Oct. 30, 1999
Coach Ron Turner Quotes
Turner's thoughts on the game
"We had a good plan and we came out and executed. If you come out and play hard, you are always going to give yourself a chance to win."
Turner's thoughts on PSU Defense
"Penn State is as good a defensive team we have ever seen. They are very, very talented and they've got a tough scheme to go against. They are very well coached, and they did a great job today."
"Penn State's defense came after us, which we expected. We have three young linemen and Kurt is still young. We were expecting it. They were bringing great athletes with exceptional quickness."
Turner's thoughts on the Illinois Offense
"Offensively we were close, we had some chances to make some plays that we needed to make to help our defense out."
Turner's thoughts on the Illinois Defense
"Our defense played their hearts out. They played great today. They gave us a chance to be in the ballgame for a long time. We finally just got worn down in the second half."
Turner's thoughts on Illinois' first down plays
"Not completing passes on first downs and not running the ball for more than a yard gives the Penn State defense the advantage."
Turner's thoughts on Rashard Casey
"He is a great athlete and a great player. He made people miss out there."
Turner's thoughts on Illinois's third quarter offense
"We couldn't do anything in the third quarter offensively to give the defense a rest."
ILLINI PLAYERS
QB Kurt Kittner
On Penn State's Defense
"They were great. It is the best defense we've played against. They would hurry me out of the pocket. I just need to get the ball out to the receivers and keep my composure."
On the communication between him and the receivers
"I anticipate where they should be at and I'd be wrong. After this many weeks, we should know where we are at."
On the wind factor
"The wind really wasn't that bad. We were going for the short stuff. The wind really died down in the second half."
On #11 LaVar Arrington
"I was not paying attention. I would have lost focus if I had focused on him. He's a great athlete. He would knock me down and help me back up. That shows great character."
HB Rocky Harvey
On his touchdown run
"It (the play) was a draw. I saw openings and ran as fast as I could."
On the team's morale
"We're 4-4, and that's a lot better than 3-5. We're still on pace to do what we want to do."
LB Eric Guenther
On Penn State's Defense
"I wasn't watching. They looked big and talented. I was just concentrating on what I need to do."
CB Tony Francis
On his second interception of the day
"I got nailed right in the gut. But I didn't feel anything until I got to the sideline."
On the atmosphere of the locker room during halftime
"The (locker) room was nuts. We thought that if we could just keep this going that we could pull it out. But during the second half, every time we would get momentum, Penn State would take it right back."
PENN STATE QUOTES
Head Coach Joe Paterno
(overall feeling of the game)
"The only disappointing thing about the whole football game to me was, except for the penalties, is the fact that when we did kick off to them they got a touchdown in the first quarter. I thought we maybe could get 10 or 13 points working with that wind, but it didn't work out that way. But the third quarter (with the wind) did work out well for us."
(thoughts on Illinois)
"We were a little flat in the first half, and they played a great game. They didn't have a penalty, or a turnover until the middle of the third quarter. They played very close, had solid defense. We're trying to get behind them(pass coverage), but they wouldn't let us."
(thoughts on his defense)
"I thought they played pretty good, except for maybe one or two plays. Again, we didn't get the turnover until the end, that last play of the game."
(Illinois series, before Casey touchdown run in 3rd quarter)
"I went over and told the defense you got to hold them one more time so we can get that ball with the wind, and that's exactly what they did."
(on Rashard Casey and his scrambling)
"All I've tried to tell him is sometimes he can scramble and sometimes he can't. Sometimes people won't let you scramble and you can't panic and jump out of the pocket. If you see an opening take off, but if you don't see one, don't create something that is not there."
Tight End Tony Stewart
(on Penn St.'s lack of offense in first quarter)
"I don't know what it is, but it just seems like we can't get anything rolling. Obviously it is something we have to work on this week in practice. I think we're doing all right offensively, you know we made some mistakes but we're going to try to get better and better."
Outside Linebacker Brandon Short
(stopping Illinois)
"We didn't hold them that much, they came out and got yards against us and there in the first quarter scored a touchdown. We made some adjustments at halftime, Coach Sandusky made the adjustments and it worked for us."
"We felt they were going to try spread us out and pass, but they spread out and ran against us. And they had some success with it. I have confidence in my teammates though. No matter what the situation is were going to pull through."
Quarterback Kevin Thompson
(receiver play)
"They're playing excellent right now. Today it was a little bit tougher then what was expected. They played their coverages pretty well."
(on Illinois defense)
"They were just playing us tough, and we were not able to sustain any drives. We couldn't get our running game established, they were just playing tough defense. You've got to give them a lot of credit. They worked hard in practice, obviously and we're very intense and emotional out there."
