Football Quotes – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/11/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 11, 2000
Head Coach John Cooper
“I am pleased to get a win against a tough Arizona team on the road. Our defense played an outstanding game, and our front seven contained their quarterback.
“Steve (Bellisari) really played a good football game for us. Early in the game he missed some receivers and had to scramble a few times. In the second half, particularly the third quarter, we had some big plays that shifted the momentum.
“Both tight end Darnell Sanders and right guard Tam Hopkins earned offensive lineman of the week honors.”
On playing a team from the Mid-American Conference (Miami Sept. 16 in Columbus)
“I think it is good for the game of football in Ohio for us to play a MAC school. We have played an Ohio team the past five of six seasons.”
On the improvement of the team as a whole
“The effort has been outstanding in both games. But, we are still making too many mistakes. We had another 13 penalties in this week’s ballgame, and that is 13 too many. However, the defensive front made a lot of improvement, they had a good pass rush and they stayed in their lanes. “
On Steve Bellisari’s improvement
“Once we gave Steve a little more protection and were more precise with the routes we called, he made some big plays. He still needs to make some improvements, but he played very well on Saturday.”
On who has made some big strides after the first two games
“Our true freshman Will Smith has played very well. He will see more and more playing time as the season progresses. The other guys are playing like I expected. The defensive front has also played well and put some good pressure on the opposing quarterbacks. And, Derek Combs has had two good games for us.”
On where Cooper would like to see improvements between games two and three
“We have to eliminate the mistakes. We can’t continue to get the motion penalties. We had a couple unnecessary fouls called on the defense which gave them (Arizona) more yardage.”
On what the biggest improvements are out of the front seven
“They are getting better because they work hard everyday in practice. The key to the defensive line playing well is keeping those guys fresh and substituting in different situations. Coach (Jim) Heacock does a good job in getting those guys ready to play every week.”
On what concerns Cooper about Miami (OH)
“We are still looking at Miami’s game films. They have some good solid personnel. They have some players who I am sure are anxious to play against us. It will be an exciting game for them.”
Chad Cacchio, Flanker (Sr., Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington)
On what he expects from Miami:
“I expect they’re going to come and they’re going to fight. It’s going to be a tough game. Some people think the MAC isn’t as good as the Big Ten, but obviously from watching the games so far this year, the MAC has put up a pretty good fight and they’ve knocked a few teams off. Miami always seems to beat one really good team every year, so we’ll just have to be in our game. They are a dangerous team, but I think coming off our last win we’re starting to put things together and I know we’re not going to take them lightly.”
On quarterback Steve Bellisari’s progression from the first half to the second half of the Arizona game:
“He really improved. I think the whole team wasn’t on the same page and I think everyone just settled down and started do the things that we know we can do. Steve obviously settled down and started making the passes that he knows he can make.
On whether or not Big Ten losses to MAC schools in the last two weeks have done Ohio State a favor in terms of preparing for the Miami game:
“I think it does. It really shows us that we need to be on top of our game every single week, but I don’t think we’re going to have any problems. We’re going to come in fired up and wanting to play a good game.”
Ryan Pickett, Defensive Tackle (Jr., Zephyrhills, Fla./Zephyrhills)
On the defense’s performance in the Arizona game:
“We wanted to win, the whole front four. That’s the difference from last year, the whole mentality of the defense has changed. Everybody wanted to get to the ball.”
On whether or not Big Ten losses to MAC schools in the last two weeks have done Ohio State a favor in terms of preparing for the Miami game:
“Yes, it really does. We know we can’t sleep on them and that we have to be focused just like we are playing Penn State or a team like that. We are not going to take them lightly at all.”
On the difference between this year’s defense and last year’s defense:
“I think it is change in maturity level and the fact that everybody wants to win. Nobody liked last year. We don’t talk about it much but I know it’s in the back of everybody’s mind. Everybody is hungry to get to the ball. That is the difference.”
Joe Cooper, Linebacker (Sr., Columbus, Ohio/Independence)
His impression of the defensive line:
“They’ve been doing a great job for this team. They take the pressure off the defensive backfield and make the jobs of the rest of us a lot easier.”
On MAC football and Miami:
“These MAC schools have been beating up on the Big Ten this year and we’re not going to let that happen to us. We’re not going to let anyone feel they can play with us here at home. We’re going to try to get this game over with as quick as we can because if we let Miami hang around, in what is probably their biggest game all year, they’re going to be really hyped up for it. We just have to let them know that we are Ohio State.”
On this year’s team compared to last year’s team:
“There is no ‘I’ on this football team this year. The chemistry we had offseason last year has really come together so far this season. Everyone wants to get the job done. No one is focused on themselves. We just want to get some wins around here and we have two so far. I think we’re going to continue to have this chemistry. We’ll be fine.”
