Louisville-Murray State Postgame Quotes
September 30, 2017 | Football
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Louisville Head Coach Bobby Petrino
(Opening statement)
“It was a good day for us. I thought our players came out and did what we were supposed to do. Obviously we should beat that team, but I liked the way we prepared throughout the week. We were challenged throughout the week and one of the things we really wanted to do was do a good job in the classroom, do a good job on the practice field and be able to focus and stick together as a team. So I was really happy with that. It was great to get a lot of players in today. That is really what we wanted to do. We wanted to make sure that we got ahead so we could let guys play. Offensively, I really wanted to get Puma (Jawon Pass) in there with the No. 1 offense. I thought he did a good job with the exception of the first snap. We didn't get that one right. Other than that, he executed real well, threw the ball around, ran the show well. We got the second offensive line in and a lot of guys touched the ball and that was good to see offensively that a lot of guys touched the ball. Defensively, we had a little slow start, I'd like to see the one drive where they got a field goal out of it. But from that point on, I thought we controlled the line of scrimmage. We tackled well. We did a really good job of tackling. We had tight coverage and that was good to see. We played just about everybody we could on defense and I think they had fun and did a good job out there. We have a short week coming up, big game on Thursday night. We are looking forward to that. Tomorrow will be a normal Tuesday for us. So we will move completely on to North Carolina State. We won't watch this video, we will just move ahead and get ready for a good practice tomorrow in the late afternoon.”Â
(About the week of preparations)Â
“It has been a hard week and heartbreaking for our university and our city. But one of the things that we wanted to do as a team was just really focus and come together and go out and play well and give some inspiration to our fans and the city of Louisville.”
(What was your focus with Lamar Jackson coming into this one?)
“We just wanted to execute. We wanted him to throw the ball and be accurate with it. We wanted to get him some run work on some run reads and I thought he did a really nice job of that, so I thought it was just a matter of coming out and playing well and taking care of the football. We did that for the most part except for that one fumble right before the half. Corey (Reed) made a great catch, and then he's got to learn the 'Gary Barnidge' rule to get that second hand on the ball when you get caught from behind.”
(On the running game)
“We worked hard at it. We worked hard at it. At halftime I wasn't very happy because we had all these yards and points at halftime, but not enough touches for the running backs. But in saying that, they were trying to blitz every single play, so you're not going to just sit there and try to bang your head against the wall, you've got to execute an offense that allows you to go score and make plays. When they did touch the ball, I thought they ran well. It was good to see Reggie (Bonnafon) have some really good success there. Malik (Williams) was a little bit sick today, so I'm not sure how many touches he got.”
(On Colin Wilson's injury)
“I don't know anything yet.
(When will we see Jaire Alexander back on the field?)
“That's a good question. I was hoping it was today. We were trying to shoot for today. He did have a good week. He did practice some this week, but he wasn't ready to go in full contact. It's really day-by-day but we're getting a lot loser.”
(How important was it to get some of the starters some rest before the Thursday night game?)
“That's what we wanted to do. At halftime we're sitting in here saying we'll give Lamar (Jackson) one more series, and then the decision was made to put Puma (Jawon Pass) in with the ones. Let's let him get some work with the one offensive line. I thought it was the right decision; it was good input by the assistant coaches. And then Lamar got to rest and get ready to go. So I think we're healthy, and we came out of it in good shape with the exception of Colin (Wilson). We don't know yet. It's a short week and we have to get ready to go play a really good football team.
(Did you get a chance to peek ahead to North Carolina State?)
“Yeah, we peeked ahead a little bit.”
(How difficult is it to prepare with everything that's transpired this week to stay focused on football?)
“Well, one of the things that, as an athlete, you try to do is you find a release. Come in the building and get with your teammates. Focus on preparing for a game and going out and practicing gets you away from all of it. I thought our guys did a good job of that. We tried to communicate, talk to them every day. I was proud of the way they handled it.”
(Can you talk about your relationship with Tom Jurich and what he's meant to you?)
“I can't say enough about what he's meant to me and my family. Besides being my boss, he's a really close friend, so we're hoping he'll be back.”
(Have you spoken to him since the news broke?)
“I spoke to him on the morning that he went over there. I talked to him right after that.”
(You mentioned you hoped he'll be back- if he's gone, does that impact your outlook for the future here?)
“I haven't thought anything about that at all. What I'm focused on is our football team. I love our football team. I love the University I love the city of Louisville. We made plans to stay here and spend the rest of our career here. So right now what we've got to do is focus on this game Thursday night and get ready for that.
(Have you expressed this to Dr. Postel? That you want him back?)
“No sir.”
(Can you talk last year about, there was a game Saturday night against Wake Forest then a quick Thursday turnaround against Houston, will you do anything differently this year, knowing what happened last year, and what's the challenge?)
“Well, the good thing is that it's early in the year and we played a 3:30 kick, so our guys can get home and get some sleep. We're going to come out and practice hard tomorrow and really do good job of our normal Tuesday practice.”
(What did you see from Russ Yeast today?)
“I thought he had some good returns, but we've got to get him more help. First of all, their punter did a really nice job of punting the ball. He had some really good hang time and it is hard to block guys for that long. But when he did get the opportunity, I thought he was really close one time to being able to break it. I still don't like to see the ball hit the ground and roll. That's something we worked on all week long. We've got to get a little more help from our shorter returner on that.”
(Dez Fitzpatrick had two more touchdowns in this game. Is he where you think he should be or is he meeting your expectations?)
“They're never where I think they should be. But, Dez is doing a nice job. One thing they he is learning and doing a better job of is practicing. He's in better condition, so he can go faster and harder in practice which improves on our timing. Since Jaylen hasn't been out there, we've relied on Dez to play more plays so the conditioning part of it is very, very important for him. One of these things that we try to tell all of our guys is that the receivers have to run all day. You go play in the NFL and there's basically five guys, there's five receivers. Practice all day long, take every rep, jog back, take the next one. So that's something you have to learn and be able to do, and then turn your routes full speed so he's really improved in the practice part of it and it shows up in the game.”
Dez Fitzpatrick, r-FR., WR
(On his performance today) “Overall, I think I did pretty good. I'm glad I improved over run blocking, blocking, trying to spring. But overall, it was a good win.”
(On relationship with junior quarterback Lamar Jackson) “I just feel like, sometimes, it's always a certain defense that pops up. I look back at Lamar, he looks back at me, so it's that certain eye connection. I know the ball's coming to me, so I just have to beat my guy.”
(On two touchdowns today) “I don't remember the first one—I'm not going to lie to you. The second one, I saw two high safeties, and so usually, Coach says 'When you see two high safeties, pick them,” and that's exactly what I did. And I'm glad Lamar saw the two high safeties too and the ball just went right over the linebacker, and I just kept my feet set.”
(On offensive performance today) “This week's practice was focused on being really poised. Our offense, two weeks ago against Clemson, wasn't showing up much—really, we were just shooting ourselves in the foot with missed assignments and everything. So, this week's practice was focused on cleaning everything up and just coming into one offense.”
(On increasing double-teaming and defensive attention) “No, not really. Honest, I'm not going to lie. Really, I just focused on doing my part and doing my one-eleventh. The offense stresses out all the time, but Coach Summers always says, 'If you do your one-eleventh, it will come together.' So, if everyone on the offense does their one-eleventh, the play's going to work regardless, so I don't really think about that very much.”
(On relationship with junior wide receiver Jaylen Smith) “He's just getting stronger with whatever happened to him. He's always joking around. He's telling me to catch him up with the yards and everything. Jaylen has a whole bunch of yards…really arguing, joking around. He always says that I have three weeks to catch up. Our relationship is strong. He has that big brother role. With him being our go-to receiver, and me playing behind him at the Z position, any questions I have, or any concerns, I go to him, and he really answers it.”
(On Lamar Jackson's performance) “He's a freak of nature. Honestly, I've never seen anything like it before, and I'm just blessed playing with him.”
Chucky Williams, Sr., S
(On holding down Murray State's offense) “I mean, it's pretty good, but we're striving to be better. Right now, we're fighting to put a great identity on film for other teams to see. Just right now, we're working to get better.”
(On defensive goals before game) “The main goal is to get turnovers and be dominant, and that's what we were focused on going into this game. That's what we're focused on going into each and every game for the rest of the year.”
(On return of junior cornerback Jaire Alexander) “Oh yeah, we're ready. We're excited to have him back. When he gets back, we know he's going to be ready. It's just a matter of time.”
(On benefit of defensive line getting push) “That's great. We've got a lot of playmakers up front, and it makes a lot of guys' jobs easier. Yes, we are blessed to have those guys, and a lot more guys that are on our front really making a lot of plays for us.”
(On upcoming game at NC State) “Yes, it's quite a chance for us. It's a football game. We'll be ready for any time of the week, and it's just about us getting prepared for it. That's all.”
(On overcoming Thursday night issues like 2016's Houston game) “It's just getting more prepared than usual. You can never be too prepared for a game. That's something that we're working on right now.”
(On importance to school of playing a good game) “Everything going on around us right now is just a distraction and we're not focused on that. We're focused on each game we have to play for the rest of the year.”
(On rebounding from Clemson game) “It's always great to hold guys to minimum gains, and things like that, and most definitely, getting a win. We've most definitely been focused on preparing better since then—just working on being a dominant defense.”
Lamar Jackson, Jr., QB
(Lamar, can you take us through your performance today and how you felt?) “I felt good going into the game. I felt our coaches doing a great job game planning for the game and we was focused this week and executed.”
(Lamar, do you like connecting with Dez or is he just the receiver you see first?) “I like connecting with any of my receivers. Whoever can score the touchdown or whoever can get open and Dez just happens to always get open.”
(What do you think of Puma's (Jawon Pass) performance today?) “I keep telling y'all this; this summer, during camp. Puma is a great player. Pass is a great player. He can spin the ball. He's a smart quarterback. I love my guy. I'm always cheering for him. I know y'all see me. I cheer more than the cheerleaders.”
(When he's out on the field and you're watching him, do you give him feedback when he comes back and tell him what you saw?) “It depends. If I feel like he needs help with something but he's been good so far so I don't say anything to him; just let him play his game.”
(Do you have anymore secrets for us? Anything else we should be looking for?) “I got to keep them secret.”
(Lamar, first half you had as much as 350 yards of offense. Can you talk about the first half and you said, you were more prepared today? It seemed like it came easy.) “Our line did a great job. Our front 5 did a great job today. I don't think I got sacked at all. Our running backs ran the ball hard. Our receivers were getting open and we just executed. Our offense today did a great job overall and we got Standberry right here, he scored so.“
(Speaking of running backs, coach said last couple of games he's been trying to emphasize the run a little bit more on the offense. Just being behind the center, how do you see that progressing?) “ It's looking good. Our linemen are dropping people back. It's looking so far.”
(How tough was it going into this game with the stuff going on around campus) “It was tough. We just focused on us. We knew we had a game coming up Saturday and we needed it for our fans, for our community and the city of Louisville.”
(Do you feel the city is reeling a little bit?) “Yes, they tag us in posts and they just want to see our programs succeed. We just try to execute for them.
Charles Standberry, Sr., TE
(Charles, four catches including the touchdown he referred to. Do you feel like you're starting to get more and more involved in the passing game?) “Yeah, whatever play Coach calls for the tight end, if I'm in I know Lamar is trying to get me the ball. I'm trying my best to get open every time my number is called because I know Lamar is going to be looking for me to catch the ball.”
Jonathan Greenard, So., LB
(A couple more tackles for a loss today, you're getting up there in the national ranks, how do you keep yourself humble while you're starting to make a name for yourself?) “Really I try not to pay attention to that stuff, I mean it's just, when I get on the field I try to make the most tackles and most plays that I can to make the team better and get the ball in Lamar's hands. The stats? I see them, but I mean I don't give them too much thought; it's about football at the end of the day.”
(You guys only gave up 80 yards of total offense today, do you guys mention that when you get to the locker room afterwards?) “I mean, when stuff like that happens, that is what we're used to have happening, even from last year and years before with all the top defenses, so we just trying to get back to that, we got players to do that and all, at this point it's just about executing.”
(What is the recovery process like when you guys have a short week ahead, how do you guys kind of speed up the recovery with the amount of time that you have?) “It comes with it, you play what three games in 12 days, that is a tough thing to do but, just got to get back on the horse and keep going you know. Â That's the part that we signed up for. They are going to be working too and in the same situation as us. We just going to go out there and practice the same way we do, all of our pregame stuff we do each week.”
(What do performances like this against teams like Murray do for you guys in the forward for teams like the caliber of teams like NC State, it's the first marquee game since Clemson) “It's definitely a confidence builder, going against these guys I mean I don't want to take credit away from them too, seeing that stuff is getting ran right, executing is the main thing with these games. Â It's these type of games, these last two games that is mainly executing. We try to definitely just keep playing our game and don't change anything up and that's what were not going to do, were trying not going to change anything up for NC State either, so definitely a good confidence booster for us.”
(When you have the sacks and tackles for loss this year and improving form last year, what's going right, is it everything?) “Mainly just watching more film, I watched a lot of film last year, but this year I really watch a lot of film on everybody we play and who were going to play. It's mainly film and getting stronger and faster in the weight room and stuff like that, it helps out a lot and makes my job a lot easier.”
Murray State Head Coach Mitch Stewart:
Opening statement: “The biggest thing is we accomplished is what we set out to do, and that was to play this game with a lot of enthusiasm and high effort. We wanted to have a lot of fun and I thought the guys did that. We talked about keeping our eyes down and our chin up no matter what happened just playing the next play and trying to have fun doing it. We don't get very many opportunities to play in an atmosphere like this. Obviously, he (Lamar Jackson) is the best player in the country right now. We had an awful lot of fun doing it. I thought the defense played really, really well. I liked the physicality that we played, overall, I just thought we played with really, really good physicality, and just proud for the effort proud for the effort of my kids. I'm very proud to say that. It's quite understandable that we have some things to clean up, especially on the offensive side of the ball, but I thought it was a good step in the right direction leading into our conference play.
(About the takeaway from this game on offense and being able to build on that) “Yeah sure, shoot yeah. We knew coming into this thing that we wanted to get, well I actually I wanted to get Birse, Cam Birse, in there as well and that was kind of our plan. We didn't know that they were going to go on that last big drive that chewed up the majority of the quarter. But we were going to try to get Birse some reps in there too. But you know, saw some things tried to develop little bit of a quick game thought he did a nice job trying to get the ball out of his hands, we still got to rush the football, man, we got to find a way to rush the football and obviously that'll be a huge point of emphasis moving forward.”
(About blitzing 60% of the time, 80% of the time ) ”Yeah they were throwing it and we were going to try and blitz it, so they wouldn't stop throwing it so we kept on blitzing it. We couldn't, in a game like this you can't sit out there and play base you know what I mean, you'll get your brains kicked in, so we had to do somethings just to stop some third down have a chance to get them at fourth down and things like that but it was just survival of the fittest at that point.”
(About Lamar Jackson's all-purpose yards, and if players are stunned to watch him) Stewart: No, hell no, he's the best player in the country. I was stunned when I saw him warm up. He looks like a wide receiver, he runs around like a wide receiver. And he can spin it. I thought that I was what I was most proud about. I don't think anyone was shell-shocked. Even some of the freshman, Don Parker at safety, and some of those guys who were rolling out there against him, I don't think they were shell-shocked like they were in awe or anything like that. He is a good player, at one point during the game I turned to another coach and was 'boy, he's good, now.' That was our mentality going into it. We knew the guy was going to make plays, he makes plays against everybody, he makes plays against Clemson, we're no different. It's just trying to minimize those plays. When we had chances to get him down, we wanted to make sure we got him down. And I thought, for the most part, we did a good job at chasing him around.
(About thoughts on defense) Stewart: “Anytime you can come in an FBS game and score on defense that's pretty good. Obviously, that's what I told my defense. I know it was off a fumbled snap, obviously they don't have to know that, so we scored on defense and that's all that matters, and that's a huge takeaway for us. You always try to find the silver lining when you don't have a 100-yards in total offense. We had to give the ball up, so from a turnover standpoint, we won the turnover battle. We just got to get in a better rhythm, and run football a little bit better and keep the ball. You look at it our defense played 91 plays, when you go in and play 91 plays on an FBS opponent, there's a good chance you going to give up almost 700 yards. Offensively, we played 43 plays, you can't do that, we just couldn't covert 3rd downs, couldn't stay on the field offensively.”
(About being down 7-3 force them 3 and out and then a fumbled punt sucking any of the air out of the offense) Stewart: “No, we didn't let it. It was a bad play. It was. It was. Quite the contrary, we just tried to go there and pick L.J. (Gainey) up, make sure he knew we were going to come back with him, that we were going to put him back out there again. We let him return another and hopefully he'll make a big play. We just kind of played the next play.”
Zachary Wade, LB
(What was it like chasing someone like Lamar Jackson and his teammates down?) “It was a lot of fun. That is the first word I would use to describe it. I was very proud of the defense. We flew around, their coaches even said that we were very physical. I definitely know they felt us out there. Obviously, they are a very good offense. They are ranked No. 17 in the nation for a reason, but it was a lot of fun putting hits on them. I was very proud of the defense and how we flew around. I felt like we put on a good performance today.
(What do you guys take away from a game like this?) “Like I said earlier, in this game I feel like you either win or you learn. I feel like we learned a lot from this game. One (thing we learned), that we can play with anybody. We could go toe-to-toe with anybody. We are very confident in our defense, without a doubt. Not only defensive players, but I'm speaking mostly for the defense, but I feel like we could go toe-to-toe with anybody. So, I am very confident and encouraged going forward.
(How was the atmosphere?) “Yeah, it was a lot of fun. Last year, going to Illinois and playing on a big stage, that was my first collegiate game so I was kind of having an out-of-body experience. But, this game I really soaked it in. I was really in the moment. I had a blast. It was a lot of fun. It's the fifth game of the year, you kind of get to that mid-season form as a player, your legs are underneath you and you get to fly around. I love the environment and had a lot of fun. I am very proud of our defense flying around, just very proud.”
(Twenty years from now, what will you guys remember about playing against the Heisman Trophy winner. What will you tell your family and your kids about?) “To be honest, even though I got a flag for it, that I got a good hit on him. I'll probably leave out the part that I got a flag on it, but I wanted to set the tone early with him being the Heisman Trophy winner and everything like that. It was close call, but I know they are trying to be safe and protect the quarterback and things like that. I'm just very proud of the defense flying around. We did not back down, we went toe-to-toe, and I feel like we were physical. That's probably a good story to tell in the future, that as a defense we flew around and had a lot of fun.
(On Johnson's fumble return touchdown) ”It is funny because I went over to celebrate with him and he acted like it was just another day for him. I was like man J.J., but that's J.J. though. He stays balanced and doesn't get too hyped. He just stays balanced, like it's another day in the park for him. I was hyped, that's for sure.”
(The first half you guys almost got home on Lamar, I say almost because he turned both of those plays into 30-yard rushes. Is that a defense that you guys bring in to next week?) “Yeah, we put in a new package today and that was actually one of those plays that was actually me almost coming home. He slipped out of my grip. But, we put in a new package that I feel like we like as a group. I think that will continue to get better next week. You have to give Lamar credit. He's a slippery dude. I thought I gripped him and he got out of it, so props to him. But, no I think that going on, we definitely like that package”
(Was it more difficult than expected to bring down Lamar?) “No, I mean when you go out on the field, all that Lamar Jackson, Heisman Trophy talk, you kind of have to have tunnel vision. When playing it's not like, 'oh my gosh this is Lamar Jackson, it's like this is quarterback X'. That's who he is. Obviously, he made some great plays and when you sit back and reflect, it's like great kudos to him, but out there and stuff it's just another quarterback running around. At the end of the day, he's human, we are human, we both play this game. Obviously, he's a Heisman Trophy winner, so he does it on a high level, but when you're out there, it's just a quarterback.”
Jason Johnson, CB
(You guys were able to get some turnovers and some touchdowns, starting in the second half.) “We came out strong. Like coach said, 'come out with less turnovers, and whoever is going to make less turnovers is who is going to win the game'. Together as a defense I think we played great. We came out with two fumbles and everybody was flying around and playing as a team.”
(Today was not a shock to you?) “Exactly what he (Wade) said. We are not going to back down from anybody. We are looking forward to next week and are looking to get better.”
(Twenty years from now, what will you guys remember about playing against the Heisman Trophy winner. What will you tell your family and your kids about?) “Coming out the second half, picking up that fumble and taking it to the house.”
(At Papa John's Stadium?) “Yup, at Papa John's Stadium.”
