Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State-New Mexico Postgame Quotes
Fresno State at New Mexico
Sam Boyd Stadium (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Dec. 12, 2020
Kalen DeBoer, Fresno State Head CoachÂ
Opening Statement...
"Two weeks in a row and we are on the wrong end. We have to finish in the second half, that was a point of emphasis all week long. We didn't get to get that done last week, and this week is the same way. We have a lot of guys that are taking a lot of snaps in some spots, we are thin in some areas, and you can just see it wearing us out. Some things I know are really easily fixable and we need to make sure that we are working on in the future. It is kind of hard to believe, I am still processing that this is already the end of the season. Even talking with the guys just now, we feel like there is more we should work on and get better at. Like there is more to come. Six games, and here we are. I am always going to be happy with the fight that these guys had, there is no question that they fought until the end. We had some new bodies in places, especially on special teams, that they haven't been and guys were playing a lot more snaps than they ever have before. I think a lot of what happened tonight offensively was a lot of pressure and that is the name of the game with their defense. They always try to have that one play that puts you behind the sticks and that happened especially in the second half. Once they got their run game going, the play action starts hitting you and you have eyes in the wrong places. You just have to have that belief and trust in each other. We are still trying to find that. Their offense does some good things schematically and they took advantage of us. There is a lot to learn from and build on. You are always discouraged when you lose. It is hard for me to find the words to say, especially here at the end, when you're so used to winning over the years. I know a lot of guys are hurting, and that's a good thing because it means its important. It means you can get better. The beginning of next year starts right now. There is a lot to sort out, with who is returning and we will do that in the days, weeks and months ahead."
On new Bulldogs playing more tonight...
"Injuries. There are injuries that forces more guys to take more reps. Those guys are already on special teams, but we got down there at the end and we lost a couple more guys at times. They were gutting it out, we saw that on both sides of the ball."
On the run game without Ronnie Rivers...
"I think a lot of those guys are right here in our program. There will always be additions. What we need is a full year of recruiting to bring guys on campus. We are the same team as we were a year ago. There will be some guys that move on on their own, and there will be some guys that we will seek out and find. It's hard right now with not a lot of football being played on the west coast. Hopefully we can get through this, and get to do a good job at going through the whole recruiting process. Especially the in-person stuff. I think we had two guys on campus before COVID broke out, and that is all we have seen on campus this entire time."
On looking back on the season...
"I think there are a lot of positives. Number one, there is an understanding that we needed to develop and evaluate some guys - especially on the defensive side of the ball. Coach JD Williams is our only guy that is returning. They needed to know who we have, and what we want to fit our system. I thought we did a good job at adjusting our system to fit what we had. In the course of a season, even in six games, there are a lot of things you just work out. A lot of the things we saw tonight were the first time we ever got those kind of looks. I saw them on the sideline getting on the same page and communicating through the players. That is not something that you can accomplish on a Zoom call, you have to do that at practice with scout players because somebody is going to throw something new at you every single week. Defensively, there were a lot of times we got to install our system, develop some guys and get your culture where we want. We are on our way, but we are definitely not there yet. We understand we need to be tough, unified and accountable. We need to be a team that stresses fundamentals. Those are the four things that I really want to emphasize and get better at."
On coaching this season...
"For the guys and for the staff, it has been a grind. I think that is something we hash out and talk more about in the winter months. Just the day-to-day grind, in the mental just as much the physical grind. You think back to how many months it was of uncertainty and that wears on the guys, We went through the summer months and usually that is a time to refresh. These guys went straight through with recruiting, into the summer. We thought we were coming back at the end of July, then it turns into maybe August. That is what I am so proud about. This staff and these players stuck together through all of this. There is a trust in each other. There is an accountability in each other that everybody is going to give it all that they have. From coaches to players. I guess that is what I am most proud of. We have somethings that we need to fix and things that we will certainly get better at. Some of that we will fix just by having everybody back. Some of it will happen by getting a full roster together."
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Sam Boyd Stadium (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Dec. 12, 2020
Kalen DeBoer, Fresno State Head CoachÂ
Opening Statement...
"Two weeks in a row and we are on the wrong end. We have to finish in the second half, that was a point of emphasis all week long. We didn't get to get that done last week, and this week is the same way. We have a lot of guys that are taking a lot of snaps in some spots, we are thin in some areas, and you can just see it wearing us out. Some things I know are really easily fixable and we need to make sure that we are working on in the future. It is kind of hard to believe, I am still processing that this is already the end of the season. Even talking with the guys just now, we feel like there is more we should work on and get better at. Like there is more to come. Six games, and here we are. I am always going to be happy with the fight that these guys had, there is no question that they fought until the end. We had some new bodies in places, especially on special teams, that they haven't been and guys were playing a lot more snaps than they ever have before. I think a lot of what happened tonight offensively was a lot of pressure and that is the name of the game with their defense. They always try to have that one play that puts you behind the sticks and that happened especially in the second half. Once they got their run game going, the play action starts hitting you and you have eyes in the wrong places. You just have to have that belief and trust in each other. We are still trying to find that. Their offense does some good things schematically and they took advantage of us. There is a lot to learn from and build on. You are always discouraged when you lose. It is hard for me to find the words to say, especially here at the end, when you're so used to winning over the years. I know a lot of guys are hurting, and that's a good thing because it means its important. It means you can get better. The beginning of next year starts right now. There is a lot to sort out, with who is returning and we will do that in the days, weeks and months ahead."
On new Bulldogs playing more tonight...
"Injuries. There are injuries that forces more guys to take more reps. Those guys are already on special teams, but we got down there at the end and we lost a couple more guys at times. They were gutting it out, we saw that on both sides of the ball."
On the run game without Ronnie Rivers...
"I think a lot of those guys are right here in our program. There will always be additions. What we need is a full year of recruiting to bring guys on campus. We are the same team as we were a year ago. There will be some guys that move on on their own, and there will be some guys that we will seek out and find. It's hard right now with not a lot of football being played on the west coast. Hopefully we can get through this, and get to do a good job at going through the whole recruiting process. Especially the in-person stuff. I think we had two guys on campus before COVID broke out, and that is all we have seen on campus this entire time."
On looking back on the season...
"I think there are a lot of positives. Number one, there is an understanding that we needed to develop and evaluate some guys - especially on the defensive side of the ball. Coach JD Williams is our only guy that is returning. They needed to know who we have, and what we want to fit our system. I thought we did a good job at adjusting our system to fit what we had. In the course of a season, even in six games, there are a lot of things you just work out. A lot of the things we saw tonight were the first time we ever got those kind of looks. I saw them on the sideline getting on the same page and communicating through the players. That is not something that you can accomplish on a Zoom call, you have to do that at practice with scout players because somebody is going to throw something new at you every single week. Defensively, there were a lot of times we got to install our system, develop some guys and get your culture where we want. We are on our way, but we are definitely not there yet. We understand we need to be tough, unified and accountable. We need to be a team that stresses fundamentals. Those are the four things that I really want to emphasize and get better at."
On coaching this season...
"For the guys and for the staff, it has been a grind. I think that is something we hash out and talk more about in the winter months. Just the day-to-day grind, in the mental just as much the physical grind. You think back to how many months it was of uncertainty and that wears on the guys, We went through the summer months and usually that is a time to refresh. These guys went straight through with recruiting, into the summer. We thought we were coming back at the end of July, then it turns into maybe August. That is what I am so proud about. This staff and these players stuck together through all of this. There is a trust in each other. There is an accountability in each other that everybody is going to give it all that they have. From coaches to players. I guess that is what I am most proud of. We have somethings that we need to fix and things that we will certainly get better at. Some of that we will fix just by having everybody back. Some of it will happen by getting a full roster together."
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