North Carolina State University Athletics
#STATEOFGRIND: Fun and Rapid Fire
4/9/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
RALEIGH, N.C. - Today was the last full practice before Saturday's Kay Yow Spring Game and it was a good one. "It was a fun practice today," Coach Doeren told the team after practice.  "It was fun for me to watch you compete.  A lot of you guys have gotten better.  You're not thinking, you're playing ball.  I like how you're bouncing back from mistakes."
The team is excited about Saturday's Kay Yow Spring game -- rest assured that the barbershops will be busy tonight and tomorrow as they make sure they look their best for the big day!
The team will have a quick walk-through late Friday afternoon which will be attended by the hundreds of former players who are in town for the annual reunion.  Doeren told the media after practice that the Wolfpack has one of the best group of former players in the country and that seeing them come back each year is one of his favorite parts of being State's head coach.
The alums will play a seven-on-seven game before the spring game.  This year, former players from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 2000s and even the 10s are slated to participate.
Saturday will be extra special for one Pack player.  RS-Sophomore Tylar Reagan's mother Joyce will take part in the pregame coin toss, as she is currently in the midst of a fight against breast cancer.  Read more here.
Speaking of alums, it's fitting that today's focus is on the safeties -- a group that is coached by former Wolfpack linebacker Clayton White.  This group has as much swagger as any on the field and rightly so.  Starters return at both safeties spots, including 2014 leading tackler Hakim Jones at FS and Josh Jones, who ranked fifth on the squad last year, at SS.
White's coaching is a rapid fire, machine gun throughout practice.  He coaches before the drill, during the drill and after the drill and sometimes will add some more advice for good measure waay after the drill.  "Patient feet!  Eyes  low! Did you miss that roller?! SCORE!"
During portions of practice, the nickels join the other safeties.  This spring, that group has been mostly with the linebackers, but also works frequently with White's group.  When you add Dravious Wright (4th leading tackler in 2014) to the talkative unit, the noise level goes up about 30 notches.  Wright, the Joneses and Germaine Pratt definitely talk the talk during practice and aren't afraid to let a receiver (or anyone else for that matter) know when they're dominated a play.
White encourages, teaches and at times chastises his vets, but also takes time to pull the younger players aside for extra help.  Today he spent some extra time with early enrollee Freddie Phillips, Jr. to show him a technique.  Spring ball gives all the coaches a chance to do more of that one-on-one coaching with the younger players, which gives the early enrollees an invaluable advantage in the fall.
With the exception of Hakim Jones, a senior, and Dravious, a junior, the remainder of the group is very young.  Josh Jones will just be a RS-Sophomore, while Germaine Pratt and Shawn Boone (aka "Boo") are true sophomores and Dexter Wright and Kalen McCain are RS-freshmen.  Add in true freshmen Freddie Phillips, Jr. and James Smith-Williams and junior Cole Boroughs (who has been hampered by injury much of his career) and you've got a very young core of talent.  You've also got a VERY bright future at the safety spot.
