Postgame Quotes: Washington vs. USC
September 28, 2019 | Football
SEATTLE – Washington football head coach Chris Petersen and select players met with the media following the Huskies' 28-14 win over USC Saturday, Sept. 28, at Husky Stadium. Read some of what they had to say:
HEAD COACH CHRIS PETERSEN
(Opening statement) "Really good team win. We faced a high-level team. I am extremely proud of our defense, those guys played at a high level. We did just enough to keep them off balance. We had some really good turnovers in that area. They did a good job of huddling the ball, they mixed it up well. Our special teams were very solid. Our protections on the PAT, punt, and field goal were really good, that was awesome. Our offense played well, there were a couple of times we sputtered, but we will continue to get better."
(On the importance of Elijah Molden's interception) "That was game changing. That saved us. That was a 14-point swing. He picked it off and two plays later, Salvon Ahmed goes the distance. That was the sequence of the game. It was game changing for sure."
(On what he saw out of Salvon Ahmed today) "The one run made it a career day. That was a game changer. To be able to get an 80-plus yard play in the run game – that doesn't happen too often. When you have explosives in the run game (that) go for touchdowns, that is what you want to do."
(On how much faith he has in the Huskies' younger secondary) "They do a good job. Trent Mcduffie is a true warrior. He plays at a high level. I think it is awesome what Cam Williams is doing back there, we are starting to get a feel of what we want from him out there. We play our safety deep so that he can roam and pick off passes. Now we are starting to see him get his hands on some things. He will continue to flourish in that role."
(On the importance of getting the first Pac-12 win of the season) "It is important. I honestly don't think of it like that. Every game is critically important to us. We just think 'who is our next game?' Even those first games that we played feel equally important as anything we are doing in the league. I think there were some good players on that other side, and they have a good team, so it was good to get this win. I am glad that we had it at home. I thought the crowd was really good."
DEFENSIVE BACK MYLES BRYANT
(On his favorite play he made during today's game) "I would say the pass breakup at the end of the game. I mean, fourth down at the two-yard line, if they scored it would have been a one possession game. But, I think all of us just played well today. We got it back to our offense. Helped them out and just ended up playing big."
(On Cameron Williams' performance today) "He came up big. On the first interception, I wanted him to score on it. He was pacing the ball a little. The second interception was even bigger. That was just to shut out the game. They were going in to try and make it a one possession game again. So, for him to do that was pretty big."
RUNNING BACK SALVON AHMED
(On what it was like leading the charge against USC) "I mean USC is obviously a really athletic team, a really good team, and we knew we were going to have to run the ball against them and as we saw last week everyone in that room can contribute to the run game. So when anyone gets in there, they get a chance, they make plays. Sean makes plays. Richard makes a lot plays. We know that offensive line is going to block for us and we've just got to make things happen. I couldn't be happier to see all my guys out there killing it."
(On what he saw when he took that handoff on the 89-yard run) "I just saw a backside hole with one guy in there. I just tried to make him miss and try to go. When I was finishing the run I looked up at the screen there was a guy kind of close behind me so I had to kind of turn it around. Yeah, I mean, the offensive line created a hole on the backside and I made the play."
TIGHT END HUNTER BRYANT
(On today's game) "I think we showed a lot on offense. We still have a lot of room to improve and all that. Our defense stepped up huge today and that was great to see."
(On where he sees this team headed this season) "I think we have a great team here. It's just a band of brothers and our culture is really contagious. That is one of our sayings: 'The culture is contagious.' I think we all bought in to what we're doing here as a team and I'm excited to see what we do."
LINEBACKER KYLER MANU
(On the Huskies' defense today) "You know, they hit us on a big run. You know, the night before we were watching a bunch of boxing videos. Coach Pete just said we're going to take some hits, but we're going to swing right back. That was our statement. Yeah, you're going to get a couple plays on us, but we're not going to shy away at all."
QUARTERBACK JACOB EASON
(On what the victory formation feel like) "Victory formation, that's the best formation in the game. It was a great team win, our defense played well – really well – and it kept us in the game. I thought that it was a hard-fought battle and we got the result we wanted."
(On how it felt to get that first conference win) "It feels good. USC is a big historic rivalry game and it was a great environment to play in. We got the result we wanted, and we are all excited for that. We will go and watch this film tomorrow and go on to next week."
HEAD COACH CHRIS PETERSEN
(Opening statement) "Really good team win. We faced a high-level team. I am extremely proud of our defense, those guys played at a high level. We did just enough to keep them off balance. We had some really good turnovers in that area. They did a good job of huddling the ball, they mixed it up well. Our special teams were very solid. Our protections on the PAT, punt, and field goal were really good, that was awesome. Our offense played well, there were a couple of times we sputtered, but we will continue to get better."
(On the importance of Elijah Molden's interception) "That was game changing. That saved us. That was a 14-point swing. He picked it off and two plays later, Salvon Ahmed goes the distance. That was the sequence of the game. It was game changing for sure."
(On what he saw out of Salvon Ahmed today) "The one run made it a career day. That was a game changer. To be able to get an 80-plus yard play in the run game – that doesn't happen too often. When you have explosives in the run game (that) go for touchdowns, that is what you want to do."
(On how much faith he has in the Huskies' younger secondary) "They do a good job. Trent Mcduffie is a true warrior. He plays at a high level. I think it is awesome what Cam Williams is doing back there, we are starting to get a feel of what we want from him out there. We play our safety deep so that he can roam and pick off passes. Now we are starting to see him get his hands on some things. He will continue to flourish in that role."
(On the importance of getting the first Pac-12 win of the season) "It is important. I honestly don't think of it like that. Every game is critically important to us. We just think 'who is our next game?' Even those first games that we played feel equally important as anything we are doing in the league. I think there were some good players on that other side, and they have a good team, so it was good to get this win. I am glad that we had it at home. I thought the crowd was really good."
DEFENSIVE BACK MYLES BRYANT
(On his favorite play he made during today's game) "I would say the pass breakup at the end of the game. I mean, fourth down at the two-yard line, if they scored it would have been a one possession game. But, I think all of us just played well today. We got it back to our offense. Helped them out and just ended up playing big."
(On Cameron Williams' performance today) "He came up big. On the first interception, I wanted him to score on it. He was pacing the ball a little. The second interception was even bigger. That was just to shut out the game. They were going in to try and make it a one possession game again. So, for him to do that was pretty big."
RUNNING BACK SALVON AHMED
(On what it was like leading the charge against USC) "I mean USC is obviously a really athletic team, a really good team, and we knew we were going to have to run the ball against them and as we saw last week everyone in that room can contribute to the run game. So when anyone gets in there, they get a chance, they make plays. Sean makes plays. Richard makes a lot plays. We know that offensive line is going to block for us and we've just got to make things happen. I couldn't be happier to see all my guys out there killing it."
(On what he saw when he took that handoff on the 89-yard run) "I just saw a backside hole with one guy in there. I just tried to make him miss and try to go. When I was finishing the run I looked up at the screen there was a guy kind of close behind me so I had to kind of turn it around. Yeah, I mean, the offensive line created a hole on the backside and I made the play."
TIGHT END HUNTER BRYANT
(On today's game) "I think we showed a lot on offense. We still have a lot of room to improve and all that. Our defense stepped up huge today and that was great to see."
(On where he sees this team headed this season) "I think we have a great team here. It's just a band of brothers and our culture is really contagious. That is one of our sayings: 'The culture is contagious.' I think we all bought in to what we're doing here as a team and I'm excited to see what we do."
LINEBACKER KYLER MANU
(On the Huskies' defense today) "You know, they hit us on a big run. You know, the night before we were watching a bunch of boxing videos. Coach Pete just said we're going to take some hits, but we're going to swing right back. That was our statement. Yeah, you're going to get a couple plays on us, but we're not going to shy away at all."
QUARTERBACK JACOB EASON
(On what the victory formation feel like) "Victory formation, that's the best formation in the game. It was a great team win, our defense played well – really well – and it kept us in the game. I thought that it was a hard-fought battle and we got the result we wanted."
(On how it felt to get that first conference win) "It feels good. USC is a big historic rivalry game and it was a great environment to play in. We got the result we wanted, and we are all excited for that. We will go and watch this film tomorrow and go on to next week."
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