COACH POP
“He’s very versatile as a coach. He can reach out to many different types of people who all learn differently. He has days when he’s patient with you and talks you through it and there are days when he gets in you and is fired up. That combination, I think, is really important for a coach.” – Outside linebacker Charles Snowden
“They’re willing to work hard. They like to get after it. The big thing for them is just continuing to be in the film room, to study, to learn, and that way they’ll have more success on the field come this fall.” – Shane Hunter, Inside Linebackers Coach
A PRODUCT OF THE SYSTEM
“I think it helps a lot. Some of the stuff that we go through is pretty tough, but knowing that he’s been through it and he’s been in those same shoes. It helps us respect him and listen to him even more. Just realize that if we do what they ask of us, things will work out.” – Inside linebacker Rob Snyder on his position coach having played linebacker at BYU under current UVA head coach Bronco Mendenhall.
“A real simple thing that I say is that outside backers have two jobs. Our job is to set the edge and to affect the quarterback. Those are two things that we talk about every single day. You have to set the edge of the defense when it’s run and you have to be able to get to the quarterback when it’s pass. I think that history has shown, when the outside backers are doing that, we’ll play really good defense.” – Kelly Poppinga
“Jordan (Mack) is kind of that lead-by-example kind of guy. Every once in a while, you’ll see him be more vocal and I think he’s kind of taken a little bit of that on this spring. I think that he’ll continue as he embraces that role and understands that’s what he needs to do. He’ll become that vocal guy.” – Shane Hunter