Players Robert Cooper, Patrick Payton talk progress, NC State

The Florida State Seminoles are set to face the NC State Wolfpack on the road this Saturday after coming off a 21-31 loss to No. 15 Wake Forest at home. Redshirt freshman Patrick Payton and track star extraordinaire Robert Cooper spoke with the media after practice to review last week’s performance and detail the response pushed by head coach Mike Norvell.

Defensive Lineman Robert Cooper

After the loss on Saturday, Cooper said the response from the team is just as he expected.

“I seen them respond the way I expected everybody to just, you know, just everybody’s ready to get back to work, you know, everybody ready to fix the mistakes that we made during the game and just clean everything up, I mean, that’s been the mindset for everybody getting ready for NC State — big matchup.”

When asked about their upcoming game on the road, Cooper said he tells his teammates it’s just like any other game and to go out and play their best.

“I tell them it’s really like any other away game, I mean, it’s just a different atmosphere, you know, you’re gonna have people there that’s — they ain’t gonna like you, you know, they don’t want you to win. But, I mean, all they know is that we all got each other, you know? That’s all we need and we all ready to go into this, go into this game, give each other the best we can and just come out victorious.”

Cooper’s full interview can be seen below:

Defensive end Patrick Payton

When talking about his first sack last weekend, Payton said it felt great being able to come through for his team and that coaching continues to help him progress.

It felt great just being able to come through for my team and especially like, missing it from Boston College week, the sack that I did miss, I had it in my hands but I let go and then coach Norvell told me what I gotta do to make it next time. That whole practice week I focused on making sure I get the tackle, make sure I wrap and roll, it felt really good.

When asked about his confidence, Payton said that it grows over time and that his fundamentals keep him grounded.

“The confidence grows over time when you know you can do it when you know you can play. Just being a smart player and making sure you do everything that you're supposed to do on the assignment and the tackles and plays just comes to you.”

Payton’s full interview can be seen below: