Nebraska 21, TCU 7
8/25/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 25, 2001
Head Coach Gary Patterson
Opening Statement:
"I thought our kids fought hard. I thought with a younger football team, we came in and after the initial shock of being in front 78,000 and playing a team like Nebraska, I thought they settled down, especially on defense we played hard. I am really excited about the group that we have. I think even offensively, we will keep growing up and the offensive line will give ourselves a chance."
"We lost a really good player today, Bo Schobel, for the season to anterior cruciate injury. We'll have to move on. We have always done that as a football team. We have got to find a way to win 11 more ball games. Our goal, now that this is done, is to be 11-1. Just take one game at a time. The next most important game is North Texas."
On Nebraska:
"I will give Nebraska a lot of credit. They play hard and play really well on defense. There is a lot of talk about the way they play and they came out and did a really nice job. Offensively, (Eric) Crouch is the real deal. When he had to, he made plays, made a difference. That's what winners do and that's what teams that win championships do."
On Stopping the Option:
"We practice against the same kind of offense. We had a couple freshman mistakes from our strong safety early. Once we got our option responsibilities down, we felt like that one of the things people are scared to do against the option is they are scared to blitz it. Because we play against it everyday in practice, we understand a little bit more about it. So we were able to take some chances and got fortunate on some plays and got some lost yardage. You have to play Nebraska. You can't just sit there in zone and play a base front all of the time. You have to create some lost yardage plays and for most of the game we were able to do that."
On TCU's Defense:
"We just blew a couple coverages. Everything we do coverage wise, sets up how we are going to play the option on the perimeter. We were having a little trouble with their personnel groups. They were holding them on the sidelines and doing a good job. We kind of got a feel for what they were later on in the game. We were a new staff together. One of the things you forget about is that you gain chemistry not only as a team, but also as a staff. Really we came together later on as a staff too. We started to get a feel for personnel and who was talking and what was going on, especially defensively."
Linebacker Chad Bayer
On the Game:
"I'm somewhat disappointed. I mean you really can't feel good after losing a game. I think the defense played OK, but not to the best of our ability. We have some things to work on. Nebraska found a lot of our weak spots. After today's game, the young player should be grown up. Guys like Marvin Godbolt and Devon Davis came through and really stepped it up today"
On the Difference After the First Quarter:
"With a lot of young guys it takes time to get use to the speed, especially Nebraska, they are fast. Once we picked it up, we started playing pretty decent."
Tight End Matt Schobel
On the first quarter touchdown pass:
"I was blocking that play and my guy didn't rush, so I piled out and Casey (Printers) found me. I really wasn't surprised to see the ball thrown to me. Casey usually looks to one of the deeper guys down field. Casey is the type of quarterback that you always need to know what he is doing. He can always find the open receiver"
Freshman Marvin Godbolt
On His Individual Performance:
"The first couple of series I had to get use to the speed of the game. After that, it just felt good. I had a lot of confidence in myself today. It was an advantage to sit out last year and watch our upperclassmen."
On the Team's Performance:
"Today's game was a measuring stick. We knew as a team we had it in us. We just had to come up here and play our game."
Nebraska Head Coach Frank Solich
Postgame Quotes
GENERAL:
"They (TCU) are a very physical football team. They were a very good defensive team last season and statistically they were the best. We had too many plays that went for minus yardage. Our defense played extremely well, they read things well. They kept us in the ballgame. I think we will be a better special teams team than we were last year."
"We didn't pick things up well inside, but we did get back to where the option played a very big part in the second half. Our power game struggled. We just need better protection. I think it showed today that we are capable to be a pretty good passing team."
"Both teams saw second and long a lot for a good share of the afternoon and we weren't picking up much in the power game. There was no consistency. If you're not carefull you can be taken out of a game quickly."
"As the season goes on we'll be able to tell where we're at offensively and defensively. They were not able to establish a running game and certainly we'll see that on down the line."
ON THE PLAY OF ERIC CROUCH:
"Eric did well. He was probably frustrated at the situation with as long of yardage we were in. He did not panic. He hung in there and pieced together some drives to get some points on the board."
ON WHAT NEBRASKA GOT OUT OF TODAY'S GAME:
"We got a lot out of it. We were in a tough football game and responded. Our young players played well. Certainly we'll be a better football team because of today's game."
ON TRUE FRESHMAN LINEBACKER BARRET RUUD:
"He can cover the field. I think he will be a great addition to our team."
ON THE RETURN GAME:
"Three different people returned for us today. A time or two we came close to getting something broke. Those guys are excellent athletes."
ON CROUCH'S SHOULDER:
"He threw the ball very well today. His shoulder seemed to be no problem. The ball seemed to be where it needed to be and I think he threw the deep ball well."
ON THE SECONDARY:
"The secondary played well. Printer is an excellent throwing quarterback. He can also scramble as evidenced by his pass in the first quarter."
ON SOPHOMORE PUNTER KYLE LARSON:
"I thought he had a great game. He got the ball off really well. It had good hang time and good depth."
Nebraska Player Quotes
Nebraska quarterback Eric Crouch:
"For the most part we are able to get the job done. We were ready to go out and do the best job we could. Overall, things could have been better, when we watch the game tapes and break it down, we will probably see better what adjustments we should have made. There were some things we could do better, picking up blitzes and such, but that's something we have to do as a team."
"I don't think we were confused. You have to give TCU some credit, they did things late (in the snap count). For the most part they did what we saw in the game film, but there were some things that we didn't see on film that they were able to execute."
Nebraska rush end Chris Kelsay:
"As a defense, I think we always plan on following the "One play, one game" motto. I think we look forward to each game as they come, so this week we will concentrate only on Troy State. We will not put anyone ahead of any other team."
"It was a great thrill coming out today. We were serious and focused on playing a good-looking TCU team. They showed they can play ball, but it was nice to come out and hit someone other than from your own team. We were able to make some plays at key times and show that we have some real potential on defense."
Nebraska I-back Thunder Collins:
"I was a little nervous at first this week, but I was able to get some sleep last night and didn't feel too bad today. And when we took the field, I really started to get pumped."
"Obviously I didn't get 200 yards rushing today, but that is okay because I want to be a team player. I want to just help the team any way I can. There were about three plays that were just right there, that were so close. But that let's you know there are 11 guys on the field who all have to click and work together because just one defender can throw the whole thing off and disrupt the flow."
"It feels good to win the first game of the season. It never is something where you like to lose, but it definitely helps to win. And it is good when you can be a part of that, which was all I wanted, to just help the team however we needed."
