Syracuse Student-Athlete and Assistant Coach Quotes
Quarterbacks coach Major Applewhite
On quarterback Perry Patterson’s play…
“He went back in this week and went to work. There were things that he need to improve on and did. He did a great job preparing during the week. I could tell by the way he was talking and by the way he was glued into what Buffalo was going to do to him. I am proud of the way he performed today. Knowing the quarterback spot, I tell him all the time that we are different. We are held to a different standard at this spot, and I was proud of the way he came back.”
How would you rate Patterson’s play today?
“I don’t make a lot of judgments out on the field. I always make sure I get on the film because sometimes what you see as a coach on the sideline and in the booth is vastly different from what is actually happening behind the facemask. Guys are at different angles and see different things, so I don’t give him a grade right after the game. I wait until I can get into the film room and I can see things but as far as not turning over the football, A+. That’s my biggest thing, is protecting the ball. There was one play where he was getting ready to be sacked, and he threw the ball away right over the middle and I got on him about that. But other than that, I thought he did a great job protecting the ball. He tucked and ran it when he had to. He made some third down conversions for us with his feet on some quarterback runs, and also some times when he just saw daylight because none of the receivers were open.”
On Patterson…
“He did a much better job, and I think he is continuing to get more and more familiar with the offense each and every week. What we need to do as coaches is continue to put him in the offensive spots where he can be successful. Since he is getting more familiar, I think he will be able to play more consistently.”
Punter and Kickoff Specialist Brendan Carney
On his kick offs…
“I’m always working on kick offs, and I think each year I get a little better. My freshman year I was putting them at the five yard line, then last year at the goal line, and now this year I’m putting them in the end zone, which is right where I want it to be.”
On his role as a leader…
“I think I might be a leader on special teams. I like to think that some guys on the team look up to me. If I need to bail them out of a tough situation, they are confident that I can do that. I’m not very vocal, and I’m not very big and meaty like some of those guys, so it’s a little tough to be looked at as a team leader. But when we are out on the field they know I can get the job done.”
Free Safety Anthony Smith
On today’s win…
“Both the defense and offense played a great game. We pitched a shutout and the offense finally got rolling. As long as we do that we will be successful in the next game.”
Quarterback Perry Patterson
On the offense’s play…
“It felt good today. It felt like we were moving in the right track. Obviously there’s still a lot of work, but it was good enough to beat Buffalo. We just wanted to get into some sort of groove to gain momentum for next week. The defense is leading the team right now, so the offense had to step it up and try to put some points up on the board.”
On preparing for next week…
“I thought we were ready for West Virginia. We just couldn’t get the running game going. That’s our strength right now since we are still trying to figure out some of the receivers and things like that. We came in and we didn’t lose any confidence because we know what kind of offense we can be.”
Running back Damien Rhodes
What do you see when you are given the ball on a handoff?
“There were eight jerseys coming in front of me, so I just tried to find those creases and hit it.”
On the play of the offense…
“The more experience you get a real game situation, the more you can understand this offense. We didn’t shoot ourselves in the foot as much this week. We had fewer penalties on offense that put us in situations like first and 15 or second and 20. I think we were more disciplined this week with what we were doing.”
On the slow start to the game…
“They just gave us different looks. You always need to change something according to what they do. We just wanted to see what they were doing and what they were giving us, so once we figured that out we started executing what we wanted to do.”
Defensive end Ryan LaCasse
On today’s strategy…
“We were doing a couple of different things from the West Virginia game. This week we kept it a little more simple and were able to rush after the quarterback a little more. I don’t care whether I am rushing the quarterback or getting the pick off. I think it’s good that we can go out there and mix stuff up and make offenses think a little more.”
On the importance of today’s win...
“Confidence is something that we needed. Defensively we kept doing our thing and we shut them out. I think the offense started to get rolling and I think started to click.”
On the goals of the defense…
“We always try to pitch shutouts. At the bare minimum, we want to keep them out of the end zone. But that’s all we can do. We put it on our shoulders to do our thing, and we are going to let the offense do their thing. We are going to root for each other, but its going to be both sides of the ball fighting.”
How much did Damien’s (Rhodes) play help the defense?
“It was great because we got a little more of a break than we did last week. Any time we can stay off the field a little longer it’s a great benefit for the defense and offense.”
Offensive coordinator Brian Pariani
On the play of the offense…
“We did a lot better than we did last week. The guys were focused and we had a chance to make some big plays. And obviously when you can make big plays, you are going to benefit the whole team.”
On quarterback Perry Patterson’s play…
“I didn’t get to watch the tape yet, so I can’t go through every fine detail. But I think that he was better in the pocket and better on the ball. When you get things generated on offense, it is going to help your team.”
On running back Damien Rhodes …
“He had some big runs. It was important, obviously, to get that running game going. When that happens, you are able to do a lot of things. He is a great runner, and it was great to see him be able to run in this offense.”
Wide Receiver Tim Lane
On true freshman Nicholas Chestnut who moved to wide receiver from cornerback during the week …
“I think he looked good out there. He also looked really good in practice, surprisingly. He came in the middle of the week and picked up the offense pretty quickly. We had a certain set of played that we made him learn. We didn’t try to through a whole lot at him at once. But he looks natural and it looks like he was a receiver from the start.”
Running Back Kareem Jones
On running back Damien Rhodes…
“He played really well, basically. Everyone that was there could tell that he did his thing out there. He has definitely taught me a lot both on and off the field about how to handle pressure and how to handle myself so my persona isn’t smashed.”
