University of Richmond Athletics
Richmond Football Postgame Quotes -- Oct. 28. 2006
10/28/2006 | Football
Oct. 28, 2006
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Richmond Head Coach Dave Clawson
On the prospects of postseason play:
"We're at the point where we can't talk about postseason or A-10 or any of that stuff. You've got to just come back in a week and get a win. We've got to go up to Villanova and play well. We had a great September but really struggled and tripped up in October. I think we lost to three good football teams in New Hampshire, Delaware and James Madison but we had to find a way to win at least one of those games and we didn't so now our backs are against the wall. We need the leaders on this team to step up and we've got to bring it together and head up to Villanova and try to get a win up there."
On what was expected with the wind:
"I think the one thing it did was we didn't have the ball a lot in the first quarter against the wind and anything you wanted to do in the passing game you pretty much had to get it done in the second and the third quarter. During the second quarter we threw the ball very well and we wanted to keep going with that. In the third quarter we started out with the wind and then in the fourth quarter we're behind so we threw it a lot more than we'd like to...We would prefer to run the football and throw it on occasion. JMU is a very good defense...They didn't do anything different but they did a lot more of their zone blitzes than their man blitzes. I think they were going to say, `Hey, we want you to beat us with your quarterback and your wide outs and we don't think you can do that well enough to beat us.' We made some big plays in the passing game with Arman [Shields] but certainly not enough to beat a team like that."
On what field position and third-down conversions meant to JMU:
"Well the first drive - I think it was a third and eight or third and 12 - they fumbled the snap and we had a guy unblocked in the back and we didn't make a tackle and that led to their first score. That certainly was a pivotal play. I think the fumble before the half that [Kevin] Winston picked up and scored was a pivotal play. I think that one of the challenges we've had this year is we're just not kicking or punting the ball very well. A year ago we were very good on special teams. Our kickoff unit was really good. We had a really good punt team. We were at the top of the conference so we could go into most games if we were winning the special teams and field position battle and if we could play well on either side of the ball we had a chance to win. Right now we're just not kicking the ball very well. When they had the wind they were kicking it into the endzone every time. When we had the wind we were still kicking it to the 15-yard line and they were bringing it out to the 35. When we were punting against the wind I think we had a 12-yard punt, we had a 20-yard punt late and when they were kicking against the wind they had that one long kick to pin us at our 10-yard line and I thought that was pivotal play. We came in at halftime down seven. We had the wind, we kick off, they're three and out and the kid hits a good punt and puts us at our nine yard line. When we're on offense like us that's not making a lot of big plays - the one guy that makes any big plays is Arman Shields. Nobody else right now is really making big plays. It's hard to get any yards against a team as good as JMU."
On missing John Crone:
"I think he's the best fullback in the conference. You just can't replace a player like that with what we do. We want to be a two-back team, we want to be a downhill run team. When you take out your starting fullback now you become more of a one-back team which really isn't what we do best. I mean we got beat by a better football team today - that's the bottom line. They're very good. They're good on both sides of the ball. They're good in the kicking game. They are a complete football team. We were going to have to play probably as well as we could play to hang with them and to have a chance to win in the fourth quarter. We gave up some big plays, we didn't kick the ball well and we gave a big turnover for a touchdown. Those are tough things to overcome."
On whether this game destroys Richmond's playoff hopes:
"I don't think so because I think historically 8-3 Atlantic 10 teams usually get into the playoffs...We can't worry about the playoffs, we just need to win a game. We've lost three of the last four now but we just have to play this thing out. We just need to win next week and if we can win next week we'll go from there. I don't think we're out of it but I'm not thinking about the playoffs. I just want to win a game."
James Madison Head Coach Mickey Matthews
On Richmond's play:
"I thought Richmond played very well. I think they made the one big mistake (fumble), and that is a 10-10 game and as close as the two teams were. We hurt ourselves with the penalties. We kept them in the game with our penalties."
On the third quarter momentum:
"I thought the game was decided in the third quarter and they had the wind at their backs and weren't able to move the ball. When you are playing a game like this and you have the wind you have to score. I thought our defense was big the entire second half, they just didn't let them move the ball."
On the kicking game:
"Our kicking game was good. That adds up. They had the wind at their back and kicking off and we brought the ball back to the 40. When we couldn't move the ball and they still had the wind, we punted the ball and pinned them inside their 10-yardline. Those are big plays which get lost when you talk about offense and defense."
