QUESTIONS FOR OFFENSIVE COORDINTOR LANE KIFFIN, QB JAKE COKER, RB KEYNAN DRAKE, RB DERRICK HENRY, C RYAN KELLY AND WR RICHARD MULLANEY OC LANE KIFFIN: Thanks for coming, guys. This has been a very exciting year. Really want to thank Coach [Nick] Saban, Coach [Bill] Battle, really all the fans for allowing us to come back for a second year. As I mentioned last year, I think that we have the best staff in America and what Coach Saban has been able to put together. Just to see Coach [Kirby] Smart finally get his opportunity to become a head coach. Wish him the best of luck. Know he'll do a great job. I think we need to give a lot of credit to our kids. And really in the second year, you start to understand what is referred to as the process more with Coach Saban and at. And you have a couple examples of that up here in Derrick and Ryan. Reggie Ragland last week made a statement that I thought was -- really tells you everything that you'd need to know about the program. is really not for everybody. It takes special guys to come play at and go through the process with Coach Saban and the staff. I think as you look at Derrick Henry, obviously a great year, what he was able to do and win the Heisman and to be so humble in the way that he works every day is why he got there. Very much like Amari Cooper last year. And Coach [Burton] Burns did a great job with him. Our offensive line led by Ryan Kelly, I think, was the national offensive line of the year. Great job by Coach [Mario] Cristobal bringing those guys together. And also understand, really there's only two returning starters in there. And really the rest of the offensive line had not played very much at all. So a great job bringing those guys together. And Ryan leads those guys up front and has done a great job this year. Jake Coker, I think you guys are going to see in a little bit, really is a good example of just continuing to compete. Really was benched and not started in one game. When you think about it, Jake has won every game that he started. So I think that's a critical moment for Jake, the way he responded, the way he played, and really how he won his team over. It was not by finesse. It was by playing extremely hard, taking a linebacker mentality to the position. And I think that he was not only winning over his offense at that point but winning over his defense. And has done a great job for us, a great year for him, and an honor for him to go to the Senior Bowl. The receiver group I think is a really special group. You look at the three guys after losing Robert Foster to injury and to think about how they came about this year in three completely different stories. ArDarius Stewart, not really played very much -- none of these guys had really played for us -- and was a defensive back at one point here. Calvin Ridley was in high school a year ago. Did not get to us till the summer. Richard
Mullaney was at Oregon State. He transferred for his senior year. So to see those three guys come together and really in the last half of the year have been a difference in our offense from the first half of the year. This is going to be a very, very tough game. I think that Michigan State's defense is very similar to ours as far as the way that they're coached, how physical they play, the style that they play with, and give you a lot of problems. Obviously, extremely well-coached. They are built to stop the run. They do a great job of that, have done that for years. Regardless of who has been there, they've done a great job. I think that what you've got to look at is they start up front with a very dominant front four. They can give you a lot of problems obviously stopping the run but also in rushing the passer. Very tough to deal with and really get off the ball. The linebacker group is a very physical group led by No. 30 (Riley Bullough) inside. Very tough mentality. Come down, hit-you-in-the-mouth type of defense. Again very similar to ours. And the backend is a very aggressive unit that really can give you issues by playing a lot of corners coverage but man-to-man outside with their corners and getting up in your face and making you have to play. So we're going to have our hands full. Again, I'd like to thank Coach Saban for the opportunity of coming back for a second year. And you really -- I really had no idea how much I would learn really in the second year. Now you really understand why there is no doubt he's the best coach in college football and the process he puts together in understanding how everything goes. And the best example to me is after the Ole Miss game as he refers to as, you know, "Everybody wrote us as dead and gone." And all he did is go back and work the next day just like he does every single day and not worry about anything else but worrying about getting these players better and the coaches better. So thanks. Q. Lane, you talk about just learning more in the second year, what are some of the things that you feel you have learned? How do you feel like you've evolved now in your second year as a coordinator? OC LANE KIFFIN: Well, I think so little is known about Coach Saban, about what he does outside of what you see in the media, in the press conferences, or during the game. To learn from him how he goes about every day as a CEO of the program, as the head coach. I made a lot of mistakes which were focusing completely on football and just worried about football and the Xs and Os of it. And then you see what he does whether it's taking time to meet with other sports recruits, the focus that he has towards the donors, towards academics, towards individual meetings with our kids when things are going on. Always on the phone with recruits
or our own players' families when there are issues coming up. He really is the CEO of the program, and the kids understand that process and what he's about. Q. Lane, Michigan State, their defense, has really stepped it up against some of the top rushing attacks in the country. And they haven't faced a running back like Derrick. But what kinds of difficulties in the game plan for you does that create going up against a team that really cranks it up to 11 against great rushing attacks? OC LANE KIFFIN: Yeah, they do. Obviously, [Ezekiel] Elliott, Ohio State, they did a great job against him. Hopefully we give the ball to Derrick more than they did. Just kidding. That was a joke. It's okay to laugh. It's early in the morning. But we are going to have our hands full because they do play very tough, very physical up front, and really get after you. Q. Lane, obviously there was a lot of talk in the preseason about the quarterbacks and how that was going to work out. Do you feel like -- and also Nick Saban said he wanted Jake Coker or somebody to win the job. Was there a moment where you felt like Jake won the job? And what have you seen from him that kind of made him win the team over, I guess? OC LANE KIFFIN: Well, as I referred to before, the style that he plays with, I think the way that when he went into that Ole Miss game and we were struggling and really brought us back and almost came back to win. We talk about running out of bounds and sliding as quarterbacks, and that's what we want you to do. And he didn't listen to that. That's his mentality. And I believe with a team that is a defensive team, as we are -- we were led by our defense, especially early in the year. As we continue to grow on offense, we only returned two starters: Ryan [Kelly] and Cam Robinson, left tackle. Somehow Derrick Henry wasn't a starter last year. But I just think that to see them all come together around him, especially the defensive guys, is how he won it over. Q. Before the season started, you had some pretty lofty praise for Calvin Ridley and what his potential could be. Just after his first year, did he meet your expectations? OC LANE KIFFIN: Yeah, Calvin did a great job his first year. He wasn't a January enrollee. So we didn't get him early in the spring, so that's a very hard transition to go from high school to go right into playing. We're sharing time with Robert Foster right away. And then when Robert got an injury, he had to step up as a starter. And really doesn't rotate. He plays about 95% of our snaps. So to see him be able to do that throughout the year in the SEC obviously versus some really good players, just like Vernon Hargreaves in that last game (vs. Florida in the SEC Championship). He really has had a great year, and I think he will continue to get better and better as he gets into the second year of our program.
Q. Lane, can Derrick [Henry] carry the ball too many times in one game? OC LANE KIFFIN: Well, I think that's a great question. I never thought I'd see somebody carry the ball 90 times in a seven-day span. But somehow he just continues to get stronger, and that goes back to how he works, the way that he practices, the way that we're in the sprints in the practice. And he's not worried about anything else except for getting himself better. And he's up there running with the Calvin Ridleys, the Kenyan Drakes at the front of the line. And that's how his mentality is. That's how he's worked and obviously how he was raised to just be quiet and just keep working. So I didn't think I would see that ever, 90 carries in seven days. And then I think he could have kept going. He was in the locker room afterwards like he just was warming up. Q. You mentioned already the process of Nick Saban and some of those elements. How does some of those expectations apply to putting together a staff? You've been a head coach on several different levels, so you have a good perspective on that, just putting to the right personalities, finding the right pieces to make them fit on a staff. OC LANE KIFFIN: Yeah, I think that that is a really good question. And I think learning from him on that, he brings different people from all over. A lot of the people he's kind of raised within his program. They come up from young all the way up. But then he'll go outside, too. And it doesn't matter who he brings in and the personalities that he brings in and the different people from all over, they're going to coach the way he wants them to coach every day. And we're going to manage the game he wants to manage the game. It's his program. We talk about the CEO. So I think learning from that, I was much more kind of let guys do their job, whether it was position group, coordinators on defense, and stuff. He does everything and oversees everything. So, I mean, that's one of the many reasons he's so successful. Q. When y'all arrived Coach Saban said his favorite Christmas gift was a pair of GOLDTOE socks. And in addition to that being extremely Coach Nick Saban, if you had to give Coach Saban a Christmas present, what would you have gotten him? OC LANE KIFFIN: This will go on the ticker if I answer what I'm really thinking. Go ahead, Derrick. RB DERRICK HENRY: I don't really know. I don't really know because Coach Saban, he's just a business-like guy who wants to work every day. So I don't know. Probably a cup of coffee or something. (laughter) C RYAN KELLY: I was trying to think about it. I don't really know because I don't know if there's things we would get that he would wear. But yesterday they presented him with a
cowboy hat. So that was pretty cool to see him put it on. So maybe I'd beat them to the punch and give him a cowboy hat. I don't know. Q. Derrick, I'm curious about Michigan State's front seven, you've played a lot of good defenses. They're one of them. What sticks out to you on film when you watch them, please? RB DERRICK HENRY: They got a big physical front, and they do a great job. They're very destructive, very fast, and try and control the line of scrimmage. So we've been practicing hard for these guys and watch the film on them. Also linemen doing a great job, this whole process of blocking apparently so hard. So they're a very good defense and do a great job for what they do. Q. Ryan, obviously they like to blitz. They like to attack. I'm curious, as the quarterback of the offensive line, what do you notice when you look at the different blitzes that they bring and how they like to do different things? C RYAN KELLY: College football is always changing. Good defense is always evolving so we kind of have to evolve with them. So that's where the film study comes into play. We have a lot of great analysts, a lot of great coaches who put together great game plans for us so we can go out there on Saturday or whenever the game is and play fast and not worry about too many things. They're a really sound defense. They do a lot of great things. They do them really well. So we're going to be up to the challenge and just have a great week to prepare for them. Q. First of all, just how much do you feel like the offense has changed content-wise and schematically from last year to this year and even from the beginning of the season to where you guys are now? OC LANE KIFFIN: Yeah, I think it's changed a lot. And one of the things Coach Saban talks about is always utilizing your players and not just trying to do what you do. And so I think the offense is a very good example of that. Much different obviously from last year. Very different quarterback from Blake [Sims] to Jake [Coker]. Having Amari Cooper catching 125 passes. And then a year later going to games where we're running the ball 80% of the time in the game. We're giving to it to Derrick, 46, 44 times. Really just continuing to try to grow. Spent the off-season in a couple different places. Coach Saban allows us to do that, to go get some new ideas. So I think that was really critical coming in really in that opener right here versus Wisconsin. I think as we look at that game versus a really, really good Wisconsin defense, we were not at all like we were the year before. And I think that helped us in that game being very different and find the way. For instance, going down to see Tom Herman and how they utilize the different motions and the fast stuff that they do. And then come in and going this year using Derrick [Henry] back there behind the quarterback and Kenyan Drake or Calvin Ridley as the motion guy.
Q. With each quarterback the last two years, it seems like they progressively improved during the course of the season. What were some of the areas that you identified early on that you kind of worked on with both guys during the course of the year to get them to the point where they had been the end of year? OC LANE KIFFIN: I think the part with Blake where he really -- what really helped him is we transitioned to a no-huddle offense. We got him out of the huddle. We played a little bit faster. He was able to have some run-pass option stuff, not as much pro style as we've always been or especially was here at. That's really where the change started taking place. Then we carried some of that over into this year. And then I think with Jake, it was really just playing. Neither of these guys had played really at all besides some backup, late-in-the-game duty. So you're a freshman until you play. And even though Jake is a senior, he hadn't really played. So I think you see him make mistakes early like anybody would, just like a rookie would in the NFL, and then learned from those and get better. And he's done a much better job in the second half of the year handling the defense, changing protections, being the quarterback instead of just trying to win that specific play, managing the play, and managing the entire offense. Q. Derrick, it's pretty obvious when we watch you play your physical strength. But I thought your inner strength and your will to compete, where did you get that? And who would you attribute that to? RB DERRICK HENRY: I've been playing sports all my life, so I love sports. One time I was playing in my grandma's yard against my cousins. I was always competing against them. So by the time I got a chance to play sports, whether it was football, baseball, or basketball, I just wanted to play. And I've been playing with my cousins in the yard, trying to beat them. So I just had that since I was a little kid. Q. When you took this job a couple years ago, so many Bama fans out there said, "Oh, boy, this is not going to work, Kiffin and Saban." What kind of a learning curve has it been for you to work for a guy like this? And do you feel a little bit maybe perhaps good in knowing that you proved some of your critics wrong? OC LANE KIFFIN: I don't worry about that. We can only worry about what we can control. And that's betting getter as a coach, learning from Coach Saban from the other great coaches on our staff, continuing to study different offenses. There was a transition. And I think that just becomes from -- I don't think that was anything about Coach Saban or myself. I think just being an assistant coach again, there's a transition. You're not the head coach and had been a head coach for a while at a couple different places. So just getting back into that and understanding that role.
And also you got to learn your head coach. You got to learn his expectations and how it puts them out for you. And one of the things he does that you understand early on is that he's not going to sit on anything. If he's thinking something, whether it's good or he's upset or whatever, he's going to tell you right away. And he explained that to me one time. He said, "I've been around coaches that sit there and maybe talk about it but they don't really do anything about it." He's going to always deal with it and then it's over. You move on to the next thing. So there's just a transition. That's why I talked about the second year. I think it was very critical to come back for another year to continue to learn from him and understand how it all works and to see where last year was kind of smoother. This year had a little more adversity in it and more new guys playing and things happening throughout the year that he dealt with. You saw how he managed those. Q. Lane, I know you've coached at places where's there's a lot of pressure to win. I'm sure this is nothing new to you, the pressure to win in Tuscaloosa. How does that pressure to win at compare to maybe some other places you've been? And also as a coach, how do you help your players manage the pressure and the expectations outside the program? OC LANE KIFFIN: I think nowadays no matter where you are in sports or especially in college football, there's pressure to win. We see that happening. And Coach Saban referred to things within our conference, whether that was Coach [Mark] Richt winning nine games and not being brought back or all the Les Miles conversations thing that happened. That didn't happen ten years ago. So it is the way it is now, so there's always pressure to win no matter where you are. I don't have to do anything with our players. Again, this goes back to Coach Saban and the process and always teaching them, always helping them grow as student-athletes. So there's so many speakers he brings in. There's so many times he addresses subjects throughout the year on his calendar with the kids to help our kids grow. Q. We asked Coach Kiffin and Derrick and Ryan in the first presser when Coach Saban came in, he said that his favorite Christmas gift was a pair of GOLDTOE socks. So if you had to give Coach Saban a Christmas gift, what do you think you would get your venerable coach? RB KENYAN DRAKE: I guess, first and foremost, I'd just get him this win first. That's an easy question. Then the National Championship. WR RICHARD MULLANEY: I don't know if I'd give him any object or anything. I'd just give him a big hug and say thank you, you know, for giving me the opportunity to come to. QB JAKE COKER: I'd probably do the same thing. Q. Jake, from what you've seen on film, Michigan State's secondary, they're a unit that is able to make the huge play when it seems absolutely necessary. What have you seen looking at
their film? And how are you trying to re-adjust your game plan for going up against them? QB JAKE COKER: I think the defense as a whole is real physical. They are going to be where they're supposed to be. And it's going to be a real tough matchup. So we're just going to have to keep practicing what we're practicing and do what we do. And it's going to be a tough game. So we just got to be ready for it. Q. Jake, with so much emphasis put on Derrick, defenses having to stop him for obvious reasons, because he's that talented, it puts the onus on your arm to go win a game. How confident are you as a quarterback -- obviously you can run -- but to go back, drop back and read and the importance of getting time for your offensive line. QB JAKE COKER: Wherever Coach Kiffin calls, I'm -- you know, I'll be happy to run. And if it requires me throwing the ball, throw it. If I need to hand it off, I'll hand it off. And we'll see how it goes. Q. Richard, it seems to me like you and Jake have pretty much clicked from the word "go." How has that combination worked for you? And just talk about your experience transferring here from Oregon State and how you seem to have made a smooth transition. WR RICHARD MULLANEY: Yeah, it was -- like you said, it was very smooth for me coming here, just the summer workouts and everything. Jake kind of helped me out a lot. I roomed with him during fall camp. And I think that's just when our relationship kind of got started. And just all the reps that we've been taking during summer, fall camp, you know, leading up into the season. I think he just got comfortable with me, and I got comfortable with him, and it's just been good. Q. Kenyan, I know you're going to deal with injuries throughout your career, the latest of which you sustained at Mississippi State with the arm injury. How important was it for you to get back out there get some carries? And, also, just dealing with injuries, is that something you can evolve with as a player and learn how to manage and deal with? Because, obviously, there's disappointment to get off the field. RB KENYAN DRAKE: It's been tough, but it's tough for anybody. I'm not the first person to have an injury where I have to play through being hurt; won't be the last. I know the guys up here can testify with that. We've all been hurt in a variety of ways this season. I think that really just is the -- just how our team is this year. We try to just fight through adversity. So going back to the loss with Ole Miss, we just looked at it as a stepping stone and moving forward. We just tried to work through any kind of adversity we had. And now we're just looking forward to Michigan State.
Q. Jake, it was such a cool scene after the SEC game with you hugging members of your family. Got pretty emotional after that game in the hallway afterwards. Can you tell me about the bond between your family and what all those folks mean to you. QB JAKE COKER: Yeah. Couldn't ask for a better family than what I got. I always had a lot of support from them and throughout this whole process until I got here. I don't know if I'd be here without them and all the support they've given me. So they mean the world to me, and I love them to death. So them being there and being able to share that moment was big. Q. A lot of Bama folks have come to really love you and they view you as kind of a blue-collar, hard-working, pickup truck-driving guy. What kind of vehicle do you drive nowadays? QB JAKE COKER: I drive a white GMC Sierra. (laughter) Q. All the attention on Derrick Henry, it seems like there's really not much attention on the quarterback and the guys on the outside. Talk about how big those guys have been this year and how the passing game is maybe something that really isn't talked a lot about when it comes to. QB JAKE COKER: You know, I guess when things are open for Derrick and we open it up and throw the ball, that's what we'll do. And we'll try to do our best to move it and see what happens. WR RICHARD MULLANEY: Yeah, we're -- you know, obviously it's been fun playing with the Heisman Trophy winner. It makes our job a lot easier. All we've got to do is block for him. But kind of like what Jake said, when our number is called upon, we're there to make plays. And there's been times where ArDarius [Stewart] and Calvin [Ridley] and OJ [Howard], we've all stepped up and made huge plays that really changed the game around. Q. Obviously, you guys are kind of like rock stars in Tuscaloosa. You're the football team. Everyone knows you. But have you ever gotten confused with someone else recently who's gotten your name wrong or confused you with a famous person? WR RICHARD MULLANEY: I wouldn't say necessarily confused. But a story after our first game, me, Jacob [Parker], and Ryan Kelly went to Buffalo Wild Wings and we're all sitting there at the table. And everyone started noticing Jacob obviously and Ryan, too, because he's been there for a while and he's a starting center. And so there's this couple that came up and was like, "Hey, you know, can we get a picture with all you guys?" We're all like, "Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah." I'm about to stand up. And this lady hands me the phone and was like, "Hey, can you take the picture of us?" "Yeah, Okay. I gotcha." I think she thought I was Jacob's brother or something. It was kind of funny.
RB KENYAN DRAKE: I know last year I got hurt obviously. So I didn't play the majority of the season. But near the end of the year, Blake (Sims) was getting a lot of recognition. So I got confused a few times for being Blake. So there's a couple of pictures on Facebook I know that he has that probably pop up on his Facebook of me that probably people would say, "Yeah, I just took a picture with Blake Sims". I ran with it. I really did. (laughter) I don't think there's too many times that people turn down and opportunity to get confused with being the quarterback for, even if you already play on the team. QB JAKE COKER: I don't know. Whenever I'm compared to somebody, it's usually these guys making fun of me, somebody that looks real goofy that I don't want to look like. So, no, not seriously, no. Nobody's ever, not that I can remember, confused me with somebody else. Q. Can you talk about the development of Lane Kiffin as the OC. We always talk about the player development. But what has he meant to you? We don't hear from him often, and he spoke just a couple minutes ago. We'd like to get your perspective on it. QB JAKE COKER: Like you said, I think it's more about the offense developing and getting more chemistry. And I think he does a great job of calling plays that really play to the strengths of our offense and the strengths of each guy individually. And he finds matchups that are favorable. And his play calling has really made things a lot easier on us. Q. Coming off that, he had mentioned a lot earlier this morning about he felt differently because he let his other coaches do their job more. Have you seen any difference this year from last year in any kind of coaching style whatsoever? QB JAKE COKER: Yeah, I think he's gotten laid back, but I also think that all the other coaches have a better understanding of what he wants. And they've all just gotten more comfortable with the style, the play-calling style and technique and what Coach Kiffin wants. So I think he's been able to lay off a little bit because they all have an understanding of what they need to do. Q. Jake, Reggie Ragland said the game where he realized you guys might be able to do something special this year was the Texas A&M game. Do you agree with that, or was there another game that stood out where you said, "Okay, we can make a championship run and we can do this"? QB JAKE COKER: I felt like it was a special team before the season started. But I guess the Georgia game kind of stands out to me. It's kind of when everybody kind of came together and we realized our backs were against the wall and we had to perform no matter what. So, for me, I think the Georgia game was the one that kind of opened everyone's eyes. RB KENYAN DRAKE: In my opinion, I think it was the Ole Miss game that we lost early in the year. I think that's because with adversity that we faced, we were able to keep battling back
time and time again. And it really showed how we were able to battle through adversity. We had five turnovers and still having almost a chance to win the game at the end. So I think that's in my eyes where we really got the confidence in, "Okay. Well, we lost this this game but we're not going to lose any more games after this" and continued to work hard. And we already know that we can battle through the toughest adversity that we possibly can face and putting ourselves in the hole. And we can continue to be the team that we know we can be. WR RICHARD MULLANEY: Yeah, I'd have to agree with Kenyan. Just the Ole Miss game. I mean, like you said, we had five turnovers and still had a chance to win at the end of the game. I don't care who you are but if you're in that situation, I mean, you got to be pretty good. And we knew that after that game that we definitely lit a fire under us, and we knew we had to win out. And we took the most of every opportunity. Q. So, if you had to give one, what do you think is the biggest misconception of Coach Saban? Obviously he's seen as a very straight-line, almost robotic-like human. Very kind of "trust the process," that sort of thing. But does he have a softer side? Does he like jazz or maybe enjoy the beach? Or does he like red wine? What's something about Coach Saban we wouldn't know just from what we see from outside from a media perspective? QB JAKE COKER: I don't know. When I was younger, I thought he had no personality whatsoever. Thought he was a mean guy. But, no, getting to know him and being around him, he's pretty hilarious. And he's fun to be around, and he's a lot different than he is sometimes portrayed on TV. RB KENYAN DRAKE: Yeah, I think he's really a comedian, honestly. But sometimes how he is, you know, his personality sometimes you don't know, like, you know, if it's appropriate to, like, laugh or not. So you'll kind of sit there and look around and he's up there smiling saying "Okay. It's cool to laugh." WR RICHARD MULLANEY: I'd say the biggest thing is just -- he's funny, just all the stories he has that he's told us. And kind of what Kenyan said, you never know when if you should laugh or not just because -- I don't know, because sometimes how he tells a joke, he's just, like, straight-faced. But, yeah, once you see him give that little smile, then you're like, "All right, I can laugh." Q. With Scott Cochran, how does he compare with strength coaches you had in the past? And what's the sort of impact on this team and what you've seen? WR RICHARD MULLANEY: For me I don't see really a comparison. He's someone that I've gotten close with just from being here this short time. And he's a huge part of this team, not just strength and conditioning-wise. I feel like he's the glue that really just puts us all together. He's a guy that you can go to for anything honestly. Doesn't matter what it is, if it's personal or just want to go and talk with him about anything. Doesn't really matter.
I find myself in his office quite a lot just talking about -- you know, it doesn't really matter. Just a good person to talk to. But I definitely feel like he's the glue to this team. QB JAKE COKER: Yeah, I feel real similar to that. I think he's big in creating the culture here at, the way he talks and relates to guys on the team and his mentality, the way he pushes people. I think he sets a tone for the mentality this team is going to have. And I'm glad to hear he's staying here because I think he's that -- makes that big of an impact on the team. Q. Jake, how advantageous is it to have a guy like Derrick Henry who you can put away a game with by handing it to him time and time again in the fourth quarter? QB JAKE COKER: You know, I feel like most of the games ended up with him having a long fourth-quarter drive, that he just keeps pounding away. And he's a special back to have to just -- you know, you hand to him and we need to move the clock, get the game over with. He's reliable, and he gets the job done. And it's real nice to have a guy like that behind you, that's for sure. Quotes by Caption Northwest, Inc. 425-343-4946 -- College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic --