Clemson-Duke Notes and Quotes |
Duke Quotes
Coach Ted Roof
On how much Clemson?s scoring before halftime affected the team:
?Our guys know that it?s a 60-minute game. Certainly it put us in a hole because it was a one-possession game for most of the half. It gave Clemson some separation and forced us to try some different things and we didn?t get it done.?
On keeping the team together at halftime:
?It wasn?t hard to keep them together. This football team will stay together and this football team will fight. That is a big exchange there, in the last three minutes to go from being down a field goal to all of a sudden being down 26-7 at half. It was just an explosion.?
On giving up big plays:
?Clemson had too many big plays and certainly we give them credit. That was the best group of backs that we?ve seen. James Davis and C.J. Spiller are fantastic football players. Sometimes we were in position to make a play and couldn?t finish it off. In this game, sometimes you have to give credit to really good players.?
On the scoring margin increasing over the last few games:
?Part of that are the people that we?ve played. I think they are three of the most athletic teams that we?ve played up to this point. We have to execute. We have to make plays. We have to convert on third down and we have to make some plays in the throwing game. Defensively, we have to do a better job with the long plays, we have to finish the tackle, or when you?re responsible for a deep zone you have to stay on top of things.?
Clifford Harris
On today?s game:
?They had a couple good drives, but we made a couple mistakes and couldn?t capitalize on their mistakes. We tried to come back strong in the second half but they had some key plays that enabled them to pull away.?
On being Duke?s leading receiver today:
?As a whole unit, I give credit to the offensive line and the running back and the quarterback for putting me in the right position. It was like a scramble drill most of the time; they were stepping up and I was finding the open seam. That was working well for us.?
Vince Oghobaase
On the end of the first half:
?We just had a breakdown that we can?t have against a talented ball club like that. It cost us on all three phases of the ball, on offense, defense and special teams. They were better in all three phases and that?s why they won the game. They?re a big-play ball club and they made big plays today. We didn?t cover them and they capitalized on that.?
On the final three games:
?We just have to watch film, go back out on Tuesday and try to beat Georgia Tech. We can?t hold our heads down for too long. We just have to go out again and get after it.?
Clemson Quotes
Coach Tommy Bowden
On taking the time outs before halftime:
?You just try to squeeze as much as you can out of the clock. It?s just about managing time and our guys have to make plays. The time outs would have been insignificant had we not made plays. That gave us great momentum going into halftime.?
On looking ahead to Boston College:
?I think we?ve talked hard about not [looking ahead]. Ever since I?ve been a head coach I?ve talked about that. They don?t listen sometimes; sometimes the seniors will take hold and make the rest of the guys listen. We were well aware of the history up here. We?ve pretty much been on a week-to-week basis as far as concentration goes, at least we have played that way.
On momentum:
?This place will lull you to sleep a little bit. History indicates that. It?s a little tough to get motivated when you come up here. Being behind 7-0 didn?t surprise us. We were behind Central Michigan at home and behind 3-0 against Maryland at their place. I think it?s a good sign of a team?s maturity that they don?t get flustered.?
On starting slow over the last four games:
?We?ve scored 150 points in three games starting slow. It?s not really a concern. The best thing that it indicates is that your players don?t panic. I tell them nothing is going to happen in the beginning of the game that?s going to determine the game. If they return a kickoff for a touchdown, don?t go around and sulk; we have 59 more minutes to play. I think that?s the sign of a team that doesn?t get rattled.?
Upgrade Your Account
