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University of Minnesota Athletics
Postgame Quotes
9/10/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
Recap | Final Stats | Notes | Photo Gallery
Sept. 10, 2016
TCF Bank Stadium
Indiana State at Minnesota
Tracy Claeys, Minnesota Head Coach
"We played well on third down on offense. We did well on a lot of things except for the first few series. Guys were a little sloppy, again there were some penalties that need to be cleaned up but the offense I thought played well. On defense on third down we just didn't play very well. When you have to play that many snaps you can't do that all year long. So we are going to have to play better on defense on third down."
On what jumps out on the final stat sheet...
"The more games we go, the more prepared you are with video and our kids made some plays out there. I thought Mitch did a great job of getting us out of the bad plays. I tell you what, I think we did better than last week creating holes and getting firsts out there. Kobe McCrary got ( two) touchdowns. Tyler had one one and Brian Smith had one. You know things are working well when you are distributing the ball all over and you are not just looking for one guy."
On the bye week…
"Yeah we will give them tomorrow off and we will bring them back in on Monday. We will get after the film a little bit and then they will basically have Tuesday off and we will practice on Wednesday and Thursday. Then we will do a little weightlifting on Friday and Saturday before we get going on Colorado State next Sunday."
Mitch Leidner, Minnesota Quarterback
On this game giving the offense an opportunity to get into a rhythm…
"I think it's pretty big for us offensively because we had a bad taste in our mouth after last week. You know we just felt like we could have done some things better, and to come out this week and practice and prepare extremely hard, I thought was huge and it really carried over into the game."
On McCrary's game…
"He reminds me so much of David Cobb, I've said it before. Just watching him run, everything he does is so similar to Cobb and to see him finally get a number of reps and to be able to show what he can do. I know he's an explosive player, a really smooth runner and he can make guys miss. He's similar to David Cobb where they're not going to truck you and run you over like crazy all over the place for how big he is, he's going to make people miss."
On the importance of playing with Drew for as long as he has
"It's been a lot of fun. We have been able to grow together, we have learned a lot. We have had a lot of fun doing it all through the summer and into fall camp. It is all about keeping that positive mindset and really focusing on the little things and I think we have done a pretty good job at that. We have just got to keep it going."
Drew Wolitarsky, Minnesota Wide Receiver
On what went into his career day…
"Preparation. The way we practice, the way we stay after together to throw routes. Most of that stuff is done in practice, so when a game comes it just becomes second nature, something that you are used to. I think that's what it comes down to."
On how certain he was that he caught his sideline pass…
"Oh, certian. I was disappointed when they [the refs] said incomplete. I'm glad they reviewed it.
On stepping into the role of being the No. 1 receiver option..
"No doubt I am ready. I have been working this whole offseason to be this guy. I can't say it was easy, but you know, here I am, and I'm ready."
Jalen Myrick, Minnesota Cornerback
On the 30-point victory…
"We played good. It was a dominating game. We started off fast early and we wanted to continue it into the second half."
Kobe McCrary, Minnesota Running Back
On playing in a big stadium on a big stage…
"It was a dream. I got my first taste of it and now we have to get ready for Colorado State."
On being recruited with an already impressive running back core…
"When I came I knew Rodney (Smith) and Shannon (Brooks), they played very good, so I just came. I feel like I can bring some depth with all three of us…the three-headed monster."
On if he ever had this kind of performance before…
"Yes sir. At my junior college. I think we played the number one team in the nation, and I think I rushed for 250 (yards)."
Mike Sanford, Indiana State University coach
"Just want to say, very disappointed. We believed we were going to win the game and we expected to win. I can't get up in the morning if I don't believe that. I think just looking at the game that early they kind of did things right and we didn't do things well enough. We got ourselves behind and the things kept snow piling. I thought and do want to give a lot of credit to the Minnesota Golden Gophers. I thought they played well. I thought they played physical. I feel like we came back in the second half and competed. We gave up some unnecessary big plays, but we did come back in second half and compete. I thought that Issac (Harker) played hard. Issac (Harker) is a very mentally tough kid and just the guy that competes and plays hard. He is in the game right from the beginning to the end. I was proud of the way he played.
On the onside kick…
"Yeah that was actually a miscommunication. I rather not go into all the details, but that was not intended to be an onside kick.
On the offense…
"You know the first thing, I am not a moral victory guy and there is no such thing as a moral victory. On the other hand, it's about analyzing what you did in the game and what you did well and did poorly and improving on that. There was a lot of thing Issac (Harker) did well on the game and we go on that. There were somethings he would love to have over again where he knows and we know that he could have done better. And I thought Robert (Tonyon) did a lot of good things. You know against good competition. That was a really good football team we played. They will be a good team and that is no doubt about it. They are in the division of the Big Ten where they have a chance to compete for. Who knows how they are going to end up, but I think they are good…..I thought there were times where our guys stacked up against them. We must improve and have to be better.
Isaac Harker, Indiana State Quarterback
On the overall assessment of the day...
"We knew going in that we have a solid line and wide receivers who can makes plays so we were just. Going to try and get them the ball as much as we could. We did not turn the ball over for the most part today and I thought that was a good thing. If that game starts different, I think it would have been closer of a game.
On playing Big Ten Team…
"From film study you know what basic defense they are going to run and what pressures and everything so I thought we were really prepared in that aspect and the coaches helped get us prepared. We knew what we were going to see... They are good players. And we are good players so I thought it was a good game. It was just about what you would expect from a Big Ten team. You know, our first game was at Butler and it is not like leagues apart difference. It is just everyone is a little faster, everyone is a little bigger. Just about what you would expect."
Robert Tonyan Jr, Indiana State Wide Receiver
On how the game went...
"Plain and simple we just kind of got ran through the first half; offensively and defensively. I just think that we showed life in the second half. We just showed our playmaking abilities. I think that we just need to be more aggressive up front and on the perimeter blocking. But other than that we just need to be more physical."
On how he thought his team differed from Minnesota's team and his position as a leader...
"I do not think a difference in talent is the way to put it. I think that they just know their assignments and they are more confident and they fly around faster. They are college players just like we are. I think that their mentality is more confident because of the caliber team they are. I think that new guys kind of came out uneasy about it."
"Being a veteran in these kind of games you just kind of have to bring the young guys up and put a positive mentality on them because if you doubt yourself, you are already losing before it even starts ."
