Postgame Quotes: Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech Postgame Quotes vs. Boston College
Saturday, September 03, 2016
Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland

Georgia Tech Head Coach Paul Johnson
Opening statement …
"It was a heck of a game. I think it was kind of a throwback game with the elements. Everybody was slipping and sliding and falling around, and defenses were playing pretty good. It was kind of a feel position, little bit of a throwback game. We had a hard time running the football offensively. We had a hard time blocking them up front, and we had some key missed assignments. They're a very good defensive football team and we knew that going in, and we did some hair-brain things like forget to go in tell motion, guys would block the wrong guys and we missed a tons of reads on the option stuff. When you do that against a good team you get behind down a distance and it's hard to come back."

On Dedrick Mills getting redemption on the last play ….
Yeah, I was telling someone earlier that I don't think Dedrick has fumbled the ball the whole camp. We had a little momentum and it found a little something to get the beat back involved running the ball and it kind of squelched all the momentum and killed it with that fumble. That happens. They had some, as well - actually cost them the game probably, turning the ball over.

Did you find it surprising how difficult it was for you guys to run the ball ….
"Yes, and I think there's a reason for that. I think, for one, they were really physical up front, and I don't think we got two reads right on the option. You miss the read and then you end up with a negative play, and it's almost like when we did get the read right, guys were falling down or forgetting to go in motion – it was just kind of a calamity. You have to give them credit, but it was really just poor execution."

On if it was surprising the read wasn't as successful with an experiences QB as they would have anticipated ….
"Well, it's surprising but I think that they were giving (Justin Thomas) some looks. It was hard to play offense out there. I mean the I formation down here running might have been a little easier, but for us we're more kind of precision and spread out and read it and pitch it around. It's hard to do when guys are slipping and falling. I don't think we had pitch back catch one full speed on the option plays. There was one third-down play where he checked the option to the right in the second half and the guy didn't go in motion and he gets tackled over there on our bench. There's nobody on the pitch if no one comes in motion. He made a great check and caught them overloaded to the field. They rolled it two-deep and he came back and got the read right and pulled the ball and was ready to pitch it but the guy didn't come in motion. Take the first series and go down the field and score, hit a couple big play action passes. Second series, after the punt return got great field position, and the first play we hold a guy that we weren't even supposed to block. It's not his guy. So things like that against a good defense, it's hard to overcome, and you're not going to make a bunch of first and 20's on that."

On having impact throwing plays while being a run-dominated offense ….
"You like to think that you can do both when you have to and we had some kids make some plays."

On the decision to go for it on 4th and 20 …
"I don't think it was a decision. We scored with 35 seconds left. I don't think we would have had enough time. If you get the ball back, we had two timeouts. If you don't make it, you take your two timeouts. You're going to get it back but there was no way I was going to punt the ball."

Talk about your defense and the turnovers they had ….
"Yeah, we were forcing it. We got some turnovers in key spots. They moved the ball probably better than they've moved it. Once they got down to our end of the field we were able to get some turnovers and get some stops. We gave up the big long run, which was just inexcusable. We had some guys running under blocks. Like I said (we) weren't perfect either by a long stretch. We've got a lot to work on, but the bottom line is we're 1-0 and that's about as good as you can be."

On what he expects to see from team going forward …
"I think we will be a much better team next Saturday. You feel like you've got guys who played like Will Bryan played at left tackle: he forgot to pull on three options at left guard. I am not picking on him but he hasn't played a bunch there and when we were driving on that last drive, they were playing man and we were trying to slip the fullback out on the flats and they line up in a 3-4 defense and we turned the end loose and against a good team you can't do that. So we were fortunate to come out of here with a win."

On today's passing game …
"I think some kids made plays today. Qua Searcy made a really nice play today on fourth down. Ricky Jeune made a really nice play. All those kids made good plays out there and Justin (Thomas) threw the ball where they would have a chance to catch it."

On team's pass protection …
"I think we are a little better. They were pretty good pass rushers a year ago and I think when we blocked the right guys, we looked pretty good. On that last drive we were trying to run a boot and they were up on the line and our guard - I'm not sure if he saw him but it would have been a hard block anyway – got around him but we self-inflicted some, too. Again, give them credit. They are good on defense and they have done that to a lot of folks. No one lights up the score against them. Those inside guys are good. (Truman Gutapfel) is a good player."

On Justin Thomas coming up big even when struggling …
"He makes plays towards the end a lot of times to help win the game and certainly he did today. When he pulled it down and scramble to the left, I thought he was going to score and end up getting tackled at the 4. The last touchdown by Dedrick (Mills), we called two plays in the huddle and I wanted to get him the ball because I really think he is going to be a good player and he didn't disappoint me."

On what he learned about team down the stretch …
"Well I think they want to win. They certainly fought hard. It would've been easy on 4th and 19 to just hang their head and they kept playing and found a way to win. And then the defense found a way to stop them when they were struggling before and they were able to get them to go three-and-out to get us the ball back for that touchdown."

Redshirt senior OL Freddie Burden

On facing BC's D-line …
"You have to give them all the credit in the world. They are in the top five each and every year. I'm thankful that this is the first game. We can play a lot better up front and we need to get back to the drawing board and I look forward to going through the rest of the season. But we have to focus on getting better and I'm glad we got the win today"

Redshirt senior QB Justin Thomas

On the last drive and the stress of it …
"Yea it was probably one of the craziest (games) I've been in and I've been in quite a few. So I was telling them out there it felt like a movie. We stuck together and held our heads up high and we found a way to do it. We had a lot of guys made some big plays at the end."

On spinning out of sack near end of game …
"Just will. I was just trying to do everything I could to stay up and to just get the ball out."

On the play on fourth down …
"I saw what the defense did the first time and they lined up in the same thing again, so I kind of knew where I was going with it so I was just hoping he would be there and he was. He made a big catch and the line protected me long enough to get him the ball."

On how he felt on the field …
"I felt good coming to the game and felt good coming out. I felt like the game could have gone more our way, but I think we learned from it and we learned a lot and we found a way to win and that is all we can ask for."

If he noticed the run game struggling …
"We didn't really struggle, we just had some miscues, some guys falling down because of the circumstances. But I think we have got a lot to learn from. That wasn't a bad team, they've been top five in the nation for the past few years, so it was a sound defense that plays sound football and we have just got to fix our mistakes."

On the rain and how it affected the game …
"It was strange. It wasn't like normal rain. It wasn't a regular rain - it was there but it wasn't affecting it too much. But you can't play your regular game in any type of weather conditions out there. At the end of the day, our guys ended up making the big plays we needed to in the passing game."

On redemption after not capitalizing on so many late game plays last season…
"I think so. Truthfully, I think if this was last year we wouldn't have finished the game and let our guard down. But what we did in the offseason, the way we got closer and how hard we worked it gave us that will to stay in the game. Nobody got down and everybody kept fighting and that's what we didn't have last year that we have this year. It was a big reason why we were able to come out with the win."

On the performance of the pass protection…
"I know for me I felt comfortable (in the pocket). It was just better seeing the pocket. I know there was a few times that they brought an extra guy, but it was more of a coverage sack than anything. So I think it was like night and day better."

Redshirt sophomore AB Qua Searcy

On his catch on 4th and 19…
"Like Justin (Thomas) said, what they did previously with the safeties rolling, I kind of figured. But I just knew someone had to make a play. I just saw the ball in the air and made a play on the ball."

On his confidence going into that play…
"Yes, we felt real confident. Justin (Thomas) kept our heads high and went out and executed."

On coming down with that catch despite being heavily covered…
"I tried to zone them out and focus on the ball. With the bad weather I wanted to focus on catching the ball and getting the first down."

Thoughts just before that play…
"Just needed something from the man above, and he delivered."

On playing in Ireland…
"We brought a great fan base over here and it was almost like our home stadium. When we ran out we could hear the whole stadium erupt. I felt comfortable out there and thankful for our fans for coming over and supporting us."

Freshman BB Dedrick Mills

On the TD run after fumbling …
"It felt pretty good. I had my teammates to back me up and to push me in. It was just fun."

On the game-winning play…
"On that last play I had my teammates – after I fumbled the ball the first time, I kind of got down – they came back up to me and were telling me I have to forget that last play. It's time to play another play, there is nothing you can do about it. I got my chance again and I just had to finish the play and drive the ball in."

On watching the offense from a defensive perspective…
"We just try to play our best game. We can control what we can control. That's how we went at it. It didn't matter what the offense was doing, we were playing our game."

Redshirt junior DB Corey Griffin

On his interception in the first quarter…
"Previously, I had the pass interference, I felt like I could have intercepted that one as well, but I knew I had to make a play for my team coming off of that play. The tight end came and sat down, and I just watched the ball come off his hands. It just came right to me."

On whether there was a player that stepped up and brought some focus to the defense…
"Well there're 11 guys on the field. You would expect anybody to step up at any given time, or else they wouldn't be on the field. We've been working hard since November of last year. We gave it our all. We got every snap."

On how the defense pulled itself together to make a stop to get the offense the ball to setup the winning drive…
"It was either all or nothing. We had to get a stop and put our offense in a good situation. We got together on the sideline, got focused up and executed plays."

On Jon Hilliman's 73-yard touchdown run…
"Small mistakes, small misfits. He made a great play. He made a great read. We've got guys hung up on blocks, and that's something we're going to have to work on. We've got to get off blocks. That's something that's going to have to continue to progress throughout the season. That's going to be the difference between game one and game two. That's something we're definitely going to have to work on is to get off blocks."

On the atmosphere around having a season-opening game in Dublin…
"It wasn't that much different. It was a great atmosphere. We appreciate all the fans that came out to support. Being in Ireland and being at home is definitely a different feeling. I think a lot of things added into that, too. Obviously the time change, getting used to that. Different food, different water. The little things, it makes a difference. We came out and we just decided we were going to play with a new energy this year and that's what we brought to field."

His takeaways from time spent in Ireland…
"I've enjoyed it here. I think Ireland's a beautiful country. We got to take a bus tour of Dublin. The people are awesome here, very welcoming. I enjoyed my time personally … When we first got here, seeing the cars on the wrong side of the road, it was different. We got adjusted to it, though, and it was a great experience."

On whether playing a game at 7:30 a.m. ET felt like a morning game…
"No, not at all. I think coach did a great deal when we got here, keeping us up, keeping us active, to get us adjusted to time."

Players Mentioned

Truman Gutapfel

Jon Hilliman

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