TCU-SMU Postgame Quotes
9/25/2021 3:46:00 PM | Football
TCU – SMU POSTGAME NOTES
TCU 34, SMU 42
Sept. 25, 2021
TCU Head Coach Gary Patterson
On SMU's performance
As far as SMU is concerned, they did a great job as far as the game is concerned. I thought SMU wanted it more. I told them, when somebody hates you, you have to change your frame of mind and they hate us, it's simple. This has been a war no matter what the records have been, since the beginning of us playing SMU. It doesn't matter what the records are, it's going to be one of the toughest games. You have to come ready to play.
On the defense:
We didn't cover anybody and we didn't tackle. I've been telling them for a while, and you've watched it in all three ball games. [The interceptions] kept us in the ball game – it could have been a lot worse. The fourth down stop on the goal line as well, it could have been a lot worse.
It's been a long time since we've given up almost 600 yards. Like I told them, there's only one person who takes the blame on that right now and I'm the one that's supposed to fix it.
On being pleased with the offense
Yes, we scored 34 points. We can't let them have 42 points, but one of the things is, when you get into a shootout, you can't kick field goals. We have to do a better job of that down in the red zone.
TCU Quarterback Max Duggan
On the team's effort:
"Offensively we've gotta play better, we've gotta score more points—we can't shoot ourselves in the foot. We can't turn the ball over."
On not connecting with Quinton:
"I missed him. That's about all it was. I gotta do a better job. I've been working on it, and I gotta keep working on it."
On fixing things going forward:
"Obviously it's a crappy loss and we're not happy about it, but we gotta go in and move on. We've got conference play coming up–we've got Texas next week. So we've gotta move on and work on the things we need to work on and execute–and hopefully get on a roll going into conference play."
TCU Linebacker Dee Winters
On TJ Carter moving to Cornerback:
"It threw me off a little bit. But at the end of the day, we have to be able to communicate and help each other out—and be on the same page."
On what he said to his team after the game:
"Just to keep their heads up. It's just one loss, and it sucks that it was our rivals, but we just have to bounce back and come harder next week. Let this be our reason to come out and play hard next game."
On starting conference next week:
"We gotta keep our heads up. Stay strong. We've got conference next week, and we really gotta step it up and show these guys that what we've been working on is gonna work."
- - -
SMU head coach Sonny Dykes
On the game:
"I'm real proud of our guys. I thought we played exceptionally hard today. That's what we told them all week. I felt like we had a shot if we played really, really hard and played well. I think that getting off to a fast start was important to us. It always is when you play on the road. Our guys had a ton of confidence coming into this game. I don't think was anybody on our team that didn't expect us to win. That's where it all begins. You have to have that in order to have any kind of program that anyone cares about or pays attention to."
"Coming in, I didn't think we'd run for 350 yards. It was obviously the difference in the ball game, our ability to run the football and run it from the beginning to the end. We ran it when they knew we were going to run it and that's a big deal, to be able to execute when they know you're going to run it. I'm really proud of our offensive line. Our backs ran incredibly hard. It really begins up front. I can't say enough about the offensive line and how well they played. We just played hard-nosed, tough, physical football."
"Defensively, I thought we played incredible in the second half. Zach Evans early in the ball game, that's an impressive guy now, wow. He's explosive and capable of making big plays. I thought what we did defensively, particularly in the second half, other than that drive at the end of the half, we just didn't give up a lot of big plays."
On being surprised SMU isn't getting any votes in the AP Top 25 Poll:
"That's something I don't care about. We're not a blue blood. I don't think half of the guys that vote even look at our scores. I don't really care about that. Last week we go to Louisiana Tech and we win on a Hail Mary and everyone goes "oh LA Tech isn't very good." LA Tech has won six bowl games in the last seven years. By the way, when was the last time a Power 5 team went to Ruston, La., and played LA Tech. I can tell you it's a long time ago because I used to be the coach there and not one team would come play us in Ruston. Nobody would. That's a very difficult game. It's hard when you play there. No one in the Power 5 is going to play there. I don't blame people. I vote in the top 25 too. I find myself voting for a six-loss Auburn instead of a 12-win Central Florida. It's just the way it is and the way it's always going to be. I don't really care. I just control my team and try to do the best that we can do."
On what happened on the field after the game:
"I don't know. I think our guys tried to plant the flag at the middle of the field. If they did, they shouldn't have. I'll talk to them about that. We don't want to do something like that. There's nobody in the world that has more respect for TCU and for Gary Patterson and how they run their program, with the longevity he's had here, there's no one in the world that has more respect for him than I do. If that happened, that shouldn't have happened. I feel bad for that. I apologize for that. Our guys were excited. It's a battle for credibility for us. It always is. When they have a chance to prove themselves on a big stage, they want to take the chance and do it. I don't blame them. I hope that didn't happen, but if it did, we'll make sure it doesn't happen again. That's certainly not out of a lack of respect of TCU because our players feel the same way I do."
SMU wide receiver Danny Gray
On the win:
"It feels great. I feels great to come out and get the victory with my brothers, knowing they played their hearts out just like I did. We just made routine plays."
On his touchdown catch in the first quarter:
"It set the tone early. It showed them that we were coming out and going to play. We came to play, and we did not come out to play any games with them. It was a great feeling."
On the offense's performance:
"[We] made a big statement. It showed that we never give up. Through hard times, and when we are up, we play 60 minutes."
On the offensive line and run game:
"I saw what the offensive line did. They stepped up and became gladiators. They just wanted to win."
On the team's confidence:
"We know every game is going to be a dog fight, but every game we come out confident. We always come into a game thinking we are going to win. I have trust in my guys, and I know we are going to pull it out."
On the defense's performance:
"The defense played great, especially in the second half. They only gave up one touchdown in the second half. They played lights out tonight."
On the team's mentality at halftime:
"The vibe at halftime was 0-0. We have a full game to play, 30 minutes, and we are going to play for those 30 minutes."
SMU quarterback Tanner Mordecai
On getting a win in a rivalry game:
"I have never been a part of the rivalry, obviously. But, to come here to Fort Worth, with the hostility built up for it, Dallas versus Fort Worth, it felt really good. To come into a Big 12 house, and play the way we did, it was a big step forward for us."
On what message the team sent starting 4-0:
"It shows the hard work and everything we went through during the summer. It shows our trust in our coaches. The coaches had a great gameplan for us. And it shows us playing really hard. I think that is what you saw out there on the field today. We just played really hard on both sides of the ball, and that led us to the win."
On the running game:
"The offensive line played their butt off. We rushed for 350 yards. That's crazy. That set up the entire game on offense. I had way too many turnovers, which is something that I need to getter better at. But, for us to be able to go second and 10, just hand the ball off, and get 15 yards is a huge step for us. I was very happy to see the offensive line play the way they did."
On the defense's forced fumble to begin the second half:
"It was huge. We basically got the ball coming out of the half. That turned the momentum for us in a huge way. After two plays, we punched it in. That was a huge play."
TCU 34, SMU 42
Sept. 25, 2021
TCU Head Coach Gary Patterson
On SMU's performance
As far as SMU is concerned, they did a great job as far as the game is concerned. I thought SMU wanted it more. I told them, when somebody hates you, you have to change your frame of mind and they hate us, it's simple. This has been a war no matter what the records have been, since the beginning of us playing SMU. It doesn't matter what the records are, it's going to be one of the toughest games. You have to come ready to play.
On the defense:
We didn't cover anybody and we didn't tackle. I've been telling them for a while, and you've watched it in all three ball games. [The interceptions] kept us in the ball game – it could have been a lot worse. The fourth down stop on the goal line as well, it could have been a lot worse.
It's been a long time since we've given up almost 600 yards. Like I told them, there's only one person who takes the blame on that right now and I'm the one that's supposed to fix it.
On being pleased with the offense
Yes, we scored 34 points. We can't let them have 42 points, but one of the things is, when you get into a shootout, you can't kick field goals. We have to do a better job of that down in the red zone.
TCU Quarterback Max Duggan
On the team's effort:
"Offensively we've gotta play better, we've gotta score more points—we can't shoot ourselves in the foot. We can't turn the ball over."
On not connecting with Quinton:
"I missed him. That's about all it was. I gotta do a better job. I've been working on it, and I gotta keep working on it."
On fixing things going forward:
"Obviously it's a crappy loss and we're not happy about it, but we gotta go in and move on. We've got conference play coming up–we've got Texas next week. So we've gotta move on and work on the things we need to work on and execute–and hopefully get on a roll going into conference play."
TCU Linebacker Dee Winters
On TJ Carter moving to Cornerback:
"It threw me off a little bit. But at the end of the day, we have to be able to communicate and help each other out—and be on the same page."
On what he said to his team after the game:
"Just to keep their heads up. It's just one loss, and it sucks that it was our rivals, but we just have to bounce back and come harder next week. Let this be our reason to come out and play hard next game."
On starting conference next week:
"We gotta keep our heads up. Stay strong. We've got conference next week, and we really gotta step it up and show these guys that what we've been working on is gonna work."
- - -
SMU head coach Sonny Dykes
On the game:
"I'm real proud of our guys. I thought we played exceptionally hard today. That's what we told them all week. I felt like we had a shot if we played really, really hard and played well. I think that getting off to a fast start was important to us. It always is when you play on the road. Our guys had a ton of confidence coming into this game. I don't think was anybody on our team that didn't expect us to win. That's where it all begins. You have to have that in order to have any kind of program that anyone cares about or pays attention to."
"Coming in, I didn't think we'd run for 350 yards. It was obviously the difference in the ball game, our ability to run the football and run it from the beginning to the end. We ran it when they knew we were going to run it and that's a big deal, to be able to execute when they know you're going to run it. I'm really proud of our offensive line. Our backs ran incredibly hard. It really begins up front. I can't say enough about the offensive line and how well they played. We just played hard-nosed, tough, physical football."
"Defensively, I thought we played incredible in the second half. Zach Evans early in the ball game, that's an impressive guy now, wow. He's explosive and capable of making big plays. I thought what we did defensively, particularly in the second half, other than that drive at the end of the half, we just didn't give up a lot of big plays."
On being surprised SMU isn't getting any votes in the AP Top 25 Poll:
"That's something I don't care about. We're not a blue blood. I don't think half of the guys that vote even look at our scores. I don't really care about that. Last week we go to Louisiana Tech and we win on a Hail Mary and everyone goes "oh LA Tech isn't very good." LA Tech has won six bowl games in the last seven years. By the way, when was the last time a Power 5 team went to Ruston, La., and played LA Tech. I can tell you it's a long time ago because I used to be the coach there and not one team would come play us in Ruston. Nobody would. That's a very difficult game. It's hard when you play there. No one in the Power 5 is going to play there. I don't blame people. I vote in the top 25 too. I find myself voting for a six-loss Auburn instead of a 12-win Central Florida. It's just the way it is and the way it's always going to be. I don't really care. I just control my team and try to do the best that we can do."
On what happened on the field after the game:
"I don't know. I think our guys tried to plant the flag at the middle of the field. If they did, they shouldn't have. I'll talk to them about that. We don't want to do something like that. There's nobody in the world that has more respect for TCU and for Gary Patterson and how they run their program, with the longevity he's had here, there's no one in the world that has more respect for him than I do. If that happened, that shouldn't have happened. I feel bad for that. I apologize for that. Our guys were excited. It's a battle for credibility for us. It always is. When they have a chance to prove themselves on a big stage, they want to take the chance and do it. I don't blame them. I hope that didn't happen, but if it did, we'll make sure it doesn't happen again. That's certainly not out of a lack of respect of TCU because our players feel the same way I do."
SMU wide receiver Danny Gray
On the win:
"It feels great. I feels great to come out and get the victory with my brothers, knowing they played their hearts out just like I did. We just made routine plays."
On his touchdown catch in the first quarter:
"It set the tone early. It showed them that we were coming out and going to play. We came to play, and we did not come out to play any games with them. It was a great feeling."
On the offense's performance:
"[We] made a big statement. It showed that we never give up. Through hard times, and when we are up, we play 60 minutes."
On the offensive line and run game:
"I saw what the offensive line did. They stepped up and became gladiators. They just wanted to win."
On the team's confidence:
"We know every game is going to be a dog fight, but every game we come out confident. We always come into a game thinking we are going to win. I have trust in my guys, and I know we are going to pull it out."
On the defense's performance:
"The defense played great, especially in the second half. They only gave up one touchdown in the second half. They played lights out tonight."
On the team's mentality at halftime:
"The vibe at halftime was 0-0. We have a full game to play, 30 minutes, and we are going to play for those 30 minutes."
SMU quarterback Tanner Mordecai
On getting a win in a rivalry game:
"I have never been a part of the rivalry, obviously. But, to come here to Fort Worth, with the hostility built up for it, Dallas versus Fort Worth, it felt really good. To come into a Big 12 house, and play the way we did, it was a big step forward for us."
On what message the team sent starting 4-0:
"It shows the hard work and everything we went through during the summer. It shows our trust in our coaches. The coaches had a great gameplan for us. And it shows us playing really hard. I think that is what you saw out there on the field today. We just played really hard on both sides of the ball, and that led us to the win."
On the running game:
"The offensive line played their butt off. We rushed for 350 yards. That's crazy. That set up the entire game on offense. I had way too many turnovers, which is something that I need to getter better at. But, for us to be able to go second and 10, just hand the ball off, and get 15 yards is a huge step for us. I was very happy to see the offensive line play the way they did."
On the defense's forced fumble to begin the second half:
"It was huge. We basically got the ball coming out of the half. That turned the momentum for us in a huge way. After two plays, we punched it in. That was a huge play."
Players Mentioned
TCU Football | Sonny Dykes and Players Weekly Press Conference (vs. Abilene Christian)
Tuesday, September 09
TCU Football | Sonny Dykes and Players Weekly Press Conference (vs. Abilene Christian)
Tuesday, September 09
Head Coach Sonny Dykes and Players - Weekly Press Conference (Bye Week 1)
Thursday, September 04
Football: Postgame at North Carolina
Tuesday, September 02
