It hasn't been great up to this point. I've had ups and downs . . . life is like that. You are going to have adversity. You have to try to improve, and I'm very thankful they've cared enough about me as a person here and have let me grow.

I really want people to just know that I was recruited for a reason, I play football for a reason. I can really make a name for myself, and people will remember me for something other than those off-the-field things.

My whole career here has been a learning experience. The coaches have done a good job of stressing that I need to let things come to me instead of being that guy, being out there causing commotion. The dog with the loudest bark doesn't have the biggest bite. I just want to make sure I have the biggest bite. I'm looking forward to this year. I really think everything will work out.

I think we were prepared well and we knew what to expect. There were some lapses. It was pretty sloppy out there for both teams.

We had some success and it was probably going to come to an end sooner or later. Those were huge points for us all season long.

We just didn't have the jump right away. We expected a big game from them because they've been hot.