Everything Eliah Drinkwitz said at Gator Bowl press conference
I’m not in Jacksonville, but the Gator Bowl live streamed the coaches’ press conference Friday ahead of Saturday’s matchup between Mizzou and Virginia. Here is the full transcript of Eliah Drinkwitz and Tony Elliott.
When asked how to help players understand the magnitude of the game
Drinkwitz: “Coach Elliott, and, I mean, ACC Coach of the Year. And they’re, they’re one drive away, you know, from, and I know he’s, he’s probably stewing over that, but he was one drive away from being in the College Football Playoffs. So it’s as good of an opponent as you can have. And so our guys know that it’s going to take a lot to compete in this game. And I think anytime you’re a competitor, you want to have a quality opponent so our guys are ready and prepared.”
Elliott: “I’m still a little bit of what he said. We talked about at the beginning of the year, for my team, we’re in a different situation than coach Drink. We haven’t been to a bowl game since 2019. I got fifth-year seniors on my roster that have never, you know, been close to a bowl game. So we talked about the objective was we wanted to be playing where it’s warm in, in December, right? That’s the, that’s when you know that you’ve made it to the type of bowl that you want to be in, like you said, with, with location.
“But we’ve really been trying to take in the moment with everything. I mean, we’ve really just had an appreciation for the flight, the school that we’re practicing at, the hotel, the weather, just everything about the experience is new for our guys. And then also being able to play against a team like, like, Coach Drink’s team. And, man, you cut them on film, and immediately we knew that we were going to a really, really good bowl. Because when you watch the tape, you’re playing a team like, like Missouri.”
Question: If you could invite two or three people to your team Christmas dinner yesterday, who would you invite and why?
Drinkwitz: “Well, if it was up to me, as just saying thank you, I would have invited Sarah, because she did an excellent job with this bowl. And Greg, I think both of those guys, people, have done an excellent job. And this has been first class. You know, we’ve been to some really good bowl games in the past. And I know Coach Elliott’s been at some really, really good bowl games. But the hospitality, the hotel, the food, the service, has been really, really special. So we appreciate y’all and appreciate every volunteer with the Gator Bowl and making this, you know, Christmas Day a lot of fun. And Christmas Eve a lot of fun for our players.”
Elliott: “Yeah, I got three names that come to mind. The first would be the big man upstairs. Because obviously that’s his birthday and the real reason for the season. Just to put everything in perspective. And then I haven’t seen Trevor and I haven’t seen Travis. Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne in a long time, so it’s been about five years.
“So I think I would have invited them over just to celebrate with us. We’re in there, playing in their venue, in their hometown. But then also to help our team understand what it’s like to play in the postseason. Because we’ve been approaching this game like a playoff game. This really is a, is two teams that are a drive, a drive and a half away from playing in the College Football Playoff. So I would have brought those two over just to maybe help me get these guys fired up to go against,”
Drinkwitz: “You didn’t sign them right? They aren’t playing?”
Elliott: “I tried to, but they wouldn’t answer.”
Drinkwitz: “Jiminy Christmas.”
Question: Is there one or two events about bowl week that really stand out and made this week special for you and your team?
Elliott: “Yeah, I think just the opportunity today for six of our players to be over meeting with the, with the young people that really are the superstars they’re they’re the ones that have been battling, you know, life-altering, just situations. And so for our players to have an opportunity to put it in perspective of how blessed they are. And then having a chance to go over to the naval base and tour the destroyer ships. I’m a little bit of a, kind of a military nerd. I like, I like things like that.
“So it’s really, really cool to see that up close and personal. I’ve been on an aircraft carrier. I’ve been to air force bases. But I’ve never been on a ship like that. And I thought that also helps our guys put everything in perspective. Football is the ultimate team sport that’s all about sacrifice. But when you meet the officers and the enlisted folks that are aboard those ships, and you realize that they’re the ones that are really making the ultimate sacrifice for us to be able to talk about a football game. They give it up for us.”
Drinkwitz: “Yeah, I mean, I thought the opening night, we packed the backpacks. Just an attitude of gratitude and giving back to the community. And, you know, I think that’s an awesome mission that they have in providing, you know, food for food insecure people, children. I think that was a great deal. And for our guys to be able to just write an encouraging note, you know, encouragement such a powerful thing. Using your words in a positive way. And so I think that was really cool. And obviously, the dream team event that we just went to was, was impactful. You know, there was one kid kept picking Virginia to win the game. It was bothering me a little bit. But other than that, it was good.”
Elliott: “Well, you know, one out of six, you know, we got to at least get one vote.”
Drinkwitz: “Well, we got there first. I recruited five of them.”
Question: Is there anything you do during the year that you’d like to highlight just to this audience from a give-back standpoint?
Elliott: “Yeah, so, so each Friday during the during the season, we have a couple of opportunities in town. In Charlottesville, the UVA Medical Hospital has a big children’s wing. And so several of our guys will spend their Fridays before we start our preparation, just visiting with the children from all over the East Coast, all over the state of Virginia. Just to bring encouragement. And then we also have another group that goes to one of the local elementary schools and reads to the, to the children there. So those are two things that that really stand out. And then we have a big community service event each each semester. In this past year, we went to a local housing project and just tried to do anything we possibly could to help renovate and make life a little bit better for them.”
Drinkwitz: “Yeah, we do some similar things. But the one I would highlight is there’s an, our, or my wife and I’s passion has been foster care ministry. And there’s a foster care group called Coyote Hill in town, and we actually track with them. We do a Night of Champions for all the foster care kids within Boone County. And we bring those, those students in, or families in, and the families go and have a night and a meal with the coaches wives. And all the young athletes go and do a night with our players and do a football camp with them. Then we bring them back to a game and have them, their whole family for a game.
“And then for Christmas, you know, since these guys are getting NIL, we have each position group adopt a family and go out and buy all of them Christmas, Christmas gifts. And, you know, use their influence in a positive way. Use their financials, finances. We preach a lot to our guys, you’re blessed to be a blessing. And so use your resources. And it was really cool.
“One of the cool things we were, our defensive ends or our edges, were in line to buy it. And, you know, they’re at Target. And a lady was like, ‘What are y’all doing?’ And he was, Zion Young, who’s really vocal, was like, ‘We’re buying Christmas gift for Coyote Hill.’ And she said, ‘No, I’m buying it.’ And so she walked over and paid for everything. So the guys then went and got another kid and went and bought more stuff. And so, you know, it’s just awesome to see that the Lord multiply that, you know.”
(That’s a good story of NIL, right? You don’t hear all of those.)
Drinkwitz: “There’s a lot of really good stories of NIL. A lot of car dealers have gotten rich off selling cars and, and then we’ve been able to give back to the community. So it’s the gift that keeps on giving year round.”
Question: How has your job changed (the past few years)? And just describe the importance of being that leader of men and shaping the next generation.
Elliott: “You know, I think he said it the best way you’re blessed to be a blessing to others. And I know I didn’t get into this business to be sitting here today. I got into this business, my first job was at an HBCU. And all I wanted to do was coach ball. To be around young people. To use that platform to impact them. And I was fortunate to have people that believed in me, to help me develop, to ultimately be fortunate to be in this position. But at the end of the day, we’re teachers. We’re developers of young people. And that’s the hardest thing, I think, in our line of work, is keeping the focus.
“Because there are more good things than there are bad things. But a lot of times, the things that catch people’s attention in the media are the things that make your job frustrating, but it’s a small minority of the time. But you know, to me, it’s a calling, and there’s a higher level of responsibility. So at the end of the day, I don’t believe I’m going to be judged by the number of wins and losses, but I will be judged by the impact on the hearts and souls of the young men that I, that I’m fortunate enough to be in charge of. And so we take a comprehensive approach.
“It’s a holistic approach within our, within our program. And we want to prepare our guys to be champions in all that they do. They’re going to be men much longer than they are football players. And what we need is we need these young men that possess so many talents beyond just the physical things that you see on Saturdays these he mentioned one of his D-ends is very vocal, and I’m sure he’s got probably so many gifts that he can give and pass forward and then has an unbelievable platform. So we just keep that in perspective. And so everything we do is about building champion men. And then in the process, we believe that whatever they touch, whether it’s football, academics, their spiritual life, their social life, they’re going to be champions.”
Drinkwitz: “Yeah, I just think the one thing that I remind our coaching staff and our players about all the time, or our coaches who are around our players, is these guys are still developing and maturing. And even though we’re paying them like professionals, they’re not quite there yet. And so we got to walk them through those hard things in life. You know, we got to walk them through, I know that plagiarism, you know, when they’re when the easiest way out is to cheat in class. And hey, all right, this is the consequences for that. Or this is the consequences for your actions.
“And you know, they’re all still making decisions. And because of the spotlights, because of the ESPNs and all that, we can’t judge them too harshly. We have to correct them, and we got to mold them. We got to use discipline. But we got to keep helping them move along and make sure that you know these choices don’t have to define them forever. And that’s, I think that’s really been something the last three years for us. Is that as the stage and the lights and the money’s gotten bigger, the development of these young men is still priority. And that’s really what we got into it for. And we can’t be, it has turned into a business model, but we can’t be so business-minded that we forget about that.”
Question: Who are the unsung leaders on your team?
Elliott: “I think Jahmeer Carter doesn’t get talked about as much. And the reason being, this year we were able to add additional players around him at his position, so that we had a rotation. So he didn’t have to play as many snaps. But his impact has not diminished at all. It’s actually improved and increased.
“And he’s a guy that’s, was there with the previous staff, went through the transitions, never been to a bowl game, and now we’re here. And it’s just so awesome. You see a fifth-year guy that could be focused on himself. And when he’s not getting reps in practice, he’s taking a young guy over to the side and coaching him one-on-one. And that just permeates throughout the position group and with the with the guys in our locker room. So I’d say Ja Carter is the one, No. 90, that doesn’t get talked about as much as maybe some of our other team captains.”
Drinkwitz: “Yeah, probably for us, Jalen Catalan. He was a transfer from UNLV plays safety for us, you know, has rotated quite a bit in the secondary, but is just a steady, consistent hand. Carries the message of the coaching staff from the team room to the locker room. Which I think is very important. And he’s just been consistent. And even through, you know, the transitions of the bowl game and players playing, not playing, he’s been consistent, you know, rallying the troops, making sure we have the right kind of spirit and energy at practice. Been really proud of him.”
Question: Talk about your week of preparation and what the fans can be excited to see from your team.
Elliott: “Yeah, it’s been a good week. We tried to keep it as normal as possible, being that we are playing on a Saturday. The only difference was we practiced Tuesday morning before we flew down. But it’s been really good energy. The guys have been excited. They’ve, they’ve loved the preparation down here because of the weather and the venue.
“So it’s been very spirited from a practice standpoint. We understand the opponent that we’re getting ready to play. It’s going to be a fast game, right? It’s going to be a very physical game. And it’s going to be a game that comes down to one possession. So our guys are focusing in on the details to be able to play our best, to give us a shot to be in a position at the fourth, in the fourth quarter, to see which team wants to wants to win it the most.”
Drinkwitz: “Yeah, we tried to have a typical game week the last week. And then we gave our guys three days off to go home. And then we met down here, had a practice Tuesday, Wednesday. Today will be a Fast Friday for us, and then we’ll be ready to kick off tomorrow night. Obviously, with our quarterback, you know, who was penciled in to be the starting quarterback, leaving, opportunity for a freshman to step up. You know, that’ll be a little bit of a challenge for us to see. You know, how can he acclimate. They do a tremendous job on the defensive side of the ball, in the back end with their secondary.
“It’s like this offensive guy told him to mix up all these coverages. You got no idea what they’re doing in the back end. But you know, it’s really going to be strength on strength for us. I think their defense and our defenses are probably the, the thing that they, we both lean on. I don’t want to misspeak. And then offensively, you know, both of us control the clock and try to move the ball down the field and take our shots when we can.
“You know, we’re going to have to really rely on Jamal Roberts and Ahmad Hardy. Those are our two running backs. And then, you know, we’ve had some wide receivers step away too. So it gives an opportunity for Kevin Coleman and Donovan Olugbode to step up. It wouldn’t surprise me if it doesn’t come down to the kicking game. Because it’s such an even matchup with offense and defense.”
Question: Both of you have 1,000-yard rushers who started at other colleges. I’m assuming there was something there that you liked about the way they were coached and the way they developed to bring them to your program. We have two mid-major basketball teams in this city who have lost their leading scorers to the SEC, the ACC and the Big 10 in the past three years. My question is this, when things kind of settle down a little bit, do you think the power 4, when they get a transfer from an FCS team, a mid-major, a Division II team, should there be some kind of a development fee that goes back to those colleges?
Elliott: “Deep cut, early.”
Drinkwitz: “Yeah. So this is actually a law-related question that applies to the NFL too. And so as soon as the NFL starts paying universities, and us, for developing their talent. There would be no NFL if there wasn’t college football. And so as soon as they start paying us, then I think that that’s something that would happen. But it’s going to have to start top down.”
Elliott: “I think he answered it perfectly, so I just want to say ditto. But truth be told, we’re at a different place in our program than maybe coach Drink is with the with us taking over as a new staff. And really, last year was the first cycle that we had through with a big transfer portal class. So what we saw was just really good football players that could help us get better. I think the longer we’re in it, and the more direction we do get from the NFL, we’ll be able to maybe pay it forward.”
Question: You mentioned Zion Young, just wondered if there was kind of an update on his availability for the game and any other roster updates that you might want to share?
Drinkwitz: “I don’t want to share him because I don’t want Tony to know. But no, no, Zion is playing, and he had been deliberating on that, but he will play tomorrow, and excited for him to do that. We’ve had a healthy week of practice. So nothing since, I think last Tuesday, when I updated everybody. Obviously, I think the starters that have opted out, obviously were Beau (Pribula), Josh Manning and Marquis Johnson. But other than them, obviously the injuries with Brett Norfleet and Josiah Trotter. So that’s five pretty good players, but other than that, we’re ready to rock and roll. If it now, do you want to answer? You got any news? Because I’d like to, I’d like to know. I saw a tweet about your running back. You know, what has he made up his mind yet or what?
Elliott: “He’s still deliberating.”
Drinkwitz: “Yeah, yeah. Well, tell him to call me. Tell him Zion’s playing.”
Question: Tony, off of what Eliah just asked you about any, any final decisions yet? What’s your comfortability with (backups) handling more of the workload?
Elliott: “Hey, got to go play. I mean, it’s, at the end of the day. It’s truly the message that you preach every day. It’s the next man up. You got to be, you got to be ready. And I told the guys throughout the course of the season that in games like this, it’s going to be somebody that you don’t expect. So everybody better, better be ready. And I’m excited for those guys to, if they get the opportunity to go out there and play. Obviously, Harrison (Waylee) has played a lot of football. And prior to injury, Noah (Vaughn) was playing at a high level. Obviously, Xay Davis, a freshman, hasn’t had much burn. If he’s out there, hey, buckle up, because Zion is playing. You better, you better be ready to go.”
Drinkwitz: “You know, I’ll say this about this whole situation. I think for, for our team, for sure, and I think obviously, hearing from Coach. You know, this game means a whole lot to both sides. And there’s opportunities here. But it’s also an opportunity for other guys to get a chance to play, you know, with the redshirt rule not applying, you’re going to get to see, for us some freshmen run down on, on kickoff and on special teams, and get an opportunity to play and develop the bottom half of your roster. And that’s really what these practices have been all about for us. And so it’s a it’s a great situation, and we wish those guys well that moved on. But really, it’s about our team now moving forward, and that’s what we’re focused on.”
Question: Corey Costner, starts for you guys at the nickel, what did you see from him this season as he played more and more throughout his freshman year?
Elliott: “I think one, you saw the ability to make the big play, and he came up with some phenomenal plays that you wouldn’t expect a freshman to make. And then over the course of the season, you just saw his ability to play down in and down out. And so he was also being subbed in on some of our fast packages, just to get a different level of coverage at the nickel position. Physically, he came in the door ready to play, but by mid season, you felt comfortable with him being able to go out and function on his own and get himself lined up and relay the calls. And so we’re excited for him to have now, an opportunity to play potentially a whole game, as opposed to and you know, you wish (Ja’son) Prevard the best, but I’m excited for Corey and his opportunity.”
Drinkwitz: “That play he made against Cal and that interception was pretty sporty. I think y’all be just fine.”
Question: Coach Elliott, could you describe what it was like to coach Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne?
Elliott: “Oh, man, they made me look really, really good. It seemed like everything on the call sheet was going to find a way to work when you had those, when you had those two. But first and foremost, I think the thing that I take away from my time with Trevor and with Travis
is, they’re unbelievable human beings. They’re just phenomenal, phenomenal people. And Trevor man, nobody’s had it more challenging than him since he was 14 years old. He’s always been in the spotlight, and he’s handled it, you know, better than anybody that I’ve ever seen, or what you can expect out of a person that’s in the spotlight.
“And I’m just happy that now kind of things are starting to settle in for both of them. Travis was, was the type of guy that showed up every day with a smile on his face, didn’t complain, went to work, was a team guy. So those are the things that I remember the most. And there were some phenomenal plays that they made. I think you guys are seeing that with the, from an ability standpoint. But what you do know about both of those guys is their champions, and it was just a matter of time before they were going to be able to influence the circle around them, to galvanize everybody and lead them in the right direction.”
Question: Coach Elliott, how much of an opportunity is this for, not just for the present, but for the years ahead?
Elliott: “It’s a huge opportunity, man, we’re trying to catch up to coach Drink, just like my shoe game’s trying to catch up. I’ve been chasing this guy for a while, man. We go back to the days in the ACC, he’s always been a guy that I’ve admired and had appreciation for how he does things. But over the last three seasons, we haven’t been to the postseason. So if you look at it, that’s probably about 45 practices that we’ve missed out and three games. This is an opportunity to develop our, develop our program.
“So this is, this is huge, and both teams are playing for legacy. I believe y’all playing for your third nine-win season in a row. We’re playing for the first potentially 11-win season in school history. So there’s a ton to play for. So, so that’s fun, cool to see these guys rally around, you know, another goal that they had set, when they may have came up a little bit short on some other goals that they set, but it’s huge for our program. Just going forward to be able to get these 10, 12 practices with these young guys, then have an opportunity to play some of them in this game. It just really sets the stage for next year.”
Question: Tony, you said this group kind of changed your mind and how you were going to approach roster building. How did they do that? What was it about this team that’s kind of changed how you’re approaching that?
Elliott: “Yeah, I’m not gonna speak for Drink, but my wife probably can attest that as coaches, we’re stubborn. We get set in our ways, and we like things the way we like them, and we’re not really necessarily open to change. And so when you’re talking about going completely against the model that we came up in as young coaches. As young coaches, you might have 25 guys as freshmen, but you know, you’re going to have those 25 guys for the next four years. And you cycled them through when you developed your team and you, and you built chemistry, you built camaraderie, you had a culture set in place. And then now half of your team comes in, in January. It’s like, ‘Oh, how’s this work?’
“But this team was able to teach me a lot about where we are, how to coach the younger generations that you still can develop team, you still can’t have culture. Leadership is everything, everything rises and falls on leadership, if you get the right leaders in place. And it also taught me that if you’re going to do this, you don’t necessarily have to change like everybody else does, that you can adapt according to your philosophies.
“So the staff did an unbelievable job of finding the right people first and then the talent. And they were able to because, it’s culture to you. I mean, we’re limited on the amount of time that we can have with our guys, and there’s got to be certain individuals that take the message of the coaches down to the locker room. And that’s what these guys proved to me, that if you have the right leaders, you can bring a large number of new guys in, because ultimately, locker room is going to police itself if the culture is set and you have the right guys.”