Sept. 27, 2004

Derek Curry – senior – linebacker

On teammate Kyle Budinscak …

Obviously he’s a tough guy and that’s one thing I like about him, he plays tough and he plays hard in every situation. To have a guy that you know is going to give you his all is huge everywhere across the board and that’s what we are trying to have on this team. Kyle has a lot of experience and he knows what’s going on just as much as I do and that’s nice to have on the front line.

On the Notre Dame defensive line going unnoticed …

The entire defensive line doesn’t get near as much credit as they should. I give them praise as much as I can because they do a lot of things that allow us (the linebackers) to make plays. People only see the linebackers and the secondary (and what we do) but those guys are the ones that hold it down. You win and lose the games up front and the games we’ve won have been because of those guys up front like Kyle (Budinscak), like Greg (Pauly), like Trevor (Laws), like Vic (Abiamiri) and (Justin) Tuck have done a great job at getting pressure and plugging up the holes.

Carlyle Holiday – senior – wide receiver/punt returner

On what it’s going to take to beat Purdue …

I think our offense is going to have to put up a lot of points because they average about 55 points a game. It’s going to be a challenge. Their defense is going to come out and they always play aggressive against us. It’s an instate rival so we are going to have to expect the unexpected.

On if it feels like things are starting to click for him after catching two passes against Washington …

I think so. For me just to get out there and catch the ball, it felt great. Not only that but for the offense to be able to execute especially the way we did in the first quarter it was a big boost for us. I think the team sees what we are capable of and we just need to take that and build on that and take the next step.

Justin Tuck – senior – defensive end

On Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton …

Personally, he’s by far the best quarterback that we’ve played so far. He’s up there with the best in the country so we are going to have to get after him and rattle him a little bit.

On how the defense feels after playing Purdue tough last year …

This defense is real hungry considering the fact that last year we didn’t play as well as we thought we could have. Obviously we owe them one because they beat us last year and that’s been our focal point. We have them in our house this year and we are just trying to come out with a win.

Ryan Grant – senior – running back

On if he didn’t play against Washington so that he could rest his injured hamstring …

I never looked at it like that. I’m always going to do whatever I can to prepare myself to play. That might have been the big picture (decision) for the coaches, but I don’t really know. I’ve already spoken to the coaches and the trainers and they know I’m going to do everything I can to make sure I’m prepared for the game if they need me.

On his impressions of the Washington game …

I’m glad they didn’t need me to win. I think as an offense we did some really good things. I think as a backfield we know that we didn’t play really well. I’m giving kudos to the (offensive) line because they played a hell of a game. They gave Brady (Quinn) time and there were holes. I think we need to run downhill more but that is something that we are going to focus on in practice.

Dan Stevenson – senior – guard

On Purdue’s defense after they lost eight starters off of last year’s team …

From what I’ve seen on film they’re a great team. They play a solid defense. I don’t think you can look at the fact that they only have so many starters returning. You have to look at what they do well and they certainly do a lot of things well. They’ve been successful the last couple of games against the teams that they’ve played. We don’t want to focus on how many people they’ve lost. We just want to focus on executing our offense as well as we can.

On the success of the offensive line …

I think these last couple of games we’ve been successful running the ball and that brings people into the box, which allows you to open up the passing game. Like we’ve said from day one we wanted to be able to run and throw the ball and when you do that teams have to play more balanced. They can’t protect just against the pass and they can’t protect just against the run and that is something we are starting to do well.

On last year’s game at Purdue …

I’ve definitely got a chip on my shoulder about last year’s Purdue game. It was very disappointing and embarrassing moment for myself as a football player. But right now I can’t get caught up in the personal stuff. I need to look at the team’s best interest. I can’t go in there and try to do something that is beyond myself or something that will hurt the team. I just have to go out and try to execute this offense.

Brandon Hoyte – senior – linebacker

On if he relishes the fact that the defense will have something to prove against a good Purdue offense …

It’s a great opportunity. We’re in a position right now where we can definitely show everyone what we are about. Ever since last year we know the type of defense and the type of team that we need to be and we can be. This weekend definitely gives us that opportunity.

On what defensive coordinator Kent Baer is like as a coach …

The one aspect that I like about coach Baer is that he’s intense. A lot of times when you have a coach that’s intense and is very blunt and knows what he wants and knows what needs to get done that sort of trickles down to the players. Our coaches have that mentality of intensity and getting the job done and that’s how we are playing right now.

Brady Quinn – sophomore – quarterback

On the success of the play-action passes …

It really comes down to the running game. Whenever our running game is working for us, when we have Ryan (Grant) and Darius (Walker) running the ball like that along with the rest of our running backs, that’s really what sells play-action.

On if he admires what the Purdue offense has been able to do this year …

Yeah, I’ve been watching Kyle (Orton) perform and the rest of their offense and they are pretty potent how they move the ball and what they’ve been doing with the ball. Really, I think our offense feels like we have that capability. Overall we just need to up our consistency.

Kyle Budinscak – senior – defensive end

On how the team changed their mindset in the off-season following last year’s disappointment …

We had a team meeting early in the winter and we pretty much put everything out on the table. We were very honest about what just happened the previous season, the letdowns we had and how unacceptable it was. We started taking accountability for ourselves. It was great just to be part of a group that was willing to take responsibility for what had happened. It was good to be around a group of guys that for the past six months have been thinking about nothing but being a great football team.

On his emotions concerning the Purdue game …

They’re not our favorite team. We respect every team that we play. Certainly we respect the athletes that they have and the quality football team that they have. But this is a game where everybody on our team wants to get after these guys.

On not being ranked in the top-25 …

Rankings really don’t mean anything. If we can get everybody on this team and around this program to not even think about rankings and to worry about winning every ball game that’ll all take care of itself. Personally I could care less about the rankings right now.

Anthony Fasano – junior – tight end

On if the offense will have more pressure put on them to score against Purdue …

I think so but we have a lot of confidence in our defense. We know that we are going to have to score points to win but we also expect for them not to score that many points like they have been.

On his development as a tight end …

It’s been gradual. I just have to put together all facets of my game like blocking and passing all into one game to really help this team. I don’t feel I’ve done that to my full potential yet.

Mike Goolsby – senior – linebacker

On if he was aware that Purdue hasn’t won at Notre Dame since 1974 …

I wasn’t aware of that. They haven’t won at Notre Dame Stadium? Wow. Yeah, I’d like to keep that going. I didn’t realize that. I know they are one of our biggest rivals. People like to make a big rivalry out of USC and Michigan and teams like that. To me, and I think to the guys who have been around here, Purdue is definitely up there just because it’s local and they always seem to be great games. I don’t really know what it is but we are definitely trying to keep the rivalry going and get another win.

On the game plan for the linebackers versus Purdue …

As much as they throw the ball I feel that you still have to stop the run first and foremost and that’s the name of the game in football and we (the linebackers) have a huge part in that. Just talking with some other quarterbacks, including Brady (Quinn), I know they take a lot of their reads off the linebackers and what we do. Not every ball is going to necessarily be a long ball. We still have a lot to do with the passing game and the underneath stuff so we are going to have a big role this week as well.