2004 FBL vs. Northwestern -- Postgame Quotes
11/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Michigan Head Coach Lloyd Carr
On the game ... "Coming off a bye you never know what you are going to get. We practiced well, but we certainly did not come out here ready to play offensively. It was obvious. Then we had penalties. We fumbled the ball. We did everything. We had guys open and we missed them. So we were in a dog fight. And I think the great news is that our defense played extremely well. When you consider what they were confronted with C an offense that had no production in the first half - and then with the exception of the big play in the second half, I thought our defense did a good job. And our offense really came out and played in the second half."
On the success of the run ... "The thing that we did very poorly in the first half is that our offensive line gave up too many sacks and we just did not control the line of scrimmage. In the second half we did control the line of scrimmage and we did run the football a lot more effectively. That is the thing we did extremely well that set up a lot of the passes. Do not underestimate today the significance of our kicking game. We had great field position on our returns. It was great to see Breaston's touchdown. He (Breaston) really needed that bye-week and so did Michael Hart. Breaston today looked a lot quicker than he has all season long after having a broken bone in his foot; I think he is back to full speed."
On Steve Breaston's performance ... "He has been hobbled since this spring. Then this foot injury we thought would be healed in time for fall, but he had a problem there. We really began to see in the last few days of practice an explosiveness about him we haven't seen since last fall."
On this team ... "When you look at every single game we have had, the game has come down to the fourth quarter and then you have the mix of two freshmen starting in the backfield. It has been a fun group because they don't know that two freshmen shouldn't be starting in the Big Ten. I give all of the credit to our seniors and the way they have led this football team. The coaches have done a great job and now we have an opportunity to take the final step and play our best game. We have yet to do that, that is what I keep waiting for."
On the chance the seniors got to play ... "So many times it doesn't work out that way because you are down there in the last few minutes trying to hold on or get the lead and you just do not have an opportunity. When you can get plays from a guy who has been on the demonstration team, like David Underwood's run, you cannot put a satisfaction level on that. You know that they paid a price, they committed themselves and in many cases they are very important to the success of our program, but they do not get to play in the games and to be able to go into the stadium for the last time and get to play, that is special."
Freshman Quarterback Chad Henne
On Michigan's first-half performance ... "I think the linemen weren't happy and we knew we weren't getting it going. We didn't play very well in the first half and we were just ready to get out there for the second half."
On Northwestern's play in the second half ... "They didn't do anything different, I just don't think we were focused in the first half. We got it done in the second half, we came out with fire in our eyes."
On Coach Carr's mood at halftime ... "Coach Carr wasn't happy going into the tunnel and they weren't happy. Sometimes they were just twisting stunts and we should have protected better. (David) Baas got on the guys that weren't picking up and just said 'let's go.'"
On the toughest place to play ... "Either Notre Dame or Purdue. Those are two big games with great traditions. I'm sure it's going to be a different story in Ohio."
On the offensive success in the second half ... "Their linebackers were dropping back and I was hitting underneath routes. You just have to take what the defense gives you. I think we were incorporating more receivers. You see that we were checking down the ball and being smarter with the ball. It just goes along with being more experienced. We're just more experienced right now and we're taking care of the ball."
On whether he is ready for the atmosphere down at Ohio State .. "Probably not. Until I get down there, I won't know. Everybody talks about it, but you have to see it for yourself. It's a hostile environment."
Junior Wide Receiver Steve Breaston
On how he felt physically ... "I think going into the bye week and all last week during practice, I felt real good. I felt like I was getting back in shape and I felt that my foot was a whole lot better. I just had a great week overall."
On whether this season has been frustrating for him ... "It hasn't been frustrating. We've been winning and I know I've been doing my job and my responsibilities. Right now, I'm just living through Braylon (Edwards) and Jason (Avant) getting open and getting plays. I'm just doing my part."
On the success of the offense against the Wildcats ... "There were more opportunities today. The linebackers were dropping and when the ball is thrown to me, I just have to make the plays like the rest of them."
Freshman Running Back Michael Hart
On whether he stole the show from the seniors today ... "I can't say I stole the show. I knew I had to step up my game and we knew we couldn't send the seniors out with a loss. We knew we had to come out and play a great game."
On Steve Breaston's performance ... "He did a great job. He caught a couple balls and returned the punt. He just did a great job of breaking a lot of tackles and getting first downs. He's back. He's been hurt during the year, but he's back now."
On his success on the ground against the Wildcats ... "Just the backside linebacker pulled all the way over and I knew the cutback was going to be there. As long as the lineman took the defensive tackle down, then it was wide open from there."
On what he expects when playing down at Ohio State ... "You don't know until you play in it, so I'll find out. You hear about it all year long and now it's finally here. I can't wait."
Northwestern Head Coach Randy Walker
On the game ... "Well obviously I'm disappointed in the outcome. I'm not, however, disappointed in our football team. I thought we played hard. At some points we didn't play as well as we needed to play to compete with a great Michigan football team that really was on its game today, and especially in the second half made virtually no mistakes. They executed extremely well and played very consistently. You can see that team getting better and better as the season goes on and I think they were really on their game today. I give them credit. Lloyd and his staff as always did a great job; their preparation was outstanding and their kids played very well."
On how his team will react ... "We're not discouraged; we're disappointed today. We had some things taken away from us, and that's always disappointing. When you come in and you play hard and you play to win, that stinks. We've been in this position before, and I believe we'll respond as a football team. This football team has bounced back and answered the bell throughout the whole season, and I expect them to do the same now. As I reminded them, we still have a lot to play for and we fully expect to play our best football. We hope to get one week better, because that's what we need to do. Those are the steps we need to take this week."
On how Michigan played ... "They executed extremely well. They took it to our defense. They took that great running back at us; they executed extremely well. For whatever reason, we needed a play or two in there, but we just didn't make a play or two on defense. They didn't help us any, they didn't throw the ball to us, or lay it on the ground for us. Once they got oiled up, they played extremely well and they executed well."
On Steve Breaston and Northwestern's special teams ... "He's a pretty good player. For whatever reason, we just didn't tackle very well today. It sounds like a simple thing. We had guys in position to make plays. You start getting excited out there, I think we played a little overexcited and you start leaving your feet and diving, and not many good players are tackled by people who leave their feet. That's just my perception again, that's without looking at any tape. It's a combination of a lot of things. One, we didn't get the kind of hang time we wanted to get, we'd like that ball to be up there a long time."
Defensive Tackle Luis Castillo
On the game ... "The biggest thing with us the whole year, is just getting to the fourth quarter and making it a close game. We felt like we had the opportunity to do that today, it just didn't work out. They just made more plays than we did."
On the team's fatigue late in the game ... "We pride ourselves on being one of the best conditioned teams and we've showed that all year, winning games late. I don't think fatigue was a factor."
On if Michigan changed their running scheme ... "Hart's a great back. We knew what he was going to do, but he still went out there and made great plays. They pretty much just ran power and isolation at us, and he would bounce it outside or something like that. He was just able to find gaps."
Cornerback Marvin Ward
On whether things became more difficult for the secondary after the first drive of the second half ... "No. We've been through a lot as a team, but we kept our focus. We also missed a lot of tackles, and you can't miss tackles against a team like this. You can't give a team like this those opportunities. They took advantage of that."
On if they let the game slip away ... "We definitely let it slip away. They came out in the third with a flurry and we didn't counter as a defense. That's something we have to work on as a team."
On if it was frustrating that the defense had to stay on the field ... "If you think about Penn State, it was the same thing but we stopped them. When we step out on that field, we expect to stop them. Truthfully, I think we're good enough to do it. But again, they made the plays."
