Nov. 9, 2011
LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - With the Rebels coming off arguably their two best weeks of football this season (a win over Colorado State and a hard-fought loss to No. 5 Boise State), UNLVRebels.com caught up with head football coach Bobby Hauck to talk about the final month of the season and the progress of his football program.
UNLVRebels.com: We know you don't like to talk about moral victories, but a lot of fans were impressed with the way your team battled Boise State. What are your thoughts on the game?
Bobby Hauck: The guys played hard and we executed a lot of what we wanted to do in the first half. However, the games are not 30 minutes long. We need to be able to sustain the way we played in the first half against Boise. When we are able to do that, we are going to be a good football team.
UNLVRebels.com: So it's fair to say you're seeing progression with the team as well?
BH: Absolutely. You play every single game to win. I'm not happy that we lost to Boise State. We made a few mistakes - that we shouldn't have made - and let the game get away in the second half. Boise is a good team and they capitalized. But our guys are beginning to believe. They know they can play with good teams. As the program continues to grow, we will begin to win more. We are becoming more competitive in our nature as individuals on this team. That is a major hurdle here.
UNLVRebels.com: You're headed down to New Mexico this Saturday to face a team that is struggling. How important is this game for your team?
BH: Our guys will be tested. It doesn't matter who we are playing this week. We are going on the road and we have had no success on the road - none. We need to build this program little by little and one of our next important steps is we need to find a way to get our first road win. The Lobos see us on the schedule and they'll play hard to get a win, they think this is their chance. If we don't match that intensity, we're going to get beat.
UNLVRebels.com: With four games left on the schedule (at New Mexico, at Air Force, San Diego State, at TCU), what are you hoping to see from your team?
BH: Wins, obviously. But we must keep getting better. The one thing that has impressed me so much with this group is their willingness to work hard, their willingness to want to improve. Even when things have been tough, they kept working hard. And they have experienced better results the past couple of weeks because of that effort... Our seniors have been great. They know they are not going to be here in a couple seasons to enjoy the winning. But they want to get this thing moving in the right direction and they have. That is crucial for our young players - and we have a lot of them. This group is fighting and they will for the final month. That will lead to improvement, hopefully give us some momentum, and spring us into what will be a huge off season.
UNLVRebels.com: Boise State had a great number of supporters out at the game last Saturday and Rebel fans were out in force as well. We've heard from a lot of fans about how great the college football atmosphere was. What are your thoughts on that?
BH: College football is special. You've heard me say that over and over. The type of environment we had on Saturday night is the type of environment we want at every Rebel home football game. It was a great place to be, a great place to bring the family. It was a great environment to coach in, to play in, and to experience college football in. This city wants us to be good - we know that. When we put a product on the field that makes our fans feel good about the Rebels, we're going to create that environment. People who have been out to see us play believe it's coming. We believe that. It's going to be fun to watch and be a part of.
