Football vs. LSU Postgame Quotes
11/9/2019 7:48:00 PM | Football
Head Coach Nick Saban
Opening statement
"First off, I think that we have to give LSU a lot of credit. They played really well in the game and made plays when they had to make plays on offense. They are a very good team.
"Great crowd and atmosphere. Thank our fans for the support that they give us.
"Bottom line is, especially in the first half, we didn't play very well. We don't want to waste a failure. There's a lot of lessons to be learned from the things that we did and didn't do today. I think that everyone needs to make the commitment to finish the season the right way. We don't fully have control of our own destiny, but if we finish the season the right way, we can see where it takes us. We've been in this situation before. So, I think the big thing is everyone needs to learn from the mistakes they made today and try to get better.
"Obviously the way we started, turned the ball over on the first drive. We have a great drive and don't finish it. We have 12 guys on the field, and we get an interception and turnover. And then we trusted our quarterback before the half and threw a pick and they scored 14 points in the last 30 seconds of the first half. A lot to overcome, but I have to tell you that I was really proud of our players in the second half. They really fought hard to get back in the game. And actually got themselves back in the game, but we couldn't get a stop on defense when we needed to. Had a couple of opportunities to stop them, and we didn't.
"Offensively, we certainly scored a lot of points and onside kicks are difficult. The ball has to bounce your way. But we gave ourselves a chance to win in terms of the way we fought back in the game. Very proud of our players for that.
"So, as an organization, starting with me and everyone else, we need to learn from this and do a better job. Give our players a better chance to be successful. And our players have to take advantage with that by going out there and executing. Making the kind of choices and decisions that's going to help them be the best players that they can be. I think there is a lot of be learned from that from this game."
On the decision to go for it before halftime
"Since the result that we got, was what we got, I wish we would've ran the ball. I wish we would've taken a knee. We had two timeouts. We were trying to throw a chunk play and maybe hit a big play. We have a lot of capability to do that, and we trusted the quarterback to make a good decision. They played zone and intercepted the ball. Based on what happened, I definitely, if I have a do-over, and I know that was going to happen, we would've kneeled on the ball. Being aggressive, and in the game at the time, I thought we would throw the ball down the field and give ourselves a chance to make a big play, and even if it was a bad play, it would be no worse than a punt. It was obviously a mistake on our part, and I take all the blame for that."
On expectations on Tua Tagovailoa from a health standpoint
"I think he was 100 percent. I think obviously missing some time and missing some practice, I think that he played well, he made good plays in the game. I thought his mobility was probably not 100 percent, but I thought he had quickness in the pocket and he couldn't run 100 percent, maybe 90 percent. I don't really know. This was a medical decision and his decision. The docs cleared him to play, and they cleared him to practice all week. He practiced all week He didn't have any issues. He said he could play in the game, and he wanted to play in the game and he thought he could go out there and do his job. I think he was a warrior, in terms of what he did. I think probably missing the practice that he missed over the last couple weeks, he may not have been quite as sharp as normal, but I thought he did a good job in the game and I'm proud of the way he competed in the game."
#33 Anfernee Jennings, LB
On the second half improvement
"I feel like we did a better job than we did in the first half. We still didn't finish the way we wanted to. It's not over. We're going to keep fighting."
On Joe Burrow
"He's a good quarterback. He does what they do well. Hats off to them."
#22 Najee Harris, RB
On the mindset for the rest of the season
"This game is over and you can't take it back, so you have to move past it. Tomorrow we will see what we need to work on, what we did good and what we did bad. After that, we have to forget and move on to the next game and try to execute the rest of the season and finish the way that we want to."
On adjustments in the second half
"The second half was important. Obviously, things didn't work out the way we wanted, but that's how we train. We practice this stuff. It just shows that we won't quit."
Head Coach Ed Orgeron
Opening statement
"Great win for our team. Obviously I'm very happy with how we played. It's been a long time coming. We felt it all week, that we were the better football team. I said to our team on Monday, 'We're the better football team, but we have to play to prove it.' We played.
"There are some things that we did very well today. There are some things that we can obviously get better at. Obviously, when we get up ahead, we've got to … but got to give them some credit, they know how to play some football.
"I'm very proud of my football team. All of the guys put in a lot of hard work. Our coaching staff put in a lot of hard work to where we were at today. Joe Burrow had a fantastic night – had 559 yards, 166 yards rushing. When's the last time that happened against us and Alabama? Clyde (Edwards-Helaire) had 103 yards and that last first down to seal the victory for us. Very, very nice. Our team is happy we were the better team tonight. We'll get rested tomorrow, get well. We've got a lot of guys banged up. It was a physical fight out there."
On saying "We coming." Are they there yet?
"Yeah. We were there tonight for sure. You know, we'll see where this leads us. We took a big step in beating Alabama obviously tonight. I knew we were the better team. I didn't think we were out-physicalled at all. I thought we handled them physically. They made some plays, we made some plays. I think we are right there where we need to be."
On the three-year process
"You know, when I got on the plane coming here, I felt like we've got it. We've finally got the tools we need, we've finally got the players we need, we've finally got the coaching staff we need to beat these guys. I told that to Steve Ensminger when he was sitting on the side, I told that to Greg McMahan. I feel it was a combination of going to a spread on offense and obviously the great recruiting, those great receivers that we had, and I think just Joe Burrow. To have a championship team, you have to have a championship quarterback. So, I felt like we had it then. Obviously, I knew we had to do it, and we did it."
#9 Joe Burrow, QB
On how he felt about the win
"This is why I decided to transfer. I wanted to play, and I knew I could play on this stage and you know I got great people around me, great coaching staff, great program all-around. And I cannot say enough good things about my offensive line tonight. [Alabama] had a great defense, a fresh package that we had not seen a lot of this year, and they did so well for me tonight."
On how the team celebrated him
"That was pretty special, having these guys embrace me the way they have. Some quarterback from Ohio that came in last June before the season, and the way they have embraced me, I can't say, I mean it means a lot to me that this entire program has embraced me and the whole state as well."
#8 Patrick Queen, LB
On LSU's defense
"Playing LSU, you know everyone talking about they can't score. When we finally settled down, like we did in the first half, we're going to be a team to look out for."
On why this means so much to the team
"When you come to LSU, you know that family bond, it ties you in with what this program has been through. Basically, being able to snap that streak, that was a big blessing for us."
