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University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota-Indiana Quotes
10/4/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Minnesota Postgame Quotes
Minnesota Head Coach Tim Brewster
On the win over Indiana
“I’m pretty washed out after this win. It was really a hard, tough, hard-fought victory today for the Gophers. I’m just very proud of the character our team showed today over the course of 60 minutes. How bout that Golden Gopher defense? Just an amazing display of defense by our kids today.”
On the Gophers’ success defending Kellen Lewis and Marcus Thigpen
“It was such a collective effort by our guys. I do think our defensive staff put together a great plan. Our kids just believe that they’re going to be able to go out, execute and be successful. For us, that was a challenge against an explosive offensive football team in Indiana. I just couldn’t be more proud of the way the defense played today.”
On preparing for Indiana’s complex offensive schemes
“We did a great job having a plan. We knew how we were going to practice and how we were going to prepare. Our preparation was just outstanding. You guys know that the key to winning on Saturday is your preparation on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Our kids just understand how to prepare.”
On the Gophers’ final drive of the game and the play of the Minnesota offense
“We really challenged our guys to really compete there towards the end of the game and to finish the game. We just didn’t play well on offense, we were just missed some consistency and we weren’t able to finish some drives. We did not do a good job of protecting Adam Weber today, and we’ve got some protection issues. I just can’t say enough about the resilience of our team.”
On the play of Lee Campbell and Willie VanDeSteeg
“They really [stepped up]. This was our seniors’ game. We dedicated this game to our seniors. Willie right now is playing at an extremely high level. His intensity and emotion on every snap is outstanding. His leadership on the field is very important to us. Lee Campbell has made that move to the mike linebacker and he’s running around, having fun, being inspirational. The guys understand that it takes 11 guys swarming to the football, attacking the ball, causing turnovers. We did all these things today.”
On Ryan Collado
“I’m so proud of Ryan for how he’s learned and how he’s responded. He really has a stand-up mentality. We know we’re going to have injuries and they understand that one guy’s misfortune is another guy’s opportunity. Ryan had a chance to get in the game and I thought he did some good things. I thought we had a lot of guys who responded well.”
On Minnesota injuries and Eric Decker
“I’m not sure about where we’re at with a lot of those things. I’m not sure if we’ll lose Marcus Sherels for any length of time, but I think we’re going to be fine. Eric Decker came back after he got hurt Eric Decker: 13 catches for 190 yards. What a phenomenal experience by him.”
Minnesota Player Quotes
Senior DE Willie VanDeSteeg
On the defense stepping up
“We played good defense all the way around. Everyone played fundamental defense. We attacked the ball and attacked the line of scrimmage. We knew that they had some big playmakers and we had to stop their playmakers. They are a pretty good offense. When they make plays, they put up big numbers. We had to stop Kellen Lewis. He is a great player. I think we did a great job today but we have to give them a lot of credit also, they are a good football team.”
On his performance
“We had it schemed up a little bit on how they ran their offense and tendencies so they stuck me and Garrett Brown on one side and kind of made it a play for us two. We just played good defense all the way around. We needed everybody, all 11 guys were doing their job and it just helped us out to freeze a guy up, we can make a hit and that is what we are doing, we are playing good defense.”
On the first Big Ten win
“It feels good to get back in the swing of things. Indiana is a great team; we have to give them a lot of credit. They came in here and they are a good team. The game went all the way until the end; we had to play sixty minutes with them. It was a lot of fun and you know winning a Big Ten game under Brewster with his first Big Ten victory and that means a lot to us.”
Sophomore QB Adam Weber
On his first Big Ten win as a starting quarterback
“My first word would be awesome. We wanted it so bad last year and to come away with a couple of more wins after we couldn’t do it [last year] so this year it is amazing how many time we almost gave the game away with picks and fumbles and thankfully our defense came to play today. The defense played the best they have ever played before. It is great to have a full team effort like that with the defense holding their own and allowing us to make a few plays and obviously Joel Monroe made a couple of nice kicks and we won the game.”
On he and teammate Eric Decker taking hits during the game
“It’s a football game, you are going to get banged up and they are trying to hurt you out there. It is going to happen once in a while. You try to protect yourself but obviously, you are going to put yourself in harms way. Eric is a tough guy and a leader. It was great to see him come back after an injury like that. I think it shows the mentality of the team. You only have so many games and none of them are promised so we have to keep on fighting.”
Freshman CB Troy Stoudermire
On playing offense today
“The coaches gave me a chance to play today and I think I did well. I work on my speed every day and I think it helped today. The Indiana defense was very tough and they were flying around everywhere. Whenever I got the ball on offense, I didn’t know where I could go with it.”
On the team’s performance
“I really have to commend our defense today, they won it for us. The offense struggled a little bit, but they came up big at the end of the game. It was an important win today because it’s our first Big Ten win.”
Junior WR Eric Decker
On the big hit he took during fourth quarter
“I’m not sure if I was hit with a knee or shoulder, but it definitely left me a little dizzy. I got to shake it off on the sideline and get back in the game. I still have a headache right now, but I’m going to be fine.”
On the Indiana defense
“They had a pretty good defense. They played well. They put a lot of pressure on Adam (Weber) and he did a good job of getting out of the pocket and making some plays downfield. When we watch film from the game, we are going to learn a lot about ourselves. We left a lot of yards on the field, but give Indiana’s defense credit.”
On this year’s record compared to last year’s
“We are 5-1 this year and it feels great. We are going to keep going from here and build off this.”
Junior MLB Lee Campbell
On the defense’s performance
“We came into today knowing that Indiana’s rush offense is rated second in the Big Ten, averaging 240 yards on the ground, and we held them to 49 yards rushing. We’re real proud.”
On forcing turnovers today
“It’s huge. The coaches always emphasize turnovers and taking the ball away every day in practice. We put ourselves into position to make plays and we came up big today.”
Indiana Head Coach Bill Lynch
Opening Statement
“That was a tough loss. I thought our defense really played hard, and played well against a good offensive football team to give us a chance. Unfortunately, we didn’t do enough on the offensive side of the ball to score the points we needed. But they (Minnesota) executed their game plan well, in that you could tell they were trying to control the ball and keep it away from us. Weber is a very good quarterback, Decker is an outstanding receiver and they were solid. We committed too many turnovers again, which certainly hurt us, and then the other thing is that we weren’t very good on third down. We didn’t keep ourselves on the field, and as a result, there was a huge disparity in the number of plays and in time of possession, which was a big part of the game.”
On being pretty limited offensively in the first half.
“We were three and out too often. Sometimes, you run a play, and you’re constantly thinking we’ll get a first down and then we’ll go to something else. But I think our first three or four possessions were three and out, so that’s 12 plays, and four of those were third down plays where you have to be a little more specific about what you’re doing. So, we just didn’t play well enough in the first half.”
On big dropped passes, one by DB Richard Council, and the other by WR Andrew Means
“You have to make those plays to win a Big Ten football game, and you certainly have to make them on the road. But I’m not going to sit here and question their effort, or their preparation for the game. We just didn’t play well enough, and those are things you need to get back and work on.”
On untimely turnovers
“That’s something that’s certainly a concern. We’ve talked a lot about that, and turnovers really hurt you. They’re always untimely, but they certainly weren’t the same as a week ago.”
On whether his team was prepared for Minnesota’s blitzes on third down
“Yeah, we were prepared, but they just did a better job of doing it, and we didn’t handle it very well. We didn’t make any plays, and I think there were times when we had plays, and we just didn’t make them.”
On Indiana’s ability to get pressure on Minnesota quarterback Adam Weber
“I thought our guys did a good job. I though, for one, you have to be able to control the run. If you can control the run, then in those passing situations, you have a chance to get after them, and I think we did that until that last drive.”
Indiana Player Quotes
Senior Safety/Wide Receiver Nick Polk
On Minnesota’s success in the running game
“I think we did a great job at making Minnesota one-dimensional. As a result, they were able to have a good passing game because we stopped their running game. Coach Lynch put a lot of emphasis on stopping the run and forcing them to throw the ball. So, I think they had success in the passing game because they had so many attempts.”
On defending Eric Decker
“For the most part, we played our regular coverages. Sometimes, when we thought Decker was going to get the ball, we would bring a safety down or a corner down and double him up. I think he is a great receiver who moves around, is big and strong. He catches the ball very well.”
On the defenses
“I think defensively we did a great job by forcing turnovers, but I think their defense did a great job as well. They caused some turnovers and made big plays as well.”
Junior Quarterback Kellen Lewis
On the Indiana’s struggle on offense
“Both offenses struggled a bit with the good performances by both defenses. We came in prepared with what we were going to run and at first we couldn’t get in synch. Then, we started to get rolling a little bit and then Minnesota’s defense would make a play and we would shoot ourselves in the foot. Both teams are known to score a lot of points, but today we struggled.”
On Minnesota’s defense
“They came and made big plays when they needed to on third downs. They did a good job on switching things up on defense and moving guys around. They did a good job on keeping their corners pretty deep and their safeties pretty high. We shot ourselves in the foot a lot and overall they played a great game out there. We can’t go out there and win games if we keep getting in the redzone and making mistakes.”
