Q. The run game has been so effective, impactful. What kind of was going on on Saturday, do you think? I'm sure it was frustrating for you guys.
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: I think it was probably the communication and us playing together and not being able to execute some of the plays that were called and not being on key with each other.
I want to give Vanderbilt defense some credit for coming out with a good game plan to get us out of our game. I think it slowed us down in the start, and we got behind. We had to lean on the throwing towards the second half of the game, and it just took the run game up out of it the first half.
Q. Now you guys are heading to Florida State. You haven't played in this game. It's a longstanding history, very heated rivalry. How excited are you for the opportunity, and just how big would this be for the program to kind of end the regular season with that?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: I'm very excited because so far this season every rivalry game we've played from the start, even though the outcome hasn't been what we wanted, it's always been fun to play in them. It's just another one of those rivalry games we have to come in ready to play from the start.
From what I'm feeling from the other players on the team and for the history that I've noticed, like from recent research, it's a big game. It's a big rivalry. So it's important that we get this win, and it's important that we get it leading into next season in order for both seasons to have momentum going into that time.
Q. Is it frustrating for you guys that you've got five losses, but four of those games, you look at them and you see that mistake here and there cost you a ballgame that you could have won? How frustrating is that?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: It can be pretty frustrating at times, especially when we think about how close they were, but I tend to look at it as a learning experience instead of letting it be frustrating. Like looking at things we can change on our part. It's more of things we did.
Our line coach always tells us, it's not about them, it's about us. Most of the times, our mistakes and things we do bad in the game, it's from us shooting ourselves in the foot. I feel like the majority of the time, things that happen to us, like the last game was a lot of penalties and just us beating ourself.
I think looking back on it is pretty tough, but looking back on it as a learning experience helps out.
Q. How is that frustration coming out within the team? Are you seeing guys stay the course and look at the light at the end of the tunnel, or does a loss like this really kind of upset guys?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: After the game, of course guys are going to be upset. Yesterday we watched the film and kind of put it to bed and see the leadership part of the team kind of stands out when we get in these types of moments. This isn't our first loss. We've been here before.
So this is the time when the leaders of the team kind of really steps up and shows why they're the leaders, and it kind of keeps the team in check because we know we've got a short week and we've got a big rivalry game. So there's no need to mope on the last loss. We just get ready for the next game.
Q. There have been quite a few players that already announced they're going to be leaving the program if they haven't already. Following a loss like this with a rivalry game on the horizon, what do you do in your position to keep guys bought in for at least one more week?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: Just be the best example I can be. Just come in with my focus, and just lead by example even if I don't say much. Just like lead and keep the focus of the team on the main goal, and that's to win the next game basically.
That's kind of my main focus of doing it in my position group, me and the other leaders in the position group, and even the other leaders of position groups, their main focus is to make sure we stay the course. Yeah, we lost, but it's not the end of the world. We've got another game to play, and we need to win it to be on mental going into next season. That's the main goal just to keep our focus.
Q. What have you seen from Anthony as quarterback in terms of leadership?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: I've seen him grow tremendously from back when I first got here back in the spring to him not saying as much to him like now every week he has something to say in the team meeting, standing up and talking after coach. Just being a leader on and off the field. Getting us in the huddle and keeping everybody on time and on point.
Whenever somebody starts to play out a little bit, you see him talking more and being more of a leader. I've seen him grow tremendously from that point.
Q. How satisfying is it for you that you come from a Group of Five program to the SEC, and you were thought to be the best offensive lineman in Group of Five, and now you're thought to be the best at this level?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: It's pretty satisfying when I think about it because honestly I didn't think I would have this much success this early when I got here, but from the hard work I put in over the summer and with the help of my teammates and coaches, we all like -- all of that helped me out in this journey.
It really is satisfying when I think about it. I probably had a lot of doubts, but it's just satisfying to be able to come out here and show what I can do and show that I really belong in a Power Five in the SEC.
Q. What were your doubts?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: Probably not being able to play as well as I think I am, like not being able to play as well as I think they're playing. Because I was coming out of high school and didn't many SEC teams look at me, so I kind of had that in the back of my head. But coming here crushed all those small little doubts, but those are the types of things I put on myself.
Q. Coach Napier was asked about why there's so many upsets and craziness in college football these days, and he mentioned that one of the reasons is the transfers and guys like you coming in and making an impact. You're a football fan just in general, I assume. When you see stuff like Tennessee get killed by South Carolina and upsets like that, what do you attribute that to? Is it just the new era of college football?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: That and I just kind of think it just shows that any team could lose any week. Just being ready, it don't matter what your record is, it's about being 1-0 each week, and I think that's what kind of those type of games show you that the record overall doesn't matter so much as being 1-0 this week.
That's kind of what we've been saying these past few weeks is just being 1-0 each week, and I think that kind of plays a part.
Any team can win any Saturday, I think. That game right there kind of shows this kind of effect.
Q. Did you talk to any of the guys at Louisiana about Florida State?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: No, sir.
Q. Were you surprised that it's such a one-sided game, FSU and Louisiana?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: Yes, sir, a little bit. I didn't like the score too much.
Q. What were some of the things at Louisiana that allowed for steady improvement under Billy? What were some of the themes that allowed you guys to get better so quickly?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: Probably how fast we all bought into what Coach was saying. Probably just in the end playing together as a team and not splintering when we did have bad games and bad losses because there were times at Louisiana where we had bad losses where we should have won.
I feel like in those times we came together as a team and was able to fight back and go on to win the next two games and just played together better. I feel like those are some of the things that helped us out.
Q. I was asking Billy about people making a rush to judgment like on the direction of the program this early. Did you feel like that's something that maybe he had to contend with right before you got there, when Louisiana went 7-7 and people were like, hold on, where are we going here?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: I feel like he went through that there too as well. I feel like it's what a lot of coaches go through their first years in new situations, especially in winning programs like a program like here who's used to winning and starting off kind of how we did, then kind of hitting bumps in the road and things like that. It kind of slowed us down a bit.
I think it's something that all coaches kind of go through, but I think Coach has handled it pretty well.
Q. What was your first impression of Montrell when he first got to Louisiana?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: Not much really, honestly.
Q. Did you expect him to become what he has?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: No, sir, to be honest. I didn't pay notice until the first few days of fall camp, and then I started realizing how he ran the ball like a pro from day one. I started realizing he's pretty special. Then the first game came, and I started realizing he's good.
Q. What is it about him? Everyone struggled this last game running the ball, I know, but leading in he was really putting it together late in games, getting stronger as it went kind of thing.
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: I think it's probably the way we practice. At the end we practice hard for those types of moments in games. I feel like he gets better as the game goes on with reading defenses and bringing linebackers to their own line of scrimmage and shifting his course in the right gaps and things like that.
I feel like just the things we rep in practice from team runs to even the end of periods to the end of practice, all those reps and reps and reps just shows itself in the game.
Q. Did you ever stop to think that here you are from Greensburg, Louisiana, two stop lights in the whole town, and now all of a sudden you're being thought of as first or second round draft pick? Do you ever think about that?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: Sometimes, but I think not to think about it too much because it can probably get a little overwhelming. I'm just trying to focus on finishing in the season as best I can. I think about it a little bit, but I try not to.
Q. You're kind of the big man in town, aren't you, in more ways than one?
O'CYRUS TORRENCE: Yes, sir, kind of like the hometown hero.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports