Rice Postgame Quotes
10/16/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 16, 2010
Recap | Final Stats | Notes
Rice Coach David Bailiff Quotes
(on the team's performance) "I am really proud of this football team. You have got to hang together to win one like this. Hats off to Kevin Sumlin and the University of Houston for the job they do. We know when you lose a young man like (QB) Case Keenum that is catastrophic. They've done a great job getting that offense going again. I'm really proud to have the Bayou Bucket back in our locker room. If you could have only seen the locker room, and seen the excitement of this football, passing that trophy around was really fun. I'm really proud of our offensive staff. I thought the first half game plan, shortening the game and keeping the ball out of their hands, was executed flawlessly. Defensively, I thought we did a much better job of putting pressure on the quarterback and making plays. Obviously, you want to play better in the second half, but we played good enough to win. Walking out of here 31-34--I'll take a win any day. I'm proud of every person on this football team."
(on how it felt to win today) "Winning is great, but there are different levels of winning. To be where we were and to beat Houston, they still have some great players on offense and defense, showed the character of these young men. They stayed together, and continued to fight. They believed in themselves and the coaches. They knew if we kept working good things were going to happen. We've got a lot of young men out too. We had a lot of young men that hadn't played special teams. We really had to overwork the defensive line because of the depth issues we're having right now. I think we can build on this win, and a lot of good is going to come out of this win."
(on QB Nick Fanuzzi's performance) "(QB) Nick (Fanuzzi) has made amazing progress in the confidence that he plays with. More importantly, it's even more heart-warming to watch the rest of the offense and defense to start to believe in Nick. Nick has always been talented. Three weeks ago a light really went on and he was understanding the offense and starting to gain confidence in himself. You also have to remember that I changed offenses on Nick. That's hard on these guys and that's why I think that you will continue to see our offense improve. It's been great having (TE) Vance McDonald back. 6 receptions and some big plays for us, he had to step up because other players are out. We've done a better job with personnel groupings on the field. We were getting our playmakers out there and trying to get them the ball more."
(on changes in offensive schemes) "We knew that there were young men who continue to make plays that weren't on the field. So, we had our staff come up with a way to get everybody out there while still staying in the framework that we've had."
(on winning the turnover battle) "We had no turnovers and Houston had two today. That had been just the opposite in other games. Today, we eliminated mistakes and played hard."
Rice Quarterback Nick Fanuzzi
(on the team's performance) "We got out there today and made some key throws. Obviously, the pass to (TE) Vance (McDonald) which got us our final touchdown was great. We had good timing today. I think the receivers and I were all on the same page. I felt like the line did a great job giving time. For the most part, we executed our plays to the best of our ability. It was just a great win from us today. It was great to go out there and make some plays."
(on having control of the game) "We're getting more comfortable running our offense. Week-by-week we're executing this offense better. The timing is just huge, creating gaps in the defenses, knowing what spots you're to be in, and knowing when to get the ball there. We just executed very well today."
(on game winning touchdown pass) "They were in man coverage, the safety was head up, there was a lot of space outside of the corner, knowing this meant that I needed to trust that (TE) Vance (McDonald) was going to get out there. I took a three step and I knew the ball was going there. I laid it up for him to make the play, and he got there. That's the end of it."
(on being able to finish drives late in the game) "I don't think anybody is going to realize how big this was for us today--to stay in there and battle. We had a few drives where we were trying to get the momentum back. We finished that last drive because we needed it. It was huge to stay in that game. The defense played great. They held Houston, limiting them to a field goal, and that was it. There were so many things that led up to the finish today. The team came together and did their part, and we came out with a win today."
Houston Coach Kevin Sumlin
"Very few teams can play a poor half and win a game. We're not there yet. We made adjustments in the second half and had a little better execution. We can't come out and play for a half and win a game that's a crosstown rivalry.
"The turnover early affected us.
"We blitzed and made plays. We blitzed and made hits with big plays. In the second half we gambled and lost on that last touchdown. The quarterback made a fine throw and catch.
"It's our job as coaches (to have the team ready). We generate a lot of electricity. Starting has not been our problem. It's something I will look at. Certainly we should have been ready to play. If we're not ready to play that falls on me.
"If you battle back or you don't, it's still frustrating to lose. You can win a game many ways and you can lose it a whole lot of ways and one or two plays usually doesn't make the difference. There's a bunch of different plays in this game that affected the outcome. It's not just the last play when we had (the ball). There's a number of plays in the first half that affected the outcome.
"You play the game where it is. I thought our guys came out after halftime and accepted the challenge. Unfortunately it's two halves of the game that we need to play, and we didn't do that. I challenged (the team) at the half. I challenge them all the time.
"We operated very, very efficiently. We didn't have a lot of time of possession in the first half and the score got a little out of whack. We had some bigger plays in the running game but we had some zero yardage plays too. It was hit and miss with our 10 or 11 carries in the first half. There were plays there to be made."
Houston Running Back Bryce Beal
"We came out in the second half and played hard and fast like we were suppose to. We have to do that for two halves. We had a good game plan, we just have to play harder.
"Coach Sumlin told me to keep my head up and keep being a leader. We'll go back and look at the film and make corrections. We have to be able to make fourth and inches. We have to get more physical.
"We have to get better and it starts tomorrow. We should come in on our game off. If we want to be champions we have to play like champions. We knew that Rice would play hard and give us a game. They've had a tough schedule. We have to play two halves."
