Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State-Boise State Postgame Quotes
Fresno State vs. Boise State
Nov. 25, 2017
Fresno, Calif.
Head Coach Jeff Tedford
On his feelings after today’s victory…
“To send the seniors up the ramp with a victory is great. It is another game and we have one more to go. I cannot tell you how happy and gratified I am to see all of the hard work paying off for these guys and this coaching staff who have put so much into it. Boise State has a great football team, we have a lot of respect for them and now we have to go and do it one more time. We will have a lot of hard work going into this coming up week, but for tonight, we can enjoy this win and our guys will feel good about themselves, especially the seniors. It is a great honor for them to leave the stadium today with a victory.”
On sticking to the blueprint of playing…
“There were no turnovers on either side, for them or us. It was a really clean and hard-fought game. We had some big plays in there; our defense stepped up on a couple of short-yard situations and did a really nice job. We made some big plays in the passing game, which was great. It was a hard-fought game that could’ve gone either way and I am sure it is going to be the same next week.”
On the crowd…
“That was much more like it. It was the first time I had heard the ‘FRESNO… STATE’ chant and the stadium was rocking. I saw the wave get going in there and that was really awesome. I want to thank the fans for coming out and sending these guys off the right way. I appreciate their support out there. It makes a big difference for our players and it makes it a hostile environment for the other team coming in here. I really appreciated our fans for coming out and creating that environment for us today.”
On the message going into next week…
“The same message that it is every single week. It is one day at a time. We will watch film tomorrow to try to get some mistakes cleaned up, have our banquet and then get back to work. Our approach never changes. We know this next one is for the Mountain West Conference Championship, but we will prepare for it the same way we do every other game. The guys know that and they will know what to expect next week. We have got to get healthy for sure, that was a very physical football game. We have to get healthy and get prepared.”
On being 9-for-16 in third down conversions…
“9-for-16 is pretty good. We haven’t been great on third down, but there are a lot of times where games have been dictated on what we do on third down. 9-for-16 is a good percentage and we will continue to work on it. We got stuck in a lot of third-and-long early in the game, and that is what happens when you’re aggressive in first and second downs. I thought we did a good job of running the football at the end. We have to continue to work at it, third down is a critical thing.”
On Nathan Madsen’s recovery and the team taking the Milk Can to him after the game…
“They love their teammates. Last night, we were sitting in here and all of the seniors got the chance to say something to their teammates. This was about the seniors and tomorrow’s banquet will be about the seniors and the rest of the team. I am not sure what Madsen’s status is but I am sure he will get an MRI and find out the extent of the injury. It is always emotional when you play your last game. All he could say when he was out there on the field hurting was ‘I want to be in here. I want to be in here.’ That really shows the commitment he has to his teammates to be a part of it. He has been a major part of it through the whole thing. Nate has been one of those guys who bought in to things in terms of leadership. It was heartbreaking seeing him lying on the field in his last game in this stadium. I hope everything is fine with him once the MRI happens. He has been great for this football team.”
Aaron Mitchell, C
On the Milk Can trophy…
“It means victory. Bottom line, it’s victory. We’re 3-for-3 on trophies and it’s a great way to leave a legacy for this team.”
On getting the crowd into the game…
“I think it’s been two years since I have heard it that loud. I think it’s been a long time coming. I can’t thank the Red Wave enough for showing out today. I don’t think they really understand how much they play a factor in this. Their energy, players vibe off that. It really brings a sense of pride to play for The Valley. It was awesome and it was a great feeling. I’d like to thank the Red Wave for coming out and showing out today and making this day a special day for all of us.”
On how much pride the team can take from this game…
“It’s immense pride. Coach Tedford brought back that saying, “Pride and tradition of Bulldog football will not be entrusted to the timid and the weak.” This team has bought into that, there’s no doubt about that. We say it out on the field, we say it walking out, we say it after a win and we say it after a loss. There’s a lot of pride in this program. We have coaches that have played in this uniform and they came back and entrusted that in us. It’s really an honor to play here at Fresno State. It’s an honor to play offensive line here. O-linemen take great pride in playing here. As an offensive lineman, we’ve had o-linemen come back and talk about how Fresno State o-linemen are a special kind. I take great honor in that and I know the other four do. It’s an honor to be a Bulldog and it’s an honor to play here.”
On the message for next week’s game…
“It’s just another game. Time to go back to work. Enjoy today, but it’s just like another work day and it doesn’t matter who we play. Boise is a great team and we’re going to have to prepare for them again. I’m looking forward to it. It’s back to work tomorrow, back to the chalkboard, drawing it up and grab your lunch pail and get ready for work.”
On the emotions after today’s game…
“A lot of things. I’ve got a big family and a lot of family came here. You really have to feel the lowest of the lows to understand the highest of the highs. I’ve said that multiple times. It was a great feeling. I looked up and saw my mom and dad in the stands. It’s just a great feeling. It’s more than I could ask for in my time here as a Bulldog. I am grateful.”
On what has been the most consistent aspect of the team since the UNLV loss…
“I think that it really brought us back together as a team. I’m not saying that we weren’t a team in the beginning, but I think it brought back that chip on our shoulder. I think it really made us realize that you don’t get a lot of opportunities. You have 12 games in a season, you pray you get a 13th and hope you get a 14th. But you have 12 guaranteed games and you can’t take any of them for a loss. A loss is a loss and we took that in stride. It brought us back together and it brought us back to work. We’re a blue collar team. Grab your lunch pail, clock in and go to work.”
On who has gone through the recent lows and highs of the program…
“The offensive line has been together with me and there’s been a lot of guys on this team. There are still guys on this team from my sophomore year. There are a ton of guys here from last season; it’s almost the same team with a couple of great additions. We have some new running backs and a new quarterback who’s playing his butt off. Even if they weren’t here, as a leader you can express what it’s like and show the joy that you can’t take any win. Every win has to be joyous. Whether it’s by a point or by 20, don’t take it for granted. It takes tough, hard wins to win in Division I football and don’t ever take one for granted because you never know when you’re going to get another one. I look forward to next week and I look forward to getting back to work.”
Robert Stanley, DE
On how it feels to beat Boise…
“It’s great, we knew that Boise was a good team coming in here and we knew that was going to be a tough challenge for us and just coming out victorious means the world to us, especially on our senior night, I know all the seniors are excited. It’s something that we really wanted to get, especially on our home turf.”
On the game seeming meaningless to determine where the MWC game will be …
“We knew that we were going to have to compete to the end no matter what, we knew that was going to be a hard fought game, so we did we fought till the end and we came out on top.”
On why there was so much emotion after the game...
“I think especially from where we came from last season, to think about how we ended the season last season and where we are now, for all the seniors at least, it’s something that we wanted bad for all the seniors and for the entire team so that is what brought all the emotions out.”
On taking the Milk Can to Nathan Madsen…
“He is one of the guys that has been here with me for five years, if anyone deserves it, it’s him. He plays his butt off every game, he practices hard, lifts hard, runs conditioning hard, he’s just someone that deserves it.”
On the statement they made about where the team is at now …
“I think it’s the statement that we made today and all season really. Especially the way we finished the game and finished the season, I think that it is something we can continue to build on and going ahead for the future it is going to keep getting better.”
On how they held Boise’s offense to 17 points…
“Together, we take pride in playing together, everybody is playing physical, making plays and executing and that is really what it is.”
Marcus McMaryion, QB
On the crowds atmosphere today…
“It’s amazing, we really feed off of the energy that they give us. Just the atmosphere that they created for us, we were just bouncing off of each other, bouncing off the fans, the offense, the defense and special teams so I mean the Red Wave was definitely part of that win tonight.”
On making a statement at today’s game…
“Definitely, we play to win every game so we’re not going to go out there and hold stuff back or hold plays back, so we’re definitely going out there to play to win every game and we’re going to Boise next week so this one won’t mean anything if we don’t get the next win.
“We are going to be locked in and enjoy tonight and then get back to work.”
On KeeSean’s catch and the call…
“I think that is just the offensive coordinator, Coach DeBoer and Coach Tedford just having faith in us and calling a shot and just the whole offense as a unit, being able to protect from the snap to protecting and running the right route, I think it just comes down from the top down.”
On what this says about the team…
“Coach Tedford says we play great teams every week, Boise is a great team they do a lot of great stuff over there, statistically we are about the same team, but we definitely are going to respect who we play, but we are not going to put anyone on a pedestal we are going to come and play every night.”
On why he wanted to win it for the seniors…
“I haven’t had a senior night since high school and I know how much this means and how important it was for me to end my high school career out in a win, Aaron was out there and didn’t want to leave the field, that kind of attitude not wanting to leave the field just that little expression shows me how much it meant for these guys to go out on a right note.”
On throwing deep…
“As a quarterback I want to throw the ball deep every time, throw a chuck down, but like I said earlier at the end of the day it comes down to the coaches trusting us.”
“Whether if it’s not there me making a decision whether that’s me throwing the ball down or me getting my chuck down and not being greedy all the time.”
On his reaction to the play call at the end to go deep…
“You can ask Aaron, every time we get a play call to go deep I have a little smile on my face when I’m giving the play call, I get excited about that stuff, but like I said it’s not just me it’s the offensive line giving me time, the running backs staying in for protection and the receivers running great routes and making plays.”
On his protection today on the deep throws…
“It was great, they did a great job of identifying whether they are flipping the protection, checking the protection they do a good job of keeping me up right and being able to be comfortable back there and going through my throwing motion and keeping my eyes down field and not be wondering about the defense line.”
On the stadium’s energy in the 4th Q…
“Definitely, just the comparison to the beginning, I think the atmosphere is definitely like nothing we have had before, we feed off of it and it’s just a great environment overall.”
On the deep ball to KeeSean and where he would rank that in moments this year…
“I would say roughly just throw it in my top five, it’s definitely a big play for me and the team it was just a really big play for us.”
On the rivalry with Boise after today’s game…
“It sets a foundation that when Boise comes here or we go there it’s definitely not going to be a given. They fought their tails off, we came down to the wire and made plays.”
“I’m really just proud of all of our skill guys and our whole team as a unit playing together.”
Jaron Bryant, DB
On facing Boise State’s dual quarterback system…
“It was kind of a challenge for us to try to adjust to two quarterbacks since we’re used to playing just one quarterback. We had to get it together. But once we figured out how to stop each quarterback that was it.”
On if Cozart caught the defense off guard on the touchdown play…
“No, it didn’t catch us off guard. I don’t really know what to say.”
On the defensive game plan coming into the game…
“Stop the run first and make them one dimensional.”
On what defensive coordinator Orlondo Steinauer has brought to the unit…
“His energy. He comes out with a great attitude every single day. He pushes us to be the best DB in the country and he pushes us to communicate the most. He just brings great energy and a good vibe to the team every practice and every game.”
On the impact the crowd played during the game…
“The Valley is back, it’s back. Standing behind a big crowd like that is amazing. It’s a wonderful feeling to have a crowd behind us 24/7.”
On taking the milk can to senior Nathan Madsen after the game…
“He has been through four years. Nate is a fifth year, so it was a blessed feeling to give him the trophy. He went down, so we had to win the game for Nate.”
Boise State Head Coach, Brian Harsin
On what he saw from his offense…
“I thought we started fast but I don’t know that we sustained much after that. We certainly didn’t take advantage of field position so overall it was not good enough. That’s really what it comes down to – we didn’t score enough points to win the game.”
On facing Marcus McMaryion…
“He’s played well all season long. He’s taken care of the ball and they’ve coach him very well. He makes good decisions. Obviously he threw some deep balls that they connected on so he showed some accuracy as well. He played very well but it’s not a surprise, we knew he was a good player and it was a matter of trying to make some plays against him and we didn’t do that today.”
On the rivalry between the teams…
“I remember being in this stadium and it’s been one of those games just like today. It’s a battle and Fresno State’s always been a very tough football team. They’ve got very good players and obviously this coaching staff has done a very good job. It isn’t like we walked in here and the history had not been talked about. It was and there’s a lot of respect and tonight they just did a better job than we did.”
On how they approached the week and their effort knowing they would play again next week…
“I don’t think much of it now after the game. I hope we have better focus. Don’t think we’ll go back with the same idea and plan. We’ll have a new process that we’ll follow and guys will have to buy into that and hopefully they do because the focus and urgency, in anything you do, needs to be there.”
On if there’s an advantage playing the same team again a week later…
“I don’t know. We haven’t done it. We’ll know that through a week of preparation. And I really mean that. It’s one of those where you go right back into it. For the players, they got a chance to go against somebody and now you have a longer break before going against them again. How we utilize the information and how we go back and process it, we’ll stick to how we’ve done things but at the same time you’ll have look at things a little bit differently.”
Alex Mattison, RB
On what happened…
“We just made mistakes and beat ourselves up a little bit. Some penalties there that we have to clean up. We just didn’t execute like we wanted to and how we were supposed to. That’s something we have to go back and fix.”
On being motivated for the game knowing they will play again next week…
“That doesn’t matter to us. We know that’s the next game and this was the game we were focused on. This was the game that was guaranteed and that game next week was not, so we knew that this was the game we were going to prepare for.”
On why they struggled in short-yardage situations…
“We played a good team. They came out and they did what they wanted to do against us and we did not execute certain situations. We’ve got to look at the film and get better”
On missed opportunities in the first half…
“We need to go down there and score points. We know that field goals aren’t going to do it and we need to go down and score touchdowns. We have to do a better job of finishing drives.”
Tyler Horton, CB
On how the team is feeling after the game…
“This game is pretty much over with now so we all know what to see (next week). We’ve got these guys next week so we’re just going to go home and prep now. Our whole mindset is taking this game and learning from it.”
On the challenges of facing Marcus McMaryion…
“He’s a good quarterback. He’s got good receivers and a good offensive so it’s easy to do those things. I actually played with him my freshman and sophomore years in 7-on-7. I already know who he was, so when he came over here I knew he was going to help their program so it’s nothing new to me”
On what it was like with many friends and family in the stands…
“It’s always exciting to have your family there. It’s probably the first time since San Jose my freshman year and I didn’t get to play that game so having my family there being able to watch me play on the field is a blessing.”
On the effort of the team…
“I feel like everything was there. We went out here and played our best and now we’re back at it. We were just worried about this game and the loss is tough but at the end of the day we were just worried about this game.”
Nov. 25, 2017
Fresno, Calif.
Head Coach Jeff Tedford
On his feelings after today’s victory…
“To send the seniors up the ramp with a victory is great. It is another game and we have one more to go. I cannot tell you how happy and gratified I am to see all of the hard work paying off for these guys and this coaching staff who have put so much into it. Boise State has a great football team, we have a lot of respect for them and now we have to go and do it one more time. We will have a lot of hard work going into this coming up week, but for tonight, we can enjoy this win and our guys will feel good about themselves, especially the seniors. It is a great honor for them to leave the stadium today with a victory.”
On sticking to the blueprint of playing…
“There were no turnovers on either side, for them or us. It was a really clean and hard-fought game. We had some big plays in there; our defense stepped up on a couple of short-yard situations and did a really nice job. We made some big plays in the passing game, which was great. It was a hard-fought game that could’ve gone either way and I am sure it is going to be the same next week.”
On the crowd…
“That was much more like it. It was the first time I had heard the ‘FRESNO… STATE’ chant and the stadium was rocking. I saw the wave get going in there and that was really awesome. I want to thank the fans for coming out and sending these guys off the right way. I appreciate their support out there. It makes a big difference for our players and it makes it a hostile environment for the other team coming in here. I really appreciated our fans for coming out and creating that environment for us today.”
On the message going into next week…
“The same message that it is every single week. It is one day at a time. We will watch film tomorrow to try to get some mistakes cleaned up, have our banquet and then get back to work. Our approach never changes. We know this next one is for the Mountain West Conference Championship, but we will prepare for it the same way we do every other game. The guys know that and they will know what to expect next week. We have got to get healthy for sure, that was a very physical football game. We have to get healthy and get prepared.”
On being 9-for-16 in third down conversions…
“9-for-16 is pretty good. We haven’t been great on third down, but there are a lot of times where games have been dictated on what we do on third down. 9-for-16 is a good percentage and we will continue to work on it. We got stuck in a lot of third-and-long early in the game, and that is what happens when you’re aggressive in first and second downs. I thought we did a good job of running the football at the end. We have to continue to work at it, third down is a critical thing.”
On Nathan Madsen’s recovery and the team taking the Milk Can to him after the game…
“They love their teammates. Last night, we were sitting in here and all of the seniors got the chance to say something to their teammates. This was about the seniors and tomorrow’s banquet will be about the seniors and the rest of the team. I am not sure what Madsen’s status is but I am sure he will get an MRI and find out the extent of the injury. It is always emotional when you play your last game. All he could say when he was out there on the field hurting was ‘I want to be in here. I want to be in here.’ That really shows the commitment he has to his teammates to be a part of it. He has been a major part of it through the whole thing. Nate has been one of those guys who bought in to things in terms of leadership. It was heartbreaking seeing him lying on the field in his last game in this stadium. I hope everything is fine with him once the MRI happens. He has been great for this football team.”
Aaron Mitchell, C
On the Milk Can trophy…
“It means victory. Bottom line, it’s victory. We’re 3-for-3 on trophies and it’s a great way to leave a legacy for this team.”
On getting the crowd into the game…
“I think it’s been two years since I have heard it that loud. I think it’s been a long time coming. I can’t thank the Red Wave enough for showing out today. I don’t think they really understand how much they play a factor in this. Their energy, players vibe off that. It really brings a sense of pride to play for The Valley. It was awesome and it was a great feeling. I’d like to thank the Red Wave for coming out and showing out today and making this day a special day for all of us.”
On how much pride the team can take from this game…
“It’s immense pride. Coach Tedford brought back that saying, “Pride and tradition of Bulldog football will not be entrusted to the timid and the weak.” This team has bought into that, there’s no doubt about that. We say it out on the field, we say it walking out, we say it after a win and we say it after a loss. There’s a lot of pride in this program. We have coaches that have played in this uniform and they came back and entrusted that in us. It’s really an honor to play here at Fresno State. It’s an honor to play offensive line here. O-linemen take great pride in playing here. As an offensive lineman, we’ve had o-linemen come back and talk about how Fresno State o-linemen are a special kind. I take great honor in that and I know the other four do. It’s an honor to be a Bulldog and it’s an honor to play here.”
On the message for next week’s game…
“It’s just another game. Time to go back to work. Enjoy today, but it’s just like another work day and it doesn’t matter who we play. Boise is a great team and we’re going to have to prepare for them again. I’m looking forward to it. It’s back to work tomorrow, back to the chalkboard, drawing it up and grab your lunch pail and get ready for work.”
On the emotions after today’s game…
“A lot of things. I’ve got a big family and a lot of family came here. You really have to feel the lowest of the lows to understand the highest of the highs. I’ve said that multiple times. It was a great feeling. I looked up and saw my mom and dad in the stands. It’s just a great feeling. It’s more than I could ask for in my time here as a Bulldog. I am grateful.”
On what has been the most consistent aspect of the team since the UNLV loss…
“I think that it really brought us back together as a team. I’m not saying that we weren’t a team in the beginning, but I think it brought back that chip on our shoulder. I think it really made us realize that you don’t get a lot of opportunities. You have 12 games in a season, you pray you get a 13th and hope you get a 14th. But you have 12 guaranteed games and you can’t take any of them for a loss. A loss is a loss and we took that in stride. It brought us back together and it brought us back to work. We’re a blue collar team. Grab your lunch pail, clock in and go to work.”
On who has gone through the recent lows and highs of the program…
“The offensive line has been together with me and there’s been a lot of guys on this team. There are still guys on this team from my sophomore year. There are a ton of guys here from last season; it’s almost the same team with a couple of great additions. We have some new running backs and a new quarterback who’s playing his butt off. Even if they weren’t here, as a leader you can express what it’s like and show the joy that you can’t take any win. Every win has to be joyous. Whether it’s by a point or by 20, don’t take it for granted. It takes tough, hard wins to win in Division I football and don’t ever take one for granted because you never know when you’re going to get another one. I look forward to next week and I look forward to getting back to work.”
Robert Stanley, DE
On how it feels to beat Boise…
“It’s great, we knew that Boise was a good team coming in here and we knew that was going to be a tough challenge for us and just coming out victorious means the world to us, especially on our senior night, I know all the seniors are excited. It’s something that we really wanted to get, especially on our home turf.”
On the game seeming meaningless to determine where the MWC game will be …
“We knew that we were going to have to compete to the end no matter what, we knew that was going to be a hard fought game, so we did we fought till the end and we came out on top.”
On why there was so much emotion after the game...
“I think especially from where we came from last season, to think about how we ended the season last season and where we are now, for all the seniors at least, it’s something that we wanted bad for all the seniors and for the entire team so that is what brought all the emotions out.”
On taking the Milk Can to Nathan Madsen…
“He is one of the guys that has been here with me for five years, if anyone deserves it, it’s him. He plays his butt off every game, he practices hard, lifts hard, runs conditioning hard, he’s just someone that deserves it.”
On the statement they made about where the team is at now …
“I think it’s the statement that we made today and all season really. Especially the way we finished the game and finished the season, I think that it is something we can continue to build on and going ahead for the future it is going to keep getting better.”
On how they held Boise’s offense to 17 points…
“Together, we take pride in playing together, everybody is playing physical, making plays and executing and that is really what it is.”
Marcus McMaryion, QB
On the crowds atmosphere today…
“It’s amazing, we really feed off of the energy that they give us. Just the atmosphere that they created for us, we were just bouncing off of each other, bouncing off the fans, the offense, the defense and special teams so I mean the Red Wave was definitely part of that win tonight.”
On making a statement at today’s game…
“Definitely, we play to win every game so we’re not going to go out there and hold stuff back or hold plays back, so we’re definitely going out there to play to win every game and we’re going to Boise next week so this one won’t mean anything if we don’t get the next win.
“We are going to be locked in and enjoy tonight and then get back to work.”
On KeeSean’s catch and the call…
“I think that is just the offensive coordinator, Coach DeBoer and Coach Tedford just having faith in us and calling a shot and just the whole offense as a unit, being able to protect from the snap to protecting and running the right route, I think it just comes down from the top down.”
On what this says about the team…
“Coach Tedford says we play great teams every week, Boise is a great team they do a lot of great stuff over there, statistically we are about the same team, but we definitely are going to respect who we play, but we are not going to put anyone on a pedestal we are going to come and play every night.”
On why he wanted to win it for the seniors…
“I haven’t had a senior night since high school and I know how much this means and how important it was for me to end my high school career out in a win, Aaron was out there and didn’t want to leave the field, that kind of attitude not wanting to leave the field just that little expression shows me how much it meant for these guys to go out on a right note.”
On throwing deep…
“As a quarterback I want to throw the ball deep every time, throw a chuck down, but like I said earlier at the end of the day it comes down to the coaches trusting us.”
“Whether if it’s not there me making a decision whether that’s me throwing the ball down or me getting my chuck down and not being greedy all the time.”
On his reaction to the play call at the end to go deep…
“You can ask Aaron, every time we get a play call to go deep I have a little smile on my face when I’m giving the play call, I get excited about that stuff, but like I said it’s not just me it’s the offensive line giving me time, the running backs staying in for protection and the receivers running great routes and making plays.”
On his protection today on the deep throws…
“It was great, they did a great job of identifying whether they are flipping the protection, checking the protection they do a good job of keeping me up right and being able to be comfortable back there and going through my throwing motion and keeping my eyes down field and not be wondering about the defense line.”
On the stadium’s energy in the 4th Q…
“Definitely, just the comparison to the beginning, I think the atmosphere is definitely like nothing we have had before, we feed off of it and it’s just a great environment overall.”
On the deep ball to KeeSean and where he would rank that in moments this year…
“I would say roughly just throw it in my top five, it’s definitely a big play for me and the team it was just a really big play for us.”
On the rivalry with Boise after today’s game…
“It sets a foundation that when Boise comes here or we go there it’s definitely not going to be a given. They fought their tails off, we came down to the wire and made plays.”
“I’m really just proud of all of our skill guys and our whole team as a unit playing together.”
Jaron Bryant, DB
On facing Boise State’s dual quarterback system…
“It was kind of a challenge for us to try to adjust to two quarterbacks since we’re used to playing just one quarterback. We had to get it together. But once we figured out how to stop each quarterback that was it.”
On if Cozart caught the defense off guard on the touchdown play…
“No, it didn’t catch us off guard. I don’t really know what to say.”
On the defensive game plan coming into the game…
“Stop the run first and make them one dimensional.”
On what defensive coordinator Orlondo Steinauer has brought to the unit…
“His energy. He comes out with a great attitude every single day. He pushes us to be the best DB in the country and he pushes us to communicate the most. He just brings great energy and a good vibe to the team every practice and every game.”
On the impact the crowd played during the game…
“The Valley is back, it’s back. Standing behind a big crowd like that is amazing. It’s a wonderful feeling to have a crowd behind us 24/7.”
On taking the milk can to senior Nathan Madsen after the game…
“He has been through four years. Nate is a fifth year, so it was a blessed feeling to give him the trophy. He went down, so we had to win the game for Nate.”
Boise State Head Coach, Brian Harsin
On what he saw from his offense…
“I thought we started fast but I don’t know that we sustained much after that. We certainly didn’t take advantage of field position so overall it was not good enough. That’s really what it comes down to – we didn’t score enough points to win the game.”
On facing Marcus McMaryion…
“He’s played well all season long. He’s taken care of the ball and they’ve coach him very well. He makes good decisions. Obviously he threw some deep balls that they connected on so he showed some accuracy as well. He played very well but it’s not a surprise, we knew he was a good player and it was a matter of trying to make some plays against him and we didn’t do that today.”
On the rivalry between the teams…
“I remember being in this stadium and it’s been one of those games just like today. It’s a battle and Fresno State’s always been a very tough football team. They’ve got very good players and obviously this coaching staff has done a very good job. It isn’t like we walked in here and the history had not been talked about. It was and there’s a lot of respect and tonight they just did a better job than we did.”
On how they approached the week and their effort knowing they would play again next week…
“I don’t think much of it now after the game. I hope we have better focus. Don’t think we’ll go back with the same idea and plan. We’ll have a new process that we’ll follow and guys will have to buy into that and hopefully they do because the focus and urgency, in anything you do, needs to be there.”
On if there’s an advantage playing the same team again a week later…
“I don’t know. We haven’t done it. We’ll know that through a week of preparation. And I really mean that. It’s one of those where you go right back into it. For the players, they got a chance to go against somebody and now you have a longer break before going against them again. How we utilize the information and how we go back and process it, we’ll stick to how we’ve done things but at the same time you’ll have look at things a little bit differently.”
Alex Mattison, RB
On what happened…
“We just made mistakes and beat ourselves up a little bit. Some penalties there that we have to clean up. We just didn’t execute like we wanted to and how we were supposed to. That’s something we have to go back and fix.”
On being motivated for the game knowing they will play again next week…
“That doesn’t matter to us. We know that’s the next game and this was the game we were focused on. This was the game that was guaranteed and that game next week was not, so we knew that this was the game we were going to prepare for.”
On why they struggled in short-yardage situations…
“We played a good team. They came out and they did what they wanted to do against us and we did not execute certain situations. We’ve got to look at the film and get better”
On missed opportunities in the first half…
“We need to go down there and score points. We know that field goals aren’t going to do it and we need to go down and score touchdowns. We have to do a better job of finishing drives.”
Tyler Horton, CB
On how the team is feeling after the game…
“This game is pretty much over with now so we all know what to see (next week). We’ve got these guys next week so we’re just going to go home and prep now. Our whole mindset is taking this game and learning from it.”
On the challenges of facing Marcus McMaryion…
“He’s a good quarterback. He’s got good receivers and a good offensive so it’s easy to do those things. I actually played with him my freshman and sophomore years in 7-on-7. I already know who he was, so when he came over here I knew he was going to help their program so it’s nothing new to me”
On what it was like with many friends and family in the stands…
“It’s always exciting to have your family there. It’s probably the first time since San Jose my freshman year and I didn’t get to play that game so having my family there being able to watch me play on the field is a blessing.”
On the effort of the team…
“I feel like everything was there. We went out here and played our best and now we’re back at it. We were just worried about this game and the loss is tough but at the end of the day we were just worried about this game.”