Coach Pasqualoni Quotes Prior to the Rutgers Game
On status of players who were injured against West Virginia
"My bigger concerns are what the soreness will be in R.J.'s (Anderson) shoulder and how quickly Jameel (Dumas) can get the swelling out of his heel. He got his ankle rolled up on. It got really swollen. We kept an eye on Adam Terry over the weekend. He appears to be doing well but it will be a couple of more days until before we know exactly where he is. For the most part, we would have everybody else back."
On what positives can be taken from the West Virginia game:
"At times on defense, against a very hard offense to defend, I thought we had a chance to play well on Saturday. What bothered us more than anything was not the fact that they didn't huddle, because we've played against the no-huddle and we've played against West Virginia obviously with the no-huddle, it was the speed of the no-huddle and the multiplicity in the substitutions was something we had to get adjusted to. In the first drive of the game, we got it to a fourth and four, and had we been able to make that play, I think we would've been able to get the guys over to the sideline and settle down a little bit more. But the grouping and the call got us on that fourth down where we just weren't lined up as quickly as we needed to be. They snapped the ball and we didn't have all 11 guys exactly where we needed to have them. The positives are that we had a chance to play really well on defense and at times we did. The kids battled on all of those sudden changes on defense. I thought on Robin's (R.J. Anderson) drive right before the end of the half, he handled well. I thought Troy (Nunes) came in and played tough. He took a couple of tough shots and hung in there. He stood in there against the pressue and the blitz. I thought he did a pretty decent job."
On Damien Rhodes' struggles in the last four games:
"Unfortunately on Saturday twice he took his eye off the ball. The one pitch was a very catchable pitch. There was a defender running, and I think he wanted to see if we could make the block on that guy as he was getting the ball, which is a natural thing to do. On the other, we ran a power play and he lost his footing. Those two plays were unfortunate but can happen. I think we know that Damien is a talented guy. He's learning the system, and he's learning what this issue of Division I football is all about. He's tried to do the best he can. I think he'll be fine. I think he just has to hang in there like the rest of the team."
On whether he will change his plan of attack:
"I think you have a new plan every week. The challenge for us isto put together a game plan that we feel can be productive against Rutgers on both sides of the ball. We're in the formulation of that right now. Is it going to be go to the spread offense? No it's not going to be that. Our system on defense and offense is multiple enough. We don't need to add anything more to it. We just need to come up with a game plan we feel comfortable with and can be productive."
On how R.J. Anderson's injury will affect his preparation this week:
"We're going to start Troy (Nunes) this week. We're going to pick up where we left off in the game last week. I want to go out there today, and every day, this week and go 100 miles per hour. I don't want to hold back. I think that in the game (against West Virginia), Robin (R.J. Anderson) played a very solid game. I thought Troy played a very solid game. I thought Troy came in and did a really good job and played really solid football. He took care of the ball, was tough. We're going to start where we left off and go out there and practice and have Troy be the starter today."
On whether the players are losing confidence:
"I'm not that worried about the kids. When you play well, you play with confidence. On Saturday in that first drive of the game (against WVU), when the defense is struggling to get lined up, it's awfully hard to play with confidence. We played better once we settled down. Offensively, when you turn the ball over that way, I don't know how you play with confidence. If you play well, if the kids are executing, you build emotion and momentum and you play with confidence. That's the bottom line. What the kids have to do is watch the film. If they focus and concentrate and execute, they'll play with confidence."
On concern there was a lack of effort on defense toward the end of the West Virginia game :
"The last drive of the game we missed a few tackles and we missed some gap control. It got sloppy at the end. I still think we have guys trying. Those sudden-change situations are tough situations, and I thought they responded pretty well. They gave effort."
On playing Rutgers:
"We've had battles with Rutgers. In a conference game in any conference in America, anything can happen. On Saturday they played very tough against the run. They are playing better on defense. They are playing better against the run. Their third down defense is good. The quarterback has settled down. (Ryan) Cubit really settled down against Virginia Tech. He played well. He threw the ball well."
On how to build the team's confidence:
"You play confidently when you prepare well, practice well and you get on the field on Saturday and you know what you're seeing and doing. That's how you build confidence. That's how you play with confidence. That's how you play with emotion. That's how you play 100 miles per hour. Those things have to happen."
On why R.J. Anderson has struggled this season:
"In my opinion, the better the team plays, the better the cast of people around him, the better the quarterback is going to play. I think you have to do something to take the pressure off of the quarterback, not add pressure to the quarterback. I don't know if we have helped the quarterbacks and supported them as much as we need to."
On whether there is a lack of talent on the team:
"We have talent. We have some young guys. In the Auburn game did we support them ? yes. There have been glimpses of what we can do, we just haven't done it consistently enough. We have the talent to do it."
Player Quotes
Keeon Walker
Senior
Safety
On playing Rutgers
"Defensively, we're ready to get out and play a great game in the Dome and get back on track. We've made a few mistakes and that's all it takes to lose a game. Hopefully this week we can get out there and practice and correct those mistake and get a big win against Rutgers."
On the defensive secondary's struggles this season:
"As a secondary, having a group of guys who have played a lot of football, including myself and Will Hunter and Latroy Oliver, we should be able to make more plays. We're just not getting it done. As a whole, we haven't played well all year. You can't just pin it on any group of people. When you go out there, all 11 guys have to play as one. That hasn't been the case this season. As a unit, we all have to pick it up together in order for us to get it done."
Lenny Cusumano
Junior
Tight End
On playing Rutgers:
"This team is going be prepared. We're going to do our best to have maximum preparation and planning for this game. Offensively we're excited to get back into the Dome and get a win."
As a New Jersey native, feelings about playing Rutgers:
"We've got a lot of winners on this team. We're not used to this right now as far as being 1-6. As long as we bring that winner's mentality and winner's attitude into this game, we feel we can go in there and beat them. We've had problems with them in the past. We have them in the Dome. Hopefully we'll have a lot of fans and we'll get the Dome rocking again and get a big win."
On Troy Nunes starting at quarterback:
"Troy is a senior. He's been through a lot of wars. He always has confidence when he's in there. As a quarterback, you have to be in a rhythm. We're going to go with Troy this week. He was in a rhythm the last drive of the last game. We?ll see how it goes."
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On how team is sticking together despite 1-6 record:
"You're with each other so much you can't help but be a family and stay on each other's back and stay supportive of one another. I really think this team has done that well. It's hard to gain confidence when you're down like this. As Coach (Pasqualoni) said, as long as we're prepared and confident going into the game that we know our stuff, we can go in execute."
