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ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY VIZIO: TCU v WISCONSINDecember 30, 2010Gabe CarimiPASADENA, CALIFORNIA Q. Coach Bumpas talked about Ferrari versus dump truck. He talked about the dump truck. You know what's coming? GABE CARIMI: I was thinking he was talking about my looks. I was ugly, and he was hot or he was better than looking. No, no, definitely. There is obviously the size difference. But both teams have equal. They have some size on their side, too. Some of their "D" tackles are not bad size. We played the same size of the D-line in the Big 10. So they have some size over there and we have some speed on our side. Q. Right now Vegas has them favored? GABE CARIMI: Vegas has them favored? I honestly don't look too much into it. I've heard about that, but that's why you play the game because you never know what's really going to happen. Q. You guys are basically your strengths against their strengths. You guys run the ball. You score a lot of points. They don't allow a lot of points scored or a lot of rushes. Talk about that dynamic and those two things colliding? GABE CARIMI: Yeah, it's kind of hard to tell what's going to happen. They're ranked the number one defense for a good reason. They're a good defense. They're coached really well. They have good players over there. It's a great TCU defense, and I believe we have a great offense. There are three teams that are undefeated and they're one of them. They're a team that knows how to win, and I'm looking forward to being out there and matching with what I feel is a great on offense against a great defense. Q. Can you talk about their quarterback and his ability to lead the offenses and to complete the pass? They throw a lot, but the pass he throws -- GABE CARIMI: He's exactly the quarterback we need. A smart quarterback. A quarterback that plays the game, that manages the game. You know, he takes what the defense gives him. So he never tries to shoot down the field. If it's open, it is. But he's just a game managing quarterback, and that's exactly what we like about him. Q. We're from Dallas, one of the things they need at the Cowboys is a tackle. Your name has been mentioned as a first round possibility? GABE CARIMI: I honestly haven't even looked that much into it. I try to stay away from that as clear as possible. I've got one game here at UW, and that's what I want to play. Wherever I play next year, I'm going to give them my fullest. Q. (Inaudible) is there a misconception about talking about size? Do you feel sometimes there is too much talk about size and not athleticism? GABE CARIMI: Yeah. I don't feel like anyone on the team is as big a guy as slop house. Just what you consider back I don't know what era. Back in the day they were just hearty eaters and eat all the time and they're just big. I feel like we're pretty athletic on the offensive front. We're not as fast as the TCU guys. Those guys are fast and a good defense, but I feel we've got athleticism for our size. Q. You guys do a fair amount of zone blocking. It's not necessarily all power? GABE CARIMI: I'd say we are more a zone team this year. In the past we are more of a power play team. Pull the guard and make the power play off of it, but this year we're a lot more zone. Q. (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: I don't know. They said at the Beef Bowl that we won handily. Then I heard another news source that said that they won, so I don't know. I ate five by myself. John Moffitt ate five. Travis Frederick ate seven. I think we dominated it. There was a good percentage, whoever eats that. We took that mentality, whoever wins this has a better percentage. Q. So how does it feel to be here? What's your experience been so far? GABE CARIMI: It's been an unbelievable experience. There is not one thing that this bowl has provided for us that hasn't been a fun experience. With the comedy show at Disneyland and all the other stuff that they've done for us, it's been a great Bowl experience here. Q. How do you think you guys match up with TCU's defense? He's taken a lot of the running backs and everything else. As an offensive lineman, how are you preparing for such a good defense? GABE CARIMI: They're going to slant a lot and try to use their speed so we don't get on our aiming points. Main thing is we have to get on our aiming points. They're not going to let us double team them, so we have to get on our aiming points and get on these guys. Q. How do you think you match up against TCU? GABE CARIMI: I think we match up good. I think we match up pretty good I feel we have a really good run game, and I think we'll test their run and stop defense with our good running game. We have a great quarterback, so when we start running well, we'll have some options in the back field. Q. A lot of people are saying TCU is a non-AQ school, and they're representing the non-AQ schools. Does that add pressure? GABE CARIMI: I wouldn't say there is anymore added pressure. There is no question we're not only representing the Big 10, but every qualifying conference. You can't beat around that. It's real. Q. (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: We've been watching these guys for three weeks now. Just the anticipation and knowing that this is a top ranked defensive front at least offensively, we view it as a big challenge for us. Q. Do you feel like your program, is it something your coach preaches to you when you're watching film? GABE CARIMI: When you're an undefeated team, that speaks volume for itself. There are only three undefeated teams in the nation right now, that's because it's hard to go undefeated no matter where you play. It is hard to be undefeated. Being an 11-1 team right now, it was hard to be #1-1. So you have to respect that: You have to know that any team that wins a lot is a dangerous opponent. They know how to win. They act like they know how to win, and that's huge. Q. You guys had a couple of games this year that you've gotten incredibly hot. Do you feel like (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: You have to view it that way. I feel like once we get rolling we'll be a good offense. So if they let us get rolling, I don't see us ever stopping and taking our foot off the gas pedal, you know? Q. Given that you are playing the top defense, could you even envision it being a high-scoring game? GABE CARIMI: I mean, I think you have to. If you envision a low-scoring game, you're not giving yourself any potential to do good. You're just like, oh, well, we'll score every now and then. No, every time you take the field, you need to take the attitude that you're going to score on every drive. No, that's not realistic, but you have on to take that attitude. Q. So you guys expect to put up 30, 40 points something like that? GABE CARIMI: I'm not going to put those words in my mouth. But all I'm going to say is you have to take the mentality, like they walk on the field expecting to stop us every time. We're going to take the idea that we're going to score every time. It's just the mentality that every offensive defense takes. But I don't have a prediction for what the actual score will be. Q. Talk about your confidence right now and what you can do. You put up numbers like 83 points, 73 points. That's something that you don't forget, right? GABE CARIMI: Oh, no. Once you're on that roll, you feel like you can keep on going. There is no reason to stop. Yeah, there is some confidence in being able to score some points. We know we can score points. Q. Did some of that surprise you a bit? Because those numbers are not typical for any team? GABE CARIMI: Actually, yeah. If you would have asked if we would have scored like 200 and something points in the last two games, I would have said you're crazy. We're known for grinding out the ball. But it speaks volumes for even our depth. Because we started putting our twos in there and our threes at least at the beginning of the fourth quarter or somewhere in the third quarter most of us were out in those games. So that just speaks volumes. We keep on trying hard no matter who is in. You can't tell our twos not to go hard. Q. You guys have been in a situation before in a Bowl game and (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: I guess I'll find out on Saturday. But I don't think it will be too bad because these next couple of days are going to kind of wind down. It's really hectic in the beginning. You have a lot of cool stuff you get to do. But now it's starting to be okay. Now we've got media day to day, but we don't have anything after tomorrow's practice. We have a routine. Thursday, Friday practice that we do normally. That matches up right now too because Thursday and Friday is this week too and Saturday's the game. It won't be too hard, I don't think. Q. Finally, is there ever a worry about being overconfident because you're playing a smaller team? GABE CARIMI: I don't think we view them as a small program. Yes, they play in a weaker conference, but they're not by any means a small program. They're a good program, you know. They wouldn't have been picked up by the Big East if they weren't a high caliber program. So I'm going to say no, we don't view them as a weak program. Yes, they play. You can't argue. The conference, they as a team are a very good team. Q. They call themselves underdogs even though they're favorites in the team? GABE CARIMI: I would say they're not true underdogs. We're the underdogs, you know. We've got a lower we've got a higher BCS ranking. They're number 5, we're 3. So we're underdogs by two and a half points or something like that somebody just told me. I don't know. We're just going to go out there and play and have a good time I don't know, maybe we have more pressure. It's a flipped coin to that. It's the same pressure, because they're trying to prove that the smaller conferences have a right to be in the game, and we're trying to prove that we should always be in the game. Q. What have you seen that merits their number one defensive ranking? What has impressed you on tape watching the TCU defense? GABE CARIMI: They're fast and really well coached. I have not seen them make very many gap mistakes. They like to slant and keep their gaps. They're extremely hard to run block on them. Q. Do you feel that you guys could stick to what you've been able to do? Having 250 yards average on the ground and to keep your style of play against them? GABE CARIMI: We'll be able to keep our style of play. We're going to run Wisconsin football. It's been a winning formula for us. Q. Making it to the Rose Bowl, you'll always be the 2010 team and your name will be on that list. But is your goal more winning the game? GABE CARIMI: No doubt. No one remembers the losing team, and that's just how it is. You remember the winners of the Rose Bowl. You remember who played in the Rose Bowl for a couple of years. But then you're like, I don't remember. Even in our program's history, it's like they went to the Rose Bowl, but I don't remember what year it was. No, you want to win the Rose Bowl. It's the granddaddy of them all, and you want to win those big games. Q. Was there something that they've been so successful since the early 90's? GABE CARIMI: Oh, yeah. Whenever you hear about Wisconsin going to the Rose Bowl, you don't hear about a losing team. We kind of want to keep it going and we want to win this game. Q. What do you expect TCU's small, puny defensive line? GABE CARIMI: They're not small or puny. They're a good defensive front through and through. You get that question every time when you're in the Big 10 playing any other conference. It seems like we're the big guys and everyone else is the fast guys. No, there is speed on both sides and size on both sides. Take it for what it is. It is the media guys blowing it out of proportion. It's big and small. Yes, we've got a big offensive line, but I've looked at stats of plenty SEC teams and all these other teams that have big linemen just our size. They're a good team. I probably got away from your point. Q. What do you think separates this Wisconsin team? (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: You gave it away. Now TCU knows (laughing). Obviously play action is huge. If we run the ball a lot, teams have to respect that and safeties have to respect that that we're running the ball. So the play action safety is down a little bit. Obviously play action, they're going to have to respect that. If they respect that, then the running game will have to open up. So either way, it's a win-win. You need to call the right play. Q. Would you say this Wisconsin offense is more diverse? What separates it? GABE CARIMI: I mean, I wouldn't separate it. But it's definitely what makes this team unique. We have a great quarterback and a great core of running backs and a great offensive line through and through. I guess it's just a skilled position. I don't even know what those clowns do over there. Just get me the ball back (laughing). Q. (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: I think the coaches gave us key points of how to block these guys and what's going to be different about it. I think he's hit on all those points so we're at least going to be prepared or be able to adjust to it quicker because we know what's going on. Our scout team's not going to run TCU's defense. Q. They're not that smart? GABE CARIMI: No, they're idiots (laughing). No, but our scout team works hard for us. You know, it's probably going to take a couple of plays. All right, this is their plan. We got zoned in here. Now we've got to calibrate it to this area. Once we play them for a series, we'll zone that in. Q. Who is the last defense that you played that is comparable to them in speed? GABE CARIMI: There's not. Q. Have you played anyone ? GABE CARIMI: No. The only defense that we actually played was Austin Peays was defense. And that's not the same skill set by any means. If they were the same exact team we'd be doing well, but they're not, so. Maybe their defense sprinkled here and there, players that have played throughout. It's not fair really to say this team is like this team. Obviously he they got the reputation of a great defense like Ohio State and Iowa, but Iowa doesn't blitz you at all. They play a 4-3. They're not going to move. They're going to keep in their gaps and shed. Ohio State plays kind of like a hybrid four-three, three-four kind of deal. It's a weird defense. It's the most film I had to do on them. Every year, too. Q. Ohio State? GABE CARIMI: Oh, it's a little weird. Blocking them up and making sure it's the same across the line. It's a little different. But they have the skill set of a team like that, but with a different defense. So it's not fair to say anyone in particular. Q. (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: Well, first of all, he danced and he was so out of breath after he was dancing had a he was trying to tell jokes and all you heard was this. Q. What's at stake for you guys in this game? GABE CARIMI: We can go down the list. We're representing Wisconsin, we represent our program, we represent the Big 10, we represent all the qualifying conferences, everything. You can't shy away from that. And they represent all the other stuff. They're representing their conference, their program, all the non-qualifying bids. You can't shy away from that. We're both representing huge things. Q. What resonates the most with you off that laundry list of things? What do you think resonates most? GABE CARIMI: Most? I'd have to say our program. We've won every Rose Bowl coming in here, and whenever I watch the Badgers in the Rose Bowl, especially the first two and then going into the next year to the 2000 Rose Bowl, we're definitely going to win this. We're at the Rose Bowl again. So I'd say we represent the program. Q. (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: I'd say since it's the last game, it's more than a game. You don't have to look past anything. It's this game. So I would say, yes, this game is more important. It's a big game. It's representing a lot of different things. I'd say can you do that. It's safe to do that because what else, there's nothing else to look forward to. This is it. Q. But you're still a badger for life. For TCU, a game like this could take them up another notch. Do you think you could move up another notch if you win as a program? GABE CARIMI: I think it would probably do more for them than for us. Obviously we've won Rose Bowls and established that Wisconsin is a competing team. But TCU, this would be huge. I'd just have to guess. But obviously it's going to do good things for our program and good things for our recruiting, so it's huge for us too. Q. What do you expect on game day in terms of the sea of red and number of fans and the support? GABE CARIMI: I think it's not going to be too neutral. I think it will be more in the red. Obviously, we love how well our fans travel especially to the Rose Bowl. I remember watching game day in 2000 and seeing just a sea of red out there. It was pretty cool. We're going to feel a little bit at home when we first walk out there I think. Q. Do you know what the final number is for your family that's coming out here? GABE CARIMI: My family? Q. Yeah. GABE CARIMI: I've got 11 people on my list. Q. Everybody in here seems to have a different thing they can break down as the key to the game on Saturday. For you, what is the key on this team to be successful against TCU? GABE CARIMI: The number one key? Since we're almost done with our practice, I'd normally say preparation would be our number one key. But seeing we're already there, the next key would be able to start fast. We're out there and pumped up right away, and we start fast and play hard. Q. What have you seen from this TCU defense? Everybody seems to say power versus speed. That seems to be the common theme from a lot of people. What is it that you see is their strength that you have to handle? GABE CARIMI: Their defense. Actually their defensive coordinator. He does a great job and uses their strengths to their advantage, which is speed. They'll slant their guys and make it so you can't double team up to the linebacker. So it's hard to get aiming points. It closes down holes and you are forced to bring it back to the unblocked defender. Q. Does it feel like a Super Bowl type atmosphere here? This is what you see on media day? GABE CARIMI: I don't know. I've never been to the Super Bowl. But it's crazy and cool out here. Q. You've had such a long layoff between the end of the regular season and now this week you're here. Not leaving your best game mentally in the hotel Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, but to get it to peak on Saturday, how is that challenge? GABE CARIMI: I've never had a problem with that. They automatically taper it with how practice goes. I'll have my best game on Saturday. Q. What is the best part of the trip so far? GABE CARIMI: I think Disneyland was pretty cool. The comedy club was pretty cool. Just everything. It hasn't been one bad event. Some things it's like oh, I don't want to go to that. But everything we've done has been pretty fun. Q. Do you let it soak in? Do you appreciate the moment or are you so focused? GABE CARIMI: No, I think we let guys loose for the first two days. I think that's good or you're all anxious in your hotel all the time and you're just -- you need to cut loose a little bit. Once you do, you realize all right. I'm done with my fun. Now it's time to focus. We're able to do that and we're in focus mode now. Q. (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: They'll bring their safeties down in there, and we won't have a number for then. So we'll have to have our running back do a good move. It's going to be a challenge running the ball on this TCU defense. Q. (Inaudible)? GABE CARIMI: Obviously, I think TCU and everyone knows that. We're going to run the ball a lot. If they stay back, we'll get a couple more yards on the run. So they'll have to pick their poison, but we'll have to pick ours too, so. Q. Talk about the Rose Bowl and watching that game. Was it a dream as a kid to play in this game? GABE CARIMI: Oh, yeah. It really has been a dream come true. It is one of those things. You grow up wanting to be a badger. You get to be a badger, and now you want to go to the Rose Bowl. Q. Now you're here. Is it what you thought it would be? GABE CARIMI: Yes and no. There is a lot more stuff than I thought it would be, because you think it's just the game. But there is a whole week of stuff to do that you really don't think of as a kid. Q. The line has become (Inaudible) there is still a lot of talent that is going to be on this team next year? GABE CARIMI: Oh, yeah, it's ridiculous. We're be only talented, we've got great depth. We've got guys coming up that are going to be huge to the team moving on too. Q. What do you think you can tell us about what he's done? GABE CARIMI: You want me to actually talk about him and what I think of him? Q. Yeah. GABE CARIMI: You could say he's the hardest working kid on the team. He is just so intense with his daily preparation that he always wants to perform well all the time. Very intense kid. He wants to always do well. Q. Ricky Wagner on the other side, his story is quite a bit different from yours, yet you're both Wisconsin guys and learning on the offensive line. He did it in a walk-on role. When you see his progress, what surprises you about his development? GABE CARIMI: Nothing. I always knew Ricky was going to be a good player here. He kind of lacked some confidence maybe because of the whole walk on thing. I'm not sure. But I always knew that kid was a good player, and definitely took him aside. I was like look, you know, you're given an opportunity to play here. You're a good player. Just keep on working hard and get some conferred. I think he really came into his own, and I thought he would once he got a starting spot. He was really able to come into his own. He's a great player and a great right tackle. End of FastScripts |
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