Robinson impressed by secondary

Steve Guiremand

Monday, Jan. 29, 2001 | 9:55 a.m.

UNLV football coach John Robinson's analysis of Super Bowl XXXV was probably similiar to that of the many millions who watched Baltimore's 34-7 victory on Sunday.

The Ravens' defense was simply too overpowering for the New York Giants.

"I think the intimidation factor of Baltimore's defense was very evident," Robinson said. "They had five turnovers and they just forced the Giants into a bad game. I'm sure the Giants are very frustrated with how things went offensively."

Although Giants' quarterback Kerry Collins seemed to struggle badly during the contest, Robinson gave credit to Baltimore's secondary for shutting down New York's passing game.

"What I was impressed with the most was that Baltimore's secondary never let anybody get open," Robinson said. "They did a great job."

The Rebels' head coach is very familiar with one part of that Ravens' secondary, having tried to recruit cornerback Chris McAlister while he was head coach at USC. However, McAlister ended up attending junior college because of academic shortcomings and later transferred to Arizona where he went on to earn All-American honors.

"He was a great player at Arizona, so I'm not surprised by what he has done in the NFL," Robinson said. "He and the rest of the Baltimore secondary had a big game. And the Ravens' defense was the story of the game."