Notable quotes from Nebraska’s 56-14 loss to Iowa.
Mike Riley on how he would describe this team for next year:
“It’s a great group. They will indeed go back to work to develop some of those things that they’ll need. They’ll need more power, we’ll need more power on both sides of the ball up front, very, very obvious in that regard. Kind of a strength in identity offensively going forward with the people that are in the program, as the quarterbacks right now, and as the people that are coming back as receivers, there’s some real exciting players in that area, too. There’s so many guys to continue to develop that are coming back defensively, that on all the parts, it’s a pretty exciting deal if you can look at it big picture-wise.”
Iowa defensive lineman Nathan Bazata on being from Nebraska and beating the Huskers:
“I mean it’s always good to win in your home state. That’s awesome. But it was more important that we bounced back from the last two weeks and get up off the mat and just competed. That meant more than anything.”
Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz on Nathan Bazata and the makeup of his team:
“For all of our seniors, but Nate (Bazata) is almost a template of a lot of our guys. Not the biggest guy, not the fastest guy maybe but a tough, hard-nosed competitive guy. For our linebackers, we’ve got a pretty good group of linebackers that play. The way we’re built, we need guys up front that are really unselfish, really tough minded. When you have those guys playing for you, they maybe didn’t garner a lot of attention recruiting, but they play a really strong role, and I think everybody kind of embodied that. Nate’s been that way ever since he showed up.”
Riley on if he anticipates being the coach next year:
“I’m going to, I’m going to anticipate that, and when I go to bed tonight I’m going to hope for that because I would love to do this. I truly believe I’m exactly the right person to do this. The football parts, I’ve been doing this so long, we know how to fix, and we also are doing a good job recruiting. Those two things are going to be the key to Nebraska getting back to where everybody wants to go. The football has to grow, and the recruiting has to continue to be high level to get really back there.”
Tanner Lee on playing for Riley:
“I think he’s one of the most influential in my life so far. I’d say in a quick two years I’ve learned more from him than I could have ever imagined. I think the way he’s handled this season, I think there’s not another man on earth that could have done it like him. Day in and day out he’s the same guy. He’s a great football coach. I want to tell him this, ‘I can’t wait to tell my kids that I played for Coach Riley.’ I am so lucky to have played for Coach Riley, it’s unbelievable. I didn’t know how great he was until he got here and it just grew, daily. I guess the toughest part was not winning for him. I’m just very lucky for having played for him.”
Greg is the Recruiting Analyst for Hail Varsity and has covered Husker athletics since 2013. He has always had a passion for sports while growing up in the Chicago area. As he got older and had to hang up his cleats and sneakers, he realized his passion for sports went beyond just watching and attending games. He has covered many events from the Rose Bowl to championship boxing matches. If he’s not talking sports, he’s hovering over his grill. He is married to an amazing woman, Kim, and they have a dog that barks when Greg yells at the TV during games.
