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ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY VIZIO: OREGON v WISCONSINDecember 28, 2011Russell WilsonPASADENA, CALIFORNIA Q. Talking about how you guys went out and played catch for the first time. What do you remember about that? RUSSELL WILSON: Well, I remember throwing with Nick for the first time. And I got there July1st. And late at night. And then the next day we got up, I called him. We got together, just started throwing on the football field. I noticed his talent is easily catching the ball, easily catching the football. That's one of the reasons I came here because I knew he had a lot of talent, but in terms of what I remember is he said I bet you can't hit the goal post there, we were on the 40‑yard line I think, he said I bet you can't hit the goal post there. Really? So I took a step back first shot, ding. So he looked at me, shook his head and started laughing. I think that's when he got excited about the opportunity. Q. How is it that with Chryst and the transition here, do you see any‑‑ do you see him sometimes drift to Pitt or how has it been so far? RUSSELL WILSON: I don't notice a difference at all. He's a guy that's so devoted in what he's doing. Staying in the now. That's what he talks about all the time, just staying focused on what he's doing. Right now he's trying to win a football game. He's so competitive, just like me, I think that's why we click so well. He's so competitive. And I am, too, and his goal is to win, and win every opportunity he gets. And he cherishes the moment, and we do too. And we're grateful that we've experienced this time with him. We just want to send him out in the right way and we just want a win for the University of Wisconsin. Q. Can you talk about Nick what kind of a receiver he is, what he does for this team? RUSSELL WILSON: I think Nick Toon is one of the best receivers in the country. He's got a lot of talent, attacks the football, has great hands, has great awareness. Has great feet. So I think that helps him. Obviously his pedigree is pretty good too. That always helps when you have a dad you can go to and ask him what can I do better here, what have I been doing well and what can I improve, continue to improve on. So I think that always helps. And he's a leader of this football team. He's a guy that pushes everybody else and has a great mindset. Q. How easy‑‑ how nice is it for you as a quarterback to have a receiver like that? RUSSELL WILSON: It's pretty special. Obviously a quarterback always wants to have a talented receiver and we have a great bunch. It's not just him. Great guys who can catch the ball from Duckworth to Abbrederis to Pedersen to other guys as well, and you've got the running backs coming out of the backfield catching the ball. It's pretty scary sometimes. Q. Is there a quarterback that you pattern your game after, somebody that you look up to? RUSSELL WILSON: My favorite quarterback the guy I look up to is Drew Brees. I read his book several times, Coming Back Stronger. He's got a lot of talent, obviously. Just broke the NFL record for most passing yards in a season. So I watched that firsthand. I watch every game he has. I record it. So I've watched a lot of film of him. His footwork is unbelievable. He's got a great arm. He's extremely accurate. He's as competitive as it gets. And that's what I model my game after, in terms of that. So I think that his ability to be a leader and push other guys on the field, you know, and make other ten guys in the huddle better is the thing that I admire so much. Q. At North Carolina State, so was this‑‑ was that just a situation where the coach was saying, listen, if you're going to go play baseball, I need you to be‑‑ you're not committed enough or how would you describe what happened? RUSSELL WILSON: How I would describe what happened at North Carolina State‑‑ Q. Just specifically what happened? RUSSELL WILSON: I'm blessed to be in the situation I'm in. Honestly. And it's worked out well for me. It's one of those things where, you know, you don't really know why it's happening or whatever. But I'm in a great situation now. And I'm blessed to be in the situation I'm in. I'm happy about it. And so I believe that I've improved as a quarterback. Obviously NC state is a great place. I graduated from there in three years. I started my Master's there and I'm about to finish it here at the University of Wisconsin. So it's pretty special. And it's a great thing for me. Q. Without getting into specifics, obviously don't want to, would it be accurate to describe it as that was kind of a sticking point? RUSSELL WILSON: What was a sticking point? Q. Well, playing professional baseball during the spring as opposed to being there to participate in spring practices, that that was a point of conflict for your coach? RUSSELL WILSON: Yeah, I think it was a point of conflict in terms of the fact that I was playing professional baseball. And I was blessed to have the opportunity to get drafted in the fourth round and all. But it's one of those things where the Lord works in mysterious ways. Found a way for me to continue my football career and keep pushing and keep striving to be the best. And I'm looking forward to the opportunities in the future. Q. Russell, what sort of separates Montee Ball from other running backs? RUSSELL WILSON: Well, there's a lot of great running backs in college football. I think what separates Montee is his desire to get into the end zone every time he touches the football. He's got that desire. Before every game I tell him hey let's be great today and he looks back and says the same thing. That's one of those things where that greatness factor is always right there in the back of his mind where he wants to get into the end zone as much as I want to get him in the end zone or as much as I want to get the ball in the end zone. That's the awesome part about it. You've got two guys in the back field that have that same fire in them to put the ball in the end zone, it's pretty special. Q. (Inaudible) RUSSELL WILSON: Yeah, it's one of the most important with the offense, you always want to get the ball there. Q. You're special as a player, what has propelled you to be as great as you are? RUSSELL WILSON: I think my composure, my poise, you know, when things are up and down in a game I try to stay even keel. I have that competitive nature where I'm going to keep pushing. No matter what the score is. No matter if we're up by 20 or down by 20. And so I think that competitive nature, I think‑‑ obviously my ability to throw the ball downfield, my ability to be accurate with the football, make smart decisions, too, and obviously the ability to run. And also extend plays is something that you don't see too often. But I think the fact that my experience has helped me and continue to grow as a quarterback is just going to keep growing. Q. How important was it to have that poise when you guys played Michigan State, Big Ten championship? RUSSELL WILSON: I think it was huge for our football team. And I always grade myself after every game. And I write down the positives and negatives from the games. And the funny thing is that Michigan State game was the same exact situation as the previous game before. And so I think back, and when I'm sitting there on the bench in the championship game, just running through my head, okay, this is the situation here. We're on the 1‑yard line let's be smart here, whatever it is. Time on the clock, the situation. No matter what it is, just have that experience, and that always helps. And I'm a learner of the game. I try to study as much as I can to understand what I can do better, what I've done well. And if there's anything that I can capitalize on. And I think we capitalized on some plays against Michigan State. And I think it's one of the reasons why we got here. Q. Could you please elaborate on, when you were growing up, you and your brother would get up and I think play catch with your father. Is that true? RUSSELL WILSON: Definitely true. My dad used to wake us up 5:30, 6:00 in the morning every morning. And we'd go up to Collegiate. My high school, my brother's high school, just right down the road, five minutes away. And my dad played receiver. He played for the San Diego Chargers for a little bit and had some pretty good talent there. And I used to always throw to my brother and he used to catch and run routes. My brother played receiver as well. They used to run routes. That's how I really understood the game. I knew about the speed out when I was six years old. I knew the depth and the timing of it, the footwork of it. I knew how to take a take‑two post and how to lead the guy and all this different stuff. That's where I really learned and grew as a quarterback. And I give the glory to God, first of all, but also without my dad and without my brother, you know, pushing me to strive to be the best, I wouldn't be where I am today. Q. I know your father passed this year. How difficult was that for you, and how did you handle that in the midst of not only playing quarterback but also studying? RUSSELL WILSON: Well, you know, he passed on June9th, 2010. And I got drafted June8th, 2010. So it's one of those things where he got to see my brother get married the beginning of that year. And then I got drafted the day before he passed away. I went home and saw him in Richmond and told him I got drafted. And then two hours later he passed away right in front of my mom and I. So it's one of those things where God‑‑ like I said earlier, God works in mysterious ways, where my dad got to see me, I believe he got to see me get drafted and all that. That's a special thing. And it's an emotional thing, but I know he's right there with me. He used to tell me there's a king in every crowd. And I know he'll be my king in this crowd in terms of the Rose Bowl. He'll be right there watching me. And what that meant was in terms of my faith and all that, first of all, God's always watching you. He's always covering you. And second of all, for me, when I play sports, he's got the best seat in the house. He's sitting there right there on the 50‑yard line watching every game, every play. He's probably screaming for me and shouting at me at the same time. And also in terms of that, too, you never know what scout or GM, you never know‑‑ you never know what little kid's looking up to you, what kid wants to be like you. And so that's why I admire guys like Drew Brees and the way they play and the way they approach the game. So all that kind of stuff kind of correlates and is pretty special to me. Q. When you have down periods, either in spring or end season is there any way your father inspired you? When you have down periods, how has he inspired you? RUSSELL WILSON: You don't really have too much down time when you're the quarterback for a huge DivisionI‑A team. Q. I'm talking when things go badly. RUSSELL WILSON: I never really get down to be honest with you. I'm not the guy to get down. I realize that you have to take it for what it is and you have your trials and tribulations at times. But I'm a guy that always smiles and is trying to be positive‑‑ as positive as I can be every day. And this experience for me has been a blessing in my life. But in terms of when my dad‑‑ I guess you would say if you're asking me what he kind of would say to me, he used to always talk to about having perspective and having purpose to your life. And always persevering. So those three Ps he used to bring up to me. And I think that's something that has played out in my life. And always have a positive perspective. You always have to have a purpose to what you're doing. And those things always help you in terms of your persevering and getting through things. Q. Do you still keep in contact with anyone at North Carolina State, former students, former professors, anything like that? RUSSELL WILSON: Yeah, I keep in touch with guys and talk to them and let them know I'm watching them and hoping they do well and all that. They do the same for me. And I've built great relationships at North Carolina State. And I've built some awesome ones here. It's been truly special and I would never take that for granted. Q. Watch the game? RUSSELL WILSON: I watched the game last night. I was off and on from it because I had things to do. But it was an awesome win for them. Q. Talk about your faith. You have a strong conviction. How does that enhance your performance? RUSSELL WILSON: In terms of my faith and how it pushes me to strive for the best, I play for an audience of one. No matter what's going on, no matter how well I'm doing or how poorly I'm doing, I always give the glory to him and I keep pushing trying to play the best because he's giving me the talent. I want to use all my talent to the best of my ability. And I think also my faith also, when things aren't going so well during a game, you know, I just trust in him to lead me in the right direction and make the right decisions. I pray throughout the game all the time, and just it's one of those things for me. Q. Do you have a scripture that inspires you most? RUSSELL WILSON: Yeah, I mean I use multiple scriptures. I write something on my wrist before every game. You can't really see it now because I have a little play sheet on my wrist but it's underneath my play sheet. But I always write like a motto for the day before the game, whatever that is. Q. What's the motto for the Rose Bowl game? RUSSELL WILSON: I don't know yet. I'll pick it out once it gets close to the game, the day of the game or whatever. But, for example, Big Ten championship game was Trust Jesus. Scripture was Matthew 6:33. And that's actually what I write. That's what I write on my autograph, whenever I do an autograph I write that scripture, Matthew 6:33: But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness all these things will be added unto you. It's something that's helped me out throughout my life and my experiences. Q. Is baseball still a viable option for you or is that basically in the past now? RUSSELL WILSON: Right now I'm focusing on the Rose Bowl. But in terms of the future, you know, I'm going to the Senior Bowl, and I'm going to experience that. That's going to be awesome experience. And I'll go to the Combine and all that stuff and hopefully get drafted in the NFL and have a long career there. And so that's a special thing for me that Wisconsin's given me the ability and Coach Chryst has given me the bill and Coach Bielema have given me the ability to continue my football career and have that opportunity. Q. What is your graduate degree in? RUSSELL WILSON: Right now‑‑ well, I graduated in communications from NC State. I was in business courses. Since I came to Wisconsin you have to change because of NCAA rules whatever. So right now I'm in education leadership and policy analysis. It's called NLPA, there's no short way to say it. It's awesome. I think it's the number one rated graduate program for higher education in the country, I believe, at least one of the top rated ones. It's pretty awesome experience for me. And I get to work with some tremendous professor. Q. There's a few guys who take advantage of this graduate‑‑ RUSSELL WILSON: I only have one more class left. So I'll be done‑‑ I'll be done about halfway through the spring I'll be done with my grad school program. I would have graduated from NC State, undergrad, graduating from the University of Wisconsin my grad school program. Q. Did you see that as a viable option, take advantage of it? RUSSELL WILSON: You know, to be honest with you, I wasn't really thinking about it or anything like that. It just kind of‑‑ I just kind of‑‑ I always knew the rule, but I never really thought I would ever transfer or anything like that, not by any means. I'm not sure the exact date or anything like that. But sometime throughout the summer, when Coach O'Brien kind of expressed to me that would probably be the best option for me to leave is one of those things I had to figure out the best options for me and my life and how I could continue to play football and I guess that's kind of when I figured it out. Q. How special would it be to follow in your dad's footsteps? RUSSELL WILSON: It would definitely mean a lot to me. My dad's‑‑ he loved playing football. He had a great opportunity to play for the San Diego Chargers and all that kind of stuff. But I would love to play in the NFL. Obviously I want to be a starting quarterback, I want to have a long career in the NFL.  I've just got to take one day at a time, just keep pushing and strive to be the best I can be and keep being a leader and keep studying the game of football. Q. What is it about Montee that gives him such an incredible rate of being in the end zone? RUSSELL WILSON: As I talked about earlier, obviously he's got a lot of talent, but I think his desire to get into the end zone is truly special. And that's something that's pretty awesome to have two guys in the backfield that have that fire to get in the end zone. I think also his work ethic. You should see the way he practices. The way he practices on a daily basis to push himself to make certain cuts, to find different ways getting in the end zone whether it's catching the ball out of the backfield or running the football. The funny thing to me, and I believe this is true. I didn't believe when he told me, but at the beginning of the season when we were in camp, just starting camp, he told me‑‑ I was throwing to him, and we were practicing. Coach Chryst was giving us routes during practice. And Montee was like you know I've never caught a pass for a touchdown. And I started laughing. I said you gotta be kidding me, right? I thought he was joking, which I'm not sure if maybe he caught one or none. But the fact that he never caught one, kind of fired me up. I was like man I gotta get this guy the ball he's got to find different ways to get in the end zone. I think that's helped this season, too. The fact he can come out the back field. I've pushed him to work on his game in terms of catching the football, and I think that's really helped. Q. Kind of taking it to a ridiculous extreme, isn't it? RUSSELL WILSON: Yeah, pretty awesome. Q. When you look at Oregon State defense, breaking it down, seems pretty unique as anything you'll see. Hockey shifts you see guys coming off. How does that help you prepare? RUSSELL WILSON: It doesn't affect anything I do. In terms of preparing, you have to make sure you understand what they're trying to do. Q. What are they trying to do? RUSSELL WILSON: They're trying to cause havoc, just like most defenses. They have a different way of doing it sometimes. But they're very talented and they trust what they're doing. And we have to trust what we're doing. And we have to capitalize on opportunities. We have to play smart football and just take‑‑ as a quarterback you have to take what they give you. My job as a quarterback is to facilitate the football to the right guy at the right time. And that's what I have to do. Q. Do you pick up from the guys what their feeling was from their experience last year and how they want to redeem themselves? RUSSELL WILSON: You know, a lot of people ask me that question in terms of how guys feel about last year. Obviously, you know, you never want to lose a game like this. And they think about it sometimes. But I think the best thing we have is the ability to adapt and move on. I think that we've shown that this year through the adversity that we went through the season to lose those two games back to back, in the fashion that we lost them, shows that we have the ability to adapt and move on. And I think that's where our mindset is in terms of focusing on what we need to do right now. And that's to play great football, have a great week of practice, and show up on the Rose Bowl day, January2nd, and have a great game and play a great game. Q. This whole season worked out about as good as you had hoped. You would have liked to have win those two, but just coming from where you came from, jumping in, starting? RUSSELL WILSON: This season has been unbelievable. I never would have imagined the experiences I would have gotten. In terms of, first of all, being from Virginia I would never have thought I would come to Madison, Wisconsin of all places, but I did it's been a blessing in my life. In terms of developing the relationships that I've developed with the teammates that I have and the coaches and the coaching staff and to work with a guy like Coach Chryst, a guy with‑‑ had NFL experience. Guy runs an NFL playbook, a guy that has the opportunity to be a head coach at a big‑time university in Pittsburgh. And you know just developing a relationship with him. It's been an awesome experience, and to graduate from the University of Wisconsin here soon, it's going to be an awesome experience for me and it's special. Q. You chose Wisconsin (inaudible) RUSSELL WILSON: Yeah, that's one of the reasons why. No, it's one of the reasons why I chose the University of Wisconsin, because of academic prestige, obviously they're very good there. But also the fact that the tradition here, the University of Wisconsin, the atmosphere on a daily basis and the coaching staff, and then also the players, the leadership that we have in terms of the players, it's pretty awesome. Q. I guess what I'm asking there are a lot of people think that it's a controversial cruel. I don't know why it should be‑‑ personally I think it's a good rule. You graduated, you did all you had to do, do you understand why people think it's a free agent, four, five months type of thing? RUSSELL WILSON: I think it's a great rule, personally. But in terms of‑‑ I took care of business. I graduated in three years. I was in grad school for a year. I had a plan in my mind to get my education quickly but also excel on the football field and baseball field and all that. But I think that for me it's been a great experience. And also I'm going to be able to graduate from the University of Wisconsin, one of the best grad school programs in the country. That's pretty special to me. And I think that's what the NCAA should be about. Q. Two years ago, the quarterback (inaudible) year ago at NC State he was at Ole' Miss, you take guys who had gone before, whatever their reasons why, you know those guys? RUSSELL WILSON: Yeah, I definitely know of them and knew of the rule. I never thought that I would have gone out in that rule or whatever. But it is what it is. I guess the Lord works in mysterious ways, as I said earlier. I'm blessed to be in the situation I'm in. I'm happy about it. Like I said earlier, I've gotten to extend my education and I'll be graduating from the University of Wisconsin, which is pretty special, and I would have gotten my undergrad from NC State in communications which is pretty special. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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