Arizona offensive coordinator Seth Doege previews NAU matchup

Arizona offensive coordinator Seth Doege said the Wildcats are taking a different approach.

“Game 1 is a little more consistent with us, just going out there and competing and making sure we’re playing a clean game of football,” Doege said.

“But I know those guys are going to be excited to play. I’ve heard some of their press conferences where they’re treating it like a normal game, just any other game. I know that’s the PR answer, but an in-state FCS opponent has kids that probably wanted to play at the University of Arizona. They’re going to be a little bit more excited to play us. Our challenge to our team is: can we be more excited?

“The first game, we haven’t played in a while, new team, new circumstances, in front of a home crowd at night, you should be excited to play this game. That’s our challenge to our team. There’s just excitement from both sides, because it’s an in-state game with a bunch of in-state players. But at the same time, it’s Game 1 for us and our guys have battled each other for a long time and they’re ready to play somebody else.”

NAU enters Saturday’s contest with a win under its belt. The Lumberjacks — ranked 20th in the FCS rankings — rallied to beat Eastern Washington, 34-27, in Flagstaff on Saturday. NAU trailed 24-3 but outscored EWU 31-3 to end the game.

NAU quarterback Ty Pennington completed 15 of 27 passes for 164 yards, two touchdowns and an interception — and rushed for 61 yards on eight attempts. NAU running back Quran Gossett had 21 carries for 103 rushing yards and a touchdown. The Lumberjacks had 201 rushing yards as a team. NAU kick returner Lindsey Graves had two kick returns for 116 yards, including a 100-yard return for a touchdown.

NAU’s defense was led by safety Shoes Brinkley and defensive tackle Jackson Murray, who each had a team-high nine tackles. Cornerback Jahaad Fort’s interception in the second half contributed to NAU’s second-half comeback.

Doege said Brinkley “flies around, plays the game the right way. He’s not as big, but that’s OK. That dude plays football the right way.”

“There’s not like, ‘Oh, man, we’re going to pick on this guy.’ They’re all solid football players,” Doege added. “They’re going to come fight us and we gotta be ready for it.”

Doege met with local media to assess NAU’s defense, his “six seconds of violence” mantra, playing to win despite a highly anticipated matchup with BYU next week and the confidence in quarterback Noah Fifita.

What’s your assessment of NAU’s defense under first-year defensive coordinator Trenton Greene, who was previously a cornerbacks coach at Montana State?

A: “They got down early — and you guys watched the game — and were down 24-3 and found a way to come back and win that game. That shows you they’re tough, they’re resilient. … There were some similarities to what we saw on the Montana State games that we broke down, but we knew he was going to have his own personality on it. I’m sure we’ll get a twist and a new flavor against us. We just have to be able to adapt and respond to it during the game.”

What would getting into the game on Saturday mean for backup quarterback Sawyer Anderson and his development?

A: “Any game experience for a quarterback is huge, whether it be this game or a game in the future. If I can get him in and get him some valuable reps, that’s just different. Playing in a game is different than practicing. I’ve been around quarterbacks who were never really great practice players, but they get in the game and the lights are on and they’re gamers. … There’s an intense level of focus in a game that I want all of our quarterbacks to experience, especially our backup that hasn’t played. As much experience as I can get him, the better.”

Where did you develop the slogan “six seconds of violence?”

A: “I stole it from our special teams coordinator at Bowling Green; his name is Matt Brock (now co-defensive coordinator at Mississippi State). He used it and it was ‘Six-O-V ’; that was his special teams slogan. I kept it in my back pocket for a long time. The origin is any given play is going to average somewhere between four, five or six seconds.

“In those four, five or six seconds, in between the whistles, you are rewarded with choosing violence in the game of football. The more physical player is winning the battle every time. Six seconds of violence is reminding yourself that every time the whistle blows, we’re going six seconds of true violence and go as hard as I can go and punish my opponent. … The game of football is won and rewarded by the more violent teams, the more violent units, the more violent players. If that makes somebody feel some type of way, then football is probably not for you.”

Would you consider being conservative with your play-calling this week considering the game against No. 14 BYU in Provo next week?

A: “No, I want to win. I’m going to do everything I can to win. Now, if the game is out of hand, then you hold back on some things. But you go into the game ready to win. … There might be a certain formation or certain set where you’re like, ‘Hey, this lines up really good on some of these run schemes.’ We’re running the ball out of those specific sets and how they adjust to it and align to it.

“Going up against BYU, that same formation might not be as advantageous. There’s a lot of things that go into a game-planning process and we’ll have specific stuff that we’ll have specifically for NAU that might not come up against BYU or Washington State. At the same time, whatever you’re showing, they gotta prepare for, especially if you have success.”

Most of the projected starters on offense are returners from the previous team. How valuable is that experience and cohesion?

A: “There’s value on game experience in general. Even Noah, we were talking about this the other day, he asked me did I get nervous before games (when I played quarterback) and I said, ‘Hell yeah, I get nervous.’ There’s this anxiety and anxiousness before you take the first snap. You wanted to complete the first ball so bad and then it goes away. Or you just want to get hit.

“If I completed a pass, I wanted somebody to come clean and hit me as hard as they could. It would almost piss me off, so I’m like, ‘Bet. It’s on now.’ I think the ability to adapt and respond quicker is a competitive advantage to teams with experience. … Let’s say this: we play NAU, and they got us down 14-0. We haven’t scored a single point. How are we going to respond to that?

“It’s a lot easier to respond to that with older, experienced guys than it is with young guys who are trying to figure that out. We have some guys who have used their experience and found ways to win games. To me, that’s the biggest thing.”

What do you think is Fifita’s ceiling this upcoming season?

A: “The confidence I have, as long as he’s on the field, we can beat anybody. I do feel that way. If there’s time on the clock with Noah Fifita on the field, we can find a way to win. He has the ability to change the game, he has the ability to respond to a game. He’s elite and if he’s on the field and we’re protecting the football, we have a chance to win that game. If we’re in a hole and there’s still time on the clock and he’s in the game, we have a chance to win that game.”