Utah Football Player Quotes: Arizona State
Junior Quarterback Cameron Rising
On what changed in the second quarter against SDSU…
"We just had to relax and start to play our brand of football. That's what we need to continue putting on tape."
On what he saw Saturday from the wide receivers' group…
"They were giving us some good moves out there. They were getting in and out of their cuts and that made it hard for SDSU to guard them. Once they got open it made my job that much easier."
On opportunities for the wide receivers…
"There will be more double teams inside because you have Dalton (Kincaid) and Brant (Kuithe) in the middle and there will definitely be more opportunities for the wide receivers on the outside."
On the ASU game…
"They are a tough, physical team. I know they just lost their head coach…they are going to be dangerous and you never know what to expect. We need to come ready to go."
Senior Wide Receiver Solomon Enis
On how the receivers can build off of last week…
"Same thing as last week. Come in and work and do our job. We will need to capitalize and make the best of our opportunities that we get."
What should people takeaway about the receivers from the SDSU game?
"That we have playmakers everywhere. Everywhere we have playmakers on this offense. You can try to stack the box, cut the shallow routes off from the tight ends, but it doesn't matter. We have deep threats, go across the middle, guys that can read the zone reads and tailbacks in the backfield and have a great o-line that gets everything started."
On how Devaughn Vele played Saturday…
"Amazing. Every day we have just been checking in with each other and we know what to expect from each other. I really appreciate and take pride in our relationship and I respect Devaughn (Vele) a lot. He's gotten me through stuff. I have gotten him through stuff. Our little duo we got going on is something special. I hope to build on that."
Senior Defensive End Gabe Reid
On his transition to Utah…
"Things have been going well. I think the biggest thing for me was just getting healthy. I had a bit of an injury issue during camp. Happy to be back on the field and playing; this is my last year, and I was excited to be on the field [vs. San Diego State] and making some plays."
On playing alongside his brother, linebacker Karene Reid…
"It's surreal. Obviously, without the COVID year, I wouldn't have been able to have this extra year to play with him. It's been amazing and a really cool experience spending the day-to-day with him, whether it's carpooling up [to campus] or working out together. Obviously, being on the field. That moment, when we first took a snap together was really, really cool."
On taking in those moments…
"I think it can be hard because there's so much going on. But I definitely try to take a step back and make sure I'm cherishing every moment. I think I've gotten better at that as my years have gone on."
Sophomore Defensive Tackle Junior Tafuna
On the biggest improvements on the defensive line from Week 1 to Week 3…
"Just our scheme, how we're playing the line now…we're holding our gaps again, I think that allows us to get back to what we're used to. It's a new way of us doing our job and making more plays. It's been fun."
On his interception against Southern Utah…
"Man, that was crazy. I just remember shedding a block and seeing a black little spot go up in the air, flickering and tumbling. I was like 'that's the ball!' I looked and was like 'can I get a pick-six?' No, that ball was falling quick. I thought I was faster. When I was 225 [pounds] I could probably do it…it was awesome. I ran and just grabbed it. I'm just glad I still have those soft hands from those linebacker days—at least I like to think that."