Papajohns.com Bowl Post Game Quotes
12/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 22, 2007
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Opening Remarks
"I want to first say I'm really proud of the players and the effort they gave. I thought we played extremely hard in the ballgame and we obviously didn't make enough plays to win the game. But it wasn't because of the lack of effort. That's what a coach wants to see. We couldn't tackle the quarterback, I though we should have had 10 to 12 sacks in the game, but he made plays. Offensively I thought we got the running game going pretty good but it all goes back to us not being able to make plays in the passing game. I really wish we could have gotten that onside kick. I think if we got that we get really good momentum. Give them a lot of credit, they are a really good football."
On walking off the field:
"I was fine, I'm just proud of our guys. My daughter was there with me which was neat. Maybe a little emotional when I talked to the players in there."
On when everything hit him:
"Probably when I knew we didn't have a chance to win."
On whether everything has sunk in:
"How long has it been? Like three weeks - yeah it's sunk in. I cleaned my office out and turned my car in. That was kind of the finishing touch - when I walked out of that office on Wednesday to get on the bus."
On what accomplishments he's most proud of accomplishing at Southern Miss:
"I think our program on the field has been consistently good. You guys know I'm not a big ego guy but I'm a proud of winning four championships and having 14 straight wining seasons and being to 10 bowl game sin the last 11 years. I'm most proud of what we have done in the classroom - our graduation rate. I think we've done a pretty darn good job."
On not coaching anymore:
"It's going to be real strange. My wife is over there and she probably has some stuff on the agenda for me. I know they can't accuse me of playing too much golf now."
On one thing that he would call his fondest memory:
"I've been asked that and the one thing that sticks out to me is the '97 Liberty Bowl. That capped a really good season and may have been the best team we've had and I lost my daughter in a car accident that year and I'll never forget that."
On the performance of running back Damion Fletcher:
"He was real good. I honestly didn't think we'd be able to run the ball that effectively but we did. That's him, he's a football player, he makes plays."
"My hat goes off to Jeff Bower and Southern Miss. I think it was pretty clear today if you watched Southern Miss play, those kids played hard for Jeff today. They gave it everything they had, gave us a lot of problems. They were very aggressive defensively. They were pretty good balancing it out offensively. As far as Cincinnati goes, offensively...Ben Mauk is what makes it go for us. He was difficult to defend and made plays...If there was one guy that made a difference today and is the heartbeat of our football team it was Ben Mauk."
On Ben Mauk's performance
"He's been that way all year. We'd like to say that we should block better up front, but sometimes it's better if we just let you flush him and run around. I know its probably not the prettiest thing to look at, but he's an exciting player."
On Cincinnati's seniors
"It started with this group of seniors helping us win 11 games in 2007. We played in January and won a bowl game. Our seniors really lead the way for us to this football game today. Our seniors really changed the perception of the Cincinnati football program."
On speaking with Jeff Bower
"I first wanted him to know from my perception...you could see how much those kids loved him. And how they played and rallied around him today. They played with a lot of energy and passion that you normally don't see in a ball game. There was a lot of energy out there and you could feel it on the sidelines. I wanted him to know that from me."
Sophomore running back Damion Fletcher
On his performance:
"In the end, I didn't think it was a great day for me because we didn't come out with a win."
On his overall season:
"I owe a lot of credit to my offensive line and offense, they have done a great job blocking for me, but it's a team effort and they have done a lot for me, especially the seniors."
On a third down pass interference call:
"I was just thinking it was a bad call and sometimes refs make bad calls but so do players and we just have to move on. It wasn't a game changing play, but it's football, stuff happens."
On talking with the Eagles new head coach and what has been said:
"He has talked to us a little bit and told us that we are going to run the spread. I'm excited to see new things and run new plays and it's going to be a whole new experience and see what he brings to program."
Senior quarterback Jeremy Young
On how it felt ending their season with a loss:
"This was a tough way to go out. We didn't want to end on this kind of note and wanted to go out with a victory and that's what we tried to do. And we just ended up on the wrong end of the stick this time and it's a tough way to go out, but it's time for us to move on to bigger and better things."
Senior defensive lineman Martavius Prince
On the emotion over the last few weeks:
"It's been the most difficult season I've been at Southern Miss. But we move on. As a group of seniors and as a team we had great unity and came out. We may have lost a couple of games but every game we played we can say that we fought to the end. It was more of a disappointment because we set our sights high and we wanted to win a championship."
"It really didn't. We missed a couple of tackles and we missed a couple of sacks that we had back there and he a couple of good plays and he got away back there and made some good plays. Like Brandon said it's life and not everyone is perfect. But I'm mostly proud of our team and even though the pass interference we still fought and held them to a field goal and gave the offense a chance to come out and put some points on the board."
Senior defensive back Brandon Sumrall
On how it felt knowing this was coach Bower's last game:
"It's really tough. It's a killer. But you live and you move on. Coach Bower is a strong man and we have a strong team, and I think we're going to be alright."
"He called a push-off on me and I didn't touch if anything he pushed me."
Senior defensive end Matthew Chatelain
On going after Cincinnati's quarterback:
"He's quick, a good athlete and made some plays. You have to give him credit because he's a good athlete and made some play and moves well. He's not all that strong but he moves his feet well."
On what was said in the locker room after the game:
"Nothing was really said. It was just really upsetting because we're not losing coach Bower we are losing all the assistants. They are good coaches they really are. If you take our season as a whole and look back at our season, big plays happen, penalties happen, but throughout they were six or seven plays that could have changed it. We could easily be 10-2 and if you take those big plays back and playing in the Liberty Bowl."
On giving up crucial plays:
"It's not all third downs, it was turnovers, dropped balls and penalties that keep the drive going. Last year, because the way things fall during the season, we had six turnovers that we scored touchdowns on. This year we had one. That's a big difference and it's nothing against our players, but that's just how the season goes."
#9 QB Ben Mauk
On the change in his performance after the second interception:
"I think at the start of the game... I could stay in the pocket and make throws. Then they were bringing a lot more, at least one or two guys we couldn't block, so then I had to start using my feet...Its harder to cover a receiver for three to four seconds more, when you got to cover them for five to seven seconds. Its really tough. Some guys came free and made plays."
On Southern Miss's defense:
"Southern Mississippi has a great track record for having good defenses. We knew our defense was going to hold their own. We just had to put points on the board."
On knowing he was going to throw 50+ times in the game:
"It gets me really excited. It's like what I did in high school. Something I've been used to doing. Before the game he told me it could be we throw for 50 to 60 passes. I said I'm ready for it. I was really excitied when he told me that."
#6 CB DeAngelo Smith
On the defense's three interceptions:
"The defensive line stepped up and put pressure on the quarterback. I just did my end by catching the ball and staying in bounds... I think it had a big change to the game because it brought momentum to us and the offense converted on the turnover."
#12 DE Anthony Hoke
On setting the single season sack record at Cincinnati
"That means a lot to me. Because when I came into the program I wanted to fill the shoes of Trent Cole, Antwan Peek...That was one of my goals and I think I was able to do that."
On Southern Miss' Damion Fletcher
"It was a team effort. He's a good running back. He was kind of hard to bring down. But like I said it was a team effort and we got it done."