University of North Carolina Athletics
Durant, Terry, Blizzard Sound Off On Texas Game
September 10, 2002 | Football
Sept. 10, 2002
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On Bunting sticking with him at Syracuse:
It shows that he has faith in me. He has confidence in my abilities. I had been in big games before, I just wasn't performing early on. I calmed down a little bit at halftime and I just went out in the second half like last year.
On preparing for big games:
If it was a road game it might feel a little bit different, but we have these guys here in front of our own fans. It is going to be more exciting.
On the team's chances vs. Texas:
We could have beat them last year. We definitely feel like we can beat them this year. They lost some key guys and we feel like coming off a win with the momentum we have we stand a real good chance.
On the speed of good teams:
The game speeds up a lot when you play guys like that and other teams from the Big 12. That is something we take into consideration. We are taking upon ourselves to practice much faster this week just so we are prepared for the type of defense.
On gaining confidence vs. Syracuse:
The thing that lets me have a lot of confidence is that my teammates have a lot of confidence in me. I have had a lot of guys tell me to just relax, go out there and play like there is nothing on the line. I think that is the kind of mentality I took out there, just relax, I have been in these types of situations before, and I just had to let the game come to me.
On this Saturday's crowd:
The big crowd is something that we feel we need to beat this team. A lot of people call their crowd the 12th man. Hopefully inside Kenan on Saturday our crowd can be the 12th man to help us.
On what Coach Bunting says about UNC:
He preaches that every day. He tells us all the time about how special this university is not only in terms of athletics. The beauty of this campus, the academics, the support we have here, the alumni, everything in general.
On the tight ends:
It opens us up a lot. A lot of people hear about Sam and the receivers, but I think with Bobby (Blizzard) and Zach (Hilton) developing like they have really given us some added dimensions out there. Teams that are thinking about doubling our receivers cant because we have two tight ends who can make plays.
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On the excitement of this week:
It all started this morning. The players are really excited. This morning we had to lift weights and Coach Connors brought everyone together and told us what he expects from us this week. He got everybody riled up this morning. We are excited to play Texas.
On what Carolina need to do to beat Texas:
Turnovers. The past two weeks we have had a lot of fumbles, interceptions and everything. That is going to be the main thing because to beat a team like Texas, you cannot have turnovers.
On why he transferred to Carolina:
Ronald (Curry) had a lot of impact on that. I have played with him all of my life, since I was 9 years old. He said for me to come here and we could play together and I know he would throw me the ball if anyone else wouldn't. I had nothing to lose, I had a lot of other schools to choose from, but I felt like I would be comfortable coming here with someone I know, someone like Ronald.
On his decision to transfer:
I am very happy. Even though I had to switch positions. Even though I have to play tight end, block someone for a change. I was used to playing receiver. That was a hard adjustment. But now the coaches stressed when I need to do to become good at this position, which was blocking. Now I am comfortable with it and happy and I think I made a great decision. I know I would not be a wide receiver if I do make it to the next level.
On learning the position from Zach Hilton:
Zach did a lot to help me. I had never blocked anyone bigger than me in my life. I came here and he helped me out with my steps during the summer time. He has had a major impact on my learning the position.
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On playing Texas this week:
Texas is huge to me. It is my home state. I have been looking forward to this for a long time. It is bigger than it was last year because we get to bring them home, a place I feel at home now. The excitement is building already. It has been building all year.
On comparing last week to this week:
Going into this week is night and day as compared to going into last week. Last week was one of those weeks that you just have to fight through, and hope to get out of and we did. That win against Syracuse was huge for us. The set the whole season off on a different scope. There is a different feeling around here now. This week we are really excited to go to work.
On comparing the Texas game to last year's FSU game:
That was an incredible feeling. It is something that you want to experience again. This certainly is an opportunity to experience that. It is a little bit of a different situation, but still, without a doubt this win would mean a great deal to our program and a great deal to our fans especially.
On playing under the lights:
I think everyone gets excited for night games. Even in high school you got excited for Friday night games. It's out under the lights in front of everybody. It seems like there is a big level of intensity in the air.
