Tuesday Press Conference Quotes
October 16, 2018 | Football
Head Coach Mike MacIntyre
Opening Statement
"Our guys are excited about going and playing at Washington, that's always a fun place to play and of course an excellent football team, being on FOX national television. I'm excited about going to the west coast and playing an afternoon game. That's exciting for our team."
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On Washington's Secondary Â
"They've got really good players. They've had some really good interior guys. It's always good to have good interior guys to help your secondary too. I've always been very impressed with Washington's secondary and their athletic ability. They're good at corner and at safety. Taylor Rapp, I think he can do a little bit of everything, he's just a play maker. Their corners are excellent players. Their nickelback, he covers like a magnet. They've got a really good secondary."
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On Washington Rushing Attack
"They're an excellent one-two punch but they played a couple other running backs the other day that looked really good too. No. 25 (TB Sean McGrew) and I believe No. 24 (Kamari Pleasant). Their offensive line is big and powerful. They lost one of their great offensive linemen, the tackle [Trey Adams] earlier in the year in preseason camp. The thing that they do different than a lot of people is their tight ends are excellent blockers. They've got big, athletic tight ends that are excellent blockers that bothered us a little bit last year in the run game. That's something we're going to need to handle. They utilize tight ends really well in their blocking scheme. They can also run routes and catch the ball, but their tight end structure is very good. Their quarterback gets them into a lot of the right runs too, he does a good job checking."
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On Depth At Wide Receiver And Status Of WRs Jay MacIntyre And Laviska Shenault Jr.
"Jay is in concussion protocol so we'll know as the week goes along. Viska is day-to-day. It's still all up in the air with both of those guys. We've got some other good players that have done well. Of course Tony Brown is a guy that's filled in all along and done really well. He's a starter now. KD Nixon has played really well. The other guys that have done well, Jaylon Jackson, Dimitri Stanley, Donovan Lee, Kabion Ento, all those guys will play more this week if those other guys can't go."
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On Development Of Defensive Front
"I did see it developing then (during fall camp). Then when we moved Nate [Landman] inside and were able to play Drew [Lewis] outside, that helped us also. Drew's ability to play on the edge against all the different styles we see and pass rush too, then Nate inside has helped us a lot. Davion Taylor keeps getting better and better on the outside too. Then we've been able to rotate D-linemen in there, they've played really well. Jase Franke is out, he tore his ACL, so that's going to hurt us. That'll mean that Terrance Lang will play a little more in the base rotation, he plays in the nickel all the time now. We'll have to step him up a little bit there. I feel good about the rotation, I feel good about the way those guys have been playing. This football team that we play (on Saturday) presents a different aspect in the run game, so hopefully we'll be able to do well against it. That's the best we've ever played against USC in the running game and I think they have a very good running game, but they hit us over the top a couple of time which we can't have happen."
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On Growth Of Drew Lewis In New Role At OLB
"He has. He's more and more comfortable, he's playing really well. He's doing an excellent job."
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On Facing Washington QB Jake Browning
"There's a lot of things that make him good. He's extremely accurate and he knows right where he wants to go with the football. Then, he's one of those guys they say is not a scrambler, but he's able to stay alive. It's kind of amazing how he stays alive and keeps his eyes down field and makes pass after pass on the run. I've been really impressed with him. He's kind of sneaky on his scrambling ability to get a first down on third-and-6, third-and-5. He made a huge play in the Oregon game where he scrambled out, kept his eyes up and threw it all the way back across the field about 50 yards for a touchdown. He's just able to make plays. He's a different type of playmaking quarterback."
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On Team Responding To First Loss
"They've responded well, they've practiced well. Today we had a good practice. Yesterday we didn't practice as much since we got in at 6 a.m. and they were kind of beat up, so instead of practicing we did more of a walk-through and conditioning type thing but they got a lot accomplished in that, they were really focused. We had a really good, spirited padded practice today. I thought all our captains that are healthy did an excellent job of leading today. I thought both lines practiced really hard and were physical. They spoke with their actions."
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On TB Travon McMillian
"Travon had a really good practice. He was upbeat and dancing in there this morning when I saw him at practice. He had his headset on, trying to get me to dance with him and show me a new dance move. I probably need some. He was upbeat and ready to go. USC did a good job on defense against us. He'll be ready to go and he is ready to roll."
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On Offensive Line
"The penalties are very discouraging. That is something we had talked about all week to get done and didn't get it done as well as we would have liked. We knew they (USC) were physical in different things. We didn't play as well as would have liked up front. [USC] caused some of it. I believe we still won the penalty battle in the game. We won the turnover battle and the rushing battle. If you would have told me that coming out of the game and then we lost I would have said, 'Woah.' Going into the game and saying we are going to win the penalty battle, the turnover battle, and rushing battle, I think you have a chance to win it and we didn't. We gave up too many big plays and had too many negative plays that brought back plays of ours. We had penalties at the wrong time, but USC caused that. They played well up front."
"Our guys are excited about going and playing at Washington, that's always a fun place to play and of course an excellent football team, being on FOX national television. I'm excited about going to the west coast and playing an afternoon game. That's exciting for our team."
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On Washington's Secondary Â
"They've got really good players. They've had some really good interior guys. It's always good to have good interior guys to help your secondary too. I've always been very impressed with Washington's secondary and their athletic ability. They're good at corner and at safety. Taylor Rapp, I think he can do a little bit of everything, he's just a play maker. Their corners are excellent players. Their nickelback, he covers like a magnet. They've got a really good secondary."
Â
On Washington Rushing Attack
"They're an excellent one-two punch but they played a couple other running backs the other day that looked really good too. No. 25 (TB Sean McGrew) and I believe No. 24 (Kamari Pleasant). Their offensive line is big and powerful. They lost one of their great offensive linemen, the tackle [Trey Adams] earlier in the year in preseason camp. The thing that they do different than a lot of people is their tight ends are excellent blockers. They've got big, athletic tight ends that are excellent blockers that bothered us a little bit last year in the run game. That's something we're going to need to handle. They utilize tight ends really well in their blocking scheme. They can also run routes and catch the ball, but their tight end structure is very good. Their quarterback gets them into a lot of the right runs too, he does a good job checking."
Â
On Depth At Wide Receiver And Status Of WRs Jay MacIntyre And Laviska Shenault Jr.
"Jay is in concussion protocol so we'll know as the week goes along. Viska is day-to-day. It's still all up in the air with both of those guys. We've got some other good players that have done well. Of course Tony Brown is a guy that's filled in all along and done really well. He's a starter now. KD Nixon has played really well. The other guys that have done well, Jaylon Jackson, Dimitri Stanley, Donovan Lee, Kabion Ento, all those guys will play more this week if those other guys can't go."
Â
On Development Of Defensive Front
"I did see it developing then (during fall camp). Then when we moved Nate [Landman] inside and were able to play Drew [Lewis] outside, that helped us also. Drew's ability to play on the edge against all the different styles we see and pass rush too, then Nate inside has helped us a lot. Davion Taylor keeps getting better and better on the outside too. Then we've been able to rotate D-linemen in there, they've played really well. Jase Franke is out, he tore his ACL, so that's going to hurt us. That'll mean that Terrance Lang will play a little more in the base rotation, he plays in the nickel all the time now. We'll have to step him up a little bit there. I feel good about the rotation, I feel good about the way those guys have been playing. This football team that we play (on Saturday) presents a different aspect in the run game, so hopefully we'll be able to do well against it. That's the best we've ever played against USC in the running game and I think they have a very good running game, but they hit us over the top a couple of time which we can't have happen."
Â
On Growth Of Drew Lewis In New Role At OLB
"He has. He's more and more comfortable, he's playing really well. He's doing an excellent job."
Â
On Facing Washington QB Jake Browning
"There's a lot of things that make him good. He's extremely accurate and he knows right where he wants to go with the football. Then, he's one of those guys they say is not a scrambler, but he's able to stay alive. It's kind of amazing how he stays alive and keeps his eyes down field and makes pass after pass on the run. I've been really impressed with him. He's kind of sneaky on his scrambling ability to get a first down on third-and-6, third-and-5. He made a huge play in the Oregon game where he scrambled out, kept his eyes up and threw it all the way back across the field about 50 yards for a touchdown. He's just able to make plays. He's a different type of playmaking quarterback."
Â
On Team Responding To First Loss
"They've responded well, they've practiced well. Today we had a good practice. Yesterday we didn't practice as much since we got in at 6 a.m. and they were kind of beat up, so instead of practicing we did more of a walk-through and conditioning type thing but they got a lot accomplished in that, they were really focused. We had a really good, spirited padded practice today. I thought all our captains that are healthy did an excellent job of leading today. I thought both lines practiced really hard and were physical. They spoke with their actions."
Â
On TB Travon McMillian
"Travon had a really good practice. He was upbeat and dancing in there this morning when I saw him at practice. He had his headset on, trying to get me to dance with him and show me a new dance move. I probably need some. He was upbeat and ready to go. USC did a good job on defense against us. He'll be ready to go and he is ready to roll."
Â
On Offensive Line
"The penalties are very discouraging. That is something we had talked about all week to get done and didn't get it done as well as we would have liked. We knew they (USC) were physical in different things. We didn't play as well as would have liked up front. [USC] caused some of it. I believe we still won the penalty battle in the game. We won the turnover battle and the rushing battle. If you would have told me that coming out of the game and then we lost I would have said, 'Woah.' Going into the game and saying we are going to win the penalty battle, the turnover battle, and rushing battle, I think you have a chance to win it and we didn't. We gave up too many big plays and had too many negative plays that brought back plays of ours. We had penalties at the wrong time, but USC caused that. They played well up front."
Quarterback Steven Montez
On Washington Defense
"They're talented. They're talented like they are every year. They have good DBs and are tough up front. We'll have our work cut out for us, but we are definitely a good team. If we work the way we are projected to work this week, it will give us a good shot."
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On Bouncing Back From Loss To USC
"Everybody says it, but it is a reality check. We can maybe get a little more work in practice and take those reps a little more seriously. That will help us out a lot. Game planning, scheming, and getting back to what we were doing earlier. Getting the offense going and getting that tempo going. Putting us in good positions to be successful."
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On Matching Up With Washington
"We don't really focus on the other team. I know Washington lost to Oregon last week. We are just going to focus on what we do. We aren't too worried about what they do as a team. We are going to prepare how we always prepare and hopefully go win and play some of our best football. That is what we need to be focused on right now. It is tough to go play games away. It is tough to win in college football in general. We just have to keep working and hopefully work a little bit harder and push ourselves up to that next level."
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On Wide Receiver Depth
"We are definitely going to see some different guys on the field. Jaylon Jackson will be good for us out there. Dimitri [Stanley], a freshman, is going to be good for us. We were deep in fall camp and we are deep at receiver now. We have a lot of guys who can go out there on the perimeter and play football at a high level. I think we'll be alright."
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On Having Something To Prove After First Loss
"Definitely. We always have something to prove just because people don't look at Colorado and think we are an elite college football team year in and year out. We have had something to prove since the season started. We just have to keep moving in a positive direction. I think we'll prove what we want to prove. There is always something for this team, for sure."
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On Playing With An Extra Edge
"I think our players always play with that edge and spark. Every game our guys get up and go play football for the entire fourth quarter length of the game, as hard as they possibly can. The biggest key now is competing. Keep continuing to compete through the reminder of the season. I think we'll put ourselves in good positions to be successful."
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On Eliminating Negative Plays
"Our plan is to get the ball down field more. We kind of tried to stretch USC out. When you're a good defense like USC, they fly to that outside stuff and cover the flats really well. Washington is going to be the exact same, athletically. If we get the ball downfield a little bit more we'll be alright."
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"They're talented. They're talented like they are every year. They have good DBs and are tough up front. We'll have our work cut out for us, but we are definitely a good team. If we work the way we are projected to work this week, it will give us a good shot."
Â
On Bouncing Back From Loss To USC
"Everybody says it, but it is a reality check. We can maybe get a little more work in practice and take those reps a little more seriously. That will help us out a lot. Game planning, scheming, and getting back to what we were doing earlier. Getting the offense going and getting that tempo going. Putting us in good positions to be successful."
Â
On Matching Up With Washington
"We don't really focus on the other team. I know Washington lost to Oregon last week. We are just going to focus on what we do. We aren't too worried about what they do as a team. We are going to prepare how we always prepare and hopefully go win and play some of our best football. That is what we need to be focused on right now. It is tough to go play games away. It is tough to win in college football in general. We just have to keep working and hopefully work a little bit harder and push ourselves up to that next level."
Â
On Wide Receiver Depth
"We are definitely going to see some different guys on the field. Jaylon Jackson will be good for us out there. Dimitri [Stanley], a freshman, is going to be good for us. We were deep in fall camp and we are deep at receiver now. We have a lot of guys who can go out there on the perimeter and play football at a high level. I think we'll be alright."
Â
On Having Something To Prove After First Loss
"Definitely. We always have something to prove just because people don't look at Colorado and think we are an elite college football team year in and year out. We have had something to prove since the season started. We just have to keep moving in a positive direction. I think we'll prove what we want to prove. There is always something for this team, for sure."
Â
On Playing With An Extra Edge
"I think our players always play with that edge and spark. Every game our guys get up and go play football for the entire fourth quarter length of the game, as hard as they possibly can. The biggest key now is competing. Keep continuing to compete through the reminder of the season. I think we'll put ourselves in good positions to be successful."
Â
On Eliminating Negative Plays
"Our plan is to get the ball down field more. We kind of tried to stretch USC out. When you're a good defense like USC, they fly to that outside stuff and cover the flats really well. Washington is going to be the exact same, athletically. If we get the ball downfield a little bit more we'll be alright."
Wide Receiver K.D. Nixon
On Having Something To Prove After First Loss
"At the end of the day, we always have something to prove. We're never satisfied. Saturday turned out how it turned out, and we're back to work today."
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On Matching Up With Washington Defense
"Be ourselves. The only thing we can control is Colorado football."
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On Eliminating Negative Plays
"Going back and looking at the film, we made a lot of mistakes, things we could have done way better. Getting back into the film room, going harder in practice, correcting the little things, and just getting back to work."
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On WR Jaylon Jackson Seeing First Game Action
"It was exciting for me. Me and Jaylon grew up with each other since second grade. Just seeing him back out there, showing his abilities to the whole city, town, and whole world. It was just amazing."
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On Depth At Wide Receiver
"The next person is going to have to step up. Even if we have all of our receivers, no matter what we have to compete. We have to go out there like it was nothing and be ready to play."
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On Team Mentality After First Loss
"It brought out the best of us. We had practice yesterday and it was a mental day. Today, we all were ready, locked in and happy. I got a big step to step up to. I'm going to lead these guys and take full advantage of it."
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On Washington's Secondary
"They are well coached. Going back over the film throughout the days, they know what they are doing. They have a good scheme and some good DB's. They have the No. 1 DB in college football, (jersey) No. 1 Byron Murphy. It's a challenge. It's what you live for. That's why you come to Colorado."
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"At the end of the day, we always have something to prove. We're never satisfied. Saturday turned out how it turned out, and we're back to work today."
Â
On Matching Up With Washington Defense
"Be ourselves. The only thing we can control is Colorado football."
Â
On Eliminating Negative Plays
"Going back and looking at the film, we made a lot of mistakes, things we could have done way better. Getting back into the film room, going harder in practice, correcting the little things, and just getting back to work."
Â
On WR Jaylon Jackson Seeing First Game Action
"It was exciting for me. Me and Jaylon grew up with each other since second grade. Just seeing him back out there, showing his abilities to the whole city, town, and whole world. It was just amazing."
Â
On Depth At Wide Receiver
"The next person is going to have to step up. Even if we have all of our receivers, no matter what we have to compete. We have to go out there like it was nothing and be ready to play."
Â
On Team Mentality After First Loss
"It brought out the best of us. We had practice yesterday and it was a mental day. Today, we all were ready, locked in and happy. I got a big step to step up to. I'm going to lead these guys and take full advantage of it."
Â
On Washington's Secondary
"They are well coached. Going back over the film throughout the days, they know what they are doing. They have a good scheme and some good DB's. They have the No. 1 DB in college football, (jersey) No. 1 Byron Murphy. It's a challenge. It's what you live for. That's why you come to Colorado."
Linebacker Nate Landman
On Washington's Offense
"Their offense is very physical. They are a big offense. They are going to be one of the biggest O-lines we've seen. They do a great job of playing well together. Definitely a physical front. They have a great quarterback and great leadership. Their receivers are playmakers. What our coaches have done this year to prepare us up to this point is phenomenal. Even though the game last week didn't go how we wanted it to, I think as a defense we played great as a whole. We really came together. We stopped the run. There were a couple of key plays here and there. What the coaches have done has really prepared us up to this point. It should be a good one."
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On Play Of Front Seven
"Our front seven this year compared to last year as a whole is a whole new front seven. We got some new guys. Javi (DT Javier Edwards) dropped weight and he is playing great. We have playmakers in there. They have the freedom to go out there and make plays. Me and [ILB] Rick [Gamboa] in the box will make them right. Allowing them to have that freedom has changed our defense. The majority of tackles are pretty well shared between the front seven of us."
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On Having Something To Prove
"Definitely. As we all say, defense travels. On road games, it's hard for offenses to get going because it's a new environment, but defense has to step up. We're going to take those points that we gave up personally. We're going to learn from it and capitalize on our moments this week. I believe what we did last week wasn't anything wrong. It's football. It's a game of ups and downs. We lost some of the one-on-ones, but I still think we went out there and played great."
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On Facing Washington RB Myles Gaskin
"He is an athletic back. One thing I have noticed is that he is really, really smart. The way he sets up his runs, he is patient, but also will hit a whole downhill. Him and [RB Salvon] Ahmed are a great duo. They both have great speed and great quickness. Gaskin's best attribute is his intelligence and the way he sets up his runs. He's also great at getting yards after contact. When he takes a first shot, he is falling forward for an extra two or three yards. That is something we are definitely looking forward to stopping."
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"Their offense is very physical. They are a big offense. They are going to be one of the biggest O-lines we've seen. They do a great job of playing well together. Definitely a physical front. They have a great quarterback and great leadership. Their receivers are playmakers. What our coaches have done this year to prepare us up to this point is phenomenal. Even though the game last week didn't go how we wanted it to, I think as a defense we played great as a whole. We really came together. We stopped the run. There were a couple of key plays here and there. What the coaches have done has really prepared us up to this point. It should be a good one."
Â
On Play Of Front Seven
"Our front seven this year compared to last year as a whole is a whole new front seven. We got some new guys. Javi (DT Javier Edwards) dropped weight and he is playing great. We have playmakers in there. They have the freedom to go out there and make plays. Me and [ILB] Rick [Gamboa] in the box will make them right. Allowing them to have that freedom has changed our defense. The majority of tackles are pretty well shared between the front seven of us."
Â
On Having Something To Prove
"Definitely. As we all say, defense travels. On road games, it's hard for offenses to get going because it's a new environment, but defense has to step up. We're going to take those points that we gave up personally. We're going to learn from it and capitalize on our moments this week. I believe what we did last week wasn't anything wrong. It's football. It's a game of ups and downs. We lost some of the one-on-ones, but I still think we went out there and played great."
Â
On Facing Washington RB Myles Gaskin
"He is an athletic back. One thing I have noticed is that he is really, really smart. The way he sets up his runs, he is patient, but also will hit a whole downhill. Him and [RB Salvon] Ahmed are a great duo. They both have great speed and great quickness. Gaskin's best attribute is his intelligence and the way he sets up his runs. He's also great at getting yards after contact. When he takes a first shot, he is falling forward for an extra two or three yards. That is something we are definitely looking forward to stopping."
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Players Mentioned
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NT
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WR
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DL
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WR
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ILB
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DE
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TB
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ILB
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WR
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TB
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QB
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WR
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WR
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WR
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