Head Coach Justin Fuente:
On getting their first conference win: “It was nice to get a win. We talked all week about how the game had to be played in order to give us a chance to win and that’s how we played it. We knew it wasn’t going to be pretty. We knew it wasn’t going to be flashy. But we had to hang in there and play great defense. We had to find out a way to score one more point than they did. I was proud of our kids. We didn’t do many of the things that cause teams to lose, and that was the difference.”
On the Bulls’ defense. “That defensive line we just played was as good as I’ve ever seen. They were deep, they were big, they were strong and they were tough. We knew every yard was going to be hard to come by. We wanted to make sure that they didn’t force us into big, game-changing errors.”
On the Memphis defense: “Defensively we played really well. We did a good job keeping the ball in front of us. We missed a couple tackles that I’d like to have back, but overall we played pretty solid.”
On the turnovers Memphis forced: “The defense getting turnovers forced them into a game they didn’t really want to play there.”
On the 56-yard field goal by Jake Elliot: “I’m awfully happy it bounced through. USF has been pretty good at middle block all year and I was a little concerned, when you get those long ones, that they were going to get a block down. We did a good job with protection.”
On playing a close game: “We really didn’t care (how we won). I thought our kids did a good job embracing the mindset it was going to take to win.”
On the feeling of this win: “It’s a different feeling, just because of the way we played. Not that any win is any more valuable than another, but just to show some discipline, show some toughness, and to handle the ups and downs of the game and not panic, I thought it was a good thing.”
On what it took to beat USF: “We felt like in order to beat these guys, because of the way they are on defense, that we were going to have to play the game like that. We were going to have to do a great job of being disciplined, playing great defense, and finding a way to get into the endzone.
DB Bobby McCain:
On Memphis' first conference win of the season: “It felt good. It was a team win. Special teams, offense, defense all came out to play. We played well and were disciplined. We still have things to work on, but we got the win.”
On whether or not the game went as planned: “All week we talked about how we only have to win by one point. Their defense was pretty good and our defense was pretty strong. We knew it would be a defensive game going in, but we came out on top.”
On Jake Elliot’s 56-yd field goal to end the first half: “It was real big. We didn’t know he had it in him. It gave us the momentum going into the half. We know he's a good guy, a great kicker. We were really pumped up about that field goal.”
On Memphis's explosive third quarter: “We got our minds right, stopped taking all the dumb penalties and making all the dumb plays. We focused on our technique and execution. Offensively we did a great job, and defensively we did a great job."
On his interception return for a touchdown: “We were in a drop-zone. I read my keys and my techniques and when my number two went vertical I shifted. I got my eyes back and the ball was in my hands before I knew it. I knew I was going to score because there was nothing but green grass in front of me.”
On the challenge of facing Louisville next week: “We've been thinking about it even though we weren’t supposed to. We've been thinking about for a really long time and we're excited to play those guys and see what they're all about.”
K Jake Elliot:
On his thoughts before attempting the 56-yd field goal: “To be honest, I thought they were about to call the punt team out onto the field. The wind was swirling out there and I would have felt more comfortable kicking the other way. Going in, I knew I had to hit a good ball. I had a great snap, great hold, great blocking up front and it got there, barely... I was kind of cheering it on. I wasn't very sure [if it was going to make it], I knew it would be close. I gave it a little fist pump, hoping it would get there. I saw it bounce up and I couldn’t tell which way it was going, but it ended up working out.”
On whether or not he would have enjoyed seeing the game end in a 6-3 score: “That would have been pretty cool, but no, I like the supporting points behind it.”
His thoughts on the team's win: “It's a great team win and gives us great momentum going into Louisville, especially. We've been stressing how important this game is all week and we went out there and showed what we have.”
On breaking the school's field goal record and tying for the longest field goal of the season: “It's an honor to be among those guys, especially to be on a list of great kickers from the past. It's incredible just knowing that my name is up there.”
