BearTalk

Here’s what Jeff Tedford had to say following Saturday’s game:

On getting the passing game going

There’s no question that I felt like Kevin was really sharp. He put the ball in places where guys could make plays on them. Marvin especially made some big plays in the passing game. I thought Kevin played within himself all day. He didn’t turn the football over. Obviously, when you make the long play in the pass game like we did a couple times, it’s critical to success.

 

On what he liked the most from the game

That it was a team effort. We made a lot of plays on both sides of the ball. We played really well together. That was the main focus going into this game. Our preparation the last two weeks was that we needed to stick together. As naysayers and critics step up, the people in that locker room are the ones who believe in each other. I thought we did a nice job of playing hard for each other. I was pleased with the way the guys hung in there. They kept battling. They were answering and making some plays of their own. Nobody ever panicked. They just hung in there and kept playing hard.

 

On managing the heat

We played some different players at times, just to make sure we kept people fresh. Shane was getting a little worn down. Jahvid was hurt at halftime and wasn’t ready for the first series or two. It was great to see Jahvid come back. It was important that we try to keep people fresh.

 

On finally getting a win in Los Angeles

It’s not personal at all. It’s for the program. It’s for the people before us. It’s for this year’s team. It’s a great feat for this year’s team. Going into this, it wasn’t about what’s happened in the past or what’s going to happen in the future. It was the opportunity that we had to play together between those lines out there. It’s not personal for me. It’s great for our program, it’s great for our university and it’s great for our players.

 

On huddling the team together before the fourth quarter started

The last two weeks, we really focused on being together and owning the fourth quarter. The message right then was now it’s the fourth quarter and we need to own it. Play together and have each other’s back the whole way.

 

On Shane Vereen’s performance

Shane was big. Shane made play after play. Shane had to return punts, he returned kickoffs. He played a lot at the tailback position, caught the ball coning out of the backfield, ran the ball well. He left it all on the field today. He did a great job today.

 

On the importance of the first drive

It was just one drive. You can’t get too high after one drive, but to go down and put points on the board was a nice way to open the game. But there was still a lot of football  left so nobody was too giddy about it. We went about business as usual.

 

On Jahvid Best’s day

The long touchdown run was about as good as it gets. Kevin Riley’s block on that was awesome. I don’t know if anybody saw that. If you didn’t, I’m sure he told you about it.

 

On having both Best and Vereen to go to

Both those kids are such quality kids. They support each other, they love each other. They’re just a pleasure to coach.

 

On UCLA’s defense

They’re a good defensive football team. Don’t take anything away from them. They’re physical up front, their backers are about as fast and athletic as you’re going to see. That’s a good football team that we played today.

 

On UCLA’s offense

I thought their quarterback played really well today. He put the ball in some places and he was very accurate throwing the ball. He did a nice job. You have to give them credit for making some plays. But I was pleased how our defense stiffened up in the red zone.

 

On Mychal Kendricks’ game-clinching interception

It was huge. The game right then was still back and forth and anything can happen. It was a huge play. To get points out of it, not just intercepting the ball but to put it in the end zone was huge. It gave us a little breathing room going down the stretch because we could really utilize the clock after that play.

 

On the importance of playing well after two lopsided losses

We’ve been talking the last two weeks that it’s a new season now. We start over right now and it’s a new season. I’ve been pleased the last two weeks with the attitude, the preparation, the togetherness of the team. Again, when a lot of things are against you, you can really learn a lot and teach a lot to young people. The trip down here was great. The preparation and the focus at the hotel was awesome. I was really pleased with the mindset of our players.

 

On the dynamics of the bus ride

We were able to meet for an hour on the bus. Everybody was loose and relaxed and we watched two movies, and then we were there. It was easy.

 

On what movies they watched

“Shooter,” is that a movie, with what’s his name? Wahlberg? The second one was some Western.

 

On the importance of the bye week

I think they needed it at that point for a lot of reasons. One of the reasons was I think time has a way of healing wounds. Everybody wants to talk about the last two weeks. We couldn’t get away from the last two weeks. The only way we could get away from the last two weeks was to put some space in between it.

 

On whether that was the team’s best offensive performance this season

I thought we played pretty well the first three weeks. Minnesota has a good defense. We weren’t perfect by any stretch. They stopped us. They had tackles for loss. We didn’t turn the football over, which was great. I thought one of the keys of the game was Bryan Anger. We had really poor field position, especially in the first half. I thought Bryan Anger did a great job of creating different field position with some nice punts. That is what you expect from Bryan. Today he showed why he is the punter that he is.