Sept. 1, 2001
Louisville vs. KentuckySept. 1, 2001Commonwealth Stadium – Lexington, Ky.
Kentucky Coach Guy Morriss Quotes
On the quarterback situation:” I don’t think the rotation had anything to do with the outcome of this game. We want to get Shane in the game and make the commitment to get him some reps and we did that and it seemed we couldn’t get any kind of spark out of them – not only the quarterback, but our whole offense period. But I think we will still try to rotate both of them. The backup still has to get reps. We are not changing that philosophy.”
On the difference between this loss and last year’s:”Their disappointed but I don’t think we are going to throw in the towel. They were frustrated and they expressed some of that. They have a firm commitment and belief to what we are doing and how we are going about it. It is a learning and growing process of how to win. You can’t just show up and expect to win.”
On the season opener:”The kids were fired up and I know they were ready from a psychological standpoint and emotional standpoint, they may have been a little too gassed. The first quarter woes may have come from jitters and being too excited and I thought at any point we would settle in to a good rhythm and start executing. I just had to be encouraging to the kids and tell them to keep their head up. The first three-and-a-half quarters, the defense kept us in the game and gave us a shot to win the football game.”
On the defense:”I thought they played very hard especially with the new system. There were times when we were not lined up correctly. I think there were times when we were thinking a little too much and not reacting. I think our lack of depth hurt us a little bit. It’s nothing we can’t overcome.”
On the fumble on the exchange:”I think it was the quarterback’s fault. I think the ball hit the fullback on the elbow. He has to get a little deeper and let the fullback clear and leave the ball for the tailback.”
On Shane Boyd:”I think Shane is very athletic and he made some plays. He also made some freshman mistakes. He’s going to make some freshman mistakes.”Kentucky Player Quotes
Jared Lorenzen, QB
On the play of the Cats’ offense…”I don’t want to take anything away from Louisville’s defense, but we entered this game thinking he could put up some numbers and we didn’t. I don’t know why we couldn’t execute. We wanted to bring Coach Morriss in with a win. It wasn’t meant to be today.”
On winning games this season…”We realize that it is going to take a lot for us to win with the schedule we have. We can’t just step on the field and win without executing. This system is going to work. Look at how good this coaching staff is, it has to work.”
On the running game…”We won’t shy away from the running game. It will work. We have the personnel to make it work. We will stick to the same running game that we opened the season with.”
On Louisville…”Louisville played a hundred times better today than when I saw them on film. They have a great team. The defensive line was tough and stayed in my face and the defensive backs are very fast. They played well today.”
On the quarterback situation…”Shane came in and moved the ball well. I don’t feel any pressure because I know that he is going to get his playing time too. I was just happy to see him get out there and move the ball today. I wasn’t moving the ball. It was good to see him driving the field.”
Shane Boyd, QB
On the quarterback situation…”It is good to have two quarterbacks who are capable of running the offense. We will use it to our advantage as the season continues. It will be a huge asset for us.”
On UK’s play…”The defense played well enough to win today. I wish the offense could have helped them out more. We had major problems in the red zone. I promise that will not continue to happen this season.”
On Louisville’s defense…”The defensive ends were coming hard the entire game. I had good protection though. I have to learn to step up in the pocket. I have to learn to execute.”
On not starting…”It was good for me to watch the first couple of series. I got to relax and get a few mental repetitions before I got in. I felt more comfortable when I got in the game after I was able to see the defense play for a while.”
Chris Gayton, LBOn defensive efforts…”We’re happy overall. There’s certainly a lot to work on, but overall our effort was there and we had the right conditioning. We played pretty well overall.”
On bouncing back after this loss…”We just need to keep doing what we’re doing. With our new staff and philosophy we don’t get down. We just keep working and we’ll be ready next week.”
Derek Abney, WROn the punt return…”It was a right return. I only had one guy to shed and after that no one else touched me.”
On offensive struggles…”We couldn’t get on the same page. We couldn’t get in that groove that teams have mid-way through the season. When you play a top-25 team like we did you can’t make mistakes and we made a lot of mistakes. We just didn’t get in a flow together between the quarterbacks and the receivers.”
Derek Smith, TEOn the game…”It was 16-10 going into the fourth quarter. That’s the best we’ve probably done defensively in three years. When’s the last time the offense didn’t score a touchdown? It doesn’t happen too much, and it won’t happen again. It is going to change and we’re going to do better. We just have to go out on Saturday and prove it.”
Louisville Players QuotesQB Dave Ragone #15
His feelings on winning…”We came out focused and were a lot better then we were last week. We played a full four quarters, but a win is a win just like it was last week. We have Western Carolina on our schedule for next week and I hope that we can come out with the same kind of intensity.”
On UK’s defense…”They are definitely hard to run against that is for sure. We had a successful drive at first, but they played pretty well. Having the linebackers out and then Riley out in the second half, it was a big blow for the team to be without those players. I think that we definitely took advantage of that though.”
On Louisville’s defense and offense feeding off each other… ” I think it’s just like what we saw last year. When we play as a team we are hard to beat. We play off of each other and we can be dangerous. We change field position and I think that was the big thing in this game. We changed from the first half. One side of a team can’t show up for a game.”
WR Zek Parker #80
“We came out and played real hard. We were one-on-one for the first touchdown and it really helped us. We came out in the second half and showed how we can really play. I think we’re more of a second half team. I’m not sure why, but that’s how it seems most of the time.”
On Deion Branch…”Deion is good. He’s just a good player. He helps us in different positions, which is what makes him beneficial to the team. He’s just a good person on and off the field.”
