NC State cornerback Brian Nelson II recently met with the media to discuss the ECU win, his former North Texas teammate QB Chandler Morris, and much more.
NOTE: Click the video above to watch the interview.
So, what is it like going against quarterbacks that you've had to defend a lot over the years?
So, going against Chandler Morris, I played with him last year, so of course I know a few things that he likes to do. But, overall, I just decided to play against him, knowing that we played together last year.
Did any moments from practice stick out when you think about last year?
Not that comes to mind. I actually thought about that, but nothing that comes to mind for real.
I saw that they threw, like, 511 passes. So, how many passes did you have to defend in practice?
Yeah, it was a bunch of passes. I made a bunch of passes to defend, you know, during practice, you know, from the start to the finish. So, like, just knowing that, he likes to throw the ball a lot is going to be exciting to know on the field, too.
Do you talk to teammates or coaches and try to share some of that inside knowledge that you have?
Oh, yeah, for sure. Just taking my knowledge from last year, playing with them and sharing it with the coaches and the teammates, of course that's going to be helpful.
Does that make you excited to play a quarterback that you know is going to want to throw the ball a lot, as a corner?
Oh, yeah, for sure. Like I said, I'm familiar with how he kind of plays. So, just, being on the field, knowing, like, he likes to throw the ball is really, like I said, exciting.
Has it been weird seeing him on film?
I mean, I don't want to say it's weird. It's just like, like I said, I mean, I play with him. So, it's just, the things that he's done on film, you know, last week is kind of normal to me, to be seeing it, being a part of it.
Defense, pretty strong performance in the opener. How do you guys kind of feel, like, momentum from that? And, like, obviously you're confident going in, but I imagine having that result just kind of lets that build. Kind of talk about your mentality there.
Oh, yeah, I mean, just our performance from last week, man, is everybody, has high momentum for the defense because we have high standards for ourselves. And so, just knowing that, we come into work every day, we know what standard we have to meet. And so, everybody's on the same page when it comes to, you know, defense and, three and outs and forcing time.
Both Coach Doeren and Coach Eliot talked about kind of at least practicing the play that they ran at the end of that game. As a player, after one week, you see, hey, we practiced this exact play that they went to on fourth and one to decide the game. How much confidence does that give you in your coaching staff and the fact that they are putting you in a position to succeed?
It boosts confidence in everybody on the staff, really. Just, we come into work every day and we practice certain plays because we know we're going to see it on game day. So, like, just seeing that exact formation, that exact play, we all knew it was coming. So, just like, it's a feel-good moment for us.
What was it like for this cornerback room to get out there together in a game situation, a bunch of new guys all up close together?
Yeah, we already, we built a tight connection, us corners in the group. So, like I said, we all know what we got to do on the field. We know that, it comes down to us. We got to defend the deep balls. We got to defend the passes. So, like I said, we all know the standard. We have to lead, and we're just glad to be going together.
How has Devon Marshall helped you adjust just with the city, with the area? Because he basically was you a year ago.
Yeah, Marshall's been really helpful. Ever since I got in, he's welcomed me in with open arms, and he's helped me with the new defense, because I came in the spring. So, he's been very helpful and a great teammate.
