The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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80 ■ THE WOLFPACKER FOOTBALL PREVIEW 2017 DEFENSE Q&A our seniors have done a remarkable job in the offseason and this summer creating that chemistry. Very, very proud of them for it." The preseason pundits are going to see the stats from the defense last season and then all the returning players and naturally place high expectations on the defense. Do you shy away from that or embrace it? "I embrace it. Expectations are high, but we can never become comfortable. We have to continue to work hard, put the ball down and just continue to train, train, train. Every guy that is out there, that has played for the last three years, has some part of his game that he can get better at. "Our job as coaches is to not let any of them get comfortable. We got to keep them on the edge and push them and drive them and motivate them and inspire them." A year ago, linebacker depth was one of your chief concerns. This year you have both starters and your top reserve back, plus you add a pair of redshirts in junior Germaine Pratt and freshman Brock Miller. Do you feel better about the depth after the spring? "I do. I feel good about our depth right now. Obviously Jerod [Fernandez] and Airius [Moore] here have played a ton of snaps. They've been warriors the last couple of years. Riley Nicholson has really embraced the move to Mike linebacker and the game has just become slower for him. He's feeling so much more confident. "Germaine, after coming down from the safety position, has worked so hard and had a really good spring. Brock Miller, a redshirt freshman, he's just still got to continue to get bigger and stronger, but has worked so hard this spring. "[With] those five guys, and we got more coming in this summer from the freshman class, we got a lot more guys — feel a lot better about it. It's been a while. Very, very excited about the linebacker group." Most everyone is going to point to the defensive line as the strength of the team. "Kentavius [Street], Justin [Jones], B.J. [Hill], [Bradley] Chubb and Darian [Rose- boro are] back. Get Shug [Frazier] into the mix, Tyrone Riley, James Smith-Williams. We should be able to continue to use a rota- tion with those guys and keep fresh bodies in there playing hard." Given the hype the defensive line gets, do you embrace it because it's warranted or do you get a little cautious as a coach about it? "I think it's warranted. Those guys play so hard and have done such a great job col- lectively as a unit, but they have to remain humble. I think they have been playing the game long enough and they are old enough, all of them have been playing since they were freshmen, I think they understand this year and how important it is for them, not reading press clippings and just keep working hard. Good things are going to happen if you keep working hard and they have done that. "I'm very proud of them, the way they handle themselves and the way they worked. Looking forward to them again having a great season for us." Secondary may be the one unit on the de- fense that has some question marks. How has that shaped up through spring? "It's been good competition, particularly at the strong safety position with Shawn Boone. Jarius Morehead's had a really good spring. Dexter Wright is competing with Tim Kidd-Glass. "I'd tell you, Isaiah Stallings, our red- shirt freshman, has really showed up this spring." At cornerback, who is in the mix to re- place Jack Tocho as the starter alongside Mike Stevens? "Johnathan Alston is a tremendous ath- lete. He's tall, he's long, he's a very ex- plosive guy. He's confident. He challenges you. He loves to play the game. "Nick McCloud played some last year as a true freshman. James Valdez, a guy that we redshirted last year, has shown some really promising springs this fall." You had a two-player platoon of Dravious Wright and Niles Clark at nickel most of the past two seasons. Who is in the mix to replace them? "Freddie Phillips — who was at cor- ner last year — we moved him to nickel, and Trae Meadows. [Graduate assistant] Spencer Brown did a great job with those two guys this spring. They've worked ex- tremely hard. "That was a position I was really con- cerned about, but they've shown a lot of promise." Overall how did you end up at the end of spring? "We've got a long time before we play a game, and we have to have a great summer and fall camp, but I am very excited about what it can be." ■ Huxtable is "very excited about the linebackers group" because of players such as redshirt junior Germaine Pratt, a former safety who had a "really good spring." PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN "We're a year older, more experienced, bigger, stronger — that confidence level is there. I am really excited about the group and the way they worked this spring." ■ Huxtable