Sept. 7, 2003
Sept. 6, 2003
ASU Head Coach Dirk Koetter
"We've been saying that we needed to play a game and it really showed tonight that we haven't played one. There's a big difference between practice speed and game speed and that was very evident tonight. We had some individuals who had excellent games and Moey Mutz played a great game tonight. We'll make the necessary adjustments for the next game."
"You have to give NAU's defense credit, but if we saw that style of defense later in the season we would of attacked it by throwing the ball a little more than we did tonight. We tried to run the ball and wanted to get those tailbacks some work."
"I sort of fell into the trap of trying to work on things during the game instead of going out and winning the game."
"The fans and the student section were great tonight. I just want to tell the fans not to get down on us and we'll make the adjustments that need to be made."
ASU Andrew Walter
On the play of Moey Mutz
"Moey Mutz made a name for himself tonight. He really has great speed. He runs a 4.4 40 (yard dash). Some young guys really made some plays tonight."
"I am pretty much satisfied with the game. The fake to Mutz would've been nice if it were in a different place. By in large, it was a pretty decent night. No panic was felt when NAU scored first. We've been down 21-0 before."
ASU's Jamar Williams
"Northern Arizona came out strong tonight, they came to play. The defense came out a little hesitant. Then NAU had a big play and scored early and we weren't ready. The touchdown really opened our eyes. We knew after that play that we had to take they came. Then R.J. (Oliver) came up with the pick and scored."
On defensive improvement
"We have to do a better job of running to the ball. We expected a lot out of ourselves tonight and we are disappointed in our play, but we got the win."
On his play in the game
I have high expectations for myself. I missed some tackles and gave up a lot of yardage. I'm going to work on correcting those mistakes. I want to be No. 1 in the nation. The best linebacker.
On the play of the defense
"The game was pretty good. We had a lot of stops. Again, we are disappointed in our performance, but the score on the board is what counts. R.J. Oliver came up big with the interception return."
ASU's Moey Mutz
"We've been saying that we needed to play a game and it really showed tonight that we have a lot of young wide receivers, especially with two veterans out tonight. This game helped prove our depth at the position."
"Obviously we have higher expectation that our performance showed tonight, but a win is a win. We committed way too many penalties tonight. I can assure you that won't be a trend on this team."
On his second touchdown
"Andrew Walter put the ball where it had to be, and I just went and got it. It was perfect execution."
NAU Head Coach Jerome Souers
"We wanted to start fast. We came out and tried to push the perimeter, mix up the run and pass. For the most part, it started out very good for us. We converted when we got down in the end zone, but all in all, we played hard and we played great. We made the mistake at times. We had some sacks and we got into some situations that I would have rather not been in, but all in all we played very hard tonight."
On the interception returned for a touchdown
"It happens when you play the game. We lost our focus, and that's something that you'll get better at the more seasoned a team gets. We had a miscommunication out there and they were able to take advantage of it. It happened; it was a bad play against us, but our kids didn't give up. They battled back and made a game of it."
On the crowd
"The crowd didn't really affect us tonight. We're still a pretty veteran team from that standpoint. We were more concerned with the people that were lining up across from us than anything else. I thought they kept the game where they needed to, which was trying to stay focused on the guy in front of you. Arizona State is a good football team and they played very good tonight."
NAU's Ian Gunderman
On playing a Division-I opponent
"We adjusted well to ASU, only giving up 34 points. We played well getting lots of three and outs. We have very good team speed and pride in ourselves on stopping the run, which I feel we did a good job of. We did alright stopping the pass, but like I said we pride ourselves on stopping the run."
On ASU quarterback Andrew Walter
"Walter runs the offense very well and they will do great things this season. Their line played well giving Walter the time he needed."
On NAU quarterback Jason Murrietta
"We have an offense this year with Murrietta. He is not your typical freshman he's awesome but he's young so don't put that past him. But I know he can do great things."
NAU's Clarence Moore
"They're a lot heavier, and they hit a lot harder, they have some real good players out here. It makes me feel good to come out and have a game like we did against a team like this. We were going to try to go deep, but they're fast and it's hard to beat them. Jason had to put the ball where our receivers could get to them."
"One of our goals is to be 100% in the redzone. That was just concentration problems, and playing with a crowd like this, I think the fans just got into some of our guys heads. I think its good to show us where we are at, and its good to get us ready to go into the big sky conference."
NAU's Jason Murrietta
On playing against ASU
"Overall we did great job. Our offense did a great job and our defense did a great job. We just need to put the ball in the end zone. It's a good measure, it shows us that we have some good players and we have to keep practicing and keep working hard, and execute and we will do alright this year."
On the team's offense
"We have Clarence (Moore) and Johnny (Marshall) to throw the ball to and their athletes and they'll get me extra yards. And the linemen did a good job today. Offensively I think we are in there, we're in sink right now."
On the interception
"It was a bad read by me, but we were both on the wrong page, but after that we composed ourselves by making a good drive. One mistake can really hurt you."