Mike Owens Quotations

We're looking forward to it, but I don't know if we're looking forward to playing them.

I don't think when we first started talking about the game that ESPN was even involved in it. We were going to play the game whether it was televised or not, but after TV got involved, we've tried to get it changed for people back here to be able to watch it since most people won't be able to travel to the game. In this particular case, they should have made an exception.

If someone had a heart attack two years ago, they are still smoking 50 cigarettes a day and their blood pressure is up, they will not get cover. But if they had treatment and then improved their condition they probably would.

There is no doubt they are the best football team I've seen in 20 years. They are big, fast ... they have everything they need.

He's as good a defensive lineman as there is. He's not 6-2 and that hurts him, but he's 265 pounds, strong as an ox and has great foot speed. He does great against double teams and getting off on a pass rush. I guarantee once he gets up there, they will see that he can't be blocked, and he'll do well.

Jacoby has great strength and quickness, and I think that the broken hand is slowing him down a little. He still is playing real well. He is one of our best defensive players, and as long as he's there, we have a chance to plug it up in the inside.

I wrote 'white, back of wing.' It was unusual enough that I wrote it down.

I think (the game) is a good idea. There's good football everywhere.

Our kids have taken them in and really accepted them.

Our game plan for this game, we have as much stuff in right now as we do in midseason. We are going to load it up and open it up on offense. We may try and take some chances we normally don't take because we are going to try and put some points on the board.

You look across (their front) and they are 250, 270, 270, 290, and they love to run it with counter lead, isolation stuff, so it's going to be a test for us.

We just didn't play like the way we are capable of playing. Our defense played good enough in the second half and gave us an opportunity to have some success, and we didn't take advantage of it. They are a good football team, they are as good as anyone we've played.

We didn't play real well on offense (at Colerain), especially in the second half. We'd make a play and pick up seven yards, and then we'd lose five yards, or get a penalty. I am not going to make excuses, we just didn't play well enough to win, and we had opportunities to try and win the game and we didn't take advantage of them.

We are trying to guard against being too laid back. I don't think they are going to be. We are fixing to play a real good football team. It's going to be tough for us, I can tell you that.

Preston started five games as a sophomore, so I don't expect him to be nervous. I know we've scrimmaged, but that is not a game. I was real pleased in our scrimmage that we actually did better when the coaches went to the sidelines.

Colerain made us look bad. That is what happens when you don't come out and play from the get go. A great program is a great program wherever you're from.

They've got 20 starters coming back and are going to be real good. They had tentatively scheduled Brenham, but Brenham dropped them. We had talked earlier and said if we couldn't find a game, we'd play them because it's been a good series between us.

They are both great cover guys. Our receivers are big, so we have a height advantage. What we are going to have to make sure we do is outmuscle them for the ball.

That's the best way to make a mare?sell her.

It will add a nice demographic to the whole area. Everyone can feel a part of it. It will give a good balance of things to do.

They are very physical on offense and very run-oriented. They play a straight 50 defense with great athletes, who run to the ball and are real physical.

Their quarterback is the man, he is an extremely accurate passer.

Their quarterback is a good runner. He is fast as lightning, and I am real concerned about him. (Smith) is committed to Ohio State, and I watched him mash people on the two (game films). They are not devoid of talent in any place.

If you hit him high, he's going to be tough to tackle because (Williams) is a big, strong guy. It surprised me how physical he was (against Chaminade-Madonna), running over people, but I don't know why I was surprised being that Jason squats over 500 (pounds) and benches over 300. He's a strong put-up guy.

I don't know if we were in a dream world or what for the whole first half. Mentally we weren't ready and they whipped us at the line of scrimmage.

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