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ROSE BOWL GAME: IOWA VS STANFORD

December 27, 2015

Blake Martinez

Pasadena, California

Q. This is your third trip here, right?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah. Crazy.

Q. Does the novelty of going to the Rose Bowl every wear off?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: No, I don't think it ever wears off. You just try to understand what you're getting yourself into. And I think this one is just that much more special for me just because it is my senior season and this is my last game ever at Stanford. So it's going to be a great moment just to go out there with my teammates. And it kind of helps just from the standpoint of having that experience to be able to talk to the young guys, because we have nine new starters this year on defense, just let them know, hey, this is what you're getting into, this is what we're doing each week, this is where you can have time to study for the game, this is where you can have time to have fun and those little things, which is really important.

Q. You guys are No. 6 in the country. Some people think this is like a consolation prize game. You guys came so close to what you were playing for. Is that disappointment still there? Has it worn off?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, we talked about it. We said that, hey, win the Pac-12 championship and go to the Rose Bowl is not something to kind of frown about. And we're going to have a great time here. Obviously, a lot of us were hoping to make it to the College Football Playoff. But you always, you can't beat this, the granddaddy of them all. And it'll always be that. Everyone in the world can be watching this game and it's going to be a fun show and it's going to be great to kind of go out there with these guys and give it all for the last time.

Q. What happened after the first loss at Northwestern? This team seemed extremely different from that point on. What was sort of the reaction after that game and moving forward, how things changed?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, right after that game we came together as captains. And we decided, hey, we were going to have a team or a player-led meeting and to kind of just talk about where we need to go from here. And each of us as captains kind of went up there and said, hey, either work on your fundamentals each day, get better at film study, or give more effort on certain things. Then on the last point was, that each person is a leader in their own right and everyone has the capability of going out there and saying, hey, you're not giving it your best. Hey, do you think this. Hey, you need to do this better. Those little things kind of helped us shape who we are now and helped us get to where we are now, because we had every single person on the team as a leader, no matter if you're a freshman or senior.

Q. Was Kevin Hogan a big part of that?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Oh, yeah. All of us. Yeah, every single one of us went up there and we said, hey, we're going to go in there and just say what's going on and say it from your heart and don't really have anything kind of memorized to say and just go up there and explain to these guys what we need to do.

Q. You don't expect that in the first game of the season?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: No, exactly. It was a crazy moment, because throughout fall camp we thought, hey, we're a good team, we need to go out there and play the game that we know how to play. We went out there and all of a sudden it didn't work out. So, we kind of just were hit with just, boom, straight into a brick wall. And we're like, okay, what's going on? Because it hurts when you go through the whole offseason. It was one of the best offseasons I've ever had at Stanford from the standpoint of every single person giving it their all every single day, never complaining and putting in the work they needed to do to be the best player they could be. And when you do all that work and your first game hits you that hard like that, you kind of have to step back and say, okay, we need to do something about it right now. Because we don't want this to be another 8-5 season like last year.

Q. How big of a factor emotionally and with just physical play out there every week has Kevin been and do you notice a big difference in him this year and last year with everything he went through?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, he's always been an amazing leader and an amazing teammate. This year it's just unreal to watch him play out there. He's just giving you that extra oomph to kind of get it to that next level. And I think one of the craziest stories was the USC game when he got hurt and I think he could barely even walk on his ankle, and all of a sudden he's out there scrambling and doing all these things and then the next day he's just blown out. And it was just like, okay, that's a warrior right there and he's been awesome all season from that standpoint and every single time you need someone to say something or give you that extra motivation, he's always there for you.

Q. You guys weren't even aware, I heard, what was going on with his dad last year.
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, I didn't know until like late last year. It was unreal. I commend him for how strong he's been throughout the whole entire thing. He's just an amazing person. He's a true MVP of our team and he makes everything go.

Q. Could you tell last year something was askew with him?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I honestly couldn't. It was crazy. Because I always look back to that even how strong he was to be able to kind of go through that whole entire season without any hiccups or kind of emotional let downs and stuff like that. And it's been a crazy thing to see.

Q. In hindsight, when you hear, when you heard what was going on, could you sort of have an explanation for why he may be struggled with some things last year?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, I think he's the strong person mentally and I don't know if anything from that hurt him or kind of slowed him down too much, but, yeah, I can understand if anything was going on that that could have been the reason.

Q. What's your kicker like?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Oh, amazing. Yeah, we're actually really good friends, we play. I'm like a gamer and we play these computer games together and it's the funniest thing ever, because you play with like head sets on and you talk throughout the game like a 5-v-5 for video games and it's literally just all of us screaming at each other, why, what are you doing? Why did you go over there? Gosh, you died again. Yeah, it's hilarious. We always go back and forth on that. It's fun.

Q. What the is game?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: It's called do DODA. It's just a big tournament that, like the winner got like 8 million dollars, some crazy amount. It was stupid money.

Q. Kickers are like left-handed pitchers in baseball, aren't they? Quirky?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I don't even know how to explain Conrad [Ukropina]. He's a great kid and he has his moments, obviously, of craziness. But, yeah, I think that -- I honestly don't even know how to explain him, he's just out there.

Q. Is there sort of an example you could give me that would illustrate that?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I don't know, I think after the Notre Dame game you could kind of see him just kind of going crazy just jumping up-and-down. He's just in there crowd surfing. I don't know. Just like those crazy moments where I'm just like, never would I do that.

Q. Did you ever have a doubt he was going to make that kick?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: No. The funny story about that, I was standing on the sideline and Coach [Mike] Bloomgren came up to me and was like, hey, is he going to make this? And I was like, yes, hands down. And he's like, all right. And it was during the timeout right before and he goes, okay, I'm trusting you. And boom, made it. And it just comes to the standpoint of saying, on the offseason working so hard, he worked incredibly hard on everything from fundamentals in kicking to just in the weight room to get better. And during our summer we would have runs where, if he makes a kick during like our player-led practices, we don't have to do that much running. So he made every single kick. And so once we saw that we were like, all right, he'll never miss whenever we need him to. And at that point when he is kicking, we're in his face literally like right here and just screaming at him like whatever you want. And it gets pretty crazy what people are yelling. But it's funny. And he's he made every single one.

Q. You played from Oregon State to Notre Dame to the Pac-12, it's been a bit of a roller coaster ride for you guys. Pretty wild.
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, it has been, obviously, a lot of ups and some downs and every single time you have those downs you kind of learn and see, hey, what we need to work on or what we need to get better and I think that's what is going to help us out in this game the most in kind of seeing those things that we need to work on and we kind of came up short those two times and, yeah, I think it's going to be a tremendous help down the road.

Q. How did the Northwestern game affect you?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I think it was really important. Obviously we wanted to win that game, but I think it helps us out a lot, kind of molding this complete season and helping us get to this point now. After that game, we kind of met as a team, just us players, and each captain went up there and said, hey, you need to work on this, we need to work on this, this is what we're not doing, and those little things. We told every single person that, hey, we're the captains, but every single person on this team is a leader. And we act like that every single day from the standpoint of, all right, if someone not giving their best, go up to them and let them know. Or if I'm not giving my best, let someone tell me that I'm not doing that. So it was a great thing to see.

Q. Do you think people were playing below their potential in that game?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I think every single game we played extremely hard. It was one of those games where it just didn't work out for us. It was a tough point for us and we thought, hey, we need to do something and we just need to kind of explain, hey, we want to give a hundred percent, if not more, every single day. And it was just tough from the standpoint of going throughout the whole offseason, our whole entire offseason was probably one of our best throughout my four years here. And to hit that wall and not win it was like, all right, let's do something right now, because we do not want this to be like last season.

Q. How far have you come since that game?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: We have come extremely far from the standpoint of everyone trusting each other and knowing where they are at the same time. To get the communication aspect down. To let everyone know where they need to be. And also from the standpoint of giving that whole effort straining to finish on each play. So it was a great moment for us and it's helped us a lot.

Q. Do you like this things are almost coming full circle with a Big Ten physical team that started the season?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Oh, yeah, it's definitely going to be a fun game and we're excited we look at this team as our offense and we use those little things that we have during our fall camp to say, hey, this is what we were good at, this is what we were bad at, and this is what we need to improve on this week and then kind of mold it to Iowa. Because obviously Stanford and Iowa have different type of game styles and stuff, but overall, they're both physical.

Q. Do you see it as kind of a chance for redemption almost?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, I mean, we kind of just go out there and think of it as hey, this is the Rose Bowl, we're going out here to win and if anything else comes of it, we're excited.

Q. I remember Brennan [Scarlett] saying that you guys are telling him, it feels a lot better to win a Rose Bowl than to lose a Rose Bowl. How big of a difference is it?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Unreal. Because I remember my freshman year winning it we were going crazy. And then after my sophomore year when we lost it was kind of just like, okay, all the seniors stand up, we're like, good season, like you kind of have that, like sad somber talk and you're like, oh, all right, well, time to take my pads off, go home. And yeah it's just one of those things where you want to be out there on the field holding that trophy up and not walking past as confetti falls on you that's not your color.

Q. Not many teams in the country though that they're just in general in history that have been on both. On both sides of that. You guys are pretty unique in that.
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, probably. I think so.

Q. Does it change the third time around?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, doesn't really change much obviously on the game standpoint. Obviously it helps a lot throughout the week just from a standpoint of understanding what you're getting into, what events and how they kind of manage your time to be able to get your film study in that you need and make sure you're prepared for the game.

Q. How do you think Cam Scarlett has done as the running back on the Iowa scout team?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: He's a great running back. He has that full back where he can do the power and run it straight at you or he can run that spread offense game. So it's been great to see and he's helped us a lot throughout the whole entire season.

Q. Do you think he's a good representation of their back?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Oh, yeah, he's helped us out as numerous backs. It's been awesome with him. I always mess with him, oh, you did better than this guy or this guy. And it's those little things that he's been doing pretty well.

Q. What stands out about their running back to you and their offensive line in general?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I think their whole entire offensive line, running back, everything, is just amazing. A well coached team. Every single time you see like maybe one guy barely makes a mistake and they have instantly another guy fixing it. They just kind of work off of that, if one guy fixes his job, he goes up and does the other guy's job. It's crazy to see how a well-oiled machine they are and it's going to be fun to go against them and kind of see how we can destroy that machine.

Q. So how do you draw up the blueprint to that? If they don't make mistakes and what's your focus in this game?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Talk to the coach on that one.

(Laughter.)

Q. [On approaching the offseason differently after losing versus winning...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, that's a good question. I think I think both ways you kind of go at the off season the same way. Trying to be the best player you can be. Obviously, I think it's just the different taste you have in your mouth after you because you kind of maybe like a week of celebration after winning and then if you lose you instantly want to get right back to no break whatsoever. And get back to work to kind of fix whatever was wrong to have you lose the game.

Q. [On strength and conditioning coach Shannon Turley...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: We have amazing strength coach that kind of leads our whole off season. Coach Turley. And I think he obviously, after a win, is more happy, like more happy throughout the off season. And I think after a loss, you just doesn't want to be near him whatsoever. So I think that also puts into it. And it's just that, that aspect of our off season that maybe was a little different.

Q. [On his ankle injury suffered prior to the Pac-12 Football Championship Game versus USC...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, there was -- I didn't know exactly what it was, all I knew is it hurt and once we got like everything back in me that's I was able to play I was going to be in there and was going to be there for my team.

Q. Were you planting and turning or how did you, do you remember how it happened?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, it was just a, basically I just rolled my ankle at practice and all my weight just went straight on that. Once that happened, I just heard, I heard a pop on my ankle and I was like, okay, this isn't good.

Q. Coach Anderson was telling me a few teams were thinking of you as a full back.
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Only one I remember is Fresno State and Boise State. Which were full back, tight end combos. And I think Oregon was telling me I was going to be an inside linebacker but they were going to test me out as a full back as well, but, yeah.

Q. Did you play full back in high school?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I played running back in high school.

Q. You did, okay.
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yes.

Q. [On the Disneyland trip...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Amazing, I loved it. It's like my favorite place on earth. So, yeah, and being with all these guys, Hogan, Christian and Ronnie, it was great, as well as just from the standpoint of being able to hang out with them all day and kind of get their expressions throughout the ride was amazing.

Q. Who was scared the most?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Ronnie on Tower Of Terror. We didn't even care about the ride, we all were just like looking to the side to watch his expressions on the whole ride. He had his eyes closed and it was fun.

Q. What was your favorite ride?
BLAKE MARTINEZ: I think our favorite ride was the Toy Story, I don't know exactly what it's called, but it's like the shooting game where you get points on certain things like that. And it was just awesome from the standpoint because we're all competitive, so all of us went at it. Josh was unreal. I was with him in the cart and it looked like he was shooting off the screen and next thing I know he has 60,000 points somehow and I was like, all right, this is stupid, I'm done.

Q. [On Brennan Scarlett's transfer from Cal...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Oh, he was, it was back in, I think it was like spring where he came in for like an official visit kind of thing. It was funny because, normally, I'm used to like freshmen and stuff like that, but, okay, here comes this fifth year senior and a Cal guy. So I was kind of worried. But, yeah, once I hung out with him for about 10 minutes, I knew he was a perfect fit for us. His personality and I can kind of talk to him about certain things that they did and what he did to kind of get better as a player and I knew that his work ethic was going to be exactly what we wanted it to be.

Yeah, I mean at first it was, yeah, it was just like, okay, is this guy going to fit. Okay. What's his personality like. We all know he's from Cal, so you're kind of like, well... but once he came in and went through lifts and runs and hung out with us in the locker room, he was just a great guy and kind of became that Stanford Cardinal.

Q. [On Brennan Scarlett's contributions...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Oh, unreal. Yeah, it's been huge, just from the standpoint of having that rotation, because we lost Harrison Phillips early in the season and he was a great player for us throughout fall came and for those few plays that he played at Northwestern. But once that happened, he stepped in and we were back to normal again without any dropoffs. It was great to have him and it showed how important it was to pick him up.

Q. [On the recovery time...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Oh, yeah, I definitely enjoyed the recovery time tremendously. It was a great time to sit -- I basically, when I was back home, my parents were like, okay, do you want to go hang out with any friends or anything. I'm like, nope, I'm laying on my couch and that is all I'm doing. So, yeah, it's been, it's been fun. But throughout the season it's kind of it wasn't too crazy, just because my teammates need me out there and ready to go. No kind of drop off, so I was going to be ready.

Q. [On adrenaline peaking through an injury...]
BLAKE MARTINEZ: Yeah, always. Always. Adrenaline every single time. Don't feel anything.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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