University of Richmond Athletics
No. 1 Richmond Rips Towson, 42-14: Postgame Quotes
Oct. 31, 2009
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Richmond Head Coach Mike London
Opening Statement
"We played against a team today that was playing with nothing to lose and was going to give us their best effort. My hat is off to Rob (Ambrose) and his staff and their team. But also my hat goes off to our coaching staff and these guys right here. They played very good football and put us in a position to win. It's a win, I'm thankful about it. They don't always happen like this. This is a special team. We'll savor this for the moment but we have another tough game next week."
On only leading 13-7 at the half
"In the first half we missed two interceptions. We dropped two balls and one probably could have gone for a touchdown. So there's that scenario and maybe you're up two touchdowns. There was no screaming or yelling in the locker room. It was just `hey look, the next we have the chance to make a break on the ball, or we have to make a block, or a catch, then let's just execute it and see what happens.' It was a mature team that can make the adjustments ... and I'm just so proud of the effort of these guys in the second half."
On the punting problems
It's not the punting game; it's the snapper. He's a young guy who's a very good snapper. He's about as good as there is out there. But he's got to learn some things and that you can't just run into the game and snap when it's fourth down. You have to be up and staying loose. That's my fault and I'll make sure it doesn't happen again that prior to third down he's warmed up and he's focusing on doing the things that need to get done. We have to address that either with him or someone else that can get the ball back there."
On the 22 points in two-and-a-half minutes
"It was a blur. Tremayne (Graham) got the interception; they tried the fake punt and we got the ball there and scored. Then we drove and scored. Momentum swings back and forth and we just happened to catch it swinging in our favor. And things we weren't doing in the first half, we executed and did a lot better in the second half."
Senior QB Eric Ward
On the drive that put the Spiders up 21-14
"It was very important. Coming out of the half they stopped on our first drive and they came down and got points. We have a veteran team and everyone on offense knew that was going to be an important drive. They had the momentum and we knew they were going to fight the whole day. So it was important for us to come back down and get points."
On the two-point conversion play
"I saw him over there in the corner. I wanted to throw it earlier, but the (defender) grabbed my arm. I just tried to get it out there."
Senior TE William Bischoff
On the feeling in the huddle when Richmond trailed 14-13
"It was no different than when were up 7-0. I don't think we ever feared that we were out of it or didn't have control of the game. We just heads down and said `let's get it done' and we did. I'm real proud of those guys."
On the offense in the second half
There's something about this offense. I don't know if it's our line, but in the second half, something just clicks.
On his first career TD catch
"We've got a bunch of good receivers out there who we're trying to get the ball to. If I hadn't of caught a touchdown, I would have been fine with it. I am thankful for it. It was a nice way to get us started with the opening score. I just want to thank Eric (Ward) for finding me out there."
Sophomore DB Tremayne Graham
On his interception
"I knew the ball was going to come out quick. It was the same thing our coaches had been telling us in practice about sitting on route, based on the coverages. They had been playing quick. I read the play, and made it. Based on the coverage we called, I knew it'd be a quick throw because of the pressure our defensive line was getting."
On the impact of that play
"It was a big play for the team, because the game was going back and forth. It was a big momentum boost for the team."
Towson Head Coach Rob Ambrose
Opening Statement
"I'm extremely proud of the staff and our players. For two-and-a-half quarters, we were doing what everyone in the country thought was completely and utterly impossible. But we made some critical errors - slight errors that become monstrous errors when you're playing the best of the best. While there's improvement, it's clearly not enough to beat the No. 1 team in the country. My hat's off to Mike (London) and his staff and his players. They earned this. That's a class organization and something that we plan on building towards."
On taking the lead 14-13
"Truth be told, there wasn't a whole lot of doubt to the possibility of this. The pregame conversation was that nobody expects anything out of you other than the people in this room. That makes you extremely dangerous. They expect you to get your butts beat. As a human being, when you have nothing to lose, there's a whole lot of energy and power to that. Did they believe when Tommy scored? Sure. But it was more a validating point. When you're backed into a corner by the No. 1 team in the country with 19 seniors - that's awesome that they have that - and you come out swinging and you actually punch the guy in the face that backed you in to the corner, the game changes. And it did."