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00:00 >> Okay, well, it's a congratulation for
00:02 State that kept off a really good season, undefeated season.
00:06 It's hard to do, so credit them, the players, the coaches.
00:09 They played hard and they found a way to win the game.
00:13 For us, it was disappointing.
00:16 I'll take the blame for the loss.
00:18 I would like to play a whole lot better than that on offense.
00:21 I thought our defense played really, really well.
00:23 The entire game gave us a chance without question.
00:26 Our special teams played really, really well.
00:28 And we're not a par on offense, so that's quite a haul.
00:32 And once we had to kind of rely on the passing game a little too much,
00:35 we couldn't execute very well.
00:39 So that was disappointing.
00:41 So we'll have to figure out ways to fix that moving forward.
00:45 I'm sure we'll have another tough game, the bowl game coming up, but
00:50 disappointing today.
00:50 But I do think a lot of guys have played hard, and
00:54 quite a few guys have played really well, especially on defense.
00:58 And special team, unfortunately, offense was not good, and that's my fault.
01:03 >> Any questions, please raise your hand and
01:07 let one of the mic operators get to you.
01:08 Question on the right.
01:10 >> Hey, Jeff, Colin Bar with The Athletic.
01:16 You guys had an incompletion in the end zone there in the fourth quarter, and
01:19 I was just curious if you considered all the challenging that that called,
01:22 the incompletion on the drop?
01:23 >> Well, I would hope that they reviewed it.
01:27 We did some time there, so I was told it was an incomplete pass, but
01:31 that's all I know on that one.
01:34 >> Any other questions?
01:39 >> Chris Ney with Knowles 24/7.
01:44 When they went to the Wildcat and
01:46 Tocqueville had the success on those back to back plays we touched on,
01:49 why did that happen?
01:51 And you guys had obviously been very good against them,
01:53 why did that allow them to have some success?
01:55 What were the values changing picture?
01:57 >> Well, quite honestly, our adjustment to Wildcat the first couple times was not
02:01 good, so that part I did not like.
02:03 That's on us as coaches.
02:04 But after that, we adjusted it to something more aggressive, and
02:09 we stopped it every time.
02:10 So that was not the best coaching on our end.
02:14 And then of course, we didn't execute it, but
02:17 we switched that plan up after that, and unfortunately it cost us.
02:20 >> Front row.
02:24 >> Jeff Brooks holding that with the CJ.
02:26 When you talk about the offense just having a rough night,
02:29 does that come down to just keeping Jack upright?
02:33 He was getting tons of pressure.
02:35 When you look at this game,
02:37 what do you think was the biggest failure for the offense?
02:39 >> Well, these guys pressed us across the board, on the side, on the outside.
02:44 They challenged routes, and we had to earn our completions.
02:47 We got a few.
02:50 We missed a couple plays early.
02:53 We could have hit.
02:54 We kind of dropped one in the end zone right before the end of the fourth
02:57 quarter that we needed to catch.
03:00 We let the one kind of slip out of our tight end in the end zone as well that we
03:04 needed to catch, and then after that we didn't execute.
03:08 So once it got turned into a heavy pass oriented game in the fourth quarter,
03:13 when we're down, we were really dismal with that.
03:17 So it just goes to show that if we don't have balance,
03:21 we have a long ways to go in the passing game.
03:24 >> Third row, here.
03:25 >> Hey, Jeff, Tom Greenberg with WDRB.
03:27 How would you evaluate how Jack played tonight?
03:29 What do you think he struggled with?
03:31 >> Well, it wasn't his best game.
03:34 I think early on, he did some pretty good things.
03:40 Missed a few throws here and there.
03:42 Didn't pull the trigger a few times.
03:43 But not until the interception in the end zone,
03:47 that's when the wheels started to come off a little bit.
03:52 So we gotta go back and look and figure out ways to not allow that to happen again.
03:58 But like I said, he played hard, he hung in there.
04:01 Like I said, once we got to where we were pass oriented, trying to come back,
04:07 they were good pass rushers.
04:09 We got pressure on quarterback, but he stood in there a little longer,
04:11 made a couple of throws probably.
04:13 But the balance left us, and really all year,
04:18 when we've had to throw it a whole lot, we have not been as efficient as we need to be.
04:24 So that's, we got work to do.
04:26 >> Alexis Cupid, Louisville Courier Journal.
04:29 Jeff, I guess how much do you attribute just the offensive mistakes and
04:34 miscues to being self-inflicted as opposed to what Forte State was doing defensively?
04:38 >> Well, I'll give Forte State a whole lot of credit.
04:41 We knew they were gonna press us on the outside, press us on the slide,
04:44 challenge routes, play downhill.
04:47 They were very active, and we needed to run the ball some.
04:50 So we had a hard time getting some yards with the run early on.
04:55 We finally broke a few on a couple drives early in the second half that helped us,
04:59 got us in position to take a lead, to get some points, and we stalled in the red zone.
05:04 And we had some chances, like I said, we probably had, they weren't too easy
05:08 catches, but we had two balls that we could easily catch to score a touchdown.
05:12 And I just think once we threw the interception on third down,
05:17 when we're in scoring territory right in the game,
05:19 that's when the wheels started to come off, and we were extremely inefficient
05:25 after that, so like I said, that's on me.
05:28 I need to do a better job.
05:31 >> Front row, far left.
05:32 >> C.O. Raul, Louisville Courier Journal.
05:34 >> Jeff, how much when you look back on this game in terms of the building of
05:39 this program, how you won it, how much will you kind of point to some of those
05:44 plays that you feel like you could have made in terms of a championship game?
05:50 You're not gonna get a lot of opportunities, and
05:52 you have to seize those opportunities.
05:53 >> Well, like I said, the way I saw the game on the field, I haven't watched
05:59 the film, but our defense really played well, and we needed them to.
06:04 The team's playing their third quarterback, but
06:07 we played pretty well overall, other than the Wildcat.
06:10 A couple plays that really cost us, they played to the end, so
06:15 I'm proud of their effort, really kept us in the game, our special teams.
06:19 Okay, we maybe had one punt that we shank, but other than that,
06:25 got us the advantage, got us the ball in scoring territory.
06:28 And then we couldn't convert, so like I said,
06:32 we had chances to convert, and we had to make those plays.
06:36 And sometimes guys gotta understand, you gotta make contested plays.
06:43 You gotta make contested plays where people kind of hold on to you,
06:46 grab on to you, hit you as to catch the ball, hit you as to throw the ball.
06:51 Against good football teams, that's how real football works, and
06:54 we were not able to make those.
06:56 And then, like I said after that,
06:58 then we really started to sneak it up on offense in the fourth quarter.
07:02 >> Other questions for Coach?
07:06 [BLANK_AUDIO]
07:11 Back TV, a break.
07:13 [BLANK_AUDIO]
07:18 >> Jeff Dominick, HWLKY.
07:20 Just big picture, what was this experience like,
07:23 just being here playing for an ACC championship?
07:25 I guess just what did you say to the guys just in the locker room, please?
07:28 >> Well, I was very optimistic with our team after the game,
07:32 cuz I was very proud of our performance.
07:34 I thought they played very hard.
07:36 I thought there were a lot of guys that prepared hard, wanted to win.
07:41 Quite a few guys that gave really good performances.
07:43 Unfortunately, we had a handful not play up to par.
07:49 And like I said, I think you gotta play better on offense, so
07:53 that starts with me as the head coach.
07:56 We gotta figure out ways to create a few more big plays.
08:00 We gotta figure out a way we have to throw the ball out to be more efficient.
08:04 And that was what was disappointing, that's what cost us.
08:09 But I do think our guys wanted to win.
08:12 They were up for the challenge as far as facing them in a beat team in
08:17 a championship game.
08:18 And we had some moments.
08:20 We scored a couple of those touchdowns late in the third quarter,
08:23 early fourth quarter.
08:24 It's a different ball game, but we didn't.
08:26 And when that didn't happen, they took advantage of it, and things went south.
08:32 >> Last question, front row.
08:33 >> You kind of touched on it a little bit just now, but I guess just overall,
08:37 how do you feel like this team handled the moment,
08:38 being that it was the first time the program has got to the ACC championship game?
08:43 >> I thought they handled the moment well as far as they were jacked up,
08:47 ready to play, and good week of practice.
08:49 It's not a fun losing our last game as well, but
08:53 we knew this was gonna be very challenging.
08:56 We were gonna have to play well in order to win.
08:58 And I think we were right there in the game with numerous chances.
09:03 Stalled in the red zone for field goals early on,
09:05 which you can't do against good teams.
09:07 Didn't convert when we had a chance to score.
09:10 And I don't know, maybe take a later tally,
09:13 didn't remember what the score was, and really get some momentum going.
09:17 Didn't happen, and then it was,
09:22 once we had to try to make plays in the fourth quarter, we didn't make any.
09:27 >> Thank you, Coach.
09:28 [BLANK_AUDIO]