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#UNC offensive lineman Christo Kelly and defensive lineman Melkart Abou Jaoude press conference
Apr 7, 2026
#UNC offensive lineman Christo Kelly and defensive lineman Melkart Abou Jaoude press conference
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0:00
involved as a leader here now, man,
0:01
going into year two at Carolina. And
0:03
what did you learn the most last year
0:05
that helped y'all going into year two
0:06
here?
0:07
>> Yeah, I think at least for me, the
0:09
biggest thing was kind of leading from a
0:11
different role, you know, obviously
0:12
being on the sideline for pretty much
0:14
the whole year and, you know, being in a
0:16
different role than, you know, what I've
0:17
typically been in. Um, you know, being
0:20
able to motivate guys a little bit
0:22
differently, you know, taking a a little
0:24
bit more of kind of like a, you know,
0:25
player coach type of role at least on
0:28
the field last year. Um, you know, it's
0:31
helped me evolve my appreciation for the
0:32
game and really just kind of, you know,
0:34
reaffirm like how much I love it. Um,
0:36
you I don't know if I've ever had more
0:38
fun playing football these past, you
0:40
know, six practices. And, you know,
0:42
there's a, you know, there's kind of a
0:43
deeper sense of gratitude that I have,
0:45
you know, not just, you know, playing
0:47
here at North Carolina, but just playing
0:48
this game of football. And when you're
0:50
surrounded by, you know, so many other
0:52
great leaders and, I mean, the greatest
0:54
coach of all time, you know, you're able
0:55
to learn every single day. It's been,
0:57
you know, it's been awesome.
1:00
Christo, how are you feeling physically
1:02
after after last year?
1:03
>> Feel great. Yeah. No, 100%. You
1:05
obviously tough tough go last year, but
1:08
you know, God's got a plan, right? And,
1:11
you know, yeah, it was tough, you know,
1:12
waking up every day wanting to, you
1:14
know, give everything that I have to
1:15
this team, to this program, seeing how
1:17
much guys put in, see how much the
1:18
coaches put in, seeing the, you know,
1:20
the daily grind of everything. And, you
1:22
know, just not being able to go is
1:24
tough. But, you know, again, sort of
1:26
like I just said, the appreciation I
1:27
have for this game, the appreci
1:29
appreciation I have for this team, you
1:31
know, has grown and, you know, being
1:33
able to go out there and just, you know,
1:34
have fun with the guys. It's uh, you
1:36
know, it's been it's been pretty fun so
1:38
far.
1:38
>> Was there someone in the program, either
1:40
a player or a coach, who really helped
1:42
you um, sort of get off the bat from
1:44
that injury?
1:45
>> Yeah, Katherine Miller, who's the
1:46
athletic trainer I worked with, you
1:48
know, probably most closely throughout
1:49
the whole process. and you know really
1:51
just being there for me you know to help
1:53
my physical recovery but you know same
1:56
thing you know emotionally going through
1:58
you know all that and same thing with
1:59
Moses Cabrera I mean Moses is you know
2:01
our head strength coach and he is world
2:03
class like you know what we do day in
2:05
and day out how he prepares guys it's I
2:08
mean it's truly unbelievable you know
2:10
for me to even get to where I was um you
2:13
know kind of heading into the season
2:14
from you know with you know what kind of
2:16
was going on um you know kind of tribute
2:18
to you know those two primar arily and
2:20
then you know same thing with Amber
2:22
who's our head nutritionist um you know
2:24
really just kind of changing my diet to
2:26
um you know kind of help give me the
2:28
best chance to you know recover and you
2:30
know be out there as quick as possible
2:32
and you know kind of that three-headed
2:34
approach you know with you know the
2:35
training staff the you know strength
2:37
conditioning and nutrition it's been you
2:39
know we have we have a world class uh
2:41
program here
2:43
>> I know this is sort of generic but can
2:44
you sort of take us through last season
2:46
and what it was like for you I'm sure
2:47
there were some times where there were
2:49
positives and sometimes where there were
2:51
pretty low negatives for you. Could you
2:52
just sort of take us through what it was
2:53
like for you personally?
2:55
>> Yeah, I think you know, first of all,
2:56
seeing everything as an opportunity. Um,
2:59
and yeah, the outcomes of the games
3:01
weren't what we had hoped from from a,
3:04
you know, program, but it's
3:05
understanding like, you know, three or
3:07
four plays and it completely changes the
3:09
whole entire season, right? And, you
3:12
know, not being hyperfixated on the
3:16
results and more so just focusing on
3:17
this progress. Like you look at any
3:20
single successful coach, player,
3:22
whatever it is, not just sports, but any
3:24
industry, and they will tell you about
3:27
it's all about the process and, you
3:29
know, being able to kind of reaffirm
3:31
that. And you know, just feeling good
3:32
about where things are, you know, the
3:34
energy here, you know, the execution,
3:36
you know, really the thing that's going
3:38
to lead to success here is really just
3:39
maturity in the system, right? Just
3:42
sticking with it day in and day out,
3:44
continuing on the grind. you know,
3:45
they're going to be hard days, but you
3:47
when you have other people, you know,
3:48
players, coaches, you know, the whole
3:50
staff, everyone here at North Carolina
3:51
that, you know, is fully bought in like
3:53
what we have, um, you know, everyone
3:55
just kind of double, triple down and,
3:57
you know, ready to just attack every
3:59
single day with everything we got.
4:02
>> Uh, what are your impressions of the
4:04
quarterback group and, uh, what stood
4:06
out in seeing them through six
4:09
practices?
4:10
>> Yeah, I think there's there's a lot of
4:12
leadership in that room. uh tremendous
4:14
ability and um yeah everyone just kind
4:16
of buying in to you know it's true you
4:18
know true kind of competition and you
4:20
know guys just competing day in day out
4:22
and you know whether it's guys that have
4:24
been here or guys that are coming in
4:25
from new places um you know everyone
4:27
kind of buying into you know what the
4:30
vision here is at North Carolina and you
4:32
know whether that's you know listening
4:34
to kind of coach Patrino right coach
4:36
Lombardi coach Bich right everyone is
4:38
you know bought in you know truly
4:41
you
4:43
just truly wanting to do what's best for
4:44
the team, right? Whether that's, you
4:47
know, you know, going in there and
4:49
playing themselves or helping out
4:50
somebody else. Everyone everyone's done
4:52
a tremendous job. It's been it's been
4:53
really cool to see, especially a
4:54
position group like quarterback.
4:56
>> Spencer.
4:57
>> Yeah. Crystal, you're a guy that, you
4:58
know, everybody kind of refers to as as
5:00
a big leader on this team with, you
5:02
know, such a big recruiting class of,
5:03
you know, almost 40 high school guys and
5:05
a handful of guys you guys have brought
5:06
in the portal. You're a guy that's been
5:07
here since day one. How have you kind of
5:09
taken it upon yourself to kind of, you
5:11
know, infringe that culture upon, you
5:13
know, that many new guys?
5:15
>> Yeah. Well, there's there are tremendous
5:17
leaders in this program, right? You look
5:19
at guys like Jordan Ship, you look at
5:21
guys like Leroy, look at guys like
5:23
Melikart, you know, there's everyone Ben
5:25
Hall, like everyone in every single
5:27
position group, you've got leaders. And
5:30
when your leaders are the hardest
5:32
workers, you know, guys look to them to
5:35
see like, all right, how do I operate?
5:37
And a lot of it's been lead by example,
5:39
right? Like it is like what we do. It is
5:41
a grind. There's, you know, there's no
5:43
question, guys. There's no team that
5:45
works as hard as we do. You know, from
5:47
the strength and conditioning
5:48
standpoint, from the practicing
5:49
standpoint, from the preparation
5:50
standpoint, and when your leaders are
5:53
the guys that are the best at preparing,
5:56
when you guys are when your leaders are
5:57
the ones that are doing whatever it
6:00
takes to be successful, truly putting,
6:03
you know, the team ahead of, you know,
6:04
all self-interest, you know, I said, do
6:05
you have teammates self, right? And
6:07
people buying into that, you know,
6:09
that's that's ultimately what's going to
6:11
lead to success. and you know there's
6:13
been so many other guys that I can even
6:15
you know think of off the top of my head
6:16
that have stepped up and you know that's
6:18
it's been very encouraging to see
6:22
>> I wonder if you could talk a little bit
6:23
about coach Petrino what he's brought in
6:25
how different the offense may look and
6:28
what what you think what you think or
6:30
expect to see
6:32
>> yeah I mean it's clear to see why coach
6:34
Petrino has had the success that he's
6:35
had you know the attention to detail the
6:38
level of consistency that is needed the
6:40
you know pre- snap app. Um, you know,
6:43
reading your keys and, you know, getting
6:45
to, you know, the best possible play.
6:47
Um, it's been it's been really fun to
6:50
kind of play in this offense and play
6:51
for him. Um, knowing that, you know,
6:55
he's had the long coaching experience
6:57
that he's had. When you have a guy like
6:59
Coach Petrino, you have a guy like Coach
7:01
Bellich, right? It's, um, you know,
7:03
we're we're incredibly fortunate to, you
7:05
know, play for these coaches and, you
7:07
know, the rest of the staff, too, right?
7:09
It's um you know it's truly world world
7:11
class. last year, was there a sense
7:13
that, you know, I think coach Belson
7:15
just couldn't get out of your way
7:16
sometimes on offense, you know, was
7:19
there a feeling of frustration? What was
7:21
that sense of like, you know, putting up
7:23
15 to 18 points is difficult for you?
7:27
>> Yeah, I think anytime that you're not
7:29
executing to the level uh that you want,
7:32
there's going to be frustration. Like
7:34
that's normal because of how much you
7:36
care, because of how much people are
7:37
bought in, when you're not seeing the
7:38
results that you want to see. there is
7:40
going to be frustration, right? This
7:42
idea of kind of eliminating bad football
7:44
is kind of this, you know, huge huge
7:47
mission from coach. But, you know, when
7:49
you can get out of your way and look,
7:50
that's, you know, that's just kind of
7:52
the nature of the game. You have to, you
7:54
know, stop from beating yourself before
7:55
you can actually beat somebody else. So,
7:58
that it's been, it's been, uh, well
8:01
talked about, you know, this offseason.
8:02
It's a continued mission for us.
8:06
>> Wanted to ask you about the comfort
8:08
level. um of the team in sort of its
8:12
entirety based on what it was last year,
8:14
last year everything was new, coaches
8:17
were new. Um has the comfort level
8:20
changed and how's that manifested itself
8:22
from last year to this year?
8:26
>> Yeah, that's a great question. So, I
8:28
think the biggest thing is one, you kind
8:29
of know what to expect, at least for
8:30
guys that were here, right? You know how
8:32
to you know how to practice. You know
8:34
what the practices are going to look
8:35
like. You know what the strength and
8:36
conditioning schedule is going to look
8:37
like. you know, how things are talked
8:39
about kind of this, you know, being able
8:40
to talk in the same language, you know,
8:42
from a, you know, organizational goal
8:44
standpoint. I think it's huge for any
8:46
team, any program, any organization. And
8:49
it's kind of helped again with the
8:51
transition of new guys where you have
8:53
people that already in the system,
8:54
right? Last year, everyone was new with
8:57
what, 70 new guys, but coaches too, new
9:00
to each other, you know, kind of knowing
9:02
how to operate with each other. What's
9:04
kind of the, you know, rhythm in which
9:06
guys do things. Um, and I think that's
9:08
been I mean that's been a huge part of
9:10
some of the um, you know, progress we've
9:13
made this off seasonason and you know
9:14
what we're just kind of looking forward
9:15
to do you know day in and day out right
9:17
just this idea of stacking days being
9:19
all about the process when you know
9:21
you're able to kind of rely on other
9:22
people you know how people operate it
9:24
makes things a lot smoother. follow up
9:26
on that. If there's is there a sense of
9:30
last year everybody was being taught by
9:32
the coaches about guys like you that are
9:35
coming back are you now taking on the
9:37
silver role and teaching the new players
9:40
that are coming in is that something
9:42
that's happened
9:44
seemed like it would happen naturally.
9:46
>> Yeah. in terms of like, you know, what
9:48
to expect, right? You know, in terms of
9:52
um, you know, how
9:53
>> fundamentals
9:55
>> like coaching on the field and stuff
9:56
like that. Yeah. Well, I think when you
9:58
have when you have any guys when we have
10:00
guys that are leaders, again, kind of
10:01
some of the guys I talked about and
10:02
again, you know, a bunch of other guys,
10:04
right, who you have done it before, who
10:06
have played for a long time, it's not
10:08
just guys that have played here, it's
10:09
guys that have played in general. So
10:11
guys that have come in and um you know
10:13
played in other spots and you have
10:15
experience doing different things. You
10:16
know you kind of share with each other
10:18
like hey this is um you know kind of
10:20
this is what I did and you know you kind
10:22
of build this cohesiveness and you know
10:23
this kind of level of trust and you know
10:25
for one point right you're competing
10:26
against each other. Everything's a
10:28
competition, right? Day in and day out.
10:30
But, you know, when you're able to
10:31
compete against each other, but you're
10:33
still helping out each other, um, you
10:35
know, it promotes kind of everything
10:36
being about the team. And that's the
10:39
biggest thing again, this idea of team
10:40
teammate self.
10:42
>> How would you describe the team's
10:44
offensive identity here in the first few
10:47
practices that you guys had?
10:49
>> Yeah. Well, I think like I think like
10:51
anything, one, you know, being able to
10:53
be the most physical team, establish the
10:55
run, right? And that's not just, you
10:57
know, offensive line and tight ends
10:58
blocking. That's your receivers balls
11:00
caught blocking down the field. And, you
11:02
know, you already see it, you know,
11:04
happening. Guys kind of buying into this
11:05
vision. And, you know, anytime you have
11:08
any type of success, it's a little bit
11:09
easier to, you know, get that embedded.
11:12
But, you know, just from the get-go,
11:14
guys, you know, taking coaching, be able
11:17
to apply it the next day. Um, you know,
11:19
we're getting better each and every day,
11:21
each and every practice. You know, both
11:22
sides are getting better. There's good
11:24
back and forth. And you know, again,
11:26
just being committed to just stacking
11:27
days, right? It's all about the process.
11:29
It's all about just, you know, working
11:31
as hard as you can in this given day,
11:33
right? You know, we're going to go out
11:34
there, we're going to practice, you
11:35
know, on this Tuesday and this is the
11:37
most important practice of our lives,
11:38
right? Because it's the only one that we
11:40
can control. And if you're able to take
11:41
that same mentality and do that day
11:43
after day, you know, you're going su
11:45
success will be inevitable. But, you
11:47
know, none of it matters if you don't
11:48
take care of it today.
11:51
I guess just following on something you
11:52
mentioned earlier. You talked about um
11:54
maybe more folks being familiar with
11:56
each other in this spring, you know,
11:59
period. Anything you've seen in terms of
12:01
just a different approach from Coach
12:05
Bell and the staff over I guess the past
12:08
six practices.
12:11
>> Yeah. You know, again, it it's all about
12:14
the process, right? And I think one
12:16
thing that's been cool about coach Bich
12:18
is just the willingness to learn, right?
12:20
a lot of, you know, exit meetings or
12:21
just wherever it is is truly finding the
12:24
best way to do something. Um, you know,
12:27
the, you know, ability to just like, all
12:29
right, what how can we win? What is the
12:31
best way to do this? Because everything
12:33
is about winning. And, you know, coach
12:35
kind of seeing that and seeing what he
12:36
needs to adjust. And I mean, coach Bichc
12:40
is the greatest coach of all time,
12:42
right? But, you know, he understands
12:44
like, hey, if there's a better way of
12:45
doing it, like, let's do it. Obviously,
12:47
the the way that he does it, it's been
12:49
pretty successful, you know, having
12:50
eight Super Bowls or, you know, however
12:51
many it is. But, um, no, it's been cool.
12:54
It's been cool being able to do that
12:55
with him.
12:56
>> Any um specific examples of maybe one of
12:59
those adjustments or one of those ways
13:00
that you maybe seen him change his
13:03
teaching approach? For instance,
13:06
>> I give you guys a a you know, a good
13:08
story just at least in terms of right
13:09
because there's onfield off the field
13:11
stuff and, you know, growing kind of the
13:13
game of college football. One of the
13:15
things obviously is you know guys going
13:18
to class right and you know with a lot
13:20
of schools there's a lot of online class
13:22
so guys don't have to actually go in
13:23
person with you know here it's a little
13:25
different right where this is uh you
13:27
know it's a public obvious is one of the
13:29
best schools in the country and you know
13:31
there's one time as me and DJ Mone we're
13:33
walking up front um whoever going to the
13:36
business school he's in the you know
13:37
undergrad program I'm um you know again
13:39
my NBA and we see walking down is coach
13:43
Bichc with this huge clipboard in his
13:45
He's got this huge smile. You're like,
13:47
"What? What was he just doing?" You
13:48
would think with this smile, guys, you
13:49
would think that he just won a Super
13:50
Bowl or something like that. Like the
13:52
amount of joy that he had from what had
13:53
just happened. You're like, "Something
13:55
something just happened, right?" We're
13:57
like, "Coach, what what were you up to?"
14:00
13 for 13. Like, what? So, I'm 13 for
14:04
13.
14:05
And this is coach Bellatra going to
14:08
classes, class checking, guys. 13 for
14:11
13. And just the amount of joy that he
14:13
had knowing that, hey, like in order,
14:17
you know, how you do anything is how you
14:18
do everything, right? And I'm sure if
14:20
you told any of the guys that, you know,
14:21
Coach Bellich coached that he would be
14:23
class checking, you know, college
14:25
freshman going into a, you know, intro
14:27
to anthropology class at 8:00 a.m. on a
14:30
Tuesday morning. You know, they would
14:32
think you're crazy, but you know, I
14:34
think that just speaks to the level of
14:36
buyin that coach Bichc has, right? And
14:38
just being able to like, hey, what is
14:40
the best way of winning? It's like, hey,
14:42
if it's class, if it's class checking,
14:44
it's class checking. And, you know, I
14:47
think it's just been so cool to see, you
14:49
know, see that, you know, and the level
14:50
of investment that he has, the, you
14:52
know, work ethic that Coach Bellich has.
14:54
It's I mean, it's truly unmatched. Like,
14:57
it is it is inspiring the what he's able
14:59
to do day in and day out, you know, for
15:02
this team. Everything just being for
15:04
this team, it's um it's infectious. It's
15:08
contagious and it's it rubs off on the
15:10
rest of the team. You know, it makes us
15:11
go harder. That's for sure.
15:13
>> Ryan,
15:14
>> um you you've mentioned the greatest
15:16
coach of all time a couple times. I
15:18
don't know what your reaction was or if
15:19
you paid attention to it when he didn't
15:21
get into the Hall of Fame. If he's ever
15:23
mentioned that to you guys or if you've
15:25
ever mentioned it to him, like what are
15:27
they thinking? Anything?
15:28
>> No, I mean, you wouldn't you wouldn't
15:30
really know that anything happened. you
15:32
know, his approach is the same of just,
15:34
you know, we're, you know, fully focused
15:36
on North Carolina, North Carolina
15:38
football and um just everything is
15:42
centered for him at least, you know, how
15:43
can I win football games for this
15:44
program and, you know, put us in the
15:46
best situation possible.
15:47
>> Did you What did you think when you
15:49
heard them?
15:51
>> Yeah, I I mean it was, you know,
15:52
obviously it's not something you would
15:54
expect, but you know, hey, again, it's,
15:57
you know, it kind of is what it is. And
15:59
you know, just see, you know, coach be
16:01
like just again everything focused on
16:03
North Carolina football and you know,
16:05
how can we win football games, put
16:06
ourselves in the best position, you
16:08
know, this coming fall. It's like, all
16:09
right, this is, you know, it's kind of
16:12
what he talks about all the time. You
16:13
know, you just block out the outside
16:14
noise, right? That's all it is.
16:17
>> Anything else? Chris, last one for
16:19
>> Yeah, I guess um I'm just curious. I
16:21
love the story about class checking um
16:24
specifically um for you um kind of
16:28
looking over your experience that you'll
16:29
see so far like for the um you know the
16:33
attitudes once you get past the oh my
16:34
gosh this is Bill Pelich like how would
16:36
you describe and compare him how he is
16:38
on a daily basis as a teacher as a coach
16:40
compared to other coaches other teachers
16:43
you've had
16:44
>> yeah well he's you know like coach
16:46
during practice he's pretty much
16:48
involved in everything you know there
16:50
are some coaches that kind of, you know,
16:52
more of like a CEO sit back, let the
16:54
position coaches coach, but coaches
16:56
involved and everything like he's, you
16:59
know, one moment he is, you know,
17:00
teaching the quarterbacks on, you know,
17:02
their scramble rules, the next he's, you
17:05
know, talking to the DBs about, you
17:07
know, winning your leverage and man
17:08
coverage or whatever it is. Then he's
17:10
with the O line, you know, preaching,
17:12
you know, punching or don't game beat
17:14
inside. Um, and just the knowledge the
17:17
the vast knowledge that he has for
17:20
everything and you know seeing him just
17:22
be involved in everything like it's it's
17:24
really cool um you know just again
17:28
everything being about the team wanting
17:30
to win and you know being able to put
17:31
guys in the best position and then
17:33
obviously includes having good
17:34
fundamentals. It's um you know it's
17:36
pretty cool.
17:38
>> Cool stuff. Thanks so much. I'm sure
17:41
this offseason you had opportunities
17:43
elsewhere, but ultimately you chose to
17:45
remain here. What what was the process
17:46
like in or what was the process like for
17:49
you in that process and why why remain
17:52
at UNCC?
17:53
>> I got a lot of love for UNCC, you know,
17:55
the opportunity they gave me last year
17:57
and I got love a lot of love for my
17:59
teammates and I just want to come back
18:00
and be a part of this year and help the
18:03
program get to where we need to be.
18:06
>> Okay, Carpet, you were talking with your
18:08
defensive coordinator, Coach Steve
18:09
Belchar. you was talking about sort of
18:11
the the growth that you've made so far
18:13
in the spring, the steps that you've
18:14
taken to improve. What in your mind is
18:16
sort of the next step that you can take
18:17
in your game uh to really elevate
18:19
yourself?
18:19
>> Yeah, I got a lot to improve on. Uh just
18:22
my technique, my fundamentals, just
18:23
getting better at those and making sure
18:26
that every snap I play is to the best of
18:28
my ability and I've just really been
18:30
working on that.
18:31
>> Have you set like maybe like a
18:32
statistical goal for yourself uh this
18:34
coming year?
18:35
>> Not necessarily. Not not a statistical
18:37
goal, just to be the best version of
18:39
myself and see where that takes me.
18:43
>> Next one.
18:45
Can you talk about
18:48
it's sort of a common thing that
18:50
defenses get better in their second year
18:53
in a new regime. I know you practice,
18:57
but have you felt or seen what you think
19:00
is a jump and improvement over the
19:02
defense last year? you appreciate that
19:05
practices so
19:06
>> yeah the communication has been a lot
19:08
better you know from the linebackers
19:10
from the secondary just making sure
19:12
everybody's where they need to be and
19:13
they know what their responsibility is
19:15
for that play so obviously everything
19:17
starts with communication so if that
19:18
gets better we could play faster and
19:20
just be more aggressive
19:22
>> you kind of came out last year was you
19:24
surprised how well you played last year
19:27
>> no
19:29
this is my job this is what I do this is
19:31
why I work every day So, no, it's just
19:35
as was expected.
19:39
>> Jim,
19:40
>> you're um one of, you know, a few guys
19:43
that made the trans come back. One of
19:46
those guys obviously to Jordan Ship.
19:48
Spoke to him last week. Um just curious
19:51
from your vantage point on the other
19:52
side of the ball, but also kind of one
19:53
of the leaders of this team. What is his
19:55
leadership over presence to you guys
19:58
over the past season this off season?
20:01
Yeah, you know, Ship, he's a great
20:03
leader. He's a playmaker. He He's the
20:05
same person every day. So, people just
20:08
feed off his energy and on the field,
20:10
he's out there making plays and just
20:11
bringing juice to the offense and really
20:13
bringing juice to the whole team.
20:15
>> How important um was all of that just
20:18
when maybe things weren't going the way
20:20
you guys wanted to last season kind of
20:22
frustrating and what was the importance
20:25
of him and maybe that voice that
20:27
optimism
20:32
Can you repeat that last part?
20:33
>> Yeah. Just what was the importance of
20:35
ship's presence especially towards the
20:38
end of last season? You guys had three
20:41
straight losses, but he was very vocal
20:43
about,
20:44
>> you know, the team and him wanting to
20:47
come back this season.
20:48
>> Yeah. I mean, his love for Carolina is
20:51
infectious and uh for him just to come
20:53
in happy every day even though we were,
20:55
you know, going through adversity just
20:56
rubbed off on the team and allowed us
20:59
to, you know, not let it get the worst
21:02
of us.
21:03
>> Right.
21:04
>> Melart, what did you learn most about
21:06
yourself last year and then how you kind
21:08
of carried that into year two at
21:11
Carolina?
21:12
>> Yeah. Um,
21:14
I learned that the work you put in
21:16
really pays off. you know, a lot of
21:18
spend a lot of long nights working out,
21:20
early mornings, and you just don't see
21:22
the progress right away. So, to see some
21:25
success show last year was uh motivating
21:27
for me and, you know, really got me
21:29
excited going forward.
21:31
>> Gib, was there something in the
21:33
offseason you really focused on to get
21:34
better this year? Something you felt
21:36
like?
21:38
>> Yeah. Uh, main thing I was focusing on
21:40
is my get off just to get off the ball
21:42
faster. and I play a lot with power and
21:45
I just want to incorporate speed in my
21:47
game as well.
21:49
>> I know you're not anywhere close to
21:50
where your ultimate goal is in general,
21:52
but have you ever like have you taken a
21:54
second to sort of stop and think about
21:55
where you came from and how you sort of
21:57
got to this point and up to last season
21:59
sort of how everything has transpired?
22:01
>> Yeah, weird thing is my mind's always
22:03
focused on the next thing. So, you know,
22:06
I haven't really gave it that much
22:08
thought. Um, just trying to get the next
22:10
goal and see how I can achieve that.
22:14
>> Right.
22:15
>> How much have you seen, I don't know how
22:16
much you guys have worked against the
22:17
offense, but how much have you seen a
22:19
change in what the offense is trying to
22:20
do under Coach Patrino?
22:23
>> Uh, Coach Patino's offense is exciting.
22:25
You know, uh, different plays, different
22:27
schemes, lots of motions.
22:30
I like it. I'm excited to see it.
22:33
>> How was that? I I talked to Christo
22:34
about this a little bit, but how was it
22:36
frustrating as a defense to know you
22:38
guys almost had to be perfect last year?
22:40
Your offense just really wasn't capable
22:41
of putting up, you know, a huge number.
22:43
That did that put more pressure on what
22:45
you guys had to do defensively?
22:47
>> As a defense, you always strive to be
22:49
perfect. You know, if everybody does
22:50
their assignment perfectly on every
22:52
play, then the offense would never
22:53
score. So, I mean, not really. We're
22:56
we're trying to be perfect regardless if
22:58
the offense puts up a 100 or they score
23:00
six. Spencer,
23:02
>> how different is this spring from last
23:05
spring?
23:08
>> In which way?
23:09
>> Just with, you know, you got a year
23:10
under your belt and no defensive staff
23:12
changes. Has it been easier to kind of
23:14
come in and, you know, hit the ground
23:15
running in spring practice?
23:17
>> Yeah, I mean, you're used to how the uh
23:20
what the schedule was like and
23:23
uh I can speak for myself, the plays. I
23:25
know the playbook very well, so it's
23:27
easy just to work on what you need to
23:29
work on instead of thinking about the
23:30
plays.
23:33
You won't sneak up on anybody this year.
23:35
You know, offensive target.
23:39
>> Yeah, but I got some good players on the
23:41
other side. You know, Harvey and
23:43
Donovan, they're very good edge rushers
23:46
and they're going to have trouble on
23:47
that side if they focus too much on me.
23:50
>> Right.
23:51
>> There are so many freshman and so many
23:52
guys we haven't really gotten to look
23:53
at. Is there one or two maybe on the
23:55
defensive side or or that you're going
23:57
against that have kind of stood out to
23:58
you? Yeah, you know, David Jackson from
24:00
Dline, I like him. He's a very uh
24:03
violent player, high motor, and
24:07
that's the one that stood out to me the
24:09
most.
24:11
>> I guess um on that some
24:16
was the Tyler Thompson was like violence
24:18
and you want to talk about
24:20
>> Yeah.
24:22
>> Anyways, well, your teammate Tyler
24:23
Thompson has a quote about like just
24:25
effort and violence. Like that's kind of
24:27
his mentality. That was his his mantra.
24:29
How have you guys um kept that same
24:32
mindset in the spring?
24:34
>> I mean, yeah, that's how you play
24:35
defense. You got to be violent and you
24:37
got to have high effort, high effort to
24:38
the ball, high effort with uh your focus
24:40
and execution of the play. So, that's
24:43
how that's how you play a game.
24:46
>> And the last one for
24:47
>> Yeah. Um kind of going back to Brian's
24:49
question, but obviously a lot of young
24:51
guys on this roster. What do you think
24:53
is going to be the key to
24:57
success for you guys? This quality of so
25:00
much
25:02
>> uh just for the leaders to step up, you
25:04
know, to show the young guys what to do,
25:06
how to do it, and how to carry
25:08
themselves on a daily basis.
25:10
Um I mean, the young guys, they're ball
25:12
players, too. So, they can step up, they
25:14
can make some plays as well, and just
25:16
looking forward to that.
25:18
>> Perfect. Good stuff. Thanks so much,
25:20
man.
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