Sept. 22, 2001
KENTUCKY VS. FLORIDA
POST GAME PRESS CONFERENCE
SEPTEMBER 22, 2001
Kentucky
HEAD COACH GUY MORRISS
On the second half:
“I am not sure if there was much difference (between the first and second half). I think the third quarter defense kept us in the ball game. Offensively, we are just not executing. I think some of it is freshmen mistakes. The guy calling signals, I think he did pretty good, but he’s got some things he has to grow and improve on. The ten guys around him have to step it up. I don’t think it would be fair to Shane (Boyd) to put him in the position where he has to carry the offense.”
On Florida:
“They are a fine football team. They’re talented and they have a lot of depth. They force you into mistakes. When you play those kind of teams, every little thing is magnified. To some extent, I think that is what happened today.”
On the early success:
“There were times when we moved the football and thought we could get it going. Then we shoot ourselves in the foot. It could be a bad snap, a low snap or the receiver not on the line.”
On not scoring after the first fumble recovery:
“It’s momentum we didn’t gather. If we had scored, it would have gotten our confidence going and gotten the guys pumped up a little more. Those are things we need to capitalize on, especially against the number two-ranked team in America.”
On Shane Boyd’s play:
“There were some checks he could have made to get us going in the running game. There were a couple pass plays where they put in the blitz he could have done a little better. He struggled trying to get the ball down the field, he was not sharp on those long throws. That is something we want to do in this offense, get the ball downfield. He did fine with the little short passes.”
On the defensive line:
“We were pleased with the way they played. We missed some defensive calls where we called for a stunt and didn’t get the right call. We called for some blitzes and we ran into the wrong lane. We made some mistakes, but they were all things we can overcome.”
On Chase Harp:
“Chase is doing a good job. He’s a good blocker and he catches the ball well. He just has to become a little more consistent.”
On the defense:
“That was one of the things Steve (Spurrier) said to me when he congratulated me was that we finally have a defense. The key for us is to keep working, get out there and recruit hard. If get some good players in here, we will be ok.”
S DAVID JOHNSON
On the UK’s defensive strategy:
“We wanted to play smart football and pressure the quarterback. Florida did a great job of blocking and we countered their offensive weapons well. We played really aggressive and took a big step forward today.”
On the defense’s confidence level
“The defense can take a lot of good things out of this game. We did hold Florida for three quarters. We feel like we can hang in with any team when we are playing our best.”
On next week’s game against Ole Miss
“We are starting to get things together and becoming more comfortable with the way we play. We really feel like next week we can come out and get our first Southeastern Conference win.”
CB DERRICK TATUM
On the defense’s play
“We were in the game and we couldn’t make the play we needed. I am upset that we couldn’t come through for this team. The defense is getting better, we played good, just not good enough.”
On the end of the third quarter:
“In the third quarter we lost our focus. I feel better about the defense because of the way we played, but we have to learn that we can’t play even with a team, we have to play better than them to win. Today, we played even with one of the nation’s best offenses.”
RB MARTEZ JOHNSON
“We played well today. We really came to play. Hopefully the way we played today is a sign of things to come.”
On getting playing time
“I got my chance today and tried to make the most of it. The opportunity presented itself and I knew I had to play well for this team.”
TE DEREK SMITH
On the offense:
“They are mad and frustrated. We really feel like we are a great offensive team. The entire offense and the offensive staff aren’t doing what needs to be done. We have to change that because one touchdown a game is not going to do it.”
“The defense played a great game against Florida. We are a better team than this. We should be playing a lot better than we are right now.”
DL JEREMY CAUDILL
“My back feels good. It felt good all through the game. The brace was actually bothering me more than my back so I had to do some adjusting on it.”
“One thing we have to work on is playing all four quarters. We can’t ever give up. We need to get out there and play hard every play.”
LB JAMAL WHITE
“I feel like the defense played good. We stopped them for three quarters. We played as hard as we could but we did make a few mistakes. We just slacked up in the fourth quarter. It hurts you mentally and physically when you are down.”
Florida
HEAD COACH STEVE SPURRIER
“It was a good win and I’m proud of our guys. We didn’t have any serious injuries at all. We’ll enjoy this one and get ready for Mississippi State next week.”
“Obviously we’re proud of our effort. Kentucky was tough, and they played well and played hard. We knew they would. We didn’t go up and down the field like we hoped. Our defense gave us a lot of opportunities and a lot chances to finally score a few.”
On big plays:
“We got a lot of opportunities thanks to our defense. We still didn’t get any turnovers, but those big plays were crucial to the outcome of the game. If they (Kentucky) make some crucial first downs at times, they’re right in the ballgame.”
On the UK defense:
“Kentucky played hard on defense. They had a good scheme for us. They doubled up here and there and did a fine job. We were fortunate to get as many points as we did. We had to get some penalties on a couple plays to score but sometimes you get those and that’s all right.”
On QB Rex Grossman:
“Rex is struggling a little, and he’s still learning. I didn’t call a lot of good plays today. He hesitated at times and threw some late ones. He gets a lot of chances, fortunately, because of our defense, but he’s done a fine job the first three games.”
On UK’s offensive effort
“Kentucky probably doesn’t have the speed at wide receiver like most teams we’ll face this year. Their kids played hard and moved the ball at times, but we were able to keep them out of the end zone most of the day.”
On the special pre-game ceremony:
“I can get teary-eyed at the National Anthem. We don’t normally do it (come out of locker room for anthem) in college football and I think we should. It makes us realize how fortunate we are to live in America. You look around the stadium and everyone is coming together. That’s what gets me. We are all extremely fortunate to be Americans.”
QB REX GROSSMAN
On pregame ceremony:
“It gave me goosebumps. I think the whole stadium had goosebumps. Everyone was filled with so much emotion.”
On Florida’s performance:
“We played pretty well. At times we were able to march right down the field and score. Other times we would make some mistakes, like a couple fumbles and bad passes. Although we started the game kind of slow, we felt stronger and confident in the second half. Overall, I am pleased with our performance.”
“The week off didn’t really affect us too much. We didn’t execute here and there so I guess we can use the week off as an excuse for that.”
On Kentucky:
“We were definitely tested today. It was 13-3, the crowd was into the game and we kind of woke up and said that we had to get going. We went to work and were able to score quickly a couple times.”
RB EARNEST GRAHAM
On pregame ceremony:
“It was very, very, very emotional. It puts a lot of things in perspective. I realized the importance of just being here to play another day. I’m glad to be here.”
“We had a slow start in the first half. I’m not sure why we were so sluggish. But the important thing is we came out strong in the second half. I talked with Robert (Gillespie) on the sidelines and we just agreed that we had to go out and make some big plays.”
RB ROBERT GILLESPIE
On his 52-yard touchdown:
“It was one of the best plays of my career. Me and Earnest (Graham) were going to try and get it going with some big plays, and I was able to do that.”
