Sept. 6, 2003

Illinois Head Coach Ron Turner:

On the first quarter surge compared to the rest of the game:
"We came into the game today to get a win, and we got one. We came out with a great deal of energy to start. I give credit to Coach Johnson and his staff for coming in with a great game plan today. As a team we did some things well and others not so well. We will have to fix those things before next week's game."

On ISU WR Dwayne Smith:
"ISU had a great scheme to involve him in the game and he responded very well. Our players knew that he was a good player with great speed, and he played well."

On the field goal block before halftime:
"It was a great lift for our entire team. Our special teams has been average the past two games, and the field goal block gave that unit a boost as well as the rest of our team. It gives the special teams something to build on."

On Illinois WR Mark Kornfeld:
"Mark is a great football player. Last week we did not get him the ball enough. This week we worked to get him more involved in the game and more touches. He responded with a great game and some key catches."

On RB Morris Virgil:
"I was very impressed with Morris on how he responded from his ankle injury during the Missouri game that kept him out of most of the second half. He showed his toughness this week to the players and coaches by coming out and practicing hard on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and then coming in and playing a terrific game."

On QB Jon Beutjer and his chemistry with the receivers:
"Jon is playing extremely well right now, as are our receivers. I think our team can only get better as Jon and the receiving corps get better chemistry between one another. As a team it well make us much better."

On the offensive line's performance compared to last week:
"Our offensive linemen are coming together. Last week we had a few mistakes, but I think that this week they performed much better as a whole. We have two new guys in the starting lineup who had very little experience between them before this year. I think they have started to blend in with the rest of the line."

QB Jon Beutjer
On Game:

"We came out with a great attitude but we didn't stay focused through the entire game. We know that anytime we don't play well, it is our own fault. A lot of the time we just weren't doing the things that we should have been doing. A win is a win, though, and this is huge for us."

On UCLA next week:

"PAC-10 teams are always great teams with great speed. We are excited to be able to go out there and play UCLA in the Rose Bowl."

DE Lee Robinson

On starting at DE for injured Mike O'Brien:

"I felt pretty good about going out there. I'm not going to lie, I was pretty nervous during that first play. After I got that first hit though, I felt good after that."

WR Mark Kornfeld

On his play today:
"I may not have the speed of some of the other wide receivers in the Big Ten so I'll have to make up for that. When the others have times of 4.4 or 4.5, you better be able to find some other way of getting open."

On getting the first win of the season:

"We'll obviously celebrate this win but we still need to study film. We have a lot to of stuff to clean up like alignments and things. We'll enjoy this victory tonight but tomorrow we will come in ready to work and prepare for UCLA."

Illinois State Head Coach Denver Johnson

On the game:
"I'm proud of my football team and the way they fought, scrapped, and wouldn't give up. As a coach, you admire that in a football team. I'm not happy that we lost the game. I said all week before we came over here that I will never coach or ask my kids to play a game that we don't fully intend to try to win. We made some mistakes early and gave up some big plays that got us into a hole."

On the team:
"I do feel good about our football team. Obviously, Dwayne Smith put in a courageous effort. They buried his grandmother today, he was at the wake yesterday. I thought Souza had a great game. He got hit hard on the second play of the game. For a minute, I wasn't sure if he was going to get up. And he got up, and I thought he played really well. I think we'll continue to get better defensively, but we're so young. This will be a great experience to learn from."

On the first drive that ended on a fumble in the end zone:
"I thought our coaches did a great job and I thought we had an excellent plan. We felt like we could move the ball. If we get that ball in on that first touchdown, we go up, and then you never know what will happen. But I sure would have liked to find out. I would have liked to get that score, and be ahead in the ballgame."

On the development of his team:
"I've said before, I like this football team. I like these guys. I enjoy being around them and I like coaching them. We have a lot of new guys on this football team that are playing. I think those guys are starting to grow together into a cohesive unit. We're a long ways away from being a good football team."

On Illinois Head Coach Ron Turner:
"I appreciate Coach Turner. He's a good coach and a very gracious gentleman. I don't know him as well as I hope to, but I've come to know him pretty well and think an awful lot of him. I considered it an absolute honor to be able to stand on the opposite sideline as him."

WR Dwayne Smith

On being in the opponent's locker room:
"It's a weird feeling, I've never really been over here before but I'm happy that way and I'm proud of my team, we did a great job, it was a great step forward."

On playing to prove something against Illinois:
"I'm probably a little sad that we didn't come out on top, but I'm glad we came out and showed we weren't scared. The young guys got in and we got a lot of people on the field today. We can go out against someone like Illinois and do decent. We have to get ready for the next team, that's what we're waiting for."

LB Boomer Grigsby

On having played a game before a Big Ten opponent:
"Obviously the first game is like a great pre-season game, its practice. It's an example to make all the adjustments you used in camp. It doesn't matter what you do in practice, it's how you perform between the lines. That first game under our belt really opened their eyes up and allowed people to realize what they need to do and it allowed the young guys and the new guys that are playing to adjust to the speed of the game a little bit. Rather than just starting off with a Big Ten opponent who is bigger and faster, you know that's a great football team out there."

QB Mike Souza

On the aggressive game plan:
"We didn't plan anything differently, we just adjusted our scheme. Our guys like Dwayne and our running backs and our receivers on the outside can all make plays. Last week we weren't sure about the opponent, but this time we knew we were going to have a good opponent. We came together as an offense. Just having guys step up like Dwayne and other guys too, it's just the little things that make the difference."