Oct. 31, 2009
Recap | Final Stats | Notes | Photo Gallery 
MADISON, Wis. -
Wisconsin Head Coach Bret Bielema Post-Game Quotes
Wisconsin vs. Purdue
Oct. 31, 2009
Camp Randall Stadium - Madison, Wis.
Opening Statement:
"I really like the way these guys handled their bye week. And this week, I knew there was this kind of edge. Like I said to a number of people that I talked to, the way they responded. They were kind of hungry and played with a chip on their shoulder and responded out there very well today. I thought our offense, defense, special teams, those guys went out there with an attitude and played four quarters, something we've been trying to get done since our first game and I'm glad it's happening. Hopefully we'll continue.
"One real injury, Kevin Claxton may have had a concussion. He went out and came back and then they took him out permanently for the second half."
On the shutout:
"Especially what they've done the last couple of weeks, we were able to close out a game, something we haven't been able to do. We have been really gaining some momentum offensively. It was a nice blistery Madison weather day out here, it could have been blowing 100 miles per hour for all I care. But I think our guys really bought into that and went out there and did what we do."
On Devin Smith and Niles Brinkley at corner:
"The way they practiced during the bye week. I know Coach (Kerry) Cooks really challenged those four corners after the Iowa game, put some heat on them from a coaching standpoint just knowing and understanding every play. They were going to be getting coached up, talked too. I thought Devin (Smith) really responded well. Antonio (Fenelus) really did as well, Niles (Brinkley) played well and Aaron (Henry) continues to come along he's just not right where we need him at this point. He probably thinks he's an offensive player now that he got on the scoreboard."
On Gilbert's block:
"Happy 18th birthday, it's his 18th birthday, it's kind of amazing. We put him in there because in film, we thought there were some seepage that guy could kind of get through there. As that began to wear through, he kept getting lower and lower, and right before that play Dave (Gilbert) looked at me and said `Coach can I jump this one?' I said absolutely, knock yourself out and he did. We knew that ball was really close to that shield, which you always get concerned with, so unbelievable play. Two true freshmen that have debuted on that, Chris Borland, he is probably mad now because he doesn't have the trademark policy on that one."
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Wisconsin Player Post-Game Quotes
Wisconsin vs. Purdue
Oct. 31, 2009
Camp Randall Stadium – Madison, Wis.
Offensive lineman John Moffitt
On taking Purdue defensive end Ryan Kerrigan out of the game:
“I don’t know if he was completely taken out. He had a couple sacks and he’s a good player. Obviously we focused on him and put some pass-pro specialty things, like getting a linebacker to trip him, but he still played a game from what I saw.”
On the importance of putting together four solid quarters:
“It was very important. Obviously that was something that we had yet to do. I think offensive line-wise, we could have still done better in the fourth quarter—we could have finished our drives better. The defense put us in a few great positions all game, and I think we took advantage of it at the time, but I think we could have been better.”
On the offense and scoring today:
“I think things were coming together well. The first half was really clean, good football. That first drive was a good drive. I think we kind of followed suit with that after that first drive throughout the rest of the first half.”
Kicker Philip Welch
On how he felt physically:
“I felt pretty good. I just had a problem with my groin earlier in the week and I felt 100 percent today. I pulled my groin on Sunday, so I had a week to recover, so it wasn’t lingering like any of the other games.”
On his mechanical execution:
“I felt good. I aimed left a little bit today, I’m not going to lie, because I wasn’t feeling like I was hitting it straight down the middle there, I was still going a little bit right.”
On the wind:
“It was kind of fun on kickoffs because I got two in the back of the end zone, but with field goals, it didn’t affect it too much. It was kind of a sideways wind.”
Linebacker Chris Borland
On his “surprise” contributions thus far:
“I expected to be a backup, not make my name on special teams, but I’m pleased with the opportunity and I’m trying to take advantage of it.”
On his relationship with David Gilbert:
“We joke around. You know, we’re just freshmen, but we talk about plays that we want to make and make a contribution early. Today was a good play.”
On the team completing two full halves:
“It’s big. We talked about that at halftime, that a lot of games this year we had a great first half and then didn’t finish the way we wanted to and let people creep in and let the split make the game look closer than it really was. So our message at halftime was to stop them completely and finish the game.”
On returning to play after the bye week:
“We were just hungry and ready to play. On the Sunday of our bye week we had a 15-period practice. Usually we don’t have a good practice, but guys were hitting, ready to play. You could tell we were hungry to get back on the field and every guy wanted to win the game.”
Running back John Clay
On the importance of the first drive:
“It was very important to establish the running game. We saw some stuff on film and we just took the most of our opportunities when we got the ball. Once we started rolling, offense is very hard to stop. We were trying to finish out the whole game, not just the first half, but also the second half.”
On coming back from the two losses:
“[The team] was motivated and determined. We know we’re better than that, we just wanted to finish off the season like we were supposed to and that’s what we did today.”
On coming back from a struggle with the running game:
“We just have work together as an offensive group and make sure we stay on our keys, that I read my blocks right and I have my wide receivers downfield, and once that happens, everything gets rolling.”
On running on third downs:
“We’re not scared to run the ball on any down. It could be third-and-long or third-and-short, we have the confidence in our offensive line, and I have confidence in them too, that we can get the job done.”
Defensive lineman J.J. Watt
On the shutout performance by the defense:
“It’s the most exciting thing you can do as a defense. Pitching a shutout is what we strive for every week. This week it worked out and it was fun for us to play out there.”
On the key to shutting out Purdue:
“We all played our techniques real well. The defensive backs shut their receivers down. Purdue is a huge passing team and out defensive backs and linebackers really shut them down. The d-line didn’t get a chance to get much pressure on the quarterback because of his quick release, but the guys behind us really did a great job this week.”
Tight end Lance Kendricks
On the opening drive:
“They didn’t see a lot of power so we wanted to come out and put a lot of pressure on them, running the ball real tough downhill and that’s what we did.”
On the shutout:
“It’s great. When they had the ball in the red zone and we made a stop that really shows that they can hold their own. We put up some great points, so we really sent a message too.”
Wide receiver Kraig Appleton
On seizing the opportunity to play:
“Coaches always say when you get an opportunity; you make the best of it.”
On hearing of his chance to play:
“I’ve repped so many times in practice so I was thinking do as I do in practice and I just made the best of it.”
On not redshirting:
“I just set that aside. I just go out practice and work hard. I knew my opportunity would come with how I practice. How you practice is how you play so I knew eventually I’d get that chance.”
Quarterback Scott Tolzien
On the team’s win:
“It was great. It’s almost been a month since our last win. To come out there on the first drive and just establish the run throughout the game was just awesome. Hats off to the offensive linemen, they did a great job and so did the backs.”
On the team’s overall offensive play:
“We can still get better. Today our run game was awesome but our passing was pretty average. We have some improvement to do there and I don’t think we’ve reached our potential as an offense yet.”
On setting the tone with running:
“It was big. We knew going in that Purdue hadn’t seen much of heavy personnel based on the opponents that they’ve played. We knew we were going to run the ball to start off and our offensive linemen did a great job on their assignments and getting their blocks.”
Defensive back Devin Smith
On how the coaches challenged them during the bye week:
“It was really challenging, we did not play very well as a secondary against Iowa. So we were really focusing on challenging every route and just gaining respect because no one really believed in us. Focusing on tight coverage, reading keys and basically just having great fundamentals.”
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Purdue head coach Danny Hope Post-Game Quotes
Wisconsin vs. Purdue
Oct. 31, 2009
Camp Randall Stadium - Madison, Wis.
Opening Statement:
"We thought we'd be able to come out and handle their power running game some. We thought we'd be able to hold up to them. We came into today with a game plan and establish some runs, pitch and catch the football. We did a poor job at defending their in-and-around game, their reverse game that they had. Those things impacted the result of the game and ended in a lop-sided loss."
On if he was surprised with the outcome:
"No we did not see it coming. We anticipated coming to Camp Randall and playing well."
On whether or not the loss could be a step back:
"If we let it be, it could. But we're not going to let it be. We have three games left and we're going to practice hard. We do have pride as a football team and I anticipate our guys stepping up and doing what it takes to get ready to win."
On the blocked punt:
"I want to look at the film to make sure everyone is lined up right. They had a guy that was charging toward the shield and our guys got down there low. When he jumped, our guys raised up which propelled him higher. I thought we got everything off okay timing wise. Chris (Summers) hit a good punt, but we'll have to look at the film. They gave a great effort on it and I think we played in their hands some on how we responded to it."
His message to the team after the loss:
"We're disappointed in the loss and we have three great opportunities ahead of us. We need to come back hard tomorrow and focus. We can still do some great things this season and send our seniors our right. I was disappointed we weren't able to go out there and be a little more physical early in the game and disappointed we didn't pitch and catch with any kind of consistency at all. Those things manufactured a lop-sided loss.
"I'd like to think that we came out here trying to compete. We worked hard in practice. They had a game plan that they worked on and they were ready to execute. Again, we are very disappointed."
On the most frustrating thing about seeing how his team played today:
"The loss. Whether it was 30-something to nothing or a one-point game. A loss is a loss. We had a chance to win today and we didn't, so losing is the most disappointing thing."
