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Postgame presser: Claeys blames OL, says defense played well
On the reason they came up short...
"I mean, it's pretty obvious. We got whipped up front. The offensive line, we couldn't create some space. The pass protection in the pocket was a lot more tighter and they got pressure up in Mitch's face without blitzing. On those days that you get whipped up front, you don't have a very good chance."
On Mitch Leidner...
"He could never set his feet because he had to get the hell out of the way. The protection wasn't any good, so I think that leads to the inaccuracies. Same thing with the receivers, though. I mean it wasn't pass interference. They were tight on the receivers and physical on the receivers. We didn't have as big of windows as we've had in the past."
On Shannon Brooks not getting very many touches until later in the game...
"I mean, the one though was a hold. But I mean we were just struggling up front; that's all there was to it."
On the pre-snap illegal motion penalties...
"Yeah, that's Mitch. He's got to make sure that back is set. A couple times it was the offensive tackle too. He and Drew just got to hurrying things a little bit too quick. That's the thing -- we didn't have the timing and we were sloppy. We still battled and had a chance at the end. Didn't quite get her finished, but it's a tough day on offense. You'd like to get a stalemate up front to get chances and we didn't even have that."
On if injuries played a role in the offensive line's poor play...
"You can always go looking for excuses but the bottom line is you got to do it. We got injuries up there a little bit, but you got to find a way to get it done. That's their job description."
If Iowa's did anything different defensively...
"No, they just do what they do. They whipped us up front."
On the importance of trophy games for his team...
"It's more than the guys; it's the whole state. It's two states battling against each other, so it's disappointing. I mean, great ball game as far as staying close to the end. Both sides battled, both teams did. Defensively, I'm proud of them. Defensively we played well enough to win. Offensively, we didn't, and in this conference we're going to have to have both sides play together to get the win."
On the importance of getting pressure on CJ Beathard...
"I thought our D-Line did awfully well. Coverage was good. I mean I wasn't disappointed with the defense. But up front, I think we got after them up front as much as their D-Line got after us, but they made a couple more plays. So we'll go back to work."
On what was working defensively...
"The kids were in a position to make some tackles and they did up until that last drive.
