Saturday's 30-0 loss to Wake Forest was a low point for for the entire coaching staff especially Jeff Bowden. In this interview with the media Monday night, the much-maligned offensive coordinator discusses several hot topics including the quarterback competition, the offensive struggles against Wake Forest, dealing with all the criticism towards himself and his father, the inability of the QBs to develop and more.

Jeff Bowden: We are going to have a plan to play Xavier no matter what and early. I just think we need to do that.

Jeff Bowden: I think to be fair. I'm not throwing him to the wayside because he had a bad game. A lot of guys had a bad game on Saturday. You know that the quarterbacks' mistakes are magnified. They are just glaring.

Jeff Bowden: He's going to get those calls again and certainly I don't expect him to make that mistake again on those two play calls. There are some calls in games throughout the year that are risky calls. They are putting your quarterback in a situation where you might be throwing over the middle, when you are in long yardage and they are dropping a bunch of people. When we're playing ball on the sidelines and we get interceptions somewhere else, that's like dropping a ball. Some things can't happen.

Jeff Bowden: Pure and simple a bad decision.

Jeff Bowden: It shouldn't be. Please don't make this out as blame, but it's just a case where I called a deep ball to Greg Carr and we threw it over the middle. That shouldn't happen. It was exactly what we wanted, it was exactly the coverage we wanted and he's done it (thrown that) every time but for some reason he saw something that wet his appetite inside that cost us.

Jeff Bowden: No, that was the first one over the middle. The second one we were backed up and I did not feel comfortable with him from the six-yard line sitting in the pocket taking a chance on a safety so I rolled him out. To be honest with you it wasn't a call that was really going to get a first down, it was a call that was going to be safe, it moved the pocket and he was basically going to hit the tailback in the flat.

Jeff Bowden: He's going to run more this game, I guarantee you that. He's going to run the ball more this game... I'm going to have some additional roles for Lorenzo so it's going to be a situation where he (Smith) is going to have to (get more carries).

Jeff Bowden: He's just averaging more per run... Antone has ran well, he's broken tackles and he's made some big runs. We need to get him the ball more.

Jeff Bowden: I don't think this quarterback competition has that effect on the (team). I think all the players respect Drew, I think all the players respect Xavier and it's just not like the last go around with this scenario.

Jeff Bowden: Turnovers are the biggest thing. I cannot not call a pass. I have to be able to call safe plays like I did in that game and expect them to not get intercepted. I can't get this point across to them. Sometimes I think they are trying to do more than they need to be trying to do. They just have to take the call as it is and try not to make more out of it than it is. I've been pretty cautious this year as far as not putting them -- having them throwing balls in situations to get picked. We've had some interceptions this year on some plays that are as safe as I can make them, it shouldn't be happening. I love both of these kids but they've got to understand that. We will not win until they cut those mistakes out. It's like back fumbling, it's like a receiver dropping a ball. We've just got to stop that, they can't do it.

Jeff Bowden: He didn't look it to me. He was about 80 percent out there. He really did look ragged. Joslin looked quicker and faster. I hope he's healthier now.

Jeff Bowden: We had a drop versus a blitz.

Jeff Bowden: To be honest with you I come out here Monday night's and I watch them get in line for flex. If De'Cody felt 100 percent he'd be in the starting rotation in the flex line. When I see him go to that second spot I know he doesn't feel like he's 100 percent, that's what he's telling me. Until he feels like he's 100 percent Joslin will start the game.

Jeff Bowden: It sounds like they are going to be cleared to play. In my experience is they need to practice because we haven't had a lot of guys that have been good enough to not have to practice but go out there and play well. These guys are freshmen so they need to practice. I'm hoping they can get Tuesday and Wednesday in even if we have to put a blue (non-contact jersey) on and limit how hard they go so they can get the assignments.

Jeff Bowden: It's justifiable. Just take the interceptions in this last game, they should not be happening.

Jeff Bowden: Well, I put it on me. I'm the dad gum coordinator. Don't put it on anybody else. I'm just really upset. You can't blame anybody but me.

Jeff Bowden: Chris Davis and Antone Smith have probably given us the big plays this year. I'm really surprised that we haven't had more long runs. Some of that is attributed to the need for better blocking down field, sometimes it's better blocking up front and sometimes it's just poor running.

If you look at the makeup of this receiver corps that's where your next big plays come from. Right now other than Greg Carr catching jump balls and deep balls, he hasn't shown that (big plays) and I'm not being critical of Greg. It (yards after catch) isn't high this year. Chris Davis has (some big plays) but I don't know how much his YAC's have been but he's given us some huge catches throughout this year. That's it. I haven't had a lot of dynamic play at my split end position. De'Cody and Joslin have been steady but nothing dynamic. I think Preston Parker is going to give us that some day, Damon McDaniel will give us that, I believe some day, and I think Rod (Owens) is going to be very special. He's one of the toughest kids I've got. Chris Davis is your best bet at wide receiver to make something exciting happen out of something short or just his ability to go over the middle and get to where he has to get.

Jeff Bowden: They are all tough.

Jeff Bowden: It is probably, well, you know it is kind a two-sided answer in that number one I didn't quite know what we were going to have because we thought Brandon Warren was going to be a great player but you didn't know. This was his first year and we didn't know how he would play as a freshman but he has proven that he is going to be a great player. I am excited about the future from that standpoint. Caz Piurowski is going to be an excellent tight end, another excellent tight end for us but I didn't know what to expect, I just knew he had some potential coming in here. Now he has more work to do than Brandon, Brandon is just more athletically gifted but Caz still at 6-foot-7 and with good hands is going to present problems in the future for defenses. Charlie Graham is going to be the Rodney Dangerfield of the tight ends but he is because of the other two guys raised his level of play. So to answer your question, I kind of started out saying we were young but I expected much better than the results we have seen so far but I still kind of kept my eyes down the road with this bunch because of some of the youth.

Jeff Bowden: Some and lack of what we were talking about, lack of production after catches. I don't think I have ever gone into a game and said we were going to catch every one but that is our goal. We want to go have that perfect game as far as catching balls but I am always going to reserve that they are going to drop one or two but they aren't making much happen after the catch. I can go and pull back every catch we have made and this might be a very, very lean year for YAC's. Now two years ago was like this and last year they did something about it. I lost a couple of guys prior to spring who could have given us a whole difference face offensively at wide receiver.

Jeff Bowden: Yeah, right now we are playing, we are threatening half a football field.

Jeff Bowden: Yeah, I think it does. Well what it does is they play coverage on the two and they bring a safety down to the boundary. It all depends on what safety, they are going to bring them down, that is not new to football and everybody has to play against it and everybody can run against it but when they can isolate and they can sit there and play one-on-one on one receiver and shut down half the field like that and you are not making anything big happen it exposes you a little bit. We have been exposed a little bit.

Jeff Bowden: Growing up. We have some growing up to do. There is no question, what does that mean. We have some kids that have to play tougher. Some kids are just freshmen and they are just figuring out what this is all about this year. It is good, I am happy they are freshmen and I am happy we got them and they are playing for us. I also have a sense of reality that these guys futures are going to be great and I am happy we are getting what we are getting out of them.

Jeff Bowden: Well, here is what I would have – the best thing scheme wise that I would have liked to have done had I not lost two receivers is I would have gone a lot more spread offense this year like last year. We stretched the defense better last year because when we put four receivers out, you had Willie Reid, Chris Davis, Greg Carr, De'Cody Fagg, or whoever was backing up De'Cody and Kenny O'Neal and Fred Rouse, even though those two were young they were dangerous. We were more dangerous when people have to defend way out there, way out here to this sideline, then here and here(spreading the field). It is like watching the Wake Forest game from two years ago, we had like a 190 yards rushing against them and probably a 100 or 115 yards last year were out of the spread set because they were so fearful of those wide receivers. That is the only thing, when you lose kids you have to go with what you have got and you have to build your plan around what you have got. To go out there and just put four receivers out on the field who are of no threat would be foolish so I think you get Rod Owens back, I think Preston (Parker) will be ready, I think Damon (McDaniel) will be ready this next year, and we will be able to do more of that. Drew and Xavier are sure enough ready to go out there and run that offense.

Jeff Bowden: The future of this team is unbelievable. Look at the injuries the defense has got, they are going through what we went through last year with some great, I don't mean good linebackers that are sitting on those sidelines, but great players. They have some young kids who are getting throw into the fire like us and kids are playing their butts off. I am sure a lot of it is like freshman, not quite as good as what you want and not quite as good as what expectations need to be.

Jeff Bowden: One thing? Oh, I don't know. I don't know how to answer that question. I think we just took a step backwards this past game so I think we take a step backwards and go back and start Drew back over again. I think the difference now is that Xavier now is going to have some solid reps, some set reps earlier in the game not IF Drew is struggling or IF we are in the lead but we just have maybe a second or third series type of rotation deal and let him go out there and run the show.

Jeff Bowden: Well, I will tell you what happened. Early on in the game we had the rain so I was going to be fairly safe because we were backed up and I didn't think it was wise to be foolish. However, when you call a play that is designed to be played out on the edge and a ball gets thrown down the middle because we have a lot of passing plays with receivers running down the middle but the call, that is like a second read in the play and is not primary. All of a sudden I become fearful to call anything where I have a receiver running down the middle because I am scared it might get thrown there and it is one of those things I can't explain, I can't tell you what made him think to go down there. He saw something that he must have liked but you can't do that. It puts me in a bind because now I am scared to call things.

Jeff Bowden: Oh yeah, absolutely. Well we felt like our take-off, our outs, and post corners off of our play action pass were going to be good. The things that we were throwing at the end of the game. That was one of the type of calls that got picked early in the game, that was as safe as we got. When I have to be fearful of that, it is hard. So I tried to help them, and tried to get them over the hump.

Jeff Bowden: The same answer I have given you the last three years. The answer hasn't changed.

Jeff Bowden: Same answer. I don't, I can't, I couldn't survive.

Jeff Bowden: [laughs] Shoot, I saw him hanging from a tree at a young age. It hasn't changed.

Nobody is immune to it. It is like dad said, the one thing I have learned, and this is the truth, every team that lost, I am sure there is a coordinator in that town catching crud. I really believe that.

Jeff Bowden: Um, I don't know. That I don't know. I think any coordinator here-

Jeff Bowden: That was winning. They were winning. I thought it was ridiculous then but I just don't know if it is any different anywhere else.

Jeff Bowden: Yeah, well reflecting on that it is kind of like Joe Paterno – too old, can't win so what does he do, he goes out and wins his conference last year so..

Jeff Bowden: One day I might answer that.

You want me to defend the winningest coach in football history, him and Joe Paterno, nobody has to defend those two men right there. The ignorance is that those two young men, not just Bobby Bowden but Joe Paterno as well, don't know what the heck is going on because the ignorance is that Bobby Bowden doesn't see what is going on, what the problem is. He sees the problems we are having. He knows what the issues are. He knows the battles I am fighting and the battles those other coaches are fighting. You just don't win that many games and not know. He is not removed like everybody thinks. He is involved when he has to but I am sure Paterno is the same way, thank god, he lets his coaches coach and he steps in when he has to. Don't think he doesn't step in.

Jeff Bowden: We talk about what our weaknesses are a lot. I go out there before practice everyday and we talk about the game plan and what I think we can do. Things that he likes and that he sees are there, he lets me know those things. When he sees problems, he points them out to me. Sometimes I will ask him about problems we are having and how we should handle them.

Jeff Bowden: When these kids grow up, you are going to have one heck of a football team. If you get all these kids back from surgery and you get all these kids healthy, yeah, you are going to have a heck of a football team.

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