Five Questions With Coach Adams
August 12, 2017 | Football
By Jeff Greenberg, GoHeels.com
1. What factors or reasons brought you back to UNC?
"There were times after we left Chapel Hill that I would say to my wife, 'Looking back, I wish we wouldn't have left Chapel Hill.' It's such a great place to live and work. I feel like it has unbelievable support from the university and the community. It's a special place. Now when my wife and I talk about Chapel Hill, we talk about retiring here. That's how much we looked forward to trying to get back here. Then when the opportunity presented itself, it was a no-brainer for us. On the football side of the decision I've always had great respect for Coach Fedora and liked working for him. I knew the defensive staff was being re-tooled and it felt like perfect timing for a fresh start all the way around. We couldn't be more excited to be back at UNC."
2. How have you changed or evolved as a coach compared to the first time you coached here in Chapel Hill?
"First and foremost is the basic fact that I have more experience now than I did then. I think the longer you're around kids and coaches, particularly at different schools, the more you see and learn along the way. I don't regret my decision in that sense because the new experiences I had have made me a better coach today at UNC. I had the great opportunity to coach under a legendary coach in Steve Spurrier. I coached with some great defensive guys like Lorenzo Ward, Jon Hoke, Grady Brown and Kirk Botkin. It was a great learning situation for me. I think one area where I've evolved as a coach is just being able to tie everything together defensively now better than I could before. I'm talking about knowing what each area of the defense from the back end through the linebackers to the line is trying to do in every situation. Another area is just knowing how to work with different kinds of kids in my room. I've had a chance to see so many different styles of coaching now in terms of the individual player and coach dynamic that I feel like I've gotten stronger in that area as well. There are more ways than one to get things done the right way and have a great result."
3. When you arrived in Chapel Hill, did you watch a lot of film to see what guys you had in the defensive line room, or did you wait to see what they showed you live on the field this spring?
"The benefit of having guys like J.P. (John Papuchis) here on the staff who have worked with the defense is that you can get a sense of what you're working with based on their feedback first before you even get to that first meeting. I watched some film on the guys but not as much individual film. As a staff we were watching a lot of cut-ups of the defense as a whole to see what we were installing and the defenses we were going to be running here. So you see some of what the guys are like on the field. But really I used Blue Dawn and what they showed me on the field and in the meeting rooms to make my own judgments on each player. I prefer that because if you watch too much film up front you may prejudge some kids and miss the progress they've made mentally and physically since last season. I'm glad I did that because this spring a lot of guys stepped up their game and made a lot of strides on the field. I'm excited about where we are as a unit right now."
4. Your unit returns a lot of live game experience this season.  How would you describe what your unit looks like and the depth that it has going into the fall?
"I'm definitely excited about the guys in my room. Overall, we have a lot of talent coming back and those guys worked hard to get better this spring. We definitely have more depth now than the first time I was here in Chapel Hill. We have the ability to run a lot of guys into the game now which will help everybody stay fresh all four quarters. I think our depth is versatile too as guys have shown their ability to play in spots that are new to them. J.P. set the focus for us this spring on stopping the run and I think we have guys in my room that can get that done with different combinations of guys."
5. Speaking of getting better this spring, where do you feel like your guys made the biggest strides this spring?
"When I mentioned guys showing some versatility, that's one thing we got better at this spring. We moved some guys around and they stepped up to that challenge. We moved a guy like Jason Strowbridge inside and I think he brings a lot of quick-twitch movement and athleticism to the inside so it ended up being a great situation for us. Jalen Dalton showed that he can effectively play a couple of spots which helps us as a whole. In addition to stopping the run we wanted to get better at generating a pass rush with the front four. I think we got better this spring in that area through better technique and knowledge of the scheme. Moving forward to the fall, we have to carry this improvement and momentum forward. When we go out and workout this summer we have to do every workout with a purpose to get better. I don't want guys to just go out and work out. I want them to go out and work on specific mechanics and techniques to get better. The other side of that coin is putting in the time in the meeting room they need to get better about knowing what to do in different situations. The guys in that room understand it but more importantly, they want it. They want to take that next step. When I look at guys like Malik Carney, Tyler Powell, Jalen, Jason, Tomon Fox and Dajaun Drennon I see guys who have played a lot of football for us, but they're not satisfied. They want more. Even guys who couldn't practice much this spring like Aaron Crawford and Jeremiah Clarke got better in some facet of their game and will be factors in us getting better. All of that is going to pay off for us when the season gets going this fall."
1. What factors or reasons brought you back to UNC?
"There were times after we left Chapel Hill that I would say to my wife, 'Looking back, I wish we wouldn't have left Chapel Hill.' It's such a great place to live and work. I feel like it has unbelievable support from the university and the community. It's a special place. Now when my wife and I talk about Chapel Hill, we talk about retiring here. That's how much we looked forward to trying to get back here. Then when the opportunity presented itself, it was a no-brainer for us. On the football side of the decision I've always had great respect for Coach Fedora and liked working for him. I knew the defensive staff was being re-tooled and it felt like perfect timing for a fresh start all the way around. We couldn't be more excited to be back at UNC."
2. How have you changed or evolved as a coach compared to the first time you coached here in Chapel Hill?
"First and foremost is the basic fact that I have more experience now than I did then. I think the longer you're around kids and coaches, particularly at different schools, the more you see and learn along the way. I don't regret my decision in that sense because the new experiences I had have made me a better coach today at UNC. I had the great opportunity to coach under a legendary coach in Steve Spurrier. I coached with some great defensive guys like Lorenzo Ward, Jon Hoke, Grady Brown and Kirk Botkin. It was a great learning situation for me. I think one area where I've evolved as a coach is just being able to tie everything together defensively now better than I could before. I'm talking about knowing what each area of the defense from the back end through the linebackers to the line is trying to do in every situation. Another area is just knowing how to work with different kinds of kids in my room. I've had a chance to see so many different styles of coaching now in terms of the individual player and coach dynamic that I feel like I've gotten stronger in that area as well. There are more ways than one to get things done the right way and have a great result."
3. When you arrived in Chapel Hill, did you watch a lot of film to see what guys you had in the defensive line room, or did you wait to see what they showed you live on the field this spring?
"The benefit of having guys like J.P. (John Papuchis) here on the staff who have worked with the defense is that you can get a sense of what you're working with based on their feedback first before you even get to that first meeting. I watched some film on the guys but not as much individual film. As a staff we were watching a lot of cut-ups of the defense as a whole to see what we were installing and the defenses we were going to be running here. So you see some of what the guys are like on the field. But really I used Blue Dawn and what they showed me on the field and in the meeting rooms to make my own judgments on each player. I prefer that because if you watch too much film up front you may prejudge some kids and miss the progress they've made mentally and physically since last season. I'm glad I did that because this spring a lot of guys stepped up their game and made a lot of strides on the field. I'm excited about where we are as a unit right now."
4. Your unit returns a lot of live game experience this season.  How would you describe what your unit looks like and the depth that it has going into the fall?
"I'm definitely excited about the guys in my room. Overall, we have a lot of talent coming back and those guys worked hard to get better this spring. We definitely have more depth now than the first time I was here in Chapel Hill. We have the ability to run a lot of guys into the game now which will help everybody stay fresh all four quarters. I think our depth is versatile too as guys have shown their ability to play in spots that are new to them. J.P. set the focus for us this spring on stopping the run and I think we have guys in my room that can get that done with different combinations of guys."
5. Speaking of getting better this spring, where do you feel like your guys made the biggest strides this spring?
"When I mentioned guys showing some versatility, that's one thing we got better at this spring. We moved some guys around and they stepped up to that challenge. We moved a guy like Jason Strowbridge inside and I think he brings a lot of quick-twitch movement and athleticism to the inside so it ended up being a great situation for us. Jalen Dalton showed that he can effectively play a couple of spots which helps us as a whole. In addition to stopping the run we wanted to get better at generating a pass rush with the front four. I think we got better this spring in that area through better technique and knowledge of the scheme. Moving forward to the fall, we have to carry this improvement and momentum forward. When we go out and workout this summer we have to do every workout with a purpose to get better. I don't want guys to just go out and work out. I want them to go out and work on specific mechanics and techniques to get better. The other side of that coin is putting in the time in the meeting room they need to get better about knowing what to do in different situations. The guys in that room understand it but more importantly, they want it. They want to take that next step. When I look at guys like Malik Carney, Tyler Powell, Jalen, Jason, Tomon Fox and Dajaun Drennon I see guys who have played a lot of football for us, but they're not satisfied. They want more. Even guys who couldn't practice much this spring like Aaron Crawford and Jeremiah Clarke got better in some facet of their game and will be factors in us getting better. All of that is going to pay off for us when the season gets going this fall."
Players Mentioned
Defensive End
/ Football
Defensive Tackle
/ Football
Defensive Tackle
/ Football
Defensive Tackle
/ Football
Defensive End
/ Football
Defensive Line
/ Football
Defensive Line
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