Oct. 16, 2004

Recap |  Box Score |  Notes

Illinois Head Coach Ron Turner Quotes

On Illinois' field position:
"It's not just the defense's fault; it's a team effort. We have to do a better job on offense. In the third quarter we turned the ball over and had a couple of three and outs as well. We didn't do anything to improve our field position."

On the team's attitude:
"We have to keep playing and keep fighting. We did some good things today at times, but we have to do it for 60 minutes. We have to be more efficient on offense to help out our defense. If we leave them on the field as long as we did, it's going to be tough."

On the team's effort:
"We didn't come out here to lead at halftime or to play a close game. We came to win! It hurts when these guys have given everything they have. They have a lot of pride and fight, and they'll bounce back. We have four games left and four opportunities to get a win starting next week. We are going to go out there and try and get one each and every week."

On strategy going into the game:
"We knew they were going to play a lot of man and try to overload the box to stop the run. So we looked to do some play action passes and get our backs in the flats which we do a lot anyways. We wanted to mix that in with the running game and try and take advantage of it."

On the second half:
"We just didn't execute. We never got any drives going to get any rhythm. We were constantly in second and third in long. In our three and outs in the third quarter we were unable to get anything established."

On the team's fight:
"We had a lot of emotion today. It was important for our guys to come out and get a win. I thought they laid it on the line, but unfortunately it wasn't enough. If we keep fighting and staying together as a team it's going to brighten and when we get going things will really take off."

On the wind:
"It was real tough, especially early in the game. It seemed to slow down mid way through the second quarter and then one minute you would have it and another you wouldn't. It was definitely a factor today; it affected our play calling and what we could and couldn't do."

Illinois Player Quotes

QB Jon Beutjer:
On the loss to Michigan
"We feel like we didn't play a complete game. We played really well in the first half offensively and defensively. But then, we kind of fell apart in the second half."

On the gameplan
"Coach Turner is a great offensive coordinator and a great offensive mind. I like how he said we were going to stay aggressive with the ball and throw. Just because it was windy doesn't mean I need to turn it over three times."

K Jason Reda:
On his career long field goal in the first half
"The wind definitely helped because I didn't hit it that well. It was a bad hit; it kind of went off the end of my foot, so the wind probably helped it quite a bit."

DB Kelvin Hayden:
On his team-leading third interception
"I lost [the receiver] when I was in my back pedal, and I saw the ball coming. I didn't want to hit him and have the ball go over my head, so when he tipped the ball I caught it."

On the second half
"We've got to finish. We can't just play a good first half; we've got to execute more. We can't just break down. We just have to continue to get better."

Michigan Head Coach Lloyd Carr Quotes

On Illinois' tough play today:
"We tip our hats to Illinois. Ron Turner and his staff had that team ready to play. I know how a lot of teams are this time of year that are coming off tough losses, but this team really fought hard. I think that's a credit to their kids and their coaches. They've been in every ballgame and played well."

On Michigan's second-half effort:
"I'm very pleased with our team in the second half after getting down, making so many mistakes and not tackling particularly well. The good news for us in the second half was we came out and got an early turnover, then got the lead which is exactly what you want to do on the road."

On key interceptions:
"The two interceptions led to ten points, but we re-grouped. We put together a great drive into the wind in the third quarter even though we finally got stopped our fourth down. Our defense came up with some big plays today to help us out."

On feeling down the stretch:
"With the wind in the fourth quarter and down 17-16 late in the third quarter, I felt like we were in good shape. If we didn't turn the ball over we were going to be able to move it. Our defense played very well in the second half."

On Scott McClintock:
"Scott (McClintock) is a tough guy, he's paid his dues. What I like is, as a senior, he's having his best year here. McClintock made two really big plays. That last interception, the game is still on the line."

On the wind:
"That wind was unbelievable. I was really surprised that either team could throw the ball as effectively as they did."

Michigan Player Quotes

RB Mike Hart:
On the difference in the second half
"We started getting to the outside a little bit more because they were playing really tight since we had been trying to run the ball inside a lot. So we opened it up in the second half and tried to get to the corners."

On his controversial touchdown
"I saw the goal line, and I just tried to get the ball out. Thank God it was a touchdown. I don't think I was down."

On the windy conditions
"It was pretty hard to throw the ball today. We knew it was going to be windy, so we knew we were going to have to run the ball."

DT Gabe Watson
On coming from behind
"We've been down before, so we're used to having to come back. We knew we had to make some adjustments, and we made them at halftime. We came out more comfortable, and we got the job done."

LB Scott McClintock
On his first interception
"It was coming out (at the beginning of) the second half, and it was great timing because it was at a point when we needed some momentum. I was in my drop and it came right to me."

On the halftime deficit
"We knew they had a good offense coming into the game, so it wasn't surprising that they came out and got on us. We came into halftime, and we knew we had to make some adjustments and we did."

On the team's focus
"We didn't have a very good week of practice. It was just a matter of getting it done and they came out and got on top of us."

QB Chad Henne
On the running game
"The line did a great job of opening holes for Mike Hart and Max Martin. They ran hard and that's what we need from them.

On the interception in the end zone
"It was just a bad read. I thought Braylon was going to break a little skinnier, and I threw the ball flat. It should have been higher. I should've gotten down to my checkdown."

On his performance
"It wasn't my best performance, but the running game picked us up a lot."