Arkansas-Auburn Post-Game Quotes
Arkansas Post-Game Quotes
Auburn vs. Arkansas
Pat Dye Field at Jordan-Hare Stadium
October 11, 2008
Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino
Opening Statement…
“It was a hard fought game and we’re happy with the outcome. I can’t say enough about how hard our assistant coaches and players prepared for this game and the attitude and character we showed all week long in practice and the way we kept fighting in the game. A lot of things happened in this game that could have made it turn the other way, we didn’t play great special teams, but I think our offense did great, we moved the ball very well. We were able to run the ball and throw it. I’m very happy with the poise Casey Dick showed. Defensively, I thought we did a great job of controlling the line of scrimmage. We were able to stop their run and put pressure on their quarterback. It’s a good win for us.”
On controlling the line of scrimmage…
“It was a great football game. They made plays, we made plays. Our players really stepped up and executed and played with a lot of heart. It was very hard fought, we hung on and won the game at the end. “
On the play of running back Mike Smith…
“He hit a homerun, and that was really great. He played really well all night. He showed a tremendous amount of poise and had a lot of carries; 21 in the first half. I was concerned about that, that’s why I thought we would have to throw it a little more the second half, but then he breaks a long run for a touchdown, that was very well blocked, and he made a great cut. Taking all of those carries he showed great toughness. He’s very quick and doesn’t take a lot of big hits. He’s very good at slipping and sliding. Auburn hit hard and ran to the ball very well tonight.”
On the rewarding win…
“It’s very rewarding. It shows that the hard work we put in is paying off. It shows the ability of our players and their great attitude. They continuously come to practice and work very hard. The effort of the coaches is also great. It’s just nice to see all of that hard work pay off. We’re very happy with our players and coaches.”
On difficulties of the last few weeks…
“We needed a win. The good thing is that we’ve been showing progress. We’re going to try to build on that and stay positive. I can’t say enough about our players not getting down and still coming to practice and working hard. They did a great job and it shows they have great character and that our leadership is really starting to come through.”
On third down success…
“We executed really well. We had a really good game plan and good protection. We’re real happy with our offensive front, coming in their defensive front was a worry for us. Auburn is very fast and very well coached. Our offensive line did a very good job in protection. We threw and caught the ball and made good plays. We made plays on balls that were very close to the ground and ones that were high up in the air. We knew where the sticks were which is very important, we’re growing up a little bit.”
Quarterback Casey Dick
On getting the win after a couple of hard games…
“I don’t think I have ever been more happy of a group of guys in my life. We have been through a lot in the last couple of games and it’s easy to see how we have gotten a lot better. We’ve grown as a team. We came out and executed well. We knew if we could get the ball in the fourth quarter, in a close game we would have a chance. The bottom line, we just went out there and executed, had fun and stuck together.”
On Michael Smith’s long touchdown run…
“it was a check at the line of scrimmage. We checked based on their defensive line technique and they gave us the right defense. The offensive line did a great job of pulling it through with a couple of fantastic blocks. Michael made a couple of guys miss in order for us to get the big gain.”
On the first quarter field goal…
the whole time we knew we could move the ball. We’ve been moving the ball since we started [the season], we just haven’t been able to score. We put a humongous emphasis on that in practice this week. It helped us a lot in finding ways to execute and score when we had to.”
On the reverse play touchdown…
“It’s a play we’ve had since the beginning of the year; it just hasn’t been the right situation to run it. Joe [Adams] made a great throw and put me in a good position to catch it. That is my first touchdown catch, ever, so it was fun.”
On third-down conversion success…
“It was studying extra by watching a lot of film. We tried to figure out their [defense’s] tendencies on third down. A lot of it was just making sure that all of our coaches were on the same page and making the best calls in each situation.”
On the team’s confidence heading into today’s game…
“I knew we had a chance going into the game. The bottom line was that we had to come in and execute. We’ve moved the ball on all of our opponents. This game we found a way to put it into the end zone. Now we have to keep finding ways to score and make the big plays. Everybody’s confidence was really high and everybody was excited. We knew we had a good game plan. We felt confident in what we were going to do both offensively and defensively. I felt that our defense played well this week, they came out and played an excellent game today.”
Tailback Michael Smith
On his 35-carry game…
“I’m just glad we came out and got the win. To be honest with you, I didn’t even know that I had that many carries, but I think my body knows it. It was a physical game and I took some big hits, but it wasn’t that bad.”
On being able to avoid the big hits…
“They got quite a few big hits on me. They were a fast, physical defense and you have to give them credit; they contained me very well. When I am called, I have to get in there and get the job done.”
On his 52-yard touchdown run…
“That play was checked for an outside zone. The offensive line did a great job of getting to their man and giving me just enough time to find the hole.”
Center Jonathan Luigs
On Michael Smith’s touchdown…
“He made a really good play. I pulled around and got up to the hole, two guys [Auburn defenders] came in and I tried to take one of them, and then he [Michael] made both of them miss. He was then able to make a couple more people miss, but all along he was able to get to the first downs and make the plays we needed to really open up the running game. It was a team effort.”
On the team’s confidence heading into the rest of the season…
“It’s great to get a win, especially when you go on the road and you’re playing a team like Auburn, they’re a good team. We were able to come together [as a team], especially the past two weeks. Emotionally, we went from feeling down to a big high after this game. We’ll see how that high helps us.”
Nose Tackle Zach Stadther
On the defense’s performance…
“The defense has really stepped up all together. Everybody did their job and I was happy with the way that we played. Honestly, I was a little surprised at how well the defense played, but we work hard every play and give 100% every time we step on the field.”
On the biggest challenge as a defensive lineman…
“They [Auburn] had a lot of cut blocks and a couple of double teams that forced the defense to make some adjustments.”
What does this game mean for you heading into the rest of the season…
“People are going to start believing in us now. We can play; we had a couple of stumbles in the first few games, but I really think we showed what we can do today and we’re going to have confidence heading into the Kentucky game.”
Download: Arkansas QUOTES.pdf
