NC State Running Backs and Special Teams Coach Todd Goebbel met with the media today after practice. You can watch the video ABOVE, and read the transcript BELOW.
Transcript
Your room got completely revamped in the last six months. What has that been like to work with these new guys?
Yeah, the gentlemen that are here, from Jordan Waters, to Hollywood (Smothers), to Kendrick Raphael…unsung heroes: Mark (Demarcus) Jones, and Jordan Poole. They’re all talented.
They’re talented, but what’s more important is they’re better people. And they work together, they bonded quickly. Waters and Hollywood integrating into the room, Kendrick coming back bigger, stronger, faster, Mark taking a leadership role, and Jordan Poole being the utility knife.
I think we have a good blend, and they all kind of feed off each other. You saw it in game one. When one goes out, the other one goes in, and to be quite honest, we feel confident no matter who we put out there, we’re not gonna miss a step.
So I’m excited about that.
What did you guys see the difference between Jordan in the first three quarters versus the fourth quarter?
Just taking what they gave him.
Anytime your first game, new place, whether you’re a freshman or a fifth year guy, you’ve got a kind of internal pressure that you wanna do something amazing. And the biggest thing and the best thing he did is he went back to being him and being himself, which is a really good football player, a great teammate, and a good person. And that calmed him down, and I was excited to see him come out in the second half and execute the way he did, and he had some good runs in the first half too.
And so that was good and fun to see.
What goes into finding a Kanoah (Vinesett) or a Caden (Noonkester) as walk-ons coming out of high school? What is that art?
Well, I think it starts with Coach White. Jackson White has done a really good job.
He’s kind of behind the scenes, and he deals with our specialists. And him and I have known each other. I actually coached him, that’s how old I am, and we collaborate.
And what we look for, of course, talent’s one thing, we like talent, but the biggest thing we look for, and we’ve been pretty spoiled here as specialists, is when the lights get bright, they get calm. And probably the greatest asset to Kanoah is when the lights get bright, he gets calmer. I think it’s been stated and quoted that, I call them the Freddie Couples of kicking.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a 50-yarder or a 30-yarder, he’s very smooth, which leads to the same leg swing each time. And just the consistency, whether it’s our long snappers, whether it’s Caden Noonkester or whether it’s Kanoah. The good thing about them is they keep calm within the noise, and that’s all they get to deal with throughout the game when they’re called upon.
You talked about Hollywood integrating well into the group. How does his explosiveness add another facet to this?
Yeah, it’s good. All three backs that go out there have explosiveness.
He has kind of a unique skill set. But when you put a running back room together, everyone wants thunder and lightning. But I just want three dudes that have a tremendous skill set, whether it’s catching the ball, biggest thing is blitz pickup, which they’re really all good at.
Kendrick, as a freshman last year, was tremendous at it. So they’re all three willing to put their faces on people, and when they’re handed the ball, they have the ability to house it, which is nice.
Hollywood Smothers as Kickoff Returner
Yeah, no, Hollywood, that’s something I eyed up when we recruited him, that he has that type of ability. As you guys said, he’s explosive, but he also has tremendous vision. That’s what Zonovan had back in the day, is he not only had power and speed, but he had vision.
And Hollywood has a natural instinct to find open holes when it’s not blocked perfect, and I’m excited to see where he goes with this. He just kind of got his first start, and then confidence will build within, and we’re excited.
When you evaluate a running back, what are some of the traits you look for?
Lower body power, vision, twitch, and the ability to take his face off somebody when they blitz.
What’s the growth potential for this unit this week and then throughout the rest of the season?
I think the biggest thing is sticking together. There are three backs and they all want the ball, we all know that. That’s just the human nature. Continue to stick together and feed off each other, and when you get your opportunities, make the most of it.
And the last thing I’ll say about the group in regards to what we’re looking for is bring your own blockers. Our offensive line’s really good, but at the end of the day, we’re gonna be running on safeties and corners. And the good ones, they make them miss, and they make extra yards after contact.
So that yards after contact is what I’m challenging those guys with, is when the first guy hits you, it doesn’t matter, four or more. And that’s our goal.
Sharing snaps amongst the three running backs
I don’t think there’s any predetermined number.
Jordan starts, Hollywood and Kendrick are both guys that are more than formidable guys that can go in there. They should be, they are starters in my mind. I don’t really consider anyone a backup.
They all three bring a huge, huge potential to our offense. So I’ve just told them all, no matter if you get 25 plays, or 50 plays, or 10 plays, your resume’s your film. So go put good stuff on film, and all three of them have been challenged.
Make it hard for me to take you back out.
