The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Nebraska quotes
10.16.2010 | Football
Nebraska vs. Texas
Saturday, Oct. 16, 2010
Memorial Stadium (Lincoln, Neb.)
TEXAS COACHES
Head coach Mack Brown
Opening statement: I'm really proud of our guys, our coaches, our staff and our players. It's really hard to win at Nebraska. They've got a great team. I think whoever wins the [Big 12] South will most likely see them again in the [Big 12 Championship], because they're really good. I've said it many times, but this place is the best place to play in college football. These fans were great. So many of them said 'good luck' and 'congratulations' after the game. I wish all college football fans could come here and learn how to be great fans because we've given them some tough times here and they have never ever acted anything but very gracious. I really appreciate that, and maybe it's because I've been around so long. Sometimes fans are not [gracious], but the ones here are. By and large, Nebraska fans are the best and that's what I'll hate for Texas and Nebraska not getting to play after this year, because it's two great teams, and when people put the 'N' on the helmet and people put the Longhorn on the helmet, everybody knows who it is without even asking. The games have always been very competitive and they've all been very close and they've all been tough like this one was today.
I was proud that our team could run the ball. That's something that we've been trying to do. When we've run for over 200 yards, we've never lost. We need to keep fighting, [improve] the running game and get better. We've been encouraging Garrett [Gilbert] to get more yards with his feet, and he did that today. He did it on quarterback draws, he did it on sprint, he did it on scramble and he made some key plays. He's a big strong guy and may not look like Vince [Young] or Colt [McCoy] when he's running the ball, but he's effective. And we've got to keep him doing that.
Usually when you get coaches from the South, they are used to the option and I thought [defensive coordinator] Will [Muschamp] had a great plan today and the guys fought it. Our plan was obviously to stop the running game and make them throw the ball. I thought that overall our kicking game was really good. It was a mistake by me to call the pooch at the end of the game. There weren't many ways they could beat us, and that was one of them. We need to go back and have our offensive line work on tackling drills. We should've pooched it out of bounds. It was a 50-yard field goal and we did not think Nebraska would score twice and go for two and beat us, so we wanted to make them go the long field, and we should've just pooched it out of bounds. I'm proud of the guys and proud of the staff and I'm proud most that although people in Texas get down on you after two losses, that they overcame it.
On what the 10-0 lead gave to the sideline: The 10-0 lead gave us all the confidence in the world we needed. We started slow against UCLA and started awful against Oklahoma, and then we came back and played a pretty good offensive second half against UCLA; we played a pretty good second half against Oklahoma, but we haven't been playing whole games. We felt like that start gave us the confidence to win this game and they were all into it on the sideline.
On if the 10-0 lead created more pressure on Nebraska: I thought there was more pressure on them today than us and that's unusual. And sometimes it's harder to play at home at a place like Texas and Nebraska than it is on the road.
On if the team was motivated by adversity: I think it is a little bit of that, and I also think it's a team that's getting better. We've got a lot of young pieces and they are trying so hard to come together and grow up. I told them this is a waste unless we go back and win next week. We've got to continue to get better because we are not at a point where we can play poorly and beat anybody, so we're going to have to play well each week to win.
On how confident he was heading into the game: I felt like we could win. I felt like we would win at UCLA. I felt we could win at Oklahoma, and I felt like we could win today if we played together. We just have not played a game together.
On if he made any adjustments at halftime: No. We didn't. We thought that if they didn't start moving it, we didn't have to score a lot. We thought if we could get to 24 points, the game would probably be over. And we got to 20, but we didn't get it in. We dropped the touchdown pass and we thought if we had scored there, it would force them to pass, which isn't their game. I thought they made a very smart move when they brought in Zac Lee [at quarterback], and things started changing and they got some momentum and it scared me but our guys hung in there.
TEXAS PLAYERS
QB Garrett Gilbert
On running the ball on Nebraska: When you play a team like Nebraska - they did a great job of pass coverage all day. They're all about matching guys up and playing man. So you get secondary guys with their back turned to the offense. The offensive line did a great job of opening up a couple of creases there early and letting us get inside it.
On being comfortable running the ball: I feel comfortable with it. It was a little bit bigger part of the game plan this week. Again, the offensive line did a great job of opening up some creases there and we were able to find some yards.
On being comfortable with 10-0 lead: It helps you to be able to stay with your game plan. Playing catch-up you have to throw the ball a little more. Again, they're so great with pass coverage that would be tough for us. We did a great job jumping on them and our defense gave us a turnover in the first quarter, and we were able to punch it in. The offense did a great job of starting fast.
On living with two losses the past two weeks: It was a little difficult. This team the past two years has only lost two games - one in the regular season. It's been a different kind of season for us. Tough times bring out the true character, and you're starting to see this team's character. We have a lot of potential to be great, and we're going to go back and work hard and be humbled. That's what we're going to do all season.
DE Sam Acho
On removing doubts after losing two games in a row: Definitely. We know how good we are in the locker room. We know that outside people are going to say different things. But all we did was go back to the drawing board over the past two weeks.
On Nebraska QB Taylor Martinez getting frustrated: Well Martinez, first of all, is an unbelievable athlete and a great player. I think he came into the game with 12 touchdowns leading the NCAA. Obviously, he is a Heisman candidate with his legs and the way he throws the ball. Like Coach Muschamp said, we went to responsibility football. We just stayed in our gaps and kept our responsibilities, and that's all it took.
On accepting the challenge: It was definitely a great opportunity for this entire team to come out on national TV and show everyone what we're all about. We had the two losses the past two weeks and we wanted to get that taste out of our mouths, and thankfully we did this week. We just played with passion and excitement and we had fun. That's what football is all about. You have to have fun when you do it, and that's what this entire team did.
