JSU GAME NOTES

Opening Comments:
"Going in to last week, we knew we were playing a great opponent and obviously felt great about our first-round win and the historical implications of that win to our program.  The thing that we talked about all last week was to not be satisfied with that win.  We saw that in our preparation last week and they were excited, yet knew they had a lot left in front of them.  We talk all the time about going on the road and playing a great opponent – you have to be better.  I think that is how we practiced all last week and we talked about our guys pulling for each other.  If you watched during the game, or watched the sideline, you saw 60 players and staff pulling for each other.  We started great defensively and had a great first half. We felt like that was our catalyst, because we were going up against a top-10 offense in the FCS.  We knew we had our work cut out for us and we started off with a big turnover.  The offense came out and took advantage of that and got us a big score.  We played well in the special teams, so just a great first half in all three phases.  In the second half, we didn't let down and that is what I was looking for – was not a big letdown.  It was a great night and a huge win for us and now we move to the next one."
 
On Eastern Washington:
"It obviously starts with their offense. You have a quarterback that is up for the player of the year award, and rightfully so. I didn't think I would see anyone that is comparable to Jimmy Garoppolo (EIU) from our conference, but this guy does.  He is a great passer and great runner.  He runs like a tailback and they have receivers all over the place that catch the ball.  They are good up front and defensively, they are very solid and they will make you work down the field and beat them.  They beat Oregon State earlier in the year, so that tells you a lot about who this team is.  Once again, road trip and at their place, so we have to be better.  The offense leads the way for them."
 
On having 11 sacks last week at McNeese State:
"We had a really good running attack last week that we had to stop.  We knew we had to stop their running game, which would lead to them having to throw it.  We like to play man coverage and a lot of those sacks were coverage sacks because our guys did a great job covering.  I think every week we are getting better at rushing the passer.  Our guys are learning the intensity and what we need and it takes a lot of determination."
 
On the "Wildcat" formation with DaMarcus James:
"We have a lot of different parts to that package and we took a ball outside that we shouldn't have last week.  A lot of that stuff, we leave up to DaMarcus and he knows what we are looking for and he is looking at numbers.   We will keep doing it, but there are some wrinkles that we haven't shown yet."
 
On success on the road:
"I think it goes back to when we first got here, we had workouts in the morning and practiced in some inclement weather and all those go in to what you do on the road – you have to pull together.  You have to be a little better and tougher.  I am just real big on it being 'us' and when you get on the road and it's just you and the staff, there shouldn't be any distractions and we should be good.  I think there is always the 'us against the world' mentality.  We take a lot of pride in playing well on the road."
 
On the offensive line play:
"It has been huge.  Those guys have been playing together all year.  We are not the biggest guys out there, but those guys are technicians and Coach Benefield has done a great job with those guys."
 
On the road trip:
"It is on the other end of the country and we haven't taken a road trip quite like this. I think we will get out there early and get acclimated and other than the red field, everything will be normal."
 
On the red field:
"For them it is a novelty and I think that anything that gets you seen, I think that is what you want in recruiting.  That was the idea and it has served its purpose because people talk about it.  From a playing standpoint, it doesn't make a difference, but it makes it hard watching film because the red blinds you."