OSU Postgame Quotes vs. Iowa State

Oklahoma State Head Coach Mike Gundy

Opening statement:
"That was a good college football game. I had warned our team last week about Iowa State and the ability they have to move the football. Their quarterback is a good player and they'll spread you out. They have good runners, good schemes on both sides of the ball, and they made some really nice adjustments on us. It took us a long time, offensively, to adjust with them.

"Defensively we made a down-front adjustment in the fourth quarter with their running game. It was a good win for us. The guys learned how to fight back. We did that before. (Mason Rudolph) played average and missed some throws. When you miss throws and you get behind the chains, it's hard to make it up. (Punter Zach Sinor) was excellent, our kick coverage was excellent. It was a good battle with special teams on both teams. We ran the ball okay at times, and there were some times where we turned some guys loose inside, I think. Obviously, I'll have to watch it and see.

"We need a week off. This was a tough week for us. We had several guys that didn't play and we had several guys that played that didn't practice this week. I've never been a big fan of guys playing in games that didn't get much work during the week, but we really didn't have much choice from a depth standpoint. They did okay, but recognition for some of those guys wasn't good because they weren't out there (during the week). We need the time. We've got some guys that are beat up, so we'll let them rest and get back to work next week to get ready for Kansas."

On if he was worried the team wouldn't be able to come back after falling down 17 in the fourth quarter:
"Not really, because we can score fast. If we were in a conventional offense, we would have been in trouble. We have the ability to score really fast, and we have playmakers that can pick up big chunks of yards. I didn't feel that way, but I didn't feel very good either."

On the importance of having James Washington on the field after a limited week in practice this week:
"(The defense) plays differently. You go back and watch it and study how they play when he's in the game compared to when he's not, they're going to get an extra guy in the box in the running game."

On what changed in the final 20 minutes of the game:
"Really the final 18 or 17 minutes, because we weren't very good until right up until the end. We changed what we did running the ball a little bit. We did it with more three backs. We were able to use the little play pass differently than what we had. We started attacking the flats a little more. We got a little impatient in the first half, and sometimes that happens. Even right now, I don't feel very good about the way we performed on offense. I think we were very fortunate to come out of this with a win."

On the impact of not having offensive lineman Larry Williams available on the running game:
"It didn't help, but I wouldn't say it was that alone. What happens is you have a guy who moves into guard that hasn't practiced at guard and his communication with the center and the tackle is a little different. I know this sounds fairly elementary, but it's not and there were a couple of times where we didn't get that guy up on the right backer. We need to improve in those areas, but the communications between those five guys is pretty important."

On punter Zach Sinor's performance:
"He's been super for us. One thing you don't see in the statistics is that there have been a few snaps that haven't been great, and he's gone up and gotten the ball or scooped the ball. His target punting was excellent like always. The last one, I think they caught it on the five. The one before that landed on the three and it needs to land around the seven. But still there was hangtime on it, and the coverage was poor. We didn't do a good job of getting down there, flipping our head and finding the ball. That will be something we improve on in the open week. We needed to do a better job on that punt."

Offensive Coordinator Mike Yurcich
On what needs to improve:
"We've got to improve on our run game. We have to continue to work on keeping the defense off balance. Short yardage was a disaster tonight. We'll get better in that area."

On Jeff Carr's big run:
"It was awesome. It was big time. He's maximizing his opportunities and now we'll give him more."

On getting a win heading into a bye week:
"It's really big, it's really important and it's another lesson that you can't take anything for granted."

Defensive Coordinator Glenn Spencer
On Iowa State's game plan:
"They've got a good offense, a good scheme, a good running quarterback. We had to make adjustments and find answers quick."

On the win heading into the bye week:
"Tremendous win, great win. It was fantastic and we are going to enjoy it."

Mason Rudolph
On going into the bye week:
"We feel good and it is much needed rest. It's been a long haul these past few games and had some guys getting beat up. It'll be good to relax, get our bodies back and prepare for Kansas. I am very proud of this team and how we've battled back and fought through it. It couldn't have come at a better time."

On the 17-point comeback:
"A lot of teams are trying to take away the deep threat from us because we are so lethal down the field. They are throwing different looks at us that we haven't seen in the previous five games of the season. I have to give the credit to our coaching staff for making great adjustments at halftime and making sure that we have some schemes to work with to execute and we executed well."

On Washington's performance, with him being questionable going in:
"He did a great job all week. Didn't practice much but he did a good job staying in it mentally and he made a lot of big plays for us. It was huge for him to be on the field."

Jhajuan Seales
On his touchdown in the first quarter:
"It was actually a play set up to the running back. But Mason had the eyes and saw me uncovered. It was great to have the chance to make some moves in the open field and get in the end zone."

On the 17-point comeback:
"We came out of halftime and started doing short yardage plays since they were playing over the top. James Washington and Chris Lacy made some great plays for us, our defense executed very well out of the half and we ended up getting the win."

On going into the bye week:
"It feels good to be 2-1. It gives us a great chance to recover, rest our legs and learn more about Kansas because they had a great game against TCU."

Vili Leveni
On Defensive pressure:
"We just stayed after him. We stayed disciplined in the pass rush and made sure we weren't giving him any lanes to scramble."

On the two-quarterback look:
"They both brought different dynamics to the table. We just had to adjust according to them."

On the 17-point comeback:
"We just had to get our momentum rolling again. Tre Flowers really set it off with the forced fumble. That really got our momentum rolling for us. Once it came back to us, we never let go of it."

On going into the bye week:
"We need it. We've been going hard since fall camp so this week is going to be well needed for us to rest our bodies and prepare for Kansas."

Kenneth Edison-McGruder
On his first start:
"It felt great. It was awesome to get into the game and make some plays to help the team win. It felt great to get out and get my feet wet and get comfortable and make some plays"

On defensive pressure:
"We were able to get some pressure, and just get after him. We played some great coverage. I was blitzing of the edge too and me blitzing set my other teammates up to make plays. We played as a team and played well as a unit."

On halftime adjustments:
"They come out doing something different each week. They came out with a spread look, had some empty formations and they ran with the quarterback quite a bit. So we came back in and made some adjustments at halftime. We just did what the coach said and it work out fine."

Iowa State Head Coach Matt Campbell

Opening Statement:
"Obviously, that was a tough loss for our football team. I give Oklahoma State credit. I thought in the second half, their kids made plays a little eerily to last week when we had opportunities to finish off the football game but we just didn't. We'll evaluate that and continue to work at it. I do love our kids, and I thought it was a gutsy performance, but we just have to learn to finish and that's part of what we're doing."

On whether this week's game felt like last week's for Iowa State:
"It did and it didn't. I think the feeling was the lack of execution down the stretch. We had some guys open on third down that didn't make the catch and there were just some small detail things we're lacking when we need them the most. I think the belief of can we play with anybody we play, is there, it's just the matter of how do I put the dagger in them. And the reality is I have to work harder and do the detail things better than everyone else. Obviously, these are painful lessons to learn but these are lessons that must be learned if we want to take the next step, and the next step is winning these games."

On the offensive execution in the fourth quarter:
"I think a lot of it had to do with execution. We had to make plays and we had guys open, and I think our play calls came in good situations, but you have to execute with the ball in your hands and make the catch. Whether it's a better throw or whatever, there were a couple of third-down plays where our guy's wide open, but we just didn't make the play."

On who has to step up on the team:
"Our kids could have tanked it after we lost to Northern Iowa. They could have tanked it when we got blown out by Iowa, but they haven't. I think the one thing I feel really good about is that our kids believe the reality of who has to step up are our best players, and they need to continue to make plays. Those are things that separate between winning and losing and obviously we're talking inches now. We have to find ways to continue to get better. I said this two weeks ago, but A players need to get A's, and the reality of it is our A players need to get A's and we have to take games like this. We can't leave it in the hands of whatever, and these are hard lessons to learn, but the videotape never lies. It tells us everything we need to know about what we need to do to get better."

On the team's improvement since taking over the program:
"The reality is I don't think about that. We know the expectations and what it takes to be successful. These kids have bought in lock-stock-and-barrel, and I love these kids, I told them that after the game. I love their toughness. We could have easily come in here after last week's game and gotten blown out, but these kids are really working hard. It stinks that we don't get the reward of a victory, and I don't believe in moral victories, but to say that our kids aren't getting better and that we haven't been correcting mistakes we made last week, and that we haven't been improving is false."

Joel Lanning
On this game compared to last week against Baylor:
"The thing that is different about this week, is that last week we were back and forth with Baylor the whole game. This week, we went up by 17 points and we had that lead. I don't know what it is, but that's what the main difference was. We have to figure out a way to maintain it and not take the foot off the gas and keep playing football."

Allen Lazard
On what is going on in the fourth quarter with the team and what has to be done to correct it:
"We just have to finish. Not only in the fourth quarter, but in the second half. We left a lot of plays out there. We had two turnovers and I have to step up. I probably had three or four drops this year on third down. As a captain and as a veteran player, I need to step up and make those plays."

Brian Peavy
On if this game feels like last week's game against Baylor:
"Yes, you could say that. We're a growing team that's trying to work on executing and finishing all four quarters. I feel like we just need to continue to take steps and make progress."

On if it's surprising how close their games have been:
I wouldn't say it's a surprise because we have the capability and skill set. It's more of a process of learning how to execute and learning how to win. That is one thing we're trying to enforce here and build a culture around here."

Oklahoma State University Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Jeff Carr

Kenneth Edison-McGruder

Tre Flowers

Chris Lacy

Vili Leveni

Mason Rudolph

Jhajuan Seales

Zach Sinor

James Washington

Larry Williams

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