Vanderbilt - Tennessee Postgame Quotes

Nov. 25, 2017

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Vanderbilt – Tennessee Postgame Quotes
Nov. 25, 2017
Neyland Stadium

Vanderbilt Head Coach Derek Mason
Opening statement:
“Wow, I can’t say enough about how our guys played tonight. We challenged these guys this week to play their best football to date, and when you look at this group, I thought this group came out and just played football. It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t pretty. I thought defensively we started slowâ€â€offense carried usâ€â€but as soon as we found our way, these guys really played lights out. I found out this was the largest victory in Knoxville since 1920 by Vanderbilt. Man, that’s pretty cool. I’ll take that. Our offense just started hot. Kyle (Shurmur) was hot from the get-go and Ralph (Webb) ran hard. It looked like the same team you saw to start the season, just in terms of offensive production. I thought our defense improved after a slow start, but it’s like anything else, you have to figure it out and make adjustments, and I thought we did that. I thought we made some great adjustments. The rest of the game after that fast start by them, I think they had 78 total yards the rest of the game including that last drive. That really speaks to that defensive unit and how well they communicated. We shut down the screen game. I thought we stopped the run. Those were the things we talked about doing going into this ball game. We’ve been talking about it all season, but it showed up, so I’m excited for those guys. Third downsâ€â€I thought we were pretty good. Our offense was pretty good on first down, but I thought all together we were good on third down. Situational football sort of carried the day for us. We did well in special teams. I thought we played well in all three phases, and that’s really what you see. You saw a football team that played together. We’re best at Vanderbilt when it’s not about the individuals but about the group. That’s what type of football we played tonight. We played great team ball.”

On what win means for program and where the program is right now:
“For me, I think it means that this football team finished where we wanted to finish. 2017 is pretty much done, so with that being said, this group started strong and finished strong. That was the goal for these seniors. These seniors get a chance to beat the University of Tennessee back-to-back forâ€â€I don’t know, I think there have been like five head coaches to do it. I don’t know how many teams have done it, but in the end, it was a great opportunity for this senior class. Their legacy will be cemented, that’s for sure. They didn’t necessarily get all the wins we wanted, but to get a conference victory on the road at Tennessee, that’s something special. These guys will talk about it when they’re old men. With that being the case, I think these guys finished the way they should.”

On defense coming through for Vanderbilt after a slow start:
“What it comes down to is that we needed to be a football team tonight. Offense carried us when the defense was down. Defense carried us when the offense was down. Special teams were good all the way through. So, when you take a look at it, that’s how we are going to win at Vanderbilt. It’s always going to be that way. It’s about team. It’s not about the name on the back; it’s about the emblem on the helmet. We’ve got to learn how to play for each other, and I thought those guys did that tonight. Everyone picked each other up. We needed that, and that’s Vanderbilt football. That’s R.T.I. – relentless, tough, and intelligent. I thought they played that way.”

QB Kyle Shurmur
On the importance of a win on the road against a rival in an up-and-down season:
“We always talk about taking things one step at a time, and in terms of this week, our full focus was on Tennessee, and we got the job done so it feels great.”

On the importance of scoring early and the defense getting a stop:
“The past few games we haven’t really started fast, and it was really important that we started fast, on offense especially. That was great to see. I think that set us up for success later on in the game.”

On what this win means for the program:
“I think it’s great to win. Right now, I’m just focused on having fun with my teammates. We’ll wake up tomorrow, and we’ll talk about all that.”

On what Ralph Webb means to him and the program:
“He works hard, and he goes out and he plays, and he lays it all out there on the line. He’s a great teammate and obviously a great player. We really love having him.”

On the importance of having his dad in the stands:
“It’s cool he got a chance to come. He doesn’t get to come to much, but it was cool having him there.”

On if this win helps springboard the team into the offseason:
“Like I said, we’re just trying to enjoy this right now. We’ll wake up tomorrow, and we’ll deal with all that. As for right now, we accomplished our goal this week, so it feels good.”

Interim Head Coach Brady Hoke Postgame Quotes
Opening Statement:
“Number one, it really hurts. It hurts as a coach for those 22 seniors who played their last football for Tennessee. Obviously being in Neyland Stadium, as a coach you always look at yourself first. We needed to all do a better job. That’s first thing, and it starts there. I just feel bad for those kids, those guys that played their last game at Neyland.”

On when he thought the game got away:
“I think number one, we were terrible on defense, in particular on third downs. I think they were 11-of-15. That’s unacceptable. We needed to play better. I thought some first downs early, you could kind of feel it. Maybe more towards the end of the second, a little bit there, but more in the third, with some play-actions where we didn’t have enough pressure with four guys, and the quarterback had some time.”

On how he will approach the program’s process in searching for a coach:
“Well, number one, I want to make sure the guys that are on this football team that are coming back, that we’re there for them. We stay on them from an academic standpoint, social standpoint, all those kind of things. Secondly, the staff itself, if I can help any of them, I want to be able to do that. The third thing is I’m going recruiting, so we’ll be hitting the road.”

On how attractive the Tennessee head coaching job is:
“I think it’s a very good job, and I’ll start with the city of Knoxville. I think the people in this city – and we haven’t been here long – the passion that they have for football, I think it’s something special that you always want to have. It’s a good job, it’s one of the best jobs in the country.”

On what the first thing program needs to do to begin rebuilding:
“The lifeblood of any program is recruiting. Not just skill wise, but also guys that you want in the program from a character standpoint. I think that’s always important. Overall, I think the recruiting end of it is the lifeblood, and in the state of Tennessee, I think high school football has grown and gotten better. That part of it is first, and then whoever comes in has got to evaluate where guys are at at different positions.”

On the message to incoming recruits:
“Rocky Top. We have a lot to sell. You look at the city of Knoxville, you look at the tradition that Tennessee has in football, and I think those things are important. Relationships with people are always part of it, but most kids pick a school because of the school.”

On what caused Vanderbilt’s three straight touchdowns after Tennessee gained some momentum:
“Yeah, we did (have some momentum). What changed is they made some plays, and we have to defend a little bit better. We didn’t tackle as well and the integrity of some gaps inside hurt us a little bit, but that’s all part of it. And again, 11-for-15 on third down, that’s not very good defensive football.”

On if he was surprised at Tennessee’s inability to run the ball:
“Yes, I was. I thought we’d be able to run it a little bit more, a little more effectively. I think you all know how I feel about John Kelly as a running back. But yeah, I was a little bit surprised.”

On the reason that Tennessee couldn’t run the ball:
“I think they got off blocks pretty well. I think I mentioned (that) early in the week and said that they’d show a lot of multiple fronts, and they did that from an even, to a G look to a bear look, 46 look. They were going to bring some run blitzes on those typical run downs.”

On Jarrett Guarantano’s struggles in the second half:
“Number one, we had some protection problems. A couple times in there we got beat on a one-on-one. Anytime you start criticizing a quarterback, you better know everything. You better know what routes were run. What was the timing of the route? What was the protection? I always hated to say, ‘The quarterback needs to play better,’ because there’s other players around him that need to play better.”

On what he said to Kendal Vickers after the loss:
“When we met as a team, I apologized to the 22 seniors that we weren’t able to win this football game. Kendal to me, obviously coaching him, is one of the special kids that has played football at the University of Tennessee. When you look at his toughness, a year ago he played with a labrum injury where there were other guys that may have tapped out. He didn’t. Because he knew where they were at the moment with depth. He’s been a really good leader in the locker room, in the meeting rooms, and I know this team respects the heck out of him.”

On the staff chemistry and if the numerous staff changes made this season difficult:
“You see that happen a lot in this day and age of football with the landscape of what it is for multiple reasons. The only thing I can tell you is, the chemistry with the staff, the working relationships, the professionalism, has all been really positive.”
On if he was prepared to go for it on fourth down in Tennessee territory:”No, we just wanted to draw them offsides.”

On if he would like to continue to coach at Tennessee next season:
“We’ll see what happens. John Currie will go out and find the best possible person for this university and for this football program, and we’ll just see what happens.”

On differences of the SEC versus his experience in the PAC-12 and Big Ten:
“No. There’s those at the top of all those conferences – the Pac-12, the Big Ten – who have great speed, who have good football players. Are there more of them in this league? That’d be hard for me to answer, only playing eight teams in the league.”

QB Jarrett Guarantano
On what happened with the offense after the fast start:
“I think that the offense started out very well. I think we were connecting with a lot of passes. We were able to move the ball, there was great pass protection. Then things just kind of went downhill at that point. I don’t know really – I have to go watch the film, I’m going to go do that right now – but things just went downhill.”
On what it will take to get the program back to national relevance:
“We’re just going to take it one day at a time, starting with as soon as January 1 hits we’re going to all be back in the weight room and be back on campus and things are just going to change. The culture is going to change, we’re going to be working our tails off every single day and we’re just going to have to get things done, no matter who likes it. If they don’t like it they can leave but that’s just how things are going to be from now on and I think that we’ll be back there soon.”

On if it is a relief to put the season behind him and look forward to next year:
“It’s definitely not a relief. I definitely think that I took it very hard. I don’t know how it looked on TV or whatever it was, but I definitely took it very hard. It’s just not how I planned things. It’s not how we planned things. We have to take it with a grain of salt and just continue. I know that Trey Smith and I already talked about it. It’s just going to be different. We are going to set the tone and if nobody likes it, then they can just leave and that’s how things are going to be.”

On how he puts the season behind him but also how he looks at it as something to learn from:
“I think it’s a little bit of both, to be honest. I’m not going to forget this and I’m going to let it drive me. That just has to be the team mindset. We wound up going 4-8 and it feels terrible and we’re going to let it feel terrible. We’re going to let it feel terrible every single practice and workout going forth and that’s just how things are.”

DL Kendal Vickers
On what shape he feels like he’s leaving the Tennessee program in:
“I’m not worried about the talent, because we are a talented team. Whoever the coach is going to be, the guys just have to buy in and believe everything that the coaches are preaching, and at the end of the day it’s going to be on the players to do that and to be able to lead themselves and be a player-led team. Talent’s not a problem, but you have to make sure that you’re stepping up and being a leader.”

On what his five years at Tennessee have been like:
“Tennessee gave me a lot of opportunities – a lot of opportunity to play college football, a lot of opportunities to be with my brothers in the locker room. A lot of these guys are going to be in my wedding. I’m really a VFL, a Vol For Life, and I learned a lot of lessons through my five years here, and I’ll continue to be a Vol and continue to root on the teams from here on out, so I just appreciate everybody that has been in this locker room, I appreciate all of the coaches that have come through here just to give me the opportunity to play here.”

K Aaron Medley
On what he wants to see in the next Tennessee head coach:
“I would just say somebody that loves the program as much as anybody that has ever come around here and been around this place for years. For me, coming here, you fall in love with it, and then you don’t want to leave. So whoever it is, just understand what this place means to so many people that live in this state.”

On getting a career long field goal on Senior Day:
“It was a great moment to end on, and a great operation. Good snap, Parker (Henry) had a good hold, and it just really felt comfortable back there, and I struck it good.”

LB Colton Jumper
On what happened in second half:
“They just ran the ball really well. We started out the second half good. I don’t know if they scored in the third quarter, so we were doing a good job, and we had a lot of momentum. But like a lot of the other parts of this year, those cracks began to show and the floodgates opened.”

On what emotions are like after last game at Tennessee:
“(I’m) sad that the seniors had to leave out on this note. We didn’t beat Vandy. That one obviously hurts a lot, but personally, I’m excited for another chapter in my life, and then also grateful for everything Tennessee’s done for me. It served me well.”

On emotions in locker room following loss:
“We’re sad. We know we gave it our all, and you hate to come up with a loss, especially your last game against your rival. But then you’ve got to get back up on the horse, and you’ve got to put it behind you.”

OL Trey Smith
On what was said in the locker room among the underclassmen coming back:
“Just remembering this moment, the multiple moments we’ve had this season, the letdowns. We’re not allowing this to happen again. We’re going to be great leaders in the locker room, we’re all going to have a lot of control and we’re going to come back better. I promise that.”

On how much this season will motivate him to not let this happen again:
“Every day. Every day. Point blank. Period.”

On the balance of learning from this season but also putting it behind the:
“Every team has its life. A lot of times people will say, ‘we’re the defending national champions and we won championships,’ well as a matter those people that won those championships are gone. In terms of this team, everything that we just experienced, it’s gone. The only thing we can control is what we do every day in preparation for next season. We’re about to make a team with a life of its own from here on out.”

On taking the next step by being a vocal leader on the team:
“Yeah, I think it’s time for me to also voice my opinion a couple of times, and also for guys in my grade and above to start voicing their opinions. I think it’s time for everybody to lead in a way to keep each other accountable.”