The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/141892
Front Line Football 2013 Junior Tackles T.Y. McGill And Thomas Teal Are Poised For Breakout Seasons O By Jacey Zembal ne of the oldest sports axioms is to be strong up the middle. NC State has 605 pounds of potential All-ACC caliber play up the middle at defensive tackle this fall. Redshirt junior Thomas Teal returns at nose tackle, while junior T.Y. McGill is back at defensive tackle in new defensive coordinator Dave Huxtable's scheme. The 6-1, 293-pound McGill started 10 of 13 games last season, posting 50 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss (for minus-68 yards), five sacks and seven quarterback pressures. The 6-1, 312-pound Teal recorded 37 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss (for negative-34 yards), 2.5 sacks and 13 quarterback pressures in his first full year of starting and being healthy at NC State. "They are talented players, young, and we have a lot of work to do with them, but they know that," NC State defensive line coach Ryan Nielsen said. "The best thing about them is their willingness to work. They come out here wanting to be better every day, and that is what is fun." Huxtable called Teal and McGill the Wolfpack's "first line of defense." "All good defense starts up front by dominating that line of scrimmage. Those two guys, defensive tackles Thomas Teal and T.Y. McGill, had a really, really good spring. "Coach Nielsen has done a good job with our defensive line. I really think those guys have gravitated to him and have bought in to what they are teaching. We've got some guys that have come back with experience up front." Nielsen simply said Teal and McGill could be as good as they want to be. McGill and Teal went back-to-back in winning the ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week to support those claims. Teal amassed four tackles, two tackles for loss and two quarterback hurries during the 17-16 upset against then-No. 3 Florida State Oct. 6. McGill won the honor when he had a season-high eight tackles and two sacks in the narrow 20-18 win at Maryland Oct. 20. Teal wasn't too shabby either against the Terrapins with a season-high nine tackles and a sack. "They are quick, and both are strong and powerful," Nielsen said. "They are both from the same mold with their bodies. I think they complement each other very well on the interior of the defensive line." McGill and Teal have benefitted by pushing each other the last three years, after each was signed by former NCSU offensive line coach Jim Bridge. Teal arrived first in the class of 2010 as a Rivals.com three-star prospect out of Bennettsville (S.C.) Marlboro County High. He was ranked as the No. 18 prospect in South Carolina and the No. 53 defensive tackle in the country. McGill was a late academic qualifier out of Jesup (Ga.) Wayne County High and under the radar as a Rivals.com two-star recruit. "We played a lot of snaps together last year," Teal said. "We are pretty close and are trying to get everybody to buy in to the program." 54 ■ the wolfpacker 54-55.McGill & Teal.indd 54 7/1/13 9:30 AM