Nov. 27, 2010

Recap | Final Stats | Photo Gallery

Coastal Carolina vs. Western Illinois
Division I Championship
Nov. 27, 2010 | Conway, S.C. | Brooks Stadium - Benton Field
Post Game Quotes

Costal Carolina Head Coach David Bennett:
"The thing I'm real proud of our football team about is that even with the turnovers that we had, we still had a chance to win the ball game. We had a chance to score at the end and go for one and overtime or go for two and try to win it."

"You look at the stats and we had 462 yards of offense. They were better on third-down conversions, where they were 9 of 18. But we turned the ball over five times as a team. We had some picks and a fumble and the sad thing is, is that at halftime, we could of had 28 points. We just didn't play as well as we have the past few weeks but if we would have, we would have been victorious and we feel that in our hearts."

On the team at the end of the game:
"I'm proud of our team. They fought and had a chance in the very end and we are proud of them for that. It's a ball game where our team made a lot of mistakes, but our kids played hard."

"Defensively, we held the number two offense in the country to 17 points. Offensively, we had almost 500 yards. But we can't turn the ball over five times in the red zone in a national play off game and win. But our guys still had a chance to win it in the end, and I am very proud of them for that."

On the play of Zach MacDowall:
"Zach has done a fantastic job here. The last few weeks, he's played like an NFL quarterback. I heard their coaches in pre-game warm-ups saying that `number 10' can really throw a nice ball."

Western Illinois Head Coach Mark Hendrickson:
"These fans were treated to a very good football game today between two very good Division I football teams. It was one of those days that, unfortunately, someone has to win and someone has to lose as well. Our defense forced five turnovers in the ball game which is the number one highlight for us. We picked off several passes and recovered a fumble and some of those turnovers came in the red zone. An interception by Tyler West in the endzone right before the half was a key play in the ballgame and, obviously, so was Kieron James' pick at the goal line to seal the game. Again, I think it was a great football game between two outstanding teams."

On the team's character and composure at the end of the game:
"Fortunately, we do have 17 senior on this team and they are outstanding leaders 24 hours a day. They are outstanding leaders in practice, on Saturday afternoons, in the locker room, and around campus. We do have a team that is made up of outstanding character and that came through today....The defense made a stop near the end with the score tied and offensively we had to go down and score a touchdown and our offense came through when they needed to. Our big guys up front finished the game strong and Caulton Ray had a big run for us in that final drive. I credit those big offensive linemen up front in the final couple minute of the game. Our team's very good execution, on both sides of the ball, in the final minutes sticks out in my mind. I am very proud of this team for coming though with big plays in the last minutes of the game."