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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Postgame Quotes vs. Kent State
9/22/2018 | Football
Ole Miss 38, Kent State 17
| OLE MISS HEAD COACH MATT LUKE |
"I was proud of the kids bouncing back, getting up off the matt, and going to get a win. The defense played really well in the first half. They had seven sacks. So I'm happy to see them have some success that we can build off of and proud of that. We just couldn't get going; something was off a little bit. We were moving the ball, but just weren't finishing in the red zone in the first half. I did think we finished well in the second half and looked more like It was supposed to look. Guys started to make some plays. Again, overall, I am please we were able to go get a big win and a bounce back win getting off the mat. I am pleased that we are 3-1."
On handling the weather delay:
"The first one was halftime and we just used it to talk about adjustments. The second one was long, so we got them some food and made sure we relaxed. We stayed in the halftime locker room just let them get comfortable. That second one did get a little long. Overall, I'm proud the way they handled the last nine minutes. As a coach you are worried that they will lose their focus, but they went in and punched it in. Then were able to get the ball backed and run the time out. I was very pleased that they kept their focus. All of these wins are precious, and each win counts the same. I am pleased the way they came back out and finished it off. "
On the makeup of the defense:
"It was a little out of necessity. Benito and Josiah are both banged up. I was proud of those guys, and it did end up working out that way with some of that speed did help us. They were more of a spread team that threw it, so we had more opportunities to attack the quarterback. I am very happy to have some success, it looked like we had a few more that he scrambled out of. I think we could have had a couple more, but overall really pleased and hopefully we can build off of that."
On being able to score in the second half:
"We ask our quarterback to make a lot of decisions, and for whatever reason down in the red zone it stalled. We had a penalty that called back a touchdown. We just never could get our rhythm going. I don't think it was an effort issue. We got clicking in the second half, and guys were making plays. I do think they were playing two high coverage making us earn everything underneath. I thought the decision making in the second half was a lot better."
On special teams concerns:
"The first field goal right before half, those were big points and we weren't able to get it done. He was able to bounce back and make one in the second half, and he kicked much better in the second half. I think with young kickers, Mac and Luke both, you are going to have to live with the inconsistencies and growing pains until they grow up. With a full body of work Luke has done pretty good. Mac has been a little bit inconsistent, but he is really talented. He had a couple of good ones today, but he also missed one. You don't want any special teams penalties, but as far as those guys go little inconsistent. We hope to be able to build off the positives."
| OLE MISS DEFENSIVE END MARKEL WINTERS |
"I give all glory to God first and foremost. It was challenging after last week when we did not show up like we should have. The coaches this week really challenged us to focus on them (Kent State.) Also, to do better and perform."
On building confidence:
"It was more so to see us working together. The confidence we found was in each other. Just to see everyone knew their job and that they could do it. Play for each other. That was a big thing. Playing with a purpose is important. Our theme this week was that you have your what and your why. You have your job and you know what you are supposed to do, but there is a reason why you are doing that job."
On getting better:
"Repeat the things we did this week. Tune in a little more of course. Just focus in. We had a lot of mental errors last week but we tightened down."
| OLE MISS RUNNING BACK SCOTTIE PHILLIPS |
"Today felt great. Especially after coming off of a tough loss last week."
On his style of play:
"I would say I am just a downhill back. I try to make one cut back and make guys miss, then get to the open field"
On trusting the big guys:
"I am just trusting my guys and being patient. I just have to allow them to get in front of defenders and open holes for me."
On playing in Death Valley:
"I most definitely have thought or dreamed of playing down there before. I know it is going to be a hostile environment. I am ready. I am going to embrace the challenge."
| KENT STATE HEAD COACH SEAN LEWIS |
"First and foremost, I want to thank all of our friends, family, and fans who stayed through all the rain delays. It was great to take the field and to see our family members and our friends and family there in the stands, cheering our kids on. I was really proud of the way our kids handled everything that they've been through on this trip. Obviously, we came up a little bit short and need to do a better job preparing again to maximize these opportunities that are in front of us and to take care of these situations so that our kids can come out on the right side of things. But again, I'm really pleased with the way the kids fought, and there was a lot of adversity on this trip. I'm really, really pleased with the way they handled everything. I just told them that they were like water; they went with the flow regardless of what happened, and I'm really pleased with that. We need to continue to grow, get better, and find ways to win these ball games."
On the weather delays:
"Yeah, so a lot of that was obviously out of our control. I just told them to stay loose and to stay hydrated. We had more than enough provisions: uncrustables, granola bars, Gatorade, and anything else that you could possibly want as a Division 1 athlete. Again, the kids did a great job. We made adjustments, you know we didn't want to chase ghosts during that time. The kids did a tremendous job handling the adjustments, handling the circumstances, and handling the situations. When it was time to go back out on the field, I thought that they were ready, they were prepared, and I thought they did a nice job."
On QB pressure:
"Yeah, I mean they have a good front and they got to some rush packages where they put all their defensive ends in and they won some one-on-one matches up front. We have to do a better job. It's kind of a similar story as Penn State. Some of those are on Woody (Barrett), where he has to get the ball out of his hands. Some of them are on the receivers, they need to win so that Woody had options to through to. Some of those are on the offensive line, they have to win their one-on-one matchups. Some of those are on us as coaches, where we have to do a better job knowing the down and distance situations, and not putting our kids in positions. Obviously, you give up seven sacks in a game, it's going to be tough to be on schedule, when you're getting off schedule in that way. We have to do a better job at keeping him upright."
On special teams:
"It was huge, obviously for them to get the field goal, but to get that thing tied, and then to change the field and do that was something we had not done. Not only that, but we also changed our kickoff return game to have a kickoff return of 42 yards and another kickoff return of 32 yards. I was really pleased with the team effort today."
On the touchdown pass from Price:
"It's a part of who we are, it's a part of what we do. You know, Jacob asked me about it as we were walking off the field. It's not a gadget play, it's what we do. It's a part of our team. Obviously one of our core values is to have fun. This game is a beautiful game, we enjoy playing it, and as many different ways that we can get guys to spread the wealth and enjoy the fun of throwing touchdown passes, we are going to do that."
On how close they came:
"It's kind of been the story in these power ball games in the first half. We're right there knocking on the door, and we have to find a way to overcome and persevere and knock down that wall."