University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn Football vs. North Carolina Post Game Quotes
9/12/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 12, 2009
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. -
Connecticut Head Coach Randy Edsall
Opening Statement:
It's a disappointing loss. I don't know if I've ever been in a game that ever ended in that way. Our guys competed, played hard, fought to the very end and came up a little bit short. North Carolina is a very good football team, which we knew coming into the game but it's just heart-wrenching, gut wrenching to be on this side of.
On the Snap Over Endres' Head:
Well the problem there was that Moe (Petrus) thought he heard something and he didn't and he snapped the ball, it was just a mistake we can't have in that situation.
On the Team's Effort and Prospects for the Remainder of the Season:
This team, I told them after the game, they have a chance to be a good football team, they just have to stick together and we have to keep working hard. We stood there and slugged it out for the whole game but again we just couldn't make that play when we needed it today and that's the bottom line. Third down and long, we had chances to get off the field, we didn't get off the field and when we go back and look at the tape we know this one is going to eat at you.
How Did You Approach the Team After the Game When You Were Talking to Them?
I talked to the team just like I'm talking to you guys in the locker game afterwards. That's a good football team in that locker room, and that's a good team across the way in the other locker room. We just happened to come up a little bit short and what we need to do is, when they come in, show them the film and then move on because it doesn't get any easier next week.
Would You Have Liked a Timeout with 2 Minutes to Go and 20 Seconds Ran Off the Clock?
No, not at all. I don't question any decision we made there at the end. We had 3 timeouts to go and all we needed to do was get a field goal. Those are situations we practice every week. They made a play and we didn't. That's the bottom line.
Cody Endres, R-So. Quarterback
What happened on the bad snap in the fourth quarter?
"Just some miscommunication. That's all it was."
How did it feel coming into the game?
"I felt pretty good. I was a little tight, standing around for an hour and plus. But I got into it pretty quickly."
How frustrating is the loss is?
"It's really tough. We battled for four quarters. They're a great team. We've got to credit them a lot. We knew it was going to be a challenge. But yeah, it's very frustrating."
How well did the UConn defense play?
"The defense always comes out and plays. Everybody knows that. They're a great unit. To some extent, we let them down. But we let ourselves down, too. We'll bounce back."
Were you surprised to see the offense still struggling?
" Every week, we're making strides. It's a very intricate offense. It takes a lot of practice. Hopefully we'll get in the right direction. We've got to keep doing it."
Greg Lloyd, Jr. Linebacker
Was the defense tired in the fourth quarter?
"Not really. We're kind of made for these situations. We don't really mind. Obviously we were out there a lot, but hey, that's what we're here for. We're here to hit people, make plays and stop the ball. It was tough, but you've got to work through those things."
What really changed on their scoring drives?
"Momentum for them. Their execution and focus was just on point. We kind of lagged there at the end. They were on point with everything they were doing."
Moe Petrus, R-So., Center
How do you think the offense looked?
"I felt like we were good. We were going up against a tough defense, which is really good. Coming into the game, we knew we were going to be going up against tough competition, and it wouldn't be easy to score. We saw that in the beginning of the game. It was hard to get the first touchdown on the board."
How bad does this loss hurt?
"It hurts bad. Losing any game at [Rentschler Field] hurts bad. It's going to be tough. We've got to swallow it, keep our heads up and know that we have a good game in Baylor. It probably hurts the most when it's that close and not a blow out. We've got to come out strong next week."
Robert McClain, Sr. Cornerback
What happened to the defense in the fourth quarter?
"There were just some things that we messed up on. We didn't go out there and execute in the fourth quarter like we should have. That's why they scored their points in the fourth quarter."
How frustrating was it to have a top-25 team on the ropes and knowing you should have won?
"It should have been a win. We had them shut out. If a top-25 team comes in here to a hostile environment, we have to come up with a win."
What the team can do to make sure there's no hangover?
"Tomorrow we have to go over the film and see the mistakes that we made and get ready for Baylor. They have a better offense than North Carolina, so we have to come back and get ready to execute. We have to be hyped and have a good week of preparation."
Is the team still shocked over how they lost?
"That was shocking, a holding play and getting a safety call. But it was even more shocking, coming back and executing the onside kick perfectly and get another chance to come back and win the game. We've got to execute on offense on that drive, but we came out with an 'L'."
Dan Ryan, R-Sr. Offensive Tackle
How frustrating is it to be in this position right now?
"It is very frustrating. Nobody wants to be the guy sitting in this chair right now having to answer these questions. I would rather be in the locker room celebrating with my team; unfortunately, it did not work out that way today. This one game is not going to end our season so we just have to get back out there and keep working hard."
Should this much attention be on you right now?
"If Cody Endres drove the team down the field to win that game then the attention would be on him and a receiver. Even if any of the linemen made a solid block on a successful play then the attention goes to the other offensive players. I am okay with that. Again, it is unfortunate that these are the circumstances that I am in this chair speaking to the media."
Is it unfortunate that these are the only circumstances in which you will be recognized and interviewed?
"No, not really. We linemen are blue-collar guys and know that a solid offense starts with us. We are the foundation for a successful day."
NORTH CAROLINA
Robert Quinn, So., DE
When did you see the flag? Were you looking for it?
I was in the zone, I wasn't paying attention to it. I knew I beat him around the corner and it felt like I got pulled down. I was just out there trying to make plays and then I saw the flag.
What was the defense's reaction to the situation?
We realized it because we put it on our shoulders. We knew we were going to have to score to give the offense that many more opportunities. That really was our mindset. This is a defensive a team and like I said we put it on our shoulders and kept moving.
Ryan Houston, Jr,, TB
North Carolina had a pretty good idea of what to expect up here, what adjustments did you make at the half?
We really didn't make too many adjustments. Coach was like we weren't hitting the block like we were supposed to and we weren't staying on them as long as we were supposed to. We were hitting the holes and we weren't reading them right. They were kind of coming in the middle, so we had to figure out to balance things. We kind of slowed things up.
Did the offense get frustrated when UConn went up 10-0?
It was kind of frustrating for us because we were down. We kept our composure, we are only down two scores and they really only scored two points off of us, of our plays. We threw an interception that set up the touchdown. We decided that our defense is not going to give them another point we just got keep going and score some more points. We put up 10 and our defense gave us two more and that put us over the edge.
Charles Brown, Jr., CB
Did you see the safety?
I did not see it at all because we were in man-to-man coverage and I was covering my man. I just heard the call and I saw everybody cheering. I just turned around and looked.
Were you surprised that they would call it at that point in the game?
I didn't even know that was a rule. I heard the coaches screaming `safety, safety, safety' so I started jumping up and down `safety, safety.'
North Carolina Head Coach Butch Davis
What is your initial reaction of this game?
Obviously, to can't talk about this game without talking about two teams. Two teams that played unbelievable hard throughout the entire ball game. It wasn't a clean game. Both teams made some turnovers, both teams missed some opportunities. I thought both teams fought extremely hard.
We are very fortunate to win this game. There is no way you can talk about this game without saying how fortunate we were. To make some of that fortune happen a lot of things had to happen our kids to keep competing and playing hard. They spilled their guts out there every single snap. Clearly, our defense played very, very well today. They took the field after turnovers and handled sudden change situations and played on short fields. They just kept battling and they kept scrapping and kept giving us chances that our offense would get some momentum and get a little traction. And obviously at the end of the game with the defense with safety came up with the biggest play to win the game.
It wasn't a pretty. We knew coming on the plane that Connecticut that had an unbelievably talented defense. You do not get the No. 6 defense in the nation without having some guys that can play.
Players Mentioned
