Syracuse Student-Athlete Quotes
Syracuse Football vs. Louisville
November 6, 2010
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Student-Athlete Quotes
Ryan Nassib, Junior, Quarterback
On how much did he think the pressure limited what he did offensively:
“We knew they were going to come out with a lot of pressure. That was our game plan, and they did a good job.”
On how surprised was he about the pressure:
“Yes, we knew there was going to be a lot of pressure most of the game. Sometimes that is the way it is. But yes, they did pressure a lot more than we thought.”
On how frustrating the few final drives of the game were:
“They were definitely frustrating. I personally had a couple of errors on a few drives that I take responsibility for those. That was tough, we needed those two drives and Louisville came up big.”
On how much it takes out of him after the two dropped touchdowns:
“No, they don’t take much out of us at all. Stuff happens, that is the game.”
On what he would change about the last couple drives:
“I definitely wish I made a couple more checks.”
On how he thinks Andy Phillips played today:
“I think Andy Phillips did great today. He really stepped his game up. It was kind of a last minute decision to put him in there and play – he had a lot of fun and did a great job.”
On if he is looking forward to going on the road:
“We’re looking forward to it because we have our eyes on our next game. It’s an opportunity to get another win.”
Chandler Jones, Junior, Defensive End
On how much he thinks this feels like a missed opportunity:
“Louisville is a good football team. You have to just flush this. Hopefully we can beat Rutgers.”
On how well he thinks the team executed:
“I think we went out and executed. But they out-executed us.”
Alec Lemon, Sophomore, Wide Receiver
On his dropped pass in the end zone:
“I took my eyes off of it. There was nothing I could do about it.”
On what he thinks about how his teammates refuse to put blame on him and whether or not he blames himself:
“Drops happen in a game. All you have to do is bounce back. Plays can happen like that. As a person, you do blame yourself, but I have to overcome that.”
On how the team kept passing him the ball after the drop and what that makes him think of his team:
“They feel that I can bounce back. It feels good that my team is behind me.”
On how frustrated the offense was today:
“We wanted to take what they gave us like we did in the first half. We have to go out there and execute better.”
On the intense pressure by Louisville:
“We were aware of that before the game that they were going to bring a lot of pressure. We were ready for that. They gave us a couple of pressures that we weren’t able to pick up, but we played well too.”
On his and Ryan Nassib’s chemistry on the field:
“It starts in practice. We have a good connection. We feel like we can do anything with each other. We do that in practice and then it translates to the game.”
Derrell Smith
On the difference in play between the first and the second halves:
“They went in and made some half time adjustments. We made some mistakes and they capitalized on them.”
On the overall energy of the team:
“I can’t say they had more energy. I think we had a lot of energy on defense as well, but they came out and played a good game.”
On Louisville being a physical team:
“I think we came out and did a good job on some plays. We could have done a better job on others. I don’t think they were more physical than us, but they are a pretty good football team.”
On disappointment of not qualifying for a bowl after this game:
“It is very disappointing, but the season isn’t over and we have a couple more games to go out and reach our goal. We are going to go back to the drawing board and watch the film and fix our previous mistakes.”
On the mood in the locker room after the game:
“It was like any other locker room when you lose a game. There was not a lot of cheering, but you have to keep your head up. You can’t put your head down. You have to go out and say we lost a game, but next week we are going to go out and do a better job.”
Delone Carter, Redshirt Senior, Running Back
On the feeling in the locker room after the game:
“We wish we had a couple more minutes on that clock and we wish we could have gone out there and won that one.”
On the difference in yards gained in the first and second halves:
“We got out there in the second half and we didn’t capitalize enough. We needed to move the ball more.”
On passing Floyd Little on all-time rushing yards:
“It is an honor, but I will recognize that and focus on that after the season.”
On the disappointment of the offense:
“When we are out there and have those opportunities, we need to go out there and get them. We need to execute and there was certain yardage we left on the field.”
Justin Pugh, Sophomore, Offensive Tackle
On there being a certain drive that brings the team together:
“On every drive we try and score. That is our goal every time. You have to put points on the board to win and I think we kind of let down our defense today. We didn’t put the points on the board when we needed to.”
On the letdown of not securing bowl eligibility:
“I am just focusing on Rutgers next week. I am focusing on getting better by watching film and I am preparing to go out and get a win next week.”
Doug Hogue:, Senior, Linebacker
On the disappointment of the loss:
“It is difficult to deal with. We have to execute correctly during the game to capitalize.”
On what he would say to the team in order for them to focus on the next possible win:
“I don’t think I need to say anything to the guys. They know what we need to do in order to achieve our goal and what it takes to keep going toward that.”
On Syracuse’s energy:
“I can’t really speak for everyone else, but I came ready to play and I think the other guys came ready to play too.”
On what Coach Marrone said to the players after the game:
“He said we need to keep our heads up and just keep going. We need to work hard to continue winning games.”
On if he thinks they will get another win in order to secure bowl eligibility:
“Definitely, I knew that from the beginning of the season. It has been one of our goals and I know we are going to achieve it.”
Ryan Bartholomew, Redshirt Senior, Center
On frustrations the offense had to deal with:
“Our execution was frustrating. I don’t think we went out there and played to the best of our ability.”
On Louisville’s defensive stops in the fourth quarter:
“It is very frustrating. On offense, when we don’t move the ball, you can’t help but get frustrated. We need to get out there and execute better and work on improving for next week.”
On Ryan Nassib’s contributions to the team:
“He takes the role of quarterback and offensive leader very seriously. He is a great leader and everyone looks up to him. He does what he needs to do for our team to be successful.”
Andrew Lewis, Redshirt Senior, Defensive Tackle
On Syracuse’s defense being scored on by Louisville’s second string lineup:
“Every time you get scored on no matter who it’s by you get offended as a defensive player. We need to go back and watch the film to get better and focus on getting better to play Rutgers.”
On not achieving a win to secure bowl eligibility:
“Well my sense is we need to take our mind off the bowl game and just go out and play the next game and focus on winning that. We can’t make the postseason if we can’t get through the regular season so that is where my mind is. We need to go out there and beat our next opponent and focus less on achieving a bowl bid.”
