Preston Fox UCF Preview
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00:00 All right, we have wide receiver Preston Fox.
00:04 Start with Greg Hunter.
00:06 So Preston, just start with your story and your ascension
00:11 from walk-on to scholarship and now obviously major role
00:16 player.
00:16 Give us a little bit of your background as it began.
00:20 So growing up here, it's been pretty cool.
00:24 Starting from Morgantown, it's been a hard, hard journey.
00:27 But I mean, it's always going to be hard as a walk-on.
00:31 I've really worked really hard.
00:34 And being a huge role player now in the game, it's big time.
00:43 I would just say big time-- like a lot of it
00:45 was hard work coming in here.
00:48 And then now they can just plug me in at any spot
00:51 and I do my thing.
00:54 Were you bummed that you didn't get offers out of Morgantown
00:57 high?
00:58 And when you got here, how long did
01:00 take you to realize you could contribute at this level?
01:04 I mean, coming in here, I was definitely
01:08 bummed that I didn't have any offers.
01:09 But I mean, a lot of players, they
01:12 don't get chances like that and are very overlooked.
01:16 And being from Morgantown, a lot of players
01:19 are definitely overlooked.
01:20 But I got my chance and I took it.
01:27 Coming in here, it was hard.
01:29 But I made it work.
01:31 And the opportunities I got, I overcame them and did good
01:36 with that.
01:37 And I thought I was able to play here right when I first
01:39 got here, just from making plays.
01:43 Was there a moment you said to you right away,
01:45 was there something in practice, a play you made,
01:49 or something-- strength room work
01:52 that you realized you weren't any different than anybody
01:55 else?
01:56 I mean, I had to definitely get stronger and get bigger.
02:01 That was kind of hard for me.
02:03 But I would say throughout the whole time growing here,
02:07 I made a lot of plays in practice.
02:09 And that made me a lot better player
02:12 and showed that I can play at this level.
02:16 Preston, can you tell us about the catch
02:19 you made early Saturday?
02:21 I think it was the first touchdown
02:23 drive on third down, where you're basically on your back.
02:25 Catching the ball.
02:27 So we motioned over.
02:29 And it was man coverage.
02:31 And I made an in-cut to go in on him, used my hands.
02:37 And he kind of grabbed the back of my pads.
02:41 And I slowly started to fall down.
02:43 And as I was falling down, I saw the ball coming.
02:46 And I just turned and jumped and caught it.
02:48 And it was a big play.
02:50 And that's what we needed to score.
02:53 Do you ever get an easy catch?
02:58 Usually, I put myself in positions to make hard catches.
03:02 But yeah, I definitely get some easy catches sometimes.
03:06 It seems like you're landing on your head every time.
03:11 To Bob's point, I mean, sometimes there
03:14 isn't a lot of separation.
03:15 So you have to make those congested catches.
03:18 That's something you go in thinking,
03:20 you're not a 4-2 guy.
03:22 So you have to think that way and know
03:24 that when you go into a game, I'm going to take a hit.
03:26 I've got to brace myself and be ready for that.
03:29 Yeah, always.
03:30 I mean, I've always had really good hands.
03:33 So I use that.
03:35 I'm kind of quick, I would say.
03:38 I'm not a fast guy at all.
03:39 But just a little separation is all I need.
03:42 And I can get the ball in my hands.
03:46 Preston, you're not a walk-on anymore.
03:48 I understand that.
03:48 But it sounds like when you were climbing the ladder,
03:51 you put yourself into just a bunch of different roles
03:54 as you could, learning every position, catching punts.
03:57 Do you do walk-ons have to do more than a regular receiver
04:01 or a regular defensive back?
04:02 Yeah, I would say as a walk-on, you really
04:05 got to put yourself in positions to get any playing time.
04:09 Through punt return, that helped me get on the field first.
04:13 And special teams is the main key.
04:15 If you want to get on the field, you play special teams.
04:17 And that made my way into receiver
04:20 and learning all the positions.
04:24 It really got me to a point where I can play anywhere.
04:26 And they can just plug me into any spot.
04:28 And I can be in the game.
04:31 Punt returner, that could be a scary position.
04:37 No fear for you?
04:38 What are your thoughts when the ball's in the air,
04:40 people are coming down on you?
04:42 Honestly, I don't have any thoughts when I go out there.
04:45 It's just straight up confidence.
04:48 You got to have confidence to be a punt returner.
04:51 People are running at you, yelling in your face.
04:53 And you got to focus on the ball as you're looking up.
04:57 And I would just say it's straight up confidence.
04:59 I mean, there's this amount of courage
05:01 that goes involved in that too.
05:03 People are flying at you, sometimes your own guys.
05:06 How do you deal with that?
05:09 Honestly, you just deal with it like you have to.
05:12 I mean, it's a hard position to play.
05:16 And you just got to just deal with it.
05:20 It's hard.
05:22 It's a lot of courage, for sure.
05:25 You've now added kick returner to it as well.
05:28 A whole different skill set?
05:30 I mean, people say returner, returner.
05:32 But seemingly, they'd be different.
05:35 It's definitely a different skill set.
05:36 I mean, it's a lot easier to catch the ball.
05:39 And you have more time to make a move at punt returner.
05:41 You're just like, right when you catch it,
05:43 you got to hurry up and make a move.
05:46 At kick return, you can see the field open up.
05:48 And I feel like I do pretty good at kick return too,
05:52 because I can see the field and hit the hole really well.
05:57 Can you take us through what went wrong on the one
06:00 punt on Saturday?
06:02 OK, so I'm looking up.
06:04 And all of a sudden, I see my guy get pushed into me.
06:08 I mean, that stuff happens all the time.
06:10 It happened in an NFL game the other day.
06:14 Can't blame anybody for that.
06:15 Stuff happens.
06:16 People mess up.
06:18 You just got to keep moving forward.
06:20 It's a big point in the game.
06:23 What's the fix for that?
06:24 I mean, how do you guys-- or is it just one of those things
06:25 like it just happens?
06:27 It does just happen.
06:29 The key point, I would say, is just to look at the returner
06:32 and see where he's at.
06:34 I mean, he was focused on blocking for me.
06:35 So I understand where he's coming from.
06:39 But it happens.
06:40 Did you say anything to him after--
06:43 No, there's no reason to say anything to him.
06:45 He's going through it himself.
06:47 So just keep him positive, keep him upbeat.
06:50 You know what I mean?
06:51 Can you explain the improvement as a punt returner
06:54 from last year this year for you?
06:55 I mean, you very seldom get to practice punt returns.
06:59 I mean, with someone trying to tackle you.
07:01 So we get a lot of reps in practice at it.
07:05 I catch a ton of punts in practice right
07:09 before practice, after practice.
07:11 I would say it's mainly confidence
07:12 like I was talking about earlier.
07:16 I just go out there and when the ball's up in the air,
07:18 I just think, get it and go.
07:20 You know what I mean?
07:23 But there was a big difference from last year to this year.
07:26 I'm getting a lot more chances to run the ball and get it
07:29 and go.
07:30 But I didn't have as much confidence as I do this year.
07:34 I guess you're looking for that one breakaway.
07:36 Yeah, definitely.
07:39 Level of, I guess, frustration with the team.
07:42 I mean, you lose a Hail Mary pass the week prior.
07:45 You have a 24-20 lead going into the fourth quarter
07:48 and a game after that.
07:50 Where is the frustration level with the team,
07:52 you think, right now?
07:54 I mean, it's very frustrating seeing all this happen.
07:57 But we're a good football team.
08:00 We just need to be compatible offense and defensive wise.
08:04 Defense makes a stop.
08:05 We got to go down and score on offense.
08:07 That's just how it needs to be.
08:10 Life for a Morgantown kid different on this team
08:13 than other guys who are from all over, you, Nick, other guys?
08:18 I mean, you're five minutes from home, 10 minutes from home,
08:21 whatever.
08:22 Is it different?
08:23 Life is definitely different.
08:24 I would say I get to see my family two or three times
08:27 a week.
08:27 And all the other guys struggle with that.
08:30 They don't get to see their family as much.
08:34 I would say it's a big mental thing.
08:37 Being able to see my family, it's good.
08:41 It's hard not seeing your family and people
08:43 being away from their family.
08:44 That's terrible for them.
08:45 It sucks.
08:46 But I really like it.
08:49 You said when you got here, you were ready to play,
08:51 that you could have played with you guys.
08:53 How frustrating was it to be that far down on the totem
08:58 pole and know in your heart that you were better than that?
09:02 I mean, it's really frustrating.
09:03 But in those moments, you just need
09:06 to know that adversity hits and things happen.
09:10 You know what I mean?
09:11 You just got to keep pushing forward
09:13 and keep working hard, because you
09:15 know you're going to get your chance at some point.
09:18 Did you ever get despondent?
09:20 What was that?
09:20 Did you ever get despondent or down?
09:23 Yeah, I got down a lot on myself.
09:28 But honestly, I just kept working hard.
09:30 My dad really pushed me to be the best guy I can be
09:34 and hardest worker.
09:35 So that's what I did.
09:37 What's the team got to do to turn it around this weekend
09:39 against Central Florida?
09:42 I would say be more compatible with each other
09:44 offensive and defensive wise, like I said earlier, for sure.
09:49 So this is going back a couple of months.
09:51 But how did you feel when Coach Marshall called you a Honda
09:56 Accord, I think it was?
09:58 I mean, you probably want to be a Ferrari or something.
10:01 No, honestly, I'm kind of cool with being a Honda Accord.
10:04 Just catch the ball and get yards, you know what I mean?
10:09 What was it like when they announced you
10:12 were getting the scholarship?
10:13 What was that moment like?
10:15 Man, that was probably one of the best feelings in the world.
10:18 Seeing my family walk in, I just knew that was the moment.
10:22 And he gave me the scholarship, and I just almost
10:26 had tears come out of my eyes.
10:28 That was the best feeling ever.
10:30 What was that?
10:30 Because that was the same day Nick last week
10:33 mentioned you guys were teammates forever.
10:35 And Nick won the Walk-On Award that day, too.
10:37 I mean, what was that like for you guys?
10:39 It's a cool feeling.
10:40 You see everybody from high school congratulating you.
10:44 And you just know you finally made it happen,
10:49 you know what I mean?
10:49 Everything you came here and worked for.
10:53 Did your journey-- sorry, did your journey,
10:56 because of what you went through, also
10:58 give you a different perspective and a light
11:00 even to appreciate what happened with Hudson
11:02 earlier in the season, his big game,
11:04 and then he gets the scholarship?
11:05 I mean, it's always a great feeling
11:08 seeing another Walk-On get a scholarship.
11:10 It makes me so happy seeing that.
11:15 Him going through that, I'm really proud of him
11:18 because he worked his butt off.
11:19 And he went through the same stuff that I did.
11:22 And he just kept pushing, kept pushing,
11:24 and he finally got his opportunity.
11:25 And he made it happen.
11:28 So you and Nick both Evans Steel Tigers, right?
11:32 So Suncrest Seals.
11:34 So you walked through that.
11:36 I mean, when did you first have--
11:38 I mean, it's a dream initially.
11:41 You're 10, I assume.
11:42 So you're over there practicing.
11:46 What was that like?
11:47 Did you look here and say, I could do it?
11:49 And was it just a kid's dream at that point?
11:52 It was never really a thought that I
11:54 could do it until my senior year.
11:57 And I got that offer to be a preferred Walk-On.
12:02 But growing up, I've always wanted to come here.
12:04 This is my home.
12:06 It's a great team to be here and play for.
12:12 But yeah, me and Nick, we definitely
12:13 have always had the same dreams.
12:16 And we both made it happen.
12:20 I asked Nick, do you remember your first game here
12:23 at the stadium when you came?
12:24 How old were you?
12:27 Man, I was probably like eight, maybe, maybe even younger
12:33 than that.
12:35 Yeah, Nick said he was a baby.
12:36 Yeah, I might have been here.
12:38 My parents probably brought me here.
12:39 So--
12:40 Do you have a prediction for the Mohawk Bowl this week?
12:46 We're winning, of course.
12:49 MHS, definitely.
12:52 Anything else for Preston?
12:55 Thank you, sir.
12:57 - Thank you guys.