UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT SAN ANTONIO FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

October 8, 2026

Jeff Traylor

Press Conference

UTSA 31, South Florida 24

JEFF TRAYLOR: What is that movie, JJ, where -- I'll probably get in trouble for this, where they go, are we not entertained? What that movie?

Q. Gladiator.

JEFF TRAYLOR: Gladiator. Rebecca is going to kill me for opening up with that tonight. That's what I feel. Are we not entertained?

What's up?

Q. Jeff, take me through the two-minute drive. Seemed like perfect clock management, perfect execution. Your quarterback had a few big plays there.

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, kid is special. I'm glad ya'll get to see him healthy. I wish I could have seen him that way all last year. He took a lot of unnecessary flack, and I'm glad he's healthy. Wish you could've seen him like that his whole career. Saw his that way his first year, and how you're getting to see him his third year.

Kid is just special. Some of it was design, some of that was just effort, and some of that was just guts. When you got a great quarterback, man, you always got a chance.

I know that's what the question was and I answered it, but I don't want that to be the story. Will Henderson was fantastic. We had 277 yards second half. Our offensive line, who I challenged all the week, I didn't know if we could block these guys.

I'm just disappointed in me. I got conservative and tried to run the game out by handing it off. It's so not in my nature. I thought we had them on the ropes. Disappointed in myself honestly that I didn't give Owen a chance more. I took the ball out of his hand with some great backs.

It's one of those kind of things you're damned if you do and damned if you don't. I'm mad at myself. I should have ended that game sooner.

Q. Staying on the offense, what changed in the second half that you scored on all four drives, all four sustained drives, too?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, you could just tell at halftime. I keep telling ya'll this. The measure of a man or a women, I mean, it's as old as time, MLK, all over the world, right? Where you are at a time of crisis.

It's easy when you go home and there is money in the account and car's got gas and children aren't crying. Air condition is right at 72. That crap doesn't happen very much in life. Most of the time, car is out of gas, don't have enough money, children are crying, wife is mad, and you got to hang in there.

We been down a lot this year. Way too much for my liking. I think we been behind almost in every fricking game, but we are calm in the moment and our kids listen and they believe every word we tell them and they go out there and execute.

You don't get groups like that very much, man. They're just special, special humans.

Q. Along those same lines, this continues your best start since 2021. Do you see the ingredients for this to be a special season for you guys?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Are you on Navy's team or you know UTSA's team? We got to enjoy tonight, Greg, and we got to prepare for Navy. But they're for trying to walk me into that trap.

Q. Jeff, this is the second straight year where somebody calls into question the authenticity of the Alamodome and the sound and all the noises. I guess my question is: Why do teams feel comfortable doing that and what is your take after the game now?

JEFF TRAYLOR: It just so happens that this week is integrity for us, that's our culture (indiscernible) this week. I think those coaches say it -- I don't think they really believe that. I mean, the president that hired me and the AD that hired me, they would never do that. Jeff Traylor would find a way to pump noise in here. Those two won't let me, and I've been working for the same people my entire life as a head coach, as a college coach.

They won't do it.

So I take it as a challenge at my president and AD. My players take it as challenge at me. My former players take it as challenge for everything we have done here. Like it's all been bogus, it's all not been real, it's not been earned.

Because when you study it, 26-1 in conference; 36-5. That shouldn't happen San Antonio. It's almost like they're telling us we don't deserve that. That he how we take that. I'm not spinning it.

It just keeps happening. It just keeps being created. And I hope they keep doing it. And what great job our administration, our marketing team did. That was a great idea how they spun that thing. That was fantastic.

Q. When you go out of your way to avoid doing that like you did against Texas State, giving bulletin board material, how excited do you get when you do get that and you're able to sell it to your players a little bit?

JEFF TRAYLOR: I don't keep up with all that, but I do get informed by my good buddy, JJ Perez. I get killed for not being more aggressive with my mouth when it comes to talking stuff about the other opponents.

I believe strongly anything you give the other team it helps in practice. I don't know that it helps that night. I don't think tonight we played any different because of what he said. I do think it helped in practice. So I'm just not going to give the other team bullet board material during the week because it helps practice.

Now, I will tell you with AI nowadays it does concern me somebody is going to start creating stuff. That scares the heck out of me. I think my reputation precedes itself and I think if it's out there, they'd go, Jeff Traylor would hopefully never do that.

Q. Jeff, you mentioned last week the locker room was a little subdued. Take us in there this week.

JEFF TRAYLOR: It wasn't subdued. That's as wild as I've seen that locker room in a minute, you know. I'm happy for 'em, man. They worked so hard since January. I keep telling them all the time. I do it too. I talked to Terry about it before the game. She asked me how I was doing. I was like, I just hate this -- I hate to feeling, this nervousness, but I'm so addicted to it.

We did a good job with our personal triangles this year. I just really went with my triangle and I looked at what my history was, who my heroes are, what my highlights are, what my why is, what my E plus R equal O plan is, what my walk-up song.

And my identity is not winning football games. Our identity in the that. Our identity is to do the very best we can do at all times. My president says it to me every time I come out here. He always tells me to have fun, and I always say back to him, I'm going to try.

But I struggle having fun because I love my team so much. I love my coaches so much. I love the people that I work for and my university and my city. I just want everybody happy, and I know when we win everybody is just so happy.

Q. Jeff, what led to A'Marion Peterson's big night tonight?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Ubuntu. He is a total team player. Not about himself at all. He plays off of Will, plays off of Brandon. He is great human being. He has great parents. Came from a great Texas high school football program. He's just got it in his DNA and he's a joy to coach.

Q. Jeff, you lost Brandon Tucker due to a targeting call. How did your defense rally around the loss of its leading tackler?

JEFF TRAYLOR: It hurt us. We had him on third and 12 on that one. Was it a good call? Haven't seen it yet. It was frustrating, I know that. He's a great linebacker. It hurt us.

They got to us a few times with a running back out on the swing. You'll see it when you're grading the video yourselves. It hurt us. But he's a great leader. Just see him on the sideline just Ubuntu the whole time. Just encouraging his teammates, cheering everybody. He was almost spiritual.

And our kids rallied, man. They just freaking rallied. It was really a joy to coach them. They were just special.

Q. Jeff, you mentioned the identity of this group a moment ago. What does it say about this team and its identity that you've been in four close games now in the fourth quarter and you pulled through in all of them?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, you're going to have to kill us. We say it all the time around here. The champion has the ability to play one play longer than his opponent does. You're going to have to choke us out. We're not going to go away.

Just like the University of Texas text game. We're not going away. You're going to have to choke us out. We're going to keep fighting. Just who this group of kids are. They're fun.

Q. So probably the most physical game you guys have played so far and you guys were able to come up with the win on primetime slot, ESPN. How is that pregame journal entry looking right now?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, you know, I really question myself. We didn't put shoulder pads on one time this week. We jogged all week. Didn't go full speed once. I'm old school as hell when it comes to that stuff.

So early in the game we're not tacking and we're blocking, who do you think I'm blaming? I'm literally blaming me. I just said to myself, I pray we're going to have more energy than them late in the game, because I just did not tax them this week at all.

My son coaches with the Vikings. He was adamant. He knows his father. I tried to tell him my tackles were not pass protecting worth a crap. We had to work on our drop step. Jordan was like, dad, no. Dad, no. Let it go. You got to walk them and jog them this week. Freshest team is going to win.

That came from Brian and Mike and all my people that I listen to. Everybody was adamant for me to not be me and back down. So I questioned myself. I was like, did I do the right thing? First time in my life I had a short week and we didn't hit once.

Owen all of them we're like, this is awesome. I feel like a basketball player again. We just go out here, we jog around a little bit, and we're going to play a basketball game the next day.

I was like, we're going to get killed. They are all so relaxed and happy and so energetic and I thought, we're going to get murdered. So I questioned myself. But the next time we play on a short Thursday I can promise you we're going to walk and not put pads on.

Q. How does it feel to be 5-1?

JEFF TRAYLOR: You know, surreal. I just -- I'm really happy for my kids. If we can stay in the fight -- we're not even good yet. We got stuff to get better at. We got a lot of work left.

We're halfway through the season and I know ya'll are thinking, well when are we going to get good. My offensive line is get healthier. We barely made it tonight. We limped home with those tackles. Like they limped home.

I'm happy. We got a good break here. We're going work tomorrow and get this game knocked out.

Going to give these guys Saturday off, which is not in my nature at all. Coaches are not getting the day off. I've already -- I knew that was coming next, so I got in front of that quickly.

Navy has a team that just frustrated the heck out of us. They do a lot of weird, weird, wild stuff. Great coach. Huge fan of Brian's. I think he does a great, great job. It doesn't matter what their record is, they're going to play the same way every time they spot the freaking football. I have a ton of respect for those guys.

Q. Congratulations.

JEFF TRAYLOR: Thank you, ma'am.

Q. I spoke with Owen two weeks ago. He was really up on Ubuntu. You said it a couple times today. I wanted to get more of your take on when it means to you, how often you guys go through that phrase, and I wanted to know, I went to a restaurant call Ubuntu last week. I had to pick up some food. I am Nigerian.

JEFF TRAYLOR: Where?

Q. On Grissom Road.

JEFF TRAYLOR: Oh, my goodness.

Q. Wondering if you guys would be interested in patronizing it.

JEFF TRAYLOR: For sure I would. We got NIL right here live and in person. Yeah, I did not know that. We speak on it every day. Speak on it every day. I love the read and I think Nelson Mandela's story is one of the most amazing stories of all-time for somebody that went through so many and still loved people.

That is the only way to get this thing fixed in our own country. Got to quit finding out what's wrong with everybody and find out what's right with everybody. Ubuntu is I am because we are. In this new world, I'm telling you it's going to give us a fighting chance. In the new rev share ear where everybody is about getting another agent, getting more money, and getting out, if you can get a group to believe -- I know it's corny as hell; I sound like Ted Lasso right now -- we got to out-culture people. We got to beat them with our culture.

Now, you got to have some help. You can't go out there with nothing. But you got to have some help. But you can out-culture people in this new world, and I think we just caught lightning in a bottle. When your best players are Will Henderson and AP who are the sweetest kids in the world and Owen McCown and David Amador and over there on defense, Big Baby at nose card, Josiah, Jeremiah, those are --Vega, Pollard, Brandon Tucker, we just got some great fricking kids, man.

I know I keep saying that, but it is what it is. I got to find that restaurant. That's too good.

Q. In game I know it's always a big step, but in game 8-14 on third downs. How big was that stat tonight?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, I haven't had a chance to look at it yet. Appreciate you pointing that out. Probably means we were pretty good on first and second down. We tried really hard tonight and win on first and second down to try to give us a fighting chance on third. We were really worried about dropping back and protecting against No. 1 and 7, and 4 and 11 and 77 and 28 and 15 -- I can go on for a minute.

That's guys are super talented. I thought our pace of play helped on third down as well, going turbos. So, yeah, thank you for noticing that. And we haven't been real good at that throughout the year. It's a little misleading because we go for it on fourth down so much.

Tonight I didn't go for it much. That one hurt me right before halftime, but I was scared. You know, 49 yard field goal, I just didn't know. Fourth and two and a half -- what I regret is not running the ball twice. I was very mad at myself.

So thank you.

Q. And then follow with you talked about the crowd earlier. On a night where you were competing against the Spurs' first preseason game, the Dallas Cowboys were in the national Thursday window, Thursday night high school football, I felt like down there on the sideline the environment was incredible. What did you think?

JEFF TRAYLOR: The noise was great. I wouldn't be honest if my kids weren't disappointed they saw so many seats. They were disappointed. I tried to warn them. Tried to explain to them that Thursday night Spurs, Cowboys, the very thing said. I tried to warn them. I had some kids that were pretty upset.

Not mad at anybody. They like to play in front of big crowds. The people what were here, I'm so thankful for the 16,000, whatever the number was. But I told them, win tonight and watch the city get hopping at 7:00 next Saturday. My job as the head coach is to win football games and help marketing to help tickets, to help that -- that's what my job is.

My job is not to worry about all that stuff. But I do have to worry about may kids. Again, I don't want to paint a picture they were mad. They were just disappointed. They thought because of their start it was going to be 40,000. That's the Lord telling me to shut up.

Q. What about that student section, some of those guys showed up three hours...

JEFF TRAYLOR: That was incredible. There wasn't any seats there, and they were fricking loud and they were awesome. I know we made a real effort as a university to go -- get to those kids. They showed up and showed out and they were loud.

I thought them, and then the other 16,000 were great. Great. And I even noticed the video up there kind of poking a little fun and that got everybody riled up. Whoever did that it was on pointe. It was on pointe.

That ya'll. God bless.

Birds Up.