Dec. 19, 2001

On team injuries:
"Tony Jackson sprained an ankle today. I believe he'll be allright. Steve Suter will be back and there is a chance we might have Tony Okanlawon back. Reggie Kemp hurt his shoulder but I think he's going to be okay."

On the six-week layoff between the Orange Bowl and the team's last game:
"I am concerned about that. I have been trying to do some hitting and doing some one-on-one stuff. Today, we scrimmaged a little bit on the perimeter stuff. I'll probably have a short scrimmage Saturday to keep our hitting [sharp]. Those are the cards you're dealt and you have got to try and play them the best you can. You don't want to beat them up, but you want to get them in shape."

On Florida's explosive offense:
"They don't really have a whole lot of weaknesses. They have a huge offensive line, really good wide receivers and [Earnest] Graham is a real good running back. They have a quarterback who is throwing 70 percent. He has thrown 35 touchdown passes and averaged 405 yards per game passing. That's why they are the number one offensive team in the country."

"Obviously we have our work cut out for us, but you don't play in the BCS if that's not going to happen. We're going to play with our hearts and as hard as we can and we'll see what happens."

On the secondary:
"Right now we have three guys rotating at cornerback - Dennard Wilson, Domonique Foxworth and Tony Okanlawon. All of them are getting equal reps. I think all of them will play, at least, I hope Tony will play."

On selling out Maryland's allotment of over 22,000 tickets:
"I'm extremely pleased. I think there's an excitement in the whole state, not only the university. When we had this break for Thanksgiving, I had a few days off and I went to a couple stores out in Olney, and I was signing autographs and shaking hands. I was a little taken aback by it, because no one knew who I was for 32 years and now I can't hide."

"I realize that people are pretty excited about it. We probably could have sold 20,000 more. There's been that much enthusiasm and I hope that carries over. I think it's important we play well. There is a tremendous amount of pressure on us to do that, so these people don't come down there and be disappointed. I feel we will play as hard as we can possibly play and that is all I can ask our kids to do."

"In the past I've been critical and I just want to say how thankful I am to the Maryland community - not only our students and our alumni, but the people of the state of Maryland have supported us tremendously."

On improving the big-play threat:
"It's easier to make the big plays when you have guys who can run real fast. It's tough to make them faster in 45 days. I think we're throwing the ball better up the field. I see a lot of improvement."

On improvements made since the beginning of the season:
"During this bowl period, I sit back and see the improvement we have made from when we first started. It's really remarkable. Shaun [Hill] is getting better and better with his reads. It's going to be tough to lose him because he's really catching on to what the whole thing is about. I have an appreciation of the job our staffs have done, both offensively and defensively."

On E.J. Henderson:
"I think this is a very big game for E.J. He has to go out and have a good game because everybody is going to be looking at him. He could affect his draft status by not playing well. I think E.J. will play like he has played all year."

"Here's a guy who wasn't preseason All-ACC and he makes Defensive Player of the Year, Player of the Year in the conference, finalist for the Butkus Award. He is certainly deserving of all of them."

On Florida head coach Steve Spurrier:
"I like Steve. I knew him before this and have actually visited Florida. He has been very gracious. I think he's a very, very good coach. He's got an excellent scheme and excellent players. I think he's done a tremendous job."

On the team's anxiety:
"This is going to be a whole new experience for our players. They didn't even know our hotel was on the beach. I think we're going to stay focused. I'm going to let them enjoy themselves the first couple days before pulling in the ropes. I want it to be a good experience for them."

"We would have been happy to go to any bowl. To go to the BCS and the Orange Bowl, they're very, very excited. They're looking forward to this game very much."