John Cooper Luncheon Quotes – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/20/1999 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 20, 1999
Coach John Cooper
%^$On Cincinnati’s big upset
%^$”We have a lot of respect for Cincinnati. It is not a fluke that they won against Wisconsin. They played extremely well and deserved to win. Cincinnati will come in here with a lot more confidence after such an outstanding win. We will prepare this week and be ready to play on Saturday.”%^$
%^$On college football upsets
%^$”These upsets are making old men out of many of my colleagues. There is a parody in college football, because if your team is not playing well and you do not respect your opponent, you will have these upsets.”%^$
%^$On Cincinnati’s defense
%^$”We are not sure what defense we will see on Saturday. They played a couple defenses in the games we have watched. They had a 4-3 defense one week then against Wisconsin they crowded the line. We have to get ready for a defense that can be entirely different from week to week.”%^$
%^$On Ken-Yon Rambo
%^$” Ken-Yon Rambo had a great game, making some outstanding catches. He has a lot more confidence and was a huge factor in our win against Ohio.”%^$
%^$On team improvements
%^$”We have made big steps in improving our offense. However, the team still needs to make some adjustments before the Big Ten season, especially in our running game. We are throwing a lot better, but everything needs to be at its best throughout the season. I know we can run a lot better.”%^$
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%^$Sr. Center Kurt Murphy
%^$”Steve Bellisari is one of the spark plugs to our offense. His energy is always up in the huddle. You can even see it, when watching the game, because he is making blocks and cheering after a big pass. He is having fun and that helps the other players when we see his enthusiasm.”%^$
%^$”The offensive line needs consistency. We may put up 14 points in one quarter, but then the next not even score. We need to score every quarter, especially for the big games, because we will not be able to pull out wins not scoring in every quarter.”%^$
%^$Sr. Cornerback Ahmed Plummer
%^$”If anything, Cincinnati’s upset over Wisconsin, gets our team pumped up. We realize that we can’t sleep one whole half, instead we have to be up and ready for this game.”%^$
%^$”It could be youth and inexperience on the mistakes we have made on defense. Though I will not make excuses. We knew coming into the season, people were going to have to step up this season. I know we can play well and we have played well, but I want consistency every quarter.”%^$
%^$Sr. Defensive End Rodney Bailey
%^$”Cincinnati did everything well during its game against Wisconsin. Their execution was good and played great defense against Wisconsin’s run. We have to be ready for anything this weekend.”%^$
%^$”No one ever prepares to lose going into a game. We expected this from Ohio and we expect this from Cincinnati. They will come in here and play to win.”%^$
%^$So. Quarterback Steve Bellisari%^$”I will be more confident in my playing as the season goes on. There are improvements to be made and I am confident that our offense can come together and play even better.”%^$
%^$”Ken-Yon Rambo played very well this past week. He was finding ways to get open and had some great catches. I don’t know if you can call it the new playing combo with Ken-Yon and me, because Reggie Germany can do as many things as Ken-Yon. They are both exceptional receivers.”%^$
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-GO BUCKS!-
