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Coach Shafer Tulane Post Game Quotes
Syracuse vs. Tulane
September 21, 2013
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Syracuse Coach Scott Shafer
Opening statement:
“This was a very good team victory. I’m extremely pleased and proud of the kids.
We played a good football team today -- a team that was playing some good defense, running around and causing turnovers. I thought they were a well-coached team. We challenged the kids to win all three phases, and they did that.
There were some great things to see: 21 points off of three blocked kicks in the first half; Eight-for-eight in red zone scores; I though [quarterback] Terrel Hunt played really well; we challenged our kids on defense to shut out the second half.
I thought Tulane did a nice job. They hurt us in the one-back power game. They had a good scheme against us but I thought [SU defensive coordinator] Coach Bullough and the defensive staff did a great job in the second half to prepare the kids to fix what wasn’t as pretty as we needed it to be.”
On the Syracuse offense starting the game with three straight touchdown drives:
“That was one of [SU offensive coordinator] Coach McDonald’s challenges to the kids. Last Monday that was one of the first things he said was to start fast on the first drive and it was good to see. The kids were up to the challenge. I think they had a little bit of a chip on their shoulders. A lot of people said ‘Yeah you won last week but it was Wagner’ and Wagner is a good football team as is Tulane. The kids were excited to get back in here and try to make it look the way we want it to look and I was very proud.”
On the new uniforms:
“We have great tradition here at Syracuse. We always have. When they first approached me about the new uniforms I knew the kids would be extremely excited and I was excited for a chance to work hand-in-hand with Nike and develop and design products based on Syracuse -- the colors, the tradition -- and to do it with the number one company in the world is an exciting thing for our young kids and can lead to a lot of neat things.
The traditionalist will say ‘why are you changing the helmet’ and I get that. But I went back and I walked through our Hall of Fame and I looked at all the uniforms from the past. We aren’t wearing three-quarter sleeves any more with stripes down the elbow and we’re not wearing the old helmets. Times change -- whether I love it or not doesn’t matter. It’s about the kids who put it on the line. They’re excited about being a team that’s supported by Nike and getting to be creative with the design and use the best products in the world, both from a performance point of view as well as the design.
We want to keep true to the themes as we move forward in those designs but I’m excited. I know the recruits will be really excited. Our current players were involved with that whole process and will be as we move forward.”
On Syracuse’s 700th all-time win and looking forward to Clemson:
“It means a lot [to win the 700th game]. We have such a storied tradition here. It’s one of the most underrated traditions in the country in my opinion and I still think we have underrated fans. You can nit-pick and say there we don’t have enough people here and I understand that but the ones that are here I appreciate, I really do.
As we get over this victory and we get ready to go against one of the best teams in the country with a Heisman Trophy candidate (Clemson), I challenge our community to come out here and make this place the hardest place to play in the country. Let’s shake this place. Let’s have a blast. Let’s get our kids to play as hard as they can. Let’s get the fans juiced up to say ‘you only live once, let’s have a blast’. The best player in the country is coming into our house let’s see if we can’t trip him up a little bit.”
September 21, 2013
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Syracuse Coach Scott Shafer
Opening statement:
“This was a very good team victory. I’m extremely pleased and proud of the kids.
We played a good football team today -- a team that was playing some good defense, running around and causing turnovers. I thought they were a well-coached team. We challenged the kids to win all three phases, and they did that.
There were some great things to see: 21 points off of three blocked kicks in the first half; Eight-for-eight in red zone scores; I though [quarterback] Terrel Hunt played really well; we challenged our kids on defense to shut out the second half.
I thought Tulane did a nice job. They hurt us in the one-back power game. They had a good scheme against us but I thought [SU defensive coordinator] Coach Bullough and the defensive staff did a great job in the second half to prepare the kids to fix what wasn’t as pretty as we needed it to be.”
On the Syracuse offense starting the game with three straight touchdown drives:
“That was one of [SU offensive coordinator] Coach McDonald’s challenges to the kids. Last Monday that was one of the first things he said was to start fast on the first drive and it was good to see. The kids were up to the challenge. I think they had a little bit of a chip on their shoulders. A lot of people said ‘Yeah you won last week but it was Wagner’ and Wagner is a good football team as is Tulane. The kids were excited to get back in here and try to make it look the way we want it to look and I was very proud.”
On the new uniforms:
“We have great tradition here at Syracuse. We always have. When they first approached me about the new uniforms I knew the kids would be extremely excited and I was excited for a chance to work hand-in-hand with Nike and develop and design products based on Syracuse -- the colors, the tradition -- and to do it with the number one company in the world is an exciting thing for our young kids and can lead to a lot of neat things.
The traditionalist will say ‘why are you changing the helmet’ and I get that. But I went back and I walked through our Hall of Fame and I looked at all the uniforms from the past. We aren’t wearing three-quarter sleeves any more with stripes down the elbow and we’re not wearing the old helmets. Times change -- whether I love it or not doesn’t matter. It’s about the kids who put it on the line. They’re excited about being a team that’s supported by Nike and getting to be creative with the design and use the best products in the world, both from a performance point of view as well as the design.
We want to keep true to the themes as we move forward in those designs but I’m excited. I know the recruits will be really excited. Our current players were involved with that whole process and will be as we move forward.”
On Syracuse’s 700th all-time win and looking forward to Clemson:
“It means a lot [to win the 700th game]. We have such a storied tradition here. It’s one of the most underrated traditions in the country in my opinion and I still think we have underrated fans. You can nit-pick and say there we don’t have enough people here and I understand that but the ones that are here I appreciate, I really do.
As we get over this victory and we get ready to go against one of the best teams in the country with a Heisman Trophy candidate (Clemson), I challenge our community to come out here and make this place the hardest place to play in the country. Let’s shake this place. Let’s have a blast. Let’s get our kids to play as hard as they can. Let’s get the fans juiced up to say ‘you only live once, let’s have a blast’. The best player in the country is coming into our house let’s see if we can’t trip him up a little bit.”
