Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Football Talks About Conference Opener
September 29, 2008 | Cowboy Football
OSU Football
Media Luncheon
Monday, September 29, 2008
Head Coach Mike Gundy Quotes
Opening Statement:
“We had a good win and a great crowd. One thing we talked to the team about before the Troy game was how when we played them down there the year before, they were tougher than we were. So we challenged our guys to be the tougher team out there on Saturday night. I thought they did a good job of taking care of business. We're in league play now and I think everyone is aware that from this point on the teams get bigger, faster, stronger and have much more depth. It's important for us to prepare well and to stay focused. Game plan stays relatively simple: take care of the football, try to force turnovers, play well on special teams and try not to give up big plays."
On being ranked:
"There's been a lot of talk about us being ranked. There is a lot of excitement on campus and a lot of excitement in the community. We are very excited about that. I don't really get excited about very many things this time of year because our coaching staff is firm believers on working and preparation and doing everything we can to give our players the best opportunity to win on Saturday. But I do think being ranked is very good and I'm excited for the team. I'm also excited for everyone involved in building this football program to a championship level, which is where we ultimately want to be. I think we took a good step last week."
On team improvement heading into Big 12 opener:
"I think our football team is better now than we have been in the last few years at this time. I like where our football program is in general. I still say you're going to find out how good you are as the season goes on. It's very important you stay healthy, guys stay fresh, the mental aspect of the team and their chemistry and how they care about each other is more important than most people realize. I've coached on teams that weren't very good and probably played a lot better and won more games than they should have. And then I've coached teams that should have won more games but they really didn't care as much about each other. I like where we're at right now as a team."
On Keith Toston:
"He has really matured as a person. He had a choice in preseason to get it done or he wasn't going to get to play very much. He said I need to take better care of the ball and I need to get healthy and strong. He had to overcome that knee injury. He's really done a nice job. I say this a lot because it's important to our staff: he learned a great lesson in life. He overcame the issue of taking a lot of heat from the public for not taking care of the ball. He had a knee injury, which is a real downer for an athlete. It's like having a bird dog but never taking them hunting. They just mope around all the time because they like to hunt. It's the same thing for an athlete. They like to go play. He lost that for a little while but he really reached down deep and has done a nice job coming back."
OSU Media Luncheon Player Quotes
September 29, 2008
Running Back Kendall Hunter
On his nickname:
“When I first came in my freshman year, someone gave me the nickname “Spud” after Spud Webb because he was like the shortest player in the NBA that could dunk. It kind of bothered me at first, but now everyone calls me by it, so I'm used to it.”
On Keith Toston and Beau Johnson:
“We go at it every day. We crack jokes on each other, but we also work hard competing against each other.”
Running Back Keith Toston
On being a Top 25 team:
“Any time you have a team that is playing well and winning, more fans will come out and support what you are doing.”
On how OSU stacks up offensively in the Big 12:
“There are a lot of teams out there that have great offenses as well. We have a lot of great players. Our offensive line is one of the best in the NCAA if you ask me. We have running backs like Kendall, myself and Beau. We have a quarterback like Zac, who is able to run and pass. We have guys like Brandon Pettigrew, DeMarcus Conner and Dez Bryant. To me, the sky is the limit for our offense. We just have to make sure we get better every weekend and are ready to play on Saturday.”
On losing to A&M by one point the last two years:
“It was something that we didn't do. We didn't finish the game. They kind of took it away from us at the end. It's a new year and we have a new team. I feel confident. We practice so hard and we work so hard together. We think we can go 1-0 each week.”
Offensive Lineman Andrew Lewis
On cutting down on penalties:
“It is something we have been working on. We can't be shooting ourselves in the foot. Our coaches have been harping on us to stop making those bad mistakes. “
On how it feels losing to A&M the last two years:
“It is one of the worst feelings ever. That and the Texas loss last year were our worst losses. Hopefully, this year it will be a lot better. You learn that you can't make stupid mistakes like fumbles. You have to play all four quarters. You never know when your mistakes will come back to bite you.”
On going into the A&M game this year:
“I feel like our team has more confidence. Our offense and defense are playing higher than they were at this time last year.
Tight End Wilson Youman
On the status of the tight ends:
“In practice, the tight ends catch the ball as much as possible. It really has helped me playing defense in high school to playing offense in college.”
On blocking for the running game:
“It basically starts with the offensive line. We are comfortable running the ball. Everyone is getting their blocks down, and the running back is running well.”
On confidence on offense:
“We are pretty confident in our running game and our passing game. Right now, our running backs are running, our quarterback is executing, our receivers are catching and our offensive line is blocking. We have come together as a team and are playing great.”
Wide Receiver DeMarcus Conner
On Losing to A&M the past two years:
“It's always going to be on your mind that the team beat you, but you shouldn't go out there looking for revenge, because you would be too worried about the revenge and not the task at hand. We just need to go out there and play our game and play like we've been playing. Everything else will take place.”
