Shyheim Battle: "Our Standards Don't Change"
NC State cornerback Shyheim Battle met with the media ahead of the Wolfpack's upcoming matchup versus Clemson.
NOTE: Click on the video in the player above to watch Battle’s interview.
On what’s next for the NC State defense…
The next step for us is just to keep setting the tone, setting the tone early, attacking teams, and just punching first. We can keep dominating, and we want to be the best in the league and best in the country. Our standards don't change. We’ll just keep rising and keep attacking.
On the emphasis on winning the turnover battle against Clemson…
Turnovers definitely can happen. We want the ball as a defense. We want to go get the ball, get the bone out, and celebrate on the sideline. We know it’s going to be a big turnover battle and that that's going to be the difference in the game, and we want to attack, get the ball, and give that to our offense so they can score.
On the significance of the Clemson game…
I know this is definitely a big time game, as a history with us against Clemson year after year. So far since I've been here, I've beaten them one time, and I want to beat them again. We know that they're a good football team, regardless of their record. We know who Clemson is and who they strive to be each and every year, so we can't just look at what they've put on tape and say, “Well, they're just going to bow down." We're just trying to play ball. It's pretty much a rivalry game, so we know they're going to bring their best regardless, and we're going to bring our best. We've just got to show up and don't count them out for anything.
On the energy in practice this week…
We want to set the tone. We didn't like how things ended against Duke, and we want to finish the season off strong, so we're going to take it one week at a time and one game at a time. Right now, Clemson’s the team to beat, so we’re going to worry about them first.
On setting the tone in front of the home fans…
Well, the fans already set the tone for us, coming into Carter-Finley. They keep it rocking for us, so that's already expected for us. We just feed off of their energy. We come in, and they get us hyped up. We go out there, make a big play, and just rile them up some more. We’re going to use our crowd to definitely get in their head a little bit and just keep playing fast, start first, don't wait so it's too late to get started, and attack.
On the quarterback run game…
We haven’t really prepared too much for their quarterback run game. We don't think that that's going to be the ultimate threat for us. We want to worry about [Will] Shipley and how they want to move the ball downfield with their wide receivers. We want to make sure we control those guys first, and if there’s anything we need to adjust, then we'll adjust.
On how the bye week was spent…
Well, this week was a little different [than the Saturdays following the Wolfpack’s Friday games]. You know, it was a bye week, so a lot of guys chilled, kicked their feet up, and went to see their families. I went to go see my family a little bit back in Rocky Mount. It’s always good to go show some love to my family. They always support me. It was definitely a different week. A lot of guys kind of needed a little rest, like me. I needed a little time to just decompress and get back on track of things. Now, we're back and ready to roll.
On the victory over Clemson two years ago…
The crowd came onto the field with us to celebrate with us. That was definitely history for us. We want to have that same feeling again this year. It starts today, and we have business on Saturday to have that same feeling again, on the field and in the locker room.
On the competitive edge for players who were recruited by Clemson, wanted to get recruited by Clemson but didn’t, or those who played with current Clemson players…
For different guys, it's different perspectives. Like for me, Clemson recruited me; NC State and Clemson were my top two, so this game is personal for me. I just want to go out there and show what I'm capable of doing, go out there and attack, and when they come at me, I want to be ready. I want to prove to them that I am that guy five years later. It's still personal, and for the whole team, it’s personal. This whole season is personal for a lot of guys. We see where we’re at right now. We want to put ourselves in better chances to win and a better place we want to be.
On the words of encouragement he has for the younger cornerbacks…
Just staying ready. Don't be nervous when it's time go out there and prove who you are. One thing I was just told Rente [Hinton] is that, as a corner, everybody that's out there is counting us to lose. We can't go and turn on ourselves because if we go and turn on ourselves, then we’ll just let the receiver win every day. We've got to go out there and be the most confident guy out there. Whenever that opportunity comes, we know that we're positioned to make this play, not giving up. As a DB, that's just got to be your mentality. You can't go out there afraid. You’ve got to go out there and be confident all the time because you never know when the ball is coming your way, and if it is, it's not for you. It’s for the receiver, so we've got to go and make that our ball.