Linebacker Rich Miller answers questions from the media after the Kansas Jayhawks lost to the Texas Tech Red Raiders
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 >> Rich, it's been a long time since Kansas and
00:02 Kansas State entered this game with a winning record.
00:05 Just what are you guys looking forward to?
00:08 >> I'm looking forward to just going out with a bang, you know what I'm saying?
00:11 That's the last game we played with the stadium looking like that.
00:14 I'm looking forward to going out with a bang.
00:15 A senior night, it's possibly one of my last games or
00:20 maybe my career, who knows, you know what I'm saying?
00:21 No one knows.
00:22 I'm looking forward to going out with a bang, putting it all on the line,
00:26 you know what I'm saying?
00:27 I haven't beat Kansas State yet, so I'm looking forward to trying to do that.
00:31 >> Rich, what allowed you guys defensively to have so much success against them after
00:35 they ran the ball well in the first quarter, but for
00:37 the next three quarters, what allowed you guys to have so much success?
00:41 >> Honestly, we kinda had a chip on our shoulder cuz we were seeing a few things,
00:45 talking about how we weren't gonna do good against their run game, whatever.
00:48 And that first quarter, they did come out kinda fast.
00:51 They came out swinging, but we kinda looked in the mirror and we like, hold on.
00:55 If we say we're gonna be the team that we wanna be, then we gotta step it up.
00:59 So everybody stepped it up, everybody played a little harder,
01:01 played a little more edge.
01:03 And we got it done in that aspect of the game.
01:05 We didn't get it done on the scoreboard, but
01:07 we kinda got it done in that aspect of the game.
01:09 >> Walk us through that final drive for Texas Tech when they looped the ball.
01:13 >> Like what, what about it?
01:16 >> Just from your perspective, as a guy that's in the middle,
01:19 obviously we're going to the outside.
01:20 But what are the things you're focused on and what do you think Texas Tech did well?
01:25 >> Shoot, completed balls.
01:26 The quarterback's back there poised, the receiver's running good routes.
01:30 They was completing balls on us down the field.
01:34 We always, we rather them throw the deep balls so we think we defend them better.
01:39 But they was throwing deep balls and making plays.
01:41 They on scholarship too, so they was just making good plays, man.
01:44 Like they came ready to play today, man.
01:47 Kudos to them.
01:48 >> What stood out to you about Cole, obviously, here?
01:50 >> Pardon me?
01:51 >> Cole, what stood out to you about what he did with the offense?
01:54 >> Cole is like, he's poised.
01:55 He's just, he's nice.
01:58 He's a good quarterback, I'm not gonna lie.
01:59 I just told someone earlier, when we're doing two minute drill in practice,
02:03 he's probably the only quarterback that scores every single,
02:06 I think probably every single time.
02:08 If not, then most of the time.
02:10 He always finds a way to score.
02:11 He's real poised back there.
02:12 He don't say too much.
02:14 He's always ready.
02:14 He's tough, you know what I'm saying?
02:16 He gonna be a guy here, so be ready.
02:19 >> What's Coach Lockhold's message to you guys post game?
02:22 >> It was just a good way to fight.
02:24 It's gonna sting.
02:25 We got a lot to work on, a lot to clean up.
02:27 And let's just get ready for next game.
02:29 We can't go back and change it, but we can take what we learned from this game and
02:33 go get ready for next game.
02:34 >> Sunday practice.
02:36 What's that gonna be like for you guys?
02:37 >> It's gonna be cool.
02:38 We'd rather have it this way, you know what I'm saying?
02:41 Have a Sunday practice, get to run around, get to blow up home a little bit so
02:44 that soreness don't set in.
02:46 Get a little break on Monday.
02:48 Then we right back at it on Tuesday.
02:50 You know what I'm saying?
02:51 It's cool.
02:52 I think especially for a veteran, you know what I'm saying?
02:54 Get two good nights of sleep, you know what I'm saying?
02:56 So it feels good.
02:59 >> As the injuries are starting to pile up over on the offensive side,
03:02 how does that galvanize the defense to be able to try to either step up their game or
03:07 find ways to kind of support the offense there?
03:10 >> It just makes us play a little harder, you know what I'm saying?
03:13 I feel like we should play as hard as we can anyway, but
03:15 it's just like an extra push that we get.
03:18 Because we understand that our team isn't at the fullest strength that we could be.
03:22 So you know what I'm saying?
03:23 We are healthy on that side.
03:24 And we know we can hold it down.
03:26 We can hold it down for the team.
03:27 It's the ultimate team sport.
03:29 That's what we do.
03:30 We got their backs, they got our backs.
03:31 So when they're a little down, we make sure we pick it up.
03:34 >> And I know that you kind of talked a little bit about just kind of increasing
03:37 the effort in the second half.
03:38 But was there anything specific that you guys saw in that second half in terms of
03:42 Texas Tech's offensive line?
03:43 You guys were getting in there and stopping the run, and
03:45 then also getting a lot of extra pressure in that second half.
03:49 >> Honestly, they were doing the same thing all game.
03:51 And they weren't switching it up.
03:52 So if we can't stop that, then that's on us.
03:56 You know what I'm saying?
03:56 They literally telling us what they're doing every single play.
03:59 We got keys, we looking at certain stuff.
04:02 We know what they're doing every single play.
04:03 It's up to us to stop.
04:08 They fooled us a few times, but if we keep getting fooled, that's on us.
04:10 So all we did was just understand what they were doing.
04:14 And once we was able to see and see their tendencies and see what they were doing,
04:17 we just stopped it.