Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State-Colorado State Postgame Quotes
Interim Head Coach Tim Skipper
On the team becoming bowl-eligible after this win…
“It means everything. This team’s been resilient, we’ve been through a lot of adversity, injuries, things like that. We kept on swinging, kept fighting, and didn’t have excuses for bad situations and things that were happening. We just kept playing. Those kids bought in. We had a very physical two weeks, we practiced hard. Usually, at this time of the year, we take the pads off but we went at it and we won one in the trenches. That was a big deal. We had to stop their run game, it felt like we did a good job of that. We had to move those guys, we got our run game going. Bowl eligibility is everything, that’s why we’re in this business, it's why we do what we do in the off-season and it feels good to get six wins.”
On Bryson Donelson’s offensive performance…
“Any time you can get the run game going, you get the whole team going. It was an emphasis for us, he ran the rock very well, and got a little banged up there in the second half so that’s why you didn’t see him as much, but he did a great job. You have to remind yourself that he’s a true freshman, he was at the prom not too long ago. It was good to see him tote that thing and be physical and get stronger as the game continued. I just wish he could have finished it.”
On allowing early touchdowns…
“We’ve got to get out of this give everybody seven points in the first drive. It’s been going on for a while, we’ve been talking about it, maybe if we don’t talk about it maybe we’ll stop somebody on the first drive. We always seem to bounce back and start playing good defense, that’s what happened tonight, we knew we had to stop the run, and we did that. We had to make them throw because they didn’t want to come in here and throw the ball. We made them one-dimensional and made them throw a lot in the second half and we knew we’d be alright if we could do that.”
On the decision to use Donelson more in this game…
“When we practiced, we went at it. It was two weeks of ‘let’s go’. He came out of there, it was his time to go, and he took advantage of it. He toted it and ran hard. He’s been working all year, finally today he got to start and he took off with it.”
On his thought process through the second half regarding the offense…
“They did a good job, they changed up their defense, they gave us some looks that we didn’t get in the first half. We were a little behind schedule on that. We still did enough. We didn’t turn the ball over or give them crazy field position or anything like that. It was fine, the defense was playing good. It got a little scarier at the end, it made it a soap opera-type finish. We got the win and that’s all that matters.”
On celebrating the senior class…
“Senior night is always great. On the coaching side, you always get nervous that it gets too emotional in the beginning of that and they’re not ready to play. We wanted to get out there early, get senior ceremony stuff done, and then get them ready to go for the game to start off. I thought everything timed out pretty well. I know it’s pretty emotional for those players. For me, it didn’t hit until after. At the moment I felt like “Hey we got another game, we have a bowl’, all that type of stuff, but when you're done is when it's really going to hit you that that was your last time and it's very emotional and now when you go back in that stadium, you’re just a fan. It’s a good time when you can win your last game there.”
On carrying the team’s energy into next week…
“We’ve got a 24-hour rule. We’ll celebrate this win and then we will move on. We’re going to go down there to the Rose Bowl, it’s a great atmosphere down there with a good UCLA team. We’re ready to go play.”
On Mikey Keene’s performance…
“He did a great job. He’s really efficient, he saw the field pretty well. He checked us into some good runs and things like that. I wish he held onto the ball on that one-inch line down there but other than that he did a really good job. He’s a pro, I think the way he’s been playing the last couple of weeks.”
Mac Dalena, Sr., WR
On the team becoming bowl-eligible after this win…
“It means everything. This team’s been resilient, we’ve been through a lot of adversity, injuries, things like that. We kept on swinging, kept fighting, and didn’t have excuses for bad situations and things that were happening. We just kept playing. Those kids bought in. We had a very physical two weeks, we practiced hard. Usually, at this time of the year, we take the pads off but we went at it and we won one in the trenches. That was a big deal. We had to stop their run game, it felt like we did a good job of that. We had to move those guys, we got our run game going. Bowl eligibility is everything, that’s why we’re in this business, it's why we do what we do in the off-season and it feels good to get six wins.”
On Bryson Donelson’s offensive performance…
“Any time you can get the run game going, you get the whole team going. It was an emphasis for us, he ran the rock very well, and got a little banged up there in the second half so that’s why you didn’t see him as much, but he did a great job. You have to remind yourself that he’s a true freshman, he was at the prom not too long ago. It was good to see him tote that thing and be physical and get stronger as the game continued. I just wish he could have finished it.”
On allowing early touchdowns…
“We’ve got to get out of this give everybody seven points in the first drive. It’s been going on for a while, we’ve been talking about it, maybe if we don’t talk about it maybe we’ll stop somebody on the first drive. We always seem to bounce back and start playing good defense, that’s what happened tonight, we knew we had to stop the run, and we did that. We had to make them throw because they didn’t want to come in here and throw the ball. We made them one-dimensional and made them throw a lot in the second half and we knew we’d be alright if we could do that.”
On the decision to use Donelson more in this game…
“When we practiced, we went at it. It was two weeks of ‘let’s go’. He came out of there, it was his time to go, and he took advantage of it. He toted it and ran hard. He’s been working all year, finally today he got to start and he took off with it.”
On his thought process through the second half regarding the offense…
“They did a good job, they changed up their defense, they gave us some looks that we didn’t get in the first half. We were a little behind schedule on that. We still did enough. We didn’t turn the ball over or give them crazy field position or anything like that. It was fine, the defense was playing good. It got a little scarier at the end, it made it a soap opera-type finish. We got the win and that’s all that matters.”
On celebrating the senior class…
“Senior night is always great. On the coaching side, you always get nervous that it gets too emotional in the beginning of that and they’re not ready to play. We wanted to get out there early, get senior ceremony stuff done, and then get them ready to go for the game to start off. I thought everything timed out pretty well. I know it’s pretty emotional for those players. For me, it didn’t hit until after. At the moment I felt like “Hey we got another game, we have a bowl’, all that type of stuff, but when you're done is when it's really going to hit you that that was your last time and it's very emotional and now when you go back in that stadium, you’re just a fan. It’s a good time when you can win your last game there.”
On carrying the team’s energy into next week…
“We’ve got a 24-hour rule. We’ll celebrate this win and then we will move on. We’re going to go down there to the Rose Bowl, it’s a great atmosphere down there with a good UCLA team. We’re ready to go play.”
On Mikey Keene’s performance…
“He did a great job. He’s really efficient, he saw the field pretty well. He checked us into some good runs and things like that. I wish he held onto the ball on that one-inch line down there but other than that he did a really good job. He’s a pro, I think the way he’s been playing the last couple of weeks.”
Mac Dalena, Sr., WR
On the (acrobatic) touchdown...
"Mikey checked to a certain play, knowing that the corner will jump the outright. We executed it. It was stuck in that light for a long time, so it was tough seeing it. I knew once I went up I would see it and I saw it. It was crazy."
On being bowl eligible...
On being bowl eligible...
"It's great. Going back to another bowl it's our goal every year, it's great to accomplish that."
On Bryson Donelson's and the run game...
On Bryson Donelson's and the run game...
"He opened up, just a downhill runner. It's great when we have that side of the ball working, it opens up the pass game so much more. It definitely opened up our whole playbook."
On his connection with Mikey Keene...
On his connection with Mikey Keene...
"It's repetition and trust with one another. Going back to the sideline giving feedback and he listens and gives us a chance. He definitely threw the ball down field a lot more this game and gave us opportunities [as receivers]. It just builds trust throughout the whole season and he let it go this game for sure."
On the game's winning implications...
On the game's winning implications...
"It was great to get back in the win column, it was a huge game, to get bowl eligible and knock them [Colorado State] off for the conference championship. Being able to send off the seniors the right way. Our last time playing in Valley Children's Stadium and it being a win, is a great feeling."
On second half offense production...
On second half offense production...
"We have a plan and we have to execute it. We've got to move the ball, keep getting first downs, that's the biggest thing. No matter if it's a run, quick game, RPO's. Our plan is to score, once you get into a tight situation towards the end. It's just progressing the ball and making them call their timeouts, exactly how it played out."
On senior night...
On senior night...
"I didn't think much of it, until I was walking down that ramp for the last time. It definitely bought all those memories back from when I first got here. It was great to see the support I have here from family and friends. The guys that I played with for four or five years are still here, it was great to see. It was a great way to end it."
On his family's presence tonight...
On his family's presence tonight...
"I had close to thirty plus, I had family, family friends...it was everybody."
On the memory of his first play as a Bulldog...
On the memory of his first play as a Bulldog...
"Yes, I do. Tyler Mello and I were talking about it. He was still on kickoff so I told him, "go make the same play." He [Mello] forced a fumble and I recovered it. That's where we started. That memory definitely came back to my mind."
On if he's proud of where he is now...
On if he's proud of where he is now...
"Definitely. It's great to have that and have the team supporting me and the coaches. It's a huge accomplishment for me and it's just up from here."
On the Rose Bowl...
On the Rose Bowl...
"I hope I can make bigger memories than my last at the Rose Bowl doing what I do now. I was talking with my brother, I gotta go out there and put a new memory in everyone else's head."
Malachi Langley, Sr., LB
On the game…
“This was a great night for us especially for the seniors because this night gave us one more opportunity to play together, everyone really played hard."
“After that first touchdown from Colorado State in the first quarter there was a switch in everyone's minds and I think everyone stepped up and played a lot better."
On the offense in the first half…
We played downhill and fast which was something different than usual.
On building momentum going into next week…
"It's good to go into as new week with a dub. We take these games one game at a time but every win is a good win."
On the feeling going into Senior Night…
"Not playing the game helped, feeling more fresh than usual. I felt very prepared we all knew what we needed to do. This win gave us some juice and motivation for the next week.”
On what he’ll miss most about playing at Valley Children’s Stadium…
“Im going to miss my team and the fans the most. These fans are like none other. Red wve is such a special family. Also a lot of praise to my coaches for making me who I am I wouldn’t be here without them all."