Opening statement:
“Excited to get another one for us. The guys prepared really well all week. Coming out of last week I took them out on the field for about 45 minutes. We did double the amount of walkthroughs. I told them if you guys take care of us on Saturday, we will take care of you this week. We backed off them physically on Tuesday and Wednesday. They were really antsy to get out there and play. Thursday was a really good work day, and today you saw the result of it.
Today didn’t happen because of this week. It happened because of the way we’ve done things since January. I couldn’t be more excited with Tommy (DeVito), Chase (Brown), and the offensive line. Offensively the versatility Barry created with fourth-down conversions, there’s a lot of confidence in the ball club. Defensively, enough can’t be said. I know (Minnesota) got into the end zone. They had three different guys get interceptions and play it the way they did. Everybody just sees it as an interception, but those are incredibly talented, well-coached players that make those plays.
I was told (Minnesota quarterback) Tanner Morgan was taken to the hospital, so I wanted to extend my thoughts and prayers to him. He’s a really good competitor. I was watching film in 2019, and he was the quarterback still. He’s been there as long as Palczewski. Incredible respect for (Minnesota head coach) P.J. (Fleck) and his group. Another Big Ten West game, part of the three-game stretch. You guys love numbers, so it’s been a rally cry. Wisconsin, we hadn’t beat them since 2002, Iowa since 2008. I got a new one for you.: The last time we beat Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota was 1983. I was 13. We keep chipping away at these numbers, and I am really excited where we are at.”
On the passing defense:
“Ryan (Walters) and Aaron (Henry) would take a lot of time during the spring and winter breaking on the ball and reading the quarterback’s eyes. In that Iowa game, you see Matt Bailey break before the quarterback comes out of his drill. I stopped before the team on Thursday, and I said, ‘Matt where did you learn this?’ He said, ‘Coach Walters.’ It really made an impression on me. Here’s a true freshman six games into it who broke up a route of a player who’s going to be a first-round draft pick. I think it’s an indication of really good players that are coached really well.”
On Tommy DeVito’s toughness:
“He’s an incredibly tough kid. Last Sunday, everybody’s concerned about Tommy, I was worried about Tommy. My wife always calls and texts me every day. The first thing she ask me after I say hello to my children is ‘is Tommy playing?’ Tommy rolls up on Sunday, and he has a black fleece robe, eyeshades on, a slipper on one foot and a boot on the other, and a bag of McDonalds in his hand. I told him, ‘You look like a guy right out of The Breakfast Club.’ He didn’t have any idea what that meant. I had a feeling he was going to get better in a hurry. He did practice a little bit on Tuesday and then fully from Wednesday on. Tommy’s truly incredibly tough and competitive.”
On Chase Brown:
“I told him after the Northwestern game last year, ‘Hey, you were just tackled for the last time until our opener next fall.’ Running backs have a limited life span because every play they have the ball usually ends in a collision. One thing I have learned from my backs in the past like James White, Melvin Gordon, and Alex Collins, these guys have played eight to 10 years in the league, and I think other programs don’t take care of them in practice or training. The byproduct is they have a shorter career. Chase understands that. He takes incredibly good care of his body.”
On how he felt:
“It felt awesome. It made my job easier not having to run as much or really at all when you have a guy like Chase Brown back there. The O-line did an awesome jobs today. No sacks, just a couple of hits here and there, but it’s part of the game. The way that they played was awesome.”
On the upcoming bye week:
“The way that schedule has been set up has been awesome: three games, bye week, four days, bye week, and now we’re going into a giant five-game stretch. I think this bye week is at the perfect time, especially with the nicks, and bumps, and bruises that we have right now to get that 100% healed up and then go on to the next week.”
On the team’s three straight Big Ten wins:
“It’s awesome. There’s still so much to be cleaned up, especially offensively. I think there’s so much that we can do, like touchdowns not field goals. I think there’s so many more points that we left on the board, but I think we did a good job fighting through adversity and getting points on the board for the team, especially when we’ve been backed up in situations. Keeping the chains moving and pushing. I think our time of possession, I don’t know what it was, but it was really high. We controlled the ball very well. We did exactly what we wanted to do, when we wanted to do, and that’s all thanks to the offensive line.”
On the balance of the offense:
“It was good. Passing, I don’t know if it was as good as the Chattanooga game, but it was close. I mean we hit our shots when we needed to, and we kept the chains moving, especially big on fourth downs again. The one to Isaiah (Williams), that was awesome to keep that rolling, and there was another one to Pat (Bryant). I think that was just having a lot of trust in myself, the offensive line in pass protection, and then the routes, and catching and finishing it.”
On Chase Brown:
“I mean look at him. He can catch the ball, take it out of the backfield. He can do it all. He makes the game so much easier. Me and him have such a good communication in the backfield. It’s really something special, something that I really haven’t been a part of as far as in that realm.”
On what bowl eligibility means:
“We talked about the opportunity that we had. That was the big word that we’re talking about: opportunity. It’s another week to go 1-0, but this one, we’re going bowling in October. That’s a really good feeling, but I don’t think that’s the team’s goal. I think we want to go way past that.”
On how he is feeling:
“I feel good. I know 41 carries is a lot, but I’m willing to do whatever it takes to win games. If that’s carrying the ball 41 times a few times, I’ll do that.”
On the upcoming bye week:
“It’s gonna be good for everybody. For me, it’s just gonna be good to rest, reset, and come back stronger. That’s for everybody else, like o-line. I’m getting 41 carries, but we’re also running the ball 41 times, and they have responsibilities up front. As much as it is a toll on me, it is a toll on them, so you got to be mindful of what we’re doing, and giving the guys some rest, and continue over to Nebraska on a high.”
On what bowl eligibility means:
“Being bowl eligible, it’s sweet. We’re really blessed to be in this position, but we have bigger goals than just being bowl eligible. We want to compete for a Big Ten championship and move up in the rankings. That’s what we’re trying to do here. That’s what Illinois football is: competing in championship games and being ranked.”
On what 44 touches feels like after a game:
“I feel a lot better than I did against Indiana. It hurts, but I just got to take my recovery to a whole new level here and just come back stronger. Use this bye week to get my body back and come back explosive against Nebraska.
On where the team stands heading into the rest of the season:
“First of all, it’s great for this team, but I think about the fans as well, the people that have stuck by us. This is just the start. I’m so excited that we’re playing at this level. We all expect to play at this level and continue to win games, but for the guys in this locker room and a lot of guys that are going through their last season and last year eligibility, that was a goal. That’s what we wanted to do. Moving forward, we just got to keep the good energy moving and continue to push because we have good teams on the schedule.”
On the team continuing to make program history:
“That’s just a reflection of what Coach B has done with this program. He came in and set a winning culture here, and all the guys that are in this locker room are bought in. That’s the most we can do.”
On his receiving touchdown:
“That’s a big explosive play, shot play, something we planned way back during camp. Obviously they don’t bite on the run, a little play action fake. I knew I was open. The safety played over the top, so I was alone. I really had to do nothing. I just caught the ball and ran it in.”
On Tommy DeVito:
“He’s a competitor. His ability to extend the play out of the pocket is unlike a lot of guys in this conference and in the nation. He’s extremely talented player, and it’s fun to play with a guy like that.”
On the argument that he’s the best running back in the country:
“I think we made the argument that we might have the best o-line in the country. Those guys worked their tails off. We’re gonna continue to push, and, statistically, we’re not focused on that. We’re focusing on winning games. “
On Isaiah Williams bouncing back:
“I knew he was gonna bounce back here. He’s a competitor, and the fact that he’s able to bounce back and play the way he did today is awesome.”
On Tommy DeVito:
“His first day coming in, he was trying to build a relationship. As soon as he came in a locker room, he was trying to introduce himself to everybody, meet everybody. He didn’t come in cocky; he came in humble. I think that’s one of the biggest things that helped everybody gravitate toward him. He was humble. He was very personable. He wanted to meet everybody, grow a relationship with everybody. He made it his job to make sure he met everybody.
“I think he makes us 10 times better. He’s a special talent. When he’s on the field, he gives us a sense of confidence.”
On bouncing back after last week:
“Everybody was motivating, like ‘You’re good. We got you.’ The biggest thing for me was we got to win. My teammates had my back. For me, personally, I just had to look myself in the mirror, made some corrections, got better, just flushed it. I had one or two days where I let some tears out, but then after that, I had my teammates behind my back, my coaches. They never give up on you. I probably played the most snaps this week after a week like that. When you have something like that, it’s easy to just hop into the game with confidence, knowing coaches and teammates still believe in you.”
On the postgame environment:
“It was awesome. This stretch of the season, these last few weeks are going to be extremely difficult, but I’m just extremely proud of how this team is able to come together, execute, and do our job. It’s nothing special or wild that has made this happen – it’s just everyone doing their jobs to the best of their abilities, and that’s what has helped us win.”
On DeVito’s relationship with the offensive line:
“He’s got the New Jersey grit, so I knew no matter what, he would try to play. I truly love blocking for them, him, and Chase Brown, I’ll put whatever I need to on the line for them because I know they’re doing the same for us to get that extra yard, that extra throw. It truly is a brotherhood. The O-line and Tommy went out for dinner the other night and it’s just awesome. We’re just so close.”
On the team’s three straight Big Ten wins:
“These three games have put us in a great position. People are taking notice. That’s a good feeling in itself.”
On his interception:
“I was just put into the right call, and I’m just thankful for the opportunity. I give all the credit to Coach Walters. He’s a special coach who prepares us week-in-and-week-out. What we’re doing on defense right now is just a testament to how hard he works and the staff who works with him.
“The attention to detail, I think it comes down to understanding that back step. Again, Coach did a great job on preparing us for that play.”
