Ohio State’s defense had its turn with the Sugar Bowl media on Monday. Here’s some of what was said:
LB CURTIS GRANT
(on facing Alabama’s offense) “They’re a dynamic offense. They’ve got two great backs and obviously they have a great receiver. We’re going to try our best to make them one-dimensional.”
(on being the underdog in this matchup) “We love being underdogs. It puts more pressure on us to keep working hard and get ready to go out there and compete.”
(on Alabama QB Blake Sims) “He’s one of those quarterbacks that can keep plays alive. He can beat you with his arm when you’re not paying attention. If you give him a little bit of space, he can make you miss and run the ball to keep the play alive. You’ve got to be able to contain him.”
(on setting the tone early against a team like Alabama) “They’re a great team, so you can’t let a great team come in and get a lot of momentum. You’ve got to do your best to limit them to what they do. Like I said, when a team gets the momentum and they get rolling, there is no telling what they can do.”
(on whether Head Coach Urban Meyer has shared anything on his prior SEC experience) “He’s just been preparing us to go out and play hard and play physical. He hasn’t said anything to us about it. It’s more just getting ready to face your opponent.”
(on containing Alabama WR Amari Cooper) “We’ve got to maintain him a lot. He’s one of those guys that can do anything with the ball. You’ve just got to be able to contain him and rally to him. You can’t leave him by himself. He’s one of those players that can make you miss at any time.”
LB JOSHUA PERRY
(on being in New Orleans so far) “It’s been pretty good. We have been really focused. It’s a fun city with a lot of history. We’ve had a couple of team outings. We went bowling last night, that was fun; but, it’s been good to be down here preparing. We got in the dome to practice. That was awesome. We’ve also been relaxing and getting our mind right with the team. “
(on stopping the Alabama offense) “I think the key is that you can’t focus too much on stopping [Amari ] Cooper and doing the things that they do in their passing game, because you’ll lose focus on the run and they can get you on that. They have a good running attack and a couple of backs that can really play. So, our focus has to be on stopping the run and making sure you are taking the edge away in order to focus on those other things.”
(on the Dome atmosphere) “It’s different than when we played in Indianapolis. In the Dome, there is a lot going on in there. They have the suite setup. It’s hot as it is and it is going to get hotter when it fills up with people. We have got to get used to that. When they pump up the noise during practice, it sounds a little different. Everything about it is a little different from what we are used to; but, getting a feel for things has been great.”
(on the positivity of the team heading into the game) “We are really positive. We like the players that we have and we trust the players that coach is putting into place. I think that it is really important we have those two things. We trust the guys around you and we know the coaches are going to put the right players in a position to be successful. So, you’re able to go out there and prepare. It’s good to know that if you do what they say, then you will go out there and be in the right position to be successful.”
DL MICHAEL BENNETT
(on confidence of the team) “I think the defense and the team have a lot of confidence. I think we know what we can do now. We’re not worried about if we are good enough in this position or that we are struggling in this positon. I think everyone knows that we have units that can execute.”
(on playing in the [College Football Playoff] Semi-finals) “There is a lot more…hopefully there’s more to come after this. It is not just a bowl game and that’s the end of your season. You win this game and you go to the National Championship. There is a lot more riding on this game then there has been in the past. Sometimes, people don’t even want to play bowl games. They are just concerned with getting to the NFL or next season. This game is big. There is so much riding on it.”
(on the comparison between the Big Ten and SEC) “We get tired of a lot of things that are continuously said; but, it is what it is. So, you just have to accept it and try to do your best for your conference, because of whatever happens, this will be the game that everyone says, ‘The Big Ten is better than the SEC, or the SEC is better than the Big Ten.’ So, we are going to go out there and play our hardest, and they are going to go out there and play their hardest. I guess we’ll find out.”
(on playing against Trey DePriest) “He’s big, fast and distinguishable. I know he is the best player on their team by far. He is fun to play against. I know nothing about their defense. I’m pretty sure he got All-American this year, so I assume we’ll have a game plan against him. He has everything it takes to be a great linebacker. He is still a threat.”
(on Ron Ullery’s comments about him playing offensive line ) “It is an honor for him to say that. I was good at offensive line, but I didn’t think I had a future at offensive line. I didn’t know how big I could get. I thought they love 320 pounders. I didn’t know if I could put on that much weight; but, defensive line has served me well. I still have a ways to go and can get better at it. Knowing that I was able to play well on both sides of the ball is comforting.”
DL JOEY BOSA
(on how he is enjoying New Orleans) “It’s definitely a different place. I had a fun night the other night. It’s just been nice being with my guys.”
(on how anxious he is to play in this game) “I’m ready, definitely ready. But, we have to wait until Thursday for it.”
(on how this month with the awards banquets and the bowl preparation been for him) “It’s been pretty hectic, but also pretty relaxing at the same time without school and just focusing on football. It’s been nice being around my team a lot and I think practices have been going pretty well this month.”
(on if his postseason awards have brought validation to his production on the field) “I’m not really worried about personal achievements as much as the team. I didn’t really win anything (laughing). I came in second and third. I do enjoy it. It’s what you work for and it’s nice to see what you’re doing actually pay off a little bit; but, I’m really focusing on the team right now.”
(on being able to play for either team out of high school and what made him choose Ohio State) “I felt that Ohio State was another home away from home and it was a perfect fit for me. Just the people, the environment and everything fit together perfectly. When you’re getting recruited, you get this feeling when you really know where you want to go and I had that feeling at Ohio State.”
(on the similarities between the two programs) “I think they are the two best coaches in college football. They’re just intense and they know what they’re doing. You don’t have to like them, but you have to respect them because they know what they’re doing and they’re going to win football games.”
(on originally committing to Alabama and now having an opportunity to play against them) “As a football team, you always want to get a shot at a team like Alabama because they’ve been at the top of college football for years now. Obviously, we want to show up for the Big Ten, a little bit, and get a chance to face a big-time SEC team.”
(on Alabama being the ‘gold standard’ of college football programs) “They’re pretty much what every college football team is trying to get to. It’s going to be fun to get a shot at them.”
(on Ohio State embracing the underdog role and if that provides the team with motivation) “I guess when you hear the underdog and what people think it’s going to be, and you’re on the losing end of it, it gets at you a little bit and you want to prove people wrong. It’s always fun to prove people wrong.”
(on if the underdog status gives the team a chip on its shoulder) “There is a chip for all of us just to prove that we are the best team in the country.”
(on the performance of quarterback Cardale Jones in the Big Ten Championship game and what he expects out of Jones in the Sugar Bowl) “He got to go against the first-team defense all year in practice with him being with the twos going against the ones. He got the best workout of any of the quarterbacks. He was the starter going in when Braxton [Miller] went down,. J.T. [Barrett] took the spot. To even be thought of as maybe being the starting quarterback at Ohio State, you obviously have to have great talent. He’s got a crazy strong arm, he’s an athletic guy, he can run around, and he’s a big dude. We weren’t worried about what he was going to do.”
(on what the team has planned for New Year’s Eve) “We’re going to treat it as we do every other Friday, just how we do Friday’s [before a game]. We’re going to meet, relax and get our minds right for the next day.”
(on getting the respect of opponents and how that helps open things up for his teammates) “In the beginning, I was a little bit upset when people starting scheming towards me. But, it really doesn’t bother me now. It just opens up opportunities for all the other linemen and the other defensive players to get single blocked. If you just leave one guy on Adolphus [Washington] or Mike [Bennett], it’s going to be a bad day.”
(on the scrutiny the defense has faced and what shutting out Wisconsin did for the unit) “It was a big confidence booster. I think we needed it as a defense. We really knew what we could do, but we never really showed it. We always say we are what we put on tape and we finally put on tape what we could do.”
CB DORAN GRANT
(on Challenges facing Ohio State secondary with Alabama’s receiving corps) “Just play hard and play to the best of our abilities.”
(on thoughts about Amari Cooper) “He’s a great player. We’ve seen a lot of film on him. He’s a good route runner and has good speed. He’s a very, very good ball-catcher.”
(on playing against a player of Cooper’s caliber and the challenge that comes with it) “I’m definitely looking forward to it, especially in a game like this. It’s an historical moment in college football and I’m looking forward to it.”
(on Alabama’s offensive strategy and ability to stretch the field) “We’ve seen it on film and we are aware of it. We’ve got to play our coverages and trust our teammates.”
(on Alabama’s offense in general) “They are different offensively. They are more balanced and like to run the ball a lot, obviously, but they can spread the ball around more than they have in the past.”
(on Alabama quarterback Blake Sims) “He can scramble. He’s more mobile than previous Crimson Tide quarterbacks. He’s a dual-threat in my opinion. He can make guys miss and keep plays alive.”
(on the challenge facing him trying to shut down a Heisman finalist like Amari Cooper) “In a playoff game like this, it’s what expected. You want to play the great players and great teams, so you will have matchups like this with teams going head-to-head with a lot of talent. A player like [Amari] Cooper, he’s able to make a lot of big plays happen for his team. This playoff is what it’s about. It’s going to have some exciting moments.”
(on Ohio State’s general team attitude this week) “We are sticking together. That’s the main thing I can say. Our attitude and mindset is very good. The tighter you are [as a group] the harder you are going to play for one another. When that happens, you don’t know how you are going to play – you can play harder and better than you ever thought you could.”
Christopher Walsh has covered Alabama football since 2004 and is the author of 19 books. In his free time, he writes about college football.
