NC State linebacker Popo Aguirre met with the media to discuss his start to fall camp, the Wolfpack's defense, and much more!
NOTE: Click the video above to watch the full press conference!
On how Fall camp has been going...
Fall camp is great, man. Being able to come out here after the spring ball, know all the plays, know the playbook inside out now, and just build that bond with those guys. I feel like we're doing a great job right now.
Coach Doeren was just singing your praises a little bit, saying you're a real leader on the field. What do you think drives you to be like that?
I don't even think it starts off on the field, man. It's off the field, coming here, come from another school, come from Miami, and, bringing some things I learned over there. And then just coming over here and being really coming and being around a great group of guys, man, and just changing some things and being able to help out whichever way I can, things that helped me out, helped us out in the past.
So, man, yeah, it starts off off the field, but being able to grab a young guy, go over, extra film with him, teach him I've been around a little longer now, so going into my fourth year, knowing the wrongs, knowing the rights on and off the field. And tremendously, I feel like it's helping us out, and it's spreading, not just defensively, throughout the whole team.
What do you think your playoff experience can bring to this team, and have your teammates asked what that run was like?
Oh, yeah, absolutely, man. Like I said, man, I absolutely love everybody on this team, man, the whole program, man. Being able to come in and just connect with everyone. We had a lot of conversations. They asked me all the time, and I tell them, that was the greatest feeling ever. And that's something I'm, trying to bring over here. And, God's, because we got multiple gods, and, championships or whatever, in case we bring that culture in. And just add it to it, because it's a great culture already. Add it to this already here, man.
So, it's a great experience, man. Just, being able, I know what it takes, in regards of the small things matter. Everybody cares about scoring points and all this and that. Now, what are we doing, today? It's not, we're not looking ahead. We've got a great schedule coming along. We're not looking ahead. But right now, it's how can I go against CJ? How can we compete against each other?And how can I make him better? How can you make me better? Same thing with Duke and all those other guys. So, it's a one-day mentality, 1% every day.
You've been better, making CJ a little better. You obviously were around two great quarterbacks, with Cam Ward and Carson Beck. What traits go into being a successful quarterback, and what do you kind of see in CJ?
Man, I'm going to be honest, man. Probably one of the best quarterbacks I've been around. Just seeing him. How are you diagnosing the field? I think tremendously in how he connects with everybody. Very good player. And I think, as I came here, kept up with him when he was a little younger, him, Davion, all those guys. But definitely coming in now and playing with him, being able to see, because, he won that high school championship and all that, being able to see, ask a lot of questions. You just see how he diagnoses everything on the field and lean, man.
So, tremendously a great player. And I think, it's a big year for him. You know, we talked, big year for him. But, once again, big year for everybody, man. We all trying to spread wisdom around the whole team, and, man, we're trying to do something special.
On the impact a transfer can make for a program...
Yeah, man, biggest thing right now is I'm focusing on one-day mentality. I'm not thinking about, hey, I'm looking ahead or anything like that. We're working on it right now. What am I going to do today to practice it as a defense? What am I going to do? Going there, what am I going to correct for tomorrow to look better? What am I going to go in there and correct for the next day to look better? Same thing, moving forward and as we go on to the season. We're not looking at no ahead, no one, me, CJ, nothing. That's one thing nobody's doing on this team. We're making sure it's a one-day mentality, and we're taking it 1% better every day.
NC State has a rich history on defense, especially in the linebacker room. How has that maybe inspired you, or what does that mean to be a part of that now?
It's great, man. Coach Moore being in my room, he definitely was a great player here, too. And with all those guys, got a chance to meet all those guys, too. Drake and Payton Wilson, all those guys, man. So just being able to just feel that is definitely understanding that this team definitely goes up on linebackers, too. And like I said, man, we have a great room this year, so it's not necessarily like it's great to be under that. And once again, my coach, I know how it feels to play under that. So it makes me go even harder. But it's about making our new room now. Those guys were great. Those guys did everything. They're the standard, honestly. But now it's about what can we do to, be around, get toward that, or even make ourselves better.
Did Coach Warren recruit you in high school?
No, I didn't know Coach Warren.
Did you know any of his staff?
No, sir.
So is Markel the best recruiter of you right now?
Yeah, he's Markel.
What was his sales pitch?
No, he was just always telling me, come check it out, come check it out. I've got to meet the program, got to meet the coaches and all that. Loved it, man. And just being able to be around him, of course, him here, and like I said, being around a lot, being able to help him out, teach him playbooks or whatever in case maybe too, it's been a great thing for me too.
How important is it to maintain or elevate the standard on defense?
Yeah, it's important, man. And like I said, I think coming here, understanding that it's Coach Eliot is a great coach and understanding that everything him and Coach Doeren has played for us, it's championship mentality. And I think just taking that serious, I think the biggest step was just understanding that it's not about looking ahead. It's about the small details, tagging off on the back hip or whatever in case maybe setting the edge. I'm talking defense-wise, little small things that we think aren't critical, those things, applying that to every day and even in academics or even when we drive off here. Everything we do so we can be not just for football, it could be who you are and then you can apply that to the football game.
Everybody so far on the offense that you've seen playing against the stands out?
Yeah, man. Honestly, man, we have a whole offense, man. You've got the running backs, both of them. You've got the receivers doing really good and you've got CJ that's doing a good job, man, with all those guys, really. Tight ends, o-lineman and everybody, man. So I want to say that everybody's doing what they need to do to, apply that to this year and win some games this year.
