Post-Game Quotes vs. VMI
Toledo Head Coach Jason Candle
“These wins are not free. You don’t check off opponents on the schedule based off what you think they look like, you have to go out there and earn it. I think our guys did that, I was really happy with the consistency they showed for 60 minutes.”
“We played a lot of guys on offense, defense, and special teams and a lot of guys really flashed. Being able to get those game reps will be critical in their development. That’s the only way to develop young players.”
On quarterback Mitchell Guadagni
“I thought he was very good. There will be a couple things we’ll have to fix, but for the most part he did what we asked him to do. He made great decisions, took care of the football, showed accuracy, and made guys around him better. He did a good job controlling and dictating the pace of the game.”
On the defensive takeaways
“Those were huge, that’s what we preach. When you give your offense a short field and put the defense on their heels that’s a big deal. We practice getting takeaways every day and it showed today.”
Cody Thompson
On his blocked punt return for a touchdown
“It just happened so fast, I didn’t really know what happened. The ball ended up in my chest and I just ran with it. All the credit goes to coach Discher, our special teams coordinator who drew up our block look and it worked out exactly how he said it would.”
Mitchell Guadagni
“I felt pretty good. Being able to go out there and get comfortable with the offense in game situations was nice. I think our team handled it really well. There are things to improve on, but it felt good to go out there and get a game under my belt.”
Tuzar Skipper
“Every practice we emphasize getting takeaways. If we can take the ball away that gives us a big advantage and can help us win games.”
Bryant Koback
On scoring two touchdowns in his Toledo debut
“It was a great feeling. They really executed up front, and when those guys execute it’s my job to take advantage of it. I owe those touchdowns to my offensive line and coaches.”
VMI Head Coach Scott Wachenheim
“Toledo is an excellent football team, and they came out and played like that. You have to give them a lot of credit. They’re very talented at wide receiver, they’re big up front on both sides of the ball, the secondary is very talented and their quarterback played well. Unfortunately we made some mistakes early and when you do that against a championship team they’ll take advantage of it.”
“I’m proud of the way our kids fought back. The drive from the one-yard line was excellent and the defense played hard until the very end. There will be a lot of things that we’ll see on tape that we can correct, but there will be a lot of things to be encouraged about as well.”
On getting some younger players on the field tonight
“It’s great that they got their first experience playing college football. Playing our first game on the road will help us a lot when we go play Wofford next week.”
