Pac-12 football coaches teleconference: Mike MacIntyre talks stingy Colorado defense

The Pac-12 coaches talk defense following Week 2. Some coaches see improvement within their own camps, while some fear others' offenses will overpower them all.

Colorado's Mike MacIntyre

The Buffs have not allowed a touchdown yet. A pair of field goals is all this stingy defense has given up, one per opponent.

Coach Mike MacIntyre said his defense has just been playing "really sound," and lights out in the red zone.

"No break free runs or busted coverage," he said. "Been impressed with how sound they've been and fundamental they've been on their alignments." 

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Mike MacIntyre's full session]

UCLA's Jim Mora

Jim Mora got fired up when officials missed a targeting call that should have been called against Hawai'i.

The Pac-12 acknowledged the officiating issue.

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Oregon State's Gary Andersen

The Beavs lost two of their first three games, but coach Gary Andersen likes what he sees from former Idaho quarterback Jake Luton.

The Beavs hope to advance their throw game, and Andersen said Luton helps the team take that step. After three games, Luton has a 61 percent completion rate and has thrown four touchdowns, but he has also thrown four picks. 

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Gary Andersen's full session]

Utah's Kyle Whittingham

Kyle Whittingham says the Utes have "a good a defensive front as there is in college football."

The Utes lead the Pac-12 in rush defense, pass efficiency defense and punt return defense.

That defense helped the Utes hold their rivals to 16 points in their win Saturday. Defense was key, said Whittingham. "That, for us, is always where it starts." 

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Kyle Whittingham's full session]

Stanford's David Shaw

David Shaw was asked about how difficult it was to defend USC running backs Ronald Jones and Stephen Carr. "Defending USC is the problem," Shaw said. 

The Trojans play extremely well up front, he noted, and the Trojans swayed the game their way because the offensive line played better than Stanford's front seven. "When you give a quarterback like that time, nothing good can come." 

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of David Shaw's full session]

Arizona's Rich Rodriguez

Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez likes where his defense is headed. 

"It was certainly better and that was good to see," he noted in response to the Wildcats' 19-16 loss to Houston. RichRod saw the potential in August camp, claiming that the young defense looked tentative in their win over Northern Arizona first game. Against Houston, they tightened the screws.

"We were a lot more aggressive, played a lot more confidently." 

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Rich Rodriguez's full session]

Cal's Justin Wilcox

Justin Wilcox and the Bears are excited to play Mississippi's defense. It's a well-coached defense, said Wilcox, one that isn't afraid to throw a lot of different looks at opponents. 

"Our offense will be excited to go compete against a group like that."

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Justin Wilcox's full session]

Washington State's Mike Leach

The Cougs rallied back from a 21-point deficit to beat Boise State 47-44 Saturday.

Of course, Mike Leach asserted the Cougs have a lot to work on as they welcome Conference foe Oregon State next.

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Mike Leach's full session]

USC's Clay Helton

We have us a USC, Texas rematch coming up. A classic.

Helton remembers watching the 2006 game as an assistant coach at the University of Memphis.

"Obviously it will go down as one of the better games in the history of this sport," he said. Now, being part of the Trojan family, he knows how much it hurt. "We know how important winning it will be for our Trojan family."

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Clay Helton's full session]

ASU's Todd Graham

The Sun Devils are coming off a 30-20 loss to San Deigo State. They face Texas Tech Saturday. 

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Todd Graham's full session]

Oregon's Willie Taggart

Willie Taggart immediately got to work after his welcome press conference, meeting with running back Royce Freeman about him rejoining the team. 

Royce wanted to know about the program, what Taggart's vision was. For Freeman, his decision to return was about legacy. "He wanted to leave it how he found it," said Taggart.  

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Willie Taggart's full session]

Washington's Chris Petersen

The Los Angeles teams are the talk of the country--representatives for the high powered offenses on the West Coast with probable first-round picks at quarterback. With the spotlight on Hollywood, the Huskies have quietly been going about their business, showing they can still be dominant in a 63-7 win over Montana. Flying under the radar is just Chris Petersen's style.

"We're not really into people talking to us at the beginning of the year," he said. "If they're not talking about us at the end of the year, maybe it's a problem, maybe we were disrespected." 

[Right click and "Save Link As" to download audio of Chris Petersen's full session]