UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT SAN ANTONIO FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

November 18, 2023

Jeff Traylor

Press Conference

UTSA 49, South Florida 21

JEFF TRAYLOR: Proud of our defense once we got adjusted to the speed that they were snapping it. We settled down a little bit, played a lot better.

Just it's pretty much typical of what we've done here for four straight years. Gritty kids, man. They won't go away. We were down and looked like we were never going to stop them. All of a sudden they just figured it out, man.

They're great kids. We put ourself in position now where we get to play Tulane, and that'll be -- nobody will think we can win, and we'll be the underdog on the road.

Looking forward to that.

Q. It was an all-time performance by your quarterback tonight. Did you know he had that in him considering all the struggles he has been through this season?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, he has been getting a little bit more healthy and we've been really calling the games to take care of him, and we just made the decision tonight to let him go out in style. We needed to know what he had for Tulane, and looked like the old Frank Harris for me.

Thrilled for him. He even had ball security once, like when he scored. He went old school. When in trouble, double.

Might be the first time I've ever seen him protect the football in four years. I've threatened to bench him for four years but haven't done it yet.

Q. The Roadrunners are going to play for a chance to go to the AAC title game. Been a long road to get to this point. How does that feel to get here?

JEFF TRAYLOR: I think it's more special just because how frustrating September was for everybody.

Probably more proud of this team than any of them. They're all different, right? This one had just so much negatively towards them.

I would really like to go back and look at what everybody said after that Houston game about Frank Harris right now and see what they say tonight.

Q. Coach, you guys as a team set a new school record with total offense with 643 yards. What do you think was the biggest factor in setting that record tonight?

JEFF TRAYLOR: It's always players. Always has been, always will be. Starts with our line up front, protecting him. They did a heck of a job. McCuin had a heck of a night. Amador really came on. Tykee made plays. Cephus was amazing. Robert Henry was right out of the backfield. And then the straw that stirs the drink, man, old 0. Rocko had a heck of a play. Two-minute drive right before halftime. It's just our kids. It's just what they do.

Ya'll been watching them. Ya'll know. You ask me to describe it. You're just as in awe as I am. They do it all the time. Some of those catches were phenomenal. And they're freshman. Future is bright, man. Amador, McCuin, it's exciting.

Q. What does it say about Frank's personality that on such an emotional night he could deliver this kind of performance on the field?

JEFF TRAYLOR: We really talked about it. Heck, he practiced it too. Half of them did this last year. I said, hey, man, we should know how to behave now. We all did Senior Night last night and we all cried, and here you are back again.

We really worked hard this week trying to enjoy the Spirit Walk, trying to enjoy every detail, but not be so emotionally spent that we got off to a terrible start.

I don't know if it worked or not, but I know we were very intentional to not be so exhausted. I did not want to be behind 24-nothing like last year. We've never lost a Senior Night, but we always start out rough. Tonight we got down, I'm thinking, here we go again.

I thought the third and 14 where we hit the dig in they were in two deep zone where McCuin laid out on the opening drive, was probably one of the biggest plays of the game. It got us that first touchdown to get us back 7-7.

Q. 18 seniors recognized tonight. Can you put into work what that group has meant not only to this program, but to you?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, it was tough, maybe. Team meeting was tough. Frank and Rashad always sitting around the front and they always wait until the very end, you know, they always hug my neck, and I thanked them. I did. Not only do very few kids stay four years anymore, you can't find kids that stay one year anymore.

Our kids have been here the entire time. I've got to coach this entire group the entire time. It's been a Cinderella story. I mean it, I'm grateful. I'm grateful and I thanked them for letting me coach them, man. It's a blast.

Q. Jeff, I think from the moment the schedule was released a lot of people looked at this game at Tulane coming up as a potential kind of conference championship playoff, if you will. What does that mean that you've done what you needed to do get there, and now have that big game on the national stage?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Guess what? For once I'm going to answer your question about Tulane, because they're next on the schedule.

So you're right. I might unmute Greg and J.J. and go back see what they really said after September. If they really thought we were going to be here or not.

No, that's what makes it more special, again, how far they've come and just his story, again. You heard what he said. He's had like 12 surgeries, or 10. It's ridiculous. And he is as low he's ever been in the month of May, which that just blows my mind.

He was in it, and now J.T. is going through it. So that's what makes it so special, is just all we've overcome, and we're a shell of ourselves but still fighting, still in there. I know you heard me say it a million times, healthy teams don't win championships, tough ones do. Willie is like legendary in our profession. As good a human you'll have be around, good a coach, he's about the right stuff.

So I'm looking forward to this matchup because the respect I have for Willie Fritz. Look where he's always done it. He's taken tough jobs and always won. He's always had character.

The game needs a ton more of Willie Fritz in it. That's why I'm most excited, to go against the true legends in our profession.

Q. Can you speak to the play of the defenses tonight? I think six or seven possessions between the second and third quarter where the defense just shutdown...

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, got -- very similar to how we gave up an out route on third and 12. We both took the fly and nobody jumped down the out and just turned their best receiver loose. Coach Loepp didn't appreciate it, but I tried to make him feel better. I said, look, they gave up third and 14; we gave up third and 12. They are just as frustrated as we are.

I won't tell you what he said back to me. Once we got through that little phase we calmed down. I believe we gave up 14 the first half, and those were all in the first quarter.

Then the second half we got beat on the skinny and our safety in there, that was disappointing. The other drive got going right on us and we had good coverage on it. We just missed the dang tackle. Excited about my defense battling. It's tough. They snap it so fast.

Proud of them.

Q. I have to ask you, there was a report last night about an interview with Texas A&M. Did you interview with Texas A&M?

JEFF TRAYLOR: We had 18 seniors play tonight, and it's a shame really that that's what everybody talked about. Any second someone was talking about Jeff Traylor and not Frank Harris is a travesty towards those 18 seniors.

Q. What have the emotions been like for you this week?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Because of my seniors, it's been tough, especially with this particular group, because I'm so grateful for those two zeros and a lot of single digits that I'm losing.

COVID, took on a high school football coach that probably nobody wanted and we won a lot together. It's been fun.

Q. 13-1 now in November. I'm curious what it takes to play your best football late in the season?

JEFF TRAYLOR: I wish you wouldn't have brought that one up, but I appreciate the 13. It's corny. You're not going to like it. They like coming to practice still. It matters. I mean, we get better every day. We get just a little bit better every day.

They take coaching. They allow me to coach them. That's really it. There is no other thing to it. It's because we pour into them, we love them, we coach them hard, but we love them harder.

They're really good players. You can't win all those games without great players.

Q. Coach, Owen Pewee's seven tackles, one tackle for a loss tonight. How nice has it been to see his progression and be a nice role player for the defense?

JEFF TRAYLOR: Yeah, another young player that is really coming on. We are going to be good against next year. I mean, we are. I know everybody is tired of hearing that, but we're going to be good again.

He's a good one. Hard to replace those kids, but we got some more ready to go.

Q. Jeff, is this team a championship caliber team in your mind?

JEFF TRAYLOR: We play Tulane Friday at 2:30. We'll learn a lot then.

Thank ya'll. God bless. Birds Up.

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