CB Jimmy Smith

ON HIS INTERCEPTION—“The coaches called us out at halftime and told us to force some turnovers. The ball was just in the air for me and I caught it and took it to the house.”

ON HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTS—“The coaches came in and basically asked us when we were going to start playing. We went back out there and started making plays in the second half; the defensive strategy didn’t really change.”

ON THE SEASON—“It has been an up and down season, the coaches basically called out the DBs and told us to force some turnovers. It was a big game for us, it was the seniors’ last home game, the game that would make us bowl eligible and it was against a rival. We wanted to send the seniors out right and we were able to do that.”

ON HIS PLAY—“Coach [Greg] Brown always tells me to use my arms because they are so long and that is what I tried to do today. T-Wheat [CB Terrence Wheatley] really helped me today, he helped me make some adjustments and I was able to help the team.”

WR Scotty McKnight

ON TODAY’S GAME—“It was a great win for the program, we showed that our offense can put up a lot of points when we execute. We played hard today and it was great to get a win in this rivalry game.”

ON HIS TOUCHDOWN RECEPTION—“It was an option route, I change my route based on what I see. I ran a comeback route and the guy covered me well, Cody just threw a great ball and I held on tight. I really think that Hugh’s touchdowns and Byron’s [Ellis] touchdown really helped us put the dagger in the game.”

ON THE OFFENSIVE PERFORMANCE—“I think we had so much success offensively because we have worked so hard these last two weeks. The coaches won’t tell you this but they work at all hours of the night to put together a great game plan for us. With all the preparation we had we felt we were prepared for anything, we watched a lot of film and that helped us feel comfortable with what we’d see and enabled us to be successful.”

TB Byron Ellis

GENERAL—“This feels great, we beat Nebraska and came out in the second half and played great. I love this team and I am proud of how much heart we showed today. We came out and came from behind to beat Nebraska.”

ON HIS TOUCHDOWN—“We were just running our four-minute offense, which is basically just trying to waste time. I saw an opening and just took it, I got through the hole and there was no one around. It feels great to go out with a touchdown in front of our home crowd.”

LB Jordon Dizon

ON HIS CAREER AT CU—“It [the Buffalo Heart Award] means a lot to me, I was brought here to play football and I’ve just been doing what they tell me to do for four years. I get to go to school because of football and I am really grateful for the opportunity and am proud of how we played today.”

ON THE NEBRASKA OFFENSE—“They kind of dinked us in the first half, then they hit us for a few explosion plays (20 yards or longer).  In the second half we settled down, got that glazed look out of our eyes and played steely-eyed the rest of the game.”

ON HIS PERSONAL SUCCESS—“First off, I have to give it to my defensive line they take up those blocks for me and keep those 300-pounders off of me, so I really have to give it up to [DT] Brandon Nicolas and [DT] George Hypolite. They keep them off me—that keeps me healthy and free to make plays.”

ON HIS FUTURE—“When that stuff happens [the possibility of playing in the NFL and being a Butkus Award finalist] it happens, right now I am just ready to hopefully start preparing for a bowl game. I get one more game with my family, my brothers and it has been a pleasure to play with them. I love them all and am just happy to have one more chance to play with them.”

SS Lionel Harris

GENERAL—“You can’t beat this feeling, it feels like we’re going out on top. It was an exciting game, playing my last home game, playing against our rival, it was the perfect way to end the regular season. We beat them bad enough, we scored more then they [Colorado] did back in 2001 when they won 62-36, it was just a great win in my last home game.”

ON HIS INTERCEPTION—“I’m not sure who tipped it but someone did and the ball was just floating in the air. I had to make the play and I was able to leave an impression on the game.”

ON THE DEFENSE’S SECOND HALF PERFORMANCE—“Really the defensive coaches said they had been calling the right plays it was just a matter of us executing them. We tried to do that and executed better in the second half.”

TE Tyson DeVree

GENERAL—“It feels good, I am really proud of this team, we stuck with it and kept pushing all game. It’s always fun to play at home and especially with my teammates.”

ON HIS TOUCHDOWN RECEPTION—“Cody read the coverage and the middle was pretty closed so I kept it skinny and he threw a great ball. We needed all the points we could get today and I’m glad I was able to contribute.”

DE Alonzo Barrett

ON THE GAME—“It was a wild game but we came out in the second half and executed better than we did in the first half. We talked at the half about going out and playing hard and ending everything on a good note and we were able to do that.”

ON HIS BLOCKED PUNT—“I was out there because we were watching for a fake, but I knew that if they punted it I would be able to block it and I did that. I was able to duck under my man and just got in there deep enough and blocked it.”

Nebraska Players

QB Joe Ganz

GENERAL--- “Second half was tough, there were those two balls that I want back, the interceptions let them back in the game and gave them life.”

ON INTERCEPTIONS--- “It was my fault; I thought the first one was pass interference. I feel I let them back in the game.”

ON RUMORS SURROUNDING COACH CALLAHAN---“It can be a distraction if you let it, but you can’t let if affect you and your game. I hope he stays but it is out of my control.”

ON SEASON--- “It’s tough to go 5-6 and not make a bowl game. We let a lot of people down. It makes me sick that we didn’t make a bowl game. It’s really tough and I wish we could have gotten one more win.”

NT Ndamukong Suh

GENERAL--- “The defense needed to get a stop. We had some unfortunate turnovers on offense, and that’s when we nned to get turnovers on defense. Mistakes will happen we just need to prepare better.”

ON SEASON--- “It is very disappointing, we never came together as a team. It’s a huge disappointment considering the talent we have on the team. It’s time to get back to work.”

WR Maurice Purify

ON GAMEPLAY & COACHING SITUATION—“It’s not the coaches fault we don’t play good, I feel we just didn’t play well.”

FRUSTRATION – “We went from potential big 12 champs to no bowl game, it’s not hard to believe because its football.  We didn’t play as well as last season.”

SS Larry Asante

ON SEASON OUTCOME – “This year we felt we had a team that could compete with anybody.  The balls just didn’t fall our way.”

LB  Bo Ruud

ON THE PREPARATION FOR THE GAME FROM THE COACHING STAFF – “They told us the same type of things about preparing for the game. Coach [Bill] Callahan told us also that he cares for us and he is behind us 100 percent.”

ON THE SATURDAY PRESS CONFERENCE IN LINCOLN – “I try and stay out of that kind of stuff. I just play ball and play for my teammates and coaches. I just feel terrible right now.”

ON THE FEELINGS OF PLAYING HIS LAST COLLEGIATE FOOTBALL GAME – “I feel badly because of the way it ended. When I began playing football at Nebraska, it was five years ago. Looking back, the five years has gone by really fast. I am proud that I played for Nebraska and even this season cannot take away the good feelings I have towards this program. In the summer, I thought we could be National Champions. The thoughts of a 5-7 record and no bowl game did not cross my mind once. It was not a possibility.”

ON THE MOMENTUM SHIFT IN THE SECOND HALF – “I thought the game was over when we got the momentum because usually when we get the momentum in the second half, the game usually turns our way. Then we had a couple of turnovers that hurt our chances, and we never recovered from that.”

ON HIS THOUGHTS ON HEAD COACH BILL CALLAHAN – “It has been through with all of the scrutiny from the media but not once did Coach Callahan blame anything on his players. I was really impressed about how he always backed up his players.”

Senior LB Corey McKeon

ON HIS THOUGHTS ON THE SEASON – “I thought going into the season we had a solid base of seniors and lots of experience. I think we drained ourselves a little bit and that hurt us in the long run. I am proud of these seniors and what they have done. They fought to the very end and to have a losing season is a disappointment.”

ON HIS THOUGHTS ON THE COACHING STAFF – “I think they did a great job. They played with the cards they were dealt. They did what they could do.”

ON DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR KEVIN COSGROVE – “I could not play for any other coach. Coach Cosgrove treated me like family. He was a great coach and a great man. If I asked any more from him I would be selfish.”

ON THE DISTRACTIONS – “I thought that the distractions were a factor this season, especially with the media coverage in Lincoln. I always say that any football player should just play and leave it all out on the field and not pay attention to the distractions off the field.”

ON THE TURNING POINT OF THE SEASON – “I think that game against Southern California was the turning point. We had a lot invested in that game. All of us thought that we had a good shot to win that game and because we did not, I think it drained us for the rest of the season. I think that affected our play against other Big 12 schools that were not ranked and not as tough on paper.”