Jeff Johnson Played Quotations

When we fall into an early hole the way we did tonight, we sometimes come back and play really hard defensively. That wasn't really the case tonight. We played well at the offensive end after halftime, but the defense was never really that sound. That early lead Oswego East built just was more than we could overcome.

We really haven't played well in the last week. We need to pick it up to a higher level (this weekend). But this team is that way and I think they'll do that.

I am definitely proud of the effort these kids are giving. They played hard for four quarters. The effort has been there all season and when you consider how very frustrated they have been through the adversity in wins and losses, you have to be impressed. I can't say enough about their effort.

I don't think we played that badly. It was just one of those days. We didn't get any breaks and (Gulf Coast) didn't make any big mistakes. We just got ourselves in too big of a hole early to come back from.

He's been out six weeks and finally played on Tuesday. His presence makes it a lot different for other teams. He's a big body and he gives us leadership. Our kids definitely respond to him being there.

We played a great first quarter. We handled their pressure pretty well and got the ball to Alex. Then it turned into a physical game and we can't play that physical a style.

We've played up and down so far. When you play good competition, you get some of your weaknesses exposed and we have been exposed at times.

It was a six-point game in the second quarter and they had that run. If we hang in there, get a couple of stops, you never know. It's a real tribute to our guys, though. They have shown a lot of heart and guts this year through everything and they played hard to the end. Unfortunately it's a loss, but it was a great way for our seniors to finish. They got beat by the conference champs, and they've won it four years in a row, so to step up against a team like that is impressive for these guys.