Everything Spencer Rattler and Xavier Legette said after the win over Kentucky

Xavier, how does it feel to finally get that game ball you’ve been waiting on?
Legette: It feels good, man. I’m happy for the team, we got the win. 

After the offensive struggles, what was the message going into the fourth quarter?
Rattler: Yeah, we knew it was gonna be a four-quarter battle. Obviously we didn’t have the complete game showing we wanted offensively tonight. Credit to Kentucky. We came out quick on them, scored fast. They’ve got a really good front. Number zero is probably best D-tackle I’ve seen going against. That dude was a monster, created a lot of havoc for us on the run and pass game. Obviously that second and third quarter we got stale. We didn’t have any rhythm as a group, but the defense played amazing. We stayed positive throughout the whole game and we knew we get a chance to go down and win it, we’ll do it.

Boogie Huntely gave a speech before the fourth quarter saying the offense is going to get us one more. Were you aware of that and what does it mean to you?
Rattler: I didn’t hear everything he was saying because it was pretty loud going into the fourth, but Boogie is a great leader. He gets the team going. All we needed was to get one more because the defense was playing lights out tonight. It caused a lot of turnovers, got us the ball. We’ve got to convert, obviously, on those turnovers but I’m happy that he’s got to trust in us because we’ve got trust in them. That’s how we win games.

What did you think of the atmosphere tonight and how important is it going into Clemson next week?
Rattler: The atmosphere was great. The fans gave us a big edge in this game. It was loud the whole game and they were into it, which was awesome. We wanted a better showing offensively, but the defense kept us in the game and we converted when we had to in the clutch moments. I’m proud of the group. We protected well on that game-winning drive. Zay made big-time plays. Trey had a great play down there. I was telling the guys we needed a clutch moment in this season and it just happened to be in this game. We knew it was gonna be a battle and I’m happy for the team.

What would it mean to get a rivalry win next week and achieve bowl eligibility?
Legette: It’s great, man, it’s one of the reasons I came here. I know that rivalry is a big one and I want to be a part of it. 

Spencer, what did you see on the game-winning play?
Rattler: On that play, they were bringing a pressure overload blitz and I was trying to let Nick know we need to change the protection here and then I looked up and it was three seconds (on the play clock) and I was like, oh crap. He snapped it. Shout out to Djay Braswell. He stepped up and made a big-time block that won that game for us. A linebacker came free, he stepped up, made a huge block so I could make a little movement in the pocket. I told Zay I didn’t even see him. I knew where he was gonna be, I didn’t fully see him but I barely saw him. Put in the spot it needed to be and he made the catch. That’s what we’ve been doing this whole year and that’s the trust I’ve got in him.

Legette: I knew he was going to find me. I saw how the DB was playing me. I had to run the route a certain way and I knew I was going to get open.

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Xavier you’ve got the second-most receiving yards in a season in program history. How does that feel?
Legette: I didn’t even know that. For real. It’s a wonderful feeling. The opportunities that I had this year, that’s what it led up to. 

On the third and 15 before the game-winning touchdown, what did you see?
Rattler: Presnap, I’m thinking get my depth and find a way to get him the ball on a dagger, an in cut. He ran a great route. It was a good zone in there. I just led him and he made a great catch and that’s what got the drive started.

How does it feel now to be three-quarters of the way to the “November to Remember?”
Legette: We ain’t done. We’ve got one more shot. 

Spencer, does it put extra pressure on you knowing that Kentucky’s gonna limit the number of possessions you get in the game?
Rattler: Yeah, we knew that coming into the game. I feel like our time of possession was pretty good. We had too many three-and-outs, self-mistakes, like they weren’t beating us, we were beating ourselves. We knew that but as an offense, that that team is going to slow the game down, try to hold the ball, we’ve got to convert. I think the key for us tonight was we had zero turnovers on offense, and that’s what kept us in the game. We won the turnover battle. That’s something we preach. We protected the ball, and you’re gonna win a lot of games when you protect the ball and finish in those clutch moments. I’m proud of this group. Guys stepped up big time and I’m happy for them.

[Win two tickets to the South Carolina-Clemson football game]

What were you thinking on the second and 17 screen to Legette?
Legette: I was just trying to get the first down. I was really looking for the touchdown.
Rattler: When you’re backed up like that you kind of want to get the ball out quick. They can press you up and we needed to get the ball out. Knowing we can give it to him and he’s gonna get a chunk of the yards back, we’ve just got to convert on third. It was a big-time play, pretty good play cal, and we executed it.

The defense has been criticized a lot this season, what was it like to see them come through tonight?
Rattler: Credit to them, credit to Coach White. He coaches their butts off in practice and we compete every single day. We see the product on the field every day. We’ve got complete trust in them. So many playmakers on that side of the ball. We’ve got to trust in them and they showed up big time tonight and really kept us in the game to go out there in those moments and finish. They definitely closed it out for us.

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