Caleb Collins
(On Kyler Jordan)
Oh, Kyler, man? The biggest thing about Kyler is Kyler is a football guy. Not the biggest, not the strongest — and he'll get there like he will get there. He’s never even done a football offseason. Kyler was a great baseball player in high school. So, I was watching his offseason, I'm like ‘OK, he may not be as strong as some of the other Jacks, but he's able to make plays out there because Kyler’s gonna go home, he's gonna watch the tape, he's gonna study his playbook.’ So, that way his thinking is to a minimum when he's on the field. He’s just playing green and I think that's what kind of puts him in a position to have success is like, he’s not one of the guys on the field that’s just thinking a whole lot. He’s like ‘I looked at this last night. I'm good. I'm just ready to play football and have fun.’ That's what I think puts him in a position to have success is (that) he’s a smart guy. And he's gonna put in the work on the front end, that way when he gets to the field, he could just kind of be making full speed mistakes, like, ‘Oh, yeah, coach. I know what I messed up on that play.’ (I’m) like, alright cool.
(On Kaian adjusting to Jack)
Man, Kaian got all the ability in the world. I just think with Kaian right now, it's kind of like drinking from a fire hydrant. I'm talking, I'm installing this call in meetings, and every now and then he'll remind me like, ‘Hey, Coach, what's a slam?’ And I'm like, (snaps his fingers) ‘I'm tripping. Like, let me go back to the beginning.’
So, I think when Kaian hears it all again in the summer, he's gonna be like ‘Ain’t no way this was the same stuff you was teaching during spring.’ I’ll be like ‘Yeah, Kaian, it’s the same stuff.’ But it’s just, right now he's hearing a lot of this stuff for the first time. But I think Kaian accels the best when it's like, individualized drills. Like, ‘Kaian, go pass rush against this guy.’ No call, nothing. And you will really see his ability show up. Just the simplest drills — even in individual — you kind of see his ability show. I just think right now it just got to slow down for him a little bit. But (he has) all the ability in the world, man, and I'm happy to have him in our room, forreal.
(Any other guys standing out?)
Prince (Ugoh) has come along really good. Prince Ugoh, he's really done a good job of just slowing things down and really taking advantage of the opportunity to get some reps. I think Tony's doing a good job of leading the room right now. I think Tony is a freak in the weight room and some of that stuff is starting to really translate on the field to where like, the things you expect Tony to do well; be a hammer, be a brute force, like set an edge. Like, he's doing those things. So, that's the thing I appreciate most from Tony's. It’s like, the things that you would expect him to do well being so big, so strong (and) so fast, he's starting to do those things on the field. And that's been pleasing to see.
Kyler Jordan
(How has Tony come along)
Oh yeah, I've seen a ton of improvement in him and he's just such a leader in the group. Always leading by example, doing what's right and you can't help but follow in his footsteps.
(Do you feel like you needed that redshirt year last year?)
Yes, sir. It's just such a different game than what you play in high school. I mean, the speed, the strength, everything. It’s just, everything happens faster. It was a big transition, but I'm definitely starting to feel more comfortable with it.
(Are you guys feeling like with this new defense it can be more aggressive?)
Yes, sir. It's definitely a little simpler than what we were doing in the fall, which is definitely helping me just be able to play faster. Not so much thinking but more doing. So, I definitely like that aspect with Coach Pow (Powledge).
(What’s it like bringing in another Lubbock guy with Sawyer Robertson)
Oh, it's awesome. I mean, I went to church with Sawyer growing up. I played against him in football, baseball, kind of everything. So, it's pretty cool to see him here and that connection was already built, I mean, back in the 806
(Lubbock area code). So, it's definitely good to have him here. I think he’ll be a good addition to the team.
(Any church stories?)
(Laughs). Not really. We would always show up on Sundays and talk about what happened on Friday night. Always talking about games and all that good stuff; talking a little trash when you need to.
(Did you remind him that you got him a couple of times in high school?)
(Laughs) I got him a couple of times. He got me once, so I can't talk too much. Can’t talk too much.
(On Coach Pow)
I already talked about the simplicity — he just helps us play faster — but just his day in and day out energy. He shows up every day ready to teach us and you can’t help but be ready to learn. So, it's just awesome. Learning from a guy that has that much passion about the game and his knowledge is as much as you can imagine.
(Where have you seen Coach Collins grow in your time here)
He's grown a lot in his confidence. I think he's starting to realize that he can be a good teacher and that's what he's really good at. So, he always tells us whenever we get into the position group that we need to be ready to learn because he's ready to teach. And I just think compared to last fall, he's just, he's really confided (I think he used this right) in us and he's taken the extra effort to meet us halfway outside of football, too. So, I think that's really helped in just building a relationship.
(How would you define a JACK)
I would define a Jack as kind of a hybrid. You kind of got to be able to do a little bit of everything. So, speed, strength; you kind of got to have a little bit of it all. But yeah, really just a hybrid, I would say.
(Does the Jack fit you)
Yes, sir. I think I'm coming around. It's definitely — like I said before — it's such a different game than it was in high school. So, the stuff that you could get away with in high school, you can't get away with here. So, it's really just more of a speed adjustment for me than anything.
(Were you ever in the middle)
(Laughs) In high school I did a little bit of everything. I played a little bit of three technique in high school. A little bit of Mike (linebacker), kind of a little bit of everything yeah, I like it a lot.
Tony Anyanwu
(how’s the defense coming along) I really like it. With Coach Powledge returning, because we would all run through a wall for him, he’s got great energy. And I just like where (the defense) is coming.
(changes scheme-wise Powledge has implemented) The scheme is definitely just getting more simpler, allowing us to play fast and stuff like that. Move around, easy rotations. Very memorizable (definitely not a word) defense. I like it.
(what is it about Coach Pow that makes you that dedicated to him) He just brings energy every day, like every day. He’s a real good people person. He gets us all lit before we take the field and everything, all kinds of stuff.
(how do you view the role of the JACK position) We like to call us the militia, like Special Forces, kind of, because there are certain plays that will call for us to be the ones to make the play or be the ones to rush, get a sack in critical moments and stuff like that (his favorite term).
(feel like it’s a good fit for you) I feel amazing, to be able to drop in the open field and then come down, set an edge, run after the ball, chase, all kind of stuff (yes, he said it again).
(any of the younger guys at the position catching your eye) Oh, he’s right over there, Kyler Jordan. Yeah, he’s coming along really good, taken to the coaching. I’m really proud of how far he’s got.
(what makes him special) His physicality, his coachability (apparently is a word). He learns real quick, he’s real smart. You’ve got to watch out for him.
(how has Coach Caleb Collins grown over the last year or so) He’s definitely become more connected to us. We hang out a lot, we go out to eat as a position group, a lot. And he tries to bond with his players. When you have that bond, people are going to play harder for you. At least that’s what I believe.
(where do you feel like you’ve improved the most since the start of the spring) Definitely my drops and a little of my pass rushing. We changed up our footwork a little bit, but with a good alert, we can know. And we’ve been working on a lot of pass-rushing moves. My long arm is looking good, a lot of stuff has been getting better.
(could Coach Collins beat you) Maybe in his prime, because he went to LSU. He was nice back in the day, but that’s back in the day. He’s slowed down, for sure.
(try to add weight or strength in the offseason) Actually, he told me he doesn’t worry about that anymore. It used to be that he wanted me to be a certain weight, or maintain a certain weight, but he doesn’t really care as long as I’m still able to do what I can do out on the field.
(what about speed) Oh, definitely, definitely. But that’s all with reaction time, breaking up the stacks, things of that nature.
(on Garmon Randolph, expect from him) I’m expecting a lot from him. I’m expecting him to be able to lead us and be able to coach us up, especially the younger people and newer people to ghe group, when they need.
(how do you feel like Kaian Roberts-Day has adjusted to the position after switching from running back) He’s adjusting pretty good for a first-timer. For all he’s learned on offense, once he puts it all together, he should be able to call out plays pretty quickly and just really connect the whole game.
