It’s a contest that ASU’s defensive coordinator wish he didn’t have to play. When Gonzales addressed the media Wednesday afternoon he talked about the challenges that await his group on Saturday night.

On whether the ASU offense will benefit this week facing a defense that they practice against every day

“What I think is gonna help them is the fact that we’ve practiced against each other about 50 times in the last year. I was trying to explain that to our guys on defense today that what the San Diego State offense is gonna see, they see every day. They’ve seen it for the last ten years so it’s gonna be a little different than what we’ve had the last two weeks because the guys that we played the last two weeks they haven’t seen it before. Never seen it.

“When you prepare for something you haven’t seen it’s pretty hard especially when you have three days now. Texas San-Antonio had all summer long, they studied San Diego State film because that’s where it came from and the timing of everything and the actual…it’s similar to the triple option, with the triple option it’s hard to prepare for in three days because of the timing and the way that the people move. What we do is very untraditional. We get in a lot of traditional defenses but we just do it with different people…it’s hard to prepare for. So, I think both offenses will have a little bit of an advantage because they’ve practiced against it every day. They’ve done it for 10 years, we’ve done it for 50 practices so far. But I think it’ll help a little bit.

On the process of interviewing with Herm Edwards for the ASU job

“That was a hard deal because I didn’t want it to be a distraction to our football team at San Diego State. It was a Sunday, we had practice that day. We had practice on that Monday too because we were leaving to Fort Worth (for their bowl game) on Tuesday. The practice ended about 7. We watched practice as a staff and then I hopped on a plane at about 9, 9:30 and got out here at 10 (p.m.). Met with coach Edwards. The awkward part about that deal and I told coach Edwards and he was very understanding, I said, ‘I don’t feel very comfortable talking about our scheme because if I don’t get this job, we play each other next year. I don’t think it’s fair to my team that I’m currently with.’ And he was fine, he was great with that.

“So, we talked a lot of philosophy. We talked just base defense and put some tape on and we watched guys and we talked through some situations and scenarios and that went on for about four hours. It was the first time I had ever met coach Edwards and it was an unbelievable experience. He is as genuine of a person as they come. What you see up here everyday…he never changes. What you saw on ESPN the last nine years… never changes. His commercial, when he’s the little Bud Light guy, he never changes. It’s awesome, that’s who he is all the time. It’s just been great to be around him. That four hours…it was easy to see that it (ASU) would be somewhere that I would like to be.”

On whether his game plan has to be more creative because of the opponent

“The hard thing about this week, I wish we didn’t have to play this game because I recruited most of those kids, all those kids on defense other than the true freshmen I coached at some point. So, I know them all and love all those kids dearly. They’re a bunch of really good kids and the belief system that they have around there…we thought we were as good as anybody in the country and so I know how those kids work, I know how they believe I know how they feel.

“One of the things that I’ve been taught through my 20 years in doing this is, when you get emotional, you make bad decisions. Trying to do something spectacular and special and doing something new usually doesn’t work. It was funny on Sunday I sat in there (in his office) between Sunday and Monday and came up with all these elaborate schemes and fancy things and went in there into (defensive backs) coach (Tony) White and the first thing I tried to explain - he was confused. So, if he can’t get it, there ain’t no chance the kids are gonna get it so I turned around, left his office and started (again). I don’t even know what time it was when I left on Monday. I just want to make sure that we’re not confused, we give them something. You can never take on a running team the same way two weeks in a row or two years in a row. So, the game plan we had against Michigan State, which is a very similar offense to San Diego State, we can’t use because they’ll practice all week. Now, I know coach (San Diego State offensive coordinator Jeff) Horton is really smart, he’s not gonna waste his time on what we did against Michigan State because he knows how coach Long has raised me in this deal. So, we’ll come up with something to try and give them some fits but it’s gonna be a game that’s won at the line of scrimmage. Their O-line is as physical as anyone in the country and I tried to explain to our guys today, they’re going to try to hit you in the mouth and they’re going to try to kill you. It’s not gonna be, mush you out of the way and move you…they’re going to try to kill you. You better get ready to go on Saturday.”

On whether returning to San Diego is bittersweet or not

“No, I wish we didn’t have to play this game. I wish we could play somebody else…no matter how that game outcomes if we beat them which is the goal and it’s the only outcome I’d want then I’d feel a little bad for those kids. But I won’t feel so bad, I want to win, just like ain’t no one going to feel bad for me if we lose. So, bittersweet in the fact that I hope we win and we move on. What I will like the most after this game is over, I haven’t talked to coach Long very much, because I just don’t think it’s right to compare notes when we’re getting ready to play each other and after this game is over I can call him every week like I did before, so that’s what I’m most excited about.”

On how he feels about San Diego State’s head coach Rocky Long

“He’s taught me everything I know about this game. I was very fortunate. I had two wonderful mentors between coach Long and Bronco Mendenhall. I was a GA (graduate assistant) for Bronco Mendenhall, I played for him my senior year. Then I’ve been with coach Long…we were on the same staff together for 17 years. For the last 20 years of my life, I’ve been around him.

“In my opinion, he’s got the greatest defensive mind in college football. He stays ahead of the game. Offensive coaches are smart. You’ve got all this spread and they count numbers and they make it really easy for their kids. Well, the game is getting soft so you can’t intimidate guys coming across the middle anymore. You can’t knock them out, they call targeting. If you hit somebody too hard, you don’t even have to target them, if you hit them too hard, it’s a penalty. So, they (the offense) have a whole bunch of advantages. I think he’s been unbelievable in coming up with ways to try and give the defensive guys just a chance to slow them down.”

On how familiar he is with backup quarterback Ryan Agnew will present as he replaces starter Christian Chapman who’s out with an injury

“Very. I think Ryan Agnew has been the backup there for three years, he’s played in a few games, he threw more passes last Saturday night than he did in his first three games combined. He was 11 of 17 and did a really nice job. One of the interceptions had (San Diego State tight end) Kahale Warring caught the ball it would’ve been about a 25-yard gain and put them down in scoring position. The other one, I think the (Sacramento State) safety made a great play, he ran across the entire field, reads the quarterback and goes up and gets it.

“Ryan is a very athletic kid. He’s a very confident young man. He played at Southlake Carroll High School in Texas. He’s fast, he gives them a different dimension with the quarterback running plays. I’m sure coach Horton and them…we’ll see a little bit more zone read than what they’ve seen I would guess. We’ll see some quarterback draws that we haven’t seen because he’s very athletic and they have confidence in him. I know coach Horton has a lot of confidence in the young man and he recruited him out of Southlake Carroll so they have a great relationship and they’ll give him a great game plan to be successful.”

On how helpful has it been that defensive backs coach Tony White left leaving SDSU to join him at ASU

"I couldn't be more thankful that Tony White is here. He's made this transition really, really easy for me. Every opportunity I had (to leave for another job), he was the first one I went to with coach Long…the one guy I'm going to ask to come with me is coach White. We’ve been together for the last ten years in this business, one of my best friends, our kids play together, our wives get along really, really well. So, he's been someone that has been really close to me.

“I think he's one of the greatest coaches in the press box on game day. He's my eyes up there, he tells me everything that is going on. He can get me the personnel of who’s in the game. It's unbelievable how fast and how well he's able to sort those things out. We are very, very fortunate, and on top of that, I think he's one of the top recruiters in college football. I’m super excited that he’s here with me."

On the similarities between the Michigan State and the San Diego State offenses:

“They are both very physical and they have the same game plan in that they want to pound the ball at you and shorten the game. Their play action is strong. Where had success Saturday night was that they had a hard time blocking Renell Wren. I hope the guys at San Diego State have the same problem. When your nose guard gets penetration into the backfield, it causes a lot of problems.

“Michigan state’s answer was to abandon the running game and run outside. I hope we are fortunate enough to do that for San Diego State. The offensive line for San Diego State fire off the ball and come downhill. Michigan State wasn’t sued to our movement so they were a little bit slower. San Diego State won’t be slow because they are used to the movement. It’s a big challenge.”

On how he asses the play of junior defensive end Darius Slade who already has 2.5 sacks this year

"I think it goes back to the spring. I really give the young man a lot of credit because when we got here, the stuff we were asking him to do he didn’t necessarily like. Darius Slade has a very special skill set of rushing the passer. There are not many tackles who can block him. Within our scheme, he's not always going to be a wide-9 and be a pass rusher. He has to pinch inside, take on some double teams, he has to block react, cross face…He didn't like it very much when we first got here because it wasn't his special suit.

“We had a really good conversation one afternoon. I told him I'm a stubborn old man, I won't change. So, if you want to play here and be successful then you're going to have to change your ways. And he did. He put on almost 30 pounds, he came back and worked as hard as anybody this summer. He came back, he looked the part. When he takes on double teams now, it's different. It's not as hard as it was for him. So, he's done a great job of giving himself an opportunity to be successful and now it's paying off. We can put him in situations…the one sack fumble we had against UTSA, if they want to block a d-lineman with a running back, that's what should happen. He picked that guy up and threw him in the quarterback's lap and the quarterback fumbles the ball and he scoops it up and scores and looks at me and says, 'I told you.' I said, 'Well, thank you. I’m glad you did. We will put you in more opportunities to do that.' I'm proud of the young man for where he's at."

On the impressive play of freshman linebacker Merlin Robertson

"Unbelievable for what he's done as a true freshman. Merlin Robertson is playing way ahead of his years. To be a 17, 18-year old kid, a young man going up against guys 22 and 23-years old that are physically more developed. The knowledge and time he's put into the classroom have been unreal. He's out there telling guys…he can get all 11 guys lined up. He's telling the secondary what coverage we're in. It's awesome. I'm super excited. The way he played in the fourth quarter last Saturday, had five tackles, one and a half sacks. I couldn't say enough about him. I'm glad he's a Sun Devil."

"There are certain kids who are really good football players who have a natural feel for the game. There’re some kids who have no feel. He's just one of those guys who is a natural, and he puts in the effort. Coach Pierce has done a great job with the linebackers and he puts in a lot of extra effort to make sure that he knows what to do. He's proven why he was recruited so highly."

On his game plan for San Diego State running back Juwan Washington

“We gotta be great tacklers. Juwan is a very special back, he’s almost 200 pounds, he’s 5-7, what a great young man. Teammates love him, he makes everybody laugh. He will run you over, he will make you miss in the hole. He’s got great speed, he’s a great kickoff returner, he’s a great punt returner. They’re smart, they put the ball in his hands every way they can. They’ll put him out at wide receiver and throw him a pass in space, they’ll run a slip screen to him, they’ll give him a running back draw. They’ll run power, for a guy that that’s 5 foot 7 for a guy to do what he does, it is straight downhill in the A-gap and he’ll make you miss three yards past the line of scrimmage. So, we’ve got a huge challenge, we gotta tackle well with three four and five guys just to have a chance to contain him. He’s rushed for 181 yards and 158 in two games, he’s the third leading rusher in the country, that’s not uncommon for them. They’ve had the leading rusher in the country the last two years so, we’ve got a big challenge ahead.”

On how the Tillman safety position looks with the injury to senior Das Tautalatasi last Saturday and the play of Jalen Harvey, as well as the status of Evan Fields

“Jalen played great after Das went out. Evan was OK to play on Saturday night if we needed him. I felt that Jalen was very good in the rotation. He had a feel for what they were doing on offense, so we went with Jalen. Evan could have played and he will play this week because I like the rotation aspect of it. He's healthy, he's fine, he's had a good week of practice so far. He practiced pretty good last week and like we said he could have played. We'll be OK with those two manning that position and then hopefully next week we'll get Das back depending on his health. His elbow is pretty swollen, he dislocated it but they have him in a big brace and is one of the tougher young men I've been around. So, we’ll see how he does in a couple of weeks and then we'll go with the same plan moving forward with all three guys playing there."

On his group being ranked first in the country in rushing defense

"The most impressive thing that these guys have done that I'm glad they've bought in is they're playing hard. They're gang tackling, you're not getting a lot of yards after contact on misses. You've got 11 guys that are trying everything they can to get to the football. Usually, that is the hardest thing to sell and the hardest thing to get implemented.

“We've run more around here than I think they ever thought possible and we'll continue to do that. I think it creates good habits and it has made up for a lot of assignment mistakes that we've made. We're still making too many and are making good progress toward cleaning those up this week. So, if they continue to play hard, good things will happen. The fact that we've been able to get good penetration with our d-line, Renell Wren…I said it a long time ago, I think he can be the best nose guard in the country. Through two weeks he's making me look pretty good. He's a good player. We have good players. We have a bunch of really good athletes that are playing at a high level, playing with energy.

“But we still, and I tell them this every day, we still have a long way to go before we can consider ourselves good. Those are just two weeks…No. 1 in the country and we've only played two games. Really, go a whole season and see where we stack up. They believe in what we're doing and they're playing hard, but we're not very good yet. We still have a long way to go to reach the standard we want to reach. There's a fine line between being arrogant and being confident. I don't want them to get arrogant because we haven't done anything special yet. We've got a bunch of good players who are playing hard and if they continue to progress the way we're progressing, we'll be pretty good. But all those nice things that you guys (the media) keep writing about 'em, it sure is making my job harder. I wouldn’t mind if every once in a while, that they’re not very good (smiles). It won’t hurt my feelings.

“There is nothing magical about what we do. If you got good players you are a good coach. Make them play hard and you’ve good a chance.”