Wake Forest vs. Liberty Postgame Quotes
9/30/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 30, 2006
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- WAKE FOREST HEAD COACH Jim Grobe
On the game...
"We felt like going into the game we had to get the passing game in the works. They are a really good defensive team and in order to move it successfully we would have to throw it."
"I was pleased in the first half and disappointed in the second half. We lost some of our intensity. I don't think we are a team that can just run the football. If we don't throw it we are certainly going to get into trouble."
"I think that this is a team that is a little bit different than the teams I've had in the past. We are an offense that just can't run the football and we have to play defense. We are not as explosive as we were in the first half and it is very important that we play good defense and take care of the football."
On Liberty...
"I thought Liberty came out today and really threw the ball well. I think that we went into the game thinking that if we stopped the ball on the run we would be OK. They kept us off balance, and we didn't play the throws very well."
On preparing for Clemson....
"One of the things that Liberty hurt us with was the bubble screens. That is something that Clemson does very well. Typically Clemson will be just like us and look at all the games. We certainly don't look at just one game; we look at a lot of games."
On Riley Skinner...
"He gets better every week and as long as we support him he has the skills to get the job done. My first sense is that he played pretty well today."
On injuries...
"We had some guys dinged a little bit. Zac Selmon had a groin pull and he wanted to play, but we didn't use him in the second half. Kevin Patterson got a little ding but I think he is OK -- he was certainly smiling a lot, so that definitely is some reassurance. We had Alphonso with a little shoulder bruise... but nothing major that I saw. They got just got a little bit banged up."
On the team...
"We have been in some really physical games. Liberty was a very physical team and we have been through hard-nosed games and have came out on top. We are a pretty confident team but I hope that we are also smart and realize that we have to play better next Saturday."
"Obviously I am happy to be 5-0, but we have a lot of improvement to make this week. Happy to be 5-0 and always enjoy a win, but we have a big job in front of us coming up."
WAKE FOREST PLAYER QUOTES
QB Riley Skinner (#11)
On the game...
"You can't just beat teams on the ground. We took care of the ball today and that will be the key to our success - not turning the ball over. We need to keep it in our hands."
On his game...
"I think it is not so much my game play that helped us win as much as our whole offense. Our offense needed a good game that we could come out and put some points on the board."
On the second half...
"Unfortunately we didn't come out there in the second half and play the same way we did in the first. We only scored seven points in the second half and it was kind of a wake up call that we can't come out and be lackadaisical and play like that.
On the passing game...
"It was good to get our feet wet in the passing game and mix it up a little both ways and see where we can go from there. It gives us come confidence that we are not just a running team and that we can pass. But we know that we can't just come out in half speed. We have to come out focused and not turn the ball over. We have to give 100 percent effort the entire game."
WR Nate Morton (#83)
On the game...
"I think everyday the team works to become better and to become more comfortable together. I think every week we have continued to improve and we are getting a little bit better."
On the wide receivers and Riley Skinner...
"I think the more reps we take, the more comfortable we get with the offense. Right now, I have all the confidence in the world in Riley and the way he has been playing."
LIBERTY HEAD COACH JIM ROCCO
On the game...
"I expected our team to play better. I had high hopes and expectations about this game. We put ourselves in the hole early in the game. On offense, we did not execute and deliver. Defensively we did hang in there with them and we did a decent job."
"The thing I was most pleased with was I challenged the team in the second half. and I told them I wanted to see who was here to fight, who was here to win and compete and who was here to finish. I felt we played better in the second half and we were able to move the ball a little bit better. We had a few guys step up. We haven't been about to get our passing game on all year, and we had the chance to make some big plays and get in there. I am disappointed but not discouraged."
On Wake Forest...
"This is by far the best football team that we will play this year, and I have a great deal of respect for Coach Grobe and his football staff and his system. I wish them the best of the luck the rest of the way."
On his team...
"I think we have plenty to build on. One of our main goals is to compete for the Big South championship. After two losses there are some lessons to be learned. I'm certainly confident that we will be able to compete. I think our guys grew up out there today and we will walk out of here a better football team, more confident team."
"I expected my football team to play better and the fact that we shot ourselves in the foot a number of times makes certainly makes the challenge of coming down to beat Wake Forest insurmountable."
On Riley Skinner...
"I think he has enough poise, intelligence, and capability with his throwing arm that he can give Wake a chance to compete and give them a very special season."
LIBERTY PLAYER QUOTES
LB Manny Rojas (#51)
On the game...
"We came together after halftime, and we came out and got ready to win and come back in this game. We still fought and we were still toe to toe."
"I don't feel bad about the loss. In the past few years when we have played Division I-A opponents, we have been blown out and beat up. Today we were able to come in here and shut them down for a bit and score some points. I am not going to look at the loss as a positive thing, but I am not going to walk away discouraged either."
On the team's change in the second half...
"It was big for us knowing that they were going to come out in the second half and run the ball more than they did in the first. For us to shut them down was really good for our confidence."
QB Brock Smith (#13)
On playing Wake Forest...
"We were excited to have an opportunity to play Wake Forest. We definitely saw some things that we can work with on offense and defense. I think that offensively that last drive we looked really good and I am looking forward to the next six weeks."
On the way he played today...
"I haven't played up to my ability the last four games and I was looking at this game to work hard and get out of my funk. We saw some good things today and we are going to take that."
On scoring against an ACC team...
"It did boost my confidence to score two touchdowns against an ACC team. Overall we're good all around, and we are going to come out hungry against William & Mary in two weeks. "
