It felt great to get that win against the Ragin' Cajuns and become bowl eligible. That’s a big milestone for us, and it just shows how hard this team is working. After the game, I sat down to talk about our defense and the mindset we’ve been carrying all season.

If you want to know the key, it’s simple: turnovers.

That’s not just a buzzword for us. It’s something we work on every single day in practice. We push to get the ball. Our whole identity on defense is about being pesky. We want to be around the ball at all times, 11 hats flying to whoever has it. We’re just trying to get our offense the ball back so they can do their thing.

I was blessed to be in the right position to get that interception toward the end. It always feels good to make a play, but to get one that helps seal the deal for your brothers… that’s what you play for.

A lot of people ask us about beating teams that beat us last year. We don't really get into that. For us, it’s always just about the next game that's up. Whoever is on the schedule, that’s our 1-0 focus for the week. We can't get caught looking back.

Part of that focus is staying disciplined. We know that dumb penalties don't just hurt one of us; they hurt the whole team. We're always talking about how this is bigger than just ourselves, and we have to protect the team.

Now, we flush this last one and get ready for Arkansas State. They’ve got a dual-threat quarterback and run a really fast-paced offense. It’s a new challenge, but we’ll be ready for it.

Time to get back to work. Watch my interview now.

- Justin Pope