Player Q&A: Indiana football players Kurtis Rourke, Marcus Burris Jr. preview Western Illinois

Indiana football is coming a very strong performance vs FIU in week were they defeated the Panthers 31-7. Up next for the Hoosiers awaits FCS program Western Illinois on Friday night.

Indiana football players Kurtis Rourke and Marcus Burrus Jr. spoke with the media on Tuesday night to preview the matchup.

Below are full player Q&As plus key notes.

Kurtis Rourke | QB | R-Sr.+

On what he noticed when watching film of the FIU game…

KR: It was a good learning tape to watch. I think for our first game, we were not too bad as an offense. We are trying to chase those middle three drives where we went down and scored every time and were firing on all cylinders. It was a good learning tape and there is a lot to work on for this week.

On what individual accomplishments there are in the early season games…

KR: You want to get into a good rhythm. The first game is always about getting that game speed back. You can prepare as much as you want in the offseason and do as many live reps as you can, but until you’re in the game and you take that first hit, then you know you’re going now. Getting that rhythm down and game timing down. It is good to have a couple games before conference play in order to get that out of the way, but the sooner the better and that’s what we are striving for this week.

On how the film session process has evolved from freshman year to now…

KR: I think that it has evolved throughout my years. I have been watching more tape as I have gotten older and gotten more playing time. Everywhere I go, I learn something new about how to watch tape. I learned a lot from my brother who has gone through all of college and into the pros with how he watches film and how he prepares. And then Coach Tino (Sunseri), who has been around the best of the best. Seeing how he prepares and how he watches film throughout the week, I have tried to copy that as well.

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Marcus Burris Jr. | DL | R-Jr.

On working with Coach (Pat) Kuntz and his coaching style…

MB: It’s been really effective; I think everyone in the room can vouch for me. We’ve been able to play a lot faster, a lot more physical, and like he said he’s a lot more intense than a lot of the D-Line coaches that you see today. It’s been really effective, really fun. I’m actually glad I got a chance to stay here and play for somebody like Coach (Pat) Kuntz. 

On Aiden Fisher’s leadership on the field…

MB: (Aiden) Fisher has been amazing. He is a quiet guy off the field, so it’s kind of weird when we get on the field. He’s communicating and not missing the steps. It’s really easy out there playing with Fisher and I am glad he came and joined us here at IU. 

On Mikail Kamara’s progress from arriving at Indiana to now…

MB: I think he came in with the same mindset as us, he came here and he wanted to win since he got here. I remember in the summertime, me, Makail, Lanell (Carr Jr.), Carp (James Carpenter), all of us out there just doing D-Line, Mikail teaching us things he knows, me trying to do the same teaching what we know, he’s been great. You can tell by the way he plays, he’s different. I think it is going to pay off in the long run for him.

SEE ALSO: 3 storylines to watch for when Indiana football hosts Western Illinois

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