Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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up for competition: "You're always competing for your job. It's the game of football. The coaches see that, and the best person playing is going to play, especially on the offensive line. Your job is never safe." On the winning culture at Notre Dame: "There's no doubt we got punched in the face, but Coach Kelly has built a culture here. We just have to get back on that track. "Everyone has a chip on their shoulder. This team, we're all com- petitors — no one likes to lose." Notre Dame sophomore line- backer Jaylon Smith … On Kelly saying all positions are up for competition: "I've never ex- perienced back-to-back losses in my entire career. It's very frustrating. "I feel like opening up the compe- tition and us just continually try to prepare the right way. That's just the way to go." On the mounting defensive in- juries: "It forces us to rally together even more. You talk about the game of football — it's the last gladiator sport." On the four-game losing streak: "It's difficult. I feel like we get what we earn, and we earned this loss. "It's hard to win in college football. It's something that we look forward to doing here in the future." Notre Dame sophomore defensive end Isaac Rochell … On what he hopes to see in bowl preparation: "Practices need to change. I don't think we're having bad practices. I think we could go a step further. A lot of guys, including myself, need to grow up and take a more active role. It's just every- thing. "Our team needs to take a step for- ward. It's a step we haven't taken yet." On the mounting defensive inju- ries: "It's tough. It's just a series of guys that are going down. It's been a tough last three games with people going down. "It's frustrating, but it's just the way the game goes. It's stuff you can't control." USC head coach Steve Sarkisian … On the statement the rout makes: "It gives us a chance to head into bowl prep with some confidence. Notre Dame is a really good ball team. They had some gut-wrenching losses like us. We knew this was two animals in the corner, and one had to fight their way out. "To play that well against that cali- ber of a team, it sends a message to us of what we are capable of doing. We all came here to be champions, to be the best. We are capable of being that, but it's a work in progress. "There are a couple of gut-wrench- ing losses that will haunt us, but our future is ridiculously bright. We are going to be really good, and we are not going anywhere."