Quotes from the UH-Charleston Southern Game 9/25/10

UH = Official University of Hawaii Athletics web site
HSA = Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Note: ESPN, USA Today, AP, Charleston Southern Athletics' web site, and several other sites that I check for quotes did not have any quotes from the game

----------------------  Quotes from the UH coaches  -----------------------

About how this is a great win, Mack said:
"Any win is a great win. It gives us two wins now. And it gives us another win in the right direction." (UH)


Proud of how his players have worked to improve, Mack said:
"We just want to improve technical and fundamental things that maybe the normal fan isn't looking at, but we are that we had to get better at or we wouldn't be the team that we could be. The players really reacted to it, they were together on it and they knew they had to win. They tried to work and get better, and I'm really proud of them." (UH)
 

About how they were able to play everybody that isn't redshirting, Mack said:
"We played everybody, we played all six quarterbacks, everyone that is eligible that isn't redshirting played in the game. It's a good experience that these guys work as hard as they do and they get some reps playing in front of the fans." (UH)


Asked if their team is ready for WAC play, Mack said:
"We have to continue to get better we have to evaluate this film I'm sure there are mistakes in this game, I think we got closer to being ready, we'll find out next week." (UH)


About how his defense made big plays all game long, Mack said:
"We've always been good since we've been here at making big plays and that was our big emphasis today on defense was to make plays and to make them all game long and I thought the guys did that." (UH)


About how they played the swarming style of defense they want to play, Mack said:
"Its contagious, it's like a personality, like an attacking, swarming defense that gang-tackles and makes big plays with emotion. That's what we want to be at and that's what we preached all week. We didn't care who we played, we had to get to that point and we haven't been (that way) the last year and three games. Today we got back to the style of defensive football that we want to play." (UH)


About how the players were keeping track of the passing TDs that Moniz was racking up in the game, Offensive Coordinator Nick Rolovich (Rolo, who has the UH record of 8 passing TDs in a game) said:
"Somebody — Greg Salas, I think — started yelling out the numbers." (HSA)


About how Moniz doesn't have to worry about setting records, Rolo said:
"He doesn't have to worry. He'll probably get the record before he's done. He'll have a bunch of them." (HSA)


About being able to get all 6 QBs into the game, Rolo said:
"They work hard, and it's good to get them on the big field with the fans and everything." (HSA)


About how Moniz and the rest of their players played well, Rolo said:
"He did a lot of good things.He played well. They all played well. They wanted to have a great game, and they did." (HSA)


About how they wanted to try out one of their trick plays so they used their flea flicker, Rolo said:
"We have a bunch of plays we want to try out. We felt this was a good time to go to one." (HSA)


About how Friday's walk-through was the only time they practiced the flea-flicker, which they named "bum-bye", Rolo said:
"(Former UH safety) Nate Jackson taught me that word when I was a player. He used to always tell me: 'Haole, bum-bye you'll learn.' " (HSA)


Happy that they finally played like how they practiced, Defensive Coordinator Dave Aranda said:
"We've had great practices, all the way back to spring. All the way back to fall camp. We've always created turnovers, always gotten sacks, always tackled well. That hasn't shown up in the games, until today. So my hope is, this is the start of how we play." (HSA)


----------------------  Quotes from the UH players  -------------------------

About how they talked all week about getting a big win and improving their red zone and third quarter problems, Bryant Moniz said:
"It was something we talked about all week to get a big win and sharpen up the things we haven't done so good as far as the red zone and the third quarter." (HSA)


About how they put their first team offense in to start the second half to work on their problems they have been having after halftime, Moniz said:
"That's why we came out with the first string in the third quarter. This season we had started off slow in the third quarter, so they wanted to work on that." (HSA)


About their "bum-bye" flea-flicker, Moniz said:
"Yeah, he's Hawaiian Rolovich. It's a good play." (HSA)

"We call it 'Bum-bye, you learn,' " (HSA)


About knowing that he was close to Rolo's 8 TD record, Moniz said:
"I knew, but it wasn't really a big thing to me. We were just joking about it." (HSA)


About how Rolo told him that he wouldn't break his record in this game, Moniz said with a smile:
"He (Rolovich) said he was going to take me out before I could get to (the record)." (HSA)


Thinking more about his 2 interceptions than the TDs he had, Moniz said:
"I didn't worry about the record too much. We had some fun with it. I was thinking more about the picks." (HSA)

"I'm more worried about the two interceptions than the touchdowns we had. I know perfect is hard, but it's something to shoot for." (HSA)

"A win is a win, but I have to work on my picks. Putting up that many touchdowns is good, but my two interceptions overshadowed all of my touchdowns. I have to work on that this week." (HSA)

"You always want to shoot for perfection. I know it's hard to do that. It's a goal of mine. It's something I have to work on." (HSA)


About how Rolo tells the QBs that he'll take them out of the game before they can break his UH record of 8 passing TDs in one game, Shane Austin said:
"We tell him if we get close, he'd better leave us in. But he tells us, 'Nah, I'll take you out before that.' " (HSA)


About getting his first 2 TDs of the season, Greg Salas said:
"I'll take it any way I can get it. I was getting kind of anxious about not scoring. I would lie to you if I said I wasn't thinking about it. But if felt good to finally get in the end zone." (HSA)


About how Moniz was on fire in the first half, Salas said:
"I asked Mo, 'Did you even have an incompletion in the first half?'  Even his deflected passes were being caught." (HSA)


About how Louisiana Tech cannot stop their offense, Salas said:
"It doesn't matter what they do. We know they're a better team (than Charleston Southern). But on offense, we think no one can stop us." (HSA)


About selling the run on the flea flicker before he threw the ball back to Moniz, Alex Green said:
"I'm a good actor. I took acting classes in middle school." (HSA)


About how they gained confidence from this blowout win, Green said:
"We always knew we had an explosive offense. We finally put four quarters together. We played a full game. It gave us a little confidence. Now we know we have to bring it every time." (HSA)


About getting to play against his old team (he transferred from Charleston Southern 2 years ago), Kamalu Umu (who tackled the punter before he could punt the ball in the 3rd quarter) said:
"I was excited, and just glad we got this victory. I got nothing against the team, they played hard, played their hearts out. But I'm glad to be here and be a part of this team." (HSA)


About getting into a game again after having to miss the first 3 games with a foot injury, Matagisila Lefiti said:
"It just felt like ... it was an unexplainable feeling to play football again. The foot was great. Just gotta get in condition and work from there." (HSA)


About how their team wants to play like how UH used to play, Jeramy Bryant said:
"We're tired of being embarrassed. We're trying to get back to the old Hawaii, how things used to be around here." (HSA)


About how their DL had to stepped up after their struggles against USC and Colorado, Vaughn Meatoga said:
"We got tired of being 'those guys.'  We're tired of being known as the weakness on the team. We were projected to be the strength. We had to step up. Against (Southern California) and Colorado, we kind of flopped here and there. We were sick of being 'those guys,' being picked on, being yelled at, being the liability. I think everybody took it upon themselves to get better and have a good game." (HSA)


About how their defense shut down Charleston Southern, Meatoga said:
"We really didn't take these guys lightly. They scored in the beginning of the game, but other than that, this whole week, we (the defense) were tired of being that whipping boy, tired of being the group that everybody picks on. The focus, the weak spot.  We stood up, we took a stand and said that we need this game going into WAC play. Build that confidence, see what we can do." (HSA)


About their play in this game, Corey Paredes said:
"It was a breakout game." (HSA)


About dropping 2 interceptions, backup safety Jordan Gomes said:
"It's going to haunt me for the next week." (HSA)


--------------  Quotes from the Charleston Southern coaches ----------------

About how any margin of loss counts the same, head coach Jay Mills said:
"Whether you lose by 59 or you lose by 1, it's a loss. It still counts the same in the record book." (UH)

"Whether you lose by 59 or one, it's still a loss. It's black and white. It counts the same in the record book." (HSA)


About they learn life lessons from each game, Mills said:
"Football's a great game. It either reveals character or develops character…maybe a combination of both. These are life lessons. There's going to be opportunities where we're going to be on top of people by a similar score, and there have been in the past. And there's opportunities where we're down below. But if you don't learn something, we're bound to repeat the same mistakes in the future." (UH)


Feeling that UH's team in underestimated, Mills said:
"We knew we were playing a very good football team, a team that I think is underestimated, a team that is very sound. They are very sound in all three phases of the game, and they proved it." (HSA)


More impressed with this team than UH's Sugar Bowl team in 2007, Mills said:
"We played a very good team. (Hawai'i) is a team that, I think, is more sound in all three areas of the game than maybe the team we played in 2007. I've been impressed with the discipline they've showed, I've been impressed with the toughness that they've showed, and in all three phases of the game this is a team that we really had tremendous respect for."
(UH)

"I thought (Hawai'i) executed much better on offense in the first half, obviously, in this game than in 2007. I saw a team that is very similar to the team we saw in 2007. I really believe this team has a chance to be very successful as they go into conference play. And we thought that before we came here." (UH)

"I felt like (Hawaii) is a team that I think is more sound in all three areas of the game than maybe the team we played in 2007. Of course, they all had all the accolades with Colt Brennan and so forth, but I've been impressed with the discipline ... and the toughness they have shown (this year)." (HSA)

"I thought they executed much better on offense in this game than in 2007 and made plays. I really believe this team has a chance to be very successful going into conference play." (HSA)


About how their missed opportunities in the first half could have made the game closer, Mills said:
"We had a couple of opportunities (in the first half). If we could have taken advantage of those opportunities, maybe the outcome would have been closer. I don't think it would have determined the end result, but the momentum would have been a little bit different." (UH)


---------------  Quotes from the Charleston Southern players  ----------------

About his 2 interceptions in the game, Charles James said:
"Our defensive front gave us a lot of help, and I just wanted to go out there and make plays. I was trying to enjoy myself and have fun, but we've got to get a lot of help even though I felt we took a step up after playing this game." (HSA)


---------------------------  Other Notes from the game -----------------------------

HSA Note: "Around 1,000 Manoa students took advantage of free admission to last night's game, a UH official said. This was the first football game students got free as a benefit of the new student activity fee of $50 per semester."


HSA Note: "Around 220 students on Thursday and Friday attended volleyball matches against Utah State and Nevada free, also as a benefit of the fee."