Head Coach Pasqualoni’s Press Conference – December 13, 2004
On if the atmosphere was different before the Boston College game than it was before the Temple game:
“The atmosphere before the Temple game was fine. We practiced well and we were totally aware of Temple’s history late in the season. We made it a point to bring up the fact that Temple had gone to Virginia Tech late in a season and won. We were not unaware of what we were facing. I think what happened in that game was that we weren’t totally healthy on defense in that game. DeAndre LaCaille came back in against Pittsburgh and played pretty well. His shoulder was still sore. So, we went into that Temple game with a musical chairs system in the secondary. That is not making an excuse, it is just what happened. We weren’t as solid as we were going into the Boston College game. From a preparation standpoint, I think we were looking forward to the Temple game.”
On injuries to Kelvin Smith, Damien Rhodes and Walter Reyes:
“Kelvin is healing well and he has practiced well. He has not missed any practice. Damien is fine, he has practiced well. Walter has practiced well. Yes, Walter is 100% and ready to go.”
On Walter Reyes:
“It is awfully nice for him to have a chance to be healthy and play in his last college football game.
“I think his mark can be made more significant by helping this team win its seventh game. I think the biggest focus on this team is getting win number seven. We are hoping we can take the momentum you can get in a game like this in December and take it into January and the offseason. I think the team winning that is the significance here.”
On if getting the seventh win is important to improve upon last year (6-6):
“You are always trying to win, whether it is seven, eight, nine or whatever it is. You are always trying to win the game, you want to win one more game. It would be nice to finish 7-5. Who doesn’t want to win a bowl game, it is the last game. It leaves you with a certain taste, so it is nice to win the last one.”
On the team’s schedule:
“The kids have exams today, so it is not a practice day. Tomorrow there are no exams in the morning, so we will bounce back and forth. If exams are in the morning we will practice in the afternoon, and vice-versa.”
On how hard this is on the student-athletes:
“I would say that because of the exam schedule it has worked out to be pretty good. There are mornings when there are no exams. We started preparations for finals a couple weeks ago. The kids have done a pretty good job of being on top of things. We have had study halls and all of the exam and project preparations. The kids have had time to get that stuff done, they just have to prioritize. Exams are important and you have to make that choice. I think our guys have, they have been working and I think we are going to do OK from an exam standpoint.”
On if Diamond Ferri deserves more carries:
“Well, I don’t know if it is deserves, life is not about entitlement and what you deserve. We will have Diamond ready to play on offense and he will get some reps on offense. We feel much better with Walter Reyes and Damien Rhodes being healthy, but we are still going to take the precaution of having Diamond ready to go.”
On Georgia Tech’s two quarterbacks:
“From what they have shown, and it is limited to what you can see on the film, obviously Reggie Ball is the starting quarterback and we have to get ready to play against him. The other quarterback (Damarius Bilbo) has had a limited number of snaps and appears to have a strong arm. He is a converted wide receiver, so he is in the game a great deal. He is a big kid and is very athletic. They can both do the type of things that Georgia Tech would like to do in their offense.”
On Georgia Tech quarterback Reggie Ball throwing interceptions:
“Well he has had a number of interceptions, but he has also had a number of very impressive plays and throws. Their wide receivers are a very athletic group. Calvin Johnson may be one of the better freshman wide receivers that you will see.”
On what are the biggest concerns about Georgia Tech:
“Offensively, they have athletic quarterbacks and the wide receivers are very good. P.J. Daniels has been around and he is a very good running back. (Rashaun) Grant is also a very good running back. Their offensive line is a good looking older group of guys, three seniors, I believe. There are a lot of concerns. We have to come up with a way to move the football and that is not going to be easy.”
On forcing mistakes from Georgia Tech’s quarterback:
“I don’t know how many mistakes Reggie Ball makes, he makes some awfully good plays. I think maybe at times he gets a little anxious and tries to get the ball into a narrow window. I have also seen a couple of those throws and they have been a pretty impressive throw.”
On Georgia Tech’s games against Virginia and Connecticut:
“I think Georgia Tech, probably played Virginia a little closer than we played them. We made some very critical errors against Virginia. The scores were comparable, but I just think that they did a better job against Virginia than we did. The Connecticut game was very similar. Georgia Tech played very tough on defense, Connecticut was not able to generate a lot of points. I think that is evidence that teams have not been able, with great consistency, to move the ball against Georgia Tech.”
On his 6-2 record in bowl games:
“Well, I think I attribute it to the fact that the kids and the coaches have done a great job of balancing the fun and the game. We have to do well on exams. We have to have excellent preparation. Then we go to the bowl site and balance having fun with preparing for a game.”
