GoHeels Exclusive: Bly and the Cornerbacks
May 16, 2019 | Football, Featured Writers
By Pat James, GoHeels.com
A two-time All-American in the late 1990s and a 2014 College Football Hall of Fame inductee, Dré Bly bestowed the "rude boys" nickname upon North Carolina's defensive backs during his first stint in Chapel Hill.
About 20 years later, they still refer to themselves as such. But in his first spring as UNC's new cornerbacks coach, Bly went about instructing his players on what it truly means to be rude.
"It's a mindset – I believe that," he said. "And I think they haven't had it the last couple of years, for whatever reason. But there's a certain tradition of what comes with playing defensive back here, and I think we're going to play differently.
"We're going to play fast, we're going to get to the ball and my goal as a defensive back room is to be more productive than we were the year before, to make more plays. So we emphasize that every day and hopefully we can provide the spark that the back end is supposed to provide."
Bly's impressions of his cornerback room suggest they can.
The Tar Heels went through the latter half of spring ball with five scholarship cornerbacks working through drills. Still, no defensive unit returns more snaps (2,125) from last season than the cornerbacks, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF).
Patrice Rene is the most experienced of the group. After appearing in 22 games across his first two seasons, including eight starts, he started all 11 games as a junior. The 764 snaps he played are more than any defensive player still on the roster. And he made the most of them, allowing the second-lowest passer rating (41.3) among ACC cornerbacks, according to PFF.
Bly said he's been "very impressed" with Rene, who he'd watched develop from afar after Rene started the first game of his career against Georgia in 2016.
"He's shown a lot of growth," Bly said. "Any time a DB has four different DB coaches, that's hard. You've got four different guys coming in and teaching four different techniques. I don't know who can handle that; that's hard to handle. … I think he's done a pretty good job and adjusted to what Coach (Jay) Bateman and I teach."
Bly expressed similar excitement about Greg Ross.
Because of the system Carolina ran last season and what Ross was asked to do, Bly said Ross "took a lot of blame," not all of which was deserving. But he's handled it well. Ross, who played 519 snaps last season, could potentially play a lot of snaps opposite Rene this fall.
"I think those two guys (Rene and Ross) have done tremendously well this spring," Bly said. "I think those guys have adapted to what is being taught. I think they've accepted the challenge. I think they can see my passion and I think they know I genuinely care about their growth and their progress. So I'm excited about those two guys and what the future holds for those guys."
The same can be said about Trey Morrison, who emerged as UNC's starting nickelback during training camp last August and ultimately finished fifth in the ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. He figures to assume an even larger role as a sophomore.
"I didn't know how good of a playmaker he was," Bly said. "That kid really finds his way around the football, so I think he has a lot to bring to the field. I think he's going to be a great plus for us on the back end."
Another young cornerback who the coaching staff was impressed by this spring was Storm Duck. An early enrollee, he progressively improved. He then starred in the spring game, recording three tackles and returning a fumble 44 yards for a touchdown.
"Most guys don't have a chance to enroll until the summertime, but by him coming in and early enrolling, I think he's going to be a great plus for us, as well," said Bly of Duck, who is listed at 6-foot-1 and 180 pounds. "He's a guy who shows tremendous speed, he competes, he has size."
With three more freshman cornerbacks joining the team this summer, the Tar Heels will have more depth at the position when training camp begins. And they, like their veteran teammates, will surely benefit from playing under one of college football's greatest cornerbacks.
"He knows the ins and outs of every game, how to break this and that," said Rene of Bly. "And his own personal point is what was successful for him, we can take and bring to the field. Having a guru like that is just a blessing. He's working with us and pushing us each and every day, wanting us to be great. And also, he's a 'rude boy,' and that's a legacy he holds up."
