Postgame Quotes vs. Northern Illinois
Head Coach Jason Candle
“I’m really proud of our football team. College football games are hard to win, especially when they’re close. Some things can go either way. Obviously we have some mistakes on the tape I’d like to take off and fix, and we’ll work hard this week to do that. To be able to go through this long home stretch and hold court on our field was huge. I think I was in the minority in thinking that Northern Illinois would not just come in and lay down for us. They have a quarterback and a head coach who have won a MAC Championship, and there are only a few of those in this league.”
On playing in front of a large Homecoming crowd and welcoming back alumni to campus
“It was a great crowd today, and it was awesome to have Coach Amstutz back in the house and have him come down to the locker room and say a few words to the team. I think it goes understated and underappreciated that we have such awesome alumni. We have really great former players who take a lot of pride in this place. It was cool to have a lot of them back today and have them in the locker room today to enjoy a great win with our team.”
On junior quarterback Dequan Finn’s performance
“It was a gritty performance. At this time last week I was rushing out of here to go see him in the hospital. Thankfully everything checked out okay there and we got some good practices out of him. He showed really good focus leading up to the game this week. I think his statistics reflected his level of preparation. That’s the sign of a good leader and a good quarterback.”
On Dallas Gant’s tackle on the last play of the game
“Their quarterback is a really good athlete, but thankfully Dallas is just a little bit quicker. He was able to get their QB on the ground, and with no timeouts they couldn’t stop the clock. It was a great individual play by him. In tough games and tough moments you want your seniors to be at their best. I thought our seniors played really tough today.”
On the return of Maxen Hook
“Everyone knows what he means to us. He’s a team captain. Having him back was a big lift for us today. Not only is he an emotional lift, but he lifts us up with his consistency and style of play. When he’s out there, the guys around him have more confidence. We were super excited to get him back.”
Player Quotes vs. Northern Illinois
Maxen Hook
On the defense’s performance
“We have a lot to clean up. They (Northern Illinois) had a pretty good game plan for us, but we still played hard, made hits, and made plays. We have a lot of things to correct, but it is still early in the season and a win is a win.”
Junior Vandross III
On Dequan Finn’s performance after being hurt last game
“He did a really good job of finding all our receivers. I think our connection has been building strong over time.”
On how well the offense has been able to put points on the board so far this season
“I think everyone can see how our offense is starting to make plays and execute.”
Dequan Finn
On being mentally and physically prepared for this game this week
“I tried to control what I could control. I went hard in the training room and in rehab. The trainers did a great job of helping me. I’m in there at 5:00 in the morning, rehabbing and making sure I can do what I can to perform to my highest ability for the team.”
On the offense’s performance
“I feel as though it all came together today, but it didn't because we have a lot more that we left out there on the field. I want to give thanks to my offensive line because they did a great job this whole game. The running backs did a great job, the receivers did a good job. Everyone just executed as one.”
