The room included four standouts on a Heidelberg defense that has yielded seven points in 12 quarters, helping HU to a 3-0 record and a No. 23 ranking in the AFCA Division III poll.
The question for the four - defensive lineman Will Nunnally, defensive back Justin Suddeth and linebackers Craig Sykes and Adam Cepik - was a simple one.
Was there a moment when you realized how good this defense was?
"During this camp," said Sykes, a senior with 17 tackles, (3 1/2 for a loss) and an interception in 2012. "Our offense is obviously very good, has been for a while now - but when you have (HU quarterback) Mike Mees and some other guys coming up to you and saying 'it (is tough) going against you guys,' it kind gives you a key as to how good you guys actually are."
Suddeth also pointed to the preseason practices.
"Our identity was set in our camp," he said. "As much as the offense wants the ball, we want the ball. And it's just our relentless pursuit of perfection. Even if we fall short, we'll still be up there."
The "relentless pursuit of perfection" was defined by Scott Donaldson, Heidelberg's second-year defensive coordinator, who has been an assistant here for a decade - in Student Princes' program terms, a lifetime ago.
And even though Donaldson was in the room at the time of the interview, Suddeth was able to repeat his quotation without correction.
"No missed tackles, no missed assignments, no penalties," said Suddeth, who has 16 tackles and an interception. "And whether teams put points up on the board - teams are going to make plays - but we're in pursuit of that perfect game as a defense."
The pursuit, as the players and coaches acknowledge, hasn't ended. But a look at HU's first three games present a picture of dominance.
The defense has held the offense of two of its three opponents scoreless (a 45-0 win at Alma and a 56-2 triumph over Wilmington in which the Quakers only points were scored by their defense). Over those games, opponents are averaging 2.4 yards a rush, and have been intercepted nine times. Opposing quarterbacks have been sacked 11 times.
Nunnally, who has a tackle for a loss and a forced fumble, said it's become a competition between the players.
"Everybody on defense just wants to be relentless to the quarterback," he said.
It's worth noting that in two years, Heidelberg has gone from one of the least impressive defenses in the Ohio Athletic Conference to one of the best.
In 2010, opponents averaged almost 32 points a game. Heidelberg finished 5-5.
Last season brought a major improvement on defense. Opponents averaged less than 24 points a game, but included some stellar individual game efforts in wins over Capital (3 points allowed) and Muskingum (7 points allowed).
It was a good defense.
So what changed this year? Not many of the players. Guys like Andy Lovins, Ben Porier, Chadd Williamson, Mike Bodyke, Stephen Fejedelum and Dawson Gore - standouts this season - have been in the program a while now.
So what happened?
"Attitude. That's it. Attutude," Donaldson said. "We had such a great core of phenomenal players and phenomenal people, guys like (Suddeth and Sykes), who were starters before, and (linebacker and Bellevue graduate Gore) and other guys like that, and Cepik, and Nunnally back in the day, I knew if we could change the attitude of the defense, and the team as a whole, we could be great, there's no question.
"Trust me, it's not scheme, it's not anything I did playcalling-wise, trust me," Donaldson said. "It's strictly attitude of the kids."
Head coach Mike Hallett said the improvement also can be traced to maturity.
"Part of that was just our team growing into their roles," Hallett said. "A lot of the guys that gave up a lot of points two years ago are still here playing."
But Cepik, who had a pair of picks in the season-opening win over Alma, said it's also a matter of trust between the players and the coaches.
"Since my freshman year, I've been hearing the same exact thing from the coaches; the same exact thing," Cepik said. "We didn't do it out of nowhere. I think it's just people buying what the coaches are saying. They're not just gonna tell us stuff to tell us stuff. And they know what they're talking about. All our freshmen are buying in now."
But as great as the defense has been, many students and fans haven't actually seen the team yet. It's been on the road all three weeks. The first chance to see Heidelberg at Mayer Field is Saturday, when the Student Princes host Marietta.
Suddeth said it's nice that people are taking notice.
"It's kind of rewarding that we bought into the program for the past three or four years, and now other people are starting to buy into the program," Suddeth said. "We have a supportive community, it's just that much better."
