Colorado State University Athletics
POSTGAME QUOTES
10/24/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 24, 2009
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CSU Head Coach Steve Fairchild
General: "Well you saw the game as well as I did. I tip my hat to San Diego State. They totally outplayed us during the second half and there's no question in my mind or anyone that was here that they deserved to win that football game. You can go down the whole stat sheet in the second half and we can sit here all night and talk about it. They had just a ton of guys making plays and we just didn't make enough plays to make it out of there or make enough plays offensively to keep things going. So give them their due. That's what I've said all along. They've always had talent and improvement and they certainly outplayed us today. It's very difficult for us and we've got to find a way to right the ship and obviously we've just got to go back to work and keep trying to improve."
On the big SDSU plays: "For the most part we kept the ball in front of us in the first half but in the second half we just didn't play the ball. That thing's hanging up there. Their guy went and got it and our guy didn't. Offensively our guy couldn't go get it. I mean there was no scheme; their guys just outplayed us."
On losing to big plays, what they stressed all week: "More credit to them. They didn't even have No. 80 out there. The quarterback played a good game. They ran it like I thought they would. Their run stats weren't great but you could tell they had ability that way. Give them credit. Their guys made plays. We didn't."
On losing halftime leads: "I just think we got outplayed in the second half. You can ask anybody on the field or in the stands. It was clear to me. We got outplayed. So give them their due. They deserved to win. That was a good effort by their football team and their coaching staff in the second half."
On being up 21-7 at the half: "Yeah, but you've got to play the whole game. And here we are at the end and they've got more points. So if you coach enough you know that's a win for them and a loss for us."
On Oppenneer's near interception: "Coulda, shoulda. We could have played all of those deep balls up there and we could have made a few catches ourselves. We can all `coulda, shoulda' until we're blue in the face but the bottom line is they beat us. They deserve to win. We've got to get back to work and we've got to get better."
On the CSU pass defense: "We've got to play the ball better obviously. We've got to get a little more heat on the quarterback. We've got to control the ball on offense. This is a team game. We can't sit in here and talk about a defensive back not making a play. I mean we control the ball better on offense, we control the ball a little better, our receivers make plays, we get a little pass rush, this is a team game. That team outplayed our team. And that's probably enough said."
On why the Rams aren't making the plays they were early in the season: "Obviously we've got to look at things. And we had chances, to be honest with you. The ball was in our hands some on the defensive side of the ball and we dialed up some things offensively that we just didn't execute."
On the absence of Klint Kubiak: "That's part of the game. Guys get hurt. Other guys have to step in."
On the abundance of San Diego State receivers: "That's the thing that's surprising. They've got a receiver that's a first-day draft pick and he didn't play. Lord knows what would have happened if he'd been out there. But they had some guys that, referring back to the previous question, some guys go out, somebody else needs to come in and play as well or better. And that's what their guys did and we need the same thing when we get a guy getting injured."
On John Mosure's 130-yard rushing attack: "It's good. Against that kind of defense it's difficult to protect it if you're just going to throw the ball all day. So just like playing New Mexico last year, we felt like we needed to establish the run and had some success, particularly in the first half."
Head Coach Brady Hoke
General: "When you start a game and you have three consecutive penalties on offense, probably not how you want to start. And I think that mentally didn't do real well with us. And then defensively, we had a chance to make some plays and we didn't make them. And they did, and that's how that goes. But I thought our kids came out and showed a lot of resiliency in the second half and stayed together. We had some guys get beat up, and some guys stepped up and did the job."
On the play of Vincent Brown: "Well, the first half we didn't throw but one to him. He got a little bit of a thumb so he didn't play in the second half at all. And DeMarco (Sampson) kind of became the go-to guy. And Roberto (Wallace) made some plays in there. And I think the big touchdown obviously, was the one to Alston (Umuolo). And I think our defense really clamped down better and played better in the second half."
On whether he was surprised by the play of DeMarco Sampson: "Not really. Because he hasn't had much of a career. And I don't mean that in a negative way. But he's missed two years for injuries. And I think he's come back and he's been focused. He's been a really good senior leader for us and he has great passion for the game. So I wasn't surprised because I've seen him do it in practice."
On whether he was aware of CSU's tendency to allow teams back in the game: "To be honest with you, this is all about us and that's what we always talk about; us as a team and how we want to improve as a team. And how we want to grow and respect each other as a team. And that's kind of what we talked about at halftime."
On whether he was encouraged that his team seems to be playing better week after week: "Well, big believer that you got to improve week after week you play. We'll see, because we got a big game next week against New Mexico. The whole goal is to improve every day of practice and improve every test you have. Every opportunity. So hopefully we're improving."
On the play of Ryan Lindley without much of a running game: "Well, it's kind of nice to have the running game get going a little bit today. I thought Sully and Walter (Kazee) and even Davon (Brown) when he was in there, all three, did a really good job of running the football. Obviously Ryan (Lindley) is a big part of what we do. And the play-action game and some of the things Al (Borges) does with our quarterbacks is pretty good."
On the mentality at halftime down two touchdowns: "Just, we got to know ourselves as a team. And I just asked if we were playing to our potential, each and every guy. And if they were playing their best football and why. You're the one who's got to decide why you're not and what you got to do to play your best."
On whether there is an attitude change for this team year's team compared to last year's team: "Well, obviously I only know the attitude that we've been working on since January. But you play 60 minutes for a reason; you compete at the game for a reason. And that reason is to win. And as long as there's time on that clock and as long my number is being called, whatever I'm doing, and doing my job, then we're going to keep working."
CSU Player Quotes
CB Nick Oppenneer
General: "They are going to make big plays; they are Division I athletes, too. At some point we have to step up and make a play. I am just as guilty; I dropped two interceptions that could have changed the game. As a leader you have to make plays, somebody, somewhere, we have got to find a way to make plays. They made them, we didn't."
On making plays earlier in the year and not recently: "I wish I could say, `Oh it's this or it's this, or we just have to change this.' It just comes down to making plays. It's just like when you are little in high school, middle school, or whatever, you make plays, you win games. We are just not making plays and we have to find a way to do it."
On the second half being tough this season: "We had a player meeting and just sat down and talked. We said we needed to come out with more fire and I thought we did. The first drive of the second half we came out, and with the exception of a couple of routes they caught us on, we hung in there. They fought their way down the field. I think maybe we are just letting it get to us too much."
LB Chris Gipson
General: "In the second half we just came out sluggish. We are supposed to come out like we did in the first half. But I give them their due. They came out and scored 42 points. If you score 42 points in a game, you are supposed to win. We just came out sluggish in the second half."
On going 3-0 and losing five in a row: "Right now it really hurts. We came out 3-0 and lost five straight. That really takes a toll on the team, but we just have to fight and win these next four."
On playing Air Force next week: "They are a pretty good team and we are going to have to come to play."
QB Grant Stucker
General: "It is obviously tough. We just have to get back to fundamentals and just get back to the basics. There were some mistakes we made out there that were first-day, fall-camp stuff that just can't happen. We just have to figure out what is going on."
On SDSU scoring 42 points: "They played a great game; give them their due. They made more plays than we did. We could not get off the field on third down and had a lot of broken coverages. That just deals with that fundamental stuff and the offensive side of the ball did not hold up their side of the bargain. We just have to get better on all aspects of the game."
On getting out front and the leads not holding up: "It is really frustrating. We need to figure out what we need to do to keep that fire, that rhythm going, and keep the ball rolling. That is something starting right now we are going to have to figure out."
San Diego State Players
WR Roberto Wallace
On team's mentality being down 14-0: "Mentality was that we still had a lot of football to play. It wasn't over, and obviously it showed. If you keep that mentality and that positive attitude, you will be alright."
On second half play: "We just made small adjustments. We have good wide outs, we just had to step up and let everyone know that we were alright."
QB Ryan Lindley
On the victory: "We just came out and played ball. I am really excited with how the guys played. Going down 21-7 we really just weren't playing our game. In the second half we came out and we fought and played hard."
On his big day offensively: "In the last two weeks it has just been about slowing down the game. As a quarterback you feel like you have to do a lot of things and start rushing stuff and really not just kind of going through the motions. I think the other thing is, there are great guys around me, not only on the field but also the leaders on this team."
On WR DeMarco Sampson's big day offensively: "He makes it pretty easy; there is a big margin for error when you are throwing the ball to DeMarco. He is a physical specimen and the line gave us time to take our shots on the field and DeMaco made the plays."
On the difference in attitude between last year's team and this year's team: "You can't even describe the changes Coach Hoke has made in this program."
WR DeMarco Sampson
On coming back from having a few drops in previous games: "After last game my coaches came to me and said you know what, you are a better player than that; just move on to the next day. I believe our team has come together as a real team and we are going to fight until the end."
On what it means to him to have the type of game he did: "I've dreamed of this, but I think I was happier when I saw some of the younger guys score. It is a great feeling to see us gel together."
On having a breakout game after suffering through injuries his entire career: "It's amazing when your coaches believe in you because it makes a big difference. When the whole team believes in you, it makes you want to play every down like it is your last down."
On team's mentality: "Every day is a work day, and that is what the coaches teach. Once we got down we had to put our nose to the grind and just grind it out."
