Oklahoma State University Athletics
OSU-Texas A&M Post-Game Quotes
October 05, 2008 | Cowboy Football
Oct. 4, 2008
Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy
On the game
“It was a good win for us. I was really, really proud of the defense. One of the things I talked about in the locker room was that there has been so much talk go on outside of our building about the offense outscoring everybody. They wonder if the defense can hold up. In the first half, (the defense) scored two touchdowns for us and set us up for a couple of runners. That not only kept us in the game, but also kept the momentum from swinging in Texas A&M's favor. It was a great lift for them. Give a lot of credit to the defensive side of the ball for what they were able to accomplish in the first half.”
“We weren't very good in the first half offensively. There were a lot of mistakes. We put the ball on the ground on snaps. Dez (Bryant) had two or three procedure penalties where he came out of his stance early and got a little rattled for whatever reason.”
“We were tremendous on special teams today. I know that we had some big time returns. I credit that to Joe DeForest, our special teams coordinator, and to the individual coaches that work with each unit. Special teams has become such a big part of college football today because there are so many skilled guys on the perimeter that can make big plays. Our players really stepped up and met the challenge because Texas A&M had been really good on special teams.”
“Offensively, we need to settle down and just execute and run the system. The guys did that. We kind of locked them into what we thought we would have success with in the second half. The quarterback ran the football like he did when he was trying to win the job. As long as he does that, it will benefit our offense and our team in a big way. He runs very aggressive and very tough and gives us that added dimension on offense. On the last drive, we took the ball with seven minutes, and we asked our lineman to be physical. We asked our backs to take care of the ball and said we're going to run two plays. We're going to block and run the football when they know we're going to run it. We challenged them, and they met the challenge so I was very proud of them. They were able to eat up the clock.”
“It was a great win for
On the improvement of the defense
“You have to give a lot of credit to Coach (Tim) Beckman and the defensive staff. They've stayed the course. I think in my opinion in coaching, you decide what your scheme and what your plan is and you stay the course so the players can believe in you. You get them to play hard and bring in guys who fit the system. We haven't arrived on either side of the ball, and we will continue to get better.”
OSU linebacker Patrick Lavine
On his interception for a touchdown
“It felt really good. I've been a little slow this season, and it just feels good to make a big play.”
On forcing turnovers
“Turnovers are what win the game. They make up for a lot of mistakes on defense. It's just another way to get our offense the ball. It is especially helpful for the kind of offense we have.”
On defense making a difference
“We are a lot better defense than we were last year. We have made some great improvements. We're making big plays, forcing turnovers and people are in their right places. We are just growing up.”
On helping the offense score
“The offense is going to have days like that. It's just a good feeling that we are going to be able to make it up on special teams and defense. We are also going to have our days, and the offense will pick up the slack. It just tells you how good of a team we can be.”
OSU linebacker Andre Sexton
On
“They are a great team. They had a young quarterback that came in there and made plays. We were trying to contain him all day. Our offense sputtered a little bit, but we had their back. We had to go out there and try to make a stop. We came up pretty big with some scores.”
On getting to the quarterback
“The coaches were calling the plays, and the offensive line was not picking up the blitz like they were supposed to. I was coming off the edge and getting some pressure. I missed him a couple times, but that is just a credit to him as a great athlete. He is going to be something special in a few years.”
On defensive improvement
“I think we are just having fun this year. We have a new swagger to us. Everyone has bought into the defense and the plan. It has all come together, and it is great to see that. It just feels good to be playing well on defense, finally. Every year people were wondering if the defense was going to be better this year and help the offense out. People are starting to see that. We are just going to keep turning eyes and get better each week.”
OSU quarterback Zac Robinson
On running the ball more this game
“They were finally giving us some of the looks we were looking for on the inside zone. The guys blocked well. The tight ends did a great job. There were some holes open, and we just ran hard.”
On
“For some reason, some of the stuff wasn't open. They gave us a completely different look than what we were expecting. We made some adjustments and had a good second half.”
Texas A&M head coach Mike Sherman
On the game
“We didn't play very well. I think that's pretty obvious to everybody in the stadium and to our opponent. We turned the ball over five times in the first half, which is something that we have been very negligent with this year. We've turned the ball over way too many times. We're losing that battle. When you turn the ball over that many times, two for touchdowns, it makes life hard, particularly when you've got a young football team. We didn't handle it very well. I thought our defense played well in the first half, well enough for us to win. I think 21 of the 28 points came off muffs or interceptions or fumbles. We had a punt returned for touchdown. Our defense played well in the first half, and then it was a tale of two halves.”
On what he said to his team after the game
“I said, ‘Give (OSU) all the credit. They played well, they deserved to win the game. We certainly did not deserve to win that football game, particularly with five turnovers and the way we played in the second half.'”
On
“Give credit where credit is due. They outplayed us, outcoached us, they out everything. We need to give them the credit and go back to the drawing board and get fixed what needs to get fixed.”
On Dez Bryant
“He's a great receiver, there's no question about that, not just as a receiver, but as a punt returner. He's just a phenomenal athlete and when the ball is in his hands he's very dangerous. We knew that coming in.”
On
“We did battle in the second half and try to get back in the ballgame. We did move the ball, I thought, and did some good things that are positives that, hopefully, we can build off of. It's just hard to swallow the score of the football game at this point.”
On the turnovers:
“Overall, I was pleased with the guys battling back and trying to get back into the ballgame. I talked about at halftime that we had been shooting ourselves in the foot. You know, a team kicks your butt, they kick your butt, but you certainly can't give a team that scores 51 points a game on average, you certainly just can't hand them 17 points. That's basically what we did, and they took full advantage of it. They made those plays and those points, but we certainly were participants in giving them, those points.”
Texas A&M running back Mike Goodson
On the game overall
“I think we played a great game, defensively and offensively. We just made a ton of mistakes. We didn't really deserve to win in my eyes. We just turned the ball over and over again, something we are going to have to work on.”
On his injury
“I went down and tried to brace myself when I was falling on my arm, and I kind of hyper-extended it. It's a little sore now.”
On turning the ball over in the first half
“They were very aggressive. We've just got to start holding on to the ball and making good decisions. It's really tough. We've been working hard all week and then we come here, and it's like a huge upset. But we'll come back, we'll be ready.”
On losing the first conference game
“It was really disappointing. I think we should have given a better look at this team. We matched up pretty well with them.”
On Dez Bryant
“Dez Bryant is a great player. I tip my hat to him. He did everything his coach asked him to and performed to his best ability. I don't know how to explain how good he is. He's just a wonderful athlete. He's one of the best I've ever had to cover. He's just so big and talented. It's like when you jump with him, you come down and he's still up there. His hang time and just being a big guy makes him just a great player. There are no negatives in his game.”
On losing the conference opener
“It's really tough. As a senior being around for a long time, it's just really disappointing. We have to round up the troops and start practicing again really hard on Monday.”
