Jay Hopson:
“It’s just a good win. I’ve got to give the good lord credit above. He surrounded this football program. These young men fought. Adversity struck early, and I was really proud of how they responded. Our defense battled in the first half. Ty Williams’ interception in the first half was a probably a game-changer, taking it back to about the 50. The offense got a drive in there and scored, and then we pick up a fumble and take it to the endzone. Ky’el [Hemby] got a big pick in the endzone later. I thought those guys did a great job swarming the football and creating turnovers. It was a good team win, and we knew Marshall was a good football team. You have to give these guys all the credit in the world for their fight, a very special group.”
On getting better luck after previous weeks
“It’s good to get a break or two. We talked about that at breakfast this morning. I told the guys ‘we are just a team with bad breaks, and sooner or later those quit and start to go your way.’ It always balances out 50-50 in life. You have to keep fighting for that other 50 to show up. When those bad ones hit, you never get the good ones back. It balanced today. Hopefully the next few weeks, we start getting on the plus side. Ty’s pick was just so huge right there, and Ky’el’s was such a big one too.”
On an efficient defensive performance on the ground and through the air
“Our defense takes a lot of pride in stopping the run and its pass capability. I’ve been a defensive coach forever, and you can’t just stop one side. You have to stop both. Marshall’s a team that can play through the air and ground, and our defense practiced and prepared extremely hard all week. It showed today.”
On Tate Whatley’s first-career start at quarterback
“What a competitor. He’s a young man that fought, scratched and clawed. The thing about Tate is that he’s a true Southern Miss guy. You saw him get hit a few times and went for an extra yard. He kept plays alive, and for a freshman to come out in his first start and beat Marshall in his first game, I thought it spoke volumes. You’re gonna see young guys like that just get better and better.”
On overcoming bad breaks in the first half
“One thing about our football team is that we are gonna battle. You can’t stop a bad break. It’s gonna happen. You can’t cower to it, you just have to face it. All of a sudden, it started bouncing the other way. We just kept scratching and clawing, and guess what? The tide turned this afternoon.”
On Tate Whatley and Jack Abraham’s relationship at quarterback
“They encourage each other. Those are two team guys always happy for each other. It’s good to have quarterbacks that do that.”
On Jacques Turner’s big game
“Jacques finds a way to get back there on the quarterback. He’s had a good year. This football team needs these guys to have good years. They’re all playing well, and I’m proud of them.”
On calling a fake field-goal pass to the endzone
“I just called it. At that time, I felt like we needed seven. I wanted seven. That’s part of football, you make those calls in crucial times. As a matter of fact, I told Coach Losey on the 40-yard line that if we kick it, we’re doing it. They came to me again on the 30 and I said we’d do it. It was a good throw by Carter Hankins, and our receiver definitely got tackled for the pass interference, and our offense scored from there.”
Senior defensive end Darian Yancey
On his scoop-and-score touchdown before the half
“Basically, I was just rushing and saw Jacques get the ball out. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to get it. It was a scoop-and-score just like any drill in practice.”
On how the team carries itself
“We take a lot of pride in our front seven, especially with the defensive line. We want to push the offensive line back and get past the line of scrimmage. We made sure we got out there.”
On if the defense talked to Tate Whatley during the game
“Most definitely. We encouraged him throughout the game to keep his head on straight. In any game, if you let things get in your head, you’ll have a tough time. He does an excellent job.”
On Ty Williams’ crucial interception in the first half
“We need as many picks as we can get. That was a very big load off. He did a great job at getting that ball and running with it.”
On knocking off Marshall for the third consecutive year
“Any time we can beat a rival team, it makes the senior class feel especially good. It keeps us going.”
Junior defensive back Ty Williams
On how he got his game-changing interception
“We had been practicing on crossing routes, and I knew I was singled on the back side. At the same time, when he had run over, he looked at the quarterback and he was looking at the other receiver, so I just jumped in front and tried to take it from there.”
On the defense’s confidence
“I feel we have the best defense in the country. We wouldn’t be anything without the guys up front. We have Jacques Turner, Ladarius Harris and all those guys. They send a lot of pressure, and it’s hard to handle that. I congratulate them.”
On playing for turnovers
“We’ve been talking all week about getting turnovers. It started early in the season, and Coach Hopson told us before the game that we needed to get some and be relentless.”
On the feeling of getting the interception
I felt like it gave us momentum. We jumped from 0 to 100 real quick. It was a big boost, and I knew our offense would click soon after that. I knew it would be a game changer.
Sophomore defensive end Jacques Turner
On his strip sack
"I had a one-on-one opportunity and I just took advantage of it. I don't usually get those one-on-one opportunities. Everyday in practice [we practice that]. It's good to get a sack, but you have try to get the ball out. That's where you can make the money."
On slowing the Marshall run game
"I think the d-line did a pretty good job this week, especially in practice. We made it a big deal that if they gain any yards it's on us. It's our fault as a d-line and we took advantage of this opportunity and made some stops."
On bouncing back from Charlotte
"Personally, I just felt like I didn't do enough to help the team. I feel like everybody was hurting after that game. Losing games like that is tough. We bounced back this week and have to move on."
On Tate Whatley
"Big props to Tate, man. That's big for a freshman to step up like he did tonight."
Freshman quarterback Tate Whatley
Opening statement
"First off, I want to thank the good lord. He's the only reason any of us were able to go out there this evening. I really appreciate my team and how they supported me. The o-line blocked their tails off today and the defense played great. The whole team had a great game today."
On Ty Williams’ interception
"The defense picks us up and we pick them up. Everybody feeds off each other. I think we all need each other to be able to win -- that's how a team works. Both sides of the ball did great today. That was great what [Ty Williams] did. I made some misreads that I've got to work on in practice. I had a fumble and have to work on ball security and get better next week."
On his touchdown pass to Quez Watkins
"Coach Dawson put us in a great position. We had a one-on-one matchup on the right side and I saw Quez out there. I tried to give him the best ball I could and he made a great play."
On finding out he would start
"It was just real simple. Coach Dawson and Coach Hopson pulled me in there and just said 'hey, just get ready. Just prepare, it's just another week.' A lot of adrenaline. When I get hit first, it takes the nerves off. You're always going to have nerves, at least I am every game. Nerves are just part of the game. Hopefully as I play, if I get in, I'll just keep getting a feel for the game and getting use to every thing."
On his touchdown
"We've been doing this for so long. It was time for a little jump ball in the endzone. I have been throwing hints all week that we haven't thrown any jump balls in the red zone."
On the offense rallying around Tate Whatley
"We just tried to pick him up. We know he's young and how he can get frustrated, but we just try to pick him up and keep encouraging him. We told him we had his back through it all. Any bad plays or any good plays, we had his back. He played pretty good."
On having 222 yards of offense
"Stat wise, that's not usually what we've been doing this year. Sometimes you have to take an exception of what's going on. Our defense stepped up and helped us out a lot."
“It’s just a good win. I’ve got to give the good lord credit above. He surrounded this football program. These young men fought. Adversity struck early, and I was really proud of how they responded. Our defense battled in the first half. Ty Williams’ interception in the first half was a probably a game-changer, taking it back to about the 50. The offense got a drive in there and scored, and then we pick up a fumble and take it to the endzone. Ky’el [Hemby] got a big pick in the endzone later. I thought those guys did a great job swarming the football and creating turnovers. It was a good team win, and we knew Marshall was a good football team. You have to give these guys all the credit in the world for their fight, a very special group.”
On getting better luck after previous weeks
“It’s good to get a break or two. We talked about that at breakfast this morning. I told the guys ‘we are just a team with bad breaks, and sooner or later those quit and start to go your way.’ It always balances out 50-50 in life. You have to keep fighting for that other 50 to show up. When those bad ones hit, you never get the good ones back. It balanced today. Hopefully the next few weeks, we start getting on the plus side. Ty’s pick was just so huge right there, and Ky’el’s was such a big one too.”
On an efficient defensive performance on the ground and through the air
“Our defense takes a lot of pride in stopping the run and its pass capability. I’ve been a defensive coach forever, and you can’t just stop one side. You have to stop both. Marshall’s a team that can play through the air and ground, and our defense practiced and prepared extremely hard all week. It showed today.”
On Tate Whatley’s first-career start at quarterback
“What a competitor. He’s a young man that fought, scratched and clawed. The thing about Tate is that he’s a true Southern Miss guy. You saw him get hit a few times and went for an extra yard. He kept plays alive, and for a freshman to come out in his first start and beat Marshall in his first game, I thought it spoke volumes. You’re gonna see young guys like that just get better and better.”
On overcoming bad breaks in the first half
“One thing about our football team is that we are gonna battle. You can’t stop a bad break. It’s gonna happen. You can’t cower to it, you just have to face it. All of a sudden, it started bouncing the other way. We just kept scratching and clawing, and guess what? The tide turned this afternoon.”
On Tate Whatley and Jack Abraham’s relationship at quarterback
“They encourage each other. Those are two team guys always happy for each other. It’s good to have quarterbacks that do that.”
On Jacques Turner’s big game
“Jacques finds a way to get back there on the quarterback. He’s had a good year. This football team needs these guys to have good years. They’re all playing well, and I’m proud of them.”
On calling a fake field-goal pass to the endzone
“I just called it. At that time, I felt like we needed seven. I wanted seven. That’s part of football, you make those calls in crucial times. As a matter of fact, I told Coach Losey on the 40-yard line that if we kick it, we’re doing it. They came to me again on the 30 and I said we’d do it. It was a good throw by Carter Hankins, and our receiver definitely got tackled for the pass interference, and our offense scored from there.”
Senior defensive end Darian Yancey
On his scoop-and-score touchdown before the half
“Basically, I was just rushing and saw Jacques get the ball out. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to get it. It was a scoop-and-score just like any drill in practice.”
On how the team carries itself
“We take a lot of pride in our front seven, especially with the defensive line. We want to push the offensive line back and get past the line of scrimmage. We made sure we got out there.”
On if the defense talked to Tate Whatley during the game
“Most definitely. We encouraged him throughout the game to keep his head on straight. In any game, if you let things get in your head, you’ll have a tough time. He does an excellent job.”
On Ty Williams’ crucial interception in the first half
“We need as many picks as we can get. That was a very big load off. He did a great job at getting that ball and running with it.”
On knocking off Marshall for the third consecutive year
“Any time we can beat a rival team, it makes the senior class feel especially good. It keeps us going.”
Junior defensive back Ty Williams
On how he got his game-changing interception
“We had been practicing on crossing routes, and I knew I was singled on the back side. At the same time, when he had run over, he looked at the quarterback and he was looking at the other receiver, so I just jumped in front and tried to take it from there.”
On the defense’s confidence
“I feel we have the best defense in the country. We wouldn’t be anything without the guys up front. We have Jacques Turner, Ladarius Harris and all those guys. They send a lot of pressure, and it’s hard to handle that. I congratulate them.”
On playing for turnovers
“We’ve been talking all week about getting turnovers. It started early in the season, and Coach Hopson told us before the game that we needed to get some and be relentless.”
On the feeling of getting the interception
I felt like it gave us momentum. We jumped from 0 to 100 real quick. It was a big boost, and I knew our offense would click soon after that. I knew it would be a game changer.
Sophomore defensive end Jacques Turner
On his strip sack
"I had a one-on-one opportunity and I just took advantage of it. I don't usually get those one-on-one opportunities. Everyday in practice [we practice that]. It's good to get a sack, but you have try to get the ball out. That's where you can make the money."
On slowing the Marshall run game
"I think the d-line did a pretty good job this week, especially in practice. We made it a big deal that if they gain any yards it's on us. It's our fault as a d-line and we took advantage of this opportunity and made some stops."
On bouncing back from Charlotte
"Personally, I just felt like I didn't do enough to help the team. I feel like everybody was hurting after that game. Losing games like that is tough. We bounced back this week and have to move on."
On Tate Whatley
"Big props to Tate, man. That's big for a freshman to step up like he did tonight."
Freshman quarterback Tate Whatley
Opening statement
"First off, I want to thank the good lord. He's the only reason any of us were able to go out there this evening. I really appreciate my team and how they supported me. The o-line blocked their tails off today and the defense played great. The whole team had a great game today."
On Ty Williams’ interception
"The defense picks us up and we pick them up. Everybody feeds off each other. I think we all need each other to be able to win -- that's how a team works. Both sides of the ball did great today. That was great what [Ty Williams] did. I made some misreads that I've got to work on in practice. I had a fumble and have to work on ball security and get better next week."
On his touchdown pass to Quez Watkins
"Coach Dawson put us in a great position. We had a one-on-one matchup on the right side and I saw Quez out there. I tried to give him the best ball I could and he made a great play."
On finding out he would start
"It was just real simple. Coach Dawson and Coach Hopson pulled me in there and just said 'hey, just get ready. Just prepare, it's just another week.' A lot of adrenaline. When I get hit first, it takes the nerves off. You're always going to have nerves, at least I am every game. Nerves are just part of the game. Hopefully as I play, if I get in, I'll just keep getting a feel for the game and getting use to every thing."
On his touchdown
"We've been doing this for so long. It was time for a little jump ball in the endzone. I have been throwing hints all week that we haven't thrown any jump balls in the red zone."
On the offense rallying around Tate Whatley
"We just tried to pick him up. We know he's young and how he can get frustrated, but we just try to pick him up and keep encouraging him. We told him we had his back through it all. Any bad plays or any good plays, we had his back. He played pretty good."
On having 222 yards of offense
"Stat wise, that's not usually what we've been doing this year. Sometimes you have to take an exception of what's going on. Our defense stepped up and helped us out a lot."
