Cards Talk ACC Championship

Louisville Football ACC Championship Preview
November 28, 2023
T.J. Quinn and Bryan Hudson

(On being named the outstanding blocker)
Bryan Hudson: I was really surprised. It's a great honor especially since that award is voted on by the coaches and the defensive coordinators in the conference. Once, I learned that, I was very humbled to receive it for sure.

(What does this game mean for you guys?)
T.J. Quinn: It's good to be back in the building. We mentioned the other day that there are only 10 teams playing this week. So that's always a blessing to be one of the teams to be able to compete for a championship.

Bryan Hudson: Competing for a championship is always the goal at the beginning of the season. So to have gotten to this point is definitely a blessing and encouraging for all of us. We're excited to be practicing still and getting ready for the game.

(On Florida State overall this season)
T.J. Quinn: I've watched them earlier in the season because they might have been playing the team that we were getting ready to play. I definitely watched them when they played Florida and I watched them on Sunday and then yesterday just trying to study up on them.
Bryan Hudson: Yeah, I've tried to watch all ACC teams on Saturdays and the weekends but I definitely have been watching them throughout the season and especially this week, obviously in preparing for this game. Obviously, they're a great team and they have a lot of really good athletes, so it will be a big challenge for us.

(On last year's game against FSU and Tate Rodemaker)
T.J. Quinn: When we played them last year it was kind of the same situation. Their quarterback got hurt and then he (Rodemaker) came in and he did some things against us. This is a new year so he had another year to get some more experience behind the starting quarterback. I believe that his team trusts him. So going into this game, we can't look at it as the fact that they have their backup quarterback in. We have to take full advantage of every opportunity we get.

(On FSU's defensive front)
Bryan Hudson: They've got a really good defensive front, obviously with some very talented pass rushers. They've got a couple of defensive tackles inside that are really good pass rushers themselves and really good against the run also. So I think it'll be a really big challenge for us. I think we're pretty good on our side of the ball too, so I'm excited to see how we can do against them.

(On how gratifying the recognition is for the offensive line)
Bryan Hudson: I'm incredibly grateful for it. Like you said, a lot of work has gone into it. I'm incredibly humbled to receive the award. It's a big honor. I was talking to my wife yesterday about it and I'd like to say it's an award for not only me, but the entire offensive line. Just in the amount of work that we've put in and the whole unit and the bond that we have is pretty something very special. So I'm just very humbled and blessed to be a part of that.

(What does it mean to be a part of such a successful winning team?)
T.J. Quinn: I think when they first came in, they laid out the expectations for us. And we understood that how we used to do things – it wasn't going to be the same. Then when Coach Brohm came in, we knew that the city was going to back us even more. Just from day one, they always preached to us that we must have that championship mentality. And at the same time, it's a one game season. So we just took it game by game and we kept winning. So that helps and that's how we ended up where we are now – to be able to compete for that championship.

Bryan Hudson: It means everything to us to be able to get to this point. Coach Brohm and the staff has done a great job this season. I think we knew the potential we had but they did a great job of taking us week to week and just continuing to improve us as a team all throughout the year. It means everything for us to get to this point.

(On Bryan Hudson's personal life accomplishments)
Bryan Hudson: It's been pretty emotional. With me getting married and things in my personal life kind of progressing, that's been a huge blessing. Obviously, she's been a big part of my life and to be able to start that has been huge for me. Also with it being my last year in college football, I'm just insanely blessed and thankful to be a part of this team, with this special group of coaches and with players like TJ and everybody we have in that locker room. It's just been incredible. I couldn't have asked for a better senior year.

(On the two losses and the disappointment for the offensive unit)
Bryan Hudson: That's obviously a big focus for us every week as an offense, we can't turn the ball over. We're not going to win games like that, obviously. It is really disappointing for us, especially for those two losses because a lot of it was mistakes that we made and we're just self-imposed as an offense. So it's just something that we have to continue to work on and the coaches and even the players have really focused on week in and week out to be able to correct that and not let it happen again.

(On being the first Louisville football team to possibly win the ACC Championship)
T.J. Quinn: Yeah, it drives us. To be that first team, that's something that nobody can ever take from you – being the first team to win a championship. Just with everything we've been through this season, to just see the reward that we can possibly get. Going into this week, we just can't let the pressure get to us. We just must go out and execute.

Bryan Hudson: Obviously like you said, this program has already accomplished a lot of things but to be the first, it drives us this week. It's something that we definitely don't take for granted. But, kind of like TJ said, we are approaching this week just like we have every other week and taking the same process that we did to get here. We didn't make it all this way just to get to the game. We want to go win it and that's what we're getting ready to do.

(On the defense during the Kentucky game and how to improve)
T.J. Quinn: I think that the necessary steps that we have to take is just executing. In previous games, we'd have plenty of opportunities to make plays and when the plays come our way, we just got to make them. I believe if you watched the film as we watched it, there were certain instances that we were there. We just got to finish it. So that's the main thing, trying to correct those little mistakes and just honing in on the details because if we execute the details, we'll be fine and we'd be able to get back to where we were as a defense.

(On Bryan's leadership and the example he sets for the team)
T.J. Quinn: There are a lot of people on the team that look up to Bryan. And I see how he leads the team and I try to take that to help me become a better leader because that's one thing that the coaches want – for me to be a better leader and be more vocal. By just watching him and just being here with him. I think we got here around the same time after he transferred in so I've seen him be able to grow and be a leader.

(On how much the coaches take responsibility and show that they care)
T.J. Quinn: It just shows you that they care and they don't want us to be too down on ourselves because if you get too down on yourself, you might not be able to bounce back. If you have a coach that always just blame things on the players, you're not going to feel confident anymore. So just by them taking that responsibility and us as players taking some of the other responsibilities because we are the ones out there playing. It means a lot for them to take responsibility, but we know that coaches and players got to do better going forward.

(On feeling like having something to prove)
T.J. Quinn: I feel like you always have something to prove, no matter what it is. We obviously want to win. We want to win every game but just going from last game and just moving forward, we want to show that we've gotten better from last week. And when we go on the field on Saturday, we want to show that.

Bryan Hudson: As a competitor, you always want to win every rep and we've got a lot of dudes in that locker room and on the coaching staff where all we want to do is win. So when we don't do that and we fall short, you know that stays with us. Like Coach talks about all the time, we have to work to move on from that but that drive and competitive edge is always with us. That's what drives us.

(On how Coach Brohm reacted to the loss)
Bryan Hudson: I think the biggest thing that you see with Coach Brohm, and it trickles down to the whole staff, is that he just cares a lot about this program and about each player in the locker room. To go back to what TJ said, it shows with a loss how he takes a lot of the blame on himself and the coaching staff, but that just shows that he cares and he wants us all to play confident every day and just prepare to go out and put our best foot forward. But at the end of the day, it also falls on players too, because no matter what play is called on offense, defense, or special teams, we're the ones out there and we have to go out there and make the play. It shows through the wins and losses just how much he cares about this program and each player.

(On FSU's running backs and stopping the run game)
T.J. Quinn: They have two running backs – No. 3 (Trey Benson) and No. 9 (Lawrence Toafili). They do a good job of finding open holes and open gaps. Their offensive line opens up lanes for them. This week, we just have to stay in our fits and stay in our gaps and get a knock down.

University of Louisville Athletics

Related News

Players Mentioned

Bryan Hudson

Related Videos