Sept. 10, 2011
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Missouri at ASU | Sept. 9, 2011
ASU Head Coach Dennis Erickson
On Missouri and the game as a whole:
"They are a good team. The thing that I kind of knew and what we found out was how good their quarterback was. I mean he can run. He made so many plays in that game with his legs it made us not look very good on defense. I thought that we were not as disciplined as we were last week. We had more penalties. No real stupid ones but we did have some penalties, pass interference calls and all that but the bottom line is that we put it in there at the end and came out on defense and won the football game. Jamal [Miles] fumbles that punt and we had that 14-point lead, that was really the turning point to getting them back in the football game."
On how big it is to get a win like this:
"It is huge. I have been in that locker room when we lost those close ones last year and we were able to find a way to do it [this time] which I think is a springboard. Every week for us is hard and our league is so difficult that you just never know what is going to happen. But to be able to have a big lead then blow it then he misses a field goal, I am sure they are talking about that right now and to come back and score right away and to hold them. To hold them from the 25-yard line is hard. We finally came out defensively and made some plays when it counted."
On WR Aaron Pflugrad and his 180-yard game:
"Aaron Pflugrad had one of the better football games I have ever had from a receiver. I don't know how many catches he had, I don't know the stats, but what I do know is that every time we needed something he made a big play. He was without a doubt the most valuable player in that game and made plays every time."
On adjustments that were made during the game:
"They went to a three man front, I don't know if you guys noticed that in the second half quite a bit so it was something we had not seen and we had to make some adjustments to that. I mean we have to get better, shoot, we have to go back and play Illinois now. The thing about it though is that we are 2-0. Our kids are excited, we are excited, it is going to make for a lot easier of a Saturday."
On what it means to finish:
"You know how important it is to finish. We have talked about that a lot. People keep asking me what did you learn from losing those close games last year and that is what it was - finish."
On what there is to improve on:
"We didn't tackle very well at all as a defense, we didn't play very well at all as a defense. We have to get better - I know we are better than that. We didn't tackle, we didn't tackle Franklin very well and we finally did there at the end but we will get better. We have good players here and they came in and did some different things offensively, I was very impressed with them offensively."
On having only one turnover:
"That is amazing, just one turnover that was it. It was a pretty clean game."
On how the crowd played a factor:
"I cannot thank our fans enough. That is college football. That is a college football atmosphere and they were there until the end. I went over and yelled at them for a little bit at the end of the game, our students were awesome. They were special. It is not all that much harder in black shirts than it is in white or gold but it was just great for all of our fans. I just want to thank them and let's come out when we play USC."
"The football Gods were with us tonight."
ASU Player Quotes
WR Jamal Miles
On feelings before the missed kick at the end of regulation:
“For me, I had a lot going through my mind. I had one of the big turning points in the game when I dropped the punt return. I was like, ‘I have to make a play.’ Out there, I just did not want to lose.”
On the range of emotions throughout the game:
“There were a lot of emotions going on with me. I felt like I just had to make a play after I muffed the punt. The coaches trusted in me, they put the ball in my hands and I made everything of my opportunity.”
On the first touchdown:
“I just got open, Brock put the ball where it was supposed to be and I just made a play on it.”
On seeing the black jerseys again this season:
“I think we will see the black. It might not be all black, but we will be wearing black again.”
LB Colin Parker
On the overall performance of the defense:
“It was good at times and bad at times. We had drives extended by penalties and some things that we do not want to do. On the other hand, we had times when we were going three-and-out and playing well. There is good and bad; we have to look at the film and learn from the bad and keep doing the good.”
On playing in overtime knowing one stop is a win:
“We know it is on us. We have to go out and play and come up with a stop. That was our mindset going out there, and we got it done.”
On things that did not go well:
“It was tough because they run so many empty sets. We did not have eyes back on the quarterback, so once he escaped the pocket he was kind of just off to the races. We did not tackle all that well in the first half and that hurt us - and then the penalties. There were just some things that we need to clean up.”
QB Brock Osweiler
On how the team deals with the pressure:
“It was a black out, it was sold out, it was a Friday night game: we could not make things easy, had to make things exciting. Our team is just relentless. We could not give up. We came onto the field tonight wearing t-shirts that said "Band of Brothers" and we firmly believe that is how this team is and how we stick together and ultimately, how we get through these hard fought games.”
On satisfaction of the win:
“It is what you work for. When you are waking up at 5:30 in the morning, every morning from January to August; you are doing all the workouts watching all the film. These are the games you are working for - the big games to win when you are close. For us to do that tonight it is just a great feeling, but at the same time it is just one win. We have to get prepared for Illinois right away. They are a quality opponent and we have a lot more games this year that we have to be ready for.”
LB Shelly Lyons
On the environment out on the field tonight:
“It was crazy. Probably the most packed game since I have been here at ASU. It was great to have fans provide a lot of support tonight and it really helped us out especially those of us on defense. Missouri was running the hurry-up and because of the noise it took them a long time to get their plays in.”
WR Aaron Pflugrad
On the end of the game:
“I really believe in the team and that we are going to make plays. We came together as a team and I think you all saw that. We were going to find a way to win the game no matter what. It was a great team victory and it was a great day to be an ASU Sun Devil.”
On off season preparation paying off:
“Our whole team worked very hard this summer and we realize that being in the offense there are going to be games where there are 80-plus plays. I don’t know what the total count was but there were a lot of plays out there. We felt that if we could do that in the summer, in the heat and put in the extra work other teams wouldn’t be used to it and we could outlast them in the end.”
On his performance:
“It felt good. I really wanted to get the victory for the team. We all came together and everyone seemed to make plays at opportune times. It was a great team victory and I’m just happy to be a part of it.”
On his catches:
“It was a good job by Brock Osweiler putting [the ball] in there. I really didn’t notice the defender because he put it in a spot where I could still make the catch. It was good timing and a good ball, and I was able to make the plays.”
On atmosphere:
“It doesn’t get much better than that. Sold out, everyone wearing black at a night game. You grow up wanting to play in an atmosphere like that and I think we gave the fans quite a good game.”
On confidence level of the team:
“This shows our ability and how much time we put in to come together as a team. Last year we didn’t have any team victories that felt like this. Win the close one, where the game is on the line with a bunch of different guys making plays. It strengthens our belief in each other and I feel fortunate to go out there and play with these guys.”
Missouri Quotes
Head Coach Gary Pinkel
Opening statement:
“First of all, I talked to coach Erickson after the game, he is a friend, a colleague and I have known him for a long time. He has a very good football team and it was a battle out there, it was a war. A lot of competition and at the end they did the things necessary to win it. My guys battled back in a really tough environment and put ourselves in a position to win it. Lessons learned here, we are proud of our team for competing. We were down 14 going into the 4th quarter and then we tie it up and have a chance to win at the very end. These are tough losses.”
On the environment:
“This is a tough stadium, I do not think I am going to come back here.
On James Franklin:
“Well I would suggest for a second year starter, in this environment, to play like that. I think this guy is going to be pretty special. I said that last week. That is all I have to say. Are you kidding me? To make some of the plays he did in that game. That is the first thing Dennis Erickson said to me. Obviously I complemented on their quarterback too, obviously a great player. But the first thing he said to me, he said, ‘that guy is going to be really good’ and that is exciting to know that.”
On Devon Moore (injured first play of game):
“First play. First play. High ankle sprain, 3-4 weeks. We have Greg White who is a redshirt freshman, not really quite ready yet. We did not play him. Culver, who is a walk-on, is a great kid and obviously Josie came in and did a good job. Lose three scholarship players in a couple weeks. But nobody cares - you have to battle. It kind of affects what we do a little bit for our short yardage and goal line and stuff like that. But you know, that happened and we had to adjust. I feel sorry for him. The good news is we are going to get him back, I just don’t know when.”
On kick to end regulation:
“We tried to get five more yards. They were jumping over and blowing our guard up and timing it and going every time and we thought just maybe we can get him to jump offsides and we would have gotten the first down on it, to get five yards. It is a lot different when you are on the 25 or 30 yard-line. The wind was kind of gusty down there a little bit. We have got one of the best field goal kickers, if not the best field goal kicker in the country. Just very difficult. And at the end of the half, that kick too, it was very very close. That was the reasoning behind it though. We called the ball and froze it, it didn’t work, so he went back out and kicked it and didn’t make it.
On why he accepted a penalty instead of giving ASU a fourth-down and short:
“Because then they might have gone for it. And they are back in, going for it. So that was coaching 101 there. There was not much discussion on that.”
On James Franklin being poised:
“He is always poised. Sometimes he is too poised (laughs). I want to see a little… no. The guy has got a chance to be a great player. So he will handle this well. Obviously it is very disappointing. Our players made some plays for us too. We had four starters out. So we will get some guys back and that will help us too.”
On penalties:
“I do not know how many we each had, but that was the most penalized game I have ever seen. And first of all, from my standpoint, I go back and evaluate them all. I am just real frustrated. First of all, we evaluate them and see where we are at and then I have to deal with my football team. What happens is, you get this high-energy atmosphere, where you have to maintain your poise. We call it, ‘poise under pressure.’ You maintain it, so you don’t do crazy things. And we have got to be a more disciplined football team. But I would suggest a lot of these penalties hurt both sides of the football. They helped and hurt both sides at different times throughout the entire game.”
Missouri Player Quotes
WR T.J. Moe
On what James did:
“James is a cool kid. He is not worried about the little stuff. He is worried about each individual play and to get us back in the football game. Our defense held them when we needed to, but we just didn’t make plays when we needed to. “
On if they gained a quarterback:
“We already knew it. You guys are the ones who didn’t know it.”
On moving the ball well against ASU:
“We just had a few guys have an off day last week. If we can move the ball against our defense, we can move it against most. “
On ASU:
“It is a good place to play. It is not any worse than anywhere else we have played though. This is not my favorite stadium in the world.”
On running back injuries:
“Well it is a good thing we had a whole lineup of them. That is why I was back there returning kicks. We didn’t want someone else to go down - that is what happens though. We go with what we have. I will play some running back if we need to.”
WR Wes Kemp
On James Franklin:
“I think he stayed composed out there, even when we were trying to get back in the game. He made some big plays. Had a big hit to Marcus Lucas. He did well on our scramble; sometimes you just come up short.”
On the atmosphere in the locker room:
“It is tough. We put ourselves in tough situations before we even got to Grant. We could have converted better. Did not do well on third downs. Could have completed some more pass plays. But we were right there. We fought back in a hostile environment. It came down to overtime and we just could not punch it in.”
On losing games in September:
“We are just going to get in the film room and try to see where we can do better. We have Western Illinois at home. We just win that game, get our momentum back and get back on track.”