Quotes from Tuesday morning

About his comments comparing Colt and Tebow, JJ said:
"My quarterback is the best college football player in America. I did not add Tebow's team has three loses or is not in a BCS game. …The bottom line is I irritated them because they knew I was right. But I did get a whole bunch of emails and calls from Florida State people that said 'Thanks for finally saying that.'" (Tampa Tribune)

Clarifying his comments about Tebow, JJ said:
"I'll probably get a little more (heat). My intent was not to demean Tim Tebow in anyway. ... My point was my quarterback has been labeled a system player, for three years. (Brennan is) the best passer in college football history. Tim Tebow is in a system. The last quarterback that was in that system ... Alex Smith (was) talented, but I didn't see him in an NFL passing deal. Colt Brennan plays in an NFL passing game. You can dial it up and see it's not a system. And Tim Tebow's system is a college system. He's a great quarterback, probably win another national championship, he's competitive, he's all those things. But a lot of his stuff comes off little dive fakes and all different kinds of things that he's not going to do in the National Football League. That's my point." (HSB)


About the ESPN guys Herbstreit and Tirico were saying that Tebow set a record for being responsible for 53 TDs when Colt threw 58 TD passes and ran for 5 more last season, JJ said:
"I said, 'I got my point across, you guys ripped me a new one yesterday, but I'll say it again and stand by what I said.' I irritated them because they knew I was right." (HSB)


Asked if he would wear a coat and tie to the formal Heisman ceremony if Colt was invited, JJ said:
"I'll have to get fitted." (HSB)


As his phone buzzed when he was leaving the press conference, JJ said:
"More guys from Florida." (HSB)


About JJ's comments supporting him, Colt said:
"He's a good guy, you know, I think he might be the best coach in the nation. But I think Coach Jones is like that, he takes extreme pride. It's funny, I never heard him say face-to-face anything, really, like that. He's always been great to me, but he's always on me and always pushes me. It's cool when he goes out and does that stuff." (HSB)

About how JJ was trying to support him and not criticize Tebow, Colt said:
"I know he wasn't taking any shots at Tim Tebow. I've heard him say great things about Tim Tebow. Tim Tebow is a great quarterback, he most likely will win the Heisman Trophy. But I think Coach Jones is very strongly trying to take away that whole system thing (on me), and just let the players be players." (HSB)


Asked how he would do in the run-and-shoot, Tebow said:
“I ran it a little bit in high school, and my numbers weren’t too bad there. I don’t know, I guess it depends on your system.” (Tampa Tribune)


Calling Colt a system QB, Tebow said:
“I think he’s a good quarterback, and [he] runs a good system.” (Tampa Tribune)

TT Note: "Tebow used the word “system” three more times in the interview, putting a dab of extra mustard on the word each time he said it."


About how the WAC created (at his urging) a special award for their record-setting offense, Colt said:
"That is awesome, dude." (HA)

HA Note: "Eleven Warriors were named to the All-WAC first team: Brennan, slotbacks Ryan Grice-Mullins and Davone Bess, center John Estes, left guard Hercules Satele, defensive end David Veikune, defensive tackle Michael Lafaele, linebackers Adam Leonard and Solomon Elimimian, cornerback Myron Newberry, and kicker Dan Kelly. Left wideout Jason Rivers was the lone Warrior on the second team. June Jones was named Coach of the Year, and Brennan was selected as the Offensive Player of the Year."


About how he asked Karl Benson if he could share his Offensive Player of the Year award with the entire Warriors' offense, Colt said:
"I said, 'If there's any way we could collectively win this award, I'd really appreciate it.'" (HA)


About how Colt was to share the recognition with his teammates, John Estes said:
"Colt is so unselfish. He would do anything for this team." (HA)

HA Note: "The WAC, as it turned out, listened, creating an "Offensive Unit of the Year." Brennan and the starting receivers — Bess, Grice-Mullins, Rivers and right wideout C.J. Hawthorne — were mentioned specifically. The Warriors lead the nation in scoring, averaging 46.17 points per game."


About how he felt he got too much credit, Colt said:
"The way the game of football goes, the quarterback sometimes just gets too much love. I missed two games this year. I got knocked out of two games. Those are four games we won not because of me. There's no way I can honestly take a single award. I knew just because of the way the season went, the way it ended, people would want to give me a lot of credit. But the credit goes to the O-line and especially that receiving corps. And Tyler (Graunke, the backup quarterback) stepped in and won a game. They were the most valuable offensive unit in the WAC. I'm grateful the WAC recognized that, and glad they created the award." (HA)


About Colt lobbying to get an award for their offense, Bess said:
"We give a lot of credit to Colt. He lobbied for us to get the award. At the same time, we give a lot of credit to our teammates and our coaches for putting us in positions to make plays." (HA)


About their team-first attitude, RGM said:
"Everything we do, we do as a team." (HA)


About moving from RG last season to C this season, All-WAC sophomore C John Estes said:
"I think center is my natural position, anyway. I give a lot of credit to coach (Dennis) McKnight. He helped me out, and gave me a lot of great advice." (HA)


All-WAC senior G Hercules Satele talked about how their hard work paid off:
"All of the hard work from the summer has paid off. Look at our season. It's been a lot of fun." (HA)


After earning conference honors despite not starting their games (though he leads the Warriors with 7 sacks), Veikune credited their change to a 4-3 D under GM for making his success possible:
"I'm thankful for the recognition. This scheme gives me more opportunities to make plays." (HA)


Praising their DL for making their success possible, Solomon Elimimian said:
"The D-line does a great job of keeping guys off of (the linebackers)." (HA)


After being informed about his All-WAC first team recognition, Adam Leonard said:
"I feel blessed for the opportunity to make plays." (HA)


After getting All-WAC first team, Myron Newberry (tied with Adam for the team lead with 4 INTs, often isolated against the opponent's best WR) said:
"I set a goal for myself to get All-WAC. I guess it happened. It's a great honor. I worked my butt off all spring and all summer to try to get to where we are now." (HA)


Looking forward to playing in another big game, Jason Rivers said:
"It's the same thing when we played Arizona State and Washington. I'm anxious to go up there and see what they have to offer us as far as competition is concerned, the level of play they have. I know they're an excellent team ... just inches away from being in a national title game. It's going to be a good test for us." (HSB)

HSB Note: "In three Hawaii bowls, Rivers has 42 catches for 599 yards and six touchdowns. In three games against Pac-10 teams, he has 30 receptions for 487 yards and seven scores. After Saturday's four-TD, 14-reception, 167-yard effort against Washington, Rivers became UH's third 1,000-yard receiver this season, tying the NCAA record."


About how they won't have any problem getting up to prepare for Georgia, Rivers said:
"We get back to work today. I don't think anyone's going to gear down because there's just too much excitement and everybody's geared up for the game. Nobody's going to stop working now." (HSB)


About being able to end his UH career at the Sugar Bowl, just a 45-minute drive from his home, C.J. Hawthorne said:
"It's supernatural, I don't think anything will happen again ever like this. It's extraordinary." (HSB)

HSB Note: "His past is one many people would have trouble escaping, let alone returning to face. But the Warriors' unprecedented success has brought him back. It will be his first return home since the summer of 2006, when the Gulf Coast area still struggled to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina. That hurricane was just a minor blip compared to other storms he's endured. Hawthorne's parents separated when he was 11, and his mother, Clemencia Williams, left the lives of C.J. and six of his seven siblings when he was in high school. His father, Jerry, died while C.J. was playing junior college ball along the Gulf Coast, and never got to see him play at the Division I level. Various tragedies have befallen several of his siblings over the years, as they were left to fend for themselves."


About how he'll cherish his Warrior career and being the first in his family to get a college degree, Hawthorne said:
"A lot of stuff happened, but I've been so blessed, and I'm going to be the first one (in the family) to graduate. Even this whole journey has given a lot of people back home hope."

He and his fellow offensive skill-position starters were named recipients of the Western Athletic Conference's first Offensive Unit of the Year Award yesterday (quarterback Colt Brennan, and receivers Hawthorne, Jason Rivers, Ryan Grice-Mullins and Davone Bess).


About the tough times Hawthorne has had in his life, Jason Rivers said:
"He's been over here, he's trusted in whatever he saw in our program to leave his life and come over here and share it with us. We've taken him in, and he talks about his family all the time. I'm sure it's very special and meaningful that he gets to play over there in front of his family and friends." (HSB)


Praising Hawthorne, Colt said:
"Here's a young man who had a rough childhood growing up, he's already married with his son, he's a college student. And he's really been nickel-and-diming his way through life for the past couple of years. For him to have this experience and this opportunity, it feels great for us guys who have had it a lot easier in life, to see him be rewarded and get something he deserves, we're just thankful that he gets to go home." (HSB)

HSB Note: "June Jones, the WAC Coach of the Year, said that Hawthorne would be able to take a personal day to visit family after the Sugar Bowl. Virtually all of Hawthorne's family still lives in Mississippi. Two of Hawthorne's brothers and one of his sisters will attend the game. He doesn't expect his mother to be there. She hasn't seen him play on national television yet."


About how his mother is proud of him, Hawthorne said:
"She's proud of me, I know she is. Football's not really her thing, you know. I've talked to her during the season, like, four times. It's all right though. A lot of times, people just go through so much. And when she sits down and thinks about it, I think she's real proud of me." (HSB)


About UH's undefeated season not giving them a chance to play for the championship, sportswriter and National Public Radio commentator John Feinstein said:
"There's no (other) sport in the world, including tiddlywinks, where you can go undefeated in something and not have the opportunity to play for a championship." (HSB)