Dec. 21, 2005
– SAFETY Chris Reis
On going out to San Francisco for the bowl game
“I can’t wait and I’m just excited. I’ve never been out to San Francisco and I hear it’s a great town and that there’s a lot to do. I know a lot of the guys are looking forward to it and there are a lot of activities planned for us so it should be a good time.”
On whether the atmosphere of a bowl game can be distracting and how hard it can be to stay focused on the actual game
“It can be difficult at times, but you have to remember that it’s a reward as much it is a game. We want to go out there and enjoy ourselves but our main goal is to win the ballgame. The past few years, we’ve been pretty focused and come out relaxed which has helped us so I think it will be a good game.”
Is there less pressure in a game like this than there would be in a regular season game?
“I think there is. Like I said before, it’s supposed to be a reward and something that you enjoy. You want to end the season well and we’re definitely going to do our best to try and get a win.”
How do you balance going out there and enjoying yourself along with staying focused enough for the game?
“You have to know that there’s a time and place for everything. There’s a time to work and a time to play. The coaches are good about keeping our focus on certain things at different times. As seniors, it’s up to us to lead the younger guys and show them how we’ve done it in the past couple of years.”
QUARTERBACK Reggie Ball
On going out to San Francisco to play Utah
“We’re going out there to enjoy ourselves and the scenery but ultimately, we’re there to win a football game.”
On getting to spend Christmas the team
“It’s always fun being with your teammates, no matter what day it is. It’s going to be weird not being around the family during that time of year but I don’t think we’ll be thinking about that too much because we’re going out there to win and we’ll all be focused. I know a lot of the guys will be on their cell phones a lot to stay in touch with their families and to wish everyone at home a merry Christmas.”
On preparing to play Utah
“They’re a good, aggressive football team and they’re going to do what they want to do. They want to establish their type of game and that’s the way they like to play. I haven’t really paid too much attention to them this year because I’m so busy with the football season but I know they have a pretty good running back [Quinton Ganther].”
How do you balance your focus on winning the game with the trip itself?
“It’s just like any other game. You have to be able to focus on different things at different times. If you’re just focusing on playing the game during the whole trip, you’re not going to enjoy some of the other things that are going on.”
On what winning a bowl game does for you and the team heading into next season
“The bowl game is a reward for what you’ve been able to accomplish during the season but at the same time, it’s also a chance to for every bowl team to get a jump start for next season. We’re just trying to take advantage of the opportunity that’s given to us to end this season and start next season on the right foot. It makes a lot easier for us to start next year on a higher note if we win our bowl game.”
On winning the MVP award at last year’s Champ Sports Bowl
“It was great to end the season on a high note. Last season was crazy for me personally and to finish the season like we did was great for me and for the team in general.”
On being 3-for-3 with bowl games in his career
“You always want to end out the season winning your last regular season game, which unfortunately we lost, so we just want to end the season on the right note and get prepared for next week.”
On how practice is going
“We are still getting familiar with Utah and we have a long way to go.”
On the youth of the offense, and if you can still be learning about each other 12 games into the season
“We have certain players that haven’t gotten all of the reps that they want, but everyone is still learning. You’re going to learn something every day.”
On the offensive line
“They started out pretty good and ended up pretty good. We didn’t really have a bad game, and we didn’t give up a lot of sacks in any particular game. A lot of people try to criticize your line, but they have come in and given up the fewest sacks in the ACC, which is really a statement. They don’t talk much, they don’t get a lot of hype, but they lead the ACC.
We go out there every day and go at it full-tilt because you never know who is going to go down. You make sure that everyone gets reps, and that everyone knows what they are doing, and that’s just a credit to the coaching staff.”
On how different this bowl game is
“It’s not that much different because it’s the same story, really. You want to end out the season on a positive note and start of on a high for next season. You approach it the same, you want to win.”
You’ve put up a lot of points in the last few bowl games
“We have gone out there the past few years and have gotten the job done in all facets of the game. We hope that we can do that this year, but we are going out and preparing for a dogfight.”
How much have you learned about Utah?
“I can see that they are very aggressive and they want to make plays. I have a lot to learn, a lot more to look at and a lot more to go over.”
RUNNING BACK P.J. Daniels
How much does the extra time to prepare for a bowl game help you and the offense
“I think it gives everyone time to really study film and prepare for the team that we’ll be facing. It’s also important for us to enjoy ourselves and have fun while we’re out there. I think players realize when to focus on the game and when to have fun.”
Is there less pressure for a bowl game?
“When you have this much time to study a team instead of trying to cram a lot of information into just one week like in the regular season, that’s why there’s less pressure. We have time to get more reps in so it’s easier for a lot of guys to be better prepared once game time comes.”
What were your thoughts when you heard you were going to the Emerald Bowl?
“It’s just a blessing to be able to go to another bowl game and get a chance to enjoy ourselves. I also have some family out there so it will be nice to get to see them.”
WIDE RECEIVER Calvin Johnson
Will it be different spending the holidays without any family around?
“Yes, it’ll be my first time away from my family for the holidays.”
What are your thoughts on the season and how you and the team did?
“I think we’re making big strides right now. We’re 7-4 which is better than the last two years so I think we’re improving and we’ll have a good team next year. Personally, I had a good year and was named an All-American. After this game, I’m going to reflect on how the season went and what I can improve in.”
When you were named to the All-America team, what are the first thoughts that went through your mind?
“It was a great honor but I can’t let it get to my head because I still have another game to play this season.”
On playing Utah
“I’m not going to talk about our game plan, but we’ve been able to watch some tape on them and learn some of their formations.”
Do you feel like there are some games where you think no one is going to able to stop you?
“If a team wants to cover me one-on-one or double-cover me, I think that I still have to find a way to get open.”
How much satisfaction do you get from being double-covered and knowing that it’s probably opening some holes for another receiver?
“I take a lot of satisfaction from it because I love to see my fellow receivers capitalize because of that. It always tells you that you’re doing good things out on the field when a team respects you enough to double-cover you. I take a lot of pride in that.”
How does your attitude change now that the pressures of the regular season are gone?
“We’d love to have an eight-win season. I think we’ve been successful so far this year but we’re still focusing on this game and trying to improve for next year. The whole bowl experience is one that centers on being more relaxed and leaving what happened in the regular season behind. It’s a fresh start.”
Are you looking forward to going out to San Francisco?
“I am. I hear that it’s a nice city. I’ve been out there once when I was younger so I don’t really remember much of it, but I’m definitely looking forward to it.”
WIDE RECEIVER Damarius Bilbo
On what it’s like to graduate
“It’s the best feeling ever. I came to Tech to graduate, and I did it in four-and-a-half (years), and I’m proud of myself and for my other teammates that graduated with me.
It’s a relieving feeling, but then again you think about it, and you realize that these are the guys that you’ve bonded with for four or five years and all of you are going your separate ways and it’s kind of sad, but you have to congratulate yourself for doing it because there are a lot of people that come in and don’t make it.”
On playing in your fourth-straight bowl game
“Ultimately, I hope another win for this program and continuing to build on the tradition. Georgia Tech is one of the best teams in the postseason as far as bowls and making it to bowls and pulling out the victory, so we hope to continue that trend.
You never want to break a tradition. You never want to be the team that didn’t make it to the bowl game, so we’re proud to be a senior class that continued that tradition.”
On his year
“It was a big year. We got a big win against Miami and other big wins, but we also had some close losses. Every game I felt that we grew as an offense and as a team overall. We had a lot of guys to step up that most people, including myself, didn’t think would step up. We got the obvious out of Calvin every week. Reggie stepped up a lot, grew up a lot and matured, and just the overall team performance was probably one of the best since I’ve been here.”
On the growth for the guys that are coming back
“When we came in, the line was really young, but they handled the best defensive line in the nation in Miami, which really gave them a lot of confidence going into the off-season. You’ve got Calvin coming back, James Johnson played a lot this year stepped up, Reggie being his senior year, so it’s scary at how good we’re going to be. We’re going to be a good team next year, a real good team.”
