WATCH: Kevin Patrick Talks Defensive Line Heading Into Opener
NC State defensive line coach Kevin Patrick breaks down his position group heading into the season opener against East Carolina.
NOTE: Click the video above to watch Patrick discuss the defensive line.
“I don’t think you ever know until you get into a game. As far as work ethic, it’s just the same. There’s a standard here that these guys try to uphold. It was set a long time before these guys got here. These guys have been working extremely hard, and I’m very proud of them.”
“It’s our motto: ‘One Pack, One Goal.’ We’re all trying to be in the best position to add to the defense and add to the team. If we have one part working, the other one’s not, and we have to carry someone, [then] I don’t think we’re as good as we need to be. I think right now we’re all focusing on being one complete package, and I think the guys are doing a heck of a job with that right now.”
“[Joseph Boletepeli] has done a heck of a job this past week. He actually did a great job today. He did a phenomenal job putting his game together. On the defensive line, we don’t look at it like it’s one starter and a backup; it’s first starter and second starter. Whoever’s in there is a starter. But he’s been doing a tremendous job just growing everyday for a young job. I’m very proud of him.”
“You watch [Larrell Murchison] take the field before practice for walkthroughs. You can see it everyday. You can see it when he comes out of meetings. You see him when he takes the field. He brings energy in everything he does, and he plays that way. It reminds me a lot of how [Bradley] Chubb used to take the field. When he takes the field, he’s running on the field, he’s talking, and he’s having a good time. His leadership’s been really spectacular in this camp and really all over the summer, the spring, and the winter months. He’s done a phenomenal job, so I’m excited to watch him play and lead this group.”
“The work they put in has been remarkable. They allow themselves to be coached. They get out of their own way and do the little things right. We coach all these guys the same, but at some point in time the players have to take it and run with it, and Val [Martin] has done a phenomenal job with that. I couldn’t be more proud. He’s as tough as he’s ever been. He’s as good as he’s ever been. He is continuing to be the best him everyday and trying to become the best him everyday.”
“It’s no different. Sometimes, they play against better talent, but anytime you jump from junior college, there’s always an adjustment. Some guys get through the adjustment time a little quicker than others, and some don’t. They go at their pace, and they try to continue to get better. You’ll see some of these anomalies out there sometimes. I was blessed to have a guy named Jason Pierre-Paul that I recruited, and from day one, he was what they called a ‘complete freak.’ What he lacked in fundamentals in certain things he just made up for in others: 6’6”, 275, and 4.6 speed.”
“[Derrick Eason] is a football player. I tell these guys all the time. It’s just like a D-lineman. 'Wherever we play you, you’re a D-lineman.’ He’s a football player, and you watch that even out there today with some of the work he put in. It’s remarkable what he’s capable of doing. He’s done a heck of a job. He’s a very selfless person. I get really proud of him. We love him and still consider him part of our group. The trench is the trench. You either can do it, or you can’t, and he can do it.”
“[James Smith-Williams] has done a heck of a job. One thing I’ve tried to tell James: he doesn’t have to be anybody but himself when it comes to his leadership ability and how he does it. He’s done that. Everybody’s a little bit different, how they go about things, but James is day in and day out, since I’ve been here and I’m sure it’s the same before, a phenomenal human being. He carries the workload everyday, and he comes to work everyday. He’s led by example probably more than he’s ever said anything, and I think that what you do means so much when they don’t hear a word you say. A lot of people can talk, but when James talks, everybody listens. But he shows it everyday in the way he acts on and off the field. He’s just a remarkable human being.”
“It’s remarkable. [Savion Jackson’s] ceiling is very high. He is well put together for a freshman. His speed, change of direction, and really how he’s picked things up since he’s been here has been remarkable. He’s a hard worker. He’s trying to meet that standard everyday, and he continues to push it. It’s going to be fun to watch him and work with him over the next several years."