Boston College 28, Syracuse 7: Quotables

Steve Addazio opening statement...

"Obviously we were in a tough-fought game. Rival games are like that. We knew it would be that kind of game. We knew [Syracuse was] pretty salty on defense and they create a blitz on just about every single down. I thought our defense played phenomenal. They played great all day. I thought our offense made the plays they had to make in that game.

I'm proud of the way our team played. They played with dignity and class. They played the way BC players should play: physical, tough, hardnosed. We wouldn't allow ourselves to stoop down and get involved in anything, which I was really proud of. I thought Syracuse came out and played a really tough and physical game, which I knew they would. It just really reminds me of what a great rivalry this is, was and will be as we move forward.

I'm really proud of our kids. We've got our seventh win and we have a chance to play for our eighth win. That's special. I think we have a great attitude on our team and a great look in the locker room right now. I'm looking forward to the preparation for whatever bowl we get a chance to play in. Whatever one will be a great one and we'll really be grateful for that opportunity.

Addazio on the game plan...

This was a game where we needed to complement our defense. We needed to find the runs where we could find them. We needed to make the plays where we needed to make them. It wasn't a time to panic with all the pressure and do something foolish that could lead potentially to a turnover and take that game away from you. We weren't going to do that. So we played it pretty conservative and pretty close to the vest. We just went out there and won an old fashioned, old school game which is just fine by me. They all count the same. Seven wins is seven wins. We're happy to get there, especially this year.

We've played a tough schedule. We've been in some unbelievable battles against some of the most elite teams in America and went toe to toe with all of them. That's the consistent thing that's happened. The consistent thing is that we're playing with absolutely everybody and anybody. That's really a positive. That's another step forward for us this year from last year. Our kids believe they can play with absolutely anybody.

Addazio on Myles Willis' kickoff return for a touchdown...

That was a huge play. It was a momentum boost. It was great. We've worked so hard on that and to finally hit it on the last game of the regular season was fantastic.

Addazio on the play of sophomore running back Tyler Rouse...

He's got one of the absolute best work ethics on our whole team. Many know the story that he was an unrecruited guy out of Syracuse. He is such a great kid and such a great worker. We saw him during the week practicing and nobody was running harder than him during the week. Nobody. He was giving our defense a look. He did whatever you wanted him to do. We put him in that game and sure enough he ripped off; he was running really, really hard. We recognized him in the locker room afterwards because it meant a lot to him. All he wanted to do was thank everyone for believing in him...he stands for absolutely everything that's right in college football. He's an A-1-A kid. He's a great student, a great worker. He's so unselfish and all of a sudden he got his chance and wouldn't you know it's against Syracuse. He ran as physical as anyone ran all year. If that's not a great story, honestly, I don't know what a great story is...It was great for him today. It was without question, the highlight of my day.

Addazio on the character of quarterback Tyler Murphy...

Tyler is a great person. He is a fantastic human being, a guy you love to be around. He stands for everything that's right. He's a graduate student embracing his master's degree. He's a leader for our team. I just love the kid and so do our players...he's been one of the really great bright spots for us this season.

Addazio on heading to a bowl game...

The very best teams in the country we went toe to toe with. Then we closed it out here at home...We've got to keep developing our program and that's what we're doing. We're trying to do the best we can to put our kids in a position to be as successful as they can. I feel good about the fact that that's happening right now. We have another opportunity to go on a bowl. That's another learning experience. Wherever that bowl takes us, whomever we play, we have a chance to go get win number eight.

The beautiful thing is, our staff, our kids, it doesn't matter where we go, we are thrilled to go. We know what this all about, another opportunity to play. Where ever it is, it is. We're going to go play real hard and prepare real hard and enjoy it. It is a reward. So it's my job to make sure that while we develop the young players and we do all of that I want them to feel like it is a reward.

QB Tyler Murphy on finishing with a win...

It means the world, especially for our senior class. We're really appreciative of the guys going out and fighting the way that they did to send us out the right way. It's a big win for our program. We're 7-5 and we have a chance to get eight [wins]. We're going into the bowl season looking to get better. This is a good time of the year to develop some of those younger guys who have to step up next year. We're going to be out there working hard to get that bowl win, but at the same time I want to help these younger guys gets better and help this program build momentum into the off season and next year.

Murphy on what he said to the team before the game...

I talked about the culture of the program and told them that they have to protect that and continue to develop that because guys are holding each other accountable and sacrificing for the team. When we play as a team, we're really good. That's something that has really stuck with me as I've been here. I really felt like I was a part of a team.

Murphy on sophomore running back Tyler Rouse...

Tyler Rouse is one of those guys that shows up every day with his lunch box and gets right to work. He never complains and gives 100 percent no matter what it is. He holds guys accountable and makes sure that they're doing the right thing, but he also leads by example and sets the way. We need to bring in more guys like Tyler because not only is he a great football player, but he's also a great guy. I got to know him a little bit throughout the season and I've enjoyed being around him. He's a funny kid, always dancing and stuff like that. I'm happy for him that he was able to score today against his hometown university and guys got fired up about that. He was running hard and he has a bright future.

Murphy on the short fields special teams and defense gave him today...

They did a great job. First play of the game, Myles [Willis] took it back. I was kind of looking forward to getting on the field early. We don't often get the ball first, but then he took it back and I was like, ‘Thanks Myles.' It was a big play for our special teams and they've been working hard to spring something like that all year and to finally get it done in a game like this was big. The defense did a great job of getting the ball: stealing it out of the air and getting interceptions and setting us up with good field position. They made it easy for us. We just had to capitalize on the situations.

Murphy on breaking the ACC quarterback rushing record...

I would say I am a little surprised. I didn't know what to expect coming in to this season. My goal was just to find ways to win and we have had a lot of success with the zone reads. The running backs did a great job all year of making big plays like you saw today with Tyler Rouse. Teams know it and they want to take it away. That gave me some opportunities which I capitalized on. The running backs did a great job of making teams pay when they got the ball and then when I got the ball I made teams pay. The offensive line and the guys down the field did a great job. It was a fun year and I ran a lot more than I thought I would, but I'm happy we were able to get seven wins and we are looking forward to eight.

On how fast the season has gone...

I remember the day I got here when Coach Gallup showed me around. I didn't know what to expect. The guys made it easy for me, they took me in. I wish I had more time to be here with them. It seems like I've been here forever leading them and running the offense. I wish I could have more time, but I'm grateful for the time I've had. It's been an unbelievable experience. I feel like I've made the best of this roller coaster ride. I wouldn't change it for anything. I feel like I was a part of something special that is helping this program get on the rise and take the next step forward.

RB Tyler Rouse on his 42-yard touchdown...

It really felt great. Not only for myself getting redemption, but more so because the seniors got to leave here, their final game in Alumni Stadium, with a win. That was what's most important. All week that's what the emphasis was on. Obviously they're a rival to us and Syracuse is a big game for us every year, that's going to continue to grow, but what we really wanted to do was send the seniors out on the right note.

Rouse on the tussle at the end of the first quarter...

You can definitely see the rivalry in that. It's only going to grow from here. Hopefully it will get cleaner.

Rouse on losing to Syracuse last year...

Going back home, I hear about it all the time and even here, I hear about it, so I think the main purpose is that's a target on our schedule every year and it will only continue to grow. We really just have to keep fighting and no matter what record we have going into that game. That one will mean a lot to us.

Rouse on Coach Addazio running out to celebrate his TD...

It was great. He gave me the opportunity to come here and I appreciate that, I'm so thankful for that. Ever since I came here I knew I had to bring my lunch pail and go to work. The O-line did a great job and I was able to come to the endzone with that run. Coming to the sideline with him there really just solidified everything. It was indescribable to have the guys surrounding me. They know what I've been through with the Clemson thing. Just to see them surround me after I scored that TD was amazing.

WR Josh Bordner on finishing the season with a win...

It was very important to us to finish on a strong note. We knew we were going to a bowl game, but for the team, it was all about beating Syracuse this week. They're a rival. We really don't like them; they don't like us. This win was huge, not only for the team but for the program.

Bordner on quarterback Tyler Murphy...

[Murphy] has been a huge part of our success this season. Coming in, he didn't know anybody, but we embraced him and took him in as one of our own. He's been a great leader and pushed this team and really played his heart out every game this season. He's a huge part of what this team has done this year.

Bordner on the offensive performance...

I know Tyler [Rouse] had a chip on his shoulder coming into this game, being from Syracuse. I'm so happy for him that he got the opportunity to score against them. Myles [Willis] on the kickoff, you know it was the first kickoff return for a touchdown we've had this year so it really is a huge momentum builder for the team.

DB Dominique Williams on beating Syracuse...

The team collectively realized that this is the last game of the season and they wanted to send the seniors off on a good note. For the older guys who remember last year, they know how it felt to lose with six second left in the game to Syracuse and the way we lost. Then after we lost, the way they were celebrating on the field left a bad taste in our mouth. It was important to beat Syracuse this week.

Syracuse coach Scott Shafer opening Statement...

Just real quick, congratulations to Boston College. Good victory for them. For us, difficult one. Gonna miss these seniors. A good group of kids; great group of kids not a good group of kids. It was one of those years, difficult season for us. We had a lot of uncontrollable moments. A lot of things that weren't easy for our kids and our coaches, to be honest with you. Uncontrollables is what we call them when you can't control. When you have a lot of injuries and things go wrong, you learn a lot about yourselves. The thing I'm most proud of this team is that they've stayed tight, a tight-knit group, a close group of young men that will appreciate each other for the rest of their lives. And they'll walk away from this last four years for most of them, four and five years, with one hell of a degree from one of the best schools in the country, and a great experience playing unselfish football here at Syracuse. We look forward to making them proud as we move forward.

Shafer on the play of the defense...

For the most part, I was really pleased with the way our defense played today. Obviously disappointing when we gave up the big one there at the end of the game when it was kind of over. Hats off to Tyler Rouse, a wonderful young man from Baldwinsville (N.Y.) that we didn't get to recruit; just didn't have a scholarship for him at the time. So I was really happy for him. Anytime a Central New York kid has success, you're happy for them. Unfortunately, it was against us. After that, I thought our defense played extremely well today other than that play and then the wheel route where they made a nice play down the field. Just difficult to win games when you're struggling as much as we have on offense.

Shafer on his offense's development...

I am not satisfied unless we're winning games and putting numbers up. We have a lot of work to do with those kids...we're just trying to win football games. We know a lot about these kids now because they've prepared for game planning and that sort of thing. So I feel good about some of the evaluations that we've had but I know we have a lot of work to do to get where we want to be.

QB AJ Long on his play vs. Boston College...

I have to say this is my worst game other than Clemson. I didn't throw the ball well and didn't make good reads. I had a lot of mental errors. If I had to grade it, it would my worst game right next to Clemson.

Long on establishing the run...

We wanted to establish a run game. That's one thing that we preached all week: that we need to establish a run game. That is something we didn't do last week. We tried to do it early and were successful, but they started making checks. We needed to find a play and we didn't make one.

Long on heading into the offseason...

Time to get to work and get bigger; that's the key thing. I need to put on 20 pounds. I got hit today, the one in the middle, and I thought my life was flashing before my eyes. He got me. I don't want to feel that next year.

Press conference transcript via bceagles.com.