect for Coach Helton, wanted to come back and play for Helton and win C-USA
- 100-percent confident in the decision he made

 

[Sean_Williams]

Tyson Helton:​

Opening statement:
"Really excited about the upcoming football season. Excited about the new Conference USA. Got some really good football teams coming in. I think you are going to see a really good brand of football in the conference. We are really, really happy to continue with Conference USA and just looking forward to looking forward to an exciting football season and a lot of good football games played."

On the pedigree of quarterbacks at Western Kentucky:

"We've always been very blessed at Western. I've been there twice and there has been a lot of record-setting quarterbacks and a lot of NFL quarterbacks that have come out of Western. Being an offensive guy, for me, it starts with the quarterback. You build everything around the quarterback and then after that you build it inside out with your offensive and defensive line. I played the position. I know what I'm looking for in the position. I know what it takes to have a championship run and you gotta have a high-caliber quarterback pulling the trigger. We've been very blessed to have some really good ones there and Austin is no different. He's done a fantastic job since he's been here. He's earned everything he's gotten. I have not made it easy on him. He had to go out there and fight and scratch to go win the job last year. On top of that, for him to be the leading passer in the country, there was already high expectations there with Bailey Zappe being with us the year before. So, he's always embraced that competition piece or that adversity piece, whatever you want to call it. He's always setting goals for each season and trying to reach new heights and this year will be no different for him as well."

On if a smaller conference is better:

"I think as long as you are putting a great product out there, that's the biggest thing. I don't worry about the amount of teams that are in the conference. I'll just speak to the fact that I think there will be a lot of parody in this conference this year. You look at every football team top to bottom. There is another conference that had an FCS team that joined it last year, unfortunately, they couldn't play for the championship but they were pretty darn good. I look at our new conference and some of the teams that are coming in. I think right out of the gate, some of the new football teams that are coming in are going to give everybody a run for their money. I bet you one of those new teams are probably right in the running for the championship. So, if you look at our conference and who we currently have in it, I think there is a lot of parody and I think it's going to make for an exciting brand of football."

On if he's coach against Jerry Kill, New Mexico State's head coach:

"I have not. I have tremendous respect for Coach Kill. I've recruited against him. He is not only a fantastic coach, but he is an excellent recruiter. He is an excellent ball coach. I really got to know him since New Mexico State has joined the conference and there is such respect for him and how he runs his programs. I think right out of the gate, New Mexico State, he is going to have his team ready to compete and make a run for sure."

On handling the high expectations going into the 2023 season:

"I really don't get into it with the team. The statement is 'talking season' and we're about at the end of talking season. Then reality strikes. I think how our culture is set and our day-to-day and how we go about things, we just go to work when our feet hit the floor in the morning. We go out there and do our job. Our team understands what we are capable of achieving, but at the same time we have tremendous respect for the opponents that we're gonna play this year. We understand that the history of this conference, it's always been a dog fight to be honest with you. So, I expect nothing less this year. Everything we get. Every win or whatever that might be, it's not going to come easy. I think our players embrace that and there is a tremendous respect for every opponent we play. We try to keep a chip on our shoulder more than anything. We're kind of a blue collar mentality, we have a chip on our shoulder, it's us against the world kind of mentality and I think our guys embrace that. So, we don't speak to it. We just go out there and do our job and when the ball rolls out, we're ready to go play."

 

[Sean_Williams]

Austin Reed:​

On preseason honors:
"It was really exciting to be chose as that (Preseason Offensive Player of the Year) because it shows respect from the other coaches in the conference and it's nice to have the mutual respect between the two. But, at the end of the day it's preseason awards. It's cool and all, but you gotta go out there and earn it. It's a blessing to have that respect from other coaches in the conference. But, at the end of the day, nobody remembers preseason awards. I'm more concerned about postseason awards."

On mindset now that he's the No. 1 guy heading into the 2023 season:

"It's nice not having to be in a quarterback competition. You really just get to dive into your game and go about things as a starter. I was a starter for three years at West Florida, so it's nice to be in that routine of being the starting quarterback and being able to focus more on your game and getting the team ready to win. At the end of the day, I'm just trying to get ready to help Western win as many games as possible. As a quarterback, a lot of that responsibility falls on your shoulders and I take great pride in the fact that a lot of games are going to be won and lost at the quarterback position and I'm just trying to help Western be in the best position to win as many games and win this conference."

On offseason adjustments from his game last year:

"I pride myself on being able to run the ball. I feel like it's a facet of our game that's needed in our offense. It opens up things. We get light boxes and obviously, we had success in the short-yardage run game. So, I pride myself on that. I lost ten pounds this offseason. I feel like I lost bad weight and I got myself in a better position to be able to run the ball and do what this team needs to do to win. At the end of the day, I'm just trying to be more comfortable in this system and run this offense the best way it can be ran. Whether that's throwing for 455 yards a game or that's giving us a light box and I'm checking into runs. I just want to put our team in a position to win and being able to know the offense in and out. What checks are needed at what time. What the offense needs to do against certain defenses has really been my main focus. At the end of the day, that complete knowledge of the offense, that complete control of it is going to be able to put our team in a position to win. At the end of the day, I can check it at the line at anytime and if I feel like this is the best play for our offense against a certain defense, that's what I'm going to do. I'm just trying to have a complete knowledge so I can put every player on the field in the best position to help us be successful and just win games. That's my main goal is to help our offense go out there and win games."

On his relationship with new offensive coordinator Drew Hollingshead:

"Coach Drew and I are super close. I was up in the facilities for 6-7 hours a day in January through April spending time with him when he first got here. Getting to know each other, that relationship between a quarterback and offensive coordinator is beyond just X's and O's. It's knowing your player and knowing your coach and knowing how each guy's mind works. It was just getting to do that kind of stuff and getting to know him. He obviously did really good things, that's why Coach (Mike) Leach kept him around so long at Washington State and bringing him to Mississippi State and we're super-excited for what Coach Drew can do this year for us and we're super-excited to have him on board. At the end of the day, we're going to play our brand of football at Western and he fits that brand and I feel like it's a great connection and great match for both of us."

On exploring the transfer portal and ultimately coming back:

"Made a decision to enter the portal and look at my options. I was very open with Coach Helton about that and very open throughout the whole process. He's the reason I ultimately decided to come back. I trust him. He's my head coach. He's who I play for. There is no one else I would rather spend my last year with than Coach Helton. I truly believe that he prepares me as a football player to reach the next level and he also prepares me as a man in life. I have the upmost respect for Coach Helton. I wanted to play here at Western. I wanted to be a Hilltopper for my final year. I wanted to come back and win Conference USA. There is a lot of things we haven't accomplished. At the end of the day, it was an easy decision to come back and play for this man and that's ultimately what led me coming back here. Extremely happy with it and feel like it's going to be the best decision I made. I feel like time will reveal that. I ultimately feel like this where God had led me to come back to be for my final year and have no regrets and 100-percent confident in the decision I made."

 

[Sean_Williams]

JaQues Evans:​

On preseason honors:
"Same thing as Austin said. I appreciate being acknowledged, but you gotta go out and go get it. We're looking forward to going out and actually accomplishing that goal."

On his community work and nomination for the AMCA good works team:

"I enjoy going out to different schools. Going out and helping the community with fundraisers. Just going out and helping kids on and off the field because they look up to me. It's a lot of fun. I embrace it. And I got out and do it as much as I can."

On new locker room updates:

"The new locker rooms are pretty cool. I appreciate everyone who contributed to it. It give you a little fire. It helps you go out there and play for something."

On defensive success continuing with turnovers:

"Yes, our coaching staff is great. Our defensive line is good. If we go out there and play the game together we can do anything. No matter who you go out there with, as long as you have a good team and play for each other, you can go out there and do anything you want."

On exploring the transfer portal and ultimately coming back:

"It was a decision I made. I was very open with Coach about it. We sat down and had a long talk about it. I was thinking I was part of a brand. I didn't want to just go break that brand that I'm building. We got a winning culture here. Put a lot of people in the league. Great coach. Great program. I thought Western was a great place for me coming out of high school. That's my home. I was just skeptical about it when I got in there (the portal), so I hopped out."