Head Coach Butch Davis
On the preparations for playing in the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl…
“Obviously the weather aspect of it is pretty similar to us in Miami. We’ve had seven practices before we left Miami and we’ll get three more opportunities here. I think it was enough preparation for our players, I think they’re super excited about playing. We’re unbelievably happy about being in the Bahamas and experiencing this. Our kids were geeked up when they found out we were coming and they were even more geeked up this morning when we got on the plane.”
On the travel experience…
“Our kids were unbelievably patient. They knew it would be a little bit of a different travel experience having to go through customs. Their excitement about being in the bowl game is so high that it wouldn’t have mattered how hard; I think a lot of them would have said ‘if we have to swim over there then we’ll just swim to get there.’”
On the excitement level about playing in the Bahamas…
“I think every bowl game, you really want the kids to have a good experience. Obviously, you want them to have fun and you want to win the football game. I can’t imagine a better place than Atlantis to come. The opportunities to get on the beach, and do all the things that Atlantis offers, the slides, the waterparks, they’re pretty geeked up about it.”
On the exposure level of the game…
“Any time you get a chance to play a nationally televised game on ESPN, and you’re the only game in the country going on at 12:30 on Friday the 21st, it’s really exciting. It’s an opportunity for your seniors to go out with a win, it’s an opportunity for the younger kids to springboard into next season. It really helps in recruiting, it helps in preparation for spring practices. With the new NCAA rule that allows freshmen to play in four games, for some of our kids this will be their fourth game.”
On his previous travels to the Bahamas…
“Obviously the hospitality is unbelievable. The food – the seafood – I can’t imagine another place on the planet with better seafood than here. I’ve probably been to the Bahamas and a lot of the different islands, maybe as many as 20 or 25 times. Living in Miami and South Florida off and on since 1984, you get a chance to experience a lot of them. Every one has a little bit of a different culture. When you come to Nassau and Paradise Island, everything here is really special.”
Redshirt Senior Defensive Lineman Anthony Johnson
On FIU starting to sustain success as a program…
“Last year was my first time being in a bowl game. It feels good to help this team go to back-to-back bowl games. It’s kind of a pride thing. I’m extremely proud of this senior class. After all the adversity that we’ve been through, it’s going to be exciting to go out and hopefully get this win, and continue to help FIU progress.”
On what he’s excited for about the Bahamas…
“This is actually my first time even out of the country. It’s my first time over here. I’m just extremely excited to see the different views and everything. We all want to experience different things that we aren’t able to do back at home. Everybody’s excited. Everybody on my bus was up, laughing, and having a good time. Everybody’s just extremely excited to experience all of this together.”
