Kliff Kingsbury:

This press conference was held before the news that running back Da’Leon Ward was arrested so there are a handful of references to Ward that are probably no longer applicable as I’d expect that Ward is no longer on the team. I’d like to say that I’m very thankful that Demarcus Felton returned to the team after initially deciding to transfer. I tip my hat.

[No lead in question so no idea what Kingsbury is commenting about] I don’t know if there is a preference, it’s been good so far . . .

[Practicing in the heat] Anytime you have camp in Texas, they have to get used to carrying their pads, and get used to that in their walk throughs so we don’t go 3 weeks before being in the heat again.

[Who stood out as a running back] Been really pleased with that, Ward has been really productive, Trey King has been really productive, the young guys have been really productive and like to keep all of those guys available . . .

I think a little bit of both, we want to run the ball efficiently and do that at all time, with Da’Leon and Felton, we’ll continue to be a run first football team and if we can do it we will . . .

[Prepping for Ole Miss] We’ve been game prepping all summer, we’ll treat this as a simulated game week to get used to the scout teams, times of practice and the drills . . .

[On who will start at quarterback] We’ll find out in Houston, this competition will make them all better, each meeting you have to be on, they’ll all come out better players . . .

[Does he know who will start?] I have a good idea of it, I doubt it, you’ll have to hit them in the face with it, they’re all worried about getting through practice, we feel like we can win with all 3 guys . . .

[On who will play at left guard] Madison [Akamnonu] has done a nice job, I expect him to be the starter there, Dawson will be the duct tape of the offensive line, Madison has worked hard and earned that spot . . .

We’ll start working through that, with these walk-throughs you get a ton of reps, next week the reps should change next week . . .

[Role of T.J. Vasher] I think he’s ready to take that next step, with T.J. it was the off-field stuff and just consistently showing up and competing, he has all of the god-given ability in the world, he’s had a much more consistent approach to football on and off the field . . .

[On playing Ole Miss to start the season] There’s a sense of urgency, with that right off the bat, I would say it definitely sets the tone of the offseason . . .

[On how he would perform in this offense] I don’t know these guys are all better athletes, it’s not going to look like it did with Patrick Mahomes, but that’s a special beast, we’ll do things to protect the football and play with a lot of confidence . . .

[On Tom Brady, who is two years older than Kingsbury] I’ve always said that he made a deal with the devil, his entire life is dedicated to extending his play at that high level, my hat’s off to him, he’s maniacal about that approach . . .

[On Patrick Mahomes] Just excited for him, just watch the throw from the other night, I hope he continues, he’ll have his ups and downs, and I’ve always said that the sky is the limit . . .

[On De’Quan Bowman] Yeah, a little bit of everything, he’s played every position since he’s been here, he’ll return kicks, we moved around based on need, he hops around and goes, his work ethic, he’ll have a great opportunity to shine this year, Zach is playing, Kesean [Carter] is playing so some sort of rotation . . .

Any time we can do a different activity where they can see us let our hair dow, we try to do as much as we can, it’s good to get out of here now and then and focus on something else .. .

[On the last scrimmage] We came out of it healthy, 100 plays, defense created turnovers , the ones that keep showing up are Joe Wallace and Da’Leon Ward, just have come back bigger, faster stronger.

[On Joe Wallace] It’s great, he worked out all summer, he could play a full game if he had to, he’s in the best shape he’s been since he’s been on campus, both on and off the field . . .

[On who is at the Y receiver spot] I think Ja’Deion High, and Seth Collins, playing the Y, Z is Caden Leggett and Myler Royals, and hopefully TJ can play a lot of snaps and Ja’Deion can play out there as well . .

A-J Media’s Don Williams has a notebook from yesterday’s media availability where a bunch of the above is recapped, but Don also spoke with T.J. Vasher about his maturation, also talked to is Broderick Washington, who said that as long as Joe Wallace keeps his head on straight he’ll be good and Demarcus Fields said that Thomas Leggett has impressed the most from this past spring. There’s more there, so check it out.

I’m putting this here and in the Morning Stake, A-J Media’s Don Williams updates the Da’Leon Ward arrest, which stemmed from a Texas Tech Police Department investigation after three cell phones were stolen in a 20 minute time frame on November 14th. Ward was indicted in June, but the indictment was sealed. I’m not a criminal attorney, so I have no idea why the indictment was sealed and why this investigation took so long to culminate in Ward’s arrest today.