Murfreesboro, TN – The MTSU Blue Raiders have once again been hit with self-inflicted wounds, and just like all seasons, it costs them Saturday night. The Blue Raiders were dominated for a third straight week, this time by the Duke Blue Devils, 45-17.
Middle Tennessee head coach Derek Mason met with the media following the game and took questions. Here’s a recap of what was said.
Mason’s opening statement
“Tough game, but a good one from Duke. They were physical and ran to the ball, caused five turnovers, and were the aggressors; they did a good job of speeding our quarterback up. Seeing our score on the opening drive was nice, but we gave it right back up with some busted coverage. Our team will have some errors, but we have to minimize those errors. Guys are playing hard, but we have to play smarter.”
“I told our guys in the locker room that we must go out there and get better; I thought we made progress tonight. I saw this team play, and without the turnovers, it’s a different ballgame. But you don’t get a chance to do that. What we have to do is eliminate mistakes because a breakthrough is going to come, I believe. I want our guys to continue believing that, and they do; they’re frustrated, but you get what you earn, and we haven’t done enough to earn it right now.”
Mason on the MTSU defense
“I thought they ran to the ball better and tackled better. We’re a better-tackling team when we populate to the ball, and we did that today. They forced this quarterback [Maalik Murphy] to make some decisions, and he did, but we didn’t capitalize; they sometimes confused him. We got off the field well, but penalties and mistakes were momentum killers.”
Those are the things that are haunting this football team little by little, so we’re going to work on cleaning up things, but I thought the get-better was there.”
Mason on the turnovers in Blue Raider territory
“It makes it tough, but at some point, you’ve got to put your foot down and show some resolve; you’ve got to erase it to a certain extent, making them [Duke] kick field goals. We had opportunities, but we’ve got to strain a little more, whether that be getting to the ball carrier, the quarterback, or even playing against the hands of the receivers.”
“That’s not coming from a place of frustration. I know what good defense looks like and how it has to be played, and we’re not there. I saw some good signs but not enough, and that’s okay, we’re getting there.”
Mason on Terry Wilkins’ two fumbles
“He was running upright, and kudos to Coach Lowry; he could’ve easily taken him out, but Terry will have to play for us this year. But Terry was upright and wasn’t running behind his pads, which is what you must do as a running back. We saw it last week, and I commented to him.”
Mason on utilizing Flip Credle against Duke
“We knew that Flip would be big tonight, but he ran hard; he showed why he’s probably the most rounded running back in terms of his ability in pass pro, catching it and running. He works hard every day, and he’s one of those guys who practices extremely hard, which shows up on game day. I wish more guys followed that blueprint; how you practice is how you play, and he gives it his all every day.”
Mason on the weather delay’s
“It makes the day extremely long, and it’s very annoying, to say the least, but we have no say in it; we just have to deal with it. We’ll keep showing up, and we’ve got to play better. We can’t control the weather, but we can control how we play.”
Mason on MTSU punter Grant Chadwick
“He’s one of those guys who is uber-confident. He didn’t have a great game a few weeks ago, but it didn’t phase him. He loves the challenge and to be challenged. The dude is cool, calm, and collected; he’s like the wolf from Pulp Fiction, doesn’t care what’s coming at him, he’s going to do what he does.”
“He is a weapon; I don’t know of many freshmen who can step into an environment and be as dialed in as he is.”
