University of North Carolina Athletics
Player Press Conference Quotes
November 15, 2005 | Football
Nov. 15, 2005
Chase Page, Senior Defensive Tackle
Q--Your thoughts on senior day?
"I am excited about it. I have about 13 family members coming about half of which have probably never seen me play. It's kind of an extended family. It's going to be exciting. I hope we play good and everything works out perfectly."
Q--Any thoughts on your experience? You have seen peaks and valleys in your career.
"This has been crazy. We have won some huge games and lost some heartbreakers and I wouldn't really change it because you wouldn't really be the same if you didn't go through what we went through early on. Our freshman year was great; it has been a great experience. It's been a great five years with this staff."
Q--Chase, before the 2003 Duke game was there a sense that maybe you guys just took it for granted that maybe the [Victory] Bell would always be here? Was that kind of a wake-up call?
"Well, maybe, but I think that mainly what it was is that we came out in the first half real flat and they came out real fired up and we tried to fight back the second half of that game and it was too late. We let them get the Bell and that was unacceptable."
Q--What is the mood of this team now? There is no margin of error left for you guys now.
"We got all the seniors together and I think we are really trying to get everybody to realize that we are just focused on this week and we are just working and practicing for Duke. We are not thinking about Virginia Tech and we are not thinking about a bowl game. Obviously it is in the back of our minds, but we are really trying to concentrate on this week and win this ball game and take it a game at a time like everybody else."
Q--Saturday's game was a disappointing loss but coach Bunting said he had already talked to you guys about it already and planned on you guys moving on pretty fast.
"We have done a pretty good job of that all season. If we had a big win we would forget about and if we had a loss we would forget about. We are just moving on to the next week and I think everybody has kind of forgotten about it. We watched the tape and learned from it and that's it, it's over."
Q--What's easier, putting the Louisville loss behind you or the Maryland loss?
"Louisville was a hard pill to swallow. Whenever you allow the most points in our school's history, I think every part of our team kind of didn't do what they needed to do. Yes definitely, it was Louisville."
Q--Can you talk about in essence playing two positions?
"Yes, defensive end coach Lawing told me that I might be playing some but don't really worry about because it will be in an emergency situation. We talked and I learned some of the plays and I really wasn't thinking I was going to play but Hilee Taylor got hurt and then I was informed I was going to play the third quarter and I went out there and I didn't do too bad."
Q--What is the biggest difference between playing the two positions?
"When you are playing end you have containment responsibilities all the time so you can't really just run into your guy and drive him back and go after the ball and with the defensive end you have to keep your outside shoulder free and you have to have outside containment."
Senior Quarterback Matt Baker
Q--It looks as though you have been through some struggles and that kind of thing but over the past few weeks have pulled out and put it back together a little bit, does that seem to be the case?
"I think the offense as a whole has kind of stumbled at bit. There were two games where we got 100 yards passing, granted we won the Virginia game, yet offensively it wasn't a great day with either the rushing or passing, and then the Miami game the second half just fell apart on us. I never thought at one point in the season I was playing very poorly. Granted we didn't have very good offensive outputs in those two games, but then we have bounced back a little bit in the last couple of weeks. To win the Boston College game and to be right in there in against Maryland game, well ..."
Q--Were you frustrated?
"There was a little bit of frustration, not too much. You can't let frustration get to you. Of course, when you are the leader of the offense at quarterback and your group is not performing, obviously, it's a little bit frustrating."
Q--Like when you throw a touchdown pass and it gets dropped?
"That stuff is going to happen. As a quarterback you know that every pass is not going to be perfect to the wide receiver. You can't be that frustrated for a dropped pass. A touchdown is a big play in the game but there have been plays where I could have had a touchdown but I have made a poor throw. You just can't look at the receiver and say they dropped one and that it's all their fault because I have made the same mistake with a bad pass. That doesn't get the attention than with a dropped pass."
Q--The past couple of weeks do you think you have been at your best, maybe living up to your expectations?
"I wouldn't say I was at my best because there is still a long ways for me to go. Unfortunately, I have only two games left to try and get there but I have high expectations for myself so it's tough for me to get there and say I have been at my best. I have played better in these last couple of weeks but in my mind I have a long ways to go. Getting two wins here in a row will be good for me."
Q--Tell us about the glass man.
"That's something Arthur Smith came up with jokingly. He must forget that he missed two full seasons with a broken foot, so I don't know what he was talking about. I have not missed a game and have only missed a couple of practices, which is pretty good considering some of the hits I took early in the season and all things considered. They can call me what they want but I haven't missed a game yet."
Q--What does the 21 yard run say about the glass man?
"That was wide open and I should have scored a touchdown but I was too worried about getting stripped from behind. I didn't know who was behind me so I kind of zigzagging in and around people and we were down in field goal range and I didn't want to risk a fumble."
Q-You guys have to win both of the remaining games to get to a bowl game and there is no room for error; how do you respond?
"Right, but it's Duke first and that's all we are concerned about. I talked to the team yesterday and I said I didn't want to anyone say a word about Virginia Tech, and that's the way we look at it. We play Duke this week. By not winning last week we put ourselves in this position that we are going to have to win two and there is no sense in worrying about Virginia Tech. It's a two game season and Duke is what it is all about this week. You can ask me about beating Virginia Tech next week."
