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Postgame Quotes
Wisconsin vs. Illinois
Oct. 11, 2014
Camp Randall Stadium - Madison, Wis.
Wisconsin Head Coach Gary Andersen
ANDERSEN: It's great to win, bottom line, excited about it. Great victory in front of a tremendous crowd, as always. Unbelievable environment for our kids. It was good to get to 4-2 at this point moving into the bye week, and excited about continuing working with these kids and getting better and better. I could go on and on about the game. I'll let you ask your questions and we can go from there.
But I am proud of this group of kids. There's a lot of fight in them but I would also say, I think it's important, there's a lot of young men today that stepped on the field for the first time, even the first time some seniors, P.J. (Peniel Jean) his first start, Ben Ruechel, never played a snap of defense, kids that have been here for a long time. And to get that opportunity, Leon Jacobs comes in in his first start, 12 tackles, did a nice job for us.
So the youth continues to grow, whether they have been here for a long time or whether they have been here for three or four months. It's great to see and it's great to see the mixing of this senior leadership, and really not just the seniors but the older players on this team, continually motivate and wrap their arms around this young football team and have high expectations for themselves and everybody on this team.
QUESTION: The two turning points, the 72-yard punt that pinned you guys and flipped the field, and then Illinois got the lead, and two, (Vince) Biegel's play on the fourth down play which then you guys went down and scored.
ANDERSEN: Yeah, there was -- and I would add on the punting situation, on the 72-yard punt by them and our inability to be able to effectively flip the field and it showed its head again today. That was a big play. The ball landed, I don't know, a half a yard inside (the sideline) and took a bounce down to wherever it ended up, the one-yard line and it's a crazy shaped ball that bounces funny ways sometimes.
Very proud of the fourth down stop that shifted the momentum back into our favor. Vince Biegel, I would guess, before watching the tape, that that is his best game as a Badger. He has high expectations to play at a high level and he did and he made that play at fourth down and we were able to get ten points quickly.
But their scores came in droves. 14 points early and 14 points late and that can't happen. But there was some definite momentum changes in this game. We hung in there, and did some positive things, but you know, somebody's got to ask the question, so I'll say it right now, our special teams have got to get better.
QUESTION: Was the plan going in to use Tanner McEvoy on that particular drive, and did you plan to use him more than that?
ANDERSEN: You know, going into it, I just left it into Andy's (Ludwig) hands and ... I know, he was very comfortable with the scenario and with the situation. Just as the game went, he believed it was best to continue with Joel (Stave) and move ourselves downfield.
When Tanner came in, he made some nice plays, got out of the pocket a couple times. I believe that was the drive, if I remember right, with the missed field goal. But Tanner got us moving down the field which was good to see.
So as we move forward, all I can really say about the quarterback scenario is it's important that our offense continues to grow and develop, and both quarterbacks have an opportunity, in my opinion and with the coaches and I believe with the quarterbacks' opinion, that we are best served if they have an opportunity to be involved at this point. And that's the direction we're headed.
QUESTION: You talked about the functionality (on offense), having a function; did you achieve that a little better today?
ANDERSEN: Yes, I would say yes. There was a spark there where we started fast and had a very, very nice drive. Functionally, it was cleaner. There was more success, there's a lot of room for improvement, third down, yeah, needs to improve.
Our ability to continually throw the ball and we've talked so much about opportunities for lay-ups, we left some lay-ups out there today on the field but we also made some plays when we had to with some contested balls which was great to see with our ability to be able to protect much better and make it cleaner.
So improving and moving towards -- the words I used a week or so ago, a function loss, that's without question today, and it's a good thing that they were there.
QUESTION: Six or seven sacks today, were you confident you could apply that much pressure and did having (Leon) Jacobs in the game give you more of an ability to do that?
ANDERSEN: Leon is a tremendous athlete. It was great to see the sacks. It was great to see the defense put themselves in position that way and rush the passers physically. It was good. I guess, what was it, six, six sacks, that's the most we've gotten yet this year and we left two or three of them out there on the field.
Their (Illinois') object or their mind-set coming in was to throw the ball as quickly as they could and get out and move the pocket, and they were able to do that successfully, especially on the one touchdown throw down there on third down. But we did apply good pressure. Leon helps us with our athleticism on the defensive side of the ball. It's good to see him make some plays.
QUESTION: Can you tell us what happened to Derek (Landisch) and when you knew you would get him back? And if you get Derek and Marcus Trotter back, do you still have to find a way to get Leon on the field somehow based on what you saw today?
ANDERSEN: I've got to go back and sit down and really watch the tape. It's just great to see. I expect to have Derek back and be full speed. It was, I don't know, a couple series I suppose and then we found out that he was going to be able to come back, which was fantastic news.
Getting Marcus back will help us which we fully expect after the bye week, to get him back into the mix. Leon proved today that he's ready to get in the moment in a Big Ten game and make some plays, which was great to see.
That's why he came here. And he showed to me today that he has the toughness play in a Big Ten game and play throughout the whole game. Those are the questions that are never answered until you get yourself into the moment because it's not spring ball and it's not fall camp. This is big-time ball and your toughness is going to be challenged, every snap in this conference and he answered that today.
QUESTION: Melvin (Gordon) obviously had another great game today. Where do you think this team would be without him given all that he's accomplished in six games?
ANDERSEN: We need a tremendous player to do special things for us. I don't think that's any different than any successful team or any team that has an opportunity to be a good team. There has to be a couple special players. He is the best player I've ever been around and his ability to change the game at any moment is, you know, it's amazing.
His supporting cast has great pride in him, helping Melvin get there and I'm proud of those offensive linemen. Tight end blocking was better today than it's been, and not that it's been bad. But you watch some of those outside runs and the big guys are taking care of that box and those six guys are out of it.
But now we get out to the edge and there's a couple times with Sam (Arneson) and Austin (Traylor) and (Troy) Fumagalli are locking up with those guys and really getting better at blocking at the tight end spot. We are going to need that.
But Melvin is a special young man, and I'm just glad he has on that motion W, I promise you that much.
QUESTION: Corey (Clement) has made it no secret that's been frustrated with the inability to contribute as much as he wanted and at the level he wants. Do you hope today he can build on this?
ANDERSEN: Absolutely I do. You know, Corey is in a difficult position because he is such a competitor. He wants to be a great, great running back, and I believe he is very special and he's going to be a great back.
He showed today the special things that Corey can do, and I wouldn't expect him as a young man to be anything more than a little bit frustrated. If you're a competitor, you want the ball.
If you're a defensive end and you're not getting to the quarterback, you want to get sacks and that comes with being a competitive person. And Corey will be excited about his contributions today and he very well should be.
QUESTION: The way that game ended, letting them back in the game, did that change the mood in the locker room at all?
ANDERSEN: I told them that I sure don't want it to. But the way it took place at the end, is unacceptable, and we can't sit back and hide from it.
But we will enjoy the win. I don't want that to hold them back from enjoying this win today. We did discuss it and we all need to be held accountable at a high level and from the players to the coaches and you know, you get into that spot, it's not the way that it should go.
And I will put it on special teams just as much as I will put it on the defense there. There's a lot more plays that the defense played but we had an opportunity to make a critical play on special teams and we did not and they did.
So it will not take way from a victory, though, in the Big Ten. I've been here a short time but I understand what it takes, and every win in the Big Ten is very special.
QUESTION: Do you think it was a matter of just the team relaxing with a big lead?
ANDERSEN: No, I do not. They (Illinois) came in and changed up scheme. They did a nice job and went to triple-option football. The play they put in, call it the horn play, whatever, it doesn't mean anything to you guys, but it's a play that does take repetition and it turned into a triple-option game.
We had felt that that was a possibility with the other quarterback. We had prepared in practice for that, but obviously we did not prepare well enough for that and they executed and we did not.
QUESTION: Given what you and the team have been through in the past week and the way it all played out today, do you feel better about your team, worse, or somewhere in the middle?
ANDERSEN: No, I feel a lot better about this team and I continually feel better about them. It's just I've never been around a team that continually wants to grow and learn as much as this team does.
And it's every practice, it's every meeting, their attention to detail, a lot of times you can tell just by walking into a special teams meeting, and I said today, I've already spoke, we did not play well enough on special teams obviously.
But when you walk into those meetings at 2:25 every single day, 2:30 whenever it starts, their eyes are right, their minds are right. Coach Busch, Coach Genyk stands up and gets ready to start the meeting, and they are locked and loaded and they are excited about the opportunity to be able to learn and prepare, and I feel the same way about the offense and the defense.
The weight room was good. It's just a fun team to coach. And we have had our frustrations, we have had our ups and downs. But you know, I'm damn glad to be their coach and there's nowhere else I'd rather be.
QUESTION: Is Vince Biegel on the verge of being an impact player for you?
ANDERSEN: That is his goal and that is our goal for Vinny as a coaching staff. He's moving definitely in that direction. He is just -- we talk about the competitiveness of Corey. That's
Vince Biegel, the competitiveness in that kid to be a great player; he is unbelievably driven, and we need him to be. He needs to be a special player in the Big Ten. That's why he came to Wisconsin. That's why stayed at home to play, to be a special player at the University of Wisconsin, and he's making those steps.
QUESTION: When I asked you the punt -- you said we didn't flip the field. Are you talking about your punter being able to do it or your offense?
ANDERSEN: I would say the punter. It becomes a bit of a blur, I apologize but there was a time we got backed up and punted it to, I don't know, the 38-yard line or something and turned around and they had the ball on the 30. We were backed up and we didn't flip the field.
When you have the ability to flip the field a couple times a game, it makes a big time difference. And that is an area of concern and there's a lot of them, and Drew (Meyer) will continue to work on it and we'll continue to try to help him. So I think after one game in this situation you would think he's found a little bit of a home. He's a sophomore by age. And so we'll see how he continues to grow. We all know we're down to numbers there. So being creative with kids is important.
QUESTION: How did Joel kind of change the offensive equation? What did he give you that maybe you hadn't had?
ANDERSEN: I think Joel's ability to be in the moment in these Big Ten games is a feel right now that is a positive situation, and I think it's good to know that he's been in those moments.
I think the throws down the field, even though not connected, it's invaluable. If you look back and watch the film of where those safeties are stacked and how they are playing and where they were in there, they were at six yards now in the second quarter and it became tough sledding running the football.
As soon as we were able to complete a couple of the underneath throws, get a couple third downs moving the right direction, take the top off it a couple of times, it definitely softened them up and gave the ability for the run game to get opened up. And as we all know, if we have a crease and people aren't plus one or plus one and a half on us, we are pretty hard to stop in the run game.
QUESTION: The jet sweep has been a staple of the offense for a long time, was it successful today and getting (Natrell) Jamerson and (Kenzel) Doe involved, did that open the middle?
ANDERSEN: That's a great point, much like we talk about the pass game has to open things up, the jet sweep, the fly sweep, definitely causes reactions in defenses that are hard to be able to deal with, however you're going to adjust and get a guy running to that guy that's coming across the formation.
There's some communication and they a lot of times force somebody to be in a down or uncomfortable position. It was blocked well and I'm pretty sure it was Sam that was out there,
Sam Arneson, blocking, tremendous, tremendous block and it took a look a long time.
I don't think we all know how hard it is to lock up on a Division I football player and block him for four or five seconds. He got it done on that snap. So the jet sweep is big for us.
QUESTION: It looked like Kyle (Costigan) came out on various plays, mostly on passing downs. Can you talk about the decision behind that? Was that part of the game plan coming in this week?
ANDERSEN: Trent (Denlinger) is in a position to be able to play and Kyle is continually battling. You can see he's a little bit locked up on his one side with his arm, and it's a preventive situation, but it doesn't allow him to be in the best position to be able to pass block just because of the nature of he's kind of locked up and it's not real easy.
It gives Trent an opportunity to be able to play in certain situations. You won't see that week-in and week-out, I don't suppose, but today it was definitely the plan. It gives a rest to a very, very talented player and it also gets Trent an opportunity to come in and play in these moments in the Big Ten games.
Redshirt junior QB Joel Stave
On whether he would be happy to keep running the ball the way the team has this season…
“I mean, it’s hard to turn away from I suppose. Again, we had a lot of, I thought, really good play-action passes and you know different routes in the game plan and it can be tough to get to them when we’re handing it off and Melvin (Gordon) and Corey (Clement) are running the ball down the field so much. I’m not sure if that was the plan necessarily. I know we had a lot of good stuff, and I think it’s my job just to run the plays that are called and execute them at a high level.”
On how encouraging it is to hand the ball to someone like Melvin Gordon who has been running so well…
“Obviously Melvin is a special player, and he’s been a lot of fun to play with. I thought the offensive line did a tremendous job today too, opening up holes for him. And that’s all Melvin needs, he needs one guy, one or two little creases and he’ll make a guy miss. He’s just a special player and he makes my job a lot easier.”
On splitting reps with QB Tanner McEvoy all week in practice…
“I thought we did a good job in practice kind of accomplishing what we needed to accomplish. I thought we did a good job splitting them up in the week so that we both felt prepared, and I wasn’t sure what the distribution would be like today so I just have to be ready.”
Sophomore ILB Leon Jacobs
On how productive he thought he was on defense…
“I got a good start out there, made a few tackles. I thought I started off hot, at the end I had a missed assignment, but our defense came back and got it back, so it was good.”
On how much fun the game was for him…
“Yeah it was very exciting. But going into the game I don’t get excited because I don’t play well excited, and that was something that worked well today. I try to calm down, I don’t let it all get to me. I just go in there and do what I do in practice every day."
Redshirt junior RB Melvin Gordon
On keeping his balance during his 46-yard run in the first half…
“It’s tough, you don’t know sometimes who’s on the left side of you or right side. You can get blasted like that sometimes so you just try your best to keep your balance. I mean we work on drills like that all the time, with our coach so it’s just second nature to do that out there.”
On whether the game plan was to run the ball more today, and how he felt the run game plan went…
“We were excited. We knew we would get after them a little bit. Big runs, really big runs out of Corey (Clement) today, I felt like I had to work for all of mine. A lot of big runs went to him today I felt like, but we were hungry today, we knew we would get some runs and we knew we would get some opportunities. We both just try to make the best of them.”
Sophomore RB Corey Clement
On the balance that he and Melvin Gordon showed today...
“I took it from him, because he’s taking the majority of the snaps, so I just feed off of him. I ask him what is going on out there. Are the safeties down low pressing? Once I go into the game I take that into consideration, and decide if I have to be patient, hit it hard, and be about my business once I get out there.”
On not putting forward the kind of production that he wanted in previous games this season and if his performance today puts those worries at ease...
“I really shouldn’t be relaxed at all. Every game should be downhill for me. I’ve just got to go out there and do what I have to do. I don’t want to be a selfish player, so I’m not really going to talk about my personal goals. It’s all about just getting the win.”
Junior QB Tanner McEvoy
On rotating into the QB position with Joel Stave…
“We had some things set up, and I thought I did well. We were ready to use it at whatever time was necessary, so that’s when I came in.”
On the combination of him and Joel Stave and how they worked together for the offense overall…
“I think the offense had a good day. We moved the ball on the ground, we missed a few shots and we have to land those, but we won the game. We put a lot of points up on the board, and that’s what counts.”
On how he hopes to contribute to the offense for the rest of the season…
“I just want to help this team win and whatever I have to do to help them do that, that’s what I’m going to do.”
Redshirt Junior CB Darius Hillary
On Illinois’ success after changing quarterbacks…
“When they brought in the other quarterback, he definitely has that running aspect to him. He wasn’t much of a thrower and we kind of knew we were going to have to play man and be able to bow up and tackle. Some things didn’t go our way, but I’m just happy that we won.”
On whether the mobility of Illinois’ quarterback Bailey was surprising defensively…
“It was a little bit. Looking at film, we didn’t really see too much of a run game out of him. We just have to be able to get him down and tackle him, and contain.”
On the end of the game…
“We always want to win the fourth quarter. Coming out of the end of the third quarter and having those things happen. Winning is hard to come by and I’m just glad that we were able to get that win today.”
On having to change things up when Bailey came in…
“They have a lot of tricks and gadgets with their offense. Trying to get your eyes going sideways, you just have to be able to read your keys and the play to the best of your ability.”
On pressing the quarterback…
“It’s great. It gives us a little bit more wiggle room. It definitely correlates with how we cover. I’m definitely grateful for what the front seven did today.”
On how the team is doing compared to last week…
“I think we have done well up to this point but we want to get to the point where we are a great team. We can talk about it with the best of them but we have to come out this next bye week better and be ready to move on."
Redshirt sophomore OLB Vince Biegel
On how special it is to earn a win in the Big Ten…
“Without question, I think the Big Ten is where you have to take every point seriously. A team like Illinois came out here ready, they had a great game last week, and I think they were trying to build upon what they did last week. So we were able to go out there and do some good things, but obviously we need to finish the fourth quarter and make the plays we need to, and make the corrections that we need to.”
On Leon Jacobs’ first career start and his performance…
“I wouldn’t say I’m surprised. Leon’s a great player for us and he’s going to be a spectacular player for us in the future. I’m looking forward to seeing what Leon can do for us as well.”
On his contributions in today’s game…
“Without question, I think I came out there and made some big plays for us, had some TFLs and had some hurries. At the end of the day, I’m just trying to help this defense win some ball games.”
Senior WR Kenzel Doe
On Illinois’ punting game and the field position of the Badgers as a result…
“I kind of knew exactly where he was punting before, because of the way that he offset it, so I knew where he was going. With the first one, it was a line drive and over my head, so I didn’t want to take that chance of going back there to get it and getting pinned deep. It looked bad, and I thought the ball was going over, but it ended up turning back in. The ones I did get, I think I did a very good job on and I give that to the team we have out there.”
On special teams and the motivation going into the rest of the season after a rough game…
“Coming off of last week, we felt like we did pretty well in the special teams. This week we knew we had to step it up, because special teams are a big part of the game. I just wanted to get that opportunity like I have before to make something out of it.”
On achieving the goal of becoming a “big threat” player for the team…
“Man, it feels great. You feel like you’re actually a part of the offense, and I still want to get a little more involved in the offense and the passing game. And special teams are what I love to do, and I just try to make the best of each and every time I go out there.”
Senior TE Sam Arneson
On his performance today and the performance of the offense…
“Joel (Stave) and I were able to hook up on a couple of passes, which is good. We had some big moments. We kind of got things going in the first half when we were maybe sputtering a little bit on offense. I was just trying to give Joel a good target and make good catches when it came to me.”
On the blocking game on the edge…
“You have to be sound on the edges. You’re kind of the point of the attack and exactly where the refs are looking so you have to make sure you’re technique is good. We’ve got great running backs, and our wide receivers have been doing a good job on the ball too. I just want to give them a little time and just get enough of the defense, try not to hold. The running backs are doing great getting around the edges and making me look good.”
Sophomore CB Sojourn Shelton On how today feels compared to last Saturday… “It feels real good. Last week left a really bad taste in our mouth. To come out here and fight hard on both sides of the ball and get the win, it felt good. Now we have to build off of it going into this bye week and get ready for the next stretch.”
On the pass interference call… “I don’t know. If it was, the referee called it and you just have to learn from it. That’s all you can do. I think the type of defense that we do play, it might happen here and there but you just have to be able to move on to the next play.”
On Illinois’ last couple of scores… “I think we made a couple of minimal errors. We just have to watch the tape and find ways to minimize those errors, especially at that time in the game where it can get pretty hectic.”
On Illinois’ playing scheme... “We worked everything that we saw today. Like I said, just a couple of minimal errors here and there. I think that is what caused them to gas us and make those bigger plays.”
Senior DL Konrad Zagzebski On the end of the game… “When they brought in the new quarterback, there were a few new fits that we weren’t fitting correctly. We practice it but we just have to be quicker and adjust better to it.”
On the overall effort of the defense… “I think we found our identity early on in the season. We just have to keep growing. We are still a young defense and we have to keep having the young guys step up and the older guys keep leading them.”
On the attitude of the sideline after Illinois’ first two touchdowns… “It was positive. Its football, they are going to score. They are a good offense and they are a Big Ten team. We just have to come back and come through adversity.”
On the response this week compared to last week… “Going into the bye week is huge. It gives us time to prepare for Maryland. It gives us time to get some of the guys healthy. Hopefully, Warren will be ready for that Maryland game and that will be huge for the defense. We just have to continue to grow and continue to practice hard.”
Senior ILB Derek Landisch On his injury… “My arm got bent this way and that way. I kind of just lost control over my arm but the x-rays looked good so we just braced it up and I was able to play. I wanted to get back in there.”
On if he thought he was done for the day… “At that point I had no idea. Once the x-rays came back fine and there was no structural damage, why not brace it up and just play. The brace kind of held my arm straight through the whole game anyway.”
On the way the game ended… “You always want to finish. We just have to limit the big plays when we can. There were kind of on a roll there. They put in their new quarterback and they started to run him. So someone has to make a play and we just have to learn form that.”
On if he thinks the team took a step forward today… “I think we did. Just seeing some of the young guys step up, I’m really proud of some of those guys. All of the injuries that we have, I think they did a great job under those circumstances. Heading into the bye week, we just need to get healthy and get better moving forward as a defense.”
Illinois Head Coach Tim Beckman Opening statement... “We want to win. This football team worked hard and I thought we competed for four quarters, we just didn’t have enough in it. We have to tackle better, of course, and stop the run. We have to be able to convert on fourth down and 2. I am proud of the way that they competed and I’m proud of the way that they continued to fight. I told them in there that there’s a lot of negativity that surrounds this program right now and I told them that it’s only about what we think inside our football family that really matters. This week off will be good. We look forward to get a little off time so they can see their families but we’ll also be working football.”
On Aaron Bailey’s appearance as quarterback in the third quarter… “Well we were going to go with Bailey [as quarterback] sooner; I think what we were doing offensively was good. We were moving the football and the game was a 14-14 football game so we felt, “why change that right now?” We decided to put him in in the 3rd quarter.”
On if QB Reilly O’Toole’s sacks factored into subbing Bailey as quarterback… “Reilly took a couple of hits; there’s no question about that. We have to protect the quarterback better. As we all know, you want your quarterback to be 100 percent or as close as possible to that, but that wasn’t why we decided to make the move. We were going to play Aaron today and he was going to get an opportunity and he did.”
On Bailey’s performance… “Really I thought both of them [the quarterbacks] played good. Again, you don’t win a football game so it’s not good enough. I thought Aaron came in, ran the football and we have to continue to work on the schemes and the passing so that he gets comfortable with that. I was happy with the way that Aaron played, and I was happy by the way that Reilly played.”
On the team’s inability to stop Wisconsin from running later in the game… “When you play a team like Wisconsin, it was basically out of gaps. We tried to pressure in the middle like we had been doing, trying to puncture the run, trying to get as many guys in the box as we possibly could, and it hurt us when we got out of that gap. You got all of your guys in the box; when it breaks, you better have one guy there and we just couldn’t make that play. I think it goes back to being able to make plays when we have to make plays.
On Melvin Gordon… “That’s what Big Ten football is all about. Wisconsin has a great running back there and there are some great running backs in this league. He [Gordon] is definitely one of the tops in this country.”
On Corey Clement… “He ran great too. You know, it’s Wisconsin football. It’s what I’ve grown up around, and what I’ve coached against, and now I’m coaching against it as a head coach. It’s always been known to be a running-attack football team that uses a play-action pass to try to hit a couple strikes, but it’s the same old Wisconsin team that I’ve been around for most of my life.”
On deciding between the two quarterbacks… “We compete. Like I said earlier in the season, we’re always going to compete for every position that we have and if somebody is outplaying somebody, just as we had Christian DiLauro start his first game today, we thought that that was an opportunity for him because he’s been playing pretty good. We’ll see how he played, and we’ll do that at quarterback also.”
On Aaron Reilly handling the moment… “He came in and played for us last year, of course, but I thought he handled the moment pretty good. Again, a lot of credit goes out to Coach Cubit and the rest of the staff for that opportunity an
