On getting turnovers in the Syracuse game and how they affected the game…
“Those were two, great, big turnovers. We practice turnovers all the time. To get turnovers in a game is just wonderful for our defense. I think Eric [Small] scared the center at the beginning of the game, showed him his fangs or something, and he threw the ball over [Greg Paulus’] head.”
On if he was proud of the way the defense played in the second half against Syracuse…
“We got in the locker room and the leaders let the defense know what we had to do. We had to stop ‘em, make sure they don’t score. Do our job. Our job isn’t to worry about what the offense is doing. We know that people like Adam Weber, Decker, Duane, they’re gonna come through at the end of the game. As long as we can keep the other team out of the end zone, we’re gonna have a chance to win games.”
On if he senses a difference in the conditioning of the team at the end of the Syracuse game compared to last year…
“Definitely. I think we got stronger. As the game went on, usually people get tired, but we do so much extra conditioning that I believe we just get stronger and tougher as the game goes on.”
On how tough it is to defend an offense like the triple option, which teams don’t see very often…
“It’s definitely tough. My coach ran it in junior college. Once something like that gets clicking, it’s pretty hard to stop.”
On the hardest part about trying to stop the triple option?
“Not knowing where the ball is. If you get your eyes off the keys – looking all around – and try to look for the ball then you’re gonna get distracted. If you look at your keys and read your keys, you’re gonna do great. If you look for the ball, you’re never gonna find it. You just need to read your keys and the ball will find you.”
On whether defending the triple option is more mental or physical…
“You’ve gotta be smart to take care of your business.”
On how impressive Air Force performed last week against Nicholls State…
“It was very impressive. Big props up to Air Force, that has to be some kind of record. They’re a bunch of athletic guys and we’re just gonna have to bring our A-game to compete.”
On the thrill of being on the team that gets to open TCF Bank Stadium…
“It’s just a great feeling because you never think about opening up something for an entire state. I’m just proud to be in Minnesota and to open up the stadium.”
On what kind of an atmosphere he expects for the opening game…
“It’s gonna be loud. It’s gonna be sold out. We got a lot of ex-Gopher football players coming to the game and we’re just trying to make everybody proud.”
On how to check the emotion of opening the new stadium and play effectively against a triple option offense…
“You definitely just need to be disciplined. We don’t want to be too excited in practice. We want to save our emotions for the game and let it all out at the game.”
On how he’s going to try and remember the events around the stadium opening this Saturday…
“It’s definitely something that I want to remember forever. It’s something I’m going to cherish and I want as many of those memories in the back of my head.”
“Those were two, great, big turnovers. We practice turnovers all the time. To get turnovers in a game is just wonderful for our defense. I think Eric [Small] scared the center at the beginning of the game, showed him his fangs or something, and he threw the ball over [Greg Paulus’] head.”
On if he was proud of the way the defense played in the second half against Syracuse…
“We got in the locker room and the leaders let the defense know what we had to do. We had to stop ‘em, make sure they don’t score. Do our job. Our job isn’t to worry about what the offense is doing. We know that people like Adam Weber, Decker, Duane, they’re gonna come through at the end of the game. As long as we can keep the other team out of the end zone, we’re gonna have a chance to win games.”
On if he senses a difference in the conditioning of the team at the end of the Syracuse game compared to last year…
“Definitely. I think we got stronger. As the game went on, usually people get tired, but we do so much extra conditioning that I believe we just get stronger and tougher as the game goes on.”
On how tough it is to defend an offense like the triple option, which teams don’t see very often…
“It’s definitely tough. My coach ran it in junior college. Once something like that gets clicking, it’s pretty hard to stop.”
On the hardest part about trying to stop the triple option?
“Not knowing where the ball is. If you get your eyes off the keys – looking all around – and try to look for the ball then you’re gonna get distracted. If you look at your keys and read your keys, you’re gonna do great. If you look for the ball, you’re never gonna find it. You just need to read your keys and the ball will find you.”
On whether defending the triple option is more mental or physical…
“You’ve gotta be smart to take care of your business.”
On how impressive Air Force performed last week against Nicholls State…
“It was very impressive. Big props up to Air Force, that has to be some kind of record. They’re a bunch of athletic guys and we’re just gonna have to bring our A-game to compete.”
On the thrill of being on the team that gets to open TCF Bank Stadium…
“It’s just a great feeling because you never think about opening up something for an entire state. I’m just proud to be in Minnesota and to open up the stadium.”
On what kind of an atmosphere he expects for the opening game…
“It’s gonna be loud. It’s gonna be sold out. We got a lot of ex-Gopher football players coming to the game and we’re just trying to make everybody proud.”
On how to check the emotion of opening the new stadium and play effectively against a triple option offense…
“You definitely just need to be disciplined. We don’t want to be too excited in practice. We want to save our emotions for the game and let it all out at the game.”
On how he’s going to try and remember the events around the stadium opening this Saturday…
“It’s definitely something that I want to remember forever. It’s something I’m going to cherish and I want as many of those memories in the back of my head.”