SILVERBACKS
“I call them the Silverbacks because they are alphas. I have been raised by a bunch of alphas and everyone I have been around has been an alpha, and that has been significant in my life. The guys that I am raising, I want them to be alphas. I want them to go out into the world and be able to dominate in whatever field they pursue.” – Defensive line coach Vic So’oto
“We are trying to improve on dominating our gaps, knocking the offensive linemen back, pushing that line of scrimmage back and we want to stop the run. That is our focus right now and that will continue to be our focus until we can accomplish it the way we desire.” – Eli Hanback
PASSIONATE APPROACH
“My passion just comes from everybody that is here. It comes from Coach Mendenhall and all the coaches that came here and all of the things that we have been through together. The opportunity to work next to him, and go out there and perform for him through the D-line, is kind of where my passion is.” – Vic So’oto
YOUNG GUNS
“We have come very far as a unit, especially for myself, Samson Reed and Aaron Faumui, since we came in last summer as first years. We have adjusted really well, especially this spring. We are not the young guys anymore.
“We are still trying to improve each and every day on the small fundamentals and techniques. This spring, I feel everyone on the defensive line has made huge jumps.” – Jordan Redmond
A FOOTBALL ON A STICK
“Maybe the greatest invention since the grilled cheese sandwich.” – Vic So’oto
SPRING GOALS
“We have made strides and it was evident by our record. Our defense last year was a top-25 defense. But, while we struggled stopping the run – that was one of our issues – we got after the quarterback and made stops when we needed them. We made stops that helped us win games. Each year we have increasingly gotten better. We have also been held to a higher standard each year as well.” – Eli Hanback
“It’s great knowing Coach Vic played under Bronco because he knows the defense by heart. It makes it easier for him to coach us up and easier for us to get a hang of it.” – Aaron Faumui
“It helps because we get to see the product of what Coach Mendenhall has been able to produce.” – Mandy Alonso
“He can relate to what we are going through. He was in our shoes because he had Coach Mendenhall as his head coach as player. He is tough on us, but at the same time, he knows what we are experiencing.” – Jordan Redmond
“I am living the dream. I couldn’t imagine anything better than this. Everyday waking up with guys that I love and want to be around, and mentoring young men that I love and want to see do really well.” – Vic So’oto
THE TROOP
“They work. They don’t complain. Everything that I ask them to do, they do to the best of their abilities and I coach them really hard. I am hard on them because I have a very high standard for them. Coaching them to the NFL level, and not the ACC or the NCAA level, is hard for a lot of kids, especially the young guys that we have. But they work and they come back to work every day. They text questions in our group thread and they always grade themselves. They’re hard on themselves too and I think that it just leads to them being successful in life and not seeing a challenge that they can’t dominate.” – Vic So’oto
