Boston College 37, USC 31: Postgame Quotables

BC Head Coach Steve Addazio Overall Impressions

It's a great, great night for our team, for the players.  They played really hard.  They came off a rough week last week.  We had a really hard week of practice.  There were a lot of people second guessing them but they had a real steal (sic) resolve.  This red bandana game meant a lot.  We talked a lot about Welles Crowther.  We talked a lot about who he was and what it takes to be a BC man.  Our guys really dug deep on this.  This was a great win.  There were big plays made by a lot of people.  We were proud to give one of the game balls out to the Crowther family after the game.

Addazio on BC's offense

Offensively, we had 506 yards to their 337.  We rushed for 452 yards.  They rushed for 20.  We had very few penalties.  We had one turnover.  Tyler Murphy had 191 yards rushing.  Tyler Murphy played like a big time player here tonight.

Addazio on BC's defense

We sacked them.  We harassed them.  We played relentlessly on defense.  That's a good football team.  This is the first win over a top-10 opponent in 10 years.  We played hard.  Anybody who was at the game would say that this team just wouldn't back down.  We just kept coming and kept playing.  I'm most proud of that.  I said to our team going into the game that all I ask is that we play relentless effort and that we play really, really hard.  That's what we talked about and to have faith, faith in each other.  They did that.  They responded.  I'm very, very proud of our football team.  i'm very proud of our coaching staff.

Addazio on BC's future

This game doesn't make a year but it's certainly a great springboard as we move forward to wipe that taste of a week ago out.  College football is unforgiving.  We've got to get ready for next week because you're right back in it again.  We're going to savor this moment as a team.  That's what you need to do.  You celebrate the wins.  You honor and celebrate the wins.  Then you get back to work.  It's a great moment right now.

QB Tyler Muphy on being behind 17-6 and running the ball

It was early in the game when they got up on us.  Coach always says that we are going to stick to the game plan, get it to the fourth quarter and win there.  So we just kept believing and taking it one play at a time.  There was a lot of football to play.  The guys did a good job of putting everything on the line and fighting to come back.

Muphy on the meaningfulness of this win

It meant a lot, especially after last week's loss.  Coach really challenged us as a team this week and we really went after it.  It goes to show that if we really set our minds to something and we play as a team, the sky's the limit.  Personally, it's been a long journey.  It means a lot to me.  It's pretty easy on my part because I have guys who want to work and sacrifice for each other.  We really just try to stick together as a team and out-play teams.

Murphy on the statement made with this win

It just goes to show that we're a team that when we are at our best, we are tough to beat.  our job is to bring that each and every week.  We have to refocus and have a good week of practice.

OL Andy Gallick on the team's rushing effort

Running the ball has always been our identity.  We always take pride in it, whether it's working or not, we always try to get back to it.  Getting ready for this weekend, we realized what kind of defensive front we were going against and the fronts USC had, the high caliber talent they have and we took it upon ourselves to show how good of an offensive line we can be.  I think that tonight we showed that our rushing game speaks for itself.

Gallic on this huge win as a fifth-year senior

Personally, it still hasn't hit me.  I've been through a lot of games, a lot of ups and downs, but I definitely would say that this is the highlight of my career.  Waking up this morning, just knowing it was a night game, it was going to be a little rainy, it was going to be a BC-style football game and those are the things I've heard about ever since I came here.  Those were the types of games BC was winning in its hay day - the cold, wet games versus tough teams.  I think that the O-line really took that personally and accepted it as a challenge to play like that tonight.

LB Josh Keyes on the defense's performance

It's not really about me, it's about the team.  I couldn't have had those tackles without the help of my teammates.  We came in very focused and ready.  We knew that they had a lot of speed and strength and that those played to our skillset.  We were able to get it done.

Keyes on holding USC to a three-and-out on the first defensive series

That was huge for us.  Right then we knew we were in this game.

Keyes on the locker room atmosphere after the game

The atmosphere inside the locker room was just insane!  It was crazy; everybody was so hyped about this win.  It feels like a dream right now and I feel like I'm not in real life right now.  Maybe it will set in later tonight or tomorrow.  It was a great team win for us.

RB Jon Hilliman on what he added to the running game this week

As one of the bigger backs in the backfield, I definitely had to get the tough yards and drive my feet on contact.  In the red zone, I needed to push for the extra yard, lower my shoulder, and get in there.

Hilliman on the locker room atmosphere postgame

It was electric in our locker room.  I know for me, as a young kid, it's a dream.  you dream about this in your backyard - beating one of the top teams in the country.  it hasn't sunk in yet, it probably will later on, but I'm just glad that we could do this.

USC Head Coach Steve Sarkisian Opening Remarks

I'll start by saying a lot a of credit to Boston College.  Their coaches and players played a heck of a game.  They out-played us.  They beat us in all three phases.  They controlled the line of scrimage on both sides of the ball and the end result was we didn't get it done.

And it starts with me.  Coaching and it goes to everybody in that locker room right now.  We need to improve.  Again, credit to Boston College ... We did not play a very good football game tonight.  We didn't execute the things that we are capable of doing.  And again that's directly on my shoulders.  We have to do a better job.  i don't think it was for a lack of effort.  I thought we tried.

Sarkisian on BC's success running outside

Going into the game, that was one of the things that was concerning was obviously the quarterback running the ball first of all.  He's a heck of a player and we knew that.  For whatever reason, we didn't tackle very well tonight.  We had been tackling the first couple of ball games but we didn't tackle well tonight.  And then it's like anything, when you are running the ball it kind of feeds itself ... The quarterback's got confidence running it, the running backs got confident running it, and in turn we started to lose that confidence that we were going to make that play and inevitably, it didn't work out.

Sarkision on playing well early

I thought we played our best football early in the game.  Our execution was good.  But for whatever reason we lost it.  And that's the part I have to figure out.  They hit the one long run and things started to go the other direction on us.  We have to figure that out.

QB Cody Kessler on the loss

We had a great game plan to run the ball and open up the passing game, but Boston College did a great job and loaded the box.  We made mistakes we normally don't make.  We have to get those fixed.

We lost rhythm.  We weren't winning our one-v-ones both both in the perimeter and the backfield and up front.  That's all football is... We had a lot of missed assignments.  At the end of the day I have to take the blame for that, I have to get the ball out quicker and give people a chance.  But like I said, this team is a tough team and we'll watch the film and learn from that and get better.

Safety Su'A Cravens on Tyler Murphy

He just beat us with his skill.  We were anticipating him to run the ball and that's what they did.  We knew that he liked to scramble and we just didn't execute.  Third downs came up, and he was running all over the field.  So we have to take the fault for that.

Cravens on Murphy's ball fake

Well it was a lot of miscommunication on the defensive side, with the high and low calls, and when we're supposed to tackle or dive or when we're supposed to go to the quarterback.  He (Murphy) did a great job getting out of the pocket and keeping the defense on their toes and as you saw today.  They did a great job.

Cravens on lessons from the loss

Don't look too far into the season.  We have to get back to the basics and do what we need to do and continue to play SC football.

After the first half they had a lot of confidence in running the ball.  They threw the ball too much the second half so it's just overall, the whole game they got whatever they wanted.  They got about five yards a pop, so we just have to execute

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