Colorado-Washington Quotes
Sep 20 (Sat)
8:15 p.m.
Colorado Head Coach Mel Tucker
General
“I am just really proud of our football team. It was our seniors last game in Folsom. It was a special game and moment for them. We played complimentary football again. Offense, defense and special teams playing together. Everybody is playing hard and playing for each other. At the end of the game, we were able to close it out. Give Washington credit. That is a good football team. They are very well coached. It was a physical football game. Our team is getting better. We have one game left. We are going to enjoy this one and then prepare and get ready for Utah.”
On Running the Ball
“It is important to be able to run the ball on your terms, when you want to run it and when you need to run. When everybody in the stadium knows you are going to run it you still have to slam it up in there. We were able to do that tonight. Credit to our offensive line and our [running] backs. Our receivers blocked well tonight. Overall grit and determination to finish the game.”
On the Defense
“We have been getting better and improving. I said it four or five games back. I am seeing improvement in our defense. It just wasn’t showing up in the scoring. We are gaining confidence. Guys are able to stop the run and get them to third down. Once we get them to third down, coach (Tyson) Summers and our defensive staff do a great job of putting together packages that attack protections. We know we are able to get to the quarterback and have solid coverage behind it. We were able to get off the field.”
On Getting Pressure on The Quarterback
“We wanted to be aggressive and pressure him. Our staff does a great job of game planning for third down and understanding the protections. We were able to get to the quarterback. Going back to probably Washington State, we have been able to get to the quarterback on third down and touch him, hit him and affect him. That is a big part of being able to get off the field on third down.”
On What He Wants the Team To Become
“An attacking defense and stop the run. Be good in the special situations. In the red zone get a stop and hold them to a field goal attempt or take the ball away. We were able to do that. We talked last week after the Stanford game about resetting the standard of how we play football here and how we play defense. Continue to get better and understand that you have to hold people to low numbers. If you want to win games, if you want to beat good football teams you can’t give up 30 points a game. We have continued to work hard with this group of players. Our coaches keep believing in our guys. We have a lot of young guys playing and the older players are getting better as well. It is a credit to our coaches and our players’ grit, determination and want to. It is hard to get better as the season goes, especially at this time of year, but we are getting better as a football team.”
On Punter Alex Kinney
“Alex Kinney, can you say enough about him? Every game he is very consistent. Field position is huge. The punt is the most important play in football. That is 40 yards of field position. Our hat goes off to him. He did a great job.”
On Guys Stepping Up
“All year we have asked guys and have needed guys to step up. We play a lot of D-linemen and play a lot of young guys. We have freshman running around in there. Not just on the D-line but on the secondary as well. At this point of the season these guys aren’t freshman. We have played a lot of football with these guys. That is what is expected. Everyone must do their job and have a discipline to do their job. The shift in the culture of how we play football and how we go about our business is taking hold and we are starting to figure it out. We must continue to get better. I told them in the locker room, I wish we had 10 more games with this team, but we don’t. We have one more. We are going to prepare and make the most of it.”
On Safety Mark Perry
“Mark Perry has tremendous upside. He is a young player. He is very diligent and coachable. He has gotten better and better as the season has gone on. When he has gotten opportunities, he has played well. He is improving. We have quite a few young players who are doing that. It is a credit to him and the coaches working with him and believing in our players and knowing coaching does matter. When you have players that have potential, talent and ability it is our job to get it out of them. That is what we work to do every single day."
On QB Steven Montez
“I am really proud of Steven. It is great to see him play well and finish on a positive note in Folsom, as a senior. It is important to him. I had a coach tell me that when you look at your seniors, and our seniors sit in the front in the team meeting room, if you see fire in their eyes then you have a chance. With Steven and all those seniors, they just want it so bad. They work at it and believe in each other and in our program and what we are doing. I am just happy for our seniors. Thank God we have one more game with them.”
On The Fans
“It means a lot because our fans have been great all season. They have been tremendous. Our student section shows up and has really supported this football team. They deserve to see good football out there, see the team win and see a winning effort. It was very important. It is important to play well at home and win at home. It means something to us to play in Folsom. It means a lot to us and means a lot to our seniors. We don’t take it for granted. It is really good to see. My hat goes off to our fans. They have supported us all season. This is a tough place to play. They are loud and it is very impressive. Buff Nation is so strong. It is impressive to our recruits and their parents. They see that this is a football town that has tremendous pride, tradition, and facilities. We are putting this thing together. Folsom and elevation are an advantage for us.”
Washington head coach Chris Peterson
Opening Statement
“That’s a hard one, when you run the ball 32 yards with this offense that we have its going to be a long night which it was.”
On What Was On His Mind Walking Off The Field
“This is one of the most frustrating games we have had since I have been here, for sure. We had nothing going in the first half, we had a few things going in the second half. We drive down there and then turn the ball over, we were just getting some momentum going and then it doesn’t happen. In the second half we come out and had two drives and got something going but it just wasn’t enough.”
On Not Executing The Game Plan
“I don’t think that they did a whole lot different than what we were anticipating. To tell you the truth, there is always a wrinkle or two certainly when you have a bye. But there wasn’t a lot there that we were saying ‘we haven’t seen that at all.’ ”
On Colorado’s Blitzing In The First Half
“They have a huge blitz package on third down. They have done that all year and have done a good job on getting after the quarterback on third down. The team made plays when the quarterback was scrambling, I think our guy got one. That usually isn’t his game but we did get one, but they do a nice job getting you in third down situations.”
On Difficulties Running The Ball
“I don’t know, I have to look at that. I really don’t because that’s our game, it really is. The guys weren’t executing for sure, We need to look at it when Jackson went down and that changed things, that kind of thing.”
On The Neutral Zone Infraction Late In The Fourth Quarter Pushing Colorado Off Their Own 1-yard Line
“I thought a couple of things, towards the end of the game we got a big punt return and got great momentum. We got the ball we wanted and did nothing, I thought that punt that pinned them back there was exactly what we needed to do. Then we couldn’t make an error and jump offsides, that took away the momentum that we had right there. To their credit, they drove the ball down the field.”
On The Struggles Passing The Ball
“We have to get it fixed, we will take a look at it but it’s extremely frustrating. That’s all I can tell you.”
On Montez Running The Ball
“That’s part of his game and he is a really good runner. That is something that we knew could be coming our way. We had him but he got out of some things, he does that well.”
On How He Would Describe The First Half
“About how poor as I have seen it on offense in a long, long time.”
On What Made The Difference In This Game
“They made more plays than us, we couldn’t get anything going. I think a big thing was the first half, we had nothing going for us. We had a little something in the red zone and then we turn the ball over. We were on our heels again and couldn’t get anything going after that. We came out for two drives and you have to do something. You aren’t going to win many games in this conference scoring 14 points.”
On Jacob Eason And His Struggles
“We have to somehow create some throws, some easier throws that he can make and what we can make for him. We have to get him in some kind of rhythm. He will be back, I know he is frustrated. We are all frustrated, you wouldn’t be on this team or apart of this program if you aren’t frustrated right now. So of course he is going to be frustrated.”
On Trying To Use Trick Plays To Get Things Going
“Always is. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t. We are always going to have something that we are trying to create. We want to create explosions.”
On Potential Changes On Offense In The Future
“We have a short week, we just have to get back and put the best game plan we can against Washington State. We need to be better on offense than we were tonight.”
On How Tough It Was Losing This Game
“When you lose games and feel like you are playing like you can play that is part of it. But, like you said that first half was painful and it got a little better in the second half but I have been saying it for a long time, I think we have more to us certainly on offense and we didn’t show it tonight.”
Colorado Players
QB Steven Montez
On winning on Senior Day
“It feels good, but we can’t get lulled into that comfort zone of thinking that because we won the last two games that the season is over, and everything is alright. We still have another game ahead of us at Utah, and we know from experience that it is tough to play Utah, so we have to bring our A-game.”
On the touchdown pass to Laviska Shenault Jr.
“When I drew back, I saw Laviska, who was going up against number 22 who was a true freshman, so in my mind I was already thinking that we had to give him a shot. The ball was a little bit overthrown, and number 22 was on top of Laviska. I mean, just what an amazing catch. That’s kind of the Laviska Shenault effect. He goes out there and makes plays like that, it just kind of makes you look around and say ‘did he really just catch that?’. Those were the words that were coming out of my mouth coming back to the sideline. I was like, ‘how in the world did he catch that?’ It was just an amazing play by Laviska, and that’s the type of player he is, he’s just a star. He’s just an absolute all-star out there.”
On how it feels to win his final two games at Folsom Field
“it was a lot of fun. It was a lot of fun just going out there and playing the football that I know we are capable of playing as an offense. The last drive of the game had very little to do with me and a lot to do with the offensive line and Alex Fontenot. They just absolutely dominated up front. I would hand the ball off and the holes were so big that Alex would just go and get busy and pick up a ton of yards. They were just happening back to back to back. I’m just proud of our guys up front and how they played and how they finished.”
On emotions of Senior Day
“Just like Josh said, it is just kind of surreal, it doesn’t feel like it’s really happening in real life. You always feel in the back of your mind that you’re going to get one more game at Folsom. I was talking to some of the seniors, and talking to Josh. This was the last time stepping on that field it’s special for us, that’s the best way that I can put it. For us to be able to go out there and finish how we did, I’m extremely proud of us as an entire team. That turned into a dog fight for a second and we didn’t fold for a second, and we ended up finishing on top.”
On how it feels to play for something next week
“All that that tells me is that we need to go into practice this week and work exactly like how we practiced last week and the bye week as well. We had really good days of practice, really intense and really physical. I think that it showed out there on the field both offensively and defensively. I think that we were really physical today and I think that we were really sound in all of our assignments that we needed to execute, and I think that we executed them at a high level. If we can have another week of practice like we did I think that we will be able to do the same.”
OLB Carson Wells
On recording his first sack of the season
“It took way too long. I’ve been trying to get on myself about it. But it was good to get the monkey on my back tonight.”
On the shrug celebration
“On the sideline I said right before the play I'm going to do that when I get a sack and I got a sack the next play.”
On what's clicked for the defense
“We just had some young guys that stepped up in the beginning and now they've got some experience under their belt and just play faster. The whole defense is playing faster and it’s really showing.”
On the improvement of the team
“I feel like we're playing our best football. We got to keep getting better each day. Come to practice next week and get ready for Utah.”
On still playing for a bowl game
“It's a credit to the seniors. The seniors have been through a lot and they've been through highs and lows. They're just trying to keep us all together as a team and really come together.”
On returning from injury
“I was supposed to be one of the more experienced guys coming into season. Just trying to lead throughout [the injury] coming back. Younger guys like Mark Perry and K.J. [Trujillo] are really stepping up. [I’m] just trying to be a good example because I saw what I was supposed to look like in my first two years. I'm trying to show them what it is supposed to look like.”
On the defensive system
“We really get after the quarterback.”
On what sacks bring in a game
“We feed off it. You see us celebrate with each other. Everybody's jumping all over each other. Even if it’s not us making the play we love seeing our teammates making a play."
QB Josh Goldin
On the team winning on Senior Day
“I think that it is really special, being able to share it with some incredible people. Steven (Montez) and Tim (Lynott Jr.), I have known these guys for a while. It is really special to win the last one at Folsom, but like Steven said I think that it is important to have the next mentality and just get prepared.”
On how his college experience has been
“Pretty surreal, looking back. To just take a few minutes today and reflect on the journey that it has been. Obviously emotional getting cut the first time and be able to come back and contribute. It really is just most important to help out the team. Steven (Montez) and I kind of joke about it a lot but it’s just being a team guy. Obviously, the team didn’t need me for a little bit then it needed me again. It’s just been really special and honestly surreal.”
OL Tim Lynott
On how effective the running game was
“That is something that we did in fall camp and spring ball, and that’s something that coach (Mel) Tucker emphasized, and I think that the offensive line enjoys that. That is something that we take pride in. That was something that was really special to us, especially going out of Folsom field. That was really important that we did that and made sure that we made our mark.”
On winning the Buffalo Heart Award
“That’s something that is special, I didn’t really know about it until just recently, like within this last week. I think that’s awesome and I really believe that it is something special and something that I will never take for granted. That is something that the fans gave, and I can really appreciate what they did for me and how they supported us throughout these years. Props to them, and that is a great award.”
On how it feels to play for something next week
“That’s something that we need to look forward to next week. We need to prepare more than we’ve ever prepared before, and just take it as the next game. We are going to treat this game as if we are going to a championship. We just have to win out and make sure that every practice we take advantage of what we need to do and practice our hearts out.”
S Mikial Onu
On Jalen Sami's tackle on the punt team
“He was an eraser, as we like to call it. He made a big play. That could have gone really bad for us. He was there and executed his assignment. He is a shield on punt. (Special Teams) Coach (Ross) Ells says, ‘We don’t ever need shield guys until we need them.’ We needed him and he stepped up for us.”
On playing well defensively
“They (last couple of games) have been really fun. As I said early in the season, it takes time with a new coaching staff and new guys. I am a new guy. It takes time developing that chemistry and developing that confidence that you can really go out there and play well and play with anybody. I think you saw that today. We did a good job of being physical. Especially in the first half, we did a really good job of getting pressure on their quarterback. Mark (Perry) had a great game getting after the quarterback. Davion (Taylor), Terrance Lang, and a lot of guys had really good games getting after the quarterback. That really helped us, especially on third down.”
On shutting down Washington in the first half
“It really set the tone for us. We came in this whole week just knowing that if we played well then, we can have a good game on defense. If we executed, played physical, and started fast, something we've always wanted to do. All we talked about doing is just starting fast and we're able to do that tonight. That really helped us. The second half as well. Just having that confidence that we can stop them. We've done it before and just relax. They have players too. They have good players and they are fast. They're going to make plays, but I think that's coming out and bending and not breaking. That has been the biggest thing for us this season, especially later on.”
On keeping bowl hopes alive
“It is everything. That’s all you ever want is a chance. Since UCLA we have been saying we are in the playoffs now. We have to win three straight get a fourth game. We want to go every week focusing on what we do to get this way and what we can do to play better defensively and what we can do to help our offense and put them in better situation. It showed in the last two weeks. We have played as good as we have played all year and better than we have played all year. That speaks to the grit of our team and how much these guys want it. We have a lot of younger guys and to see how much they want it for the older guys like me, these are my last couple of games. Young guys stepping up for the older guys and older guys wanting it just as bad. The whole team wants it bad. You can tell by how we play and how we have been practicing. With this last game coming up, it is time to tighten the focus up a little more and tighten the screws to get ready for Utah.”
S/OLB Mark Perry
On what has helped him develop
“Davion (Taylor) has helped me a lot. Sometimes, we will sit down and watch film together. He tells me things he has been through since he has been here. Having a guy like that, helping me along the way before he leaves to go off to do whatever he does, the NFL hopefully, that helps a lot for sure. Having guys like Mikial (Onu) shed some light on me. When your older guys have confidence in you, it makes you feel like you can go compete with anybody in the country. That has helped a lot.”
On rushing the quarterback
“It is really fun. When we go out on the field on third down and you see the play call, everybody gets excited. You do your work on first and second down. Third down you get to do something cool with pressures and different types of coverages. We really try to get them to third down, so we go on the field and do some work.”
OLB/DB Davion Taylor
On the atmosphere
“It’s so much fun. Just knowing that we go out and make plays is just the main thing. We just make sure we do our assignment and if it’s not your play to make let somebody else make the play. I got some plays. My job was to just hold the running back up so the corner come free and that’s what I did. We had some sacks. We just make sure we do our jobs and just have fun with it.”
On what's changed the last two games
“We cut down some plays a little, so it won’t be a bigger package. We have less plays now. We just practice it over and over and over again and then when Saturday's come around, we just have fun with it. Go out there and just grind and have fun and hit somebody. That’s what we've been doing. It’s all coming together every week more and more.”
On the team's perseverance
“One main thing I would say is that we don't quit. We’re going to keep on pushing no matter what the scoreboard says. No matter what the critics say. We’re going to continue to push and win every game. That's our goal. Next week we'll go to Utah. It’s our goal to win and I don't worry about what number they are ranked. Just go out there play hard and have fun.”
On the team's confidence
“If we played like this every game we wouldn't have lost. We got pressure on the quarterback like coach wanted. We played our coverage right. We did everything right and it made this defense show up on the field and we'll continue to do it coming next week.”
On the play of younger players
“Every week, getting better and better. Like even at practice, I can see them more focused. They want it like seniors want it. They want to win. They don't want to send the seniors out with the losing record, so we just try to focus on this next game like we did this game. We keep everybody tuned, locked in 100 percent and just make sure that we all stay focused and that’ll get us the victory.”
ILB Nate Landman
On the interception
“That was a combination of a lot of things. It wasn't just me. We called a pressure up the middle. Double your person, I was responsible for getting through center. Once I saw the guys get past, I spied the quarterback, read his eyes and the pressure got there. He got rid of the ball quick. Right time, right spot.”
On defensive pressure
“It was huge. That was our main goal. We want to be an aggressive defense and we got some great pressures. The coaches schemed up tremendously and they put us in the right spot to make plays. We always talked about the game being inches and today those inches fell our way just by our preparation, having a bye week and the way we practice.”
On the difference in the game
“Coach talks about getting better every week and I just think that's what I've been doing. Doing my job and not trying to do too much. Just improving each week. The guys around me are helping me do that. Being a veteran guy, I still have to have to have that coaching and the guys around me are making me better.”
On being an asset in pass coverage
“I had to improve and keep working on it in the offseason. I struggled a bit in the beginning of the season, but I think now, I've gotten a feel for it. Coach Els and the defensive staff did a great job coaching me up. I'm getting comfortable back there dropping, reading the quarterback and reading run routes.”
On pulling off late-season wins
“I think it goes back to being relentless. That's Coach Tuck's word. We went on a five-game losing streak there, but we weren't going to just be satisfied with that. We had a great win last week and wanted to keep improving and leave our seniors out with a winner at home. I just think it'll be a testament to this team in our offseason training that we didn't give up when stuff got hard. Football is a game of up and downs and we had a lot of ups and a lot of downs and hopefully we can get a bowl game this year. That'd be huge for our program.”
On schematic reasons for the win
“We set up our blitzes right in one play a couple downs before just to set up that one pressure. It's kind of a chess match and Coach Summers is great at doing that. He's got a vision in his mind and comes to the sideline and he knows what he's calling before we're even out there. It's a credit to him and his film studying and what he's able to do for us to put us in the position.”
On putting the pieces of the team together
“The main focus for us, and coach kept saying, was to get back to the basics. Go back to the first couple weeks of fall camp and get back to basic defenses, learn how to tackle again and doing the right reads and pass drops. Finish up runs correctly and I think that's what we do a great job once we can get the basics down, we can start doing the fun stuff like we do on third down. That bye week helped. Stanford, we got after the quarterback, but not nearly as much as we did today. We got back to the basics and had some fun today.”
On the postgame locker room
“It's the best thing in the world. Winning solves everything, pretty much.”
P Alex Kinney
On his punt inside the 1-yard line
“I could do that thousand times again and it just wouldn't do that again. It's a lot of luck. I can probably hit it again like that, but that bounce was awesome. It was really fun.”
On the field position battle
“It's everyone. Coach Tucker always talks about offense, defense and special teams and how we all play the same role. Without Montez making plays and the defense stopping them, my punts don't matter. I want to hit the ball and make a difference, but it's on everyone.”
On the last home game
“Before the game, you got Senior Night and moms all excited, but you just want to play the game. It was good. I want to stay out of the way. I was really focused on this game. Now I'm going to go celebrate my mom. I got my aunt and uncle here from Nebraska, so we'll go out.”
On the group staying together after the losses
“We had the rough patch for five games, but no one gave up faith or anything. It was just small. It was one play away. UCLA didn't help at all. It's not like you can say the defense played bad or anything like that it was just everyone. We're so close on all those games you can't really put it to one thing. Now we're excited to go to Utah and hopefully get another win to go to a bowl game.”
RB Alex Fontenot
On what pushed the win
“The family aspect of the team. That's really what's been pushing us just to get better and better. That's what Coach Tucker has been preaching. That unity is what really drove us.”
On CU's playcalling
“Being able to run the ball when you want to run the ball, that's key. He knows that. Once we get it rolling, he just won't let off the gas.”
On Steven Montez leaving the game for a play with an injury
“I was upset but I knew that whoever came in behind him was ready.”
On the defensive effort
“It's nice to know that we're going down there and scoring points. As long as the defense does what they got to do, we're doing what we have to do.”
On how to win against Utah next week
“We just have to do what we've been doing. Just stay focused and get the job done like Coach [Tucker] says all the time.”
Washington Players
QB Jacob Eason
On the loss
“It’s tough. You go out there and practice all week and you go out and perform, giving your all. That’s the game. Sometimes you’re going to win and sometimes you’re going to lose.”
On passing under CU's pressure
“I got to do a better job if seeing that. I have to move up [in the pocket]. They did a good job dropping into coverage and covering up some of our routes. We’ll watch the tape and see what happened there.”
On second-half adjustments
“We got into some up-tempo. We were able to execute on critical third owns, but it’s just frustrating you want to go out and win those big games but only one team can win it.”
On the final drive“We had a toss-back pass but they covered it up really well. We have to avoid getting into those third-and-fourth and long situations, especially late in the game. It’s easier to manage a third-and short. We need to figure that out on offense and get better for the Apple Cup.”
On the interception
“No. 53 [Nate Landman] did a great job. I though he was coming but he popped out in coverage and they had pressure on the other side. I was on my back foot and he was at a great spot to get the ball.”
TE Cade Otton
On inconsistency of the passing game
“As a team we’ve been too inconsistent to win big games. It starts with me, executing in practice and it didn’t translate in the game today. It’s disappointing but we got to keep going to work and win or lose we’re still building, we’re a team, and we’re going to stick together.”
On frustration of the lack of consistency throughout the season
“It’s frustrating. Everyone in the locker room is trying as hard as they can and we’re holding each other accountable and when it doesn’t happen in the game it just frustrating, but we go to stay positive keep going and hold each other accountable.”
DB Myles Bryant
On if he was surprised at how much Montez ran
“We’ve been playing this guy for like three years. We understand what kind of player he is and the way that they utilize him. We understood that he would try to escape the pocket and use his legs."
On having issues after the bye week
“After a bye week that kind of thing can happen. You get that week off and you don't really get that tackling feel because you're trying to limit guys. Even then that's not an excuse. You have to get out there and get ball carriers on the ground.”
On if they were looking past CU
“No. We understood the team we were facing. They have a bunch of play makers, and they stood up and made plays. So credit to them.”
On the tough loss
“Any loss for us is pretty tough. The trend that this program has been on, any loss is tough. Especially when you're coming off a good win. But we just have to keep building."