POSTGAME QUOTES: Houston 42, UConn 14
9/30/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
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2016 HOUSTON FOOTBALL QUOTES FOR THE UCONN GAME
TDECU Stadium • Houston, Texas • Thursday, Sept. 29, 2016
HOUSTON HEAD COACH Tom Herman
Opening Statement
"Regarding Tyus Bowser and Matthew Adams, yesterday during our weekly tradition of Family Fridays where we go out to the field and play some silly games to loosen up, the two got over competitive. Things briefly got out of hand during one of the games, resulting in a scuffle between Tyus and Matt, two brothers.
It was a freak accident, the result of the scuffle was a broken bone for Tyus. It'll keep him out of the lineup for a few weeks. Our culture is one of love, the two are very close and remain very close. They're both very remorseful for what happened during yesterday's incident, and Matt was held out as a result. He will return next week. I will not have any further comment on that.
I'm proud of our team for responding. I really thought the first couple drives on offense we tried to get our feet wet. There were a couple first downs, nothing really to speak of. We got it rolling in the second quarter. The defense showed up very stout against the run. Obviously in situations where our offense scores 25 to 38 points and a team has to live throwing the football, we have to do a better job. I was disappointed in that. Part of that is on the secondary, but as always part of that is on the pass rush as well. We could've done a better job there.
The offense though, no turnovers, 5-for-5 in the red zone and 8-for-16 on third down was a good night. We have to do a better job as we get our twos and threes in, especially against really good people like Connecticut, and especially on defense we have to do a better job of not looking so sloppy and silly out there. But overall, I'm very proud of the way our guys responded. It's the fourth game in 19 days and to come out with that kind of energy and juice was good to see."
On not announcing Duke Catalon would miss the game
"He was diagnosed early in the week with a concussion from the Texas State game. We wanted to make sure it was a concussion. It seems to be very mild. He's already scoring zeros on the test and progressing. If he continues to progress I think we'll have him for Sunday's practice. It would've been premature to rule him out until I had all the facts. That's why we didn't make any statement."
On senior quarterback Greg Ward Jr.'s toughness and intensity
"I love it. He's a competitive dude. He's one of the most competitive guys I've ever been around in my career. He got the wind knocked out of him, obviously that doesn't feel good, but it's nothing serious. Then the guy stepped on him, on purpose, which got the 15-yard personal foul. Greg has to be smart. He let the guy know how he felt about that. He wasn't very happy about it. I'm proud of him for not shoving or doing anything that would have cost his own team. His fire and energy is very palpable this season, and I look forward to getting back to work with him again. He's playing with a tremendous amount of confidence."
On halftime adjustments
"We had a chance when our offense went up 28-0 to have them tap out and run the clock down in the second half. We gave them some breathing room. We gave them a reason to continue to play hard in the second half. What I was probably the proudest of was that our offense came out on the very first drive, and we scored a touchdown in the third quarter to put us back up 35-7. I was really proud of the way they responded coming out of halftime knowing that if they came out listlessly, UConn would've came back into it. Then we would've been in a four quarter brawl. But to go out and punch the ball into the end zone right off the bat in the third quarter set the tempo for how the second half was going to be."
On the team's performance after Oklahoma Game
"We are doing a better job these last two weeks than we were previously. The team is growing up and is gaining a better understanding. With a 28â€"7 lead at halftime, we get the ball and the offense goes down, punches one end and we made the score to make it 42-7 with 4:58 in the third and put the game out of reach. The guys are understanding that it is important for the moral and confidence of the team to finish games. I like where are guys are headed in terms of maturity level."
On missing four starters and what it says about your team
"It says they're well coached, and I don't mean by me, but by our assistants. They do a great job. In one of our four pillars of success, it is called competitive focus. That implements being ready when your number is called. I've said this before, when a backup is jogged in a game, one of two reactions I going to happen. Both your teammates and coaches are going to think it's great and will be excited when Emeke (Egbule)'s number is called, because they see how hard he prepares himself for the game or be disappointed, because I see how ill prepared he is. For the most part, our guys take that mantra seriously. When a number is called, you have to be ready. Our backups prepare just as hard and just as well as our starters."
On when Greg Ward Jr., takes a hit
"Get up. Please get up. Quarterbacks get hit. In the third quarter I made a point to him to protect himself in terms of scrambling around and no more quarterback runs. He's an aggressive guys and he's going to hit. That's why it's important for him to be 185 pounds, be a strong as he is and have the offseason that he did. He's a tough dude and getting the wind knocked out of you doesn't feel good, but it's temporary. I was glad that was all it was."
On development of Emeke Egbule
"He's gotten bigger, stronger and physically much more developed, but he has a lot of leaning to do defensively. He knows where to be, but it's about how to be there. He's growing, but being thrown in the fire tonight and throughout the week practice is not easy. Once we can go back and play our normal defense, he will be better."
On Tyus Bowser's broken bone
"I don't know what is broken, but we will know more in the coming days."
On typical Fridays
"On Fridays we have position and offense defense unit meetings. Before we have a walk through, for 20 minutes we play games. Defense lines play against tight ends. They place trash buckets about 10-yards apart and throw the football into it. Whoever is the first to make it to 10, the other team has to do pushups. The quarterbacks play a roped off version of two-hand touch football. The defense backs play whiffle ball against each other along with dodge ball and various games. This is to get their competitive juices going and loosening their bodies up for a walk through."
On Greg Ward Jr.'s, full arsenal on display
"He's much more patient in the pocket. That comes from great coaching over the course of 20 months that really taught him the offense. He's feeling much more comfortable. He knows the timing of different routes. Really good throwing quarterbacks get hit as they throw, that's the nature of the position. Last year you would have seen him come off of that read or receiver and scramble around. He's doing a great job of standing in there. Obviously we don't want him to get hit, but some of the more downfield throws that we had to throw tonight against UConn he stood in there like a champ and delivered some really accurate balls. He's growing up before our eyes as a passer."
On this being a redemption game from last year's loss
"We never use the word revenge. The word we used was atonement, to make a wrong a right. We had a chance to atone for the transgressions of last year's team. We talked all off-season that somewhere along the way, maybe it was January of 2015, June of 2015 or the week of preparation, we screwed up. We took our foot off the gas for a little bit and it showed up in UConn Week 11.
We attacked this off-season with that game in mind. If you want to go out and be 1-0 every week it starts in January. You can't ever take your foot off the gas in any form of preparation. That one felt good. It felt good for Adrian McDonald, Elandon Roberts, Trevon Stewart, Alex Cooper, Kenneth Farrow and all the guys that had to experience that feeling in the locker room and didn't get a chance to come atone for those transgressions. We put that burden on us this week to make sure they knew we were playing this game for them."
On Ward having a chip on his shoulder due to missing last year's game
"Ward has a chip on his shoulder every week. I don't know that it was any bigger this week. The whole team had a pep in their step knowing what this opponent did to last year's team, and they wanted to make sure that didn't happen again."
On tonight's game plan
"The game plan was don't run the football inside. We learned our lesson last year. We were stubborn on offense. Those are some stout defensive linemen in that 3-4 scheme. They are extremely difficult to move in the inside run game. Hats off to Coach (Major) Applewhite and the offensive staff. They said in order to win this game we're going to have to play the game on the perimeter whether it be with perimeter runs, bubble or smoke screens and throwing the ball downfield. We went into this week's preparation understanding that. Great job of our offensive staff learning from the mistakes of last season and designing a game plan to make sure that didn't happen again."
On the defense not playing to the score
"It's the culture. Coach (Todd) Orlando does an unbelieve job. If you take a lazy step, especially in practice or in a game when it's on video, that's going to be a bad day for you. When you're in front of your peers and that play is shown, our culture demands it not only from the coaching staff, but the other players. If you take the field for the University of Houston you better be out there with your hair on fire, running full speed down the football. On defense, when you get there, you better have a bad attitude. If you're tired, we'll get somebody else in there. There's no such thing as a lazy step in this program, because if it happens and it's on video, it's a bad day at the office for that guy."
On the advantage of the nickel package defense
"They were in 12 personnel a lot tonight, which is two tight ends. We did go with our big personnel. We they went 13 personnel, three tight ends. It's to get your best playmakers on the field. Garrett Davis or had it been Brandon Wilson, they're perfectly capable of playing that field outside linebacker spot, holding the point on perimeter runs, sticking their nose in there and they're great at blitzing. It's more about getting your best 11 on the field, not necessarily saying 'hey they're in the 12 personnel so we got to jog out some 240-pound linebacker.' No, let's figure out some way for our best 11 guys to get on the field and play versus any offensive set."
On the "20 to 17" signs
"We did that last year to teams that we lost to the previous year. It's a little motivation. We actually print signs and have interns and coaches walk around practice with the signs as a reminder every time they look up that we're not going to let that happen again."
HOUSTON SENIOR QUARTERBACK Greg Ward Jr.
On playing well against UConn after not playing last year
"I wasn't thinking about last year. I was just looking at it as another game. I was just worried about doing my job for the team and giving my maximum effort."
On taking a big hit in the second quarter
"I wasn't worried at all. I just got hit under the ribs and got the wind knocked out of me. I was good."
On great performance after the loss last year
"It means everything to be 1-0. I don't really worry about the stats. The only stat I worry about is the win or loss."
On UConn's unsportsmanlike conduct call
"I was trying to get up and he wouldn't let me. I got a little mad and the situation escalated. There were a couple words said, and that was about it."
On being in the running for the Heisman
"I don't think about that at all. I just think about doing my job for my team and just doing what I can to make sure we get the win."
HOUSTON SENIOR WIDE RECEIVER Linell Bonner
On big catch in the third quarter
"When I was running the route, I knew it was man press coverage, and the corner was playing with leverage to the inside. As soon as I turned around, the ball was already over there. I just dove for it."
On one handed Deandre Hopkins-like catch
"He's my favorite receiver in the NFL right now. I really look up to him. Yes, you could say I was impersonating him."
On redemption from last year
"All week we've had great focus as a team. We had to get this win for Trevon Stewart, Adrian Macdonald, Elandon Roberts, Lee Hightower, and all of those guys."
HOUSTON REDSHIRT SOPHOMORE SAFETY Garrett Davis
On redemption from last year
"It was a chance for us to prove that if we put Coach Herman's plan into play and execute, we will get a win."
On being a topped ranked defense
"We pride ourselves on stopping the run and just being a physical defensive team. You win defensive series on first and second down. If you stop the run, they become one-dimensional and they start throwing the ball."
On Greg Ward Jr.'s play tonight and how impressive his work was
"On the defensive side we call him Houdini. He will just make a play happen out of nowhere."
On how the defensive culture has been built
"Great coaches. Great scheme. They talk all the time about how it's not the scheme but it's the effort and the culture. We don't run a magical defense. It's just about who goes harder."
On the defensive gameplay
"This is one of the teams we play that likes to run the ball more. We pride ourselves on stopping the run and it was possible for the back end to come up and make plays."
On the mentality going into the game without four of your starters
"We have great culture. Our 1's, our 2's, pretty much everyone who steps on that field for practice they come out with a purpose, and we just come out ready to play for each other. So it's just second nature to come out there and play hardball."
UCONN HEAD COACH BOB DIACO
Opening Statement
"Losing is terrible, it's the worst. We obviously wanted to finish phase one of our season better than two and three. Everybody is hurt. We will use a few days off for the guys to heal up and get ready for this next phase. That was a lot of messaging in the locker room about the conversation. We have a photographic memory, but players were ready to play. They were excited to play. They were not overcome by it.
First quarter we moved the ball. The defense played stout defense. Then Greg [Ward Jr.] made a play. He is a spectacular player. He had a pass, and then they got frustrated in a destructive way. In terms of performance, in the backend, we had too many passes. It's just not what we do. The players were really talented, and they are good guys. They try hard and get ready. Too many 10, 12, 15-yard chunks. They played hard the whole game. They were contact tough. They played hard and gave great effort. Not enough execution to finish drives with points."
On what fired up the team
"It was one of these games where the guys are trying so hard, and it's so intense. You need to maintain your cool. You can't get frustrated out there. You can't get frustrated on defense in particular. Every time you get frustrated, and you don't do your job, points are produced. That was definitely a part of the game tonight."
On Houston quarterback Greg Ward Jr.
"It's very hard to defend and hard to deal with. He is an absolute weapon. You have to make a choice in that play. The choice always has to be staying coverage. You can't let a player like that run around and let him do his thing. You can see where the problem with that is. We got guys leveraged and in position to make the tackle. They had trouble with it, as every team did."
On how during the second quarter the defense was facing difficulties
"That was just a disastrous quarter. We couldn't move the ball, and we had trouble on defense. The guys were super frustrated. When you don't pour everything into it, it doesn't help the next play. We want to change that mentality, just need to keep coaching and getting better. We need to do a better job of coaching and teaching the guys. They show up excited to work and learn. We need to find a way to reach them on offense. There are some good things happening on offense. We are getting close to finishing some really explosive plays. The plan they had tonight was a good one. It really looked like it was creating a problem, but then the drive stalled. A couple of balls that were over the top and really had the opportunity to produce points weren't connected."
On the offense and receivers
"Until we look at the play mechanically it's hard to talk about and coach leverage, weight and body, distribution, and foot action is hard on tape. We will look at each play and coach the mistakes."
On Noel Thomas
"Noel Thomas is an outstanding player. He is hard for anyone to cover and an aggressive to the ball guy. He has the ability to make people miss and break tackles. He runs hard when he has the ball and he's a real weapon. We left a lot of production on the field for him and based on what he produced, there was still more out there for him. We have to keep finding ways to get him the football and put him in those positions.
Right now as a program we are resolute, the players and coaches, to taking this first phase of the season and collecting the information, the good and the bad, and using it to get better as a staff and as players for this next phase. The players will rest for a few days, and then we have Cincinnati. Right in a row we are on to our Eastern Division teams stacked up week-to-week. There's no reason why we can't become the team we see ourselves being. There's no reason why we can't become extremely competitive in our conference. All we have to do is correct the mistakes and do a better job of coaching and teaching. "
On coming back after a bad loss
"I will say it's not about the style of losing. Losing hurts. It makes you question if you are doing the right thing. It makes you think about all the little things, and the monster under your bed that's hiding there, and the boogie man in the closest grows. Our culture and family are super strong, so I don't anticipate our guys not coming back and excited for phase two Cincinnati week."
UCONN SENIOR WIDE RECEIVER NOEL THOMAS, JR.
On not making plays
"It just comes out in the inches. Plays are there on the field, and we left them on the field. We've got to execute those plays."
On UConn's energy coming into the game
"We have to go out there every time to score. When the plays are there to be made, we have to make those plays."
On his touchdown reception
"I had to score. I caught the ball, and all I was thinking was touchdown."
On what they'll take away from this game
"The biggest thing is to correct the film and see the positives; correct the negatives. Watching it and playing the game, you can see the plays we left on the field. There were a couple of deep balls that were literally inches away from being touchdowns. We can get open in space and make plays, but we just have to make those plays."
On a blowout loss versus a close game
"If we lost by one it would still suck. It's tough to get blown out like this, especially when there were plays that could have been made to stop it from being like this."
On the upcoming schedule
"This was a physical game, and I know a lot of us are going to be banged up. Having time off will be good for us. Now we're starting to play teams in the east, so it's time to get rolling."
UCONN SENIOR SAFTEY OBI MELIFONWU
On fixing downfield passes
"As a secondary we have to play better. We have to trust each other, prepare better, trust our technique and know that we couldn't pick a better receiver in our conference and country."
On the yard increase since last match-up
"I have nothing to say about that."
On challenges outside the pocket and big yardage
"We have to contain better. I feel that the defenders need to keep their eyes on the receivers. I feel that if we contain them better, then we would have a better chance of corralling and tackling them."
On playing defense against a quarterback like Greg Ward Jr.
"It's really not a challenge. As a secondary and defensive back, you just have to keep eyes on your man. That's something we are going to continue work on."
On other players lacking on the field
"As a team we had energy throughout the whole game, and we believed that we could win until the clock turned zero."
On what the next few days are going to be like
"We just have to go and look at the film, rest and get ready for Cincinnati and outperform them."
On the emotional state for next game
"We'll be good. We'll rally."
On the challenge of getting penalties
"You have to keep trying to play and give it our all and sometimes penalties like that happen. But, you have to keep playing."
