Barry Alvarez Game Quotations

So, I thought we had a chance to be a nice football team. Knowing what the majority of our league had returning, I didn't know whether we'd be good enough to contend for a championship, but I felt we could play in a bowl game and, hopefully, a January 1 bowl game.

He wants to be on the field so badly and earned the starting spot and just doesn't want to give it up. (He) plays the game the way it's supposed to be played.

Sure it's significant. We're keeping score so the game means something. We're here representing our league, our school. I want our guys to play well.

I think Joe has mentioned it and I've seen it written before, that our game may have cost them two or three games. They couldn't get that game out of their system, it was such a tough loss.

I thought just the management of the game, making adjustments on the run and executing on both sides of the ball as well as playing all the young guys, I think all those things are good. I think just the way they prepared for a game like this and went out and executed it. Just a lot of things were built on. Plus we got some momentum going into next week.

That's what can happen in this game if you don't take care of the football. Anybody can beat you.

You have to correct mistakes and just show where we had breakdowns. A lot of it was communication. That's something that we'll have to correct and go back to fundamentals. You've got a totally different game plan this week and a different type of team that you're defending.

Every game in this league is a big game and every one, there's always an issue because all the games ... we've had good games with them.

I tried to avoid making a big deal about this being my final game. I had some emotional moments -- the last game at Camp Randall (Stadium), the ceremony after, the banquet.

It's going to be a very physical game, a game where you're going to have to take on linemen and stop very outstanding backs and then still respect the throw. Where last week was you're spread all over the field, this is a little more conventional.

I like the fact that we can go to a bowl game and reward them (the scout team players) as well as the starters.

I haven't seen any frustration, I really haven't. I pulled him over late in the (Indiana) game and told him to just keep going because I think it's just a matter of time. There have been probably three (runs) this year where he sees nothing but goal line in front of him, and somebody dives and just nips his toes. But he'll get some of those before the year is over.

I don't mean to be short, but we have dealt with this all year. I guess it was when the water hit me on the back when the game was over. That's it. There is nothing like seeing a quarterback take a knee. I love that play. That's my favorite play in football when John takes a knee. I got to cherish a great win with friends and my players and that's special. I couldn't find a better way to go out.