Everything Bill O'Brien Said During Tuesday's Press Conference

It literally feels (at least to me) like Bill O'Brien was just hired like two months ago. It's crazy to think of everything that's transpired since March-ish. But, here we are. A chance to end with a two-game winning streak and still the potential for eight wins

I wasn't there in person today (Gillette), but I believe the team practiced outside. Practice was closed again, so I think there's a real sense of trying to lock in and string something together.

Anyway, here's everything O'Brien had to say...

On preparing for the possibility of two QB's with Pitt

"Yeah, I don't know what they're doing at quarterback. Eli was injured and then Nate (Yarnell) came in...we just have to do a great job of understanding that they're a very, very tough football team. Without a doubt one of the toughest teams we've played all year. Very well-coached. I've known Coach Narduzzi for a long time, I've got a lot of respect for him. These guys are coming in here and it's going to be a very, very physical game. That's what we need to be ready for."

On if they have to do more to keep guys engaged at practice with the holiday this week

"I think this is a cool...I've always enjoyed this week in football. I've been doing this for 32 years and you know, Thanksgiving is always one of my favorite weeks of the year. You either have a game, or sometimes in the NFL we played on Thanksgiving. Massachusetts high school football, big Thanksgiving deal. So, we'll practice a little bit earlier on Thursday and then we'll have a team lunch basically after that. Guys will go their ways. I'm sure local guys will have other guys over their house and things like that. Yeah, I'm looking forward to this week. I always enjoy Thanksgiving."

On Mack Brown being fired by North Carolina just days after losing to BC

"I did not know that. Let me just think for a second here...he's a legendary coach. Great friend of mine. I have a ton of respect for him. He's one of the best coaches to ever do it. I've been fortunate in my career to be around some of the best coaches to ever do it, right? Bill Belichick. Nick Saban. To get to know Mack Brown - especially over the last year in the ACC - has meant a lot to me. So, I wish him the best and I just think...as a coaches, when you coach as long as most of us have, sometimes you get fired. It's not great. It's not great. I wish Mack the best and got a lot of respect for Mack Brown."

On the double reverse block from Grayson James

"He did. He got in the way. I wouldn't call it a block. But, no, he did a good job. He really did. he did a good job on that play and he was able to shield a defender from John. Yeah, he did a nice job on that play."

On if the block (attempt) says something about James

"Oh yeah. I'd say the same thing about Tommy when Tommy was here. He did a really good job of things that like. Very tough guys. Grayson did a really good job on that play, no doubt about it."

On the impact the new roster rule will have on stories like Joe Marinaro's

"It's a great question and I appreciate you asking me. The reason why it's going to be harder and harder to have guys like Joe Marinaro - who, in my opinion are heart and soul guys - Joe Marinaro's what college football is all about. For him to go out there and do what he did in that last game, plus he's doing it injured. He's playing hurt. Just a tremendous effort. But, because of the 105 rule...there's going to be less chances. Less opportunities for those guys. It is a ridiculous thing that we're doing that, going to 105. Talk to Coach Sweeney. Talk to Coach Brown. Talk to some of the veteran coaches in this profession...walk-on's mean a lot to our program. They help us practice. We probably have about 25 guys on the injury list right now. Talk to Coach Narduzzi about it. I don't want to speak for them, but I bet they're in agreement that...there's a big difference between having 125 guys on your team and 105. The biggest thing is, they lose out. They pay to go to school here. So, why can't they walk-on the football team? It makes no sense to me and that's why guys like Joe Marinaro, I was so happy to see him do what he did the other day."

On the QB injuries for Pitt

"I recruited Eli Holstein to Alabama, so I'm very familiar with Eli. I saw where he got injured and he's a great player. So, whether it's Eli coming back or Yarnell or whoever it might be, we have to be ready for just a tough, tough game. That's what Coach Narduzzi has built that program on. Physical toughness and we have to be ready for that."

On Desmond Reed

"Great player. Really fast. Good quickness. Good out of the backfield. Good runner. Good vision. Good in the passing game. You better break-down and tackle him because if he makes one guy miss he's hard to get down once he gets to that second and third level. Very dynamic player and he's done a great job for those guys."

On if he's thought about any possible bowl destinations he's like for BC

"I've been fortunate in my career, I've been to some cool bowls. The Cotton Bowl. The Sugar Bowl. Gator Bowl. Just, for us in our first year, to be able to qualify for a bowl says a lot about the players and the coaching staff. Those guys did a great job. We got hired in February. We're just very proud of the fact that we're able to go to a bowl. Obviously, it'd be nice to finish on a winning note here in the regular season for the seniors on our team that are playing their last home game. But, to qualify for a bowl I think is a good accomplishment the first year."

On if James is getting more comfortable in the pocket

"Yeah, I think the more reps you get...I don't think there's a substitute for experience. The more repetition you get of being in the pocket, seeing coverages and feeling the rush and understanding what's going on relative to our route vs. their coverage...whether it's drop-back, or play-action, or third down, or pressure, no pressure, three-man rush, four-man rush, five-man rush, six-man rush...he's seeing it all. I think that's one of the things you see with him. The more reps you get, the more improvement you'll see. He works very, very hard. Guys that work hard and get the experience and get the reps, they're bound to get better."

On if there's an ideal QB to fit his style of offense and if James fit in better than Castellanos

"We've coached all kinds of quarterbacks, so I don't think we have a one-size-fits-all quarterback. That's not really what we're about. We definitely need a guy that can throw the ball with accuracy and anticipation. We need a guy with leadership qualities. We need a guy that understands what it takes to work at the position. I think that Grayson fits that bill. Tommy did too. Remember now, I just went with Grayson as a starter. I thought Tommy did some really good things for us. But, I felt the best move at the time was to go with Grayson. But, in recruiting and things as we move forward, I can't mention...there will be a guy here entering early in January who we think very highly of. He'll be a freshman. So, whatever we do at quarterback, it'll always have certain characteristics. Not necessarily 'hey, this guy's gotta be this height,' or he's gotta be this fast or be in the pocket...it's not really about that. It's more about the other things."

On the offensive line being one of the most improved units on the team

"Yeah, they've really improved a lot. Don't get me wrong, they're good. They were good when we started. But, I think they've gotten better.No. 1, I think the key is that we basically played the same guys. They've played together now, there's a lot of chemistry there. They know how to communicate with each other. I think they've played with better pad level. I think they've communicated - led by Drew Kendall - different pressures. They've been able to see it, pick it up. Grayson's done a good job of pointing things out for them, things like that. So, I think at the end of the day they've improved for a lot of different reasons."

Luke Kuechly being honored Saturday and what it was like coaching against him

"It was brutal to coach against him. He was one of the best to ever do it. A Hall of Fame player in my opinion. He was a guy that...there was very few guys at inside linebacker....I would say Luke Kuechly, Ray Lewis that I've coached against, called plays against, that many times they knew what was coming. It was hard to hide it. You had to do a great job of hiding it. I can remember Tom Brady changing his cadence to try and mess with Luke Kuechly. A fake cadence to try and mess him up a little bit and it probably still didn't work. Same thing when we played them in Houston when I was in Houston. Luke was a great player. Luke's an awesome Boston College guy. He's a great supporter of our program. It'll be great to see him on Saturday. Just a legendary player and it'll be great to get more Luke Kuechly's here in the program, no doubt about it."

On if there's any mention to the team of what 6-6 means compared to 7-5

"No, I mention it. I think that's a big deal. I think Pitt's going to be a very challenging game. But, we really want to finish on a winning note. We've got to play well. We've got to play a really, really good game in order to beat these guys. They're really well-coached. I know they've lost some games in a row, but they're very well-coached. They're going to be ready to go. They're a physically and mentally tough team, so it's a big challenge. We definitely want to try the best we can to go out on a winning note."