Nov. 22, 2008

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- Coach Don Brown's general thoughts

I thought we gave the entire sideline a rush today on a couple of those pops. The team was running with reckless abandon. Anthony Rouzier came back this season after a torn ACL and he did it in such a short time and played great today. Obviously it is a great feeling when you can win your last game. We know we have a ton of work to do. We cannot be at this level, but at the same time a winning season that disappoints people goes to show you how high the bar has been set for this team. I wouldn't want it any other way. We have had guys that have done great things here and we have great young people. I am disappointed because nothing came easy this year. As soon as we started to get some flow, a guy would get hurt. I'm not going to make any excuses. I'm just glad we were able to respond. I have been doing this for over 30 years and this will be one of my top five victories because of how these guys responded from last week. It goes to show you why I love coaching and why it is nice to be able to put confidence in young people.

Coach Brown on Liam Coen

All he cared about, and I've said it a hundred times, was wining. I don't throw him bouquets, when the game was won we shut him down. We would run the ball or take a knee instead of boosting his stats. Every yard he got here, he earned. To some people that would have been important, but to him, all he cared about was getting the W. The day he took over, when he was a redshirt freshman until now, the only thing that has been important to this young man is finding a way to win football games. He is a great football player and has a chance at the next level. I will always remember the way he carried himself as a young person and the role model he was for the younger guys as well as what he has meant to me and my family.

Liam Coen on finishing his career

Like Coach said, it wasn't just about the seniors today. It was also about the way the young guys responded. Obviously they responded very well, I was very proud of those guys and they way they stepped up. It was a team win today, it was nice to go out like that.

Coen on preparing for his last game

I tried to prepare the same way I do every week. I'm not the type of person to get wrapped up in the emotion. I've noticed that I don't prepare well when I do that, I get carried away with other things. I try to stick to x's and o's. It went by really fast. Because I've been banged up I haven't been throwing on Tuesdays, I throw some on Wednesday, and kind of shut it down on Thursdays, so it's been tough. I just prepared myself so I would know what Hofstra was doing, whenever I looked at them. They didn't throw anything new at us. I prepared this week as hard as I would any other week.

Coen reflects on his career

At the end of the game, I could have snapped it on the last kneel that we did. I could have snapped it right after the 40 second clock went down and I heard Scott Woodward yell "Snap it!" I said, "I know! I'm taking it in, I'm hanging out right now, leave me alone." It was nice to take it all in, under the lights. I think it was a nice moment for me.

Hofstra Head Coach Dave Cohen opening statement:
Hard fought game. I think both teams played very hard. I'm very proud of my team. We can't lose a turnover battle 5-1 and expect to beat a good team like UMass. At teams I think our youth showed in pivotal key moments during drives. I'm proud of the efforts in which our team played.

On fake punt:
In my three years that's the farthest I've ever called a fake punt on. The thought process was threefold. One, the fake was only on the specific look. Two, the wind was on our face so we weren't going to gain a lot of ground on the punt. Three, the momentum was a definite factor. It was a threefold decision on that.

On Liam Coen:
First of all, I've had the privilege of spending, I don't know, probably an hour and a half with Liam between the last two media days down at the Baltimore Harbor. I think it was two years ago or three years ago at that time it was the Atlantic 10, that UMass had the national runner-up, he was at the banquet. And then pregame I talked to him today, just to express my sympathy for his mom. He is a class act. Forget football, it all comes and goes. That is a fine young man that is going to be a heck of a husband and father one day.

On Nick Altomare:
We're going to miss all the seniors, but you want your son to grow up to be Nick Altomare and you want your daughter to marry Nick Altomare. He's a 4 year starter and he's about a 3.6 gpa and if he has a fault I haven't seen it yet. He's just a class act. He's on different committees and groups on campus and just represents what we'd like Hofstra football to be like.