Nov. 20, 2007
Head coach Joe Novak and seniors Brandon Davis, Chris Nendick, Chris Acevedo and Mark Reiter met with the media during Tuesday's weekly press conference to preview NIU's final game of the 2007 season Saturday vs. Ball State. Below are selected quotes from the media session.
Head Coach Joe Novak
Opening Statement
"I am very proud of our kids. The effort that we had last Saturday was outstanding. Navy is 7-4 and going to a bowl game. It was a good defensive effort overall by our guys and I thought we did very well against a very potent offensive ball team. We actually made them punt three times when they have only punted twelve times all year. I was proud that we were able to do that. I thought that we played well enough to give ourselves a chance to win. I am also proud of Ryan Morris for sticking in there and playing hard in the place of Danny [Nicholson]. Overall, I am very proud of this team and I liked the effort that they took out onto the field on Saturday."
On Ball State
"Ball State is a very good football team, if not the best team in the MAC. They have been very competitive this year and probably the hottest team in the league. Their quarterback Nate Davis is playing very well and has a lot of skill. This may be the most athletic defensive challenge that we have had all year. It is going to be a great challenge. It's the seniors last game so it is going to be a very emotional day for them. I will expect our team to give another great effort."
On the season coming to a close
"It's been a hard year. In some ways I am happy it is ending, but in other ways no. We do this because we love coaching these kids and being with them as well as the relationships that you build with them. Knowing that at least nine of these kids will not be back and the team will be different than what it was this year is always sad and emotional. I have enjoyed these players. That part of it has been fun. Some of the results on Saturday have not been fun, but working with the kids has. The weeks seem to fly by when you are winning, but when you are losing, it seems like forever before you get another chance to get on the field and get after it again to get a good taste in your mouth. When you are losing, it's a long, long week. A football team is a family, and when you are winning it is a great, great high. Losing is just a downer, and you got seven days to wait until you get a chance to play again. Sometimes it seems like those seven days are like seven months."
On ending the year with momentum
"What you go into after the season ends is a long off-season. I mean our kids will start lifting next week. They will be in there lifting for two days a week and they will be given workouts that they are supposed to do and a workout to do over the holiday break. We will come back from break and get into our winter program, then we will have spring ball, and then we do stuff all summer. Coming off a victory at the end is huge because it gives you a little bit more momentum and the off-season is just a little bit more enjoyable. I am not saying it will make a difference in our season opener next year, but it will definitely make the off-season feel a lot better."
Tight End Brandon Davis
On playing his final college game on Saturday
"Saturday is a special moment. It really is the last time you get to put on the red Huskie jersey. You just want to go out and give it your all and leave everything out on the field. For me personally, it has been a great experience. I have participated in two bowl games and a MAC championship game. That is more than what a lot of players get to do in their career. It definitely has been one heck of an experience here at NIU."
On trying to finish the season with a victory
"I think it is very important. That win against Kent State really turned things around for us. If we can go out on a "W" it will just feel that much better. The last two games have charged us up a bit to try to win to finish out the season."
On giving advice to the underclassmen
"I would want to tell them to work hard and put their best foot forward every time. I would tell them to work so hard and do everything as best you can so when you leave NIU, you will have no regrets about your time in the football program. You learn how to compete in football, but you also learn how to fight some of life's challenges in the process. That's definitely the message that I would send to the underclassmen."
Kicker Chris Nendick
On playing his final college game on Saturday
"It is the last chance to put the red jersey on. It's very special. The last four years have flown by and I cannot believe this is my last game as a Huskie in my college career. It's been great. I've had great teammates and a great coaching staff. NIU has been a great place and a great experience."
On giving advice to the underclassmen
"As a college football player you work so hard. It's not just during the season, it's the summers, the winters, the spring, the off-season. You wake up and sometimes you don't want to get out of bed, but you've got to put your socks and shoes on and go run. But, as an upperclassman, those days are dwindling. As a senior playing my last home game, I would tell every underclassmen to take everyday and live it like it were your last. Time will fly. College football is fun and time flies when you are having fun."
Offensive Tackle Chris Acevedo
On playing his final college game on Saturday
"You know we have been talking about this last game all year. Just the other day after the Navy game I was taking my pads off and it hit me that I would only get to do this for NIU one more time after four and a half years. It is kind of mixed emotions. It's going to be a different kind of emotional experience for all of us not knowing what to expect. Having my family out there on the field with me will be a great feeling. It's over now."
On giving advice to the underclassmen
"One thing I would tell the younger guys is to play for each other. We are a family and we are here for each other. Just go out there and enjoy it. College football and going to school is our lives. Just go out there and enjoy the things you love. Enjoy what you have with your teammates. I know they will be a great team next year."
Safety Mark Reiter
On playing his final college game on Saturday
"I really do not think that all this is going to hit me until I am out there with my parents on the field. For so many years, seeing all the upperclassmen go and move on, we have all become great friends with them. I am not sure how it is going to hit me Saturday but it is going to be a very sad day for me. Football has been a huge part of my life and my experience at NIU has been great. It's like coach Novak says, there is so much more to college football than wins and losses and this year we have not had much luck as far as that goes. The one thing I am always going to take away from it is the friendships that I have made and the people I have met and have been a part of with NIU. I am very grateful, it has been a great place to be and I am very fortunate."
On the team's confidence heading into the Ball State game
"We have kind of had our backs against the wall the whole season and it was just getting worse and worse every week. The win against Kent State and the battle that we gave Navy kind of helped that out. It has definitely turned our momentum around and we can try to get a good taste in our mouth by giving Ball State a better game than they think."
On the team's feeling after winning its last home game
"We put so much into it each year as season. The whole goal in mind of doing all these workouts is just the one goal to get a win. Celebrating with your teammates in the locker-room and signing that fight song is just a great feeling. It is something that I would like to experience again on Saturday with this family."
On giving advice to the underclassmen
"I would emphasize that we were fortunate to have success in three of our first four years here. The little things on and off the field play such a huge part in getting a victory; showing up on time and doing things that you are supposed to be doing. Attitudes like that tend to carry over. Winning becomes a habit, doing the right things help that. I am hoping that next year this program can turn around and get back to where it was and continue the success that we have had the last six or seven years in a row. I am confident they can do it because I know they have the talent. That is the message I would give them."
