Quotes From Louisville-Grambling Football Game
September 09, 2000 | Football
Sept. 9, 2000
Louisville Head Coach John L. Smith
"I'm thankful the game is over. We were very flat in a lot of regards after the win over Kentucky. It was a tough week to practice. We got the win and the shutout and we can build on that. That was good for the defense. Offensively, it was not a good outing by any means. Grambling hung in there as best they coud, but we've got 22 more scholarships so it was tough on them. We got some turnovers that helped us put it away early. There are some positive things our kids did tonight that we can amplify.
(on if he expected a letdown) "It's tough. Everybody's still talking about that one (win vs. Kentucky). As coaches you've got to go out there, slap them around and try to get them to concentrate on what they're supposed to be doing. Emotionally, we were not up at all. We were very flat. But I don't think we'll have any problem getting them up for this next one."
(on if the week off before playing Florida State will help preparations) "I think so. I think any time you can get some extra work on an opponent that good, it's got to help us."
(on the play of the defense) "I've said all along that I think our defensive front is much quicker than it has been, and they're bigger and stronger. I think those things are starting to show. I want us to be perfect, but that's not ever going to happen. We're still making some mental mistakes. That still concerns me, but I'm proud of what our guys have done so far. Our image of ourselves on defense is getting better."
Grambling Head Coach Doug Williams
"I think field position hurt us. When we had opportunities to kick field goals and get touchdowns, we didn't. When you play a team like Louisville, or anybody we play, you have to take advantage of those opportunities."
(on QB Randy Hymes' first career start) "He was under tremendous pressure. That was a tough outing for him. They (U of L's defense) put a lot of pressure on him. I think it was tough for him to handle a little bit of it. I think he settled down a bit. It's just that the defense took a lot of things away from him. When you have that type of pressure and play defense the way they played us tonight, it's hard for us to do anything."
"We were outclassed tonight. The better team won, and it showed. We can't make any excuses. We have got to roll with the punches, and just like I told them (the Grambling team), we have a pretty good football team. We feel that when we get in our league, we are going to give some people some money."
(on Louisville's defense) "They played the hell out of some defense."
Louisville Player Quotes
Richard Owens, freshman, tight end (on first career pass, for a touchdown) "I enjoyed it. It was a great opportunity for me and for the team because we got to go up (7-0). It was fun and exciting. It was a little route, I caught it across the middle and scored. It wasn't difficult."
(on the game) "It was fun. We had some mental mistakes, but overall we came out and did what we had to do, which was get a victory."
(on what to expect from Grambling) "We knew that they were going come in ready to play us and that they were going to be a tough team. We just had to stay on top of our game and go and play."
Derrick Kennedy, senior, defensive tackle
(on the defense) "After looking at the film from last week, we felt like the things we did today, we should have done last week. The defense just stepped up and competed for production points for the Cardinal birds on the helmets. I guess people took it real serious this week so we just stepped it up."
(on preparing for Florida State) "It gives us some momentum knowing that the defense played to its capabilities. We are just going to build on that, correct the mistakes that we made, and go in feeling that we can shut out anybody."
(on returning from one year absence) "I have a year to make up for. I am a little faster as I have less body parts with my pinky gone. Being out for a year really made me want to step up my game and just enjoy the game because it could be my last year."
Dave Ragone, sophomore, quarterback
(on having a week off before Florida State) "We will have a lot more time to prepare for them but it will be good for us. We'll have some time off, get a couple of days off to rest and hopefully we can make some things happen down there and shock some people."
(on mindset for Florida State) "If you go in there intimidated, you've already lost. Coach Smith already talked about that after tonight's game. We are going to go in there and do some things. We have confidence in our offense and defense. It's going to be a team effort."
(on his performance) "Anytime you get five receivers out there and throw the ball, that's a lot of fun. I had some goals set and the interception broke one of them. But for the most part, I thought I made some good reads. Hopefully I can watch film and get better."
