MAC Championship Game Quotes
Head Coach Jason Candle
“I’m really proud of our football team. It takes a strong and mentally tough group of young men to get to this point. This team is resilient and has a lot of resolve. They understand the importance of responding to adversity rather than reacting to it. I’ve challenged them since day one to be who they said they were going to be, and they wanted to be MAC Champions. I was excited to watch those guys hoist the trophy.”
“This is everybody’s goal, this is what everybody wants to do. It’s one thing to get here, it’s another thing to win it.”
On being ready to play after ending regular season with two straight losses
“I think there were a lot of variables that played into how things went the last couple weeks, some were controllable and some weren’t. Obviously we always have to do our part. Today I thought we did a good job of getting off to a good start offensively. Going down and scoring on the first drive was huge, we were aided by some really good runs and solid pass protection.”
On the play of the defense
“Our defense played lights out. Great job by that staff coming up with a game plan and great execution by our players. We made things really tough on their quarterback, who is a good runner. But we executed the game plan at a high level.”
Sophomore Nick Rosi
"I've had faith in this unit all this year, and I know we've hit our rough patches. But I am really proud of how we pulled it together, because we had a goal in mind. We said we were going to get this right and we were going to work our tails off to make sure that we win this big game.I am so proud of this unit because it feels good to quiet the criticism."
On the challenge of the game
"The challenge was definitely there. I feel like we were ready for it a that's, again, why I am so proud of this unit and the way we battled. We've had to move guys around, we've ahd injuries, we've had all that. But here we are."
"Personally, I haven't won much. I've won high school games but never a championships. This feeling right now is a great feeling, and I think we earned this."
Sophomore Dequan Finn
"This team, we've been through a lot this whole year. It's been a rollercoaster for us, with ups and downs. We've fought through adversity and rough patches. Ultimately throughout the whole course, we stayed together as one. Even on the bad days. The whole emphasis was stay together as one, because when we splinter off, we are not the same. When we play as one, no one can stop us. I am happy for this team, happy for the coaches, and it's a surreal moment."
"All the quarterbacks, we've all had good relationships. Even when I was down, we rallied behind Tucker. When Tucker was down, we rallied behind John Alan. That's how close the quarterback room is. The offensive line, like Nick said, there's been a rotational situation going on. Even through that situation, everyone is on the field. When you have a mixture of that, you have the best offense in the MAC."
