Postgame Quotes
11/19/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
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Wake Forest Head Coach Dave Clawson
Opening statement…
" I'm disappointed in the result. We got off to an awful start. A lot of it was that they played well, and a lot of it is we just didn't execute. I am proud of the way we fought back. I've seen a lot of teams in that situation stop playing and get loose. Our kids battled back. We made it a game in the third quarter. Too bad we didn't score a touchdown. We had Chuck Wade wide open, and we missed him on that throw. If we hit that throw it's 28-17. Our kids fought and played really hard. Clemson is an excellent football team. Congratulations to them on winning the Atlantic again."
On overall game performance…
"We were very limited in what we were able to do. Against a good defense it's hard to be limited. We didn't turn the ball over, which is a positive. We didn't make plays, and certainly there were mistakes made."
On late-game bounce back…
"Our guys have gotten knocked back for three years, and they keep coming back. We're a good defense. Our kids have pride. There are kids on defense that are going to figure it out and make adjustments. We have good kids. They weren't happy with how they played, and they responded."
Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney
Opening Statement…
"Really proud of our football team. It was a long week. The biggest thing I'm proud of is how they responded. How the responded Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, all week and then obviously tonight. Wake Forest has got a tough team. This was a tough team to prepare for schematically with some of the things they do coverage wise. I'm just really proud of them. That's all I can tell you. That's what we talked about it all week, you have a little adversity. You hear this and you hear that, you got all this stuff. It's about how the guys in that room, how they respond, how they think, what everything is about. They had a great week and bounced back."
"We played an outstanding game tonight. A very, very good complete football game. I'm just really proud of them. Division champs. That's the fifth time in eight years. I'm just so thankful for not just this team but all the teams we had over the past eight years that helped us build a good foundation of consistency and excellence and everything that we do. I'm just really proud. Our fourth opportunity to go play for the ACC Championship. Our seniors, this is special group. First time ever back-to-back undefeated seasons on the road. In our five road games we have outscored the opponent 70-3 in the first quarter. First of all, the reason it's never been done, back-to-back, it is because it's really hard to win especially on the road. It's pretty neat. 1903, 1970, 1948, 1981, 2015, and 2016, that's a pretty neat to be a part of that.
"We're led by a bunch of special seniors. Just thankful for them. They got their 45th win tonight. They got a chance to tie the all-time mark next week and break it in the championship game. Couldn't happen to a better group. These guys have been unbelievable since day one. Just really proud of them. We have earned the opportunity to go to Orlando. A chance to win back-to-back titles. Certainly not going to be easy. We haven't done that in Clemson for 28 years or so, it's just awesome to have that opportunity. We look forward to competing in the championship game."
Wake Forest senior linebacker Marquel Lee
On The difficulty of the game…
"We just knew that we had to keep fighting and keep pushing. The game was on us tonight and we just went out there and tried to have fun. We didn't want to take everything too seriously, just went out there and made plays and execute the way we know how. We didn't do that at first, but we just tried to have fun."
On the first quarter…
"You saw it. We don't have to explain it. They just got on top of us and we weren't checking the formations we normally do, that we had seen in practice. Automatics and stuff. I was a little bit shocked at the way it started, we didn't want it to start like that. We just wanted to get out and keep it a 0-0 game and give ourselves a chance."
On defending Lamar Jackson and Deshaun Watson…
"They're different types of quarterbacks. Lamar is more explosive and athleticism is a bigger part of his game. Deshaun plays within the system and excels at playing within the system."
Wake Forest sophomore wide receiver Chuck Wade
On offensive going forward in a large deficit…
"The defense helps us build momentum. It's been more of the defensive helping us out this year, while the offense is kind of slacking."
On Wake's playbook…
"It was upsetting that we didn't have a full playbook, but we knew that going into the game. I'm just proud of the team, we didn't give up. We kept fighting."
On use in sweeps…
"It was definitely great for me. Coach has been preaching all week ‘Next guy up! Next guy up!', because we have a lot of guys injured and banged up. So when Tabari went down and coach called my number, I was ready to step up. I knew it was important that I come in and contribute."
On John Wolford's absence…
"We didn't sweat it too much. We all have faith in KK (Kyle Kearns), we all rallied around him."
