Oregon State-Arizona State Post-Game Quotes
October 02, 2010 | Football
Oct. 2, 2010
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Oregon State vs. Arizona State
Oct. 2, 2010
Reser Stadium
Oregon State Post-Game Quotes
Head Coach Mike Riley
On the win…
“You saw a lot of great preparation by the coaches and a lot of hard play. We talked about it last night: we're going to play 60 minutes, don't look up, play like crazy. We had a whole bunch of guys contribute, which I'm really proud of because these guys know that in the blink of an eye they go in the game and they have to be prepared and everybody's counting on them. It was a good team victory.”
On James Dockery's performance …
“James is an absolute football junkie, gym-rat, whatever you want to call it. He just loves this and he is so much fun to be around, his personality and his love for this sport, this team, it's almost unmatched. He brings it all day. He's made himself into the player he is, and he's a tremendous competitor, he does not like to lose, so he battles like crazy and he has made two plays to end games, and that's an awesome stat. I thought his interception early in the game played a big role in this game too.”
On the team stepping up in James Rodgers' absence…
“I think that's another part of a football team that has to be real. Everybody talks about this all the time, but it is a matter of fact that everybody has to do that much more when somebody – there's a lot of yards missing when James Rodgers doesn't play - there's a lot of yards not out there when No. 8's not there. But I thought that [Jordan] Poyer and [Markus] Wheaton had big days returning, I thought that the reverse that Bruce Read put together was a major play in the game; a big, big score before halftime. And then of course, Aaron Nichols steps in, and he has always done this. He's always been ready, goes in and makes a play and makes that big catch today, and then he's out the whole second half. He's out – I don't know if all of you realize that – because of the same kind of thing that James [Rodgers] went through, and so he didn't play, and we had quite a few different guys playing in the game. Geno Munoz went into the game, because Markus was out, at one point, and made a big catch. I'm really proud of that. That's what we need. You need depth of players that make plays and aren't afraid. They've got to go in there unafraid to make a big play.”
On Jacquizz Rodgers' run at the start of the fourth quarter…
“He did get faster this year, and that was a great run, and we actually had a real good look. We actually put that play in at halftime. It was one that we looked at, thought that we needed this play, a play like this in the second half, so the coaches talked and put this thing together, and we ran it and it turned out okay.”
On preparing to take on Arizona…
“I think it's a good win. I think players can learn lessons from previous teams about how they did. I think it's important that they learn lessons about how a team goes and what you can accomplish even if it doesn't start real well. What we always remind them and what we always know is that there are no guarantees regarding that. You have to prove it all the time - that's just the way it is. You have to go out there and prove it, but I'm really excited about getting back to work on Tuesday with our team. I think that they'll be excited about this win and they'll use it well, and they'll get ready to compete. That's' what I really like, because I think everybody felt those doubts about our football team after TCU and then the close game in Louisville, and then Boise State. There's no way a player can't get that feeling or sense, so I was really proud about how they competed today and didn't let anything bother them, and they just played like crazy. They had to play as a team because they were missing some key people, so it was a great win.”
Linebacker Keith Pankey
On the pressure on ASU's quarterback (Steven Threet) …
“We went out there with the mind set of 'we need to get to this guy.' Any quarterback, if you get in their face, it's hard for them to do things. Our defensive line played their hearts out today. We got pressure on the quarterback; we hit him even when he threw the ball, and when you keep doing those body punches they add up. It rattles you and it gets you wary of the defense. I give all our credit to our defensive line, coach calling the right stunts, and we got to him (Steven Threet) and I think that really affected the game.”
On the defense's redemption and how it will affect their confidence…
“I think it's really great for our confidence but at the same time I think got a lot to learn. We have a lot of things to take away from this game. I think everyone's happy with the way we played; the front seven got pressure on the ball, we did a good job covering up underneath and secondary did a good job too. James Dockery; two picks, Lance Mitchell got a pick, and those are huge. We're going to take what we can from this game, positive and negative, and let it grow. We're 1-0 in the Pac-10 right now, which is huge. We won against a really good team, they came in here tough and we fought and clawed to win this game. It's great to win this game, we're happy about it, but there's always a way to get better.”
On the significance of the win…
“It's huge. Our confidence is going to be better, to get that win at home. We're 2-0 at home right now, which is a good thing especially going into the Pac-10 1-0; it's huge. This is a really good football team, they hung in the punch for punch with Oregon last week and that's no slouch. It's going to help up grow right now, and we're going to learn from what we did, but as far as confidence, I think it's huge. I think especially for the defensive line, getting that pressure on the quarterback, it's going to open people's eyes. If you let us, we're going to get to you. Stephen Paea and those guys worked their butts off all game, and I give credit to them. You hold on to the ball against our defense, especially our defensive line, you're going to get hit. I don't care if you get the ball off or not; you're going to take a beating. That's going to start to wear on people, they're going to understand that you can't just stay in the pocket anymore.”
Quarterback Ryan Katz
On the Beavers' passing game …
“I think we're just getting more comfortable. I think the receivers are seeing the open lanes and the line's giving me time to throw the ball. We've corrected a lot of things since the TCU game. I think we're just scratching the surface.”
On James Rodgers not playing …
“We definitely want James out there. He's a big part of our offense and a big part of our team, so it was definitely a blow not to have him out there, but I think a lot of guys rallied behind that. Darrell (Catchings) stepped up and Aaron (Nichols) stepped up in his spot and Geno (Munoz) made the first catch of his career today, so I think a lot of guys just really rallied behind that and had to step up.”
On things that he changed to improve his game this week …
“I think just watching more film this week, we watched their defense. I just tried to be conscious of what I needed to work on for the past two games and learning.”
Defensive Tackle Stephen Paea
On the secondary …
“They were big for us. I give all the credit to our secondary. They made the quarterback hold on to the ball a little longer and helped us get to him.”
On the first conference win …
“It was very important for us. Arizona State came in and played hard and we managed to win the game. It has to be one game at a time.”
On Arizona State's Quarterback …
“He's a tough quarterback to bring down, I had to hold on to him for almost four seconds for the team to get to him.”
Wide Receiver Aaron Nichols
On the Arizona State defense …
“We had a great game plan coming into the game. Arizona State runs pretty much the same defense as we do, so we were prepared for what they had to show us. We played tough and came out on top at the end.”
On Quarterback Ryan Katz …
“Ryan played a great game. I thought he really showed what his potential is as the starting quarterback for the Beavers.”
On James Rodgers' absence …
“James was there as an emotional leader. He just got us fired up and wanted us to come out at the start of the game with a bang.”
On the team effort …
“We had a lot of people step up today. Geno (Munoz) stepped up, Darrell (Catchings) stepped up. A lot of people you guys might not be familiar stepped up and made a name for themselves so I was really proud of the group.”
Running Back Jacquizz Rodgers
On the run where two guys were going to run you down …
“Well there was a guy coming from the right side of the field, so I hesitated on the run so Markus Wheaton could pick up the block to secure the touchdown.”
On James Rodgers …
“The win was for the team. Oregon State football has not won a Pac-10 opener in a long time.”
On a pep talk from James Rodgers …
“He was down in the beginning of the morning, but he knew that it was his responsibility to get the receivers going. Also, by coaching and just being supportive from the sidelines.”
On the 4-yard touchdown …
“I was just trying to make something out of nothing. Getting the touchdown for my team was my main goal, which I made happen.”
On the win …
“The win just makes everyone feel happy, especially with the atmosphere around here. Players and coaches, you feel better at practice too. We need to build from this, work, and fix the things that we need to work on for next week's game.”
Arizona State Post-Game Quotes
Head Coach Dennis Erickson
On missed opportunities for Arizona State …
“It's getting old. It really is. I'm real concerned and the thing (schedule) doesn't get any easier. We go to Washington and we go to Cal so our schedule is very difficult. Right now your head is down and you're disappointed. We have to go back to work tomorrow and see what we did and there's nothing else you can do. Our guys are resilient. They'll come back. But we have to see what we are doing. We have to play better.”
On Arizona State's defense …
“I thought defensively we didn't play very well. We didn't tackle very good. Quizz is a great player, there's no question about that. But we didn't tackle very well and we didn't get pressure on Katz very much. They ran the football successfully, their offensive front played good and they ate up the clock.”
On Arizona State's offense …
“Offensively, we did some decent things. But we got ourselves in some down and distance situations that were very difficult and they were able to pin their ears back and pass rush us pretty good. We were fortunate to block that punt and had a chance. We are moving the football, but we aren't moving it with enough consistency when we get down in the red zone.”
On Oregon State running back Jacquizz Rodgers …
“He's a great player. It's scary. It seems like he's been there 25 years. He makes me feel like I've been here 25 years. He's just so hard to tackle. He's so strong in his lower body and he breaks tackles. The run he made (in the 4th quarter) was an unbelievable run. You have to give him credit. But he's a very, very good player.”
On Oregon State's passing game …
“We had some breakdowns, but they did some different things as far as depth of routes that caused some problems in the first half and then we made an adjustment. But they had a very good plan coming in. I knew they were a good offensive team, but it kind of surprised me how well they moved the ball on us.”
On Oregon State defensive lineman Stephen Paea …
“Paea, No. 54, I mean that guy is a good player. We had trouble handling him. He got in and put a lot of pressure in the middle of the pocket, which we haven't had. They play their ends so wide, you have to step up, and he created some problems for us.”
On the final pass interference penalty that was changed …
“That guy changed his mind. That's what they told me. I said 'how come?' They said it was a good play by the guy. Who am I to argue with the officials?”
Free Safety Mike Callaghan
On where the team is mentally…
“Losing is always hard. It's never fun. But I guess we just have to take the positives from what we can and try to make next week's game a lot better and try and put this one behind us.”
On how this team seems better than last year's team…
“I feel this year is a lot better than the last two years I've played. The team is more of a family, I think. I don't know we just can't get over the hump right now.”
On how the locker room is feeling right now…
“It's down. No one is happy about a loss but you just have to keep on fighting.”
Wide Receiver Gerell Robinson
On the rest of the season and bowl game possibilities…
“If you think about it the things that we need to fix are internal so we aren't worried about anyone else, we just have to make sure we fix what we have to fix. I'd much rather be in that situation than having to worry about who we're playing against. We're basically playing against ourselves in a sense.”
Quarterback Steven Threet
On this being their third loss…
“Disappointed, we feel like we're a better team than we've shown the past three weeks.”
On the turn in the game…
“They did a great job stopping us. We didn't capitalize on the opportunity.”
On Oregon State…
“The did a good job of the game plan against us and they played hard.”
Running back Cameron Marshall
On how Arizona State is going to respond to three tough losses in a row …
“No, not concerned at all. We've got all the talent in the world. We just got to figure out finish teams and put them away.”
On how you go about fixing the problems …
“I think everything starts with practice, then we work our way into the game. Just staying focused. I don't know what to say right now. We've really got to go and revaluate our team and figure out what we want to do for the rest of the season.”
On attention to detail …
“Our players come out focused and practice hard all week. We just have to figure out what those little things are and eliminate them.”
