Colorado Head Coach Dan Hawkins 

On Colorado’s Slow Start – “They came at us hard to start, and we held them to field goals, but then throwing that pick did not help. I am very proud of our guys. They could have folded the tent, but they fought back and showed incredible resolve.

“We had a little trouble finding our rhythm at the start, and we could not convert third downs. We also allowed them to convert third downs in the beginning. I think that we needed to settle down and get in the groove.”

On Touchdown Late in 1^st Half – “It was a huge momentum shift for us. It was good to get within striking distance going into the half. It also showed that we were also able to drive the ball a little bit.”

On Season – “You would have liked to win your last game and go 7-6, but I think that this lose gives our guys a little juice going into the off season workouts. I am very excited to be at the University of Colorado, which is a school with tremendous pride, and tremendous tradition. I want to be a part of a National Championship here at Colorado. We have made strides this season, and the best years are in front of us.

TE Tyson DeVree

On Second Touchdown Catch – “Cody threw a great ball; he really threaded the ball on that play. I did not run a great route, but he threw a great pass.”

On Team Perseverance – “That is what Colorado football is all about. We never give up. They came out and hit us in the mouth early, that is for sure, but we fought back hard, and we gave it all we had, but we just ran out of time.”

TB Hugh Charles

On Comeback – “Just heart. We had all kinds of emotion, especially us seniors. We wanted to win tonight, but that did not happen. I am very proud of our team because we fought all the way to the end.”

On CU Running Game – “Alabama’s strength is their speed and size. A lot of our runs went nowhere, but when we executed as a team, the holes were there and we were able to make some plays. All in all, great job by the offensive line and Cody [Hawkins]. They engineered the comeback”

OT Tyler Polumbus

On Poor Start – “I do not know the answer to why we started like that. Bowl games are just funny sometimes. They got out and had a big lead, and we had to comeback. Unfortunately, we were on the wrong end of the outcome.”

On Alabama Defense – “They did what we expected them to do, and they are a good team. We just came up short in the end.”

WR Dusty Sprague

On Touchdown Catch – Cody threw a great ball, and gave me the chance to make a great play. We ended up on the short side in the end. One thing that I want say is that I love playing with these guys. I knew that we were going to come back and make it a game, that is just how we are.”

On Alabama – “They are a good team, but we knew that we could play with them. We just had to little to late.”

On Comeback – “We had great pass protection, and Cody did a great job of making plays. He was able to spread the ball around well.”

On Finishing Career at CU – “ It is hard to take off the black and gold for the last time, but I loved playing with all these guys, and I have been through a lot with them.”

DT George Hypolite

General – “ I feel like the coaching staff did a good job of getting us ready to play. I do not think that we started that slow; Alabama just started real fast. Once we matched their intensity, we started to comeback. In bowl games, you cannot hit the field in third or fourth gear, you have to hit the field in overdrive.”

On Team Competitiveness – “I guess I can speak for the team, we are all competitors. I don’t care if I am playing my grandma in gin, I do not like to lose. We are headed in the right direction, and we are going to keep playing and fighting to the end. I can guarantee that the product we put on the field next year will be where it needs to be to win the Big 12 championship. I am not saying we will or we wont win the Big 12, but we are going to work ourselves into a position to do so next season.”

QB Cody Hawkins

General – “We needed to come out of the gate faster. Part of that was my fault because I was not pushing the pace like I needed to. When you get behind in College football, momentum can really change the game.”

On Alabama – “They are a lot like Florida State. They are big and athletic, and they can basically do what they want athletically. They did things to mess us up, and that is a tribute to how good of a team they are.”