Q: When you heard the results of the Michigan/Ohio State game did that change anything about your approach coming into Maryland?
A: No, we just had to find a way to beat Maryland and find a way to get better. Besides the opening drives, I thought we did that today. We played a ton of our guys, which I think is very valuable, our threes and fours against their starters that they kept in the entire game. Our threes and fours were able to get in there and did really good work, which is important for their development.
Q: Can you explain the emotions of the Alma Mater after the game? I saw you interact with some seniors, how were the emotions with the Big Ten title game upcoming?
A: It was a win on Senior Day which is always emotional for me. I got emotional at breakfast this morning talking to the guys. Kaytron [Allen] doesn’t like that a whole lot, he gives me a hard time when I get emotional. Senior Day is an emotional day for me, you’re with these guys for four, five or even six years. I’m a coach that loves them hard, but also coaches them hard and I hold them accountable. Just to think about some of the journeys I’ve been on with these guys is a lot and I’m very proud of them.
Q: When you found out about the results of the Michigan/Ohio State game, did you say anything to the team before you took the field?
A: We knew, but I didn’t say anything to the team. I did the opposite I said, “Maryland, Maryland, Maryland…” because I think a lot of the guys were aware of it and I was trying to keep us focused. That may be why the game started out the way it did. You have to control the things that you can control, and the things outside of Beaver Stadium are not in our control. We needed to win and play well, lots of eyes were watching these games and looking at the statistics. We’re fighting to keep this family together as long as we possibly can. Wins do that, statistics do that, all those things matter. We were going to play four quarters and fight to the end and do everything we had to put ourselves in the best position to continue to the season as long as possible and be seeded as high as possible.
Q: Can you talk about Tyler Warren’s play again and how impressive he was for another week?
A: Yeah, he's a beast and I think the point is that everybody goes into it saying you got to stop Tyler Warren. Everybody's defensive game plan is we can't allow 44 to impact the game, just like for us, it was Tai Felton. We went into this saying Tai Felton was going to make some plays, he’s a really good player, but we got to limit his impact. Everybody said that every single week with Tyler Warren, no one's done it. They ought to bring the Mackey Award tonight, put it on a private jet, fly it to Tyler Warren, give it to him on Sunday, and then he should get an invitation to New York. He's done it week in and week out. He's a big-time player, and he's doing it when all eyes are on him, and he's the focus of the game plan. So he's a special guy. His humility is impressive. You guys ask him questions, every question he gets, it's an opportunity for him to turn the attention to his teammates. He's a stud.
Q: What did you learn about this particular program, this squad right now, over the course this month to earn yourselves opportunities in December.
A: What I don't think a lot of people understand, except for people that really study the game, like you guys and NFL people and college coaches, it's hard, especially with the expansion of these conferences. This is the most competitive Big 10 there's ever been, and to have your team ready to play week in and week out, it is very, very difficult to do, and it doesn't happen very often. You look around college football, you watch the highlights, it's not happening. So this team finding a ton of different ways to win, blow outs, comebacks, overcoming adversity, winning because of defense, winning because of offense, winning because of special teams. When you play as many games as we do now in college football, and the type of opponents that we play, you're going to have to find different ways to get it done. It may not always be pretty, but I also think that's the beauty in it, right? I'm proud of our guys, I’m proud of everybody in that locker room, because everybody played a role in it. I'm so appreciative of the managers and how they run our practice every single day, the equipment people, the student managers and student trainers. They're phenomenal. The D squad has been great all year long. The grounds people that we got new sod in the stadium, our grass was phenomenal from this time of year in this part of the country. All this stuff matters, and all this stuff adds up. Pat Kraft and his leadership, willing to fight for our program, which that hasn't happened in the past. Neeli Bendapudi who has been phenomenal. Michael Wade Smith, Matt Skyler, and Kleppinger. Everybody deserves credit, because you don't win 11 games in this type of conference, without everybody playing a role.
Q: It didn't look like it was the smoothest post-game handshake. Is that the statistics and their ones still in there? Or can you explain that last touchdown?
A: I get it. At the end of the game, we throw a touchdown. My job is to put the threes and fours in the game. But when the threes and fours get to go in the game, they get to play football. Those guys deserve to play football. Your ones are in the game. You're trying to score. We're trying to score. On top of that, you're playing cover zero, if you don't want play cover two. So I'm good with it. And on top of that, there's also a change in college football, we are trying to play as long as we can make the playoffs and be seeded as high as possible and scoring as many points and a point differential matters. All that matters, and if you don't get that, it's really not my problem. So W. 1-0. I'm good with it, anybody that's not, that's their problem.