JACKSONVILLE STATE GAME NOTES

Opening Comments:
“We are very pleased to win a football game that was a challenging game for us. That is the best Chattanooga team that we have played against in the past six years. I think they came fully prepared mentally and emotionally to win. The satisfaction is that it's a win over a quality opponent.”

“It was the biggest crowd that we have ever had and it's more than just the crowd. I thought there was a lot of passion and chemistry from our student body and that means a lot – that's what sticks out to me. I've never seen the amount of numbers and support from the students. They are apart of the win as far as I'm concerned.”

“I thought Marques directed the offense effectively on those long drives late in the game. He did a great job in managing the game after the start that he had. Our defense should be back to full strength with us getting Tim McGee and DiMetrio Tyson back. We could be at full force defensively for the first time this year.”

“We are moving forward towards playing Georgia State. The one thing I know about Georgia State is that they have resources. They have a head coach and an offensive and defensive coordinators that have BCS Bowl experience. When Bill (Curry) took that job, one of the first things he did was come over here and just see what the differences were. I think they are competitive right now.”

“They are not a bunch of young puppies. They have three or four on both sides of the ball that are true development players, but the rest of those guys have some experience. I don't think we have that much of an advantage on them with experience. We have challenged ourselves to play four quarters of football – which we haven't so far. I don't really know what to expect. I think we are playing in a great arena and they had 30,000 people in there for the first game. It's on television so it's an opportunity to make a statement. I hope by the time it gets here we have the excitement about the opportunity and I do expect us too. We have a major target on our backs.”

On 4th down situations this season
“We have done some of the most impressive things that I have ever seen as a football coach – the fourth down situations being one of them. We are also one of the scarier teams to ourselves. Offensively, I don't think anyone in the country has scored every time in the fourth quarter – that's impressive.”

On the atmosphere Saturday night in the stadium
“We got a bigger cheer going out to warm up than we have in many years.”