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Princeton University Athletics
Quotes From Princeton-Lehigh Media Luncheon
September 17, 2003 | Football
Sept. 17, 2003
The following quotes are from the Sept. 17 media luncheon, featuring Princeton head coach Roger Hughes, linebackers coach Don Dobes, senior fullback Tim Bowden, senior safety Sam Snyder and Lehigh head coach Pete Lembo.
"We don't know what to expect. We have several players who have never played in a varsity game before. There are always unknowns. You don't know until you get into those situations how the kids are going to react."
"It was a physical camp. We try to make the practice hard, so it makes the game seem easier. We try teaching the kids not to let a mistake ruin the rest of the night."
"The key of the game is the slope of our learning curve and how fast we adjust to Lehigh." "When you play good teams, your weaknesses are exposed and you can learn from that ... and that's how you move from being an athletic team to a talented team. Hopefully we can do that by the second quarter against Lehigh, and not by the third game of the season."
"Matt Verbit took every rep in the spring practices and a lot in the preseason. He understands more than just what we do, but why we do it. He manages the game better [than last year] and the players are rallying around him."
Pete Lembo
"There is the possibility of an emotional letdown [following Saturday's win over Fordham] because we're a solid team, not a great team. The key is to stay humble and keep working hard."
On Princeton "The last three times, they have physically handled us upfront."
"Having played two games, we hopefully got the kinks out and made mistake that we won't make again."
on Jermaine Pugh "He has great quickness. You expect him at point A but he's fast enough to show up at point B or point C. He single-handedly took over the Fordham game."
on the Princeton defense "If all 11 guys aren't on the same page, there is a good chance a big play will happen."
Sam Snyder
On the freshmen "I think they're ready to go."
"The defense has to play technically sound in order to compete in this game."
Tim Bowden
On the freshmen "I remind them that it's a faster game and there are more checks, but it's still football."
on Matt Verbit "We all knew what kind of player he could be but it was hard to see that [last year]. I've been blown away at how well he's been playing. It's exciting."