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About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features NFL Sunday Ticket © 2026 Google LLC Embedded video transcript: WKU FB: Head Coach Tyson Helton | Weekly Media Availability | 9-28-26 All right, we have head coach Tyson Helton. Coach will open it up with a statement and then we'll jump into questions. >> Uh yeah, um been a good week of practice so far. Um excited about getting on the road for first conference game. Should be a great game. Should be a four-quarter game. Um you know, two good football teams playing, two hungry football teams playing, so um looking forward to it. With that said, questions. >> I want to ask you about your rushing attack so far this year. Where where are you at on that? I know Brock has kind of led that room a couple of games. Do you like that if your quarterback's doing that or would you like to see more from the back? >> Uh I you know, I I think we have good running backs and and they're a big part of what we do. Obviously, Brock is kind of a do-it-all dual threat guy. He's he's a part of it. Rodney's athletic enough that we can run him as well. So, really the run game is built on the defense's scheme and how they're built and how we think we need to attack them. And uh so, there's been times where the backs were good, there's times where the quarterbacks are good, but um we'll try to keep building on that. And uh you got to run to win, especially in the second half, you know, four-quarter. Um the teams that can run to win are are the successful ones. So, um we'll keep building on that, for sure. >> It kind of appeared to this past weekend that um at times when you brought Brock in, um you know, a lot of times you see him come in and you think, well, it's a running kind of option play that cuz he's such a good runner, but you brought him in in passing pure passing situations and kind of mixed it up. Is that something that that you need to do to go forward so that they don't kind of focus >> Yeah, I mean, really when we put Brock in there, it's it's not just we're not just thinking, "Hey, oh, he's going to run it." I mean, it we really have the whole game plan at our, you know, discretion. Um it just so happens to play out that, you know, he's ran it a little more. You know, we have some checks on some things and what the defense gave us equaled a run. And um and because he can run, you know, they call it a plus one run. You get an extra hat you get on the defense and um so it gives you an advantage and but he definitely brings that to the table. But, you know, I wouldn't say if Brock's in the game that that is just just a run. So, you know, some schematically for us he needs to be able to do it all. >> Is he embracing that role? >> Yeah. Yeah, I mean Brock Brock loves to he loves to play ball, you know, and and I think we did a good job of of last week of of playing both quarterbacks and utilizing them well and we need to continue to do that moving forward. And you know, Rodney can do it all as well and you know, I don't I don't want to be sitting here thinking hey one quarterback goes in the game that hey it's a pass it's a run that you know, that's that's just not us and so but we've used him well so far. We need to continue to do that. >> So Carson's status update? >> Uh he's still out for a couple weeks. Still recovering. He's doing well with his recovery. Um you know, he's had some some swelling and some different things and that has to go down before he can get back out there. But he's moving great. He's he's doing fine. So, it's just going to take a little time. >> I think it's not been brought up last week but of course New Mexico State also with the win over Mercyhurst kind of similar looking outcomes. What what can you take from that to kind of help game plan against them? >> Yeah, um tremendous respect for their team. Offensively they got excellent skill. Their running backs are strong powerful runners or they're fast. They're explosive and the receivers. You know, number one for them can take the top end off. You got to account for him and all the other receivers. The quarterback is an accurate passer and accurate deep ball passer. So, they're an explosive offense. Um defensively they're big up front. Um you know, they get good push. Um they have a good scheme, you know, trying to keep everything in front of them. Uh, I think it's two evenly matched football teams, you know, and and it's going to be a a battle on a four-quarter game and we got to play great football if we if we want to win, but our guys are excited. Um, I think everybody's hungry to win as are they. Um, should be for a great Thursday night Conference USA matchup. >> It was a little bit like nitpicking considering what you guys did defensively, but I think dropping two or three interceptions in a game, um, some turnovers that that you guys >> Yeah. >> kind of left on the table. >> Yeah, I think, you know, that was one one of our areas that we, you know, we've been we've been good at takeaways here up to up to the last game and we had opportunities to do that and I could um, Coach Merritt, matter of fact, in the fourth quarter was talking about that about we got to get a takeaway, got to get takeaway. We had opportunities in the fourth quarter quarter to do it. Um, that will be a big part of this game as well. We we've got to create some turnovers. Um, we got to get extra possessions and so that's a major emphasis for us. >> What are the pros and cons of having a short week like this, especially factoring in that you go on the road for this? >> Uh, pros are I don't get to overthink it, you know, and our staff doesn't get to overthink it. You really just have to do what you do cuz of the time frame and uh, this these are the games this is the reason why you put in so much work, you know, throughout spring and summer and fall camp is is for these games cuz your timeline's so constricted. You you have to be able to roll and be able to just do what you do and and not miss a beat. So, that for for that piece of it, um, now, obviously the time constraint can be can wear you down a little bit because you want to make sure you're flipping over every stone and doing everything right. And um, so, you know, that time constraint piece can can wear you down a little bit. So, we got got really good about taking care of our guys, getting really good work, but also taking care of our guys as well. You know, we played Saturday, we went out and had practice yesterday, had a good practice. Got to continue that today, you know, and and today will be a really big day for us cuz this is where the meat of the game plan really comes in for us. >> Logistics in a short work week and a long road trip? >> Say that again. >> Logistics at all? >> Yeah, it's everything's sped up. Um, you know, travel for us will actually travel a little later. We'll fly out Wednesday evening cuz just cuz we want to get everything done here and then we'll get get to the hotel and um, just go to bed basically. Um, so just everything's sped up in in your time frame. You know, I think today's Monday. I think that's correct. Is that a correct statement? In my mind it's a Wednesday, you know, so that that messes with you a little bit as far as preparation goes. >> Cuz it's an opener and a home opener, how much does playing a clean game like that help you as a team? >> It gave us momentum. It really did. Um, it it proved that what what we should be and and and what we are. And um, we just got to carry that momentum, you know, I think when you come off road, three straight road games, you've had some some tough losses, you know. Um, the guys never blinked, they never questioned themselves, but until you actually go out there and put it all together, that's not reality and finally we know we know what we're capable of doing. So, we just got to continue to carry that. >> This is a start of conference play for you guys, not necessarily for everybody else in the league. Just kind of your impression of where C-USA football is at this year. >> Man, the parity, I said it last year, there was a lot of parity. I just it's every team this year. Every in my opinion, I think everybody's very competitive, especially early in the season. Um, it's anybody's game. I've watched a couple of of the teams and and everybody's good. Everybody's got a good quarterback. Everybody's got an explosive player or two. Um it's going to be competitive competitive. It it's really anybody's game. And we just got to take care of our business and position ourselves for the stretch, you know, the long haul. And that that's that's the main goal for us. >> Uh extremely off-topic question here. A recent study came out last week. I don't know if you've seen this or not. You were ranked the sixth most handsome quarterback not quarterback, head coach in all of college football. Too high? Too low? >> But that's very skewed. Obviously, I got some people that that like me. Um must be a lot of my family members and and friends that must have seen that >> signing. >> Was it voted for me or something? >> It's all algorithm. >> Um um that's great. Nice compliment. I can I'll just leave it at that. What's that? >> Your boys can use that for their advantage, no? >> Sure. Sure. Um >> Street cred, you know? >> You know, I I guess I can say that to my wife, you know, hey, look, I'm better looking than you think I am, so >> [laughter] >> No, but but uh somebody told me about that. I didn't I didn't see it, but it is what it is. >> Thank you, coach. >> All right, guys. Thank you.