VRBO CITRUS BOWL: AUBURN VS NORTHWESTERN

January 1, 2021

Big Kat Bryant

Camping World Stadium

Auburn Tigers

Northwestern Wildcats 35, Auburn Tigers 19

Q. How tough has this last week been, so many starters out, dealing with COVID, what's it been like?

BIG KAT BRYANT: It was real, real, real challenging. If we would have came out with a win, that would have been a great story, but man, it was real tough, man, because a lot of guys -- when they found out some guys weren't playing and me being a leader, I told somebody yesterday, man, it was tough, me being a senior, me wanting to play but it was a lot of guys that had checked out. You know, being the leader, you know, you have to lead, talk when you don't want to talk, you know, things like that, man. So hey, like I said, it was real, real tough, once a lot of guys find out we wasn't having some starters, man, it was just like real tough. And then without us having a young team, leadership definitely played a big role.

Q. Before the game you were talking about wanting to build up the young guys to cement your legacy and keep it going. What did you see from those guys and did anyone stick out to you?

BIG KAT BRYANT: Zykeivous Walker, he had to step up and play. He gave us some quality minutes. Then we got Jeremiah Wright that gave us some good minutes. It was just getting to see them guys get their feet wet, I think them two have a real good future here at Auburn. Only thing I can do is just continue to motivate them because that's what I did from the sideline.

Q. Was this your final college game? Do you intending to pro?

BIG KAT BRYANT: I don't know. I mean, because, you know, I haven't played all the season. I was kind of mad about that. I'm going to weigh my options. As of now, man, I really don't know. I don't know. So we're going to see whatever decision I make, it's going to be in the next couple days or whatever.

Q. End of the third and start of the fourth, their running game started to turn after stopping them throughout the game. What changed at the end of the game that made their rushing attack do much better against you guys?

BIG KAT BRYANT: Guys just getting gapped out, wasn't being physical. Those little things that we missed, you know, from our two starters that were gone to the guys that were inexperienced and that was the biggest thing, some of the guys that were just inexperienced. This was their first game and it got late in the game, and I mean, guys probably just got lazy and just got gapped out, man. That was really the only thing Northwestern -- when they got close to the red zone, they just got physical and just ran the ball and that's what happened.

Q. How valuable do you think that experience today can be for the guys going into 2021?

BIG KAT BRYANT: It's great. When I was a freshman, just getting playing time, and for them to actually start, man, that is a big thing and something they will probably never forget throughout their life. But yeah, that's -- I mean, playing, I promise you, playing, getting actual quality playing time, that's what builds your confidence, builds your ego and things like that moving forward because you get a feel for the game and know what to expect, things like that.

Q. Wanted to ask you, Elijah Canion, has not caught a pass all season and catches a touchdown. What do you think a game like this can do for him going forward?

BIG KAT BRYANT: I talk to him all the time, he's got some people from where I'm from -- that's how me and him kind of talk. But yeah, I really think that will, I think he's a good athlete, anyway, good player, good young guy. So I really, like I say, with things like that that happen, it just kind of builds their confidence going to the next year, man, because like I say, that's the biggest thing when it comes to this college football thing. It raises his confidence knowing your assignment, doing your assignment, things like that.

Q. What are takeaways from Coach Harsin so far and what you've heard from him and what do you think about the future of Auburn Football?

BIG KAT BRYANT: I really think -- I really like Coach Harsin, but you know, I ain't going to lie, only thing he got to do around here is recruit, plain and simple. But I really think he's a great guy, great coach, great leader. When I met with him one-on-one, I think Monday, this past Monday, so like I said, I like him and I really think, you know, he has the right coaching philosophy to lead this team to one day win a championship and I really do believe that.