Everything Boston College Football DB Cameron Martinez Said Ahead of Louisville
The Boston College Eagles (4-3, 1-2 ACC) football team returns to Alumni Stadium on Friday night to take on the Louisville Cardinals for homecoming.
On Monday, defensive back Cameron Martinez spoke about his performance in the team’s 42-21 loss to Virginia Tech in Week 8 and what the team has to improve on ahead of its matchup with the Cardinals.
Below is a transcript of everything Martinez said.
Q: The team lost, you guys want to win the game, but personally to have that third quarter, what did that mean to you?
MARTINEZ: It felt really good. Obviously, I kind of started slow, just started the season just being hurt and I felt like I was the last guy that kind of came into this program, so just kind of catching up with everything. Having that game felt good just cause I work hard and like I said, I put a lot of work in during the week, so to go out there and be able to have fun and make plays like that. Like I said, I wish we would have got the win, but definitely good to play good.
Q: I think you had a sack, a pick, and a fumble recovery in the same quarter. Have you ever had that any level? Kind of crazy.
MARTINEZ: Nah, I haven't and I didn't really notice it until at the end of the game. I feel like I was in a good flow. Team was coming back, making good plays, and, yeah just playing my game and then I looked up and I was like, wow, it's crazy, but definitely felt good though, forsure.
Q: Having to replace Amari [Jackson] as a team, did you talk about sort of a by committee approach with, obviously, you can't replace him with just one guy?
MARTINEZ: Yeah. I mean, I had a lot of talks with my coaches past few weeks, and obviously, when he went down, just about how some guys have to step up. That's a really good player, it’s a guy you can't really replace, but there are guys that obviously need to take a different role and step up and that's kind of something that they were hoping me to do. And like I said, I wanted to accept the challenge. I feel like I did that. But like I said, we got a lot of ways to go, and we got to pick back up on winning, obviously losing two straight and a lot more other guys have to step up as well.
Q: Run defense, obviously been a problem last few games. What have you guys see on film that can kind of get cleaned up?
MARTINEZ: Just minor, just minor mistakes. People just shooting outside of gaps, certain things like that, nothing that's crazy, but like said little things can become big things. That's what happened last Thursday, you know what I mean? So, this is like I said, minor corrections to clean up and I feel like we're doing that right now. It's been a good couple days of practice, and just got to finish strong.
Q: Most seasons have a point where you guys kind of have to dig deep and see what you're made up. Does it feel like now it's kind of the moment for you guys?
MARTINEZ: It is, it is. This is the first time I've lost two in a row in my career, but it's definitely a wake up call. When you lose, you definitely get to look at the mirror and you see the flaws. You see what you need to work on and get better at and I think that as a team, we've been able to see that, but now we just got to apply it and keep on putting the work in and try to make a push. Louisville’s a really good team so what better way to come back, back up but 1-0 in the second half of the season.
Q: Another short week for you guys. How different is this schedule? Or are you guys happy you can kind of bounce back, I guess, a day early, and get back on the field and enjoy and try to get that taste out of your mouth?
MARTINEZ: Yeah. I mean it's different for me too because I haven't played on a Thursday, I haven't played on the Friday and I’m in college football so this is new for me, but yeah, day earlier, just to get back in it. Like I said, coming off of the losses, I'm hungry for a win, so I want to get back out there and play. So it'd be good, good environment under the lights as well. So like I said, we're looking forward to it and I think we've been adjusting as well just with the schedule change.
Q: What have you seen out of Ashton McShane so far?
MARTINEZ: Really good young player, guy who loves to compete, has a lot of talent and can do a lot for us. Obviously, he’s just still learning, he’s young, but I think he's gonna be a really good player in the future, and really good players for us now.
The Eagles and Cardinals face off on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
