TAMPA, Fla. – In our latest ‘Inside the Huddle’ we sat down with three of USC’s defensive backs – Andre Goodman, Antione Nesmith and Sheldon Brown. Later, we talked to their position coach – defensive backs coach John Gutekunst. While animated, the three players honestly care about each other and their team. Enjoy this version of ‘Inside the Huddle’.
First, Andre Goodman, Antione Nesmith and Sheldon Brown.
After being here for four years, how does it feel to know this will be your last game together?
AG: Honestly, I haven’t thought about it.
AN: I didn’t think about it like that. I was thinking it was my first bowl game because I was hurt last year.
SB: For me, I think I will enjoy this last game. Hopefully we will go out as winners. I think it’s more important for my mom and dad to see me play than for me to play for myself.
Coach Holtz has talked all week about how much the senior class has meant to this team. How they started their careers at 1-21 and have turned it around to a real success story. How does that feel to know that is your legacy?
AN: It’s important that we go out as winners. Nobody wants to be a loser.
SB: I don’t know what you are talking about – those first two years. I don’t remember them.
Antione, who is the joker of this group – Sheldon? How about your Andre, how would you describe Sheldon?
AN: No, not Sheldon. He is the grandfather of the group. He’s serious. He’s serious, he’s old, he moves around like an old man. Other than that he’s a good ball player.
AG: He is the best kind of teammate to have, the best kind of friend to have.
AN: He’s a great athlete. He makes good decisions and will give you 110%.
Sheldon and Andre – how would you describe Antione?
SB: I love him and we will keep in touch the rest of our live. I would do anything for him. He’s very dependable.
AG: He’s dedicated and committed. Wonderful person.
What are some special memories you have as a Gamecock?
AG: Last year’s season as a whole because we felt like we were the laughing stock of the country. When I first got here I told people I played for the Gamecock and they were like ‘Who?’ Last season with Coach Holtz bringing in national prominence and us doing our part, people started to recognize us. That was one of my goals when I came here – to make a step in the right direction.
SB: Probably senior day – having my mom and dad walk out on the field with me. And then having a storybook finish for me being an in-state guy with the win over Clemson.
AN: I will remember how we all have come together as one. We have been through a lot but we stick it out for each other. You can rely on your boys, they will keep you up.
Favorite game?
SB: Without a doubt, this year’s win over Clemson. We hadn’t beaten them and it was very special.
AG: Probably the Georgia game last year. It kind of set the tone for us last year and it started us off on the right foot for this two year stretch.
Antione – your least favorite game?
AN: My least favorite game was when I was a freshman and we played Mississippi State. They ran the opening kickoff back on us and won 44-0. Yuck.
Willie Offord, another senior, then joined the three and was asked to describe the three DBs.
WO: Cool, calm and collected on and off the field. I will miss playing with them for sure.
All three graduate by next August and while they would like a career in the NFL, they are also pleased to have their degrees.
SB: I would like to coach maybe, but you have to put in so many hours.
AG: House, wife, kids, go work, earn a living.
AN: I want to get my master’s degree, but I agree with Andre.
You’ve done so many interviews over the past few years – what is one question you wish you could tell reporters ‘Please don’t ask me that again.’?
SB: Ask Andre that question first (then laughs).
AN: So, do you think you are going to beat you all’s opponents?
AG: How is Coach Holtz to play for?
SB: I had a guy ask me yesterday “Do you think this program will continue to go in the right direction or is your class so good that it will go in the other direction? Now be honest with me.”
Final words:
AG: I love it and I’m gonna miss it, but it’s time to go.
AN: There’s a time in your life when it’s time to go. I am going to miss it, these guys, but it’s time to move on.
Later, we visited with John Gutekunst, the defensive backs coach at USC the past three years.
What’s it been like to coach those three?
I don’t care who you are coaching the first year, you have to get to know each other first. Anytime you change the system, there’s a real relationship that has to be built quickly. I have to earn their trust. I have been spoiled. You can’t find three gentleman that are as dedicated to what they do as those three. They are great people on and off the field. They have been a great job. I have to figure out how I am going to replace them and get things done next year. I should also mention Kevin House, another senior. He is always first in every drill. He practices hard everyday. He played a lot two years ago. Played a little bit last year and some this year. All four of those kids have made my job with the younger kids so much easier. It’s simpler because the younger kids follow their example. They have set the tone.
What is a special memory of the three?
Andre coming back from his knee injury – one so severe I could only watch it once on tv. He worked so hard on rehab that when it came time for him to play again, he had to decide if he wanted to play again. We had to go through that. I will never forget the day he said ‘Coach, if I am going to go through this, I am going to be the best I can possibly be.’ There were bridges to cross with him and that’s special to see how far he has come. He has really come on and his tackling has gotten so much better. I believe he has knocked everybody backwards that he has tackled.
Those three care more about each other than themselves. You talk about being on time. Those kids would never want to hold up a meeting because there are eight or nine other kids in the room they would be holding up. It’s a genuine caring of other people and a respect for themselves that they won’t be a wink link.
What about special memories?
Antione was a guy who was a great football player. He was a full back and had to trim some weight off to play safety. He had to learn to play in space and make some adjustments. But all the players became tougher when he came over because he will hit you. The minute one guy is like that, the other guys believe there is a standard. This is what we are talking about.
Sheldon is a quiet kid, very talented, but beyond all that he makes plays that you don’t always coach – he just does it. The play against Clemson this year – when they were up 7-0 — Sheldon is on the backside and did what he was supposed to do. He sank off and read the field and used his eyes and bang. He gets it. He also impressed me with his preparation for the bowl. All three of them have.
Everybody else evaluates speed and breaking on the ball. I am always believe seeing the field is a real talent. Not just seeing one thing. Also intelligence is important. Learning the whole game is important.
It was very critical for us to win the Clemson game. That was very special. It was big for them. I will never forget seeing the team last year after winning the bowl game. I will never forget the look on their faces. It makes you sit back and enjoy it. Maybe that’s sign of old age too, you start to sick back and enjoy the little things more.
