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SPORTS

Garrick McGee: U of L has "a lot of pride"

Jeff Greer
@jeffgreer_cj
Assistant coach Garrick McGee watches Will Gardner throw in practice. August 7, 2014

Louisville offensive coordinator Garrick McGee chatted with reporters on Tuesday, three days after his team's 23-21 upset loss at Virginia.

Among the issues discussed: Quarterback play, the offensive line, FIU, Reggie Bonnafon and more ...

On Tuesday practice: We worked on getting better, the same drills that we normally work on Tuesdays. We have a plan on Tuesdays and the things that we like to work, so it was a physical practice.

On the Virginia game film: There was a lot in that game that did not go as planned, but what I learned today about our players is they have a lot of pride. Today was probably the best practice that we've had since we've been here. There was an extreme response from our players. You can tell that they're extremely disappointed about what happened to us on Saturday and that they're going to do the right things to make sure that that doesn't happen again. I can tell that by the way they approached the practice session today.

On the players' emotions after losing - were they mad? I'm sure they were, but what I was looking for was the response from them on the practice field today, and there was an extreme response. The energy, the enthusiasm, the focus, the discipline of what we're trying to get down, the effort level -- everything we're looking for showed up today. What happened on Saturday did affect them.

On Will Gardner: I like Will a lot. He's a young player. He's only a sophomore. He hasn't played a lot of ball. I know he's been around so long and he is such a good player and has such good potential that we expect him to understand how to play like a veteran player. I like that they found a way to keep pressing forward on a day that we were not doing well at all. Nobody gave in. We just kept competing and trying to give ourselves a chance, but you can't win a game when you give the game away.

On the offensive line: They did a very good job today. They had a lot of enthusiasm. They were finishing blocks. They were blocking the way they were supposed to block. Their technique was better. Again, I was really impressed with the way they came out today.

Will the O-line have the same starting five? I'm not sure. Every position at this point is going to be earned on the practice field. This is an important week of practice for everybody on offense.

On field position: Our drives started in the stat sheet on the 19-yard line. We have to do some things to change the field, some chunk plays.

On FIU: They're improved. I played a game against those guys last year. They've recruited very well. They've got different guys out there on the field. They're sound. They have a really good third-down pressure package.