.png&width=42&height=42&type=webp)
University of Minnesota Athletics
Coach Mason Previews the Border Battle Against Wisconsin
10/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Comments from Head Coach Glen Mason during his weekly press conference.
Opening statement:
“This week we have the Wisconsin Badgers and are obviously playing for the Axe. It’s the longest rivalry in college football. I’ve been fortunate to be involved in a lot of those rivalries which I think are something special. College football is always great but a rivalries add just a little more to it. I always look forward to these games.”
On Wisconsin’s offense:
“Wisconsin has an excellent football team and they are 5-1. For those who haven’t seen them play, they have a typical Wisconsin-type offense. They have an awfully big offensive line and a big running back. He’s in the 260-pound area and is kind of a Ron Dayne-type of guy. Their quarterback is playing really well and they have skilled receivers and that’s why they’re good on offense.”
On Wisconsin’s defense and special teams:
“They are playing very good defense. They’re athletic, they’re tough, they play extremely hard and they’re well-coached. In the kicking game, Wisconsin is always good and this year is no different. We’re looking forward to the game at Camp Randall.”
On Minnesota’s health status:
“On a health note, we’re a pretty healthy football team. We’re banged up like anybody else in the Big Ten Conference, but we’ll be healthy by Saturday.”
On Logan Payne emerging as a top receiver:
“He really started coming into his own last year. He’s always had the potential to be the type of player he is right now but it takes experience and it takes some maturity. That’s what you hope happens in everybody’s career is that they start out pretty good and continue to get better and really finish on a high note. That really seems to be the direction he’s going.”
On playing at Camp Randall Stadium:
“It’s a tough place to play. I’ve always thought it was a very colorful place to play and the crowd is always into it. It’s one of those places, except for a brief period when they were really down in the early ‘80s. But even when they weren’t winning and weren’t going to bowl games, they had a full house and the fans were into it and were colorful. I played there a couple of times and coached there when I was at Ohio State. When the game was over and you beat them pretty good, when you left the locker room to go to the bus the stadium was still full.
“It’s one of those places that you hear about when we talk so much about the college experience. It’s more than just the game. And when put good football teams out on the field, it makes it a really tough place to play. With their renovation, it’s money well spent. I think they’re 14-1 since they renovated that stadium. I assume that’s one of the reasons they renovated it was to make it more of a home-field advantage and they’ve accomplished that. It’s a tough place to play.”
On bouncing back after the tough loss Penn State:
“There’s no special remedy. They have to realize that what happens one week, they have to let it go. There are 12 chapters to this book and you have to read them all, so you move on.”
