Notes 'n' Quotes from UNC-MSU
11/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
• Montana State's seventh win matches the most by a Bobcat team (1993, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2005) since the 1984 National Champions were 12-2
• Northern Colorado's 139 rushing yards snapped a six-game string of MSU holding its opponent under 100 yards on the ground
• The sixth straight Bobcat win is the longest winning streak by Mike Kramer's Bobcat team
• Jack Rolovich's six-yard completion on the first play of the third quarter snapped a string of four straight games in which MSU's first play of the second half was for negative yards
• Jeff Hastings' 47-yard field goal, a career-long effort, gives him eight over 40 yards as a Bobcat, tied for second in school history
• The team's gathered at mid-field in prayer and tribute to Adam Matthews, the former Northern Colorado running back who died on Thursday. Matthews' brother Asa registered three tackles for UNC on Saturday.
FROM MSU DEFENSIVE LINEMAN CLIVE LOWE
"It feels good. You have a chance to go into the next game with some momentum. We just want to keep it going."
On UNC's quarterback change - "(TJ Swanson) brought a little more speed than 14. He played hard. (Starter Dominic Breazeale) is more of a sit-in-the-pocket quarterback."
On the bye week - "Some people can rest up and get healthy, so we can come in (to the Grizzly game) full force."
On the controversial UNC interception - "I don't worry about the interception. I'm just getting back on the field and getting the ball back. There's no feelings on that side because I don't play on that side. Time is up, get up, play, get the ball back."
On UNC running back Andre Wilson - "He's a real hard runner. We had to wrap him up a couple times. He's a real good runner, my hat's off to him."
On his career at MSU - "This is the perfect place for me. I couldn't ask for a better place."
FROM OFFENSIVE LINEMAN JOE HIRST
"We knew right away that UNC was the number one team in the conference in time of possession, so we knew it was on our shoulders, Evin knew it, too. We knew we had to come downhill and get on our guys. Evin and Isaiah did an awesome job carrying the ball for us.
"We consider the running backs part of our group. We want the running backs to get 100 yards rushing. We always want four yards on first down, and we were. If we don't get four yards on first down we know we have to pass, and we want to run."
FROM OFFENSIVE GUARD BRANT BIRKELAND
"I feel good about the fact that we've won six consecutive games, I feel best about that. It doesn't matter who we play next, it's the momentum off the six games that we've won. Today we put together a pretty solid performance running the ball, and with Jack back there and Mike Jeff(erson) we can pass the ball, so we feel pretty good offensively. The defense has played awesome all year.
"We wanted to establish the run, I don't think we were necessarily trying to prove we could run. We were trying to be more balanced. If we have a third-and-two we want to be able to run for that first down instead of having to pass for the first down.
"The thing about Evin is he's such a competitor and he works so hard year-round, you know if you give him a seam he's going to break first tackle. He has a lot of heart and he's not going to let the first guy bring him down very often. You get excited when you see that from your running back. When he's running through guys and pushing those extra yards that makes you as an offensive lineman want to keep making holes for him."
FROM MSU COACH MIKE KRAMER
"It was pretty inspiring for me to see Asa (Matthews) out there flying around, making plays a couple days after losing his brother. I've got a bunch of brothers, I don't know if I could even function, let alone go in a game like that. I was kind of inspired, I thought our guys were kind of inspired by the way Asa played, and I thought Northern Colorado matched that and played a pretty darn good game.
"We didn't finish drives in the end zone, pretty simple. We moved the ball OK, not great, but we moved the ball well enough to score a couple more touchdowns, yet Northern Colorado came up with the plays in the end zone and we didn't make those plays.
"It was good to see Evin get going, particularly in the second half. In the first half he tip-toed, still a little apprehensive, but in the second half he was determined. At no point did we ever start rolling up and down the field on Northern Colorado."
"For them to play that hard, this late in the season, after a long bus trip, in the face of all that adversity, that's the story of this game."
• Northern Colorado's 139 rushing yards snapped a six-game string of MSU holding its opponent under 100 yards on the ground
• The sixth straight Bobcat win is the longest winning streak by Mike Kramer's Bobcat team
• Jack Rolovich's six-yard completion on the first play of the third quarter snapped a string of four straight games in which MSU's first play of the second half was for negative yards
• Jeff Hastings' 47-yard field goal, a career-long effort, gives him eight over 40 yards as a Bobcat, tied for second in school history
• The team's gathered at mid-field in prayer and tribute to Adam Matthews, the former Northern Colorado running back who died on Thursday. Matthews' brother Asa registered three tackles for UNC on Saturday.
FROM MSU DEFENSIVE LINEMAN CLIVE LOWE
"It feels good. You have a chance to go into the next game with some momentum. We just want to keep it going."
On UNC's quarterback change - "(TJ Swanson) brought a little more speed than 14. He played hard. (Starter Dominic Breazeale) is more of a sit-in-the-pocket quarterback."
On the bye week - "Some people can rest up and get healthy, so we can come in (to the Grizzly game) full force."
On the controversial UNC interception - "I don't worry about the interception. I'm just getting back on the field and getting the ball back. There's no feelings on that side because I don't play on that side. Time is up, get up, play, get the ball back."
On UNC running back Andre Wilson - "He's a real hard runner. We had to wrap him up a couple times. He's a real good runner, my hat's off to him."
On his career at MSU - "This is the perfect place for me. I couldn't ask for a better place."
FROM OFFENSIVE LINEMAN JOE HIRST
"We knew right away that UNC was the number one team in the conference in time of possession, so we knew it was on our shoulders, Evin knew it, too. We knew we had to come downhill and get on our guys. Evin and Isaiah did an awesome job carrying the ball for us.
"We consider the running backs part of our group. We want the running backs to get 100 yards rushing. We always want four yards on first down, and we were. If we don't get four yards on first down we know we have to pass, and we want to run."
FROM OFFENSIVE GUARD BRANT BIRKELAND
"I feel good about the fact that we've won six consecutive games, I feel best about that. It doesn't matter who we play next, it's the momentum off the six games that we've won. Today we put together a pretty solid performance running the ball, and with Jack back there and Mike Jeff(erson) we can pass the ball, so we feel pretty good offensively. The defense has played awesome all year.
"We wanted to establish the run, I don't think we were necessarily trying to prove we could run. We were trying to be more balanced. If we have a third-and-two we want to be able to run for that first down instead of having to pass for the first down.
"The thing about Evin is he's such a competitor and he works so hard year-round, you know if you give him a seam he's going to break first tackle. He has a lot of heart and he's not going to let the first guy bring him down very often. You get excited when you see that from your running back. When he's running through guys and pushing those extra yards that makes you as an offensive lineman want to keep making holes for him."
FROM MSU COACH MIKE KRAMER
"It was pretty inspiring for me to see Asa (Matthews) out there flying around, making plays a couple days after losing his brother. I've got a bunch of brothers, I don't know if I could even function, let alone go in a game like that. I was kind of inspired, I thought our guys were kind of inspired by the way Asa played, and I thought Northern Colorado matched that and played a pretty darn good game.
"We didn't finish drives in the end zone, pretty simple. We moved the ball OK, not great, but we moved the ball well enough to score a couple more touchdowns, yet Northern Colorado came up with the plays in the end zone and we didn't make those plays.
"It was good to see Evin get going, particularly in the second half. In the first half he tip-toed, still a little apprehensive, but in the second half he was determined. At no point did we ever start rolling up and down the field on Northern Colorado."
"For them to play that hard, this late in the season, after a long bus trip, in the face of all that adversity, that's the story of this game."
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