The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1534227
40 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY NOAH FLEISCHMAN harlton Warren didn't just walk into the lobby of the Close King Indoor Practice Facility. It was more like a bounce. The second he en- tered the room with a half dozen reporters ready to fire questions, Warren's energy radiated from the podium. That wasn't a coincidence, either. It's Warren's natural state, one that he's brought wherever he has been in life. As a senior defensive back at the Air Force Academy, Warren won the "Mr. Inten- sity" award, an honor that goes to the Falcons' hardest-working player. Being a ball of energy is all Warren knows. It doesn't matter the setting — from the football field to his decade- long active-duty Air Force career — NC State's current co-defensive coordinator is going to bring the juice. "I've been the same human my en- tire life," Warren said. "When I was in charge of programs, I was intense and fiery. When I was in special forces? Same thing. "Now, as a coach, it's no different. That's who I mold myself to be, and I try to put that on my guys: a sense of ur- gency, compete your butt off and let the chips fall where they may, but they're go- ing to do it 100 miles per hour, vectored in the right way. "It's all I've ever been." A Blank Slate Warren got his coaching start at his alma mater, where he was assigned for the last two years of his active-duty ser- vice. It was there where he fell in love with that side of the sport. Before going back to Colorado Springs, he had wanted to become a general. But upon his re- turn to the academy, he began thinking that his true calling might be as a coach, developing football players on the field while also helping them become even better people off it. "I was able to see how you can change a young man's life," Warren said. "That just spoke volumes to me [during] my time at the academy as a military coach. When it came time to move, I said, 'I love my country, I love what I'm doing in my career field, but I feel like I could have a bigger impact on kids' lives by doing that.' I'm a father first, then I'm a mentor and then I'm a coach." That decision led him on a winding road, as is often the case when an as- sistant coach is climbing the career lad- der. A Georgia native, Warren made stops all over the country — Nebraska, UNC (twice), Tennessee, Florida, Indiana and eventually NC State. This spring, Warren brought his fi- ery approach to the Wolfpack's practice field, where he worked daily with the nickels and safeties. It's one of the bet- ter parts of his job, in Warren's eyes, as he gets to instruct players in the meet- ing room then watches them apply those lessons in a football setting. Warren finds himself in an interest- ing spot in his first few months in the program. He has a recruiting history with a handful of the defensive backs — redshirt freshmen Asaad Brown Jr. and Brody Barnhardt and redshirt sopho- more Zack Myers — but, for the most part, everyone has a blank slate. This offseason is an opportunity for him to earn their trust, while the players are all on a level playing field as they look to earn snaps in the fall. The 21-year coaching veteran wants to see each defensive back prove on the practice field what he's capable of doing on Saturdays. Finding a way to match C POWER SURGE Co-Defensive Coordinator Charlton Warren Puts A Charge In NC State's Spring Practice Sessions Warren was impressed with the attitude of his players this spring. "These kids, one thing they want to be is coached," he said. "They want to work hard. They're tough, and that makes my job easier because they've got a lot of 'want to.'" PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE FOOTBALL