Super Bowl XLVI – Wednesday, February 1, 2012(on making a game-winning kick in the Super Bowl) “In this game, it would be huge. It would mean that we’re world champs. You just have to prepare yourself that it’s going to come down to you and really focus in on just your routine and stick to it. Hopefully, everything goes well.”
(on what his transition to the United States from Scotland was like) “It was pretty easy. I always loved playing soccer as a kid. All my buddies were obviously growing up here and loved American football. By the time I was a senior, they had convinced me to play football. I am glad I did, because the only reason I did it was to hang out with my buddies in practice.”
(on overcoming adversity in the regular season and reaching the Super Bowl) “We all know it’s about the team that gets hot. Our last two weeks, we were hot, and we got in and made a little bit of a run. The Packers did it last year. We did it in ’07-’08. Listen, when you get to the postseason, everyone is 0-0. We feel like we’ve kind of come together more as a team. It’s a testament to the locker room, the coaches. It’s a great group of guys, just like I’m sure New England’s is. You don’t get this far without chemistry. It’s two great teams, two great organizations.”
(on what he is telling the guys who have never played in a Super Bowl) “To take it all in, because you never know when you are going to get back. But at the same time, it does require a little bit more focus with, obviously, the distractions like this (media session). Some of your schedule is a little bit different this week, obviously with practice going later and this (media session). You really just have to dial it in and get your mind right. After yesterday, all the fun should be over.”
(on being the underdog) “I am fine with that. Listen, we thrive in that position. The guys in this locker room have great character. If we’re the underdogs, we’re fine with that.”
(on making two game-winning field goals in NFC Conference Championship games) “It’s very rare. To have one and to even have two, it’s a little bit of déjà vu. To get the chance to do it twice is pretty cool.”
(on the nerves that a kicker goes through) “I am only human. I get nervous. I am not a robot, but I certainly know how to deal with them. That’s what kind of separates guys. It’s if you can deal with the pressure and the nerves. Everyone gets nervous, and if they say they don’t, they are telling a lie. You just have to handle it. You learn through preparation, my practice. I have great confidence in what I am doing. I don’t feel like when I go out there I should think anything other than making the kick.”
(on the importance of preparation) “What I do in practice this week is going to be the exact same thing I do on Sunday. I am the only player that can do that. Me, Zak (DeOssie) and Steve (Weatherford), we are going to snap, we’re going to kick, we’re going to hold, we’re going to punt. These other guys, they don’t know what formation they are going to get, what players. We know what we are going to do, and we should be really good at it.”
(on knowing that the game could come down to him) “You have to prepare for it, but, obviously, I am ready for it. I feel like I have been around long enough. I have played in some big games, especially with this team. You have to mentally prepare yourself every week to play or to make a kick. I feel like this week will be no different.”
(on if he likes being known as a clutch kicker) “Sure. Anything positive is always good. It’s better than the alternative. Certainly, I do appreciate that. I respect my teammates. That’s the thing you want to do is have the respect of your teammates. So, that’s really all I am concerned about.”
(on the team’s confidence) “We’ve won five single-elimination games in a row, and that’s going to breed confidence. We feel like we have a great locker room. We have great players. Our chemistry is really good right now, and we care about one another. You know what, we will go out there and put it all on the line on Sunday and see how it works out.”
(on if the group of specialists – DeOssie, Weatherford and himself – are as good a group as he has been with) “Probably the best-looking three we have ever had. (laughing) It’s a good group. I really enjoy working with them, but I don’t want to undermine anyone else that has played with me. But I feel like we are a group that can be great now and even better down the road because we still have a lot of football left.”
(on if he thinks continuity amongst the specialists is important) “I think it simplifies a lot of stuff. We are playing in the Super Bowl, and I don’t want guys to think they have to go out and play better than they have played, because then you start making errors. If we just continue to do what we did to get here, we are going to be alright.”
(on how he first got into football) “My very first experience was when I was in P.E. (physical education) class my 11th grade year of high school. My P.E. teacher was our defensive coordinator. They needed a kicker, and he said, ‘Lawrence, can you come out here and kick?’ I said, ‘Certainly.’ He knew I was a good soccer player, so I went out to the baseball field, he throws his keys down in front of where I was going to kick, and he said, ‘Kick the ball and pick my keys up.’ Just to keep my head down. Ironically enough, I went to spring football going into my senior year. I went to spring training, and I haven’t stopped since. It’s pretty weird how it worked out.”
(on if the kickers have become more valued as leaders recently) “A little bit. Me and Zak (DeOssie) are on the eight-man leadership committee of this team. I feel like just the way we handle our business, we take care of what we need to do on the field, and we work hard. You say little as a specialist, (but) a lot of young guys like to talk to us because we are older players. But I understand what these guys go through, and for me to bitch and complain about a sore (quadriceps) or something would be ridiculous because these guys are putting it on the line every week. I think you are seeing more captains, obviously, and more leadership from this position because guys respect what we do. It’s not an easy job, and there are only 32 of us in the world that do it.”
(on how the curfews compare to the last Super Bowl the team was in) “They were supposed to be later, but we nixed it. As a group, (we) decided we don’t need to be out. This is a little bit different than where we were last time because we were so far out in Glendale. We just thought – and everyone agreed as a team – that this is a business trip, and we’re just going to go to sleep, wake up, go to work and do the same thing.”
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